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Heart Bones
Life and a dismal last name are the only two things Beyah Grim's parents ever gave her. After carving her path all on her own, Beyah is well on her way to bigger and better things, thanks to no one but herself.
With only two short months separating her from the future she's built and the past she desperately wants to leave behind, an unexpected death leaves Beyah with no place to go during the interim. Forced to reach out to her last resort, Beyah has to spend the remainder of her summer on a peninsula in Texas with a father she barely knows. Beyah's plan is to keep her head down and let the summer slip by seamlessly, but her new neighbor Samson throws a wrench in that plan.
Samson and Beyah have nothing in common on the surface.
She comes from a life of poverty and neglect; he comes from a family of wealth and privilege. But one thing they do have in common is that they're both drawn to sad things. Which means they're drawn to each other. With an almost immediate connection too intense for them to continue denying, Beyah and Samson agree to stay in the shallow end of a summer fling. What Beyah doesn't realize is that a rip current is coming, and it's about to drag her heart out to sea.
With only two short months separating her from the future she's built and the past she desperately wants to leave behind, an unexpected death leaves Beyah with no place to go during the interim. Forced to reach out to her last resort, Beyah has to spend the remainder of her summer on a peninsula in Texas with a father she barely knows. Beyah's plan is to keep her head down and let the summer slip by seamlessly, but her new neighbor Samson throws a wrench in that plan.
Samson and Beyah have nothing in common on the surface.
She comes from a life of poverty and neglect; he comes from a family of wealth and privilege. But one thing they do have in common is that they're both drawn to sad things. Which means they're drawn to each other. With an almost immediate connection too intense for them to continue denying, Beyah and Samson agree to stay in the shallow end of a summer fling. What Beyah doesn't realize is that a rip current is coming, and it's about to drag her heart out to sea.
338 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 19, 2020
About the author
Colleen Hoover
107 books735k followersInternational and #1 New York Times bestselling author of romance, YA, thriller, women's fiction and paranormal romance.
I don't like to be confined to one genre. If you put me in a box, I'll claw my way out.
My social media username is @colleenhoover pretty much everywhere except my email, which is [email protected]
Founder of www.thebookwormbox.com charity and Book Bonanza.
I don't like to be confined to one genre. If you put me in a box, I'll claw my way out.
My social media username is @colleenhoover pretty much everywhere except my email, which is [email protected]
Founder of www.thebookwormbox.com charity and Book Bonanza.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42,070 reviews
July 30, 2023
OMG! I just finished it and.........................................................yes, first time in my life, I’m speechless! My heart is broken into million pieces. It hurts! But I also keep smiling..... okay... as soon as I recover, my review is coming soon! Oh let’s forget giving entire galaxy’s stars! It’s not fair to give this book only five stars!
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August 22, 2020
if it wasnt official before, it certainly is now - CoHo can do no wrong.
im so used to CH writing about adults that i was a little taken aback when i realised this is about two young people, right on the cusp of adulthood. but i think this story explores a lot of great topics that surround people who are in the vulnerable transition period between high school and university, between youth and adulthood.
this a short, simple, sweet story about learning how to trust and listen to your heart. and i wouldnt expecting anything less from queen CoHo.
↠ 5 stars
im so used to CH writing about adults that i was a little taken aback when i realised this is about two young people, right on the cusp of adulthood. but i think this story explores a lot of great topics that surround people who are in the vulnerable transition period between high school and university, between youth and adulthood.
this a short, simple, sweet story about learning how to trust and listen to your heart. and i wouldnt expecting anything less from queen CoHo.
↠ 5 stars
August 19, 2020
FULL RTC
This author could re-write the phone book and I'd bloody well read the thing!! An easy 5 star read!! An easy book to fall in love with!! An emotional book that hit me in the feels straight away..
September 6, 2023
5 stars
It has been so long since I've sat down and read a full length novel in one sitting, but that is exactly what I did with Heart Bones. Colleen Hoover wrote such a beautiful book that made me feel so deeply. It was one of those books that captivated me from the start and I never wanted to put it down... so I didn't.
Beyah has had a hard life. And I don't say that lightly. Her life is more difficult than most of us can ever imagine. And she's only nineteen. After tragedy strikes with her mother, she moves from her trailer in Kentucky to a beautiful beach house in Texas. Beyah has never lived with her father before, but she needs a place to stay for the summer before she starts college so she goes.
Beyah has a stepsister she's never met named Sarah and Sarah has a friend named Samson. Samson and Beyah seem to be from totally different worlds, but they're more alike then one would think. They both have a lot of secrets, but Beyah can't help but to want to tell all her secrets to Samson and that is very unlike her.
Both of these characters are so broken, and two broken characters healing together... there isn't much I love more than that. This story is heavy and heartbreaking at times, but it's also beautiful. Beyah is such an incredibly strong character. She's loyal and determined and her story broke my heart. By the end of this book I was crying so hard, it was just beautiful.
Heart Bones is a story with an incredible prose, interesting characters with secrets you won't guess, and a truly stunning love story when it comes down to it. I loved this one and I highly recommend it!
"You can fill your life with nice things, but nice things don’t fill the holes in your soul.”
It has been so long since I've sat down and read a full length novel in one sitting, but that is exactly what I did with Heart Bones. Colleen Hoover wrote such a beautiful book that made me feel so deeply. It was one of those books that captivated me from the start and I never wanted to put it down... so I didn't.
Beyah has had a hard life. And I don't say that lightly. Her life is more difficult than most of us can ever imagine. And she's only nineteen. After tragedy strikes with her mother, she moves from her trailer in Kentucky to a beautiful beach house in Texas. Beyah has never lived with her father before, but she needs a place to stay for the summer before she starts college so she goes.
I thought I knew who I was, but I had no idea people can become different versions of themselves in different settings.
Beyah has a stepsister she's never met named Sarah and Sarah has a friend named Samson. Samson and Beyah seem to be from totally different worlds, but they're more alike then one would think. They both have a lot of secrets, but Beyah can't help but to want to tell all her secrets to Samson and that is very unlike her.
Both of these characters are so broken, and two broken characters healing together... there isn't much I love more than that. This story is heavy and heartbreaking at times, but it's also beautiful. Beyah is such an incredibly strong character. She's loyal and determined and her story broke my heart. By the end of this book I was crying so hard, it was just beautiful.
Heart Bones is a story with an incredible prose, interesting characters with secrets you won't guess, and a truly stunning love story when it comes down to it. I loved this one and I highly recommend it!
April 20, 2021
i can’t believe i liked 2 colleen hoover books in a row honestly. but i thought this was very well done and didn’t have any cheesy twists which rocks.
January 12, 2024
I've read quite a few Colleen Hoover books, some I've loved and some I've hated. Heart Bones lands right in the middle of the pack for me.
Beyah comes from a life of poverty and neglect. When her mother dies of an overdose, she goes to live with the father she barely knows. Once there, she feels an immediate attraction to Samson, the handsome guy next door. Beyah recognizes something in him that makes her think they are kindred spirits. Before the summer is over, all their secrets will be revealed to each other.
Even with the main character's unusual backstory, this feels more like a regular new adult romance than anything else. And to be fair, that's really what Colleen Hoover does best. She has this way of pulling you into the romance and keeping the book firmly glued to your hands until the very last page, even if the main couple does come across as somewhat cringey and angsty.
Still, I need a little bit more than just a straightforward new adult romance in order to really enjoy it, and this didn't have that. Colleen Hoover's books usually elicit such strong emotions in me, melting me into a puddle of snot and tears. But not this one. It lacked that all-important emotional punch. I didn't cry, my heart remains unbroken, and my tissues are dry.
Maybe I'm finally outgrowing the new adult genre. (Say it ain't so!) At the risk of dating myself, it's been almost two decades since I was the age of the characters in this book. And even though I'd like to think I remain young at heart, I suppose there is a limit. My reading preferences can only remain that young for so long, especially when it comes to angsty romances.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
See also, my thoughts on:
It Ends with Us / It Starts with Us
Verity
Reminders of Him
Regretting You
Ugly Love
Layla
~~~~~~~~~~~~
✧ Connect with me ✧ Instagram ✧
Beyah comes from a life of poverty and neglect. When her mother dies of an overdose, she goes to live with the father she barely knows. Once there, she feels an immediate attraction to Samson, the handsome guy next door. Beyah recognizes something in him that makes her think they are kindred spirits. Before the summer is over, all their secrets will be revealed to each other.
