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The Sound of Us
Kiki Nichols might not survive music camp.
She’s put her TV-loving, nerdy self aside for one summer to prove she’s got what it takes: she can be cool enough to make friends, she can earn that music scholarship, and she can get into Krause University’s music program.
Except camp has rigid conduct rules—which means her thrilling late-night jam session with the hot drummer can’t happen again, even though they love all the same TV shows, and fifteen minutes making music with him meant more than every aria she’s ever sung.
But when someone starts snitching on rule breakers and getting them kicked out, music camp turns into survival of the fittest. If Kiki’s going to get that scholarship, her chance to make true friends—and her chance with the drummer guy—might cost her the future she wants more than anything.
She’s put her TV-loving, nerdy self aside for one summer to prove she’s got what it takes: she can be cool enough to make friends, she can earn that music scholarship, and she can get into Krause University’s music program.
Except camp has rigid conduct rules—which means her thrilling late-night jam session with the hot drummer can’t happen again, even though they love all the same TV shows, and fifteen minutes making music with him meant more than every aria she’s ever sung.
But when someone starts snitching on rule breakers and getting them kicked out, music camp turns into survival of the fittest. If Kiki’s going to get that scholarship, her chance to make true friends—and her chance with the drummer guy—might cost her the future she wants more than anything.
304 pages, Paperback
First published June 7, 2016
12 people are currently reading
1227 people want to read
About the author
Julie Hammerle
9 books248 followersUSA Today best-selling, RITA nominated author Julie Hammerle writes romantic comedies for adults and teens. Before settling down to write "for real," she studied opera, taught Latin, and held her real estate license for one hot minute. Currently, aside from writing, she ropes people into conversations about Game of Thrones and makes excuses to avoid the gym. Her favorite YA-centric TV shows include 90210 (original spice), Felicity, and Freaks and Geeks. Her iPod reads like a 1997 Lilith Fair set list.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 114 reviews
May 29, 2016
I received an e-arc copy via NetGalley. Thank you NetGalley and Entangled: Teen.
When I saw the cover of The Sound of Us I was immediately hooked. It's just beautiful. So many YA contemporaries have a really ugly cover but this one is definitely well done. But we don't read books because of their cover, right? (well, sometimes ...)
The Sound of Us tells the story of Kiki, a girl who is spending her summer practising her singing skills in opera summer camp. This combines some of my most favourite things - summer, singing and camping. I was sure this story would be very cute and I was not disappointed.
As I am singer myself (not opera though), I could get what Kiki is going through. I really liked her character. In a way she reminded me of Emily from Since You've Been Gone - always in a shadow of her (ex)best friend, a little bit socially awkward but otherwise a very interesting person who just thinks she's completely plain.
I did enjoy the amount of Twitter that's in this book. Sometimes I get the feeling that social platforms are completely left out of YA contemporaries which is weird because social platforms are parts of young adults' lives.
I really enjoyed the whole story, of course there was a romance but I felt it was well developed - it was afraid it'S going to be an insta-love thing because those two characters did have an instant connection but their "relationship" did develop slowly and it wasn't rushed.
Of course, there was a certain amount of teenage drama - well what else would get the plot moving,right? Buut again, I didn't find it horrible. The only thing that was kind of implausible to me was the insane strick rules of the summer camp.
Overall I liked this story very much, I think it is a perfect light summer read! I can definitely recommend it! :)
When I saw the cover of The Sound of Us I was immediately hooked. It's just beautiful. So many YA contemporaries have a really ugly cover but this one is definitely well done. But we don't read books because of their cover, right? (well, sometimes ...)
The Sound of Us tells the story of Kiki, a girl who is spending her summer practising her singing skills in opera summer camp. This combines some of my most favourite things - summer, singing and camping. I was sure this story would be very cute and I was not disappointed.
As I am singer myself (not opera though), I could get what Kiki is going through. I really liked her character. In a way she reminded me of Emily from Since You've Been Gone - always in a shadow of her (ex)best friend, a little bit socially awkward but otherwise a very interesting person who just thinks she's completely plain.
I did enjoy the amount of Twitter that's in this book. Sometimes I get the feeling that social platforms are completely left out of YA contemporaries which is weird because social platforms are parts of young adults' lives.
I really enjoyed the whole story, of course there was a romance but I felt it was well developed - it was afraid it'S going to be an insta-love thing because those two characters did have an instant connection but their "relationship" did develop slowly and it wasn't rushed.
Of course, there was a certain amount of teenage drama - well what else would get the plot moving,right? Buut again, I didn't find it horrible. The only thing that was kind of implausible to me was the insane strick rules of the summer camp.
Overall I liked this story very much, I think it is a perfect light summer read! I can definitely recommend it! :)
February 12, 2016
Funny and fast-paced music-based romance that soars on the strong, dynamic voice of its main protagonist.
March 21, 2017
Seriously, a book about a music camp, sign me up! Now, this isn’t your typical music camp (think Band Camp from Disney, or even American Pie), this is a highly competitive opera camp. Different, right? Opera is not really a genre of music that the young adult community talks about. I mean, I can honestly tell you that I know nothing about opera except that it’s mostly sung in another language.
The Sound of Us follows Kiki on her journey to be one of the coveted recipients of a musical scholarship to the Krause University music program. When Kiki arrives, she’s mostly in the shadow of her sister who went to the camp previously, won one of the scholarships, and generally wooed everyone all around. But that’s not Kiki. Kiki, while loving opera, also loves being a nerd. She loves marathoning her favorite TV show and then immediately hoping on Twitter to discuss it indepthly with her thousands of followers. I guess you could say that she’s Twitter famous in that fandom. But put her with real people, in real situations, and she clams up, hiding her nerdiness so that people will like her.
While this is a story about music, it’s also a story about growing up. On her first day, Kiki is thrust into situations where she must interact with people and make friends. Over the course of the book, she comes to realize that the people that she’s meeting like her for her and not just because she’s a great singer. And then there’s of course the boys. A late night meeting with mysterious drummer boy Jack, leads to a jam session that has Kiki thinking of no one else but him – to the point that it affects her music. She’s pretty sure Jack felt the same since he wants to continue the jam sessions. The only problem with this, opera camp has strict rules. One being, no singing anything that isn’t opera. And well, I’m sure you can guess that their jam sessions aren’t opera related. And go figure, there’s a snitch amongst the bunch. But with the competition this fierce and the stakes extremely high, obviously sabotage is going to come to play.
Overall, I felt this was a solid fun book. Kiki was likeable. There were times that she bothered me and she made reckless decisions (but hey, she’s a teen). The author wrote her in a way that was real for her age. As a nerd of many fandoms myself, I felt a connection to Kiki when she was describing her love and obsession with her favorite TV show. The side characters were fun and their personalities just filled the spaces of the camp. But once again, communication! So many things could have been avoided if people would have just talked!!
Also, can I say that I enjoyed the pop culture references? Especially this one,
"Today he’s dressed like Mitchell, but his head and body are all Seth Green on Buffy."
My love for Buffy knows no bounds. Anyway. Mostly, this book had me all happy like:
The Sound of Us follows Kiki on her journey to be one of the coveted recipients of a musical scholarship to the Krause University music program. When Kiki arrives, she’s mostly in the shadow of her sister who went to the camp previously, won one of the scholarships, and generally wooed everyone all around. But that’s not Kiki. Kiki, while loving opera, also loves being a nerd. She loves marathoning her favorite TV show and then immediately hoping on Twitter to discuss it indepthly with her thousands of followers. I guess you could say that she’s Twitter famous in that fandom. But put her with real people, in real situations, and she clams up, hiding her nerdiness so that people will like her.
While this is a story about music, it’s also a story about growing up. On her first day, Kiki is thrust into situations where she must interact with people and make friends. Over the course of the book, she comes to realize that the people that she’s meeting like her for her and not just because she’s a great singer. And then there’s of course the boys. A late night meeting with mysterious drummer boy Jack, leads to a jam session that has Kiki thinking of no one else but him – to the point that it affects her music. She’s pretty sure Jack felt the same since he wants to continue the jam sessions. The only problem with this, opera camp has strict rules. One being, no singing anything that isn’t opera. And well, I’m sure you can guess that their jam sessions aren’t opera related. And go figure, there’s a snitch amongst the bunch. But with the competition this fierce and the stakes extremely high, obviously sabotage is going to come to play.
Overall, I felt this was a solid fun book. Kiki was likeable. There were times that she bothered me and she made reckless decisions (but hey, she’s a teen). The author wrote her in a way that was real for her age. As a nerd of many fandoms myself, I felt a connection to Kiki when she was describing her love and obsession with her favorite TV show. The side characters were fun and their personalities just filled the spaces of the camp. But once again, communication! So many things could have been avoided if people would have just talked!!
Also, can I say that I enjoyed the pop culture references? Especially this one,
"Today he’s dressed like Mitchell, but his head and body are all Seth Green on Buffy."
