Spotlight by Eden Finley

Spotlight by Eden Finley

Narrated by Iggy Toma

Spotlight is the second book in Eden Finley’s Famous series, which tells the stories of the members of the world’s biggest Boy Band after it breaks up. The story has a number of things in common with book one, Pop Star – a closeted lead character, a realistic portrayal of the workings of the music business and the way so much of the media treats celebrities – but those similarities didn’t outweigh the rest of the story or make me feel as though I was listening to the same book all over again.

When Ryder Kennedy left Eleven, it wasn’t because of personality clashes or creative differences – it was because he wanted to be a proper father to his young daughter, Kaylee. Two years later, and with Kaylee now four-going-on-five, Ryder has his hands full working as a producer as well as being a single parent of the rather precocious child he’s trying desperately to keep well away from the public eye.

Ryder and Kaylee are at a play centre when Ryder overhears a guy – another single dad, he assumes, as he’s sitting with a boy a few years older than Kaylee – dissing Eleven and their songs as “lazy and cliché”. It’s not the first time he’s heard stuff like that and it won’t be the last, but it still hits a nerve. Kaylee goes off to play, but shortly after, Ryder hears her screaming and rushes into the play area to check on her, practically colliding with the guy … which of course leads to much awkwardness when he catches sight of Ryder’s face and realises he’d been overheard. Oops.

But as meet-cutes go, it’s a good one, and once they’ve sorted the kids out, the two men end up chatting over coffee and Ryder can’t help thinking just how good it feels to have an actual adult conversation again. The other guy – whose name, improbably, is Lyric – is an aspiring songwriter and performer making the rounds of auditions while working part-time as a nanny for his nephew. When Ryder mentions that Kaylee is having trouble at school (she’s in Pre-K) Lyric suggests that maybe he should consider a different school – or that if Ryder wants to take her out of school, he’s available to be her nanny. Ryder can’t help but be sort of impressed by Lyric’s direct approach – but he’s suspicious, too. He’s become so used to people wanting something from him, he can’t help but think that maybe Lyric deliberately set out to get his attention in hopes of getting access to his industry connections.

In fact though, nothing could be further from the truth. Lyric is determined to make his own way in the business, to succeed entirely on his own merits or not at all. It’s a deeply entrenched belief, one he holds due to the fact that his father – also a singer/songwriter – spent his life changing his image on the advice of professionals and never made it – and Lyric is determined not to be like him. If he achieves fame, he wants to do it as himself, because the public likes him for who he is and what he does, and he’s not going to crush the essence of who he is as an artist for anyone or anything.

There’s a nice undercurrent of simmering attraction between Ryder and Lyric right from the start, although Lyric believes Ryder is straight (he has no reasons to assume otherwise) and Ryder works hard to ignore the temptation Lyric represents. Like his friend Harley (Pop Star) Ryder isn’t straight and isn’t out because they were both contractually forbidden to portray themselves as anything other than straight, and even though they’re both doing their own thing now, they still have reasons for staying mostly in the closet. In Ryder’s case, it’s Kaylee; it’s hard enough keeping her from getting randomly “papped” as it is – but if he were to come out publicly – even though it’s two years since Eleven broke up – it would still provoke a media frenzy it would be impossible to protect her from.

But as it becomes more and more difficult to deny his attraction to Lyric – or notice that it seems to be mutual – Ryder starts to wonder if perhaps a different life is possible. For the first time in five years, he feels a real connection with someone, a sense that with Lyric, he could have something genuine and lasting… if he can only quiet the part of his brain telling him he has to shut off that side of himself for Kaylee’s sake and just go for it.

The chemistry between Ryder and Lyric burns bright, the romance is a lovely slow-burn and the conflicts arise organically as a result of who these people are and the situations they’ve found themselves in. Ryder’s almost pathological need to protect Kaylee from media intrusion is understandable, even though it can seem a little too self-sacrificing at times, and while Lyric’s adamant refusal to accept even the tiniest bit of help is a laudable ambition, it displays a remarkable naïveté about an industry he’s supposed to have grown up around; the “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know” thing is still extremely prevalent, so I admit I found his refusal to accept any help – even the tiniest thing – a bit nonsensical.

Those were my only issues with the story though and I enjoyed this instalment in the series much more than the first. I’m not always a fan of children in romances, but Kaylee is cute and her relationship with her dad is well-written. I also liked her mother, Maggie, who hasn’t been in the picture for good reason, but who now wants to be a bigger part of her daughter’s life. She’s fun and perceptive and she fits nicely into the family unit Ryder and Lyric are building.

Iggy Toma is one of my favourite narrators, so I settled into Spotlight knowing I’d enjoy the narration – and found it exceeded my already high expectations. I can’t quite put my finger on why that was exactly; all I can say is that there was such a strong sense of engagement with the characters and their story that took it – and the performance – to another level. Mr. Toma’s characterisation of both leads is terrific, but his portrayal of Lyric is especially good, the deep, rich tone he employs imbued with a real sense of the character’s generosity of spirit and good humour. All the secondary roles are appropriately voiced and clearly differentiated, from the deep, gruff notes assigned to Cash (one of the artists Ryder is producing) to Harley’s upbeat snark, and while I imagine voicing children isn’t the easiest thing to do, Mr. Toma’s portrayal of Kaylee is ridiculously cute and completely endearing.

Spotlight is a charming, feel-good listen, a sexy, low-angst romance with a lot of warmth and humour and two intensely likeable leads it’s easy to root for. Iggy Toma’s terrific performance adds an extra dimension to the story and makes it one definitely worth checking out in audio.

Caz


Buy Spotlight by Eden Finley on Amazon

6 thoughts on “Spotlight by Eden Finley

  1. You’ve hooked me with your excellent review, Caz. I usually steer clear of books with any connection to the music industry but this story sounds intriguing. And as it’s performed by Iggy Toma, my latest favourite, that’s the deal sealed. I’ve also really enjoyed Eden Finley’s work recently. Is it necessary to have listened to the first in the series?

    1. I don’t really gravitate towards rock star books – I think having worked in the music biz means it’s too easy for me to see the plotholes and inconsitencies in stories featuring musicians (as I have pointed out here!) But I liked the author’s Fake Boyfriend series – Iggy narrates those with Alexander Cendese – and seeing him narrating this series solo meant I pounced straight away! (book 3 is out next month). They work as standalones so you don’t have to read them in order – I reviewed the first one – Pop Star HERE – have a look and see if it’s your thing.

      1. Yep. I reckon I need to listen to that one, too. I’ve just checked and I have the fake boyfriend series in my wish list on audible and as these are kind of linked I should probably work my way through all of them. I’m really enjoying this author and especially Iggy Toma 🤪

        1. The only real link between the two series is that Harley – from Pop Star appears as a secondary character in book 5 of the Fake b/f series Hat Trick; you can easily listen to this series on its own.

          1. Great, thanks. As always, smashing reviews. You always help me to make my mind up and also to discover some 🤪 narrators!

Comments are closed.