Even with the main character's unusual backstory, this feels more like a regular new adult romance than anything else. And to be fair, that's really what Colleen Hoover does best. She has this way of pulling you into the romance and keeping the book firmly glued to your hands until the very last page, even if the main couple does come across as somewhat cringey and angsty.
Still, I need a little bit more than just a straightforward new adult romance in order to really enjoy it, and this didn't have that. Colleen Hoover's books usually elicit such strong emotions in me, melting me into a puddle of snot and tears. But not this one. It lacked that all-important emotional punch. I didn't cry, my heart remains unbroken, and my tissues are dry.
Maybe I'm finally outgrowing the new adult genre. (Say it ain't so!) At the risk of dating myself, it's been almost two decades since I was the age of the characters in this book. And even though I'd like to think I remain young at heart, I suppose there is a limit. My reading preferences can only remain that young for so long, especially when it comes to angsty romances.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
See also, my thoughts on:
It Ends with Us / It Starts with Us
Verity
Reminders of Him
Regretting You
Ugly Love
Layla
~~~~~~~~~~~~
✧ Connect with me ✧ Instagram ✧
Want to read
February 8, 2020Me, a week ago: I need more Colleen Hoover books.
Colleen: a new romance novel, coming in July.
Me: *looking at the sky* GOD???
Colleen: a new romance novel, coming in July.
Me: *looking at the sky* GOD???
July 23, 2022
Ahhh another great Colleen Hoover book!! Such unique characters and a unique plot. I cared about Samsom and Beyah SO much and the ending made my heart melt.
January 1, 2022
4.5 Stars
“Damaged people recognize other damaged people. It’s like a club you don’t want a membership to.”
In case you DO want a membership, just read this book cause: (1) It’s so sad, it’s a mood; (2) After spending most of the 2nd half chapters sobbing my eyes out, I can confirm that I am now positively ✧ damaged ✧. So, let’s welcome me to this club (with a hug, please)! ✨ 😭
Beyah (19), having lived most of her life in poverty, is left with no option but to spend her summer with her father, whom she barely knows, and his family in their beach house in Texas. There she meets her neighbor Samson (20). A rich boy who rents out his parents’ properties during the summer.
On the surface, they have nothing in common. Drawn to each other by the secrets and troubled pasts they see hiding behind their eyes, they start to develop a relationship. One that will end in ruins if they’re not careful. What mystery are they afraid to reveal? Who do you think is going to break first?
This story is intense and heartbreaking, but it is also powerful and uplifting. What it is not is perfect. I can think of a few reasons why you might not like this book because I’m pretty sure those are the same reasons why Heart Bones almost didn’t hit MY jackpot.
↠ Despite having a tragic beginning that punches you straight in the gut and a beautiful ending that warms your heart, the first half of the book is pretty slow. Not to mention, this book is short. I wish it had more pages as I feel like some issues could’ve been explored more.
↠ You might find yourself frustrated with Beyah because of how judgemental she is towards the rich people in the beginning. She doesn’t know life outside of her own. She’s jaded and bitter. So, I think that behavior (warranted or not) is not a surprise.
↠ Even though the side characters (Brian the father, Alana the stepmother, Sara the stepsister with her boyfriend Marco, and Marjorie the grandma next door) are all different shades of kind, nice, and lovely; they are also somewhat . . . hollow.
↠ Beyah and Sara have a growing friendship that I adore. However, the father/daughter relationship is . . . rushed and unsatisfying. I would’ve loved to see how Beyah removed her animosity towards Brian and how they repaired their relationship.
↠ The romance blossoms too fast within a month and a half time of them being in each other’smiserablecompany. Plus, with no distinctive humor and fun banter, what even is this? Sorry, love, we have to stick to the theme and keep it angsty and depressing.
What I’m saying is . . . if you don’t love this book and think it’s flat, I get you (on some level). At first, I was going to give this book a three stars myself. But then the floodgates were opened and I grew myself a heart bone. 😭 CoHo really came through this time!
“Maybe we did grow heart bones. But what if the only way of knowing you grew a heart bone is by feeling the agony caused by the break?”
When I was reading this, it put me in a Lana Del Rey mode and made me think of her album Born to Die, particularly the song “Blue Jeans,” “Dark Paradise,” and “Summertime Sadness.” Idk, this book just emanates chronically sad vibes. My reasons for loving this book are:
— Samson ♡ Beyah
They have a rather pitiful, embarrassing, and not so cute meet cute. Their attraction was swift, but I loved their strong connection, deep conversations, intense interactions, and their heavy with meaning small touches. Basically, I loved how they were with each other.
— The plot twists
I did see one coming, but the rest was a shock. It can be irritating in a book when one character keeps a huge secret. I actually enjoyed this one, and I think the big reveal was worth the wait. Though I must say, the last 3 to 5 chapters happen so fast, and there’s no epilogue which is a bummer.
— The setting
Heart Bones is more beach read than the book Beach Read itself. It’s glum, full of doom and gloom aura AND is actually set on a beach with characters actively spending time there watching sunrises and sunsets. So if you love Beach Read, definitely read this.
— The prose
I��ve always loved CoHo’s writing, and it is no different this time. Something about it just makes you feel . . . and contemplate your existence and moves you. There were so many quotes and passages I wanted to highlight even from the very first page.
“You can fill your life with nice things, but nice things don’t fill the holes in your soul.”
“What fills the holes in a soul?”
“Pieces of someone else’s soul.”
Despite my grievances or it could be because
(Read as an Audiobook)
July 12, 2021
Tears are dribbling down my cheeks as I write this. Partly for this story but mostly because it compounds the numerous heartbreaking moments we’ve been through in 2020. This just tops it perfectly. Just another broken piece of my heart, even if it’s for fictional characters.
Mehn, I don’t know. This hit too hard. FRTC, maybe.
August 15, 2023
✨ CoHo does well with new adult writing and this one didn't disappoint me.
"Maybe we both grew heart bones."
Two broken people finding love in each other 😭💯
*Review as on publication day:
19th August, 2020
I just grabbed my copy as soon as it was available 😍
The story starts with a death and leaving Beyah looking for a place to stay.
Sounds weird, right?
Rightly so!
This is the story about a girl who has been through poverty and neglect because of an addict parent.
This is the story of a girl who has a father far away and who doesn't feel like a father at all.
This is the story of a girl struggling for the most basic human needs.
This is the story of a girl who has lived most of her life as an outcast.
But things change when she has no other choice than to leave everything else behind and live with her father and his family.
There she gets to know her father more, her stepmother, Alana, and her daughter, Sara. There she gets to meet Marcos, Sara's boyfriend, and Samson, a guy who has more hidden secrets than her.
This is the story of found family and acceptance.
I know the characters aren't our typical romcom fluffy romantic characters as it always have been with CoHo's books.
I would certainly have an interest in dark shady (yes, shady 😑) characters like Samson but he's the cutest sht ever when he makes up his mind to do his best for the one he cares about.
A young adult romance about revealing the darkest secrets, trying to trust again and defining what family means.
The writing is good as always. Never a dull moment but yes, the explicit scenes go on and on and on like it fills up some chapters entirely towards the second half of the book when all I needed was answers and more character development and secret revelations. And yes, it didn't do much in the end. And yes, expect lots of drama towards the end.
The only few things that test my patience while reading a CoHo book:
1. Too much focus on sex scenes, details which I do not need
2. Forbidden romances/toxic relationships get too normal to the point of me questioning myself why I am reading the book
3. Rushed endings at times after a lot of romance in the second halves
Yes, 1 and 3 happen in this one.
I do not like how things turn out casual real fast.
And yes, the title explanation didn't seem that relevant to me. It was like a heat of the moment talk. That's it. It was put there just for the sake of putting the words there somewhere in between. And the bonding with the almost strangers as family happened too soon.
Not probably one of my favs. The characters are a detached lot no matter how much they tried.
(***The amount of eye rolls I did while reading chapters 22 and 23 were phenomenal. I am so glad my eyes are okay after all that.)
But you know what?
Her stories always have wholesome good endings.
And this one was no different 💕
***Me when I saw the publication announcement:
I could not believe my eyes when this book was released earlier than expected!
One of my most anticipated releases of the year and I just finished up reading it 💕
I am a happy reader!
"Maybe we both grew heart bones."
