If We Were a Movie

Power of the Matchmaker

by Kelly Oram

Music meets Movies in this sweet college romance from the bestselling author of Cinder & Ella.

NYU freshman Nate Anderson is a triplet who is desperate to escape his wild and crazy brothers. After they screw things up for him one too many times, Nate flees his housing situation and takes the first available room for rent as far from his brothers as he can get.

Enter his new roommate Jordan--a quirky LA girl who believes that everything in life has already been done in the movies. In this heartfelt tale of love, friendship and family, Nate learns how to deal with his new adult life using Hollywood films as a guide.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Young Adult, New Adult, College, Fiction, Audiobook

312 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 1, 2016

About the author

Kelly Oram wrote her first novel at age fifteen–a fan fiction about her favorite music group, The Backstreet Boys, for which family and friends still tease her. She's obsessed with reading, talks way too much, and loves to eat frosting by the spoonful. She lives outside of Phoenix, Arizona with her husband and four children.

Reviews

[Alienor ✘ French Frowner ✘ · Rating 1 out of 5]

► Aww, that book was just so cute. Not.

1) You know what I don't find cute at all? When judgments are forced down my throat . This is manipulative and obnoxious. See, "perfect" Nate has a girlfriend, Sophie, but poor boy is misunderstood (boohoo) because she is not that fond of his dream to be a musician (he's graduating in music in NYU) and wants to have a part in his decisions. Not that I think that it's great to be in a relationship with someone who doesn't support your dreams, but boohoo, poor boy, if you're not happy, just break up already. Because you know what? The constant, heartless and pushing dismissal of Sophie pissed me off so bad. The strings are so fucking obvious - it's as if the author wrote bluntly : NATE, YOU SHOULD REALLY BREAK UP WITH SOPHIE TO BE WITH PERFECT DREAM PIXIE GIRL JORDAN. Sophie's unfairly portrayed - as a plain stereotype, cardboard people-like girlfriend.

Really, though? I felt bad for Sophie, even though I didn't like her (how could I, with the one-dimensional evil way she's portrayed?). I tried to put myself in her shoes, though, and the truth is, I would feel horrible if I was lectured by my boyfriend's roommate of 2 weeks about how I'm handling my relationship with my boyfriend of 3 years.

Just back off already.

2) Constant stereotypes are not so cute, you know . The fact that everybody in this book seem to think that people should be fucking copies to get along does not sit well with me either. So, what? Nate, as an artist, should be with an artist to be happy? I call bullshit on that. Life is not about finding clones who agree with everything we do. Life is about sharing things with people who care about us and for whom we care. Of course, Sophie, the future accountant, down-to-earth girl, is portrayed as a heartless bitch so as a reader I feel forced to go along with this but NO, this premise is idiotic and simplistic. I'm not buying that. Also, the artist private jokes with the dream pixie girl in front of your girlfriend the day she meets her? This is not cute, this is just rude.

How could I care about any of these characters when they're just plain stereotypes? Let's see, we have...

Jordan, the manic pixie dream girl :


Nate, the misunderstood musician :


Sophie, the Bitch :


Nate's brothers, the players :


Pearl... I don’t know... OH!


... And also, Colin, Jordan's gay best friend who-can't-help-but-teasingly-hit-on-Nate (because reasons); Lol, we even have a gamer-computer-geek.

Not an ounce of depth really, and the plot is hardly believable.

3) Perhaps I'm just that bad, but these two PERFECT lovebirds who are so PERFECT together and who understand each other's so PERFECTLY are just so fucking boring, you know? This is cheesy, unrealistic, flat and I don't care. THERE. They don't feel like real people one second, and their fake quirkiness is giving me a headache.

Sorry,


► By all means, do hook up together, I won't be there to see it. DNF at 69%, without even any kiss to show for it.

For more of my reviews, please visit:

[Mali Mor ❤️ The Romantic Blogger · Rating 3 out of 5]

ｃｈｅｃｋ ｏｕｔ ｍｙ ｂｏｏｋｓｔａｇｒａｍ: https://www.instagram.com/the_romanti...

The book is written from a male-only point of view (which is totally refreshing) and tells the story of Nate, who dreams of becoming a music composer and attending college in New York with his two crazy brothers (they are an unidentical trio) – and Jordan, his new roommate who dreams of becoming a film producer and believe that everything that happens in real life, has already happened in the movie (and she also manages to prove it over and over again!) 😂📽

📚 “𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗲, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗼 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸.” 📚

This is a *romantic* and not erotic book: the plot is sweet and reminded me a chick flick. I enjoyed that the plot linked to movies I had seen and loved in the past, but … it did not renew anything for me.
Nothing.
Nada. 🙈

In my opinion it will be suitable for teenagers so at first I thought of recommending it to my nephew who recently started reading too (oh yeah!!! 💪) but teenagers will probably not even know the movies mentioned in the book (Ten things I hate about you, The Princess Bride, Ghost, Mulan Rouge, Sliding doors, Die Hard, etc) 🤷‍♀️

If you want to read a nostalgic romantic story, *not an erotic one* – but cute, then this is the book.
That's it. 😂😂😂

▪️▫️▪️▫️▪️▫️▪️▫️▪️▫️▪️▫️▪️▫️▪️▫️

📖 ᖴOᒪᒪOᗯ ᗰE Oᑎ IᑎᔕTᗩGᖇᗩᗰ: https://www.instagram.com/the_romanti...