My love for Buffy knows no bounds. Anyway. Mostly, this book had me all happy like:
May 28, 2016
*This review will also appear on A Leisure Moment*
**I received an e-ARC of this book from Entangled Teen via NetGalley**
Singing is serious business, you guys. When I received this book from Entangled Teen via NetGalley, I expected the serious. I anticipated young hopefuls vying for one of seven scholarships to study opera for four years of college. The competition, the stress, and the friendships formed by understanding and commonplace was expected. However, I did not expect it to be so funny. This book had me laughing and smiling, and the narrator, Kiki, kept things interesting. The idea of young opera singers already had a certain je ne sais quoi, spice it up with a Netflix, Twitter obsessed introvert, and it’s golden.
Tullia Cicero—pronounced with a hard C, like the Greeks—“Kiki” Nichols never finished anything but a Planet Earth binge on Netflix. Piano lessons? Quit. Guitar lessons? Quit. Maker of dollhouse furniture? You guessed it—she quit that, too. She couldn’t find her niche, and I loved her for it. That’s the thing about finding your place, once you find it, awesome. Until then, you go around wondering, “What the heck am I doing with my life?” Whether your still in that place or have found your way, you can relate to her.
Opera was Kiki’s fallback, the thing that she could easily love doing because she loved music. Except, getting into opera camp was a way for her to get away from her ex-best friend and crush-stealer, Beth. Six weeks of hard work, singing that made her want to pull her hair out, and an existential crisis thrown in there from time to time, and Kiki came into her own. I liked watching her grow as a person but not lose the Kiki that made me laugh out loud and smile. The Twitter conversations at the beginning of each chapter added to the story and almost acted like another character. With frizzy hair, a unique sense of style, and unabashed fangirling, try not to love her.
It’s not camp if there’s not a summer fling, right? There’s something fascinating about summer love, and camp love is so inevitable and cliché that it’s bound to happen even at opera camp. It’s no wonder that Kiki fell for a guy that she had a musical connection to, and I loved her Nutty Bar guy. I liked figuring out his name, his place, and all the stuff in between (though I’m not sure I ever learned his last name?). I honestly didn’t expect all the twists and turns their relationship had, and while I loved it, there better be a sequel. I need more Nutty Bar guy, or Jack, if you prefer to call him by his actual moniker, because that ending just didn’t leave me satisfied—it left me hungry for more.
Maybe the sequel will be about Kiki’s first year in college? I sure hope so. A character as full of life and as real as her needs more to their story. I’m so glad that this book exceeded my expectations, and I kind of wish Planet Earth was a real show because it’s totally something I would watch. This book should make it to your must-read list of this summer. Nothing screams summer like German opera and awkward first kisses—like I said, laugh-out-loud funny.
**I received an e-ARC of this book from Entangled Teen via NetGalley**
Singing is serious business, you guys. When I received this book from Entangled Teen via NetGalley, I expected the serious. I anticipated young hopefuls vying for one of seven scholarships to study opera for four years of college. The competition, the stress, and the friendships formed by understanding and commonplace was expected. However, I did not expect it to be so funny. This book had me laughing and smiling, and the narrator, Kiki, kept things interesting. The idea of young opera singers already had a certain je ne sais quoi, spice it up with a Netflix, Twitter obsessed introvert, and it’s golden.
Tullia Cicero—pronounced with a hard C, like the Greeks—“Kiki” Nichols never finished anything but a Planet Earth binge on Netflix. Piano lessons? Quit. Guitar lessons? Quit. Maker of dollhouse furniture? You guessed it—she quit that, too. She couldn’t find her niche, and I loved her for it. That’s the thing about finding your place, once you find it, awesome. Until then, you go around wondering, “What the heck am I doing with my life?” Whether your still in that place or have found your way, you can relate to her.
Opera was Kiki’s fallback, the thing that she could easily love doing because she loved music. Except, getting into opera camp was a way for her to get away from her ex-best friend and crush-stealer, Beth. Six weeks of hard work, singing that made her want to pull her hair out, and an existential crisis thrown in there from time to time, and Kiki came into her own. I liked watching her grow as a person but not lose the Kiki that made me laugh out loud and smile. The Twitter conversations at the beginning of each chapter added to the story and almost acted like another character. With frizzy hair, a unique sense of style, and unabashed fangirling, try not to love her.
It’s not camp if there’s not a summer fling, right? There’s something fascinating about summer love, and camp love is so inevitable and cliché that it’s bound to happen even at opera camp. It’s no wonder that Kiki fell for a guy that she had a musical connection to, and I loved her Nutty Bar guy. I liked figuring out his name, his place, and all the stuff in between (though I’m not sure I ever learned his last name?). I honestly didn’t expect all the twists and turns their relationship had, and while I loved it, there better be a sequel. I need more Nutty Bar guy, or Jack, if you prefer to call him by his actual moniker, because that ending just didn’t leave me satisfied—it left me hungry for more.
Maybe the sequel will be about Kiki’s first year in college? I sure hope so. A character as full of life and as real as her needs more to their story. I’m so glad that this book exceeded my expectations, and I kind of wish Planet Earth was a real show because it’s totally something I would watch. This book should make it to your must-read list of this summer. Nothing screams summer like German opera and awkward first kisses—like I said, laugh-out-loud funny.
May 24, 2016
Can I just say that I loved this book?!? I loved Kiki's secret life as part of the Project Earth fandom as well as her seemingly encyclopedic knowledge of all things TV. I loved how she grows over the course of camp and comes to learn who she is and what she wants to be - this is coming of age writ large.
If you love music, Pitch Perfect, or High School Musical, then pick this up on June 7th!
If you love music, Pitch Perfect, or High School Musical, then pick this up on June 7th!
March 8, 2017
The Sound of Us was full of passion, friendships, and finding confidence within yourself.
"But that's life. Whichever road you choose, you're going to be missing out on something."
Kiki, our main character, is at opera camp for the summer where she is competing for 1 scholarship out of 7 being given away. Kiki is a quirky, easy-going, TV obsessed nerd, and is such a fun character to read about! I instantly loved her because she was so easy to relate to. She's passionate and her dream is to sing, her only wish in life is for music to be her future - her life.
The competition is next level at this camp though, and Kiki finds herself surrounded by amazing singers. She doesn't have a lot of confidence in herself, which is clear, because she's obviously amazing when she makes it into the top voice class at camp.
Once we get to know more about Kiki and where she comes from, the story really begins to blend together well with the other characters. Kiki starts to branch out of her little bubble and make new friends at camp. This book is so refreshing when it comes to the friendships that Kiki makes during the summer. At first I was a little worried there would be girl-on-girl hate, especially since this is a competition, but every friendship is developed naturally. It was nice to see how these characters supported one another when the competition became overwhelming for them.
Of course there is a lot of drama between them, but it's all about how they work together and get over incidents - together.. And the friendships aren't the only relationships growing within the story! Kiki meets a boy. There's always a boy, right? Well, I won't spoil too much about this boy but I think the romance aspect of the story blends in perfectly with Kiki's own story of growth. It wasn't just a filler, the romance helped make Kiki a better person, for herself.
The story wraps up in a beautiful way. There's more drama and revelations but there's also growth and love that stems from all of it. I truly enjoyed Kiki's story. I think Julie Hammerle perfectly captured Kiki's passion through her singing, and wrote a beautiful story about growing up and finding your own confidence within. Hammerle develops Kiki in such a natural way that you couldn't help but appreciate the writing, especially at the very end.
Kiki always stays true to her character, and I think that is what I loved so much about this book. It was about more than just finding love or friends. It was about Kiki learning how to find herself and be okay with that person she found.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys books about music/singing or contemporaries!
"But that's life. Whichever road you choose, you're going to be missing out on something."
Kiki, our main character, is at opera camp for the summer where she is competing for 1 scholarship out of 7 being given away. Kiki is a quirky, easy-going, TV obsessed nerd, and is such a fun character to read about! I instantly loved her because she was so easy to relate to. She's passionate and her dream is to sing, her only wish in life is for music to be her future - her life.
The competition is next level at this camp though, and Kiki finds herself surrounded by amazing singers. She doesn't have a lot of confidence in herself, which is clear, because she's obviously amazing when she makes it into the top voice class at camp.
Once we get to know more about Kiki and where she comes from, the story really begins to blend together well with the other characters. Kiki starts to branch out of her little bubble and make new friends at camp. This book is so refreshing when it comes to the friendships that Kiki makes during the summer. At first I was a little worried there would be girl-on-girl hate, especially since this is a competition, but every friendship is developed naturally. It was nice to see how these characters supported one another when the competition became overwhelming for them.
Of course there is a lot of drama between them, but it's all about how they work together and get over incidents - together.. And the friendships aren't the only relationships growing within the story! Kiki meets a boy. There's always a boy, right? Well, I won't spoil too much about this boy but I think the romance aspect of the story blends in perfectly with Kiki's own story of growth. It wasn't just a filler, the romance helped make Kiki a better person, for herself.
The story wraps up in a beautiful way. There's more drama and revelations but there's also growth and love that stems from all of it. I truly enjoyed Kiki's story. I think Julie Hammerle perfectly captured Kiki's passion through her singing, and wrote a beautiful story about growing up and finding your own confidence within. Hammerle develops Kiki in such a natural way that you couldn't help but appreciate the writing, especially at the very end.
Kiki always stays true to her character, and I think that is what I loved so much about this book. It was about more than just finding love or friends. It was about Kiki learning how to find herself and be okay with that person she found.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys books about music/singing or contemporaries!