Two broken people finding love in each other 😭💯
*Review as on publication day:
19th August, 2020
I just grabbed my copy as soon as it was available 😍
The story starts with a death and leaving Beyah looking for a place to stay.
Sounds weird, right?
Rightly so!
This is the story about a girl who has been through poverty and neglect because of an addict parent.
This is the story of a girl who has a father far away and who doesn't feel like a father at all.
This is the story of a girl struggling for the most basic human needs.
This is the story of a girl who has lived most of her life as an outcast.
But things change when she has no other choice than to leave everything else behind and live with her father and his family.
There she gets to know her father more, her stepmother, Alana, and her daughter, Sara. There she gets to meet Marcos, Sara's boyfriend, and Samson, a guy who has more hidden secrets than her.
This is the story of found family and acceptance.
I know the characters aren't our typical romcom fluffy romantic characters as it always have been with CoHo's books.
I would certainly have an interest in dark shady (yes, shady 😑) characters like Samson but he's the cutest sht ever when he makes up his mind to do his best for the one he cares about.
A young adult romance about revealing the darkest secrets, trying to trust again and defining what family means.
The writing is good as always. Never a dull moment but yes, the explicit scenes go on and on and on like it fills up some chapters entirely towards the second half of the book when all I needed was answers and more character development and secret revelations. And yes, it didn't do much in the end. And yes, expect lots of drama towards the end.
The only few things that test my patience while reading a CoHo book:
1. Too much focus on sex scenes, details which I do not need
2. Forbidden romances/toxic relationships get too normal to the point of me questioning myself why I am reading the book
3. Rushed endings at times after a lot of romance in the second halves
Yes, 1 and 3 happen in this one.
I do not like how things turn out casual real fast.
And yes, the title explanation didn't seem that relevant to me. It was like a heat of the moment talk. That's it. It was put there just for the sake of putting the words there somewhere in between. And the bonding with the almost strangers as family happened too soon.
Not probably one of my favs. The characters are a detached lot no matter how much they tried.
(***The amount of eye rolls I did while reading chapters 22 and 23 were phenomenal. I am so glad my eyes are okay after all that.)
But you know what?
Her stories always have wholesome good endings.
And this one was no different 💕
***Me when I saw the publication announcement:
I could not believe my eyes when this book was released earlier than expected!
One of my most anticipated releases of the year and I just finished up reading it 💕
I am a happy reader!
May 8, 2022
3,5/5 ku 4/5
Po tylu latach to wciąż Hoover jest jedyną autorką romansów, która nie pozwala mi się oderwać od swoich książek.
Po tylu latach to wciąż Hoover jest jedyną autorką romansów, która nie pozwala mi się oderwać od swoich książek.
August 28, 2020
4.5 stars
This book was really sweet, but also really sad and heartbreaking. in this story we follow this young girl named Beyah, who lives in a trailer park with an addict for a Mother. Her life seems to be falling apart when her Mother dies of an overdose and she finds herself homeless in the summer after her senior year of high school. So she calls her birth Father who she barely ever see anymore and asks to stay with him for the summer. This is a romance story about two broken people finding hope in each other again, as well as a coming of age story.
I feel like it's best to go into this book not knowing a whole lot, as I'd say it is for most of Colleen Hoover books. This book is sad and devastating, Beyah experiences a lot of tragedy and hard times at such a young age and these experiences have shaped her as a person. I adored her step-sister Sara in this book, and Samson was frustrating at first but he also grew on me as the book progressed. This book is everything you'd expect from a Colleen Hoover book, it's sad as hell, it'll make you cry, it has dark characters with mysterious pasts, etc. But some scenes in this book really touched me and I won't forget about those scenes anytime soon.
This book is literally 'august' by Taylor Swift. They are having a summer romance but they know they'll be parting ways at the end of the summer and damn. It just fits the lyrics of the song so well. The ending was also pretty good.
This isn't my new favorite from Colleen Hoover, because lets be real will anything ever beat It Ends With Us? Probably not. But this one is pretty great and it'll catch you in the feels and it's the perfect book for summer.
This book was really sweet, but also really sad and heartbreaking. in this story we follow this young girl named Beyah, who lives in a trailer park with an addict for a Mother. Her life seems to be falling apart when her Mother dies of an overdose and she finds herself homeless in the summer after her senior year of high school. So she calls her birth Father who she barely ever see anymore and asks to stay with him for the summer. This is a romance story about two broken people finding hope in each other again, as well as a coming of age story.
I feel like it's best to go into this book not knowing a whole lot, as I'd say it is for most of Colleen Hoover books. This book is sad and devastating, Beyah experiences a lot of tragedy and hard times at such a young age and these experiences have shaped her as a person. I adored her step-sister Sara in this book, and Samson was frustrating at first but he also grew on me as the book progressed. This book is everything you'd expect from a Colleen Hoover book, it's sad as hell, it'll make you cry, it has dark characters with mysterious pasts, etc. But some scenes in this book really touched me and I won't forget about those scenes anytime soon.
This book is literally 'august' by Taylor Swift. They are having a summer romance but they know they'll be parting ways at the end of the summer and damn. It just fits the lyrics of the song so well. The ending was also pretty good.
This isn't my new favorite from Colleen Hoover, because lets be real will anything ever beat It Ends With Us? Probably not. But this one is pretty great and it'll catch you in the feels and it's the perfect book for summer.
March 26, 2021
Is it just me, or is Heart Bones a really gross title? Makes me think of something you dread finding in your take-out meal.
For the characters in Colleen Hoover’s 2020 novel, heart bones are things you grow when you fall in love that make an actual broken heart possible. Yeah, okay.
Since CoHo has been all over the place lately in terms of genre, it’s helpful to know going in that this is a return to her sweet spot - New Adult romance. If you haven’t read one of those before, you're basically signing up to be a fly on the wall while of-age teenagers engage in bedroom business time. Once again, I feel compelled to use the word gross.
Honestly, it really doesn’t matter what the plot is. Picking up a Hoover novel means you’re going to be sucked into a cliched yet somehow still original page-turner that you’ll read in one sitting. This one falls to the middle of the CoHo pack for me, so let’s go with 3.5 stars rounded down.
Heart Bones (gross) is available as part of the Kindle Unlimited program (as of 3/25/20).
Blog: www.confettibookshelf.com
IG: @confettibookshelf
For the characters in Colleen Hoover’s 2020 novel, heart bones are things you grow when you fall in love that make an actual broken heart possible. Yeah, okay.
Since CoHo has been all over the place lately in terms of genre, it’s helpful to know going in that this is a return to her sweet spot - New Adult romance. If you haven’t read one of those before, you're basically signing up to be a fly on the wall while of-age teenagers engage in bedroom business time. Once again, I feel compelled to use the word gross.
Honestly, it really doesn’t matter what the plot is. Picking up a Hoover novel means you’re going to be sucked into a cliched yet somehow still original page-turner that you’ll read in one sitting. This one falls to the middle of the CoHo pack for me, so let’s go with 3.5 stars rounded down.
Heart Bones (gross) is available as part of the Kindle Unlimited program (as of 3/25/20).
Blog: www.confettibookshelf.com
IG: @confettibookshelf
September 15, 2020
Colleen got me in the heart bone
I gave this a one star review because some people only look for negatives no matter where they are and those people would be missing out on a damn good book. I don’t want them to miss it. This actually deserves a galaxy of stars just like the author and all the words she gives us.
Stop looking for negatives everywhere and go read this! If you don’t want to read this one, she has a lot of other books out too and you will be a better human for reading them. Or even one. In one way or another she will touch your soul in every book you read by her.
She makes you feel and it leaves a mark y’all. Be ready for that.
I gave this a one star review because some people only look for negatives no matter where they are and those people would be missing out on a damn good book. I don’t want them to miss it. This actually deserves a galaxy of stars just like the author and all the words she gives us.
Stop looking for negatives everywhere and go read this! If you don’t want to read this one, she has a lot of other books out too and you will be a better human for reading them. Or even one. In one way or another she will touch your soul in every book you read by her.
She makes you feel and it leaves a mark y’all. Be ready for that.
August 2, 2021
“People sometimes still drown in the shallow end,”
I think I grew a heart bone as well! Even though I’m not a huge fan of the summer romance/summer fling trope, I really liked this one. Because it just turned out being more. This was just so sweet and emotional. This book is a mood in its own way for those damaged and the non fun people and I loved it!!
