Review: Before He Was a Secret (Starstruck #3) by Becky Wicks

Title: Before He Was a Secret
Author: Becky Wicks
Series: Starstruck
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, New Adult
Publication date: February 24th 2015
Source: Netgalley








"What if we can't choose
Every battle we win and lose
What if we decided years before, to live this life, to fight these wars
And all the dreams we ever thought were ours
Were written in the stars"

Waiting tables isn't exactly what singer/songwriter Stephanie has in mind for her move to Nashville, but memories of the past and a case of writer's block mean inspiration isn't coming easy. When brooding pianist Conor Judge opens his mouth in a smoky bar he proves music can heal, and even help you re-write your story, but a history of his own means the one thing he starts to want most is always out of reach. Stephanie. 

Enter Travis Flynn - an upcoming star who won't take no for an answer, and a record label intent on helping Stephanie shine, without Conor. As fame comes knocking as hard as the ghosts of their pasts, it soon becomes clear that no matter how hard you might fall in love, having the perfect songs doesn't always mean perfect harmony. 

Goodreads

Stephanie wants to make it as a songwriter in Nashville but that is easier said than done. Many with the same wish come to Nashville every year and only a couple of them succeed. But since she came to Nashville she has not written a word, inspiration seems to lack. Instead she finds herself waiting tables, the same job she had back home. That is until she hears Conor sing at a local bar. After that night he seems to pop everywhere out of nowhere.

Conor his life consists of music. During the day he works at his dad’s music store and in the evening he goes to local bars to perform. His songs are amazing but since they are so close to his heart he is reluctant to share them with the public. But when Conor meets Stephanie his life changes completely. He helps her with her writer’s block while she helps him to deal with his pain.

It took me a while before I was hooked by this book. I liked the first part of the book but I did not feel any connection with the characters. During the second half of Before He Was a Secret I was finally completely sucked into the story. One of the things that I liked the most about this book was that it was about two people who just wanted to help each other in a difficult career choice. They were friends and along the way they fell in love with each other. I really liked seeing Conor and Stephanie together. They were so pure and they brought up the best in each other. Conor understood how important a music career for Stephanie was and even if he did not agree with everything he still supported her. Stephanie knew that Conor his family situation was far from perfect and those they would encounter many problems as a couple. But that did not face her and she handled everything pretty well.

Overall I liked Before He Was a Secret but it just took me too long to get fully hooked by it. This is the third book in the Starstruck Series but it can be read as a standalone. I have not read the other two books in this series myself and I could understand the storyline perfectly. There were some references to the previous two books, especially to the characters of the previous books, but that did not make the book any less readable. I might read the other two books of this series at one point. 

El