The Brightsiders: Revisiting Old Favorite Movies by Jen Wilde

The Brightsiders
by Jen Wilde
Published by: Swoon Reads
Publication date: May 22, 2018
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult, LGBTQ
Pre-order Links:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound

Synopsis:
A teen rockstar has to navigate family, love, coming out, and life in the spotlight after being labeled the latest celebrity trainwreck in Jen Wilde’s quirky and utterly relatable novel. 

As a rock star drummer in the hit band The Brightsiders, Emmy King’s life should be perfect. But there’s nothing the paparazzi love more than watching a celebrity crash and burn. When a night of partying lands Emmy in hospital and her girlfriend in jail, she’s branded the latest tabloid train wreck.

Luckily, Emmy has her friends and bandmates, including the super-swoonworthy Alfie, to help her pick up the pieces of her life. She knows hooking up with a band member is exactly the kind of trouble she should be avoiding, and yet Emmy and Alfie Just. Keep. Kissing.

Will the inevitable fallout turn her into a clickbait scandal (again)? Or will she find the strength to stand on her own?

Hi guys! Today’s special guest for the author spotlight, a segment I’m calling Behind The Pages, is Jen Wilde who will be sharing her favorite movies in celebration of the release of The Brightsiders. Also, don’t forget to enter the Giveaway at the end of this blog post.

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THE BRIGHTSIDERS: REVISITING OLD FAVORITE MOVIES

Whether their cheesy or dramatic, fact or fiction, I always love a good rockstar story. To celebrate the release of my new book, The Brightsiders, about a teen rock band dealing with fame, family and friendship, I’m revisiting some of my fave movies about musicians.

The Runaways
A biopic about Joan Jett, Cherie Currie and The Runaways? Yes, please! I was so excited when this movie was released, back before Kristen Stewart was out as queer – and before I was out, too. KStew and Dakota Fanning rocked their performances in this indie flick, and rocked my little closeted queer heart in the process.

Dreamgirls
This movie is worth watching just for its incredible cast. Beyoncé, Jennifer Hudson, Anika Joni Rose, Jamie Foxx and Eddie Murphy give stellar performances – Jennifer Hudson even won an Academy Award for it. Beyond the triple threat leads, this movie has it all; glitz, glam, betrayal, friendship, and an amazing soundtrack to boot.

The Sapphires
I’m not sure how well-known this film is outside of Australia, but if you’ve never heard of it I definitely recommend watching it. A true story about an Aboriginal girl group who travel to Vietnam to perform for the troops, it stars Jessica Mauboy, Deborah Mailman, Miranda Tapsell and Chris O’Dowd. It pays tribute to four incredible women and tells their story with love, truth and power.

Almost Famous
While it hasn’t aged that well and is now more of a cliché, oh how I loved it when I was a teen. Before I knew what a manic pixie dream girl was, I loved Penny. I loved the whole 70s aesthetic. And I loved the bus singalong of Tiny Dancer.

Rock of Ages
Look, I know everyone – including Alec Baldwin – says this movie is a disaster…but that’s kind of why I like it. It’s cheesy. It’s casting was questionable to say the least. But it’s also about rock in the 80s which means an awesome soundtrack and ridiculous hair and fashion, and I just can’t say no to that.

About The Author:
Jen Wilde is a writer, geek and fangirl with a penchant for coffee, books and pugs. She writes YA stories about zombies (As They Rise), witches (Echo of the Witch) and fangirls (Queens of Geek). Her debut series reached over three million reads online and became an Amazon bestseller. Her next book, Going Off-Script releases Summer 2019.

When she’s not writing, Jen loves binge-watching her favorite shows on Netflix, eating pizza, traveling to far away places and going to conventions in Marty McFly cosplay.

Follow Jen Wilde:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

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