Romance Reviews: THE HEART PRINCIPLE & THE CHARM OFFENSIVE
Happy Monday all! Today I’m back with a couple of fun romances that are releasing soon. Helen Hoang’s The Heart Principle is the third novel in her popular series, The Kiss Quotient, and one of my most anticipated reads of the year, while The Charm Offensive is Alison Cochrun’s debut queer romcom and is receiving rave reviews over on Goodreads. I’m excited to share my thoughts on both of this books with you today!
The Heart Principle (The Kiss Quotient, #3) Goodreads Author: Helen Hoang
Publication Date: August 31, 2021
Publisher: Berkley
FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
With his tattoos, motorcycle, and his ultra-kind heart, Quan Diep stole my heart in Helen Hoang’s debut romance The Kiss Quotient even though he was only meant to be a secondary character. I adored his character so much and was thrilled to learn he would be featured in Hoang’s new novel, The Heart Principle.
The Heart Principle follows a young woman named Anna Sun. She is a gifted violinist who is suffering from burnout that is the result of the pressure of her own success. When a well known composer writes a piece of music specifically for her to play, Anna finds herself completely incapacitated and unable to play the piece no matter how many hours a day she tries to practice it. Anna has hit a wall and doesn’t know how to move forward. As if her career struggles aren’t weighing her down enough, her personal life has taken a hit as well. She has been expecting her longtime boyfriend to propose to her any day now and instead he tells her he would like to have an open relationship for a while first, to see other people and just make sure they’re really right for each other. Anna is of course hurt and furious, although she doesn’t tell him that, and decides that if he’s going to date and sleep with other people, so is she. That is, if her anxiety and panic attacks don’t get in the way. This is where she crosses paths with Quan and their journey together begins.
I adored Anna. She’s such a sweetheart and I hated that she was going through so much, especially since it was clearly draining her both emotionally and physically. I also really hated her boyfriend and practically jumped for joy when Anna and Quan find each other on a dating app. It’s obvious from their very first conversations that they have so much chemistry and I just loved how patient and understanding Quan was when it came to Anna’s struggles with anxiety. He feels such a strong connection to her and just accepts her exactly as she is. It was so sweet watching the two of them grow closer as the story progressed.
What surprised me about this book was how sad the overall story was at times. It’s a beautiful story and a special one but it also just covers so many heavy topics. In addition to Anna’s struggles with anxiety, there’s also toxic relationships, cancer, the death of a beloved family member, and more. It was definitely not the cheerful story I would have expected based on the cover.
Even with it being a lot sadder than I was expecting, I still loved The Heart Principle overall, especially because it also has growth and healing, and ends on such a positive and uplifting note. If you’ve enjoyed Hoang’s first two books, you’re sure to love this one as well. I also highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys romance with relatable characters who face very realistic challenges. Read the first two books in the series though so that you meet Quan and his cousin, Michael, who also makes an appearance in this book. 4 STARS
The Charm Offensive Goodreads
Author: Alison Cochrun
Publication Date: September 7, 2021
Publisher: Atria Books
FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun is a heartwarming romance that features a sexy but awkward tech guru named Charlie who is in serious need of an image revamp. He chooses to do this by playing the part of Prince Charming on Ever After, a popular reality TV dating show. It is there he meets the other star of this book, Dev Deshpande, a producer on the show who is tasked with making Charlie less painfully awkward and stiff when he’s on screen.
While the reality TV dating aspect of the show was a lot of fun and filled with plenty of hilarious antics, what really made this story shine for me was the bond that immediately forms between Charlie and Dev. Dev is so sensitive to Charlie’s OCD, anxiety and awkwardness and really does everything he can to put him at ease and keep him calm. Dev is also a romantic who believes in happily ever afters and that he can help Charlie find love. As the filming of the show progresses, however, it becomes clear that Charlie has forged more of a meaningful connection with Dev than he has with any of the women vying for his affections. What does this mean for Charlie and his image rehab and what does it mean for Dev and his job? He’s supposed to be helping Charlie find love, not fall in love with Charlie himself.
This was such an adorable romance. Both Charlie and Dev are sweethearts and it’s impossible not to root for them to just put themselves out there and go for their happily ever after. I also enjoyed that the story also had a nice balance of weightier topics to complement the romance: self-doubt, discovering one’s sexual identity, mental illness, rejection, and an exploration of the often toxic nature of reality TV, just to name a few.
The only real issue I had with this book was that the pacing was a bit slow for me in the first half. I think it’s mainly because once I became invested in Charlie and Dev, I just wanted them to get on with it already and so the reality TV filming just felt like it was distracting me from what I wanted. That’s just a me thing though because I get impatient sometimes when the romance is a slow burn. The ending of the story is so precious and so satisfying, however, that it totally made up for the slow-ish beginning.
Funny, heartwarming, and touching, The Charm Offensive is sure to please romance fans who enjoy books like Red, White, and Royal Blue and Boyfriend Material. 4 STARS
Top Ten Tuesday – My Favorite Books That Feature Found Families
Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!
This week’s TTT topic is actually supposed to be Secondary/Minor Characters Who Deserve More Love. I completely blanked out on this topic because every favorite secondary character that came to mind has since had their own book and has gotten more love. My favorite secondary characters tend to be part of a found family though, so I thought it would be fun to share some of my favorite books that feature found families. I really love the found family trope. There’s not much more satisfying to me than seeing characters find their people and form those loving and supportive bonds that have been missing in their lives up to that point. My favorite found families are always there for each other, ready to kick some ass, if need be, and sometimes even ready to knock some sense into each other if a member of the family has gone off the rails. There’s nothing quite like the family you choose for yourself.