June 7, 2016
Originally posted over at Lekeisha the Booknerd
The Sound of Us starts off with promise, goes a little haywire in the middle, and finishes with a flourish. I love the setting of music camp for pre-college students at the university. Lots of interesting characters running around, but there’s also lots of cattiness. Kiki is one of those indecisive protagonists who can’t decide on whether to be the dutiful girl, or to spread her wings and fly. I actually liked both sides, but for very different reasons. With this scholarship on the line, Kiki can’t afford to break the rules just to have jam sessions with Jack the drummer. On the other hand, she is also in dire need of having a social circle while maintaining her focus on music. She was so conflicted throughout, but decided to sneak around and try not to get caught.
Kiki lost her best friend Beth because she got into the summer music camp and Beth didn’t. On top of that friendship ending, Beth starts dating the guy that Kiki has a crush on. I already hated Beth from the very first page when Kiki recalls some of their conversations. I do not like jealous best friends. Beth reminds me a lot of Nan from My Life Next Door, which I’ll be reviewing tomorrow. Beth stole the music piece that Kiki was supposed to memorize for camp, so Kiki was a little unprepared when she got there. Not cool. Kiki’s days are filled with all things music and fangirling about her favorite show, Planet Earth. I love all the fangirl/fanboy going on throughout. I think that is what endeared me to these characters, because I can definitely relate. Not everyone gets it when you are passionate about fictional characters. It’s another reason why Kiki and Beth are no longer friends.
The snitching and sabotaging was a bit much. I’ve never understood the lengths that people go through to obtain the top spot. In this case, it’s to be one of seven scholarship recipients for the music program at Krause University. Do these kids not believe in karma? It was pretty crazy. Kiki learned a lot about herself during those six weeks of camp. She was determined to prove her parents and Beth wrong. I love the relationship that Kiki has with her sister, but I also got why she was trying to be her own person and not live in her sister’s shadow. I loved the writing and it was a pretty fast read. I’m sure this won’t be the last book that I read from this author. If you are looking for some YA to add to your summer reading list, The Sound of Us would make a nice addition. Definitely recommend!
The Sound of Us starts off with promise, goes a little haywire in the middle, and finishes with a flourish. I love the setting of music camp for pre-college students at the university. Lots of interesting characters running around, but there’s also lots of cattiness. Kiki is one of those indecisive protagonists who can’t decide on whether to be the dutiful girl, or to spread her wings and fly. I actually liked both sides, but for very different reasons. With this scholarship on the line, Kiki can’t afford to break the rules just to have jam sessions with Jack the drummer. On the other hand, she is also in dire need of having a social circle while maintaining her focus on music. She was so conflicted throughout, but decided to sneak around and try not to get caught.
Kiki lost her best friend Beth because she got into the summer music camp and Beth didn’t. On top of that friendship ending, Beth starts dating the guy that Kiki has a crush on. I already hated Beth from the very first page when Kiki recalls some of their conversations. I do not like jealous best friends. Beth reminds me a lot of Nan from My Life Next Door, which I’ll be reviewing tomorrow. Beth stole the music piece that Kiki was supposed to memorize for camp, so Kiki was a little unprepared when she got there. Not cool. Kiki’s days are filled with all things music and fangirling about her favorite show, Planet Earth. I love all the fangirl/fanboy going on throughout. I think that is what endeared me to these characters, because I can definitely relate. Not everyone gets it when you are passionate about fictional characters. It’s another reason why Kiki and Beth are no longer friends.
The snitching and sabotaging was a bit much. I’ve never understood the lengths that people go through to obtain the top spot. In this case, it’s to be one of seven scholarship recipients for the music program at Krause University. Do these kids not believe in karma? It was pretty crazy. Kiki learned a lot about herself during those six weeks of camp. She was determined to prove her parents and Beth wrong. I love the relationship that Kiki has with her sister, but I also got why she was trying to be her own person and not live in her sister’s shadow. I loved the writing and it was a pretty fast read. I’m sure this won’t be the last book that I read from this author. If you are looking for some YA to add to your summer reading list, The Sound of Us would make a nice addition. Definitely recommend!
June 13, 2016
I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and Entangled: Teen, in exchange for an original and honest review.
I was so happy when I got an ARC of The Sound of Us. Overall, I loved this book, and definitely liked it more than I thought it would--in other words, it exceeded my already high expectations. I recommend this to everyone, especially my fellow music geeks (you know who you are).
This book is about Kiki Nichols, a nerdy, introverted singer who is spending the summer at a music camp on a college campus. In the opera program that she is a part of, there are seven scholarships that the students are vying for. Kiki was supposed to attend this program with her best friend Beth, but things didn’t work out, and as a result, her friendship with Beth became tumultuous and was seemingly over. At the camp, Kiki meets many new friends, and even a boy who might turn out to be something more. As the story progresses, relationships develop and drama ensues.
I loved this book for so many reasons. Kiki was a super relatable character, and I felt for her all throughout the story. I loved her relationships with her new friends, as well--and on that note, one of the things I really liked about this book was that the romance didn’t dominate the entire story. Friendship and self-discovery were two important themes in The Sound of Us, and romance was just one aspect of the story. The ending was a bit surprising but I really liked it.
The Sound of Us is a funny, witty, and relatable story. I couldn’t put my Kindle down, and if you read it, you’ll probably feel the same way.
I was so happy when I got an ARC of The Sound of Us. Overall, I loved this book, and definitely liked it more than I thought it would--in other words, it exceeded my already high expectations. I recommend this to everyone, especially my fellow music geeks (you know who you are).
This book is about Kiki Nichols, a nerdy, introverted singer who is spending the summer at a music camp on a college campus. In the opera program that she is a part of, there are seven scholarships that the students are vying for. Kiki was supposed to attend this program with her best friend Beth, but things didn’t work out, and as a result, her friendship with Beth became tumultuous and was seemingly over. At the camp, Kiki meets many new friends, and even a boy who might turn out to be something more. As the story progresses, relationships develop and drama ensues.
I loved this book for so many reasons. Kiki was a super relatable character, and I felt for her all throughout the story. I loved her relationships with her new friends, as well--and on that note, one of the things I really liked about this book was that the romance didn’t dominate the entire story. Friendship and self-discovery were two important themes in The Sound of Us, and romance was just one aspect of the story. The ending was a bit surprising but I really liked it.
The Sound of Us is a funny, witty, and relatable story. I couldn’t put my Kindle down, and if you read it, you’ll probably feel the same way.
June 3, 2016
It's Kiki's dream to get a full scholarship in music. Following the dream of Opera. Who knew that the camp would be so intriguing? The Sound of Us, is full of Pop Culture references. It's quirky and I really enjoyed this story.
Kiki has to learn a lot and strives to prove her parents wrong. Because she's known for not following through.. On pretty much everything. This story didn't go the route, I thought it was going to go. I really wanted the best for Kiki but she's a teenager. And teenagers aren't always great listeners.
There's some great character development and your able to see Kiki go from a girl who was just totally unsure of herself. To someone that decided to take control of her life. She is super talented. If there is a #2 it would be interesting to see what happens with Kiki.
Overall, I give this this story a 4. I did enjoy it but it didn't hold my attention and I had to keep going back. I feel this is a perfect YA for the YA crowd. There's a lot of lessons to be learned and the strength it takes to really become who you're supposed to be....Lissa
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Kiki has to learn a lot and strives to prove her parents wrong. Because she's known for not following through.. On pretty much everything. This story didn't go the route, I thought it was going to go. I really wanted the best for Kiki but she's a teenager. And teenagers aren't always great listeners.
There's some great character development and your able to see Kiki go from a girl who was just totally unsure of herself. To someone that decided to take control of her life. She is super talented. If there is a #2 it would be interesting to see what happens with Kiki.
Overall, I give this this story a 4. I did enjoy it but it didn't hold my attention and I had to keep going back. I feel this is a perfect YA for the YA crowd. There's a lot of lessons to be learned and the strength it takes to really become who you're supposed to be....Lissa
http://www.boundlessbookreviews.com
https://www.facebook.com/BBReviews
June 7, 2016
I really enjoyed this book. I loved Kiki's voice for one thing, and I found THE SOUND OF US to be a fresh take on a music novel. Kiki wants to be an opera singer, and I loved following her journey to summer camp, where she sees that her dreams might not be as easy to attain as she hoped. Kiki seems totally real, sweet and sparkling. The dialogue crackles, and the supporting characters are well drawn. Highly recommended!
May 11, 2016
Yes, I'm giving my own book five stars.
However, if you like music, geeky folks, TV, cute and frustrating boys, kick ass girlfriends, or any combination of these things, you'll enjoy The Sound of Us.
However, if you like music, geeky folks, TV, cute and frustrating boys, kick ass girlfriends, or any combination of these things, you'll enjoy The Sound of Us.
December 13, 2019
This was quite a summer for Kiki! She had suffered quite a few blows at the hands of her former best friend, and was finally getting some distance from all that drama, but the summer music program was so much more than just an escape. Once there, Kiki was no longer the sidekick or the person cast in a supporting role. She was excelling and flourishing and being appreciated for all those things she thought were shortcomings.
