Songs and Sweethearts

Everything begins.
Everything ends.
Sometimes, it has to end before it begins.
In the course of a year, I have had my heart broken, reforged, only to be shattered again. The tears won’t come. Not anymore. No more looking back. No more asking what if.
Coop wants me to let myself feel it. Jake wants to distract me. Archie wants to put the world at my feet. Ian wants me to not make choices until I’m ready. I’ve got family ready to catch me, but I refuse to fall.
No more waiting.
No more holding my breath.
The future is now.
We have a chance to forge the path we want and I’m all in.
So why does it feel like I’m running away?

After finishing Defiance and Dedication in June 2023 with that crazy cliffhanger that Heather Long left readers on, I was anxious to start reading the next book in the Untouchable series. I did have to read other books before starting the tenth book, but I finally finished it. I knew by the title, Songs, and Sweethearts, that the book would involve Frankie and Ian (Bubba) working on their music together, but that cliffhanger from the ninth book had to be addressed first. 

The tenth book picks up from the last book, and poor Frankie has another traumatic event that involves her mother this time. A mother who I have never liked since she was introduced, especially with how she treated Frankie. She went too far in the last book, and Frankie has to plan her mother’s funeral and deal with what her mother almost did to her and one of her boyfriends. Frankie is dealing with it, but her boyfriends, Archie, Coop, Ian, Jake, and friend Rachel are worried about her. After what happened, the boys decided to whisk her away on holiday so she could relax and escape everything that happened. After she has the vacation, Frankie is given an opportunity with Ian to work on their music together, and they take it, but not without talking with the others, who are very supportive of the decision. It will give Frankie something to do to help with what happened, but the issue is she won’t have all her boyfriends with her. They will remain behind in New York going to school while she’s off with Ian on getting their music career going. She’s never been away from this long, and it will be hard for all of them.

I’ve enjoyed following Frankie and her boyfriends, Archie, Coop, Ian, and Jake, as they grow from high school students to college students in the last nine books. They have made their relationship as five work out well, and there have been some bumps in the road with some of them fighting, but they have come a long way from the first book. The boys have grown so much, and so has Frankie. I’m proud of all these characters and anxious to read how the next two books play out because now there’s not much suspense or drama to happen, especially with Maddie being gone. Maddie seemed to be the focal point of drama when it came to Frankie and with her gone, there’s not much happening, except with Frankie dealing with her mother being gone. It’s not like she was there, but it still affected Frankie. Frankie has the best support system; the guys will do anything to ensure she’s happy. The family dynamic of the characters and how they are together keeps me reading. I love Frankie and her boyfriends differently, and my review would be too long if I went into those details. 

Here’s the thing: I’m not too fond of them going through hardships, and at the end of this book, Heather had to put them through another one, which was hard. I wasn’t expecting it, and neither were the characters. Haven’t they been through enough, Heather? Yes, prepare yourself because there is another cliffhanger, and it’s an emotional one. 

The issue I had while reading this book, though, was it didn’t have the same kind of drama as the previous books because the main cause of the drama was finally gone: Maddie. It didn’t hold my attention, and I was bored when reading it, skimming over parts. This book included a lot of inner dialogue, which felt unnecessary to the story. There was also the issue of Frankie being away from three out of four of her boyfriends. I knew it would be difficult for Frankie and the three boyfriends she left behind. They supported her the whole time, but I could tell by their POVs they were missing her, and even Ian missed the guys. I understood we had to read the journey of Frankie and Ian’s music journey together, but the whole time, I wanted her with her whole family, which includes all her boyfriends. 

I’m curious about what will happen in the next two books. I feel like this series was too long after reading this one when I felt bored most of the time reading this book, and I hate saying that. I love Frankie and her boys, but I want them to have their happily ever after. I will hold off on reading the next two books, but I will finish this series. I must know where Frankie and her lovable boyfriends will end up together. 

Story Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️.5

Steam/Spice Rating: 🌶 🌶 🌶 🌶

Standalone or Part of Series: It’s part of the Untouchable series, and each book leaves readers with a cliffhanger, so I highly recommend reading in order.

Would I recommend this book/series? I recommend this book/series if you enjoy reading Mature YA to New Adult and College Romances. (Characters are in their senior year of high school (books one to eight), and then book 9 – later they are in college.) It is a reserve harem/why choose, which means the FMC doesn’t have to choose between the four boyfriends she’s with throughout the series.

Genre/SubGenre(s): Romance | New Adult & College Romance | Reverse Harem

Trope(s)/Element(s): Friends to Lovers | Found Family | Why Choose

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FranJessca

Owner/Reviewer at A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog

I guess I should type a bio here. I'm FranJessca, or Fran for short. I'm the owner/reviewer behind A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog. I've been reading and reviewing books on my blog since leaving the Navy in 2011, and I will keep doing it as long as possible. My favorite genres will always be Romance & Fantasy, and I read every subgenre underneath those two genres. (Sorry, not a fan of nonfiction, so don't try to convince me to read it.)
My obsession with reading started over 30+ years ago when I went to my first Scholastic Book Fair and found R.L. Stine's Fear Street series. Later, I came across Anne Rice's novels at my public library when I was fourteen when my obsession with vampires started. I was the girl who preferred to be a vampire over a princess any day. My husband says I would leave him a heartbeat for a vampire that looked like Spike or Angel (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) or Damon Salvatore from The Vampire Diaries. (It's true, though, and he's accepted it.)

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