Damaged people recognize other damaged people. It’s like a club you don’t want a membership to.
I loved the main characters, their connection, their deep conversation, and how they were both the same even if it doesn’t seem like that. They were both damaged that they were perfect for each other in a way. The only issue I got is that I wanted more of her relationship with her dad. Their relationship is so important I wished it was more focused on. I wanted to see them connect and talk and throw blames and make amends and all of that. I wanted to see how there relationship gets fixed instead of being told that it was.
“You can fill your life with nice things, but nice things don’t fill the holes in your soul.”
“What fills the holes in a soul?”
Samson’s eyes scroll over my face for a few seconds. “Pieces of someone else’s soul.”
This was a sad gloomy beach read and I was so in the mood for that. I wished it wasn’t short and the ending wasn’t rushed, I kinda wanted more. but it’s fine, I was still satisfied with what I got. Beyah and Sara’s relationship was so perfect. I loved how they got close and started to have a trusting friendship. I feel like this book is the summer version of the butterfly project by Emma Scott. In a way they’re both kinda similar or gave me the same vibe to each other, so if you liked one I think you might like the other.
September 19, 2020
Epic first love!
The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💚💙💜❤️💖
Heat/Steam: 🔥🔥
Story/Plot: 📘📗📕📙📓
World building: 🌏🌎🌍🌎🌏
Character development: 👤👤👤👤👤
The setting: Kentucky & The Bolivar Peninsula, Texas (beach house).
The Hero: Samson – Rich kid with a lot of secrets, staying alone in one of his families 5 rental properties while he is in charge of taking care of them.
The heroine: Beyah - (Pronounced: Bay-ah), she grew up poor and almost always hungry with her addict Mom in Kentucky. Her Dad sent child support, which was used for drugs, but he never cared enough to check on her living conditions.
The love story: Samson and Beyah are interested in each other from the beginning when they see each other on a ferry. Both of them keep nearly everything to themselves and both have endured a lot. The romance is not insta-love and is very romantic.
This story was different than any I had read before. It’s funny how in romance there are so many plots and tropes that are used over and over again and we can still like them, because the minutia is different. The interactions between the characters is different in each one. In this book both Samson and Beyah had secrets about their pasts. Beyah started opening up to Samson right away because she saw him as a kindred spirit.
I was wondering what kind of secrets Samson could be holding onto and was close to getting frustrated because so many times in books we see people keeping secrets and there is this back and forth with one character trying to keep secrets and the other trying to find them. It often goes on so long that when the secret finally comes out, it is either anti-climactic or blown way out of proportion to what would happen in the real world. However, this one was different and after the secrets came out, I could definitely see the reason Samson kept them.
I’m not telling what the secrets were, but I will say that it made for quite a captivating story. I really enjoyed both characters and their stories and though the book did get a bit depressing at times, it was well worth it, The book held my interest the entire time and I was actually surprised a few times. I will definitely read it again sometime.
I voluntarily read & reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts & opinions are my own.
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The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💚💙💜❤️💖
Heat/Steam: 🔥🔥
Story/Plot: 📘📗📕📙📓
World building: 🌏🌎🌍🌎🌏
Character development: 👤👤👤👤👤
The setting: Kentucky & The Bolivar Peninsula, Texas (beach house).
The Hero: Samson – Rich kid with a lot of secrets, staying alone in one of his families 5 rental properties while he is in charge of taking care of them.
The heroine: Beyah - (Pronounced: Bay-ah), she grew up poor and almost always hungry with her addict Mom in Kentucky. Her Dad sent child support, which was used for drugs, but he never cared enough to check on her living conditions.
The love story: Samson and Beyah are interested in each other from the beginning when they see each other on a ferry. Both of them keep nearly everything to themselves and both have endured a lot. The romance is not insta-love and is very romantic.
This story was different than any I had read before. It’s funny how in romance there are so many plots and tropes that are used over and over again and we can still like them, because the minutia is different. The interactions between the characters is different in each one. In this book both Samson and Beyah had secrets about their pasts. Beyah started opening up to Samson right away because she saw him as a kindred spirit.
I was wondering what kind of secrets Samson could be holding onto and was close to getting frustrated because so many times in books we see people keeping secrets and there is this back and forth with one character trying to keep secrets and the other trying to find them. It often goes on so long that when the secret finally comes out, it is either anti-climactic or blown way out of proportion to what would happen in the real world. However, this one was different and after the secrets came out, I could definitely see the reason Samson kept them.
I’m not telling what the secrets were, but I will say that it made for quite a captivating story. I really enjoyed both characters and their stories and though the book did get a bit depressing at times, it was well worth it, The book held my interest the entire time and I was actually surprised a few times. I will definitely read it again sometime.
I voluntarily read & reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts & opinions are my own.
Blog|Goodreads|Facebook|Instagram|Twitter|BookBub
October 13, 2020
After two challenging books, the author seems to have played it safe this time by using the same plain old romance plotline.
The last two books gave hope that maybe the author is venturing into new lanes of storylines but this book tells that that enjoyable trip ended way too short.
It is the story of a boy and girl who face extreme financial and familial deprivations from childhood and had to do things not-right to make themselves survive. No one understood them and they never felt loved until they found each other.
The plotline is too convenient. All side characters seem so hollow. There is no originality. It is not exciting or engaging. Author should branch out into different genres like her last two books showed that she has potential rather than becoming stereotyped into a cliche romance writer.
The last two books gave hope that maybe the author is venturing into new lanes of storylines but this book tells that that enjoyable trip ended way too short.
It is the story of a boy and girl who face extreme financial and familial deprivations from childhood and had to do things not-right to make themselves survive. No one understood them and they never felt loved until they found each other.
The plotline is too convenient. All side characters seem so hollow. There is no originality. It is not exciting or engaging. Author should branch out into different genres like her last two books showed that she has potential rather than becoming stereotyped into a cliche romance writer.
March 5, 2024
4.5 stars
After reading Regretting You last year, and totally and madly falling in love with it, I was wondering if it was a fluke or if I’m turning into a CoHo fan. And it’s now official, I’m really loving her latest books.
Heart Bones was such a wonderful, emotional, but also touching YA/NA contemporary romance. When I read Regretting You, I loved the YA part so much, and hoped she would write a YA novel, and as if she heard me, she wrote one.
I feel like Heart Bones would be perfect for anyone loving KA TUCKER novels. It was heart-felt, beautifully written, and just the right book to escape in. Her main characters were relatable, likable and secretive. And I loved how they both slowly opened up to each other. The story on its own was one AWESOME beach read! Because of it I want to spent a summer on the beach, staying in a stilt house, exploring the dunes, going swimming at night (or not). It all sounded so charming and relaxing, and something I could definitely see myself doing for a summer.
I started and finished Heart Bones in one day, and loved it all. Honestly there was nothing I didn’t love about this book. And I’m already impatiently awaiting her next contemporary romance. Because her style is right up my alley.
After reading Regretting You last year, and totally and madly falling in love with it, I was wondering if it was a fluke or if I’m turning into a CoHo fan. And it’s now official, I’m really loving her latest books.
Heart Bones was such a wonderful, emotional, but also touching YA/NA contemporary romance. When I read Regretting You, I loved the YA part so much, and hoped she would write a YA novel, and as if she heard me, she wrote one.
I feel like Heart Bones would be perfect for anyone loving KA TUCKER novels. It was heart-felt, beautifully written, and just the right book to escape in. Her main characters were relatable, likable and secretive. And I loved how they both slowly opened up to each other. The story on its own was one AWESOME beach read! Because of it I want to spent a summer on the beach, staying in a stilt house, exploring the dunes, going swimming at night (or not). It all sounded so charming and relaxing, and something I could definitely see myself doing for a summer.
I started and finished Heart Bones in one day, and loved it all. Honestly there was nothing I didn’t love about this book. And I’m already impatiently awaiting her next contemporary romance. Because her style is right up my alley.
December 23, 2020
5 "SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS" Stars!!
I'm goddamn blown away ... again!
I've NEVER expected less from Colleen Hoover since I read Ugly Love. She's this author that will totally sweep you away. And this story? This story is absolutely at it's best that I think I've also grown a heart bone!
Overall, Colleen Hoover not only wrote an amazing romance, but also acknowledged every challenge the world is facing today. I highly recommend this!
I'm goddamn blown away ... again!
"He might be right. Maybe we did grow heart bones. But what if the only way of knowing you grew a heart bone is by feeling the agony caused by the break?"