I loved Kiki, and I was happy she was able to escape a sort of toxic friendship. When she would reflect on some of the things her former bestie said to her, it made me sad. But, it was wonderful to see her find her people, and to see her find her true passion.
I enjoyed all the technical music bits, the friendships, the Latin, the TV talk, and excellent soundtrack references (Ani!).
Overall: Fun and cute with quite a bit of substance.
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I loved Kiki, and I was happy she was able to escape a sort of toxic friendship. When she would reflect on some of the things her former bestie said to her, it made me sad. But, it was wonderful to see her find her people, and to see her find her true passion.
I enjoyed all the technical music bits, the friendships, the Latin, the TV talk, and excellent soundtrack references (Ani!).
Overall: Fun and cute with quite a bit of substance.
BLOG | INSTAGRAM |TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS
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June 8, 2016This review was originally posted on The Book Hookup
here
.
*Disclaimer: An eARC of these title was provided by the publisher via NetGalley invite in exchange for an honest review. However, that did not influence this review in any way. All thoughts, quotes, and opinions will be of this version and not of the published edition.
♥ Quick Thoughts and Rating: 3 stars! It was a quick read once I was able to get into it, but this novel wasn't anywhere near as light-hearted and fun as I expected it to be. The Sound of Us had its high moments, but overall, I guess I just wanted more.
*Disclaimer: An eARC of these title was provided by the publisher via NetGalley invite in exchange for an honest review. However, that did not influence this review in any way. All thoughts, quotes, and opinions will be of this version and not of the published edition.
♥ Quick Thoughts and Rating: 3 stars! It was a quick read once I was able to get into it, but this novel wasn't anywhere near as light-hearted and fun as I expected it to be. The Sound of Us had its high moments, but overall, I guess I just wanted more.
♥ Review: In the spirit of honesty, I'll admit that I'm still—even weeks later at this point (!!!)—trying desperately to recover from a serious book hangover, and I've yet to find that perfect book to push me over that slump. So, as I've discovered numerous times prior to this occasion, even when I try to be objective, it's hard for me to clearly judge a book's quality and I get stuck between a rock and a hard place. Yet, the only way over a book hangover is through it, and sometimes that means I end up giving really good books a lower rating just because they simply don't measure up or hold my interest quite like the book that still has my mind wrapped around it, unfair as that may be. With that said, I fear that this might very well be the case with this book seeing as so many others enjoyed it more, or at least that's what I've gathered while glancing at reviews on Goodreads.
Generally speaking about this book, I can say that the writing was decent, but I struggled with the pacing of the book. It never really took off for me and though I love books where the theme is music-related, I felt like all the in-depth discussion and class chat about opera really weighed the text down for me. (However, those familiar with opera terminology and such would probably appreciate it more than I could.) Additionally, the characters were good enough, mostly fleshed out and some really leaped off the page, but I had a troublesome time connecting to them. I think that was mostly hindered by my ability to relate to the experience they were going through. Furthermore, it was the drama surrounding so much of the plot—drama about the supposed mole, drama about love interests, drama about life choices, drama about a TV show, drama llama for your momma about all the things—that really made it hard to just focus on the people and what they were going through. I'm okay with drama when it's necessary to furthering the plot or helping a character evolve, but all the various forms of drama in this book started to feel convoluted and read like a bad teen reality TV show. Lastly, the ending may work for some, but it felt very rushed and anti-climatic to me. I felt like KiKi went back for resolution about a number of things, but when everything was supposedly settled, the readers were left with a giant question mark about her future, especially where Jack was concerned.
And, bless it, I'm not trying to be ugly because there were certainly good, even great, things about this novel. I laughed out loud a few times. For instance, when Kiki and Nutty Bar Boy were rocking out or enjoying their togetherness, it was ridiculously cute. I believe that had the book done away with the conflict about why Jack couldn't pursue Kiki and just allowed the drama surrounding the scholarship to flourish, perhaps this would have been a more enjoyable reading experience for myself.
♥ Teaser Quote:
"It's a date," I say, before catching myself. "I mean, not a date. A thing...an appointment. A meeting."
Jack pounds the wall with his fist before leaping away and heading back down the hallway. Without looking at me, he says, "It's a date."
-quote taken from the eARC of The Sound of Us at 25%
♥ Rec It? Maybe? I'm sure others will definitely enjoy this more than I did, and perhaps I just wasn't in the mood for this particular kind of read. Maybe on a different day when I was ready for this brand of teenage angst, I could have even loved it a lot more. There are plenty of other reviewers on Goodreads giving high praise for this novel, so maybe take my opinion with a grain of salt.
♥ A very special thanks to the publicist at Entangled TEEN for providing me with an advanced copy of this title.
June 7, 2018
SUMMARY
TV nerd Kiki is off to a summer camp for an opera singing scholarship, where she jams contemporary pieces in the basement with a hot nerdy drummer at the camp for a golf scholarship. When her teachers forbid any kind of singing outside of opera, Kiki has to figure out if she will follow her heart or the rigid choices she seems to have locked herself into.
PLOT
Cicero (kee-ke-roh) ‘Kiki’ has decided to follow in her big sister Tina’s footsteps and study opera at university, even though Tina spent most of her study time partying and most of her post-graduate time being unemployed, even though the camp costs tens of thousands of dollars and her parents are convinced she’s not even going to ‘stick with it’. I was particularly excited to read this book because when I was Kiki’s age becoming an opera singer was on my very short list of things I’d quite like to get paid doing as an adult but I quickly learned I didn’t have what it takes (ie a soprano range – there are very few good roles written for mezzo-sopranos in operas, and tenors get all the most beautiful arias), so I was somewhat disappointed to find Kiki spent most of her time practicing alone. Without anyone teaching her how to use her voice. Opera singers have a very specific sound they are trying to create, and it’s hard and takes years of training by a competent teacher. And her voice teachers were more interested in kicking them out of class if they weren’t perfect through a first run than actually teaching them anything. So the overall aspect of a ‘opera camp’ was a bit disappointing.
The other main plot was Kiki’s love of TV, specifically this show called Project Earth, and her bonding with the other campers because of it, specifically Jack the hot nerdy drummer who grows quite close to Kiki despite carrying a secret that would break her heart. Kiki herself makes friends outside of Twitter and even kisses a couple of dudes but in amongst this there’s a mole watching the students for any kind of rule-breaking. There’s only seven scholarships to go around and too many students, so some will do whatever it takes to get rid of the competition. This especially sucks because Kiki, for some reason, doesn’t seem to give a shit half the time about the rules, and encourages the other kids at the camp to drink and break curfew then, when her parents threaten to send her to a non-music university, she backflips, suddenly gets much better, and is determined to win a scholarship.
CHARACTERS
Kiki isn’t actually sure if she wants to be an opera singer. That’s the thing that annoyed me most. Opera singing isn’t easy, it takes a lot of work, and Kiki would rather jam doing contemporary songs, and writing her own songs. She got her parents to fork out thousands of dollars for a future she’s not even sure about when she’s seen her big sister fail in the same industry. She’d rather talk about TV on Twitter all day which hello, I totally get, but it’s like she’s using the camp itself to experience university life without being a university student. I do like how she can bond with other people when they have Project Earth in common, and I like how eventually she finds her own voice (so to speak), I just don’t like that even from the beginning she wasn’t sure if the camp was something she wanted to do and only auditioned because her BFF (soon to be ex-BFF) did. It’s not exactly like opera singing is a fall-back career, but that’s how Kiki’s treating it. I liked Kiki’s narrative voice and her entire character arc even if it was a conclusion I was a little disappointed with.
The other characters are mostly forgettable except for Brie the bitch who turns out isn’t such a bitch and Jack the hot drummer whose connection to Kiki is instantaneous but whose romance definitely could not be described as ‘insta-love’, if you could even call it a romance.
WRITING
While I liked the inclusion of Tweets at the start of every chapter, I was thoroughly annoyed that for a novel supposed to be about student singers, there was no teaching going on whatsoever. The teachers at Kiki’s camp were horrible and I would be demanding my money back. Kiki didn’t learn anything except that she didn’t really want to be an opera singer. I liked the fictional TV show Project Earth and all of its backstory mixed with songs and bands Kiki actually names so I could look them up on Youtube.
PACING
The pacing was fine. I was enjoying the book a lot as I was reading it and it seemed to me to be a quick read. It didn’t really stop and dwell on any ‘filler’ bits and in fact what could have been a long drawn-out romance between Kiki and Jack had its stops put in it pretty quickly due to some regular teenage drama. The camp was only six weeks long so there was a lot to jam in there and to me it didn’t really seem to drag or lose the pace at all.
OVERALL
There are very clearly some good things about The Sound of Us and also some things I didn’t enjoy. Overall I think it was a good reading experience even if it didn’t quite deliver what I was hoping it would.
I received this book for free from Pan MacMillan in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
TV nerd Kiki is off to a summer camp for an opera singing scholarship, where she jams contemporary pieces in the basement with a hot nerdy drummer at the camp for a golf scholarship. When her teachers forbid any kind of singing outside of opera, Kiki has to figure out if she will follow her heart or the rigid choices she seems to have locked herself into.
