The Songs You've Never Heard by Becky Jerams and Ellie Wyatt

Description from Goodreads:

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.

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My Review:

I was so excited when I got approved to read this book through NetGalley. The premise sounded amazing and as a huge music lover, I was really excited. The book started really strong. I loved Meg immediately as a character. She was the best part of the book. The middle did get a little rough for me and I actually questioned whether I would drop reading the book or not. I powered through and I am so glad I did cause I really did end up loving it.

First, Meg. I loved her sarcasm and found her so relatable. Of course, I do not have a famous sibling, but I grew up used to plans changing and parents orbiting my siblings more than me. So, it was really easy to connect with her. I enjoyed seeing the songs that she loves and her writing process. I think the author did a great job of showing her relationships with the members of her family individually. It was great seeing the dynamic a bit and I especially loved seeing the dynamic between her and her brother develop throughout the book.

Not going to lie, Alana almost ruined the book for me. I found her really annoying. The author makes a huge point of Meg not having friends because people use her to get to her brother. When Alana is first introduced, all she pretty much talked about was Meg's brother and her music legacy. It was very off-putting and I could not understand why Meg would want to continue hanging out with her if she was sensitive about people talking about her brother. After Alana's celebrity crush was broken, she was 100% more likable. I thought she was endearing and I liked when she was vulnerable as it she became very relatable to me. I also thought their friendship was really beautiful. I love how they encouraged each other and worked together.

One other thing I wasn't a fan of was the hint of romance. Meg has a bit of a catfish romance (her being the catfish) with a guy from her school. I get it was more about her afraid of being herself more than about the romance itself, but I felt it took away from her character and the story. I pretty much skipped every conversation they had in the book as I did not care.

Overall, this book is a great read and if you are a music lover, definitely pick this book up. The only two things that bothered me were as mentioned earlier, Alana's introduction and the little romance, but honestly that was it. I absolutely adored everything else. If Becky Jerams and Ellie Wyatt write another book I would definitely love to read it.

Read this book? Tell me your thoughts below! Be sure to include your favorite song as well!!