I’ve said it before, but will say it again, Kelsey Kingsley has such a beautiful way with words. Her books are very special, because of the amazing characters she creates. They’re far from perfect, but you can’t help but love them before you’re even close to finishing the book.
Today is my post for the blog tour for her newest book, Forget the Stars. A big thanks to the author and Enticing Journey Book Tours for providing me with an ARC to read and review and for organizing this blog tour!
Guitarist Chad Wilcox’s life isn’t going according to plan.
I never know where to start when it comes to reviewing a book by this author. Kelsey Kingsley writes in a way that you connect with her stories emotionally. Forget the Stars is about Chad. A band member we’ve read about since Daisies & Devin and I’ve been curious about him for awhile.
Chad just turned thirty, still lives with his parents, has a girlfriend that doesn’t seem to want to commit and a stomach issue that seems to keep getting worse. With his birthday, he’s starting to wonder where his life is headed. Chad wants to settle down and start a family, but isn’t sure that will happen.
Molly is our other character and she’s quite amazing as well. She’s more of a free spirit and loves music. Her local music gig is something she loves. I love how down to earth she is and Molly can be a feisty one. This wasn’t always the case and she’s grown a lot since high school.
Forget the Stars has a dual POV and something that made me love it even more is the flashbacks to when Molly and Chad were younger. They grew up together (their mothers are best friends) and were friends and always together for the longest time. Until high school and they grew apart. I loved these moments, because it gave us an idea of the bond they always had.
This story has so many elements that made it great. We’ll start off with the fact that these characters are far from perfect. Chad is dealing with some stomach issues and hasn’t gone to see a doctor. His symptoms are becoming scary and he’s afraid. Not many authors choose characters with chronic illnesses, but I thought it’s amazing she did. A lot of people won’t talk about it, but shouldn’t feel ashamed of anything that’s going on. These things definitely need to be out in the open and how Chad deals with everything is amazing. The author shows all the sides of this. The pain, fear, frustration and maybe even denial from people around you. And even more important, that you are still able to follow your dreams.
Then we have a cast of amazing characters. Chad and Molly’s moms are a lot of fun and had me laughing out loud. The band even more so. I already loved Sebastian and this book made me love him even more. I love the sense of family you get when reading about them. I could easily read a whole book of them on tour! Characters are a big part of the book and these ones are amazing!!
Of course, we can’t forget Molly and Chad. Always being close and then not was hard. Maybe more so on Molly. I loved seeing them connect again and slowly start to trust each other again. Many may say their relationship went quickly, but some people are just meant to be. I think everything felt natural in this story and I loved them finding each other at the time they both needed it without even knowing it! Their relationship hits you in all the feels and hooks you from the start.
I think I’ll stop here though, because I could write a book about all my thoughts and feelings. All I know is that I can’t wait for the next book Kelsey gives us!
“There is just something about a vulnerable hero that gets me every time and Chad Wilcox was no exception. His pain becomes your pain thanks to Kelsey’s descriptive writing and the ability to invoke emotional pull. And, with a nickname like Chaddington Bear, he is everything.” – Bree, Goodreads reviewer
“I’m a big Kelsey fan, so I knew I’d love this book before knowing anything about it. What I didn’t know is how deep it would move me. I should have known though, because she always finds a way to break the mold and set a new standard of excellence.” – Katie, Goodreads reviewer
“This is one of those times I am thanking my lucky stars I took a chance on a new-to-me author. The writing was engaging, smart, and effortless to read. The storytelling was honest and sweetly addicting. I craved it when I wasn’t reading it, I wanted to sink into it for hours, lose time with these wonderful characters and their original, adorable, emotionally satisfying love story. I can’t say it enough: I loved it! I adored it! This is an absolute MUST read!” – Bookgasms Book Blog