PLOT
Cicero (kee-ke-roh) ‘Kiki’ has decided to follow in her big sister Tina’s footsteps and study opera at university, even though Tina spent most of her study time partying and most of her post-graduate time being unemployed, even though the camp costs tens of thousands of dollars and her parents are convinced she’s not even going to ‘stick with it’. I was particularly excited to read this book because when I was Kiki’s age becoming an opera singer was on my very short list of things I’d quite like to get paid doing as an adult but I quickly learned I didn’t have what it takes (ie a soprano range – there are very few good roles written for mezzo-sopranos in operas, and tenors get all the most beautiful arias), so I was somewhat disappointed to find Kiki spent most of her time practicing alone. Without anyone teaching her how to use her voice. Opera singers have a very specific sound they are trying to create, and it’s hard and takes years of training by a competent teacher. And her voice teachers were more interested in kicking them out of class if they weren’t perfect through a first run than actually teaching them anything. So the overall aspect of a ‘opera camp’ was a bit disappointing.
The other main plot was Kiki’s love of TV, specifically this show called Project Earth, and her bonding with the other campers because of it, specifically Jack the hot nerdy drummer who grows quite close to Kiki despite carrying a secret that would break her heart. Kiki herself makes friends outside of Twitter and even kisses a couple of dudes but in amongst this there’s a mole watching the students for any kind of rule-breaking. There’s only seven scholarships to go around and too many students, so some will do whatever it takes to get rid of the competition. This especially sucks because Kiki, for some reason, doesn’t seem to give a shit half the time about the rules, and encourages the other kids at the camp to drink and break curfew then, when her parents threaten to send her to a non-music university, she backflips, suddenly gets much better, and is determined to win a scholarship.
CHARACTERS
Kiki isn’t actually sure if she wants to be an opera singer. That’s the thing that annoyed me most. Opera singing isn’t easy, it takes a lot of work, and Kiki would rather jam doing contemporary songs, and writing her own songs. She got her parents to fork out thousands of dollars for a future she’s not even sure about when she’s seen her big sister fail in the same industry. She’d rather talk about TV on Twitter all day which hello, I totally get, but it’s like she’s using the camp itself to experience university life without being a university student. I do like how she can bond with other people when they have Project Earth in common, and I like how eventually she finds her own voice (so to speak), I just don’t like that even from the beginning she wasn’t sure if the camp was something she wanted to do and only auditioned because her BFF (soon to be ex-BFF) did. It’s not exactly like opera singing is a fall-back career, but that’s how Kiki’s treating it. I liked Kiki’s narrative voice and her entire character arc even if it was a conclusion I was a little disappointed with.
The other characters are mostly forgettable except for Brie the bitch who turns out isn’t such a bitch and Jack the hot drummer whose connection to Kiki is instantaneous but whose romance definitely could not be described as ‘insta-love’, if you could even call it a romance.
WRITING
While I liked the inclusion of Tweets at the start of every chapter, I was thoroughly annoyed that for a novel supposed to be about student singers, there was no teaching going on whatsoever. The teachers at Kiki’s camp were horrible and I would be demanding my money back. Kiki didn’t learn anything except that she didn’t really want to be an opera singer. I liked the fictional TV show Project Earth and all of its backstory mixed with songs and bands Kiki actually names so I could look them up on Youtube.
PACING
The pacing was fine. I was enjoying the book a lot as I was reading it and it seemed to me to be a quick read. It didn’t really stop and dwell on any ‘filler’ bits and in fact what could have been a long drawn-out romance between Kiki and Jack had its stops put in it pretty quickly due to some regular teenage drama. The camp was only six weeks long so there was a lot to jam in there and to me it didn’t really seem to drag or lose the pace at all.
OVERALL
There are very clearly some good things about The Sound of Us and also some things I didn’t enjoy. Overall I think it was a good reading experience even if it didn’t quite deliver what I was hoping it would.
I received this book for free from Pan MacMillan in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
April 18, 2022
Really actually boring. Also not a romance which I guess was a good thing cause like if the people they were setting up to be a thing where a thing it would have SUCKED. But there was not other plot either. What a waste of time.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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April 3, 2023DNF
June 14, 2016
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I went into this expecting a fairly standard YA contemporary. There is nothing wrong with the standard story, especially when you’re in the mood for something easy and predictable in that Happily Ever After kind of way. I love those kinds of stories when I need a break between fantasies and dystopias. They’re great.
But that’s not what The Sound of Us was.
The Sound of Us was about Kiki. Not Kiki and a guy (or girl). Ok, yes, there was a guy in there, but this book was about Kiki. Kiki figuring out who she was. Kiki learning to own who she was. Kiki taking a stand for who she wanted to be, separate from guys and crappy friends and pushy parents.
Kiki was scarily relatable. She wasn’t a supermodel, she remarked on how she had friends online but not in real life and she lived through Twitter. So she and I were basically twins. Sure, I’m not an opera singer (although my cousin is going to Indiana in August to study classical singing!!!), but I think we all have something we’re striving for like Kiki is aiming for singing.
Over the weekend, I had a suspiciously similar experience to Kiki when she shows up for her music camp. I went to something like an orientation weekend for students at the business school I’ll be attending come September. I felt like the odd one out, the quiet, “quirky” one. Kiki tweeted the following during that first day:
Here’s what I messaged my bestie (met through Twitter, funnily enough):
(Yes, that is exactly what I said. I bet a lot of you have also said similar things about yourself to your best friends. We should all stop!)
Kiki had to room with Brie, a Blake Lively-like girl. I had to room with a gorgeous Mexican girl who quickly made friends with a tall, blonde, beautiful Swedish girl.
Ok, so I think you get the point that Kiki came into my life right after my epic disappointment of a weekend in which I felt so out of place that I left a day early. (And then spent an hour dissecting with my therapist.) (You can see why I need a therapist in my last post on body positivity.)
I actually wish I’d read The Sound of Us before I went to the event, as what Kiki learned at camp and the personal growth she experienced over the course of the summer would have been so helpful to me, and I’m a few years older than 17!
There wasn’t a lot on the side of world-building, but I thought the characters were great. I loved how there wasn’t one “perfect” guy, and it showed that guys who you think are perfect are actually human…and also 17 and trying to figure their lives out as well. Characters that initially seemed to be stereotypes (like the Little Miss Perfect Mean Girl) took on more depth through Kiki’s eyes, and she was actually very mature and gracious…maybe even more so than I would be. I had to take a long, hard look at myself while reading this!
Yes, I was initially a little bit disappointed with the ending, as it didn’t follow the normal YA contemporary model and was rather open. But then I slapped myself out of that ridiculous mood and realised that The Sound of Us was one of the most realistic, relatable, mature and empowering contemporaries I have ever read. It would have been WRONG to end it any other way!
I recommend this to everyone who has ever felt invisible, out of place and inadequate. Kiki was so inspiring, and I’ve already ordered a physical copy of this book to serve as a reminder to myself to be who I want to be!
I went into this expecting a fairly standard YA contemporary. There is nothing wrong with the standard story, especially when you’re in the mood for something easy and predictable in that Happily Ever After kind of way. I love those kinds of stories when I need a break between fantasies and dystopias. They’re great.
But that’s not what The Sound of Us was.
The Sound of Us was about Kiki. Not Kiki and a guy (or girl). Ok, yes, there was a guy in there, but this book was about Kiki. Kiki figuring out who she was. Kiki learning to own who she was. Kiki taking a stand for who she wanted to be, separate from guys and crappy friends and pushy parents.
Kiki was scarily relatable. She wasn’t a supermodel, she remarked on how she had friends online but not in real life and she lived through Twitter. So she and I were basically twins. Sure, I’m not an opera singer (although my cousin is going to Indiana in August to study classical singing!!!), but I think we all have something we’re striving for like Kiki is aiming for singing.
Over the weekend, I had a suspiciously similar experience to Kiki when she shows up for her music camp. I went to something like an orientation weekend for students at the business school I’ll be attending come September. I felt like the odd one out, the quiet, “quirky” one. Kiki tweeted the following during that first day:
Opera singers are REALLY attractive people, guys. I feel like I’m a walking, talking, singing “before” picture.
Here’s what I messaged my bestie (met through Twitter, funnily enough):
I'm pretty sure I'm the ugliest girl here. It's like Miss Universe, and I'm the DUFF.
Except I have no friends.
So DUFG.
No one wants to sit next to me.
(Yes, that is exactly what I said. I bet a lot of you have also said similar things about yourself to your best friends. We should all stop!)
Kiki had to room with Brie, a Blake Lively-like girl. I had to room with a gorgeous Mexican girl who quickly made friends with a tall, blonde, beautiful Swedish girl.
Ok, so I think you get the point that Kiki came into my life right after my epic disappointment of a weekend in which I felt so out of place that I left a day early. (And then spent an hour dissecting with my therapist.) (You can see why I need a therapist in my last post on body positivity.)
I actually wish I’d read The Sound of Us before I went to the event, as what Kiki learned at camp and the personal growth she experienced over the course of the summer would have been so helpful to me, and I’m a few years older than 17!
