Drive (The Bittersweet Symphony Duet)

This soul crushing, heart stopping, mind blowing love story that took over my entire world for 18 hours yet will live on with me for all of my days. I already know that there is NOTHING that I can say in this review that will do this book or the characters justice! These characters and their story will embed itself into your soul right from the start. You will be helpless, you won't be able to stop the smile from reaching your face. Stella Emerson was a beautiful soul, a force to be reckoned with and I'll swear until the end of my days that every single thing she touched turned to gold. She had me in tears both from laughter and heartbreak but her free spirit and intense dedication to love will always be how I remember her. I won't talk about the guys because dang it Kate...how did you make me fall in love with two men in the span of 385 pages? Only thing I'll say is I couldn't even hate either of them...I think that's why it hurt so bad. In my mind, heart and soul there was no villain. I have so much to say and at the same time I don't know what to say that will convey how devastatingly brilliant this book was. Drive has been on my TBR for over two years!!!! I was 100% sure that I was going to read it, so confident that I bought the paperback last year! I've read so many of Kate's books both before and during that time but this one I kept sliding to the side because to be honest, I was scared. If you follow me at all you know I live for emotional books but I'd been told by many that this book was going to wreck my world. THEY WERE RIGHT!! But I really do regret waiting so long to read it! If I could go back, knowing then what I know now I wouldn't have hesitated for even a split second. I would have binged this book so fast! THE PLAYLIST!!! I LOVE BOOK PLAYLISTS! When done right, they are just a fantastic companion to a great book. Listening to the Drive playlist in between reading the book doesn't just complete it, but also turned this into an extraordinary reading experience!!! One that is so memorable that years from now I'll be driving... listening to music and one of THOSE SONGS will come on....then everything will just play back right inside my mind. I know I'll be utterly helpless to the emotions that accompany the memories that Kate Stewart has stitched to these songs! And when that day comes...every time it happens; I am absolutely positive that I'll end up in tears because at this moment I can't ever imagine a time when their pain and love won't still feel fresh! But then I'll smile because at the end of the day it'll remind me of one of the most beautiful love stories and some of the most incredible characters I've ever read! My recommendation is to not leave 2021 (or whatever year it currently is) with this book on your TBR or unread. I've read a lot of KS books and this is the 4th book that THIS author has on my FOREVER FAVORITES shelf. That shelf is a very exclusive list that I am very particular about what goes on it! Only the unforgettable and most beautiful stories go on that shelf. If you've never read Kate Stewart, go do it now!! I am telling you now, Kate is an absolute treasure in this book world and she is an author that you absolutely do NOT want to sleep on!

Drive is an emotional rollercoaster, raw, romantic, and unforgettable. Stella’s journey of love, music, and self-discovery is powerful and beautifully written. With perfectly timed angst, heart-stopping romance, and a love triangle that will tear you in two, this story grabs hold and doesn’t let go. Reid and Nate both left their mark, but it’s Stella who truly shines. A breathtaking, music-laced love story that will leave your heart aching in the best way.