I've NEVER expected less from Colleen Hoover since I read Ugly Love. She's this author that will totally sweep you away. And this story? This story is absolutely at it's best that I think I've also grown a heart bone!
Overall, Colleen Hoover not only wrote an amazing romance, but also acknowledged every challenge the world is facing today. I highly recommend this!
January 14, 2022
I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH!! Colleen Hoover... you did it again :') I kept hearing how underrated this book was and I didn't understand that until this very moment. If you've been thinking of reading this book then I highly recommend you RUN DON'T WALK and start this book now!! Samson and Beyah are the perfect example of soulmates. They both have had to experience incredibly tough moments throughout their lives that left them feeling like no one could ever understand them... that is until they cross paths. I can definitely see this book being a perfect summer read, since it is about a summer romance, so that leaves me even more excited to reread it in the upcoming months!
July 21, 2022
English - Español
It has become a custom. Coleen Hoover's books are an adventure (either I like it or I hate it) and a ride on a rollercoaster (the strong emotions are not lacking in her books). This book, despite not being a truly memorable one, is intense.
Beyah is very young, but in her young age she has had to go through too many bad experiences and her reality is far from being even acceptable.
Just graduated from high school and two months away from going to college with a scholarship she got with the volleyball team, when she arrives at the trailer where she lives with her mother, she finds her dead of an overdose. His mother's body is still warm when the renter ask her to move from the trailer. That leaves her on the street with the only option to call her father, with whom she does not have a close relationship and whom she has not seen for several years. Worse still, his father is married and has to share the beach house they are staying in for the summer with his wife and stepsister.
Beyah on the ferry on the way to the beach house meets Samson, young, beautiful, womanizing and rich, but she can tell that he is just as broken as she is. They have a very bad first encounter which makes the following encounters just as bad. She wants to resist being one more of Samson's summer flings, but the attraction they feel is indisputable and they realize that they have a lot in common, but their destinies are too far apart.
Nothing is known about Samson, only that he is the son of someone who has a lot of money. Beyah tries to find out and he doesn't tell her. So they agree to be together for the summer and that in the end he will answer everything she wants to know.
In my opinion, the bad thing is the ending of the book. Shock? A little. A forced ending? Also a little. And that's what's left of the book. Too many realities to come to such an abrupt happy end.
"If there's nothing inside a heart that can break, why does it feel like mine is going to snap in half when it's time for me to move next month? Does your heart not feel like that?
Se ha vuelto una costumbre. Los libros de Coleen Hoover son una aventura (o me gustan o no me gustan) y una subida a una montaña rusa (las emociones fuertes no faltan en sus libros).
Este libro, a pesar de no ser uno realmente memorable, es intenso. Beyah es muy joven, pero en su corta edad ha tenido que vivir demasiadas malas experiencias y su realidad está muy lejos de ser ni siquiera aceptable.
Recién graduada de la secundaria y a dos meses de ir a la universidad con una beca que consiguió con el equipo de voleyball, al llegar al tráiler donde vive con su madre, la encuentra muerta de una sobredosis. El cuerpo de su madre está aún caliente cuando le piden que desaloje el tráiler. Eso la deja en la calle con la única opción de llamar a su padre, con el que no tiene una relación cercana y al que no ve desde hace varios años. Peor aún, su padre se casó y tiene que compartir la casa de playa en la que se están quedando por el verano con su esposa y una hermanastra.
Beyah en el ferry de camino a la casa de la playa conoce a Samson, joven, hermoso, mujeriego y rico, pero ella puede notar que está tan roto como ella. Tienen un primer encuentro muy malo lo que hace que los siguientes encuentros sean igual de malos. Ella se quiere resistir a ser uno más de los ligues del verano de Samson, pero la atracción que sienten es indiscutible y se dan cuenta que tienen mucho en común, pero sus destinos están demasiados separados.
De Samson no se sabe nada, solo que es el hijo de alguien que tiene mucho dinero. Beyah intenta averiguar y el no le dice nada. Así que llegan al acuerdo de estar juntos por el verano y que al final el le responderá todo lo que quiera saber.
En mi opinión, lo malo es el desenlace del libro. Shock? Un poco. Un final forzado? También un poco. Y eso es lo que le resta al libro. Demasiadas realidades para llegar a un final feliz tan abrupto.
Lamentablemente este libro no ha sido traducido al español.
It has become a custom. Coleen Hoover's books are an adventure (either I like it or I hate it) and a ride on a rollercoaster (the strong emotions are not lacking in her books). This book, despite not being a truly memorable one, is intense.
Beyah is very young, but in her young age she has had to go through too many bad experiences and her reality is far from being even acceptable.
Just graduated from high school and two months away from going to college with a scholarship she got with the volleyball team, when she arrives at the trailer where she lives with her mother, she finds her dead of an overdose. His mother's body is still warm when the renter ask her to move from the trailer. That leaves her on the street with the only option to call her father, with whom she does not have a close relationship and whom she has not seen for several years. Worse still, his father is married and has to share the beach house they are staying in for the summer with his wife and stepsister.
Beyah on the ferry on the way to the beach house meets Samson, young, beautiful, womanizing and rich, but she can tell that he is just as broken as she is. They have a very bad first encounter which makes the following encounters just as bad. She wants to resist being one more of Samson's summer flings, but the attraction they feel is indisputable and they realize that they have a lot in common, but their destinies are too far apart.
Nothing is known about Samson, only that he is the son of someone who has a lot of money. Beyah tries to find out and he doesn't tell her. So they agree to be together for the summer and that in the end he will answer everything she wants to know.
In my opinion, the bad thing is the ending of the book. Shock? A little. A forced ending? Also a little. And that's what's left of the book. Too many realities to come to such an abrupt happy end.
"If there's nothing inside a heart that can break, why does it feel like mine is going to snap in half when it's time for me to move next month? Does your heart not feel like that?
Se ha vuelto una costumbre. Los libros de Coleen Hoover son una aventura (o me gustan o no me gustan) y una subida a una montaña rusa (las emociones fuertes no faltan en sus libros).
Este libro, a pesar de no ser uno realmente memorable, es intenso. Beyah es muy joven, pero en su corta edad ha tenido que vivir demasiadas malas experiencias y su realidad está muy lejos de ser ni siquiera aceptable.
Recién graduada de la secundaria y a dos meses de ir a la universidad con una beca que consiguió con el equipo de voleyball, al llegar al tráiler donde vive con su madre, la encuentra muerta de una sobredosis. El cuerpo de su madre está aún caliente cuando le piden que desaloje el tráiler. Eso la deja en la calle con la única opción de llamar a su padre, con el que no tiene una relación cercana y al que no ve desde hace varios años. Peor aún, su padre se casó y tiene que compartir la casa de playa en la que se están quedando por el verano con su esposa y una hermanastra.
Beyah en el ferry de camino a la casa de la playa conoce a Samson, joven, hermoso, mujeriego y rico, pero ella puede notar que está tan roto como ella. Tienen un primer encuentro muy malo lo que hace que los siguientes encuentros sean igual de malos. Ella se quiere resistir a ser uno más de los ligues del verano de Samson, pero la atracción que sienten es indiscutible y se dan cuenta que tienen mucho en común, pero sus destinos están demasiados separados.
De Samson no se sabe nada, solo que es el hijo de alguien que tiene mucho dinero. Beyah intenta averiguar y el no le dice nada. Así que llegan al acuerdo de estar juntos por el verano y que al final el le responderá todo lo que quiera saber.
En mi opinión, lo malo es el desenlace del libro. Shock? Un poco. Un final forzado? También un poco. Y eso es lo que le resta al libro. Demasiadas realidades para llegar a un final feliz tan abrupto.
Lamentablemente este libro no ha sido traducido al español.
July 10, 2022
In Colleen Hoover Heart Bones we meet Beyah who after unexpected death goes to live her estranged father and falls in love Samson the boy next door. This was great lovely written story I really enjoyed and couldn't stop reading it
September 1, 2020
Damaged people recognize other damaged people. It's like a club you don't want a membership to.
Like all of CoHo's books, Heart Bones is compulsively readable. I've mentioned before that even her books I don't care for, still manage to suck me right in. I enjoyed Heart Bones, but it wasn't my favorite from her library. To me, it didn't compare to Hopeless, Maybe Someday, or Regretting You.