There wasn’t a lot on the side of world-building, but I thought the characters were great. I loved how there wasn’t one “perfect” guy, and it showed that guys who you think are perfect are actually human…and also 17 and trying to figure their lives out as well. Characters that initially seemed to be stereotypes (like the Little Miss Perfect Mean Girl) took on more depth through Kiki’s eyes, and she was actually very mature and gracious…maybe even more so than I would be. I had to take a long, hard look at myself while reading this!
Yes, I was initially a little bit disappointed with the ending, as it didn’t follow the normal YA contemporary model and was rather open. But then I slapped myself out of that ridiculous mood and realised that The Sound of Us was one of the most realistic, relatable, mature and empowering contemporaries I have ever read. It would have been WRONG to end it any other way!
I recommend this to everyone who has ever felt invisible, out of place and inadequate. Kiki was so inspiring, and I’ve already ordered a physical copy of this book to serve as a reminder to myself to be who I want to be!
See this review in its natural environment, Dani Reviews Things.
December 25, 2016
Kiki has managed to secure a place at a prestigious music camp. She's got something to prove and going is already a big step. She wants to show people what she's capable of. She's a geeky girl who loves watching television shows. She tweets about them and has a lot of online friends and followers. Unfortunately Kiki doesn't think she's anything special and she's socially awkward. She doesn't think she's slim enough or pretty enough to be noticed. She has no idea how to interact with strangers and that part of the camp makes her more nervous than the music.
Only a few students will have the chance to win a scholarship to go to Krause. The university has a fantastic music program and Kiki's specialty is singing opera. Even though the beginning is hard Kiki soon finds out that she does have the ability to make friends and to have a social life. The competition at the music program is fierce and students are being played against one another. The rules are strict and Kiki has difficulties following them. She isn't allowed to do what she loves best, late night jam sessions in the basement of the dorm. She wants to be good and to win that scholarship, because her future depends on it. Will the summer bring her something memorable and will her hard work be rewarded?
Kiki is a very talented girl. She can sing beautifully and effortlessly and she's good at writing music and playing the piano. Music is who she is. She's smart and she's driven. At the camp she meets people who are like her. Her fellow students also excel in what they do and they have to fight for the same thing Kiki wants, a scholarship. Even though there's rivalry friendships blossom and I loved seeing Kiki come out of her shell. Julie Hammerle writes about her insecurities in an honest and heartbreaking way. I felt really bad for Kiki at times because her self esteem is so low. She's wonderful and pretty instead of worthless. It hurt to read what she thought about herself and I think that's exactly what the author was aiming for. Kiki isn't the only teenager who thinks about herself in that way and Julie Hammerle wrote about this issue in a sensitive way while the message was clear at the same time.
I loved reading about the program, the students and most of all the music. I could almost hear Kiki sing and loved the vivid descriptions. It's fabulous to visualize a story and to be able to almost hear it at the same time. I really enjoyed that. Kiki has never been lucky in love, but at the camp she finally meets a few guys who are like her. She struggles sometimes, but she's also unbelievably strong. She's great at standing up for herself. I liked the ending of the story. It's fitting, it's creative and the author makes a strong statement. I really liked this book. I'm a big fan of books about music and The Sound of Us is definitely an amazing one.
Only a few students will have the chance to win a scholarship to go to Krause. The university has a fantastic music program and Kiki's specialty is singing opera. Even though the beginning is hard Kiki soon finds out that she does have the ability to make friends and to have a social life. The competition at the music program is fierce and students are being played against one another. The rules are strict and Kiki has difficulties following them. She isn't allowed to do what she loves best, late night jam sessions in the basement of the dorm. She wants to be good and to win that scholarship, because her future depends on it. Will the summer bring her something memorable and will her hard work be rewarded?
Kiki is a very talented girl. She can sing beautifully and effortlessly and she's good at writing music and playing the piano. Music is who she is. She's smart and she's driven. At the camp she meets people who are like her. Her fellow students also excel in what they do and they have to fight for the same thing Kiki wants, a scholarship. Even though there's rivalry friendships blossom and I loved seeing Kiki come out of her shell. Julie Hammerle writes about her insecurities in an honest and heartbreaking way. I felt really bad for Kiki at times because her self esteem is so low. She's wonderful and pretty instead of worthless. It hurt to read what she thought about herself and I think that's exactly what the author was aiming for. Kiki isn't the only teenager who thinks about herself in that way and Julie Hammerle wrote about this issue in a sensitive way while the message was clear at the same time.
I loved reading about the program, the students and most of all the music. I could almost hear Kiki sing and loved the vivid descriptions. It's fabulous to visualize a story and to be able to almost hear it at the same time. I really enjoyed that. Kiki has never been lucky in love, but at the camp she finally meets a few guys who are like her. She struggles sometimes, but she's also unbelievably strong. She's great at standing up for herself. I liked the ending of the story. It's fitting, it's creative and the author makes a strong statement. I really liked this book. I'm a big fan of books about music and The Sound of Us is definitely an amazing one.
June 19, 2016
4.8
The Why
Charming, relatable and sassy story which felt like Pitch Perfect with a girl who just wants to sing.
Kiki is spending her summer in Krause which basically Pitch Perfect for opera lovers. At the end of the summer, there is the promise that the students will get a scholarship for a full ride to Krause in the fall for college. When she first gets there, she decides to shed her Planet Earth fangirl who is being pressured by her parents to go to their school if she gets sent home. I really liked the growth of Kiki and she really reminded me at moments which is great.
The Full Experience
Kiki along with her new friends Kendra, Jake, Brie, Norman, and others are such a great group of friends. Kiki really could be herself, but she had a few trust issues. I mean, I would too if my best friend knew I liked a guy but dated him anyway. There's also a mole amongst friends who are ratting people out and making opera camp more tense for everyone. Kiki really grew throughout the summer and realizing the strength she has to stand up against her parents and prove them wrong. To prove to them that this is what she wants to do. To prove to herself that she can get through the summer.
Final Thoughts
Kiki was one of the most charming characters I've read in a long time. She was also sassy and relatable as I read through the pages growing up in front of my eyes. I love the pop culture references along with the Tweets that started each chapter. It made it modern and fresh and I loved being in Kiki's head, because it was kind of like I was there, haha
The Why
Charming, relatable and sassy story which felt like Pitch Perfect with a girl who just wants to sing.
Kiki is spending her summer in Krause which basically Pitch Perfect for opera lovers. At the end of the summer, there is the promise that the students will get a scholarship for a full ride to Krause in the fall for college. When she first gets there, she decides to shed her Planet Earth fangirl who is being pressured by her parents to go to their school if she gets sent home. I really liked the growth of Kiki and she really reminded me at moments which is great.
The Full Experience
Kiki along with her new friends Kendra, Jake, Brie, Norman, and others are such a great group of friends. Kiki really could be herself, but she had a few trust issues. I mean, I would too if my best friend knew I liked a guy but dated him anyway. There's also a mole amongst friends who are ratting people out and making opera camp more tense for everyone. Kiki really grew throughout the summer and realizing the strength she has to stand up against her parents and prove them wrong. To prove to them that this is what she wants to do. To prove to herself that she can get through the summer.
Final Thoughts
Kiki was one of the most charming characters I've read in a long time. She was also sassy and relatable as I read through the pages growing up in front of my eyes. I love the pop culture references along with the Tweets that started each chapter. It made it modern and fresh and I loved being in Kiki's head, because it was kind of like I was there, haha
June 10, 2016
There are seven scholarships for a full ride at Music College and Kiki has been gotten into Summer Camp for the Musically Inclined and has landed herself a part in the top group. More often than not, the people in the top group are the ones that the scholarships go for and she can't afford to mess this up as if she doesn't end up getting the scholarship, then she has to attend the University her father works at and they don't have a music programme at all. With music camp though, there comes a list of rules and at first Kiki thinks they won't apply to her as she isn't one for A) socialising and B) breaking the rules but what happens when her hormones come out to play and for the first time she finds herself caught in a triangle between not one, nor two but three guys and finds her first kiss with another. Can Kiki keep it under wraps and focus on her studies ? What will happen though when it turns out that there is a mole within the group who is intent on sabotaging the other contestants ? Will Kiki be one of the scholarship winners or will she discover along the course of the music camp - what really is important to her and where she truly belongs ?
Find out in Julie Hammerle's musical read "The Sound of Us" .
Find out in Julie Hammerle's musical read "The Sound of Us" .
June 5, 2016
I received a copy of this book from netgalley for review.
This book was an iffy one for me to request, but the music part got me interested. Holy crap, I kind of loved this one! I was so surprised to see that this is the author's first book. I fell in love with all the characters, even the ones I didn't want to like.
Watching Kiki figure out who she was during the book was awesome. It made me remember how incredible it was to finally make a choice for myrself as a teenager instead of following what everyone told me to do. Even though I made mistakes, it help amazing for them to be my mistakes to make. Her growth as a person was pretty incredible. While I found all the Project Earth stuff a bit weird, I get that it was the nerd in her who needed that show to help her figure things out. The music talk was all great, but it really was the characters that made the book. I was proud of the person Kiki became in such a short time, but now I really want to know what happens next year.
This book was an iffy one for me to request, but the music part got me interested. Holy crap, I kind of loved this one! I was so surprised to see that this is the author's first book. I fell in love with all the characters, even the ones I didn't want to like.