📖 ᐯIᔕIT ᗰY ᗷᒪOG ᖴOᖇ ᗰOᖇE ᖇEᐯIEᗯᔕ: https://books-romance.com/

📖 GOOᗪᖇEᗩᗪᔕ: https://bit.ly/3acMRMP

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

If We Were a Movie is a sweet romance set in New York City. I loved all the movie references. A super fun read with a whole cast of likable characters (well all except for Sophie - I didn't like her at all - but that was as it should be).

Content: a handful of mild swear words, mild innuendo, implied sex but nothing but kissing on the pages of the book

[Syndi · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF

Yup sorry. I can not connect with anything in this book. Everything is... off. Characters, story, plot, banters, conversation etc. Nothing click.

I was really hoping to like this book very much. Since it is promising such wonderful reference of movies and songs.

2 stars

[Muse-ic ♬ · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5
Fab-you-lous!
That was one wonderfully emotional ride!
I loved the heartfelt story!
I loved and connected with the characters.... except Sophie the stupid psychotic $&+#&!

And Jordan and Colin!!

I absolutely loved reading from Nate's perspective because he's so awesome and such a passionate musician.
I am an avid musician as well, so I really connected with Nate on a deeper level. It was actually really nice! I don't remember every really feeling a character as though they were myself like Nate!
It was a nice experience :D

Sophie the Psychotic Significant Other and the pregnancy test. Dramatic irony. We all knew she was lying....we were just waiting for that big reveal!


Jordan is so perfect and their relationship is so cute! The main thing I disliked was their marriage at the end because like hello, Nate is 19! But whatever, I guess because it's in the Matchmaker series, they aren't really matched until they are married.
Speaking of the matchmaker, Pearl is so weird! Cool, but weird!

Nate's brothers? What can I say about them? I hate them, but I also love those dummies!

Colin is a great comic relief!

I sat on the couch for five hours straight and read this whole thing through! It was fun! Give it a read :D I feel like it's one of those books you either love or find extremely annoying, so if you read this and discover that you fall under the latter, don't blame me! My review came with a warning label ;)

[Jacob Proffitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the better from the Matchmaker "series". I still kind of hate the Pearl fixation but at least Oram integrates her well into the story and makes it actually work better than some of the other authors have.

This was a problematic read, for all I ended up at four stars. I really liked the two main characters. They were dynamic and interesting and I was engaged by both Nate and Jordan from the very start. They were so clearly made for each other and seeing them develop a friendship and start truly caring for each other was a treat. Unfortunately, that's also kind of the problem. You see, I was so invested in them getting together that I tended to bog down in my reading. Like, I'd have to stop and let a few days go by because I still wasn't anywhere near the end so I knew something was going to come up to keep them apart. I couldn't ever actually stop reading entirely but I almost wished that I could.

It doesn't help that some of the things that kept them apart were manufactured by the author. Nate's "girlfriend" comes to mind as the best example (scare quotes because she's dead selfish and obviously not right for him). We're already asked to buy Nate as a prodigy musician and Jordan as gifted in her own right and rich to boot and the triplet brothers were one-note disasters. So asking us to also swallow the eventually-to-be-ex clingy girlfriend was just one straw too many unlikely elements.

So yeah, lots of artificial-feeling elements kept getting between Jordan and Nate and that sucked. It's fortunate, then, that Nate and Jordan were worth it. In the sea of artificiality, I just liked and connected with them. They felt real even if everything else was façade. This was a solid-ish 3.5 stars. The outstanding ending kicked it to rounding up. This marks an improvement over the other Oram books I've read so I'm actually looking forward to where she goes from here.

A note about Chaste: While there is nothing explicit in this story, it's pretty clear that sex is happening. Indeed, Nate and the soon-to-be-ex are explicitly sexually active, though it all happens off-screen—a fact I find off-putting, actually, as I don't like when my lead characters have sexual relationships with other people during the course of the romance.

[Rahmi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really hate Sophie, that bitch is crazy and a psychotic.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ich bin so froh, dass Kelly Oram mir wieder zeigt, wieso ich ihre Bücher so liebe!! Nach Cinder und Ella ist sie schnell zu einer meiner liebsten Autorinnen geworden - und dieses Buch kommt zwar nicht an das beste aller Bücher ran… aber es war trotzdem ein kleines großes Highlight für mich! Angefangen bei ihrem Schreibstil, den ich in jedem ihrer Bücher sehr zu schätzen wusste und der zu einem super schnellen und flüssigen Lesen und einem wundervollen Leseerlebnis geführt hat. Ich habe mit Nate mitgefühlt, und fand es großartig nur seine Sicht der Dinge zu erfahren! Es hat dem ganzen einfach das gewisse etwas gegeben, was ich so noch nicht gelesen habe und was mir aber richtig gut gefallen hat! Auch das Trope, was mich normalerweise immer sehr stört, wurde hier wunderbar umgesetzt, vielleicht sogar das allererste Mal vernünftig und in einer guten und vor allem ehrlichen Art und Weise! Die ganzen Film-Anekdoten sowie auch die Liebe zur Musik, durch die Studiengänge von Nate und Jordan waren einfach nur großartig und haben mir richtig gut gefallen! Hach. Ich mochte einfach alles an diesem Buch und bin richtig traurig es schon zu Ende gelesen zu haben… große Empfehlung für alle Young Adult Liebhaber*innen!

