Kiss & Tell by Adib Khorram

Hunter never expected to be a boy band star, but, well, here he is. He and his band Kiss & Tell are on their first major tour of North America, playing arenas all over the United States and Canada (and getting covered by the gossipy press all over North America as well). Hunter is the only gay member of the band, and he just had a very painful breakup with his first boyfriend–leaked sexts, public heartbreak, and all–and now everyone expects him to play the perfect queer role model for teens.

But Hunter isn’t really sure what being the perfect queer kid even means. Does it mean dressing up in whatever The Label tells him to wear for photo shoots and pretending never to have sex? (Unfortunately, yes.) Does it mean finding community among the queer kids at the meet-and-greets after K&T’s shows? (Fortunately, yes.) Does it include a new relationship with Kaivan, the star of the band opening for K&T on tour? (He hopes so.) But when The Label finds out about Hunter and Kaivan, it spells trouble—for their relationship, for the perfect gay boy Hunter plays for the cameras, and, most importantly, for Hunter himself.

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Between this and another novel set in this world I read recently, I don't know why anyone chooses to be in the public eye. Hunter is literally mauled in public and no one seems bothered by it! 'Oh it's just part of the whole thing' no it's not! Or at least it shouldn't be.

Brrr. Right, calming down...it's always a good sign when a book gets me this worked up!

This is a quick, fun read. I loved the inclusion of interviews, transcripts and social media posts in between chapters - this is the world the boys are living in, so it makes sense to include them, and it gives us another view of what's going on. I also loved, and it's a shame this is so rare, that Kaivan and Hunter talked out things that were bothering them! They were honest and straightforward! It's crazy that this affected me so strongly. I'm spoiled for all future books now.

I did not like the final treatment of another character that I won't name for spoiler reasons; I thought they absolutely did not deserve what they got and it really left a bad taste in my mouth.

Overall, though, I loved this; it was funny (the music label is just called The Label!) it was interesting and I enjoyed reading it. I hope Adib writes more; I'll be looking forward to reading them.

Kiss & Tell publishes on the 22nd of March, 2022. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.