Watching Kiki figure out who she was during the book was awesome. It made me remember how incredible it was to finally make a choice for myrself as a teenager instead of following what everyone told me to do. Even though I made mistakes, it help amazing for them to be my mistakes to make. Her growth as a person was pretty incredible. While I found all the Project Earth stuff a bit weird, I get that it was the nerd in her who needed that show to help her figure things out. The music talk was all great, but it really was the characters that made the book. I was proud of the person Kiki became in such a short time, but now I really want to know what happens next year.
June 7, 2016
Singing is serious business, you guys. When I received this book from Entangled Teen via NetGalley, I expected the serious. I anticipated young hopefuls vying for one of seven scholarships to study opera for four years of college. The competition, the stress, and the friendships formed by understanding and commonplace was expected. However, I did not expect it to be so funny. This book had me laughing and smiling, and the narrator, Kiki, kept things interesting. The idea of young opera singers already had a certain je ne sais quoi, spice it up with a Netflix, Twitter obsessed introvert, and it’s golden.
Read the rest of the review!
June 2, 2016
This is the first book I've read about music. I really don't why I haven't because I love movies that have music. It's just I guess I never stumbled upon any. There is one book on my wishlist but I don't know when I'll get.
So back to topic, I enjoyed this book very much! The character arc of Kiki is amazing. I like how Kiki was in wrong situations, how she dealt with it and made mistakes but learned and grew through them.
My fav part the friendship among the characters. They are there at the music summer camp to get scholarship and only seven would get through. So even though they were competing among themselves they made a bond and also stood up for each other, which I absolutely loved reading about.
Cool read, ya contemporary coming of age story.
Got an e-arc from publisher via net-galley in exchange of an honest review.
So back to topic, I enjoyed this book very much! The character arc of Kiki is amazing. I like how Kiki was in wrong situations, how she dealt with it and made mistakes but learned and grew through them.
My fav part the friendship among the characters. They are there at the music summer camp to get scholarship and only seven would get through. So even though they were competing among themselves they made a bond and also stood up for each other, which I absolutely loved reading about.
Cool read, ya contemporary coming of age story.
Got an e-arc from publisher via net-galley in exchange of an honest review.
March 20, 2017
Mini-review:
-Fantastic, musical contemporary
-Great themes of finding yourself, discovering your passion, and embracing your talents
-TOP-NOTCH romance plot that shows bittersweet nuance
-Fantastic, musical contemporary
-Great themes of finding yourself, discovering your passion, and embracing your talents
-TOP-NOTCH romance plot that shows bittersweet nuance
Read
May 14, 2016**4 Stars** Full Review and Rating will be up at Boundless Book Reviews
Read
February 5, 2016I read an unedited version of this book. It was cute.
May 23, 2016
I received this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review (Thanks!)
I think my rating is more 3.5 stars. I really did like this book but about halfway through, I got really fed up with Kiki's inner dialogue (aka angst) about Jack. This novel kind of reminds me of All the Feels, except The Sound of Us was a bit more well-rounded because it didn't focus solely on the fandom.
This book is about Kiki, a girl who is going to a summer camp to compete for an opera scholarship. She wants to convince to her parents that opera is what she wants to do with her life and prove that she isn't a quitter like her older sister, who went to the school and now is unemployed. Kiki is also an avid fan of Project Earth and is inspired by her favourite character from the show, Dana. While at this camp, Kiki meets a guy who she jams with and they instantly connect. But there is a mole in the camp who will kick someone out of the running for the scholarships for not following the rules. Jamming out to rock songs instead of working on opera songs could get Kiki kicked out of camp. This book follows Kiki's struggles with finding out what her passion really is, working hard at opera camp and accepting herself.
I really liked that this book was about opera. I've never read a book where someone wants to have a career in opera. It was interesting to see how someone learns opera music and what a person studying music needs to learn to get a career in it. Sure, this book could have gone a little bit deeper, but overall, I was satisfied about what I learned about opera in The Sound of Us.
The plot of this book was really interesting. It wasn't predictable at all. I find that contemporaries can really be predictable sometimes but this one wasn't the case. This novel was always fast paced and never boring. I liked how the author used the opera camp to get Kiki to grow while it also created a lot of delicious drama. (What can I say, I like drama in my contemporary books?) Sometimes I felt that the main character's actions were a tiny bit more bold that I expected from her, but nonetheless, I think they were all realistic.
I also really liked the main character of this book, Kiki. She starts off really insecure and shy and as the book goes on, you get to see her flourish when she finds friends and discovers what she wants. Kiki was super relatable because of her obsession with Project Earth. I liked when she would be like, I need to Tweet this. Or when she would ask herself what her favourite character would do.
At first, I liked the character of Jack, aka the love interest. He seemed really compatible with Kiki and Kiki was really happy and acted like herself with him. But once we got to the middle of the book, I started to get annoyed with how much of Kiki's thoughts this guy was taking. After that, I realized how insta-love their relationship was and I just got really angry with Jack by the end of this book. The ending with them made me pretty angry and was just a little bit too ambiguous for my taste. In the end, Kiki kind of realizes she shouldn't need a guy this much, but it took forever for her to get to a point of confidence. Now, don't get me wrong, I know that this book is to have romance, but in 2016, I kind of expect there to be more themes in YA contemporary about the independence of women.
All in all, this book was an engaging and fun read. Sure I was a little annoyed with Kiki's obsession with Jack, but this book was really unique and dramatic. I liked the friendship themes and the idea of finding yourself. I liked that it was kind of about college, which is a plot point that I like seeing in books. It was a good contemporary, but expect a bit of heavy romance-angst while reading.
I think my rating is more 3.5 stars. I really did like this book but about halfway through, I got really fed up with Kiki's inner dialogue (aka angst) about Jack. This novel kind of reminds me of All the Feels, except The Sound of Us was a bit more well-rounded because it didn't focus solely on the fandom.
This book is about Kiki, a girl who is going to a summer camp to compete for an opera scholarship. She wants to convince to her parents that opera is what she wants to do with her life and prove that she isn't a quitter like her older sister, who went to the school and now is unemployed. Kiki is also an avid fan of Project Earth and is inspired by her favourite character from the show, Dana. While at this camp, Kiki meets a guy who she jams with and they instantly connect. But there is a mole in the camp who will kick someone out of the running for the scholarships for not following the rules. Jamming out to rock songs instead of working on opera songs could get Kiki kicked out of camp. This book follows Kiki's struggles with finding out what her passion really is, working hard at opera camp and accepting herself.
I really liked that this book was about opera. I've never read a book where someone wants to have a career in opera. It was interesting to see how someone learns opera music and what a person studying music needs to learn to get a career in it. Sure, this book could have gone a little bit deeper, but overall, I was satisfied about what I learned about opera in The Sound of Us.
The plot of this book was really interesting. It wasn't predictable at all. I find that contemporaries can really be predictable sometimes but this one wasn't the case. This novel was always fast paced and never boring. I liked how the author used the opera camp to get Kiki to grow while it also created a lot of delicious drama. (What can I say, I like drama in my contemporary books?) Sometimes I felt that the main character's actions were a tiny bit more bold that I expected from her, but nonetheless, I think they were all realistic.
I also really liked the main character of this book, Kiki. She starts off really insecure and shy and as the book goes on, you get to see her flourish when she finds friends and discovers what she wants. Kiki was super relatable because of her obsession with Project Earth. I liked when she would be like, I need to Tweet this. Or when she would ask herself what her favourite character would do.
At first, I liked the character of Jack, aka the love interest. He seemed really compatible with Kiki and Kiki was really happy and acted like herself with him. But once we got to the middle of the book, I started to get annoyed with how much of Kiki's thoughts this guy was taking. After that, I realized how insta-love their relationship was and I just got really angry with Jack by the end of this book. The ending with them made me pretty angry and was just a little bit too ambiguous for my taste. In the end, Kiki kind of realizes she shouldn't need a guy this much, but it took forever for her to get to a point of confidence. Now, don't get me wrong, I know that this book is to have romance, but in 2016, I kind of expect there to be more themes in YA contemporary about the independence of women.
All in all, this book was an engaging and fun read. Sure I was a little annoyed with Kiki's obsession with Jack, but this book was really unique and dramatic. I liked the friendship themes and the idea of finding yourself. I liked that it was kind of about college, which is a plot point that I like seeing in books. It was a good contemporary, but expect a bit of heavy romance-angst while reading.
June 6, 2016
When I got accepted for this book, I was unbelievably excited because SINGING BOOK. In my opinion, there needs to be way more singing YA books in this world. And also TV shows. So basically, this book contained two of my favorite things in the entire world. I had high hopes for this novel, and there were some parts that really enjoyed, but, ultimately, there were quite a few major things that annoyed me, making this just an okay read.
I will say, the first half of the novel is solid af. We're introduced to Kiki, the narrator, who has a really fun voice. She's nerdy, insecure, a TV-lover, and she has more friends on Twitter than in real life. I think she is a character a lot of people of my generation can relate to. She has been accepted into an elite opera music camp--the same one her sister went to and is basically a celebrity at. She wonders if she even deserved to get in, or if her sister pulled some strings for her because she's used to being in the background, not receiving attention for her abilities. When she gets to camp, she meets a whole slew of really talented musicians, and she lets her social anxiety come out to play. Instead of going to hang out with them, she hides in a basement, which, for whatever reason, has a piano in it. That's when she meets Nutty Bar Guy and they have the most soul-awakening jam session.
