Review - A Thousand Perfect Notes by C.G. Drews

Title: A Thousand Perfect Notes

Author: C.G. Drews

Pages: 300

Publisher: Orchard Books

Release Date: 7th June 2018

Blurb from Goodreads: 

Beck hates his life. He hates his violent mother. He hates his home. Most of all, he hates the piano that his mother forces him to play hour after hour, day after day. He will never play as she did before illness ended her career and left her bitter and broken. But Beck is too scared to stand up to his mother, and tell her his true passion, which is composing his own music - because the least suggestion of rebellion on his part ends in violence.

When Beck meets August, a girl full of life, energy and laughter, love begins to awaken within him and he glimpses a way to escape his painful existence. But dare he reach for it?

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My Review:

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Hachette Children's Group and NetGalley*

Beck has a tough life - his once famous pianist mother forces him to play the piano for hours on end, and if Beck isn't good enough she punishes him by using her fists. Since her stroke, his mother can't play, so she pushes Beck, determined to carry on the Keverich line.

When he's not playing the piano, Beck tries to look after his little sister, Joey, and to hide that he composes his own music.

Then a girl called August enters Beck's life, bringing light and possibilities with her.

Can Beck stand up to his mother?

Is he stuck in a life he can't escape?

I was drawn to A Thousand Perfect Notes by the author and the blurb. There's a lot of hype about this book in the blogosphere and, unfortunately, this was one of the occasions where, for me, the hype led to the book disappointing me.

Beck and August were both interesting characters, but Joey was my favourite character overall.

The plot was interesting and held my attention but nothing happened that surprised or shocked me (apart from the physical abuse!).

The romance was quite sweet and it didn't overshadow other aspects of the story.

There are some tough subjects tackled in this book and I thought they were handled well.

While I did enjoy this book, I do feel slightly disappointed that I didn't enjoy it more.

Overall this was a solid debut and an enjoyable read.