Making the Cut

Soul of the Band #1

by K.L. Brady

Reviewer's Choice (August 2012), Midwest Book Review Children's Bookwatch - "Soul of the Band a strongly recommended pick for young readers, highly recommended." Music-loving 16-year-old Brandy Jackson has had it up to here with "they"--the annoying voices inside her mother's head. She isolates herself from the dreaded schizophrenic episodes with Beethoven and her iPod. Her long-suppressed desire to learn music is squelched by the burden of mental illness, at least until she arrives home from school to find her belongings on the DC streets and her mother vanished. Fortunately, Aunt Charlie comes to her rescue and moves her to Mapleton, Ohio, where she begins a new life free of her troubled past—or so she thinks. Brandy’s plans to fly under the radar at school in order to conceal her family's shame are quashed when Jenny Lee, her new next-door neighbor and a flutist, recognizes Brandy's musical obsession and urges her to join the all-white high school marching band. Brandy obliges and soon realizes she’s traded her old troubles for new ones. Now, she stands out like a chocolate chip floating in a sea of milk; she has less than three months to learn to play her dreaded tuba-—her only ticket to earn a spot on the band; and a near kiss with the Queen B’s boyfriend lands her in triple trouble with the popular chick clique. But when another band member’s failed plot to get rid of his nemesis unexpectedly leaves Brandy in contention for the band’s most coveted position, the ensuing drama will give her the strength rise above her circumstances—or leave her paralyzed in the shame of her past.

260 pages, Paperback

First published February 7, 2012

About the author

K. L. Brady is a D.C. native but spent a number of her formative years in the Ohio Valley. She’s an alumnus of the University of the District of Columbia and University of Maryland University College, earning a B.A. in Economics and M.B.A., respectively. A lifelong Washington football fan, she's a professed nerd-girl who loves all things Star Trek, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and Big Bang Theory. She's a member of Romance Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, the Maryland Writers Association, and Sisters in Crime and lives to write novels, especially those involving hilarious quirky characters looking for love. She is hard at work on her next several projects including the sequels to HER PERFECT CATCH (part of the Valentine's Pets and Kisses box set) because girls love football, too!

Reviews

[Ren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review to be posted on the blog June 16th, 2012 A Little Bit of R&R Reviews
Lets start from the beginning. Brandy lives in DC with her mother and things have always been rough. Problem is, Brandy's mother is mentally ill. When she doesn't take her medication, "they" make her do things. "They" being the voices in her head. Brandy's father left them when she was 10 because he couldn't deal with her mothers illness. They are often evicted because her mother does foolish things instead of paying the rent. This time, her mother decides to check herself into a hospital. Brandy believes that this will be like every other time, she'll get better then stop taking her medication. Brandy leaves DC to stay with her Aunt Charlie in Ohio.

Brandy doesn't just love music, she lives music; it's what gets her through the bad times. Moving to Ohio, she meets her new neighbor, Jenny. Jenny convinces her to join the school band. Brandy thinks this may be just what she needs to forget about her life in DC, albeit she doesn't know how to play any instruments. How hard could it be, right? Then there's Jake, the hottie from the percussion section. They start to date and everything is great...until the threatening letters start. Someone isn't happy with their interracial relationship.

Moving on...

Brandy has been learning to play the tuba but is unhappy with the situation the band is in. I won't say what situation, you will have to read it to find that out :-). After an unfortunate mishap, a spot opens up for the field commander.

Will Brandy try out for field commander and help the band?

What will transpire with Brandy's relationship with Jake?

Now for what I thought of the book..

This book is perfect for the Young Adult genre! I can't recall the last time I read a YA novel that was appropriate for all teens. I can't speak for teens because it has been quite a while since I was one, but I enjoyed this book immensely! I love how the character Brandy was written. She was so spunky and I was constantly laughing my butt off. The problems that Brandy faced in the book were so real. It's a shame that this is reality for some people. I was on the very last page and I was very close to screaming my head off. I didn't realize that this book was going to be part of a series. When I read the description on Goodreads, the title doesn't show that its #1 in the series. Well long story short, I was ready to yell at Ms. Brady for ending her book that way. Well, Facebook has proved to be quite a useful tool because I can now rest easy. I need to know what happens!! I'm very happy there will be more of Brandy's story to read. I would definitely recommend this to any teenager that asks for a suggestion. But I think you should read it even if you are an adult...it was very entertaining. Thank you, K.L Brady!

[Bookish Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

**Review to be posted on my blog on June 21.**
Soul of the Band: Making the Cut is an enjoyable and realistic YA read. What attracted me to this book was the sparkling stuff on the cover and then the title caught my eye. A band? Is this something related to music? Definitely! It's about Brandy joining a marching band and what she went through to attain the position of the field commander. Oh... I'm craving for some crazy band marching formation! Of course there's some romantic relationship going on. I mean, which YA book doesn't?

Brandy loved music and seemed to be familiar with a few classical. In addition, she's also ashamed of her mother's condition. She's lucky enough to have Aunt Charlie coming to her rescue after she was evicted out of the house after her mom went missing. Turns out that her mom checked into the hospital to get treatment but that didn't mean that Brandy was ready to forgive and forget.

Brandy met Jenny, her neighbour and school mate, who encouraged Brandy to join the school band because of her love for music. Of course Brandy took up the offer but the trouble started there when she was attracted to Jake at first sight and he happened to be on the band too. What's worse was that Jake was currently dating the prettiest and most popular in school. He did try to uncomplicate things between him and Shelly but will it work? There's another guy, Dorian, who seemed to be interested in Brandy as well. Why wouldn't she consider him? And what's with the threatening letters that Brandy was receiving? I'll leave you to read that on your own since I didn't want to divulge too much information.

Overall, the pace of the story was just right for most parts of the book except when it comes to the ending which left me with a gasp, a gaping mouth and then a frown. The ending was unexpected and abrupt, leaving some questions unanswered. However, it does makes a great opening for book 2 of the series which I'm looking forward to reading to find out what would happen to Brandy. It'll also be great if we can get to learn more about Dorian too. I think there's too little of him in this book and he could turn out to be an interesting character as well. The author has also injected touches of humor into the book. Some scenes are fun to read! Always great to read about a main character with some spunk in her who never give up in pursuing what she really wants. Contemporary readers and music lovers will enjoy this book.

Disclosure: I received an ecopy from the author in exchange for an honest review as part of the blog tour.

[☠︎︎༒︎✞︎ ѕℓιм ☠︎︎༒︎✞︎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book had me laughing the whole time I was reading it. even though I hate stanking a** bullies..

[Heaven Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it

Even though it's not a lot of "action" I love the realism this story portrays. It's a nice mellow read and it kept me hooked to the end. I just can't believe it ended like that. I hope there is a second part to it!

[Leigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great story. I liked and related to Brandy and the way she dealt with her problems. Really liked the plot and writing. Add believable characters and you get a wonderful book. I received this book for free through a Goodreads First Reads give away.

[Chesky_division · Rating 3 out of 5]

I look forward to the sequel. In the spirit of the movies "bring it".

[Dami · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was hilarious. I was laughing throughout the book. I like books where the author can his or her reader laugh, cry etc. this book was worth reading.

[Kat]

I was a huge fan of the band in high school! When they step on the field, the world holds their breath. Needless to say when I saw this book I had to have it. I don't think bands get enough representation in YA even though it's freaking awesome.