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Book Review: This Beats Perfect by Rebecca Denton

Book Review: This Beats Perfect by Rebecca Denton

February 17, 2017 Posted by angelreads Book Reviews 3 Comments

This Beats PerfectThis Beats Perfect by Rebecca Denton

Pages: 288
Publish date: February 2nd, 2017
Publisher: Atom Books
ISBN: 034900272X
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU – Dymocks

Amelie Ayres has impeccable taste in music. Bowie. Bush. Bob. So when she finds herself backstage at The Keep’s only UK gig she expects to hate it; after all, they are world’s most tragic band. In fact, she feels a grudging respect – not (obviously) for their music, but for the work that goes into making them megastars. And when lead singer, ‘Maxx’, is not dressed up as a cross between Elvis and a My Little Pony, he is actually rather normal, talented and has creative struggles not too dissimilar to her own.

But the next morning she wakes up rolls over and discovers a million new @’s on social media. Overnight a photo of her backstage has made her a subject of global speculation. Suddenly the world needs to know #Who’sThatGirl? – but for all the wrong reasons.

All Amelie wants is to play her music. She’s got the guitar, the songs, the soul and, in the safety of her bedroom, she’s got the voice. But when it comes to getting up on stage, she struggles with self-doubt.

This Beats Perfect:

I received an ARC of This Beats Perfect by Rebecca Denton from Hachette Australia in exchange for an honest review. This has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book.

I didn’t really know what to expect when I started reading this book. I wasn’t expecting much, I just felt like a good read for summer. But, I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome. I sat by the pool for a couple of hours and finished with a smile on my face.

This Beats Perfect follows protagonist Amelie Ayres a music lover, who isn’t into your ‘typical’ teen music. But, when she’s allowed backstage at The Keeps only UK concert, it’s not what she expected. She doesn’t love their music, but respect them as musicians. And then she finds herself connecting with lead singing ‘Maxx’ over creative struggles. However, before all this – she is thrown to the sharks – or the media with the hashtag of #Who’sThatGirl. And boy bands, fans, new girls and social media don’t really mix.

I really enjoyed Amelie as the protagonist of This Beats Perfect. She has this love for music that is so strong, but her nerves always get the better of her. She feels like she home with the music and you can feel it while reading. The passion that she has shines through, but also the anxiety that comes with it. It’s nice to see anxiety presented in this way, as I don’t see it much in YA.  Amelie is totally relatable, and the reader feels for her the whole way through.

I really liked the sense of family and friendship throughout This Beats Perfect. I adored Amelie’s relationship with her dad. Even though he was always away for work and her parents weren’t together – it worked. They cared for each other and nice to see. The friendships that Amelie has before and builds throughout the book were also really nice to see. It’s getting g more and more comma to have these amazing friendships in YA nowadays and I am loving it.

The romance in This Beats Perfect was a little shaky for me. I really enjoyed them together but felt it moved a little too fast. They had some beautiful scenes together and I loved how Amelie and Max connected through music and what they believe in. It was nice and different to see.

I’ve read so many books (mostly on Wattpad) about girls and boy bands – but this was something different. There was something more than the girl and boy falling in love. It’s about finding yourself.

Something that would have been love the book, even more, if there wasn’t as many characters. This Beats Perfect ­felt overcrowded. I kept on forgetting who was who, what their jobs were. There was just a little too much.

Just a quick note, I really don’t like the cover – at all. It seems so outdated to me. The ARC cover, on the other hand, I loved.

Overall, I was so surprised with This Beats Perfect. It was fun, addicting and put a smile on my face. It explores the notions of finding yourself, loving what you do and finding those who will stand by you. It’s about family, friendship and those you love.

Have you read This Beats Perfect yet? Did you like it? Are you planning to read it? Are there books similar to this one that you love. Let’s Chat!

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  • Bec @ Readers in Wonderland
    · Reply

    February 17, 2017 at 7:58 PM

    I only learnt about this book a couple of days ago but it’s already on my list of “fluffy books I need to read some day” because the two reviews I read (including yours) have sold it to me. I’m not too keen on a fast developing romance BUT if I’m in a contemporary/ romance reading mood at the time I’m usually okay with it.