It took me awhile to warm to Beyah, as she was more judgmental than the so-called rich people she constantly insulted. Samson wasn't a douche...always a plus for a CoHo novel, but he also wasn't particularly riveting. It wasn't until the beach volleyball game that I really began to feel much of anything for him.
I did enjoy most of the secondary characters, and the setting was lovely.
The star of the show was, of course, Pepper Jack Cheese. 🐾
At the end of the day, I'd recommend this to all who love young adult romance.
3.5 stars
November 19, 2023
4.5/5.0 stars
me?? writing a review after weeks??? who knew!!
with a lot of books, i tend to like them much more than expected. and that hasn’t changed at all with this book. i didn’t have high expectations for this one given that the author is very controversial, and i have not liked any books that i have read from her as of right now. i read this book because i have no intention of supporting the author and i wanted to get rid of this book off my shelf despite my liking towards it. however i do think that this book is less.. toxic than her other books.
i just loved how the beach was portrayed and how they described it. beyah’s reaction to seeing the ocean for the first time was amazing and it brought out another side to her character. not to mention it made me want to go to the beach more than i already do, which is often. the houses, the sunsets, and everything were so fun to imagine even given the simplicity of it added with the description of the big, rich mansions.
something that irks me about coho’s books is how she writes the introduction to the love story. samson was caught taking photos of her and i did find it to be creepy at first, considering it was a random person he didn’t know yet but once the story continued, it made sense. she takes a weird spin on “meet cutes” and doesn’t even make them cute a majority of the time. and the fmc never seems to mind for whatever reason?? and it makes no sense. a majority of the mmc’s in her are extremely questionable and sometimes concerning.
beyah was such a tough person and i loved her. she had a tough shell and was not a pushover whatsoever. she was made into this fierce person who was actually likable at times. she was blunt, and she was honest even if the truth wasn’t always pretty. she did give off pick me vibes at time but nonetheless she was a good character. that was something that i admired about her. she may have a tough shell but she is there which is what was important. she also went through a lot in her years of growing up which has made her persevere with whatever life throws at her. she truly deserved better throughout the story. samson broke down her guard and helped her realize her true worth which i think was so important and a turning point in the story!! the way their story started out was a bit awkward but i’m so glad it improved later on in the book. she was just like samson, a person who had to do bad things in order to survive.
sara was genuinely the sweetest character. her presence was just so nice in the book and she was always able to make it feel better. i have to be honest, i was also a bit hesitant to accept her much like beyah was when she was introduced to the book but over time she grew on me and i held no hatred for her. she was a fun person and i just loved that about her. she was also extremely selfless and accepted beyah for who she was, even if they did not have the same vibe.
ugh i loved marcos + sara so much pls?? their relationship was just so genuine and he was so respectable. they are such a power couple and i’m living for it. he loved her for how she was and thought of her as perfect despite how she struggled with her weight. i am so glad they stayed together and i did not expect anything less. he just went along with sara and i just loved how he it was clear was willing to do anything for sara. if i’m being honest, i definitely liked them way more than beyah and samson. less secrets were involved and they stuck by each others side throughout everything.
spoiler alert from this point on !
beyah’s mother was a shitty person. i’ll give her that, and the idea that she never tried to step up and be a parent just infuriated me. and beyah calling her mom by her real name really shows how their dynamic was. however, i am so proud of beyah for getting over the situation and embracing what happened. i felt like it started to dragged on when she refused to tell her dad about her mother’s passing but i did like the outcome once it was revealed. and in part i think she helped beyah learn that her mom had a choice in the path of her life and samson had none.
beyah’s father was another story. he was a perfect father, and he lived in a stable home with a stable family, but wasn’t willing to participate in beyah’s life. because of this, he isn’t aware of a lot that is happening considering that beyah barely speaks to him, and it made me sad. it goes to show just because someone seems perfect doesn’t mean they really are all around in another person’s eyes. i think the reason why i enjoyed this book so much was how it shows another side of society.
the found family in this book was just another factor i loved out of the many things. beyah lost her mother, who was considered her only family and once she moved to her father’s house, everything changed. she made new friends, learned to adapt despite being so against it in the beginning, and ended up finding a new family. she got the comfort of a mother and a happy family, along with friends who were there for her like marcos and sara. it was just beautiful. not to mention it was a family that she chose rather than got stuck with like her mother.
ngl the secrets that samson kept in the beginning annoyed me. something i loved was how he didn’t want to hold her back and have beyah put her life on pause, and was willing to give her up if it meant that she could live her life rather than waiting around for him. i feel as though this story is special because it allows you to see that not everyone is perfect, and you have to learn to accept them as they are, even if they are flawed because of love. it depends how much you are willing to accept them, to determine whether or not you truly do love them.
marjorie was so sweet and considerate to everyone around her. she gave peanuts to everyone and loaned samson her house at the end of the book, and it’s clear that it means a lot to samson. she was overall such an interesting character to read about despite being “different.” i am so happy with the way this book ended and how samson looked after her at times and helped her around the house
the plot twist was definitely more easy to stomach in this book. as i’ve said before, i do think that this book is much lighter, simply because it shows how people do bad things, and it doesn’t define them. some people do bad things out of desperation because it’s the only way to survive. it shows that we have to be selfish and own our place in this world which i appreciated. my main problem with coho’s other books was the fact that these toxic mmc’s would do terrible things to the fmc and rather than leaving, they would be given another chance and we are expected to believe they “stay together” for eternity. however, this book did no such thing and rather showed a person just trying to cover up their mistakes from the person they loved as a way to feel accepted and not morally wrong, like how samson knew. also his name being shawn?? it was an unexpected plot point and i felt like it helped build up to the actual plot twist towards the end.
the ending was so sweet. the last few chapters had a time jump leading up to when samson gets out of jail and i am so content with the way it ended. i am so glad that beyah moved on with her life and didn’t let samson stop her from continuing on with her life like how she previously wanted. i think they really did deserve to be together in the end and i loved them together. i am also glad that everything was addressed and how it was well laid out.
pre-review
i’ve been in a review writing slump so don’t count on me to write a review on this book 😭
pre-read review
i’ve been in a reading slump so i’m hoping this book will cure it!! 🤧
Maybe we both grew heart bones.
Damaged people recognize other damaged people. It’s like a club you don’t want a membership to.
me?? writing a review after weeks??? who knew!!
with a lot of books, i tend to like them much more than expected. and that hasn’t changed at all with this book. i didn’t have high expectations for this one given that the author is very controversial, and i have not liked any books that i have read from her as of right now. i read this book because i have no intention of supporting the author and i wanted to get rid of this book off my shelf despite my liking towards it. however i do think that this book is less.. toxic than her other books.
I just wish our fall and winter fit as well as our summer.
There’s something about the saltiness of the air that feels forgiving as it mixes with the stale Kentucky air still clinging to the walls of my lungs.
I didn’t realize what seeing the ocean would mean to me, but now that I’ve seen it, I want every human on earth to experience it.
i just loved how the beach was portrayed and how they described it. beyah’s reaction to seeing the ocean for the first time was amazing and it brought out another side to her character. not to mention it made me want to go to the beach more than i already do, which is often. the houses, the sunsets, and everything were so fun to imagine even given the simplicity of it added with the description of the big, rich mansions.
something that irks me about coho’s books is how she writes the introduction to the love story. samson was caught taking photos of her and i did find it to be creepy at first, considering it was a random person he didn’t know yet but once the story continued, it made sense. she takes a weird spin on “meet cutes” and doesn’t even make them cute a majority of the time. and the fmc never seems to mind for whatever reason?? and it makes no sense. a majority of the mmc’s in her are extremely questionable and sometimes concerning.
Maybe the only reason I wasn’t accepted is because I didn’t want to be. It was easier to stay to myself.
I’ve spent a lot of years becoming the person I am. It’s hard to change who you are in a span of a few days.
I know what love is, because I spent my whole life knowing what it isn’t.
I thought I knew who I was, but I had no idea people can become different versions of themselves in different settings.
In August, I’ll be out of this life, and it won’t be because of anything my mother did for me, or because my father bailed me out of here. It’ll be because of me.
I want that victory.
I want to be the reason I turn out the way I’m going to turn out.
“Thank you for believing in me, Beyah.”