And let my rant begin:
At that point, all is well. It's a fun story, and I like all the little musical details thrown in. But then one of the teachers issues a ruling, which essentially states that if a camper is caught singing anything other than opera, they will get kicked out of camp. And that's where things start going downhill, because this rule becomes a major obstacle for Kiki, meaning it plays a relatively significant role in the story, and let me tell you--IT IS THE MOST RIDICULOUS RULE I'VE EVER HEARD. I've been to music camps, conventions, workshops, and all that jazz, and no one would ever tell singers they can't sing anything other than one specific genre. The justification in this novel was that it could ruin their voices. Uh, no? Good singers can sing almost anything (maybe not death metal, but you get the point) without hurting their voices. Trained singers know how to apply the same techniques to different genres. All that being said, this rule made no sense to me. It just seemed like a plot device to add angst to Kiki's life. "Oh, I can't sing pop songs in the basement with hot Nutty Bar guy because I don't want to get kicked out, but how my heart just longs to make music with him." (Not a real quote, but that basically sums up a large chunk of Kiki's mental discourse.) It was just a little...stupid, I guess.
Aside from that, the second half of the novel just got overly dramatic. Kiki has become obsessed with Jack (aka Nutty Bar guy) and then something happens
[SPOILER]
[END SPOILER], which was really predictable to me. And it all just becomes so meh. I don't want to say anything else because I don't want to spoil the whole second half of the novel, but it's cheesy and cliche and all overly dramatic and I found myself rolling my eyes SO many times. And, in some aspects, I began to lose a lot of respect for Kiki because she was whiny and so woe-is-me, as if she was the first person anything bad has ever happened to. She literally compares her situation to someone dying.
Rant over.
With all my anger towards certain parts of this book, like I said, there were some elements I did really enjoy, and I don't want those to be overlooked. I liked that it dealt with body image and social anxiety. I liked the little tweets before each chapter. I loooved the element of friendship and girl empowerment (though even some of those moments felt so Hallmark to me). I liked the nerd-pride and self-discovery. These are all very important. By the end, I was satisfied where the story ended up. Despite the problems I had with this book, I'd recommend it if you are looking for a lighter, fluffier read.
I will say, the first half of the novel is solid af. We're introduced to Kiki, the narrator, who has a really fun voice. She's nerdy, insecure, a TV-lover, and she has more friends on Twitter than in real life. I think she is a character a lot of people of my generation can relate to. She has been accepted into an elite opera music camp--the same one her sister went to and is basically a celebrity at. She wonders if she even deserved to get in, or if her sister pulled some strings for her because she's used to being in the background, not receiving attention for her abilities. When she gets to camp, she meets a whole slew of really talented musicians, and she lets her social anxiety come out to play. Instead of going to hang out with them, she hides in a basement, which, for whatever reason, has a piano in it. That's when she meets Nutty Bar Guy and they have the most soul-awakening jam session.
And let my rant begin:
At that point, all is well. It's a fun story, and I like all the little musical details thrown in. But then one of the teachers issues a ruling, which essentially states that if a camper is caught singing anything other than opera, they will get kicked out of camp. And that's where things start going downhill, because this rule becomes a major obstacle for Kiki, meaning it plays a relatively significant role in the story, and let me tell you--IT IS THE MOST RIDICULOUS RULE I'VE EVER HEARD. I've been to music camps, conventions, workshops, and all that jazz, and no one would ever tell singers they can't sing anything other than one specific genre. The justification in this novel was that it could ruin their voices. Uh, no? Good singers can sing almost anything (maybe not death metal, but you get the point) without hurting their voices. Trained singers know how to apply the same techniques to different genres. All that being said, this rule made no sense to me. It just seemed like a plot device to add angst to Kiki's life. "Oh, I can't sing pop songs in the basement with hot Nutty Bar guy because I don't want to get kicked out, but how my heart just longs to make music with him." (Not a real quote, but that basically sums up a large chunk of Kiki's mental discourse.) It was just a little...stupid, I guess.
Aside from that, the second half of the novel just got overly dramatic. Kiki has become obsessed with Jack (aka Nutty Bar guy) and then something happens
[SPOILER]
[END SPOILER], which was really predictable to me. And it all just becomes so meh. I don't want to say anything else because I don't want to spoil the whole second half of the novel, but it's cheesy and cliche and all overly dramatic and I found myself rolling my eyes SO many times. And, in some aspects, I began to lose a lot of respect for Kiki because she was whiny and so woe-is-me, as if she was the first person anything bad has ever happened to. She literally compares her situation to someone dying.
Rant over.
With all my anger towards certain parts of this book, like I said, there were some elements I did really enjoy, and I don't want those to be overlooked. I liked that it dealt with body image and social anxiety. I liked the little tweets before each chapter. I loooved the element of friendship and girl empowerment (though even some of those moments felt so Hallmark to me). I liked the nerd-pride and self-discovery. These are all very important. By the end, I was satisfied where the story ended up. Despite the problems I had with this book, I'd recommend it if you are looking for a lighter, fluffier read.
May 26, 2016
As a girl who was obsessed with the Disney move, Camp Rock , I was so excited to read a book about a music camp!
Now, this book wasn't quite like Camp Rock , but it still gave me Camp Rock feels.
I thought it was interesting that this book was focused on the opera. I don't know a lot about opera, so it was interesting to learn about that music genre. However, I did find myself getting bored with the in depth descriptions about opera and singing. I would have liked that to have been cut back a bit. I guess I like watching/listening to it more than reading about it? I think a lot of people will like how detailed the author was in describing opera training, but it just wasn't my cup of tea.
The beginning of this book was a little slow, but it definitely picked up. The book became very fast paced and addicting. I liked that this book wasn't as predictable as most contemporary book are. Hammerle was able to keep me on my toes through out the book. There was a lot of drama in this book, which a tad ridiculous at times, but it kept the book interesting! I also really liked the themes of friendship and finding yourself weaved throughout this story.
I really liked the writing style of this book, mainly because the book was hilarious! Kiki, the main character, had me laughing out loud numerous times with things she said and thought. Her commentary through out the story was great. I loved her quirky and nerdy humor. I had such an easy time relating to Kiki. Kiki was passionate and endearing, which I enjoyed a lot. She was a little annoying and dramatic at times, but most teenage girls are! I know I was! I loved the growth she had in the book. Kiki became more confident in herself, and it was great to see that development.
The romance was definitely angsty. There was a lot of kissing and flirting, which was cute and fun to read. However, the romance did drive me crazy at some points in the book. I didn't realize it at first, but one of the romances involving Kiki was definitely felt like insta-love . I quickly became annoyed with how obsessed Kiki became with this one guy. They had some adorable moments, but as a whole, I was kind of over their relationship.
Overall, I thought this was a fun and entertaining story. There were a few things that annoyed me through out this book, but I liked it as a whole! I am excited to see what other books Hammerle will come out with in the future.
3 / 5 Fangs
*This ebook was given to me in exchange for a honest review. *
MrsLeif's Two Fangs About It
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Now, this book wasn't quite like Camp Rock , but it still gave me Camp Rock feels.
I thought it was interesting that this book was focused on the opera. I don't know a lot about opera, so it was interesting to learn about that music genre. However, I did find myself getting bored with the in depth descriptions about opera and singing. I would have liked that to have been cut back a bit. I guess I like watching/listening to it more than reading about it? I think a lot of people will like how detailed the author was in describing opera training, but it just wasn't my cup of tea.
The beginning of this book was a little slow, but it definitely picked up. The book became very fast paced and addicting. I liked that this book wasn't as predictable as most contemporary book are. Hammerle was able to keep me on my toes through out the book. There was a lot of drama in this book, which a tad ridiculous at times, but it kept the book interesting! I also really liked the themes of friendship and finding yourself weaved throughout this story.
I really liked the writing style of this book, mainly because the book was hilarious! Kiki, the main character, had me laughing out loud numerous times with things she said and thought. Her commentary through out the story was great. I loved her quirky and nerdy humor. I had such an easy time relating to Kiki. Kiki was passionate and endearing, which I enjoyed a lot. She was a little annoying and dramatic at times, but most teenage girls are! I know I was! I loved the growth she had in the book. Kiki became more confident in herself, and it was great to see that development.
The romance was definitely angsty. There was a lot of kissing and flirting, which was cute and fun to read. However, the romance did drive me crazy at some points in the book. I didn't realize it at first, but one of the romances involving Kiki was definitely felt like insta-love . I quickly became annoyed with how obsessed Kiki became with this one guy. They had some adorable moments, but as a whole, I was kind of over their relationship.
Overall, I thought this was a fun and entertaining story. There were a few things that annoyed me through out this book, but I liked it as a whole! I am excited to see what other books Hammerle will come out with in the future.
3 / 5 Fangs
*This ebook was given to me in exchange for a honest review. *
MrsLeif's Two Fangs About It
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