Mean Girls Luv Books: Blog Tour: In Bloom by Katie Delahanty Triple Review

My name is Olivia Bloom and I. Am. Free.

I left for LA with everything I owned piled into my old Volkswagen and dreams of becoming a costume designer. Little did I know I’d wind up designing for a lingerie company—yeah, not sure how I landed this gig—and taken under the wing of two young Hollywood insiders. The fashion shows and parties were great, but life really got exciting when the seriously hottest lead singer of my favorite band started to fall for me.　

How does someone like me, an ordinary girl from Pittsburgh, wind up in the arms of the world’s sexiest rock star—surrounded by celebrities, fashion, and music—and not be eaten alive? Berkeley is everything I've ever dreamed of in a boyfriend, but the paparazzi, the tabloids, the rumors, it's all getting a bit too crazy. My life has become every girl’s dream come true, if only I don’t blink and lose it all…　

Amazon/Barnes and Noble

I’m so excited to share the playlist for IN BLOOM! Back when In Bloom was being told in blog format I tried to include music as often as possible to showcase bands I loved and the music that was inspiring the story. In the final novel all of Berkeley & the Brightside’s lyrics are taken from songs by the Remainers (to listen to the music in the story check them out on iTunes!), but the original playlist was:

1. “Gonna Get Over You” by Sara Bareilles

" And I'm not the girl that I intend to be, I dare you darling, just you wait and see, But this time not for you but just for me, And I say, Ooh, how'm I gonna get over you? I'll be alright, just not tonight…”

2. “Come Back Home” by Two Door Cinema Club

"So now you're on your own….won't you come back home…..to see you're not that kind… and find the strength to find another way."

3. “Rich Girl” performed by The Bird and the Bee

“So far gone, on your own, but you can get along if you try to be strong, but you’ll never be strong…Oh you’re a rich girl, and you’ve gone too far, but you know it doesn’t matter anyway, Cause there’s too much to give, cause you’d rather live for the thrill of it all…”

4. “When You Need Me” by The Remainers

“You've got to give me a break, I’ve got my own smile to fake, Got enough on my plate, Without the lines you want to feed me”

5. “Fader” by The Temper Trap

“And the sweet, sweet sun's comin' down, Hard, the sun's comin' down, Hard, it burns the bones, So hold a hand for cover, Hold a hand for cover, Hold a hand for cover from harm…”

6. “House” by The Remainers

“I don’t know how else to tell you, there ain’t no other way ‘round, only one road I’ll be driving down, If you want you can come, I don’t know if you’ll have much fun, but at least you’ll get yourself out of the house.”

7. “Delta Boy Blues” by Badly Drawn Boy

(instrumental)

8. “Impossible” by Anberlin

“You make my teeth clinch and my hands shake, do you ever see what you do to me? You’re wearing me out, just wearing me out…”

9. “How” by Maroon 5

“I’m asking for your help, I am going through hell, afraid nothing can save me but the sound of your voice, you cut out all the noise, and now that I can see mistakes so clearly now, I’d kill if I could take you back…”

10. “If You Go” by Javier Dunn

“I said goodbye to your face, knowing I could never really feel that way… If you go, please don’t write, please don’t call ‘cause your voice will make me cry, nothing good in this goodbye, so let me go on without you…”

11. “Not So California” by Dawn McCoy & Chris Richards

“All of these dreams beneath the stars—I guess they never needed us—Maybe we’re not so California, after all”

12. “Houdini” by Foster the People

“Got shackles on my wings on tight, Beggin’ makin compromise, Fast enough it's hard to hide, Sometimes I want to disappear”

13. “Magic” by B.O.B feat. Rivers Cuomo

“I’ve got the magic in me

Everytime I touch that track it turns into gold

Everybody knows I’ve got the magic in me…”

14. “Only the Young” by Brandon Flowes

“Look back in silence
The cradle of your whole life
There in the distance
Losing its greatest pride
Nothing is easy, nothing is sacred, why?