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fabulous book in the POWER OF THE MATCHMAKER SERIES (although none of the books have to be read in any particular order). Miss Pearl is at it again, subtlety at her best in how she matches two stubborn (and a bit unsuspecting) people. Kelly Oram does an impressive job at characterization with Nate and Jordan, and I loved the wonderful uniqueness of their romance. The plot is clever, and you won't be able to put this book down once you start, so make sure you have food in your refrigerator.

[Daisy Delfin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pages: 312
My rating: 5

I had this on my kindle for a while now. But it seemed so long (not so much the pages but the positions that kindle shows). Finally I started it yesterday and in typical Kelly Oram fashion, I could only stop to read yesterday because I was so sleepy. Picked it up the first time I had a break today and finished it.

I liked the book very much. I liked that Nate is a triplet and that he is tight with his brothers, but also wants to have a chance of a separate live. I liked that Jordan just wants to be down to earth and experience normal. She loves Nate’s family. She is compassionate and a good person.
Tyson and Chris Nate’s bother are the Chaos to Nate’s preference of more low-key activities. They love each other dearly but Ty and Chris do not understand Nate even though they are together all the time.
Sophie is the devil. I never liked her. I loved that characters of Kelly Oram’s book are mentioned in this book. Ella, Brian and Rob are my favourites but Val and Kyle are mentioned too.

I really loved the book. It’s a good story and totally different than Cinder and Ella or V is for Virgin and A is for Abstinence.

The Characters: Names and descriptions of the persons

Nate Anderson: triplet, member of the band triple threat, not a party guy, musician and music major on a scholarship, middle child, loves spotlight onstage, Low-key is his style, likes to hang out and have a good time, shaggy light brown hair and light brown eyes, charming smile, easygoing vibe, no geek, is called Runt
Jordan: Film Major, Trust fund girl, who owns a Ferrari and an apartment, has a job at a cafe, has a knack for putting people at ease
Chris Anderson: bad boy of our trio, has a streak of the devil, Tall, Dark daring all the way, and second triplet, drummer in the band triple threat, oldest child
Tyler Anderson: youngest child, third triplet, angel on the surface, baby face, has youngest child syndrome, throws temper tantrums, boy band diva type, honey-blond hair, soulful brown eyes like all triplets, bass guitarist, player, loves spotlight
Sophie: Nate’s steady girlfriend, are together since Highschool, the past two years, followed Nate to NYU, even if she did not want to go there, has her and Nate’s live planned out, doesn’t like his music ambitions
Colin: constantly makes everyone laugh, gay, drama major
Pearl: the Matchmaker,
Dad Anderson:
:



Summery: detailed, lot’s of spoiler

Nate get’s a Scholarship to a prestigious music Collage in NYC. His brothers, who wanted to stay in Syracuse (NY) and study in the city they grew up. But they dig out a scholarship for triplets and follow Nate and they want to house together and so they house together in a small dorm room after the two requested a special permission. Nate would have preferred to live in his own room. Nate did not tell his girlfriend Sophie that he got accepted in NYC. But Sophie follows him too. She is studying at a different college.

At the beginning of the story Nate is working on a special music project for his class he has finished it, when his brothers bring him coffee and the other one flings a jacket at him which leads to a coffee accident. The computer gets fried and Nate is really angry with his brothers because he don’t know if he can rescue the project which is due the next day. He leaves the room and talkes to Sophie, who agrees to meet him in a Cafe. At the Cafe Nate runs into an older woman, who spills her tea on him and he drops his mobile, which is broken and not working. So he is really upset when the elderly lady who also fell down talked to him. He helps her and gives her money, because he ruined her scones and also want to by her a new tea. They go into the Cafe and the elderly lady Pearl, sits at Nate’s table (which he grabbed for Sophie and him) and talked to him. Nate spills everything that happened today and Sophie arrives. And then Pearl hooks him up with Jordan, who has an apartment and is looking for a roommate. Sophie persuades Nate to take a look at the apartment. But when Nate visits the apartment Jordan is a girl and the apartment is gorgeous. Knowing that Sophie will hate that he is living with another girl he agrees to rent the room.

Jordan helps him to recover his project from his computer and when he hands it in the next day, the Professor invites him to audition for the senior showcase. He is the first freshman in three years, who got invited by a professor.

Now Sophie is angry, and his brothers too. But Sophie at least acts like it is okay but they will look for an apartment together. But Nate does not want to live with Sophie. Between being stressed out because his brothers do not talk to him, Sophies bad mood and school, Nate becomes friends with Colin and Jordan. And both of them cheer him on. Jordan teaches him about films and he teaches Jordan about music. the become best friends.

When he auditions for the senior showcase, Jordan and Colin are there to support him and while he is on stage, he sees that his brothers came too. But Sophie is missing. She never takes time for things that are important to Nate. With Jordans help he gets an invite to the showcase but he has to show something better than what he performed at the audition. They celebrate at the apartment.

