Link to buy Kiss Me By Moonlight (The Kiss Me Series)
Story Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Review:
Four months after Lacey and Dylan got together in Michele
Zurlo's Kiss Me Goodnight, the pair is back in the sequel Kiss Me by Moonlight.
A lot has changed since Book One. Lacey and Dylan are officially a serious
couple now, with Dylan practically living at Lacey's apartment, and Dylan's
band is in the process of releasing its first album. Plenty has stayed the
same, though, like Lacey's OCD and her compulsion to tell lies.
Lacey is the manager of Dylan's band, Kiss Me Goodnight, and
she's working with some friends to sign more bands. It's a little unclear how
Lacey knows so much about the music business and why bands would be falling
over themselves to sign with her and listen to her advice about their songs.
Perhaps it's because the band Kiss Me Goodnight is experiencing some success,
and probably the other bands don't know about Lacey's tendency to tell cruel
lies about the members of KMG. After multiple embarrassing lies that cast the
band in a negative light, both Dylan and his band mates reach the end of their
rope and cut Lacey loose. Lacey understands that it's all her fault, which
doesn't make the break any less painful. On the contrary, that knowledge
probably makes her feel worse.
Some readers appreciate an imperfect hero, and if you're one
of those readers, then Lacey definitely has something to offer you. For myself,
her lying and compulsive hand washing mostly feel icky.
Dyan is a hot, likeable
rock star-type guy, which begs the question, "What does he see in
Lacey?" To her credit, she wonders the same thing herself. Lacey doesn't
treat Dylan very well, which is partly due to her conviction that she doesn't
deserve him and wants to push him away, the way she has always pushed away
people who love her. So Lacey takes Dylan for granted, and makes him keep most
of his stuff in a storage locker rather than invite him to move in. Lacey is
described as pretty and seems clever, but surely a guy who's cutting his first
record can find a girl who's cute and smart and
doesn't treat him like dirt.
Author Zurlo tells a good story, it's just unfortunate for
this reader anyway, that Lacey is so unlikeable. I kept wanting to scream,
"Stop lying and put down the bar of soap!" Yes, Lacey wants to get
better, which is to her credit, but it's still hard to settle in and enjoy
other parts of the book when you're waiting for her to do the next gross thing.
For instance, the love scenes are well crafted and engaging – or at least they
would be if I wasn't constantly cringing at the thought that Dylan is having
sex with a person who says terrible things about him. It made both him and Lacey
less attractive.
Overall, if you like that flawed hero, this book is for you.
Lacey would doubtless be a sympathetic character for many readers. On the other
hand, other readers might just want to wash their hands of her.
Reviewed by Amanda
