LEAD (Stage Dive #3) by KYLIE SCOTT

Lick set the standard for the Stage Dive series for us. That story had the perfect balance of emotion, humour and character development. David and Ev stole our hearts, we ‘felt’ their story and it’s still one of our favourite rock star books out there!

Jimmy’s always been a fascinating character. The tortured soul in a band full of larks. HIS was the story we were dying to read. His was the story we felt was going to tug at the emotions and we expected to witness and feel his pain first hand. We thought this book was going to destroy us.  After all, Jimmy had demons he carried around for years and was personally responsible for nearly driving the band apart.  We did see the occasional glimpses but just expected more…..

Now, don’t get us wrong, we had plenty of laughs and there were certainly a couple of moments in Lead that pulled on our heartstrings but we missed the emotion that was so prevalent in the first book.

‘The man was cracking before my eyes and watching him come apart felt like torture.’

Whilst we certainly did enjoy Lead we feel the original formula is something we really miss and we’re beginning to think that maybe this lays on us. Maybe our expectations for the rest of the series following Lick have been mistaken and the mood and emotion which wow’ed us so incredibly much in Lick was not how the rest of the series was intended to play out and if so, then that’s on us.

‘Jimmy Ferris as an illegal, dangerous, controlled substance. Funnily enough, I could see it. The man affected me on all the levels no matter how much I tried to resist, damn it.’

****

****What we loved about LEAD****

~ Lena: She really stole the show in Lead. Her character was multi-faceted and as we only had her POV we really got to understand and empathise with her. Lena has very quickly become one of our favourite female characters out there. She was no-nonsense; feisty and honest. She knew what she wanted and she wouldn’t settle for second best.

~ The humour: Kylie Scott has a wicked sense of humour which really translates well on paper. She had us cracking up so many times we lost count.

“Your shirt is so ugly it made her cry.”

~ The romance: From Lena’s POV we got swept up in how her crush progressed to love through humour and forced circumstance. It was sweet, funny and quite emotional at times.

“You’re watching me all the time and it’s fucking creepy. I can’t take it anymore.”

~ Catching up with the whole crew especially David & Ev. The Stage Dive guys are something special!

~ Kylie’s flawless and excellent writing. We got swept up, no question.

“I can’t stand not having you there, not knowing what you’re thinking, what you’re doing, not being able to tell you things and share them with you.”

****

****What we felt was missing in LEAD****

~ Jimmy’s POV: We were told rather than left to experience therefore did not feel or get that emotional connection. Jimmy’s story is the one we were both so eagerly anticipating therefore we were disappointed not to get inside his head and feel his pain. Jimmy’s an addict; he’s struggling and has a real attitude problem. He’s the suffering rock star……we didn’t really feel this.

“So it’s preferable to live your life alone and unhappy?”

“Better than winding up broken. Better than breaking someone.”

~ The relationship between David and Jimmy: Though explored in Lead, once again, the emotion and angst felt by the brothers was missing. As this had always been alluded to throughout the books we were so looking forward to ‘feeling’ these moments and we didn’t.

~ The rock star element: There was none to speak of really. There was no musical setting where we felt the exhilaration of what rock star books should have.

Kylie Scott sure does produce characters who put a smile on our faces and warm our hearts. Lena was pure joy and a bloody good match for the wayward Jimmy. Although Lead didn’t pan out quite as we anticipated, it was most definitely an entertaining read and we certainly enjoyed it.

The Stage Dive series has been a lot of fun that’s for sure and we’ve enjoyed this series so far. We’re eagerly awaiting Ben’s book in December. We think we know what you’re up to Benny Boy and looking forward to seeing how your story unfolds.