Sophie still does not like the arrangement and when she is at his home and complaining Nate tells her that they should take a break but Sophie starts crying and he relents. Halloween Sophie comes to the apartment to cook for Nate and herself. Jordan comes into the kitchen dressed up as a nurse and tells them that she is going out with Blaze, who is a jerk. Nate warns her but she still goes. Some time later, when Sophie and Nate are making out in the living room, Jordan comes back upset and crying. She goes to her room. Nate wants to follow her but Sophie tells him to stay with here. She shows no compassion for Jordan and Nate finally has enough and breaks up with Sophie. Then he gets some ice ream and wallows with Jordan about their evening.

Thanksgiving break is there and Nate wants to leave with his brother to go to Syracuse and visit his father. He goes to the Cafe where Jordan works and meets Pearl. She suggests, that Jordan could save Nate from his relatives but Jordan can’t to because she took shifts all weekend. But a coworker comes into the cafe and asks Jordan if she can have all her shifts, because she needs the money to pay rent. Jordan agrees and then Colin, Pearl and Nate persuade her to go with Nate to his Dad.

They have a good time with Nate’s family. Jordan is quickly accepted by his brothers and his fathers. Also his aunts and uncles like her. Jordan gets to experience things she never had. But then they go to a party, where the triple threats play music. Nate plays some of his own compositions, but the people don’t like the originals as much as the cover songs they play. Nate thinks that he needs better songs for the showcase.
Sophie is also at the party. And when she sees Nate with Jordan, who is his fake girlfriend (because otherwise his brothers would sick all single girls his way) she makes a scene because he cheated on her when he did not. He confesses that Jordan is his friend and fake girlfriend, so his brothers don’t bother him. That night Sophie gets drunk and makes a bigger scene at the party, but Nate and Jordan take her home.

The next day Jordan helps Nate to find his music style. He wrote lyrics for a ice cream love song for Jordan called 31 flavours and now she gives him some inspiration for the soundtrack.

Later they decorate the house for Christmas and while Nate and Jordan are kissing behind the Christmas tree his brothers arrive and are happy that Jordan and Nate are making out but also Sophie arrives and tells them that she is pregnant. She shows them the test. And everybody is shocked. Nate wants to be in the life of his kid and so he wants to take responsibility. He goes back to NYC with Sophie, while Jordan drives home alone.

Sophie tries to manipulate Nate big time. And he wants to forgive her for wanting to get pregnant and not taking the pill after he moved into Jordans apartment. And for not telling him that she is not safe anymore. He wants to do it for the kid and he tells Jordan, that this is the only way and that he can’t be with Jordan because he doesn’t want to hurt her more than he already have, even though Jordan is willing to stay at his side and help him with Sophie and baby trouble. Sophie gets more clingy and she manipulates Nate every step.

The show down is at Nate’s showcase. Sophie tells him shortly before his performance that her parents would give them the guest house for free, so they can stay there with the baby until they graduate. She has everything planned out. She wants to go back to Syracuse and study there, because it is cheaper. Her mum would look after the baby when they are in class and Nate can help his father and take over his company one day. Nate sees that everything Sophie says is true, that it would be cheaper and easier to follow Sophies plan. But Jordan jumps in and tells them that they can have her apartment because she is going back to Cali. And she tells Sophie that she will kill Nate if she takes his music away from him.

They are interrupted and the band has to perform. After a brilliant performance which the audience loved, Nate talks to the Jury, who are really impressed and they offer him to help him get internships and a record label disinterested in him and so on. Nate realises, that he wants his music and he wants Jordan, who understands him like no other person. But Colin rushes to Nate to tell him that Jordan left two hours ago. And the Triplet and Colin make a plan to find Jordan. Sophie is not happy but Nate tells her that he will help her and also help raise the kid, but he wants to make music and he wants to be with Jordan. Sophie breaks down and confesses, that she faked the pregnancy. Nate is very disappointed. Pearl shows up and tells them that they can still catch Jordan. She tells them the airport and the flight and Nate rushes to the airport. Jordan could not leave because of bad weather and Nate tells her that he loves her and that he wants her to stay. And Jordan is so happy.
In the Epilogue some month later: It’s summer break and Jordan got an internship with a famous Director and has to go to LA. Nate has to record his first CD in NYC - at least Jordan thinks this. Nate takes her to the Cafe a few hours before she has to leave. There he tells her that he has to record the CD in LA and he has an apartment there which the record label organised for him. And that Jordan can stay with him in the apartment. Colin ask Nate to perform for them before he leaves. And Nate performs a song for Jordan, because this was a set up for Jordan. In this song he ask her to marry him. Jordan agrees and Nate gives her his mothers ring. He tells her that he talked to his Dad and he told him to marry Jordan, because sometimes you just know. Also his mum and dad were only a little older than Nate and Jordan, when they married. So we got our sweet HEA!

[Chapteraway · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5/5

[Annika · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a fun time listening to this sweet romance. It's a book that will make you want to watch a ton of movies and in general just makes you feel good. Also, I have to check out more book by new to me narrator Andrew Eiden, he was great.

