5 stars for Blue Notes Bundle by Shira Anthony and Venona Keyes #MM #Romance

Shira Anthony is one of my favorite authors and this series is a wonderful example of what I’ve come to expect from her. These stories are thought-provoking, and she really brings her characters to life. They are flawed and relatable, and through these books there is a theme of courage and personal growth.

There are many musical references through these stories. Even though I was lost on some other the finer points about the music and the business of music, I still loved each and every story.

These books are interconnected, but they can also stand alone. Together they create a rich community of wonderful characters whose stories are interwoven.

These can be read in any sequence, but I read them in the sequence they are listed in the bundle. It’s the order in which they were written. Here is the chronological order of the books for anyone who prefers to read them that way: 1) Encore, 2) Prelude, 3) Blue Notes, 4) Aria, 5) The Melody Thief, 6) Symphony in Blue, 7) Dissonance

Blue Notes

I love this book! Jaz and Jules are such wonderful characters and so easy to love. And Jaz’s sister, Rosalie, is a strong, well-developed supporting character. The story is engaging, heart-warming and sexy. This is a thought-provoking and passionate story about self-discovery, coming home, and starting over.

The Melody Thief

This book touched me deeply. Shira Anthony does a wonderful job exploring some difficult topics with sensitivity. Cary and Antonio are great characters and Massi just steals the show! This is an incredible story about addiction, hurt, transformation and family.

Aria

This is a beautiful, bittersweet romance about letting go and moving on after tragic loss. Aiden and Sam are wonderful characters. And it was great to see other characters from series coming together in this story as well. This book didn’t engage me quite as much as Blue Notes and The Melody Thief, but it was still a great read and highly recommended.

Prelude

This is a wonderful story about vulnerability, creativity and the courage to love and be loved. I didn’t mind the jump back in time for this (because i didn’t read these chronologically). It’s great to glimpse back in order to get to know David more and be finally introduced to Alex properly.

Symphony in Blue

This novella feels like an epilogue for each story so far all tied into one. There’s a strong feeling of chosen family – heartwarming and romantic.

Encore

Just when I thought there would be no more surprises with this series, this book floored me. John and Roger’s story is sweet and sad and I find it a bit more mature and real than the other stories. It brought me to tears more than once and made me smile many times. Wonderful!

Dissonance

This is a beautifully written, heartrending but hopeful book. It’s great to see another side to Cam, and the dynamic between him and Galen is fascinating. Cam’s mysterious fall from grace adds an element of suspense to this book that I really enjoyed. I’ll include a trigger warning for this one. This delves quite deeply into past sexual child abuse.

~Amanda