Drive by Kate Stewart 5 stars!!! “You have to wait one minute past desperation...” To be honest, 5 stars is not enough for this book. Out of the thousands and thousands of books I have read I have two all-time favourites that I recommend to anyone who will listen. These two books have been on that list for a long time with no stand out books that have deserved to match them…until now. I have read this book three times already, three times this book has destroyed me and each time of reading, despite knowing what is coming, it hurt just as much as the first. That is testament to this authors innate ability to master emotion. With a Kate Stewart read you experience everything, she immerses you into the lives of her characters so naturally and absolutely that when they hurt, you hurt. You take her characters into your heart and soul, you live and breathe their love, their pain, their highs and their lows, they smile you smile, they love you love. I experienced this like life itself, it felt real, and despite the many highs, the lows hurt like a beetch. “You can’t go beating up everyone that pisses you off. Use your words, I promise you they are much better weapons. But be careful with them because bruises heal.” For me, this was one of those EPIC reads. One of those reads that you will remember for a lifetime, a book that I will read time and time again and one that will never age. I know I am harping on about the tears I spilled, but for me, emotion is everything. I am an emotional reader, I have to live and breathe a book to truly connect with the characters and when a book truly destroys me, the way that this book did, it deserves ALL the PRAISE. I am trying to convey just how special this book was. This book is one of my unicorns, I am now the proud owner of three. “Even in hindsight, with all your mistakes disappearing in the distance, the things you got right are right alongside them. I’d made the mistake in only looking for the hurt…” Drive is an epic journey of self-discovery, life lessons, love lessons and everything else in between. Music plays a huge part in this book, for all the characters, and if you experience this book the interactive way, by clicking on the music link on each chapter heading you will only fall deeper into the Kate Stewart abyss and truly experience this book heart, mind, body and soul. The balance and flow of this book was PERFECT. Angst in spades, but more importantly heat and passion, laughs, a lot of love and that all-encompassing emotion. “Welcome to adulthood…It effing sucks here.” This book was captivating from start to finish as you live Stella’s life as she tries to find her place in the world. We start in the present but Kate Stewart soon takes us back to how Stella, became Stella. Stella was a journalist and her specialty was music. Her father in particular had born her love of music and music was her blood, her life line, her de-stress, her true love. Stella wasn’t Stella without her music. Along her travels, making her mark and discovering new talent we also follow Stella’s love life which is full of highs and lows and this is where Kate Stewart comes into her own. Kate Stewart always writes fantastic hero’s and with Drive there is more than one to choose from and I dare anybody not to fall in love with them both. This is not a love triangle per se, there is no cheating, just one heck of an all-encompassing love story, that will have your heart beating a mile minute, the tears plentiful and the highs far outweighing the lows. “When it came to the men in my life, my emotions were my kryptonite, and so was my indecision.” Stella was an amazing heroine, it is rare for me to love a heroine as much as the hero but with Stella she wore her heart on her sleeve, she was an open book, opinionated, sassy but vulnerable with her charming personality a mask for the naïve and fearful woman underneath. As this book progresses though you witness Stella’s metamorphosis to the strong, independent, yet still extremely lovable woman she becomes. Her journey was tough and hard fought, there were no winners and losers, Kate Stewart brought this book to a close perfectly. “Because music is the heart’s greatest librarian. A few notes had the ability to transport me back in time, and to the most painful places.” As I said above, this is more than a book, it is an experience, like a movie that you are watching in glorious technicolour. It will infuriate you, it will make you laugh, it will make you cry, but at the end, even though you will be physically and emotionally exhausted you can only look back in stunned silence and wonder what the hell you had just read. This is by far my favourite Kate Stewart book. This author truly outdid herself with one hell of a memorable book, one that as I said before I will read time and time again. This is a slow burn, as Kate Stewart sets the scene, but once this book comes into its own around the 40% mark there is no going back. Captivating and unputdownable this is definitely a book you should read with a glass of wine, a huge bar of chocolate and a box of Kleenex, especially if you are a soft sap like me. “Money used to be the whole effing problem and now it can’t solve anything.” I could harp on about this book forever, but then it will just be boring, so all I am going to say is READ IT. Experience this as the author intended, go in blind and live, breathe and feel this book, it is truly AMAZING!! “I used to think I was cursed for having fallen in love with two men. But, in hindsight, I realized what a gift it was. They were my lovers, my teachers, my best friends, and I would love them both until I took my last breath.”