My Favorite Books That Feature Found Families
1. SIX OF CROWS DUOLOGY by Leigh Bardugo – Kaz, Inej, Jesper, Wylan, Matthias, and Nina – Is there anything this amazing band of morally gray characters wouldn’t do for each other? “No mourners, no funerals.”
2. THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA by T.J. Klune – Linus and the adorable magical children he takes care of all just stole my heart when I read this book. This found family includes a gnome, a sprite, a wyvern, an unidentifiable green blob, a were-Pomeranian, and the Antichrist.
3. BATTLE ROYAL by Lucy Parker – This is a recent favorite of mine. I had so much fun reading about the staff who worked with Sylvie at the Sugar Fair. They all bicker like an old married couple but have each other’s backs when it comes down to it.
4. THE BROMANCE BOOK CLUB by Lyssa Kay Adams – Perhaps my favorite found family of all are the guys from the Bromance Book Club. I love how these guys are there to support each other, especially in matters of love and romance, but in so many other ways.
5. THE ILLUMINAE FILES by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff – A group of sassy teens kicking butt and saving the day in space – what’s not to love?
6. THE BREAK-UP BOOK CLUB by Wendy Wax – Another recent favorite. I loved how the members of this book club became such a tremendous emotional support system for each of its members. All I could think while reading was how much I would have loved to have these folks in my corner.
7. THE LUNAR CHRONICLES BY MARISSA MEYER – I think pretty much everyone who follows me is familiar with this crew. This is my favorite fairytale retelling and it’s specifically because of the found family of Cinder, Kai, Scarlet, Wolf, Cress, Carswell Thorne, and Princess Winter, and Jacin and the way they all band together to defeat the evil queen.
8. THE HARRY POTTER SERIES by J.K. Rowling – Another series that everyone who follows me is probably familiar with. As much as I enjoyed all of the magical elements of this book, it was the family that Harry Potter found at Hogwarts that really made this such a special read for me.
9. ONE LAST STOP by Casey McQuiston – The roommates August lives with when she moves to New York City, along with the staff at the 24 hour pancake diner she works at, as well as the drag queen that lives across the hall. It’s a unique collection of individuals for sure, but once they make August a part of their little family, they would truly do anything for her. It was delightful to read about.
10. A COURT OF THORN AND ROSES SERIES by Sarah J. Maas – Last but definitely not least is the crew from the Night Court in the ACOTAR series. This crew was so tight that I was convinced at first that they really were family. Rhysand, Cassian, Azriel, and Mor were exactly the support system Feyre needed after all she endured. They’re all kickass warriors but also giant softies when they need to be.
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Question: Have you read any of these? Do you enjoy reading about found families?
Romance Review: WAIT FOR IT by Jenn McKinlay
Wait for It by Jenn McKinlay Also by this author: Paris Is Always a Good Idea
Published by Berkley Books on August 10, 2021
Genres: Contemporary Fiction, Fiction, Romance
Pages: 352
Source: Netgalley
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository
Goodreads
FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
Jenn McKinlay’s new romance Wait for It is one of the most delightful books I’ve read so far this year. I’m pretty sure I had a smile on my face almost the entire time I was reading it. It follows Annabelle Martin, a young woman who loves her job working as a freelance graphic designer but who has grown tired of the cold and dreary Boston winters. She also has not one, but two ex-husbands even though she’s only in her twenties. Annabelle just really needs a change. When her best friend Sophie offers her the job of a lifetime to come and work for her in Phoenix, Arizona, Annabelle jumps at the chance. There’s just one drawback – based on his endless notes about rules, rules, and more rules, her anonymous landlord appears to be a cranky “Get off my lawn!” kind of guy. Even though her friends warn her against approaching the guy, Annabelle considers herself a charmer and is convinced she can win him over so he’ll relax the rules. She has no idea what she’s in for…
Enter Nick Daire, said landlord, who actually isn’t an old curmudgeon after all, but instead is a gorgeous young man who has recently suffered a stroke and is wheelchair bound. Nick used to be a successful businessman but this stroke has really done a number on him both physically and emotionally, and so he has chosen to live as a recluse, shutting out almost everyone he knows. Nick didn’t even want to rent out his guest house but was talked into it by Sophie’s husband, who Nick owes his life to. Nick can’t wait for his tenant to move out in six months and has absolutely no intention whatsoever of interacting with her. He has no idea what he’s in for…
I can’t even express how much I enjoyed watching these two characters. I loved watching their relationship grow from little snarky letters taped to doors to them finally meeting in person and bonding over of all things, a stray tuxedo cat Annabelle has named Sir. It was so clear to me from the moment we meet each of them that they’re perfect for each other and I just couldn’t wait for them to figure it out too.
I also really enjoyed the journeys of personal growth both Annabelle and Nick experience. They both have plenty of flaws that they need to work on, like Annabelle’s need to “mother” the men she dates and Nick’s fear of appearing vulnerable in front of anyone, even those who love and care about him. I love watching characters really learn from their mistakes and grow, and both of these characters do. Wait for It does explore some weighty topics with respect to mental health, but the author does a wonderful job balancing this more serious topic with the lighter romance.
If you’re looking for a fun and sweet romance that will leave you with a smile on your face, check out Jenn McKinley’s Wait for It. You won’t be disappointed!
About Jenn McKinlay
Jenn McKinlay is the New York Times, USA Today, and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author of several mystery and romance series and will be debuting a stand alone romantic comedy in July 2020 entitled PARIS IS ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA. She lives in sunny Arizona in a house that is overrun with kids, pets and her husband’s guitars.