Monday, November 7, 2011

Amplified by Tara Kelly


Published: October 25, 2011 by Henry Holt & Co.
Received: Gifted by Jamie - thank you!
When privileged 17-year-old Jasmine gets kicked out of her house, she takes what is left of her savings and flees to Santa Cruz to pursue her dream of becoming a musician. Jasmine finds the ideal room in an oceanfront house, but she needs to convince the three guys living there that she's the perfect roommate and lead guitarist for their band, C-Side. Too bad she has major stage fright and the cute bassist doesn't think a spoiled girl from over the hill can hack it. . .

In this fresh new novel by critically acclaimed author Tara Kelly, Jasmine finds out what happens when her life gets Amplified. {taken from goodreads.com}

I first saw this book way back in February and quickly added it to my "to be read" list on goodreads.  Patiently waiting for it's release, and even more stoked when I saw the cover reveal - I thought, this book oozes Ginger like no other.  A YA contemp focused around music & cute boys, with a bit of teen angst thrown in?  Sign me up!

The story takes no time placing the reader in the middle of Jasmine's turmoil.  She's a seventeen year old girl who's just graduated high school and escaped the confines of her controlling father, in hopes of following her passion for music, and not his path he's chosen for her.  Jasmine has grown up without a mother, and doesn't rely on anyone but herself.  She thinks she's capable of creating a new life for herself with just her amp and her guitar, but fate has other plans for her.  With a broke down car and hardly any money in her pocket, she's found herself stranded in a California seaside town, and one very moody mechanic.

Jasmine lands herself an audition, along with a room to rent in an industrial rock band.  Immediately I was drawn to the characters in this band.  From the outspoken, kick-ass female singer, to the pompous, yet gorgeous & determined drummer... and then there's the bassist.  I will admit, I have a thing for a dude who plays bass.  There's just something about the rhythm, the intrigue, the talent that embodies a bass player.  Sean does not let me down, in any of those categories.  The friction between Jasmine and Sean sizzles from page to page.  Their relationship starts off rocky, both guarding themselves.  But little by little their walls start to break down.  Sean saw through Jasmine's tough exterior, and Jasmine noticed a broken heart that needed mending. 

As the story continues, the band plays on.  They're on the verge of making their break, but Jasmine could be the key to their success... or their failure.  She's harboring lies that could ultimately end their career before it even starts.  My heart really went out to her in these moments.  She's had to carry around so much, on her own, for such a long time.  Always having to live up to her father's expectations, and never feeling like she's good enough.  Eventually she can't keep up the facade, and her true colors start to show.  Some times it's better to let your guard down, ask for help.. than to hold it all in and attempt everything on your own.

Tara Kelly's writing kept me engaged from start to finish.  Her attention to detail with music was so interesting to me.  I'm a lover of all things music-related, so her description of instruments, sounds, melodies, and the overall package of a performance really grabbed my attention.  It was nicely incorporated with a story that was believable and characters that felt real to me.  I love a book that builds on tension and then delivers with passion and angst.  Amplified has all the elements of what I call a musically inspired coming of age story.




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20 comments:

  1. does anyone know where i can download this book? 

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  2. Can you get it on Kindle??

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  3. Lovely review! You've got me excited to read it :)

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  4. Preet @ A Written RhapsodyFebruary 1, 2012 at 7:52 PM

    I so badly want to read this! Can't wait to get a copy.

    Preet
    A Written Rhapsody

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  5. YAY I'll be getting this book at lunch today - can't wait to read it!

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  6. Oh, so glad to hear you liked this one. It looks AWESOME! I read Kelly's debut, Harmonic Feedback, and it was AWESOME. Like, seriously amazing so I cannot WAIT to read this one! Great review! :) 

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  7. I will without a doubt LOVE this book. I can already tell. The second you mentioned cute boys and music I was so, totally in!

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  8. yeah, this book is TOTALLY Ginger. so glad you loved it! and you KNOW i love a coming-of-age story. 

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  9. This one does look really good. It has music so how could it be bad? Plus? The MC and I share I name, so you KNOW I'm all over that :P

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  10. OOHH YAYAY! I love music related books (as you may well know that about me :P ) but I hadn't heard of this one! Going on the TBR especially since you luuurved it!

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  11. I was SO looking forward to your review about this book. It gets the G stamp, too, WOOT. So, this sizzle you're talking about, that translate to WOO TENSION and in my mind that means EXCELLENT NEWS.

    I've not yet read Kelly's work, but I think I'm going to start with this one!

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  12. This sounds like a fun one! Great review :)

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  13. hahahaha this is the best comment anyone has ever left me.

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  14. Adding it to my TBR pile now! You could probably recommend a book written on hamburger wrappers and bound with pizza box cover and I would read it if you said it was good. 

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  15. I'm so glad you liked this one. 
    I have it on my TBR pile too and it just sounds terrific!

    Thanks for your review. 

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  16. Great review! I've got this sitting on my shelf waiting to be read this week. I'm so glad you enjoyed it!

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  17. I've been dying to read this book since I saw the cover. Glad to hear it lives up.

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  18. Your review makes me want to read this book even more! It's been on my Wishlist for ages. For some reason there is no Kindle version of it though. I'm really not into buying print books these days, but if a Kindle version isn't released soon, I may have to get a copy of this. Ginger, you are such an enabler! LOL!

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  19. I put this on my TBR list a few months ago, mostly because I like the cover and for some reason it reminded me of Audrey Wait! Glad to see that you enjoyed it. I'm going to have to pick it up soon!

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  20. I hadn't heard of this one before. I share your love of anything musical so I think I might like this one. And who doesn't want to read about some sizzle with a cute boy. :) The cover is super cute. :)

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