“You believed in me first, Samson. It’s the least I could do.”
beyah was such a tough person and i loved her. she had a tough shell and was not a pushover whatsoever. she was made into this fierce person who was actually likable at times. she was blunt, and she was honest even if the truth wasn’t always pretty. she did give off pick me vibes at time but nonetheless she was a good character. that was something that i admired about her. she may have a tough shell but she is there which is what was important. she also went through a lot in her years of growing up which has made her persevere with whatever life throws at her. she truly deserved better throughout the story. samson broke down her guard and helped her realize her true worth which i think was so important and a turning point in the story!! the way their story started out was a bit awkward but i’m so glad it improved later on in the book. she was just like samson, a person who had to do bad things in order to survive.
She has a good energy. Sometimes I feel like a black hole around her. Like maybe I’m sucking all the life out of her by just being in her innocent presence.
sara was genuinely the sweetest character. her presence was just so nice in the book and she was always able to make it feel better. i have to be honest, i was also a bit hesitant to accept her much like beyah was when she was introduced to the book but over time she grew on me and i held no hatred for her. she was a fun person and i just loved that about her. she was also extremely selfless and accepted beyah for who she was, even if they did not have the same vibe.
“I love this song!” She jumps up and starts dancing. Marcos gets up and dances with her. It’s not a slow song, so they’re stomping and spinning around like their lives weigh nothing.
Marcos looks at Sara and says, “This would have been a great marriage proposal moment with all these free fireworks in the background. Too bad we just met over spring break.”
“Bring me back here next year,” she says. “I’ll pretend I forgot this conversation.”
They make me laugh.
Marcos laughs and reaches down into the bag for a donut. “Beyah is right. You’re perfect.”
ugh i loved marcos + sara so much pls?? their relationship was just so genuine and he was so respectable. they are such a power couple and i’m living for it. he loved her for how she was and thought of her as perfect despite how she struggled with her weight. i am so glad they stayed together and i did not expect anything less. he just went along with sara and i just loved how he it was clear was willing to do anything for sara. if i’m being honest, i definitely liked them way more than beyah and samson. less secrets were involved and they stuck by each others side throughout everything.
spoiler alert from this point on !
I think when you’re the worst of people, finding the worst in others becomes a survival tactic of sorts. You focus heavily on the darkness in people in hopes of masking the true shade of your own darkness. That’s how my mother has spent her entire life. Always seeking the worst in people. Even her own daughter.
For her sake, that’s the version of her I’m going to choose to miss. The person she never had the chance to be.
It’s the first sunset I’ve ever felt this deep in my chest. I feel my eyes begin to tear up at the sheer beauty of it.
What does that say about me? I’ve yet to shed a tear for my mother, but I can somehow spare one for a repetitive act of nature?
Most kids get the kind of parents that’ll be missed after they die. The rest of us get the kind of parents who make better parents after they’re dead.
The nicest thing my mother has ever done for me is die
At least when I was in the house with my mother, it felt like I fit there. We belonged there together, no matter how mismatched we were. We learned to navigate and weave our lives around each other, and in this house, I’m not sure I can invisibly weave around any of these people. They’re like brick walls I’m going to crash into at every turn.
beyah’s mother was a shitty person. i’ll give her that, and the idea that she never tried to step up and be a parent just infuriated me. and beyah calling her mom by her real name really shows how their dynamic was. however, i am so proud of beyah for getting over the situation and embracing what happened. i felt like it started to dragged on when she refused to tell her dad about her mother’s passing but i did like the outcome once it was revealed. and in part i think she helped beyah learn that her mom had a choice in the path of her life and samson had none.
It feels strange even referring to them as parents. They gave me life, but that’s about the only thing I’ve ever received from them.
I hope I’m misinterpreting his tone, because I’m not sure how he could be resentful of me in any way, shape, or form. He’s the parent. I’m just a product of his poor choices and lack of contraception.
I shake my head again, because even if family counted, my answer would remain the same. My father barely knows me. My mother wasn’t capable of loving me.
Even though pieces of me resemble pieces of them, I’ve never felt like I’ve belonged to either one of them. It’s as if I adopted myself when I was a kid and have been on my own since then.
beyah’s father was another story. he was a perfect father, and he lived in a stable home with a stable family, but wasn’t willing to participate in beyah’s life. because of this, he isn’t aware of a lot that is happening considering that beyah barely speaks to him, and it made me sad. it goes to show just because someone seems perfect doesn’t mean they really are all around in another person’s eyes. i think the reason why i enjoyed this book so much was how it shows another side of society.
I may not be ending the summer with Samson by my side, but I’m ending it with something I didn’t have when I showed up here.
A family.
I feel like a flower being taken out of the shadows and put into the sun. I’m blooming for the first time since I broke through the earth’s soil.
the found family in this book was just another factor i loved out of the many things. beyah lost her mother, who was considered her only family and once she moved to her father’s house, everything changed. she made new friends, learned to adapt despite being so against it in the beginning, and ended up finding a new family. she got the comfort of a mother and a happy family, along with friends who were there for her like marcos and sara. it was just beautiful. not to mention it was a family that she chose rather than got stuck with like her mother.
Whatever it is that makes him up as a whole, I find myself viewing him as a project I want to take on. A challenge. I want to crack him open and see what’s inside him that makes him the only person on the planet I’m genuinely curious about.
I’m not impenetrable against his mouth. I’m vulnerable, and I feel my guard lowering. I’d give him all my secrets right now and that isn’t me. His kiss is potent enough to turn me into a girl I don’t recognize. I love it and I loathe it.
“I’ve never felt more myself than when I was with you that summer. That’s exactly who I want to be. Forever.”
We are alike, but only in the saddest ways.
“Stop worrying about my feelings, Samson.”
He pushes the hair back from his forehead. “I can’t help it.”
“You can fill your life with nice things, but nice things don’t fill the holes in your soul.”
“What fills the holes in a soul?”
Samson’s eyes scroll over my face for a few seconds. “Pieces of someone else’s soul.”
My mouth falls open when it hits me. Samson remembered what I told him—that no one has ever come to any of my games.
He came out here to cheer for me.
ngl the secrets that samson kept in the beginning annoyed me. something i loved was how he didn’t want to hold her back and have beyah put her life on pause, and was willing to give her up if it meant that she could live her life rather than waiting around for him. i feel as though this story is special because it allows you to see that not everyone is perfect, and you have to learn to accept them as they are, even if they are flawed because of love. it depends how much you are willing to accept them, to determine whether or not you truly do love them.
marjorie was so sweet and considerate to everyone around her. she gave peanuts to everyone and loaned samson her house at the end of the book, and it’s clear that it means a lot to samson. she was overall such an interesting character to read about despite being “different.” i am so happy with the way this book ended and how samson looked after her at times and helped her around the house
I don’t understand humans sometimes. I hate it, because I find myself wishing that the entirety of humanity would suffer just a tiny amount more than they do.
“I don’t have to know anything about your past to know you’re a good person. I can tell by your actions. I can tell by the way you treat me. Why would it matter what kind of family you have, or how rich you are, or what the people in your past meant to you before I showed up?”
Sometimes I believe personalities are shaped more by damage than kindness.
No matter who Cierra was in high school, or who I was, we’re all made up of more than our past behaviors, good or bad.
Maybe you don’t have to know a person’s history to realize who they are in the present.
the plot twist was definitely more easy to stomach in this book. as i’ve said before, i do think that this book is much lighter, simply because it shows how people do bad things, and it doesn’t define them. some people do bad things out of desperation because it’s the only way to survive. it shows that we have to be selfish and own our place in this world which i appreciated. my main problem with coho’s other books was the fact that these toxic mmc’s would do terrible things to the fmc and rather than leaving, they would be given another chance and we are expected to believe they “stay together” for eternity. however, this book did no such thing and rather showed a person just trying to cover up their mistakes from the person they loved as a way to feel accepted and not morally wrong, like how samson knew. also his name being shawn?? it was an unexpected plot point and i felt like it helped build up to the actual plot twist towards the end.
the ending was so sweet. the last few chapters had a time jump leading up to when samson gets out of jail and i am so content with the way it ended. i am so glad that beyah moved on with her life and didn’t let samson stop her from continuing on with her life like how she previously wanted. i think they really did deserve to be together in the end and i loved them together. i am also glad that everything was addressed and how it was well laid out.
pre-review
i’ve been in a review writing slump so don’t count on me to write a review on this book 😭
pre-read review
i’ve been in a reading slump so i’m hoping this book will cure it!! 🤧
September 4, 2020
Heart Bones is essentially a beach read, Colleen Hoover style, which means it’s heartbreaking and intense. And since the only requirement I have for beach reads is that it takes place on the beach, this book worked for me! And even though I just said it was heartbreaking, Heart Bones was surprisingly an easy, enjoyable read. It didn’t hit quite as emotional as I’m used to from this author but it does have a twist towards the end in classic CoHo style. I wish it could’ve been longer because there was so much to explore near the end but I did like the unique storyline and the heroine’s journey in discovering love and family.
