{"id":15474,"date":"2020-07-13T00:00:10","date_gmt":"2020-07-12T22:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thelesbianreview.com\/?p=15474"},"modified":"2023-06-14T15:05:32","modified_gmt":"2023-06-14T13:05:32","slug":"hammers-strings-beautiful-miller","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thelesbianreview.com\/hammers-strings-beautiful-miller\/","title":{"rendered":"Hammers, Strings, and Beautiful Things by Morgan Lee Miller: Book Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Hammers<\/a>Hammers, Strings, and Beautiful Things by Morgan Lee Miller<\/strong> is a heart wrenching romance that had me reaching for the tissue box (don\u2019t worry folks, there is a happy ending).<\/p>\n

Blair Bennett is 24, she\u2019s a talented musician and lead singer of Midnight Konfusion. Her band just landed their first national tours as openers for one of the biggest popstars in the industry. Blair isn\u2019t ready for all the changes. Grief over the death of her grandfather threatens to tear her apart. She just broke up with her girlfriend. Her mom is selling her grandfather\u2019s house. Blair wants everything to go back to normal, but she is determined to make it through the tour and make her grandfather proud.
\nReagan Moore is a Grammy winning popstar about to start her world tour. The world sees her as wholesome. That\u2019s her brand. One she intends to protect at all costs. After a disastrous public relationship with an ex, she doesn\u2019t share much of herself with the public. She knows better than most just how lonely it is when you\u2019re at the top.<\/p>\n

From the moment Blair catches sight of Reagan across the room, there are sparks between them. Reagan finds herself opening up to Blair. Blair encourages her to try new things and seize every moment of normality she can as their tour bus weaves across America.<\/p>\n

The Characters<\/h3>\n

Blair\u2019s pain is shown so well that I truly believed it. I loved the way Miller explored her character, it has a rawness to it that is entirely human. It pulled me in as I was reminded of my own grief over the death of my grandmothers. This same rawness also made Blair a little difficult to like sometimes. As the book progresses, she spirals into her grief and makes a few terrible choices. Her actions add a lot of drama to the novel and it is fantastic characterization, so I still enjoyed the book.<\/p>\n

I love Reagan. The novel is told entirely from Blair\u2019s point of view so we really get to see Reagan through her eyes and she has a bit of an early twenties Taylor Swift vibe. Reagan has this kindness that shines through in all of her actions. Even before she gets to know Blair, she takes the time to find out that the first day of the tour is her birthday and arranges a birthday cake for her.<\/p>\n

The chemistry between these two is totally electric. Because we only see things from Blair\u2019s point of view, there is always some doubt about Reagan\u2019s thoughts. This adds something a little different that ramped up the tension.<\/p>\n

The Writing Style<\/h3>\n

Lately, I\u2019ve picked up a lot of books that have used two points of view, switching between the two main characters. It was such a delight to pick up a book that only makes use of one perspective as it allowed such a deep understanding of what Blair was going through. It can be a little tricky to develop both characters when we only see such a small portion of what is going on with the non point of view character, but Miller did a great job of developing Reagan so I never felt like I was missing out.
\nThe raw emotion that comes through as Blair struggles through her grief was so realistic. The book was a little therapeutic for me. I lost both my grandmothers at quite a young age, and struggled a lot through my teenage years as I learned how to manage that grief as well as the unexpected ways my life changed. It was a unique experience to find something that delved into grief over the death of a grandparent as it is so often the death of a parent that we see portrayed in fiction.<\/p>\n

The Pros<\/h3>\n

I love music. I\u2019m not a musician but I love how much can be said with a song. So much of this novel plays on that idea that it felt really comfortable but also exciting for me. Music was also built into the chemistry between Reagan and Blair in a way that I haven\u2019t seen before. There are mentions of a few well known songs in the book and I found myself reaching for my phone to play the songs as I was reading a few scenes.<\/p>\n

The Cons<\/h3>\n

There is a little content warning for drug and alcohol abuse here. I\u2019m not a huge fan of the sex, drugs, and rock \u2018n\u2019 roll image, something Blair certainly embraces. Addiction issues run in my family so I\u2019m a little more sensitive to them than other readers might be.<\/p>\n

The Conclusion<\/h3>\n

Hammers, Strings, and Beautiful Things is an emotionally raw read with plenty of drama. The journey Reagan and Blair share is rough in places but there is a beauty that you won\u2019t want to miss out on. This is the first book that I\u2019ve read of Miller\u2019s and I am keen to go and pick up the rest of her books.<\/p>\n

Excerpt from Hammers, Strings, and Beautiful Things by Morgan Lee Miller<\/h2>\n

Reagan\u2019s blond hair grabbed my attention more than the bright summer sun. She smirked at me with her eyes hidden under her black Gucci glasses, and she clutched a steel coffee container in her hands. My scowl must have given something away because when she looked at me, she laughed.<\/p>\n

\u201cLate night?\u201d she said, and I could hear the caffeine humming through her perky voice.<\/p>\n

She was decked out in yoga attire that could definitely serve as a shot of espresso for me. The mandala, ocean-printed yoga pants hugged every muscle of her quads and calves while her black racerback tank top showed off those arms. Now I understood how she seamlessly jumped off that enormous stage without a grunt.<\/p>\n

Any remaining moisture in my mouth was sucked up by Reagan Moore in her yoga outfit. How did I sign up for that yoga class?<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, uh, I guess you could say that,\u201d I answered through my arid throat.<\/p>\n

\u201cToo much Southern Comfort?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, no. More like Corbin and Miles make it sound like we\u2019re living in Jurassic Park in there.\u201d<\/p>\n

She laughed. \u201cYeah\u2026sometimes I have FOMO with no bus mates. And other times\u2014like this one\u2014I\u2019m totally glad that I don\u2019t. Especially boys. They\u2019re loud.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd they smell,\u201d I added.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd they sweat constantly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd they never put the seat down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reagan laughed and tucked a stray hair that didn\u2019t make it in the ponytail behind her ear. \u201cIf you ever need to escape the snoring, I have a noise machine that I don\u2019t use because well, not to brag or anything, but I have a whole bus to myself. Don\u2019t really need it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOuch,\u201d I said and threw a hand over my heart. \u201cRub it in a little more, will you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, I\u2019m just saying. Oh, and coffee. I have more coffee.\u201d She jiggled her travel mug, and I could hear the coffee sloshing around in it.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh my God, coffee. I need some.\u201d<\/p>\n

She offered me her mug. \u201cTake the rest. I don\u2019t need any more. It\u2019s my second mug.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReally?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReally. It\u2019s yours.\u201d<\/p>\n

I gladly accepted. \u201cYou\u2019re a lifesaver.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSwing by after the show, and the sound machine is all yours.\u201d<\/p>\n

She winked and headed back into her bus.<\/p>\n

With that wink and the blazing sun, I melted right in my spot.<\/p>\n

Get This Book On Amazon<\/h3>\n

When you use the links in this review and buy from Amazon within 24 hours of clicking then we get a small commission that helps us run the site and it costs you nothing extra.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

[tweetthis]I just read this review for Hammers, Strings, and Beautiful Things by Morgan Lee Miller[\/tweetthis]<\/p>\n

Bits and Bobs<\/h3>\n