[Sophia Wordworld · Rating 3 out of 5]

Handlung: "If we were a movie" ist mein achtes Buch von Kelly Oram. Nachdem mich ihre letzte Reihe um Virgin Val und Rockstar Kyle eher enttäuscht hat und erst ihr Standalone-Young-Adult-Roman "Girl at Heart" an den zuckersüßen Lesezauber von "Cinder & Ella" und der Science-Squad-Dilogie anknüpfen konnte, war ich natürlich sehr gespannt, wie es um ihr neues YA-Standalone steht und habe mir sofort ein Exemplar angefragt. Und das schien zunächst eine gute Idee gewesen zu sein, denn bereits nach wenigen Seiten habe ich mich in das Konzept und die Atmosphäre der Handlung verliebt. Die zwei Hauptfiguren viben von Anfang an wunderbar miteinander und auch die Begeisterung für Filme und Musik, die in jedem Satz steckt, ist ansteckend. Die insgesamt 27 Kapitel sind hier jeweils nach Filmen der letzten 50 Jahre benannt, deren Referenzen und Anspielungen sich durch das gesamte Buch ziehen wie ein roter Faden. Ich kannte etwa die Hälfte der eingebundenen Filme und habe nach dem Lesen Lust, mir die andere Hälfte mal anzusehen. Diesen Teil der Grundidee fand ich also ganz zauberhaft. Leider wird jedoch auch in anderweitiger Hinsicht der Titel Programm. Denn "If we were a movie" entpuppt sich nach starkem Beginn leider als überzogene, oberflächliche und sehr vorhersehbare romantische Komödie, die vor allem in der zweiten Hälfte kein Drama auslässt und jedes Klischee mitnimmt.

Figuren: Dieser Eindruck hängt leider besonders mit einer Figur zusammen, die im letzten Drittel ärgerlicherweise für eine ganze Wagenladung an überzogenem und absolut unnötigem Drama sorgt, sodass ich am liebsten in einem weg die Augen verdreht hätte. Da ich einfach nicht nachvollziehen konnte, weshalb Nate nicht schon viel früher versteht, dass seine Freundin ein kontrollsüchtiges Miststück ist, zogen sich die letzten 200 Seiten trotz vieler süßer Szene gefühlt ewig dahin. Ebenfalls schade ist, dass sich Nates Konflikte mit seiner Freundin Sophie und seinen Brüdern ständig wiederholen, während die weibliche Hauptfigur Jordan etwas zu kurz kommt. Hierbei positiv hervorzuheben ist allerdings, dass "If we were a movie" der erste Young-Adult-Roman ist, den ich komplett aus männlicher Sicht erzählt lese. Die AutorInnen dieses Genres tendieren meiner Beobachtungen nach dazu, eine weibliche Protagonistin ins Zentrum zu stellen oder aus zwei Perspektiven zu erzählen. Hier nur Nates Sicht auf die Geschehnisse zu sehen, empfand ich als erfrischende Abwechslung. Auch bei Nates Entwicklung holt die Autorin wieder viel der bei Handlung und Rahmenidee verlorengegangenen Tiefe wieder rein und ließ mich auch großzügig darüber hinwegsehen, dass die Gefühle und Themen nicht über die Oberfläche hinaus gehen.

Schreibstil: Wenn man ein Buch von Kelly Oram aufschlägt, kann man eigentlich immer damit rechnen, dass man an einigen Stellen lachen, an anderen verträumt aufseufzen und vielleicht auch mal traurig den Mund verziehen wird. So auch in "If we were a movie". Auch wenn die Geschichte aufgrund des Alters der Protagonisten eher als New Adult einzusortieren wäre (die Figuren gehen immerhin schon aufs College), kreiert die Autorin durch die freundschaftliche Annäherung zwischen Nate und Jordan hier wieder eine unschuldige, kindlich-süße Young-Adult-Atmosphäre, für die sie berühmt ist. Auch in diesem Roman, in dem die Handlung an einigen Stellen auf Messers Schneide verläuft, gelingt es der Autorin in den allermeisten Fällen Kitsch zu umschiffen und immer, wenn man schon kurz davor ist, die Augen zu verdrehen, gerade noch die Kurve zu bekommen und uns mit dem typischen Kelly-Oram-Zauber am Ball zu halten. Zu diesem Kelly-Oram-Zauber gehört auch, dass die Klischees der Figuren durch das typisch charmante Augenzwinkern ihres Schreibstils kaschiert werden und Crossover-Anspielungen auf die "V is for Virgin"-Reihe und das "Cinder & Ella"-Universum Fans zusätzlich erfreuen.

Die Zitate:

"Ich glaube nicht, dass uns das Schicksal kontrolliert. Sondern dass es dafür sorgt, dass gewisse Dinge passieren. Was wir aus den Gelegenheiten machen, die es uns bietet, liegt allein an uns"

"Dieses Lied kam tatsächlich direkt aus meinem Herzen. Es war alles, was ich in mir hatte. Alles, was ich fühlte, wollte, bis jetzt nicht begriffen hatte und nicht sagen konnte. Das war ich."


Das Urteil:

"If we were a movie" ist als Hommage an romantische Komödien konzipiert, deren Begeisterung für Filme und Musik ebenso bei mir ankam wie die süße Atmosphäre und die Charakterentwicklung des männlichen Hauptprotagonisten. Leider driftet die Geschichte im letzten Drittel dann doch ins Überzogene, Vorhersehbare ab und lässt kein Drama aus und nimmt jedes Klischee mit.