Reviewed by Sharon Thérèse Seeing that Drive had been highly recommended to me by my book buddies, I succumbed to one-clicking and to be quite honest, had no regrets whatsoever. But more important, they knew this standalone novel would get me out of the horrendous book slump I was in. This is the first book I’ve read by this author and I must confess that I had no wish to put pen to paper! What. A. Shocker! Now then; there are two reasons. Firstly, I don’t do rock star romances. I have in the past and as they’ve never grabbed me, I truly didn’t know what to expect from this one. Secondly, I just wanted to sit back and enjoy the book and make no notes. Saying that, I couldn’t help but highlight more than one heart-wrenching passage. The beginning of this book was a cruel tease to put it mildly, and having been previously warned to brace myself, to put my big girl panties on, helped little. This complex love story is executed in such a way that it was like going on an unforeseen journey overflowing with emotions...Thoughtfully played out on the author’s part, her canny narrative kept me on tenterhooks throughout the book which in itself, is highly commendable and get this, literally knocked me for six! “I want you in a million different ways, but when you look at me like that, all I can think of is one.” Stella is my perfect heroine. So damn sassy, so loud-mouthed, nosey and so blinkin’ unpretentious—whose ambitions were to become a music journalist, managed to weave her very being under my skin at the drop of a hat. She made me gasp, cry and shout out aloud explicits that weren’t actually due... You have to get to know this gal knocking on 20ish to appreciate her stance and even when the tough gets going, her positive attitude reflects on how strong she is, her ‘drive’. “I can’t believe you’re giving up. If you could only for one second, see what I see. Just believe in me,” I wasn’t the only one to battle alongside Reid, a struggling but brilliant drummer. His bestie who was too close to home for my liking, happens to be Stella’s older sister and only she and another true friend really knew what he was going through. Consequently, Paige’s protective actions had such a devastating effect that I could have bashed her on the head with my Kindle. Of course, the cat isn’t let out of the bag until well into the story which made the constant angst unbearable. ‘I existed before Reid, lived through loving him, and was left to exist again while knowing what living felt like.’ However unfair true love can be, both Nate and Reid showed me that if you fight enough for it, it is in your grasp. Love is enough for healing, it’s enough waiting for, it’s irrational and difficult to control. Also, the past influences when it catches up, memories are hard to live with and can too easily break up a relationship. My feeling were totally divided...if I wanted Nate to win Stella’s undying affection, I thought Reid deserved her just as much. All these points are extremely well conveyed...not always logical as is in the ways of the heart, but made me see our feelings are indeed on par with the opposite sex. I adored Nate’s patience. Winning Stella over was like listening to a game of verbal foreplay, their tooing and froing a pleasure to read. Never mincing words, Nate new what he wanted from word go. Then again, however detached Reid seemed to be, Stella’s encouragement silently brought out the best in him. So how on earth this gorgeous gal get herself into such a love-pickle is for you guys to find out! ‘What was it about a woman’s psyche that refuses to let us ignore the old aches, the ancient pains, and the memories of the men we bind ourselves to?’ Flipping the pages at a ridiculous speed didn’t sate my need to find out would happen, what was on the cards for these three beautiful people. I was even tempted to take a peek at the ending. Thank goodness I didn’t cave in and kept on reading! Reid I had to learn to love, Nate I fell madly for since he could do no wrong. I loved the story's timespan and the spot on secondary character development didn't just transport me into their lives, each and everyone of them drove home the influence music has on us. Stella’s bestie’s always in the foreground even when there are miles between them, the band and family members with all their traits, were essential to the making of an unforgettable read. I was bowled over by the interactive playlist that you just have to listen to. The author’s taste in music is fabulously eclectic...loved how she melded the songs into the scenes! What more can I say without spoiling this second chance romance for you! Ms Stewart, thank you for swaying my opinion regarding rock star romances. BRAVO!

Do you like music? Do like angst? Do you like a love story that isn't exactly what we think it is and doesn't shy away from difficult situations? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you've hit the right book. From the very beginning and that prologue that pulled you in and made you wonder "Who", I knew this book was going to be a trip that I was going to enjoy thoroughly. I mean, how could I not enjoy it with the music that was included at the beginning of each chapter?! It is MY music! Stella is our music lover and she knows what she wants out of life and for a career. Music is it and will always be it. She uproots herself and goes to live with her sister. That is where her life turns upside down and she goes after what she wants and her dreams. But who says that dreams are always clean cut and clear? Who says that music is the end all be all? Who says that you can only find one love of your life?? "Love doesn't die, even when you stop feeding it. There is no expiration date on the ache of missing someone you shared your heart, life and body with." Man, this book had it all. Stella is a strong woman and she doesn't take no for an answer. But she also feels pain like everyone else. When she finds love for the first time and it leaves her after such a short period of time, how she reacts and deals with it is the base for who she is and who she becomes. But with the love of friends and family and someone that has been around waiting, she flourishes in what she was meant to do. "Always ask for more of a good thing, Stella. Never know when you'll have it again." While rediscovering her love of writing and music, she also finds love again. This is where everything goes a little haywire. Only because I wanted that first love to be the only love. But sometimes there is more than one love. And sometimes the next love is so different and refreshing and so right. Man, Nate. You messed me up. Nate or Reid. Reid or Nate. They both are so right and both love her fiercely, even when they can't be with her. But this is Stella's story and this is about her and her decisions in life and her listening to the music and the words. Beautiful story where music was so integral to the writing and to the whole feel of the book. Loved this book and loved the connection that Stella had with both of her loves. She honestly couldn't choose wrong and she had two amazing men that loved her. I didn't want anyone getting left behind. A perfect love triangle that ended the way it needed to. "He was my song, my soul, my everything, and his love had propelled me forward into the woman I wanted to be."

