YA LGBT Books discussion

Our winner for Dec 2021- Jan 2022 Book of the month is If This Gets Out by Sophie Gonzales

Eighteen-year-olds Ruben Montez and Zach Knight are two members of the boy-band Saturday, one of the biggest acts in America. Along with their bandmates, Angel Phan and Jon Braxton, the four are teen heartbreakers in front of the cameras and best friends backstage. But privately, cracks are starting to form: their once-easy rapport is straining under the pressures of fame, and Ruben confides in Zach that he’s feeling smothered by management’s pressure to stay in the closet.

On a whirlwind tour through Europe, with both an unrelenting schedule and minimal supervision, Ruben and Zach come to rely on each other more and more, and their already close friendship evolves into a romance. But when they decide they’re ready to tell their fans and live freely, Zach and Ruben start to truly realize that they will never have the support of their management. How can they hold tight to each other when the whole world seems to want to come between them?

content warnings : I don't see any - let me know.

I look forward to seeing what our members think of this one. If you want to comment on something that may be a story spoiler, you can hide it by putting <*spoiler> (without the *) ahead of it, and <*/spoiler> (without the *) after it - eg. (view spoiler)[hide the info. (hide spoiler)]

This has been on my wtr shelf for a while.
The time has come.

Scott wrote: "This has been on my wtr shelf for a while.
The time has come."

Looking forward to what you think of it.

OMG, this book is everything! *incoherent flailing*

I’m literally obsessed and i even cried a few times

I hope to read this book soon!

Kendall wrote: "I’m literally obsessed and i even cried a few times"

dobbs wrote: "OMG, this book is everything! *incoherent flailing*"

Thank you both - incentive to move this one up my list.

I ordered it online and it arrived Friday. I had finished it by Saturday. Honestly it's such a good book. Although the premise is trashy, it deals with some darker themes and has a broader social relevance as well. It was cute, but I still wanted more sweet romantic sometimes, even though their scarcity is an important feature of the plot.

Ben wrote: "I ordered it online and it arrived Friday. I had finished it by Saturday. Honestly it's such a good book. Although the premise is trashy, it deals with some darker themes and has a broader social r..."

Good to hear, thanks for commenting. I hope to get to it soon. :)

I literally just put this book down. Okay, I may have taken a few minutes to compose myself. I'll need some more time to process before I think about a review, but these are some initial thoughts.

I went into If This Gets Out not expecting too much. I mean, c'mon, it's about a boy band. Screaming fans that melt over a molded and calculated product. And some of the beginning matched my expectations. But the story is really about the boys behind the band and what happens when they get tired of playing the roles they have been assigned.

After Red White and Royal Blue, which was entertaining but devoid of conflict, If This Gets Out was a pleasant surprise. Yes, it was at times full of saccharine sweetness, but it was a romance, and it was about a boy band, so I guess that's to be expected. But I wasn't expecting to identify with the characters as much as I did.

I don't scare easy and I may not be boy band material, but coming out as a US Marine was a bit scary. The message of this story is true for everyone. Just be yourself. And when you get tired of acting the way everyone expects you to, and you finally let them see the real you, there will be people who will stand by you and support you. And that is an awesome feeling.

Scott wrote: "I literally just put this book down. Okay, I may have taken a few minutes to compose myself. I'll need some more time to process before I think about a review, but these are some initial thoughts.
..."

What a great summary and thank you - I'd hesitated because I do like a little depth to the story (although RW&RB had just enough poignancy not to be too saccharine.) I'll have to move this one up.
And huge congrats for coming out as a Marine - I think it's a scary process for everyone, but that's definitely a high-stress context.

I loved the slow build of the romance between Reuben and Zach. I also enjoyed the relationship of the band members and how they tried to take care of each other when most of the adults in their world just treated them as a commodity. I saw some of myself in Zach, as I also sometimes put the needs of the people in my orbit ahead of my own. The relatable characters and solid plot made for a very enjoyable read.

Gene wrote: "I loved the slow build of the romance between Reuben and Zach. I also enjoyed the relationship of the band members and how they tried to take care of each other when most of the adults in their wor..."

<3 Good to hear. I like a slow burn to a romance part of the plot.

If This Gets Out is along with The Passing Playbook and Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun in the "YA" category semi-finals for the "Swoon Awards" - a minor romance award but none the less, fun to see some M/M in it, (especially in historical, but also some other categories.) You can still vote, if you care to.
https://www.theswoonawards.com/2022/0...

Thanks for the notice. And yes, it's great to see some M/M books were nominated.

I empathized with the main characters, and I did like this book, just not as much as I'd anticipated.