Großzügige 3,5 Sterne mit Tendenz nach unten gibt´s also von mir. Von Kelly Oram eher empfehlen kann ich beispielsweise "Girl at Heart".

[Alaina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, so If We Were a Movie had it's cute moments.. but some of this book just rubbed me the wrong way. Eh, well if I don't want to lie then a lot of this book did. First off, we meet the "perfect" couple Sophie and Nate. They are high school sweethearts who thought they were going to grow old and boring together.

Well, until Nate starting thinking of doing something different with his life. Eh, isn't that how it always happens? Let's be honest.. I hated Sophie with a damn passion. God, she was so selfish and manipulative. The day they finally broke up I feel like I almost cried. That's how invested I was in their damn break up. Call me horrible.. I'm sure someone does every day.

Now just cause I don't like Sophie doesn't mean I'm team Nate all the way because I'm not. I honestly don't think I had a favorite character in this book. I mean, I liked people but that was pretty much it. The ending was pretty cute though.

[Ela's Welt der Bücher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kelly Orams Bücher sind ein Muss für mich, daher musste dieses unbedingt zu meiner Sammlung dazugekauft werden. An Cinder & Ella 1 und Girl at Heart hat es noch keines geschafft, aber dieses hatte so viel Potential dazu. Leider wurde es nicht ganz ausgeschöpft. Obwohl ich sagen muss, dass es zwischendurch schon nach einem 5 Sterne-Buch ausgesehen hat, aber dieses Ende war zwar süß, aber auch ein bisschen übertrieben und dass hat mir das Buch ein bisschen vermiest. Ansonsten mochte ich es gerne es mal aus der männlichen Perspektive zu lesen. Das war anders und hat mich daher wirklich beeindruckt. Es war zwar nicht das stärkste, zählt aber zu dem oberen Drittel dazu. Freue mich schon auf die nächsten Bücher.
4,5 Sterne

[Katie (hiding in the pages) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm impressed with this series so far and how each book has that common thread and a similar vibe, yet is so unique. In this one, we are treated to a story set in New York City. How fun is that?

Nate is a freshman at NYU and is a very talented musician. Nate's life revolves around and relates to music. In a move to escape his obnoxious brothers (they're triplets), and at the encouragement of his high school girlfriend, he moves into a new apartment and is a little surprised by who his new roomie is. Jordan is the perfect roommate. She's funny, smart, and really brings out the creativity in Nate, as he's trying to write the perfect song. She is a film student and Jordan's life revolves and relates to movies. It's amazing to me to see just how many songs and movies can actually relate to one story. I love it!

Becoming an adult and college life isn't easy, as is shown in this story and it's through the matchmaker, Pearl, that Nate really finds the courage to make the necessary changes in his life to fulfill his full potential. Pearl is great and I love learning more about her through each book. The characters, both good and bad, are fantastic and are each crucial to the story and its development. I came to love them all--all except for one--although some are definitely easier to love from the get-go. The setting, music scenes, character development, and pacing are perfect for this plot and I devoured it--it was really over before I was ready for it to be and that ending? Perfection!

Content: mild language; some innuendo, some party scenes with underage drinking, kissing, implied unmarried intimate relations with no details. Clean, especially for the new adult genre!

[Deniz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sigh.

So the big question remains..If we were a movie...What would we be?
I've just asked Mr. O that question.
His answer?
I thought you were more the if we were a song kinda a girl.. actually you are, but you even more if we were a book kinda girl.

Helpful much?! I am totally aware of that! I always have a theme song to my current life. So yeah, he got it right the first time around.
Hence I could totally relate to Jordan's outlook on life. In fact, now I keep thinking about what movie I am could be in... the little problem is, I am so not a movie buff... So guess I just keep having theme songs and read books instead.

Why do a babble on about movies you wonder? Well, because Oram related every scene in the book to a movie. Starting with Sliding Doors and ending with Love, Actually.
I totally love the way she incorporated over 30Movies- two imaginary once, related to her previous books (so cool!) - into this fantastic cute & fluffy.
In my opinion this is Oram at her best!

Full review to follow on release day!


Until then I shall give you the movies list:

Sliding Doors
EuroTrip
Joe Versus The Volcano
She's The Man
The Princess Bride
The Druid Prince
The Usual Suspects
Step Up
Annie
How To Loose A Guy In 10 Days
Back To The Future
Sid and Nancy
Almost Famous
Save The Last Dance
Someone Like You
XMen
Ghost
Music and Lyrics
V Is For Virgin
Transformers
The Avengers
Clueless
The Proposal
Home For The Holidays
Kill Bill
Moulin Rouge
Nation Lampoon's Christmas
Vacations
White Christmas
Die Hard
Knocked Up
Shakespeare In Love
Gone Girl
Fatal Attraction
Sleepless in Seattle
Love, Actually

(and references to Matrix and Arachnophobia )

So what movie would you be?