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  • Brittany
    · Reply

    February 18, 2017 at 6:10 AM

    This is my first time hearing about this book, so thanks for putting it on my radar! It sounds interesting 🙂 So glad you enjoyed it! Fantastic review 😀

    Brittany @ Brittany’s Book Rambles

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  • Katiria Rodriguez
    · Reply

    February 25, 2017 at 12:39 PM

    Ohh great review I do absolutely love books that have music in them I especially love when they have family and friends dynamic in it as well. This book looks and sounds absolutely fantastic and right up my alley. Thank you so much for your awesome post.

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📚15/150

I have a love-hate relationship with this series. I have a love-hate relationship with this series. But I ended up really enjoying this one. It’s best friends to fake dating to-lovers. It’s always been you, bad-boy/good-girl, and I loved that. While Save Your Breath has quite a few tropes, it really leads itself to it, and it works. 

Aleks and Mia have known each other for years now. Since they were teenagers, that angst has been building up this whole time. And you can tell right from the get-go, it’s fantastic. I even wanted more of it, because I love pain. When Aleks went to live with Mia’s family as a teenager, sparks flew, but for many reasons, they both put their feelings aside. And well, now they are not only going to be fake-dating, but they might as well be engaged, too. 

I really enjoyed seeing how both Aleks and Mia both tried to hide how they were feeling throughout the whole ‘fake-dating’ situation, but anyone could see it. They know each other as no one else does. Aleks has a lot going on, and while I do think this was brushed over a little too much, Mia is his centre. Mia is a massive music star and is a female in the industry, so yeah, people don’t respect her. Obvsiouly because why couldn’t a female star be badass and write about the things that she has gone through? Aleks and Mia get each other, and that is very clear from the start; they are both just trying to squash everything. We get to see them slowly start to show how they feel, and well, one night it all explodes. 

Overall, I enjoyed this one a lot; it’s not my favourite of the series, but I had a great time reading it. I liked Aleks and Mia a lot as characeters and while I think the mental health aspect could have been explored a whole lot more, I can see why it wasn’t. The romance was slow and spicy, the angst was great, and the payoff for these two was what they needed. 

Tropes
🏒Sports/Hockey Romance
🎤Fake Dating/Engagement
🏒Childhood Friends to Lovers
🎤Forced Proximity
🏒Athlete x Pop Star 
🎤Angsty Slow Burn 

Content Warnings
Mental Health Struggles 
Suicide Intention 
Family Deaths 
Alcohol Consumption
Violence on Ice

🏷️ 
#romancebooks #bookstagram  #angelreads #spicybooks #bookreview
Well February wasn’t the best reading month. I onl Well February wasn’t the best reading month. I only ended up reading 3 books in. 3 pretty fun books but one of my slowest readings months in a while. 

And I’m going to be honest here it’s because I’ve been constantly reading Heated Rivalry fanfics. 🤷‍♀️ I’m having the best time though. 

How was your reading in February? Any 5  star reads? 

🏷️ 
#romancebooks #bookstagram  #angelreads #spicybooks #februarywrapup
January was a really solid reading month. I read s January was a really solid reading month. I read some books that had been on my tbr for some time, reread a few things that peaked my interest. I also started a few new series. And just had a good time!

I just had a really good start to the year. While February is a little slow so far I’m looking forward to what I can pick up.

What did you read in January? Any 5-star reads? Let’s chat! 

🏷️ 
#romancebooks #bookstagram  #angelreads #spicybooks #januarywrapup
Can you believe that it’s already February? I know Can you believe that it’s already February? I know I can’t. But that means it’s a new month with more releases coming out! And that makes me excited. Some fantastic titles releasing this month and I cannot wait to read them. 📚

A couple of these are on my TBR already and some have just caught my eye and that makes me super excited to pick them up. 🖤

What are you looking forward to reading this month? Let’s chat! ✨

🏷️ 
#romancebooks #bookstagram  #angelreads #spicybooks #Februaryreleases2026
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