The Filipina Booknote

Originally posted at The Not-So-Literary Heiresses.

Facing the Music is one of those contemporary romance novels that’s easy to read and get into. I’ve read a lot of contemporaries that made me laze around and dragged days before I finish it but this book was not one of those. Though the story was not new, it was captivating and it made me love the idea of “second chance love” more.

Blake and Ivy had their first chance five years ago, but because of Blake’s inability to be patient he drove Ivy away making her write a song that no one imagined would be famous. Who would have thought that a calamity would reunite them and made them face what happened in the past five years.

Ivy was compared to Taylor Swift in this book because of her song “Size Matters”. She gained instant fame because of her song that describes Blake’s heart but was misunderstood as describing Blake’s manhood instead. I think this is the first time I came across a character like Ivy. I like that she used her broken heart to achieve her dreams, although I do not really approve some of her foolish decisions to date jerks just so that her past feelings for Blake would ignite again and in turn inspire her to write another song. Even if I did like her character I find it quite ironic that she thinks of herself too much of a victim after humiliating her ex-boyfriend through a song, in front of millions, or billions, of listeners. Haven’t she gathered enough courage and strength after five years of being famous?

He may have been a jerk and a coward but Blake definitely made it to my book boyfriend list. It was a total bummer that it took him five years to realize that Ivy was the one, but anyways I like him. His dreams of being an NHL superstar were crashed and yet he didn’t blame it on anyone else, especially on Ivy despite her song that totally blew his reputation. He realized his wrong doings and did everything he could to take Ivy back. He did not hold grudges and I think his character was more mature compared to Ivy. He loves his family and he has an adorable granny that helped him and Ivy get back together. His granny reminded me of The Bet by Rachel Van Dyken, because I like it when grandparents interevene in their grandchildren’s love life. And I meant that in a positive way.

The story wasn’t new at all but Andrea Laurence had her way of making readers want more. The characters weren’t whiny and did not dilly dally at all. She wrote honest characters that didn’t beat around the bush and I love that she did that. I started this past midnight just before going to sleep and later after a “few” chapters the sun’s already rising. It was very hard to put down once you get into it. The new relationship she built around Ivy and Blake was convincing and it didn’t matter that the concept of the book wasn’t new.

There are times I think the conflict went overboard, but I think Lydia as the antagonist prove her worth. This little b*tch was so annoying I wanted her gone and eaten by monsters, Arum, aliens, whatever. I just want her gone, and looking back I think she did her job well as a big fat conflict because she annoyed me like hell.

Although I love the story to bits and liked the way this was written, the ending disappointed me. I was already feeling their love, their passion and their desperation for each other but somehow their “final” getting back together seemed so weak compared to how they were picking up their relationship before the big fight. It felt rushed and I wish it was more convincing because it didn’t seem enough for me. We’re talking about a girl who lost her trust to the only man she ever loved, and them getting back together through a declaration of love seemed petty. I know the author tried to put some elements that would make it look like they didn’t jump into it immediately but I hope she put something more to make it more convincing and realistic.

Overall, I loved the story and the way the author executed this except for the ending. You know that feeling when your riding a rollercoaster and you feel excited with it just going up and then suddenly feel disappointed because you found out that it will just be going around and not roll down like you expected? I felt exactly like this. But don't fret, it was still a good read and I don’t regret reading this because I totally loved it despite the disappointing ending.