[Heidi Robbins (Heidi Reads...) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't realize for the first couple pages the first person POV was a male... which made me laugh when I got confused enough to figure it out. Nate has plenty of the typical guy in him- he appreciates good-looking girls and likes goofing off with his brothers- but he stands out with his compassion for the feelings of others and his passion for music. His girlfriend Sophie is cast as the villain of the story, but I thought she came off pretty obvious and two-dimensional. It didn't reflect well on Nate that he was still with her, but as he encounters Jordan with the help of the matchmaker Pearl, he redeems himself by recognizing and treasuring her individuality and kindness. I loved their friendship with the banter, film references, and unconditional support. The gay sidekick was a character I could have done without- I found him annoyingly stereotypical of a tired trend. Nate's shifting relationship with his brothers on the other hand had depth and really showed some of the difficulties of growing up and choosing something different than what your loved ones preferred; trying to balance being true to yourself with family love and loyalty. While reading, the story played in my head just like a movie, and I thinks it's fitting of the title and theme that it would easily translate to the big screen.

(Thank you to the author for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review)

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sad

There were many reasons to like this book. Sadly, it is not on my list of books I will ever read again. I think it is more of an personal choice because modern stories are just not my favorite. This deals with a few too many issues that annoy me like negative family banter, womanizing, a bit preachy about gays, excessive immaturity, and Premarital sex is an accepted assumption. I would rather read a currant romance that has at least one character with moral values. We may be rare these days, but we do exisist!

[Rachael Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really fun read! Clever, humorous, and engaging, this tale sucked me in from the beginning. I loved the main characters (with the exception of one), the brief appearances Pearl made throughout the book, and the happy ending. A fantastic addition to the matchmaker series!

[Feyre · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dass das Buch tatsächlich nach einem Hannah Montana Song benannt ist, hätte ein Hinweis sein können... Nunja.
Also. Nate an sich ist nach einer gewissen Entwicklung okay und Jordan mag ich auch (auch wenn sie Virgin Vals Mann kennt und ich den so gar nicht abkann. Immerhin kennt sie wohl auch Ella und Oliver, es finden also einige frühere Werke der Autorin Erwähnung) ebenso wie Colin. Tyler und Chris entwickeln sich auch gut weiter und am Ende fand ich sie gar nicht mehr so schlimm. Aber Sophie? Ich habe schon lange niemanden mehr so sehr gehasst. Vor allem die Aktion gegen Ende. Wie krank muss man sein?! Psycho-Sophie passt zu hundert Prozent.
Ich mochte den künstlerischen Aspekt, auch wenn er ein wenig kurz kam. Jordan und Nate haben wirklich eine tolle Dynamik. Das Ende fand ich allerdings total überzogen. Ein bisschen too much einfach. Es war gut so, wie es ist und dann musste noch was obendrauf gesetzt werden. Schade. Ich glaube, ich bleibe, was Kelly Oram angeht, lieber bei Rereads von Cinder & Ella.

[Amaka · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars rounded up to 4
A Cliche, cute, and funny YA read.
Other than the fact that Sophie annoyed the crap out of me with her clingy, jealous, and manipulative attitude, I enjoyed the book. Hey! I even got some good movie recommendations from it.
The way Kelly Oram related the whole story to movies was rather creative.

[Zuzana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sladké, odpočinkové a plné filmů.

[Dinasbookworld · Rating 3 out of 5]

Die Geschichte war an sich wirklich süß, aber für mich war sie sehr vorhersehbar. Mich hat in dieser Story nicht wirklich viel überrascht, vieles kannte ich auch schon aus anderen Geschichten. Es muss nicht immer etwas neues sein, aber ein bisschen Veränderung wäre schön. Ich mochte es, dass so viele Filme genannt wurden und Film ein großer Teil des Buches einnimmt und einige Filme möchte ich jetzt definitiv schauen.
Die Geschichte konnte mich leider nicht so packen, weil ich nicht wirklich überrascht wurde, was ich sehr schade finde. Dadurch konnte ich auch kaum eine Bindung zu den Charakteren finden.

[Amelie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Diese Geschichte, diese Charaktere...das Buch war einfach wundervoll und ich habe es von der ersten bis zur letzten Seite geliebt. Die Verbindung zwischen Nate und Jordan ist einfach magisch und dass Filmtitel die Kapitelüberschriften sind, ist eine mega Idee. Besonders Jordan hat tolle Charaktereigenschaften und ist einfach mein Liebling in diesem Buch. Dennoch hat für mich irgendwie ein kleiner Funken gefehlt, weshalb ich nur 4,5 Sterne gebe. Es ist trotzdem eine riesengroße Empfehlung!

[Lenore Kosinski · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://celebrityreaders.wordpress.co...

3.5 stars -- I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!!

I don't think I initially realized this book was an all boy POV book, but I LOVE those so that definitely worked for me! Sometimes I wish I could get into Jordan's head, but in general this was Nate's story being told, and I thought it was done with lots of humour and heart.

It's no secret that I'm a fan of Kelly Oram, and this book had her trademarks all over it. I LOVED the movie and music tie ins, they fit perfectly with where the story was going and brought back so many memories for me, b/c I'm pretty sure I recognized all the movie references (even if some were fictional -- some great easter eggs for true Kelly Oram fans to enjoy).

