The Duet by Harper Bliss: Book Review

The Duet by Harper Bliss is an age-gap celebrity romance.

Lana Lynch is the enigmatic lead singer of The Lady Kings, an all-woman, all-queer epic rock band that has been around for decades. Due to the death of one of their band mates, (Lana’s partner), the band hasn’t been on tour for years and they are finally ready for their comeback. It has been decided that because of their long hiatus, they will have The Other Women be their opening act. The Other Woman, a young hugely popular band, is also all-queer. Lead by the talented Cleo Palmer, the band really doesn’t need to be an opening act, but they couldn’t pass up touring with their rock idols. When Lana invites Cleo to sing Lana’s newly released single with her as a duet on the tour, sparks fly! They make magic on stage every night. Their strong connection soon makes both women question whether there is something more between them than just on-stage chemistry. Will the stress of the long tour, close quarters and huge personalities keep the two apart, or will they be able to wade through the tour madness and find the same magic together off stage?

Pros And My Favourite Parts

I love celebrity romances! It’s always great to explore a world of celebrity from such an intimate perspective. Lana Lynch just oozes cool rocker vibes. You, along with everyone else, will fall in love with her aloof charm. Cleo is amazing as well. She’s young, but confident in her abilities. She may have idol worship of Lana, but it never stops her from pursuing her. It’s wonderful when both women have agency in an age-gap romance, and Cleo is never a pushover.

I liked that the writer kept things light in this novel. I think The Duet makes for a great summer romance. Yes, Lana is dealing with the death of her partner and starting a new tour without her, but the death was ten years in the past, and you get to see Lana at a stage of renewal. I like that she starts off guarded and aloof, feeling like she would never find love again, but it didn’t take much for her to fall for Cleo and accept her feelings.

Each chapter alternates between Lana and Cleo’s perspective. I enjoyed this because the reader got to delve into the motivations behind the MC’s actions.

I also loved that the writer referenced characters from other novels in this book, so if you are a Harper Bliss fan like I am, seeing old characters will be a pleasant surprise.

Cons And Heads Up

No Cons per se, however, just an FYI: With any Bliss novel, there is always amazing steamy scenes, and this book did not disappoint. However, I think the steam level was lower than some of her other novels.

The Conclusion

This book was a delightful light read. You will have your bad ass female rocker fantasies fulfilled by Lana Lynch and fall under the spell of the young Cleo Palmer. I mean, who wouldn’t want to fall in love with a rock star?

Excerpt from The Duet by Harper Bliss

““I’m coming,” Sam says, and follows me. “How are you feeling?” She bumps her shoulder lightly into mine. “Coming back after all these years, without Joan, is no small thing. We’re all aware of that.”

“Tonight, we play for her.” I don’t mean to sound as dramatic as I do.

Sam holds out her fist and I bump mine against it. As we approach the side of the stage we fall silent, the music too loud for us to comfortably exchange any more words.

Immediately, my gaze is drawn to Cleo. The song they’re playing is reaching its climax. Cleo is completely lost in the music and seems to hold on to her microphone stand for dear life. When their drummer ends the song with a couple of cymbal crashes, Cleo snaps out of it instantly. I can barely see her face from the side, but I know she’s sporting a huge smile.

“You guys are amazing,” she shouts to the audience.

She’s right. The crowd is hot tonight. The Other Women are hardly still an up-and-coming band. When I scan the first few rows of the audience, I think it’s a safe bet that quite a few of those people came here to see The Other Women rather than The Lady Kings. Our fans aren’t as young and wild any longer. It reminds me of the good old days when it amazed me every single night what rock music could do to people, the frenzy it could get them into. The things fans are willing to offer. I’m sure someone with Cleo’s charisma gets lots of offers—decent as well as indecent.”

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