Beyah grew up in poverty with her single, drug-addicted mother. Food was never a guarantee for her and she was left to fend for herself way too young. Now, at 19, she has a volleyball scholarship waiting for her in Pennsylvania, but with her mother dying of an overdose and nowhere to go, she’s forced to live with her estranged father. So she joins her father and her new stepmother and stepsister to a beach house on a Texas peninsula. Her next door neighbor is rich boy Samson, who hides behind his camera with his secrets and mysteries. And it’s on the beach that Beyah learns what it’s like to trust, to love, and be loved, not just with Samson, but with a family she never expected.
As with all of Colleen Hoover’s books, the writing is solid. I always enjoy the way she builds her characters. Beyah is broken from her traumatic past but has an inner strength I admired. Her new family is wonderful – I genuinely loved that she forms a friendship with her stepsister, who is so kind and endearing. Samson’s character wasn’t as compelling as I hoped it would be. I was curious about his secrets and absolutely didn’t expect the twist towards the end with his character, but he’s definitely not a new favorite Colleen Hoover hero for me.
Still, I really enjoyed the story overall, though I wish it was longer. What Beyah and Samson go through will have your heart hurting. It’s almost a tragic kind of love between two broken souls (but there is an HEA, I promise!) with their romance having an end date once summer ends, though you can’t help but root for them anyway. If you love your beach reads on the sad, more emotional side, Heart Bones is pretty much perfect for you!
Beyah grew up in poverty with her single, drug-addicted mother. Food was never a guarantee for her and she was left to fend for herself way too young. Now, at 19, she has a volleyball scholarship waiting for her in Pennsylvania, but with her mother dying of an overdose and nowhere to go, she’s forced to live with her estranged father. So she joins her father and her new stepmother and stepsister to a beach house on a Texas peninsula. Her next door neighbor is rich boy Samson, who hides behind his camera with his secrets and mysteries. And it’s on the beach that Beyah learns what it’s like to trust, to love, and be loved, not just with Samson, but with a family she never expected.
As with all of Colleen Hoover’s books, the writing is solid. I always enjoy the way she builds her characters. Beyah is broken from her traumatic past but has an inner strength I admired. Her new family is wonderful – I genuinely loved that she forms a friendship with her stepsister, who is so kind and endearing. Samson’s character wasn’t as compelling as I hoped it would be. I was curious about his secrets and absolutely didn’t expect the twist towards the end with his character, but he’s definitely not a new favorite Colleen Hoover hero for me.
Still, I really enjoyed the story overall, though I wish it was longer. What Beyah and Samson go through will have your heart hurting. It’s almost a tragic kind of love between two broken souls (but there is an HEA, I promise!) with their romance having an end date once summer ends, though you can’t help but root for them anyway. If you love your beach reads on the sad, more emotional side, Heart Bones is pretty much perfect for you!
August 18, 2020
My review will not be long for this one. Period. Because I think every one should go into this book as blind as I did. You will thank me later for this plain and generic review.
Heart Bones hurt.
But it also felt really, really good.
It felt so good reading and getting hurt by CoHo all over again like when I read Hopeless and Ugly Love.
That's what this book felt like. A Hopeless / Ugly Love baby. Kicking me right in my gut.
The characters absolutely stole my heart. Not just the main characters, but the secondary ones as well. They made the story even better than it already was.
I always say that Colleen is the best story-teller and the story that unfolds in Heart Bones is no different from my original statement.
Heart Bones will not be what you expect it to be. And I 100% believe that is why I loved it so much. If you enjoy the turmoil and angst that Colleen pulls you through with all of her books-- Heart Bones is bound to be your new favorite CoHo book. As it should be.
Heart Bones hurt.
But it also felt really, really good.
It felt so good reading and getting hurt by CoHo all over again like when I read Hopeless and Ugly Love.
That's what this book felt like. A Hopeless / Ugly Love baby. Kicking me right in my gut.
The characters absolutely stole my heart. Not just the main characters, but the secondary ones as well. They made the story even better than it already was.
I always say that Colleen is the best story-teller and the story that unfolds in Heart Bones is no different from my original statement.
Heart Bones will not be what you expect it to be. And I 100% believe that is why I loved it so much. If you enjoy the turmoil and angst that Colleen pulls you through with all of her books-- Heart Bones is bound to be your new favorite CoHo book. As it should be.
September 21, 2020
CoHo hits another home run with her newest novel,
Heart Bones
!!
“‘Don’t worry. Hearts don’t have bones. They can’t actually break.’ But what if the only way of knowing you grew a heart bone is by feeling the agony of the break?”
Beyah has always made her own path. She’s had no other choice. But with a few months left until college she’s left with nowhere to turn, so she winds up going to spend the summer with her father, whom she barely knows, on a peninsula in Texas.
She’s not planning to let anyone in. She just needs a place to stay. And then she meets Samson, the best friend of her stepsister’s boyfriend. The two are drawn to one another but Beyah feels ill-at-ease around him, partially because they are so different on the surface: Samson is a child of wealth and privilege, while Beyah has known mostly neglect and poverty.
But as the summer progresses, and she lets her guard down little by little, Beyah realizes that there’s so much about Samson she doesn’t know. He has so many secrets that he promises to tell her before she leaves, but she’s not sure leaving is even what she wants anymore. They promised not to fall in love with each other, but how do you stop yourself from falling?
And then in a split second, it all changes. How do you figure out what your heart wants, what path your future should take? It’s easier never to let anyone else in, that way you can’t feel hurt. But of course, you’ll never experience love and joy this way either.
Over the last year or so, Colleen Hoover has become one of my go-to, auto-buy authors. I read this book in one sitting and it grabbed hold of my heart and didn’t let go. This is a story of strength and vulnerability, courage and fear, and powerful, powerful love.
I’m almost sorry I raced through it so quickly because I loved it so much.
Check out my list of the best books I read in 2019 at https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-best-books-i-read-in-2019.html.
Check out my list of the best books of the decade at https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2020/01/my-favorite-books-of-decade.html.
See all of my reviews at itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com.
Follow me on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/the.bookishworld.of.yrralh/.
“‘Don’t worry. Hearts don’t have bones. They can’t actually break.’ But what if the only way of knowing you grew a heart bone is by feeling the agony of the break?”
Beyah has always made her own path. She’s had no other choice. But with a few months left until college she’s left with nowhere to turn, so she winds up going to spend the summer with her father, whom she barely knows, on a peninsula in Texas.
She’s not planning to let anyone in. She just needs a place to stay. And then she meets Samson, the best friend of her stepsister’s boyfriend. The two are drawn to one another but Beyah feels ill-at-ease around him, partially because they are so different on the surface: Samson is a child of wealth and privilege, while Beyah has known mostly neglect and poverty.
But as the summer progresses, and she lets her guard down little by little, Beyah realizes that there’s so much about Samson she doesn’t know. He has so many secrets that he promises to tell her before she leaves, but she’s not sure leaving is even what she wants anymore. They promised not to fall in love with each other, but how do you stop yourself from falling?
And then in a split second, it all changes. How do you figure out what your heart wants, what path your future should take? It’s easier never to let anyone else in, that way you can’t feel hurt. But of course, you’ll never experience love and joy this way either.
Over the last year or so, Colleen Hoover has become one of my go-to, auto-buy authors. I read this book in one sitting and it grabbed hold of my heart and didn’t let go. This is a story of strength and vulnerability, courage and fear, and powerful, powerful love.
I’m almost sorry I raced through it so quickly because I loved it so much.
Check out my list of the best books I read in 2019 at https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-best-books-i-read-in-2019.html.
Check out my list of the best books of the decade at https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2020/01/my-favorite-books-of-decade.html.
See all of my reviews at itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com.
Follow me on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/the.bookishworld.of.yrralh/.
September 2, 2022
This book was every…damn… beautiful and horrible thing…
Quotes, etc later!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Quotes, etc later!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
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