The Brightsiders

By: Jen Wilde

Narrated by: Katherine Littrell

A teen rockstar has to navigate family, love, coming out, and life in the spotlight after being labeled the latest celebrity trainwreck in Jen Wilde's quirky and utterly relatable novel.

As a rock star drummer in the hit band the Brightsiders, Emmy King's life should be perfect. But there's nothing the paparazzi love more than watching a celebrity crash and burn. When a night of partying lands Emmy in hospital, she's branded the latest tabloid train wreck.

Luckily, Emmy has her friends and bandmates, including the super-swoonworthy Alfie, to help her pick up the pieces of her life. She knows hooking up with a band member is exactly the kind of trouble she should be avoiding, and yet Emmy and Alfie Just. Keep. Kissing.

Will the inevitable fallout turn her into a clickbait scandal (again)? Or will she find the strength to stand on her own?

Jen Wilde, author of Queens of Geek, which Seventeen called "the geeky, queer book of our dreams", is back with a brand new cast of highly diverse and relatable characters for her fans to fall in love with.

©2018 Jen Wilde (P)2018 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Super Cute

I needed something with some happy feel good vibes and although this touches on some serious topics, I loved the story!

Don’t mess with the girl with purple lipstick!

Feel-good anthem for diversity.
We old fogies can pass the torch with confidence. These kids continue to push the boundaries of awareness and acceptance.

Superior performance by Katherine Littrell.

Don’t mess with the girl with purple lipstick!

good, but falls a tiny bt short

I'm not sure ehat I expected, but I did expect something slightly different. That being said, I'm always up fot a YA story with music. And audiobooks are ideal for this because you get to hear the songs, even if just acapaella, not just imagine them. And in this one, this is a real strength.
I guess this is a story about identity, mental health, fame and being young in the current world. It is somewhat fun, ery deep and
full of unashamed pop culyure references, from the greats of disco and rock to most current stars.
The syoryline, to me, toes the line between very real and very unrealistic. I does pla out like a fairytale with just a bit of drama. I mean, this girl really is still a teen in essence, and a lot of the tension points in this book reflect that. A lor of it is about her love life - much like any real teenager and modern celebrity, by the way.
I love the characters styles, as they are described, with colorful hair and makeup - though you don«t need to be queer to own a style like that. I do think the queerness of the book doesn't quite work though. I mean, in the end, this bi girl ends up with a male . supposedly gender fluid but the pronouns are he/his nonetheless - and her jilted lesbian lover is painted as one of the main villains. It kind of shot itself in the foot there.
But I did enjoy spending a day with it. The coming ofage aspects are good and yes, in the end, the message of this book is bright.

Couldn’t put it down

I purchased the hard copy of this book for my daughter then saw it was included in audible and decided I would listen to it too so I could discuss it with her. I could not put it down. The narrator killed it! She did an amazing job. So good that my daughter might listen to it now that she’s read the book just to hear how the narrator brings everything to life.

If you’re not into somewhat predictable YA style books then it won’t be for you. But I loved every minute of it and was very happy when things turned out as I was hoping. The characters really made me root for them.

Okay story geared toward teens, but...

The story was okay, but the narration was tough to get through. Especially the ever changing Chloe accent. Is it New York, Boston, or Australian?!? I could have also done without the singing.

Couldn’t stop listening

This book really brought me back to the feelings of young love. Great characters & story development.

So queerly amazing.

What I wouldn't have given for this book growing up. A delightful queer romance, set under stagelights. If you love a good pop star romance, intercut with high drama and the pressure of being queer and famous, you want this book. Wonderful representation. A wonderful look at the psyche, and heartbreak, and finding your way out of your own head. This book is a gift.

Great Book

I thought the story was great The main character (Em) had some great thoughts I just kept wanting her to turn into songs. I did struggle with the narration some, her singing was good but it wasn’t how I kept picturing the band. It would’ve been really cool to have the songs really played. I know other people commented on the accents but those didn’t bother me.

Entertaining

Enjoyed the easy listen. Not a very surprising ending but that did not take away from the good story

Great performance

I have had a hard time with some audible books because truly - the storyline can be amazing but if the narrator isn’t on point, it can ruin a good book. The Brightsiders caught my eye as I was getting ready to hop on a flight to Seattle. I wanted an easy read and so I started it. The storyline is good - although not my normal read, I enjoyed it and truly enjoyed the narrative. The subject matter was out of my area of expertise, but it was entertaining and I did find myself feeling with the main characters. More for the young adult crowd, this 40 year old mother of two enjoyed the story and found myself jamming out with the female drummer desperately looking to be in charge of her young life all while surrounded by a curious and supportive cast of friends. Enjoyable read!