In general I adored Nate. He was a bit of a sensitive spirit, and I empathized with so much of what he was going through. But he was also a bit of a pushover, and while this book is the story of him getting over this particular flaw (and just growing in general), it was still hard to watch him get taken advantage of... In some cases it was just too much for me and had me scowling deeply at my kindle. I actually think Ms Oram portrayed his character really well, and it was definitely consistent and realistic...I just had a hard time reading it, so it took away from my enjoyment in some cases. So it was a personal preference type of thing, not a discredit to the writing or the book.

And in a similar vein, I just couldn't take his girlfriend Sophie. I'm sure there really are people like this in the world, but it was SO HARD to read about. She was a witch with a capital B and I think I would have preferred a bit less of her part in the story, even if that's where a lot of the conflict came in. His reactions to her just made me mad at him, and that's not what I want from a book boy I'm intending to love.

Now Jordan was awesomesauce. She was so bold and bright, and yet vulnerable at the same time. And the chemistry between her and Nate, from friends to more, was fantastic.

I even enjoyed his brothers, and I appreciated the way their part in the story played out. And then there's Jordan's friend Colin -- diamond in the rough that one.

So basically it was a delicious new addition to the Kelly Oram library, but my frustrations with Nate (and mostly Sophie) just took away from my enjoyment enough to leave this one just shy of 4 stars for me.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this review and more on my blog The Book Return Blog‘If We Were a Movie’ tells the story of ‘Nat’. ‘Nat’ is a triplet and struggles to have individuality from his brothers. Nat applies and is accepted to the NYU music program. The novel begins with Nat’s brothers inadvertently destroying his laptop along with his school project. Soon after this happens the character of ‘Pearl’ is introduced. She is an intricate part of the story and is the common thread thought the ‘Power of the Matchmaker’ series. She in turn introduces Nat to Jordan who ends up becoming his roommate and friend. Jordan is as obsessed with movies as Nat is with music.

As the mother of twins I can identify with Nat and how being a multiple can be both a good and a bad thing. I was excited to read a book that touched on the subject of a multiple struggling to have individuality. Nat really has a hard time with loving his brothers and wanting to spend time with them while still wanting to do his own thing.

I liked the character of ‘Jordan’. She seemed quirky and cute even though a few times she seem to flaunt her families’ money. The charter of ‘Sofie’, Nate’s girlfriend, is portrayed as self-centered and possessive. I would have liked to have seen more three-dimensionality to her personality. I could not figure out a reason (other than that she was pretty) that Nat would want to date her. I also wish the character of Nate had a little more of a backbone. He seemed to put up with a lot from his brothers and ‘Sofie’.

I did love how each chapter featured a different popular movie. It formed a theme for the book and added a fun edge to the story. I also like how the novel wrapped up even if it was a little predictable.

I really liked if ‘If We Were a Movie’ and plan of reading more of Kelly Oram’s novels . It was a super fun read with great characters. The prose was great and easy to read. I would definitely recommend ‘If We Were a Movie’ for a fun summer read.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another enjoyable installment in The Matchmaker Series! This time, the book is told through a male perspective. Nate is a freshman at NYU and a triplet. He wanted a fresh start, but his brothers and girlfriend followed him. His brothers are partiers and, after one particular stunt and a chance meeting with Pearl, the matchmaker, he made a drastic decision to move out on his own. Pearl tells him about Jordan, who needs a roommate, but doesn't mention that Jordan is female. Nate is apprehensive but decides it's the best thing for him, not realizing how significantly his life is about to change.

Nate is a musician trying to make a name for himself. He's a genuinely good guy that is just trying to figure out life. Jordan is a film student. She is creative, fun, and full of surprises. I liked how their relationship grew over time. There were some twists along the way and one was tough to see how it could be overcome.

There are lots of movie references and each chapter is the name of a song that somehow relates to what will happen in that chapter. I loved the references to the movies I was familiar with and there are others that I want to watch now. There were lots of great characters that added to the story. There's one that I didn't like but she was crucial to the story as well. Pearl showed up as needed to help guide things along. I'm loving this series and looking forward to more!

Content: implied unmarried sexual relations (no details), innuendo, and underage drinking and partying.

I received a copy of this book via I Am a Reader for an honest review. My opinion is 100% my own.

Mel's Shelves

[Laura Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another feel-good Kelly Oram book. As always with her books, I love the characters. Well, most of them, anyway. I have a little bit of a problem with the way Sophie was written. I have a hard time believing that Nate would ever date someone so awful. I would have liked to have seen some good in Sophie so you understand what the appeal was. Most people aren't all good or all bad. To make Sophie so overtly awful was a bit unrealistic and it makes the reader feel a bit forced to hate her. I loved the connection between Jordan and Nate. Their playful banter was spot-on. The movie references were awesome!!!! So many are on my top all-time favorites. It makes me want to go back and watch a bunch of these throw-backs. Now, I'm pretty sure I will be thinking about how my life is a movie. . . .My only other criticism is that in the end it became just a little too, too. I'm all for the happy endings just as much as the next girl, but this was over-the-top . . . even for me. I think some people will definitely be rolling their eyes and gagging. Still, the book was a fun, light, and very entertaining read:)

[Lissa Rice]

**5 HUGE Boundless Stars** Full review and rating will be up at Boundless Book Reviews