Customer Reviews

The Passionate Ones: A Novel Inspired by the Pop Opera Super Group Il Divo

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

It would take a lot to discourage a true Il Divo fan like myself from a story that presented an intruiging premise. But I wasn't a chapter into this before I wanted to toss it, unfinished. The writing is incredibly amateurish, a high-school style at best. The plot, characters and conversation are all wooden, canned and full of cliches. The story is less "inspired by" and far more "ripped off from," with the characters' names and backgrounds mirroring almost exactly the members of the actual singing group. Don't waste the money on the book or the download, and let's hope these talented young vocalists don't "inspire" any more such insipid tales.

If you're pro-family and, let's face it, just in the mood to read a good book, don't look for it here. As a great fan of Il Divo, I could hardly pass up anything remotely connected with them. I don't mean to bash the author, but I kept thinking throughout The Passionate Ones that it sounded like something I could have written when I was 10.
Also included in this book are some pretty graphic sexual scenes. I was shocked-this book has already left my library. Yes, that's money down the drain (that, as a college student, I can't afford to do), but better that than a book that's not an edifying read in any way.

Being a fan of IL Divo and romances in general, I enjoyed reading this because it was so easy to picture Urs and Carlos as the main male characters. Urs is my favorite IL Divo person. If it weren't for that influence, I might have rated the book slightly lower. But if you are a fan of that group, by all means, read it!

Originally when buying "Romancing the World: A Biography of Il Divo" I was offered "The Passionate Ones" in an Amazon book deal. I started to read it and was unsure if it was based on any fact. The characters were unmistakably those of the professional personas of Il Divo, that is visual descriptions and nationalities, however with name changes. As for their families, friends and locations mentioned in the book....who knows!
In the first couple of pages I wasn't too sure if I wanted to continue with this fictitious story of my heros. Then it got me in. I read it in two sittings and didn't want it to end. It was so easy to visualise the characters, possibly with the female lead resembling someone like myself. It was escapism, romantic and easy to read. As much as I hate to say it "A real girls' book" but one that a few men could get a few tips from!

Reading this book, i can say that i enjoyed reading it and i am a huge fan of Il Divo so it didn't take a genius to work out who was who. but the book could have been longer, a lot more care could have been taken in the presentation and the grammar in the other languages mentioned could have been presented better for example "Il Fontanella" should really be spelled "La Fontanella".

however, this writer has definately inspired this reader to write a book of her own.

In regard to your (Jasmine's) review of "The Passionate Ones," the words "Il Fontanella" do not appear anywhere in the novel. You must have it confused with another book. The foreign spellings in TPO are all correct, as is the grammar and English language usage. By the way, you misspelled definitely. And thanks for reading the book. Long live Il Divo!

I have not bought the book nor would I ever buy it. I looked at the look in side part on Amazon. What I read was an insult to Il Divo. For it to be tagged with Il Divo is a crime. It is purely disgusting porn. It should not be read by anyone. I would not rate this book anything but horrible. I am so disgusted that it has anything to do with Il Divo. They should sue this so call author.

Well, I don't know what side of the bed one of the previous reviewers woke up on when she gave her two cents worth but I'm not sure that she even read the same book as I did. Kellie Tayer is an amazing story-writer who gets right down to the heart of the matter when it comes to romance. I love the idea that she lets pop culture influence her work, as in her two previous novels, because it brings her works a little more home to the reader. "The Passionate Ones" is a terrific read with a fantastic plot and well drawn out characters. It's easy to get lost in it and become immersed in the pages and the only thing I regretted was that it had to end.

As a fan of Il Divo I felt compelled to get this novel. I read it and loved it! The writer of the other review was quite harsh in her assessment of the book and I think that stems from differing view points of what makes a romance novel, not to mention what one expects to take from a romance novel. I wanted a fantasy fairy tale with a happy ending and "The Passionate Ones" provided just that. Hey, if I can't have the real thing, then at least for the length of the novel I got to pretend and that's what romance novels are all about, Charlie Brown.

I loved that this book was based on the fabulous guys of Il Divo. I can't think of any better guys to write a romance story about! It is well paced and pretty believeable. I even bought a second copy for a friend who kept mine for months.

I just think the girl picked the wrong Divo! That's just my biased opinon. It really is a good book that is easy to read.