Tonight, baby, you can start again
Laughing in the open air
Have yourself another dream
Tonight, baby, we can start again”

15. “Skip the Charades” by The Cold War Kids

“Drinks after dinner—your friends will get you to unwind—let’s skip the charades—can’t we just speak plain? You’re seeing right through me anyway…”

16. “Howlin For You” by The Black Keys

“I must admit, I can’t explain, any of these thoughts racing through my brain, it’s true, but baby I’m howlin’ for you…”

17. “Puzzle Pieces” by Saint Motel

“(I gotta say) Honestly, when you look at me, it’s like a gun goes off, deep inside of me. I can hardly move, I can barely breathe, near your features.”

18. “Under Cover of Darkness” by The Strokes

“Get dressed, jump out of bed, you do it best, are you OK?—I’ve been all around this town, everyone’s singing the same song for ten years—I’ll wait for you, will you wait for me too?...so long my friend”

19. “Tighter” by Fitz and the Tantrums

“Cause I was blind, I let you drift away. I didn’t give you enough to stay, so you made up my mind, and you walked away. And why didn’t I, hold you tighter and tighter, when I could do no wrong…”

20. “Holding Out” by The Remainers

“No one knows you like I know you now, No one needs you like I need you now, and no one loves you like I love you now…but I’m holding out…”

21. “Don’t Say Oh Well” by Grouplove

"So do you got that sweet devotion? Oh, will you follow your heart's plan?...'Aint it enough to find the truth, the pain again then say oh well, don't say oh well, don't say oh well..."

Oh Olivia Bloom how I envy you. I knew from the minute I read the synopsis of this book that I would enjoy it and I did! How could I not love this book? It has a swoon worthy rockstar, two witty best friends, a normal girl who gets the guy, and paparazzi. Paparrazzi you say? Why yes I do, I love trash magazines and this book fed my habit.

Olivia Bloom left Pittsburgh on a journey to be free. She heads to L.A. on an adventure of a lifetime. I wish I had the guts that Olivia had. After a bad break up she leaves everything in hopes of a new life, and she succeeds. Olivia lives at The Vicente and befriends two great people, Blaire and Parker. Every time the three of them would sit in the courtyard for a glass of wine all I could picture was the courtyard setting from Melrose Place. Please tell me you remember Melrose Place, no? Man I feel old. Olivia lands a one time job thanks to the help of Blaire, where she is dressing the models for a fashion show. She feels completely out of her element and vacates the party as soon as she can. But not without a stop at the restrooms on her way out. That stop would change her life, only she has no clue. Waiting for the restroom to open up she sees Berkeley Dalton, lead singer of Berkeley & the Brightside, her favorite band. Of course she makes a fool out of herself but that is what I love about Olivia, she is normal. She is not your perfectly beautiful girl who always says the right thing and acts the right way. She reacted the same way I would have; inside she is full on fan-girling all while speaking without thinking. I honestly felt awkward for her.

Parker and Blaire decide that Olivia needs a complete overhaul and "Operation Loverly" goes into full effect. Parker and Blaire cracked me up yet they were on top of their game. Olivia soon becomes a polished socialite all while never changing who she really was. She continued to be quirky and normal. I think that is why I connected with the book so much, I could relate to her.

Berkeley Dalton, oh my my. I was little worried in the beginning I wasn't going to fall for this lead singer rock star. I was wrong, so wrong. I am glad I didn't fall right away and that I grew to love him. It makes me love him all that much more. He turned out to be everything I originally thought he wasn't. He is sweet, caring, mysterious, and sexy all rolled into one. His lyrics are beautiful and they come from the heart.

I loved that Olivia was so infatuated with Berkeley from the beginning. That she was a huge fan of the band and their music had helped her through college and every major event in her life. It was like I was living out my own dream of meeting and dating my favorite rock star. Who hasn't had that dream? Would I want all the paparazzi issues that follow? Absolutely not. Katie does a great job of making this book realistic. It is not over the top and I loved that. I loved just about everything in this book. There is no insta-love in this book, infatuation yes, but no insta-love. Their relationship grows slowly and at times it is growing and we don't even know about it. I loved learning little secretes here and there.

