Synopsis: Dual-written by K-pop hit writer Becky Jerams and BAFTA-winning children’s composer Ellie Wyatt,The Songs You’ve Never Heard is a debut YA novel that champions sisterhood, musical talent and body positivity. Perfect for fans of Estelle Maskame, Chris Russell and Taylor Swift.
How can two lost girls find their voices in a world that’s determined to keep them silent?
Meg McCarthy seems to be everything Alana Howard is not: rich, glamorous and – thanks to Caspar, her world-famous pop star brother – a social media influencer that every brand wants to sponsor.
While Meg is feeling trapped by the squeaky-clean McCarthy brand, plagued by online haters and too terrified to share her own talent with the world, songwriter Alana doesn’t seem to be scared of standing out.
But when Meg and Alana’s worlds collide, they learn that appearances can be deceiving.
Release Date: 16th June 2022
Genres: Teen, Young Adult, Music, Friendship, Coming of Age, Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 368
Thank you to Clock Tower / Sweet Cherry Publishing for the copy to read and review.
Review: This isn’t a book I would primarily pick up to read, it didn’t sound like my kinda book at all, but I was kindly sent it so I gave it a shot. Though I just didn’t sink into it and found it really hard to read.
Meg writes her songs secretly shadowed by her singer brother and the fame that follows him. Then she meets Alana and she helps her come out of her shell and share their love of music. The book was unique with it offering lyrics to the songs the character was writing. It’s so creative that that was included within the pages of the book. Probably the best part about it honestly and I think it’s great the songs will physically be recorded and brought out, teens will love putting the two together. Such a creative concept and I loved that.
The characters are awful first off I didn’t connect or like any of them, Our Protagonist is a stalking Catfish all so she can get closer to her crush who goes to her friggin school. Instead of all that unnecessary Catfishing the author could have just written an adorable meet cute and a sweet kind romance where the characters really become close in real life instead of this route. But wherever.
They were not nice characters at all in my opinion unfortunately, they didn’t seem to think before they do things at all from what I mentioned above, to the fact Matty gives out all his personal information to a stranger online, seriously? Just nope. To a girl enforcing the music on the other because of the families legacy I mean it’s a little much, yes she wrote but still chill on the pushing please. To the fat-phobic comments from the brother to her friend, not necessary. I found so many more red flags and bad things in this book regarding the characters plus they were really not great and I just found them dull and unlikable. I always find if I don’t like a character or multiple characters I struggle with a book as I don’t like off putting characters.
Now don’t get me wrong this book is going to be enjoyed by people I know that and I’m glad for that, pre-teens to early teens most likely would enjoy this, it’s just not a book for me, not my style, not my type of characters. It has celebrity, lots of music and playlists, online friendships, a growing deep friendship and a character with her own body positivity all that stuff is going to be very well liked by the right audience. I was just not that person for this book. I am also sure others will connect to the characters and really like some of them but not Casper I’m sure no one would like him.
So I’m glad I gave it a shot but I just knew it wasn’t going to be for me, but I appreciate that I was sent it.
About Author: Becky Jerams is a singer-songwriter and YA author from the coastal town of Portsmouth, UK. She has written songs for films, Disney TV shows, adverts and international artists including the popular K-pop group, Red Velvet. Becky began writing fiction and sharing her stories on Wattpad, where she gained over 2 million reads. Her passion for music and writing led Becky to co-author her debut ‘booksical’, The Songs You’ve Never Heard, a YA book accompanied by an album of songs. When she’s not writing, Becky enjoys watching films and going to the theatre with her husband, playing gigs and meeting artists in her local community.
About Author: Ellie Wyatt is a BAFTA-winning songwriter and musician from Brighton, UK. She has written music for a wide range of films, TV shows and adverts. Her musical journey first began with touring in a band, session work and teaching music, She then went on to become a professional composer creating numerous scores and themes tunes for CBeebies, Sesame Street and other children’s TV. Ellie’s musical friendship with Becky led to her co-authoring their debut ‘booksical’, The Songs You’ve Never Heard. Ellie is passionate about the arts and is a dedicated environmental campaigner. She loves living by the sea in the vibrant city of Brighton, UK, with her husband and daughter.
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