4/4.5 Rating Very good read and definitely would recommend to anyone who likes contemporary romance/young adult books. The writing was good with some beautifully written lines that really stuck with me. I love a book with a love triangle where the heroine has to choose a guy, but only if its done right and Kate Stewart did just that. I felt for both of the guys and it was honestly heart wrenching in several parts and just overall emotional (in the best possible way). The story line and characters are believable, which for me is not always the case with contemporary romance books. I also loved how much music played a role in this book and that each chapter has a song linked to it but you don't have to be a music aficionado to enjoy this book. The time span in this book worked really well as you follow the lives of Stella, Reid, and Nate (and friends) over the course of several years. I enjoyed reading the progression of these characters and their lives including their careers and within their relationships. In the end Stella has a hard decision to make as she loves them! I am a bit tough in giving out 5 star ratings but this book definitely comes close with a 4/4.5 star rating. The reasons for not giving a 5 are (1) there are a few parts that were a little less realistic and perhaps slightly rushed and (2) I get a little annoyed when the characters are all so young and beautiful (kind of a common theme amongst YA books) and the heroine is younger than the men. But don't let this deter you as I already said I definitely recommend this book in this genre.

Drive Kate Stewart ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 🌶🌶 Rockstar Romance Love Triangle Angst 𝐋𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐮𝐩 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚... I've come to realize that you don't just read Kate Stewart books....you LIVE them. Experiencing all the ups and down through every page. If you love an angsty rollercoaster of a ride that rolls straight into a heated love triangle, this is the book for you! 𝗕𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗰 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁’𝘀 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻. 𝗔 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲𝘀.” Stella has a LOVE for music, but since she's no musician herself, she expresses that love through her journalism work. Making it big in the music journalism industry, she falls in love with two men with two completely different stories. Which one will ultimately steal her heart? The rockstar or her boss? "𝗧𝗼𝗿𝗻. 𝗜𝗻 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵𝘆 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝗺𝗻𝗲𝗱." I fall for the broken characters, and I fall HARD. (cough Dom cough) I think it just hits personally for me. But when I can feel alllll the things....it's a 5 star for me! I loved both men in their own ways, but Reid ultimately grabbed my heart! I loved seeing Stella and Reid's bond change his life. "𝗪𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗺𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗴𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗲𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱, 𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝘂𝘀." Stella was such a captivating heroine. The way she chooses herself first before deciding on a relationship path was everything you could have hoped for while reading. You will watch Stella's career take off and see her blossom into a successful independent woman! I loved seeing that develop within the heroines own personal story. "𝗜𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝘂𝘀, 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘄𝗲’𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗱𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 . . . 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗮 𝗽𝗶𝗲𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝘆𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗜 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸." SPOILER ALERT: Don't read further if you haven't finished Drive yet - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Now let's talk about Nate. I guess he just wasn't broken enough for me to have the majority of my heartstrings pulled towards him....until the end. I need to know if he is happy! The way he cared and loved for Stella with all of his heart just gave me all the feels too. I guess it took a minute for me to stop and think about his heart even if this was Stella's story. Will we get a story about Nate?....Fast forward to.... GETTING THE BLURB FOR REVERSE HOLY CRAP! My mind is BLOWN! Is this going to be about who I think ?! **Runs to sign up for ARC asap** because this is about to be SO GOOD! I just know it. And I think it will dive into Nate's heart and mind so much more (in what ways yet I don't know but I will be happy with any closure in regards to Nate) so I am overly excited to see what kind of depth we will get to in Reverse! Kate Stewart never fails! She is the queen of angst and the queen of bruising and mending all of our hearts!!!! Much love to her for blessing us with her stories! Another 5 star read in the books for this reader!

I found this author via the Ravenhood series and if you have read it, you know your a lifetime fan and not quite the same after that, in the best way. Drive has always been another of her reads that I thought based on the fandom that would hit the same. But it didn’t quite, and I can honestly say it was Stella, FMC. From the first chapter, I was irritated by her outlook and poor me attitude. It screamed spoiled brat, but not in a way I could reconcile and say omgosh i love it. No i didn’t, but many in the book lovers universe do. What I can say about this story, it overall the story if fabulous, incredibly well written and had me on edge till the end. Tho i thought I knew who would be end game, I was terrified to get my hopes up one way or the other. Reid & Nate do not disappoint in their respective story lines and their spice, angst and overall character. To be honest she didnt deserve either 😂🫣, but thats just my opinion. I am on to Reverse next, lets see how the next generation fairs!