I think one of my favorite parts of this book is the tweets. All of the characters tweet, reading them and knowing their thoughts made this book so much better. I laughed so many times throughout this book.

The one thing I didn't love was the ending. It seemed a little rushed to me. There was an entire book of build up and then all of a sudden something major happens and it is over. I understand that this is book one in the series but I still felt it was a rushed ending. The epilogue didn't really seem like an epilogue to me, it just seemed like an additional chapter that would have played out next in the book anyway. I am interested in seeing who book two is about. Do we get more Olivia and Berkeley or are Parker and Blaire getting their own books? I stalk goodreads every day to see if Katie has updated and added the second book in the series. As of this posting she hasn't. Katie, are you listening? Yes? Great! GO UPDATE GOODREADS! I NEED to know what the next books are about. I can't wait to read the rest of the books in this series and see what else is in store for the characters I have grown so attached to.

In Bloom by Katie Delahanty is full of my favorite things – a swoon-worthy rock star, drama, and a heroine you can’t help but fall in love with! I loved this novel from start to finish and cannot wait for the next installment in The Brightside Series.

Oh Olivia Bloom. She’s quirky but down-to-earth and has a resilience and determination that made me fall in love with her. There’s something genuine about Olivia that makes you root for her throughout the novel. She’s the kind of female lead you want to be best friends with.

Enter Berkley Dalton, lead singer of Olivia’s favorite band and all around delicious hunk. A chance meeting with Olivia leaves both characters in a tailspin. Page after page, their connection is playful, flirty, and had my heart melting. I loved watching their romance unfold and was emotionally invested in all of the ups and downs.

In Bloom is the perfect combination of angst, humor, and heart-fluttering love. I loved the tweets at the beginning of each chapter. You’ll fall in love with these characters and story. Ache when they struggle, laugh at the comedic relief, and feel completely content by the time you reach the last page. This novel is pure bliss and perfection!

Olivia and Berkley… sigh! Olivia is a fangirl. Her favorite band is Berkley& the Brightside and she meets the hot Berkley in line for the bathroom. She opened her mouth and inserted her foot and the story begins. Olivia is a totally normal, non Hollywood girl living in LA. She left the east coast to find herself and stretch her boundaries. She rambles when nervous and at first it bothered me but after thinking about it, it made her more real. It made her feel like she was one of us.

Berkley is a hot rocker, A list celebrity who is the front man for a “it” band. I think he went to the Ryan Christensen (Love Unscripted by Tina Reber) school for dreamy celebrities. He seriously was totally swoon worthy. He went to such lengths to get to know Liv and to keep her. He just adored her and cherished her. He was open and honest. AHHH I loved him.

Kate Delahanty gave us such great supporting characters too. There was her physic mom who was hilarious. Her two besties that lived in what I pictured to be Melrose Place, Blair and Parker. Blair was a spinstress in Hollywood and Parker works for a reality tv show. Their interactions were just hilarious. Both their personalities were awesome. I wanted to be friends with them too, they made this book more real for me. And I am hoping they get a book as well. Hint hint Kate!!!

This is a great lighthearted, romance story that really made me smile as I turned the last page! I will be looking for more of Kate’s work in the future.

Katie Delahanty is a fashion designer turned novelist. She holds a BA in Communication Studies from UCLA and a Professional Designation in Fashion Design from FIDM. It never occurred to her that she was a writer until an economic-crisis-induced career shift from lingerie designer to e-commerce webmistress led her to start the company blog. Not being an expert in lingerie, she decided to write the blog as a fictional serial starring a girl named Olivia Bloom who worked for the lingerie line. And that’s when Katie fell in love with storytelling. She hasn’t looked back since. Katie lives in Los Angeles with her husband.

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