This was an emotional rollercoaster for me as the continuation of the story. It was heartache inducing so be warned!

This is the second book in the Hearts series, and the continuation of Darrian, and Nora's story.. This was an emotional read, the characters are well written, and the story kept me engaged. Will definitely read more books from this author.

I had high expetations, because it sounded so good. But i felt let down. The characters were slighly whiny and bland. I did not see the chemistry between them and felt that it was going too fast from one thing to another.

4.5/5 Stars

Disclaimer: This review MAY contain spoilers. I received an Advance Reader Copy at no cost from the publisher/author. All opinions in my review are my own.

Darrian and Nora's story is a brilliant mashup of heartache, redemption, and forgiveness. This duet is such a gem. I was very moved by their story.

I adored the author's writing style. It felt so natural and all-encompassing. Nothing felt out of place in the story and the prose was so smooth and effortless. I was so very immersed in that story that I lost track of time. Once you start reading this story you will be totally invested.

I loved the plot of this story overall. There is so much drama and so many emotions that you will be biting your nails with all of the suspense. I love the twists in the story that I didn't anticipate. It's always a mark of a great writer to me when a story isn't too predictable.

There is so much more to these characters than what we see in the first book. Darrian especially has so much more backstory and character growth. I was really blown away by it. The reader really comes to understand him in this second book. Nora's mindset is different in this book. She is more cautious and standoffish. She is determined to keep him in the past. All in all, both of the main characters are very relatable and so easy to connect with. The author makes walking in their shoes easier than eating cake.

The romance in this book felt a bit different from the first book. This book had more of a feeling of easing back into a relationship when the first book was all angst. This time around they are taking baby steps to get back what they had before.

Overall, this is a beautiful love story about forgiveness and second chances. This story will hook you from the start and keep you ensnared in its web. This duet is my first time reading anything by this author but I won't hesitate to read more. I'll be keeping this author on my watch list for releases. I definitely recommend this!

Hearts and Flowers is the second book in the Hearts series and picks up where the first book ends. This fiction story had it all, drama, suspense, danger and will give you all the feels. Its a story about trust, forgiveness and getting the help needed to make life changes. This second chance romance was given to us in dual POV and had some twists and turns you won't see coming. With amazing characters and a griping storyline that will have you hooked Heart and Flowers was a fantastic read and I would recommend it to all lovers of YA romances.

I know that is part of a series and maybe it was not good that I didn't get the chance to read the first book. I don't think that you will able able to read this as a stand alone and understand it well.

Anyway, this was an emotional book. You've had to have enough experience with things to completely relate with the characters. It was well-written. I love the author's style. I love the plot, it is a must read.

This was an interesting book but i think I missed out by not reading the first book in the series. Man oh man there were things that went straight over my head. I guess it was ok. I would read more.

Hearts & Flowers is book two in the Hearts Series by new author A.M Brooks. Told in dual POV we continue with the conclusion of Nora Sutton & Darrian King’s story. H&F is a two-part story so Hearts and Bruises MUST be read first. This review may contain spoilers from Hearts and Bruises if you have not read book one yet, proceed with caution.

After that heart-dropping cliffhanger book one ended with I have been on pins and needles waiting for this one! A.M Brooks did NOT disappoint! YA/NA is one of my favorite tropes and A.M. Books is most definitely a new author to watch for in that category!

In Hearts and Bruises, we see Nora finally leave Darrian for good. He wanted her father and her out of town so he completely broke her heart to make damn sure it happened. But now that her father was found innocent, he realizes it was all for nothing. Darrian is determined to win back the girl of his dreams BUT this time, it’s gonna take a whole lot more than a few pretty words for Darrian to get back in Nora’s good graces.

There was so much back and forth with Darrian and Nora in Hearts & Bruises, they were completely toxic together. But in Hearts & Flowers, Darrian is clean, and his eyes are wide open. Darrian is finally ready to face the consequences of his actions (even though legally there won’t be many thanks to dear ol’ Dad) but the point is the old Darrian wouldn’t have thought twice about how his actions harmed anyone but himself. Now he’s finally starting to get it, and he has a whole lot of making up to do to Nora, the person he hurt the most.

After what happened with Roman and Zero-Thirteen Nora’s life is in danger, and the one person that can protect her, she won’t let even come near her. But Darrian isn’t giving up that easy and he won’t stop until the girl he loves is safe.

But what if it’s too late?

Darrian is ready to fight for Nora but after all the hurt he’s caused can Nora forgive him yet AGAIN?

A.M. Brooks has done it again. I am still blown away that Hearts and Bruises was her first release! She has killed it with Hearts & Flowers. This plot, these characters, ALL OF IT!

Nora, I really wasn’t loving after book one. I was just so tired of her letting Darrian walk all over her, time and time again and then all he had to do was throw a few pretty lines at her and all was forgiven. NOT THIS TIME! Nora is done with his crap and she’s making him pay his dues before even considering getting back together.
“She was magnetic and I was attracted to her force.”

Darrian I absolutely hated. But Darrian has come a long, long way. He’s gone to rehab and he seems to really have his head on straight now without all the drugs clouding his mind. I was so, so proud of him in a couple of scenes when he could have thrown away all his hard work but he was committed and he stuck with it. The way he “wooed” Nora this time around *SIGH* I never thought I would say this but Darrian King turned into book boyfriend material! PLUS I loved that it was dual POV this time around so we actually were able to get in his head and understand his side of things a bit more.

“Please heal me. Keep me. Fight for us with me.”

These two together, at first I would have said NOPE, wayyy to toxic. But Darrian has really turned it around. There was so, so much more character development this time around and I loved the new improved Darrian, and I’m sure Nora did too. These two together can go either way, it can be like fire and gasoline or they can be like peanut butter and jelly. We saw fire and gasoline in Hearts and Bruises but we saw peanut butter and jelly in Hearts & Flowers. The only thing I would have liked to see a bit more of is detail to the sexy scenes. I understand it’s a YA/NA so there is a fine line but I would have liked a little more description.

I honestly could not ask for a better ending than that epilogue! It was everything! *SIGH*

I can NOT wait to see what A.M. Brooks comes up with next… maybe Trent & all the crazy stuff he’s got going on?? I would be fine with either of the secondary characters honestly I’m just not ready to say goodbye to this crew yet!

I highly recommend checking out the Heart Series!

“Our love is terrifying, exciting, and real. It may not always be story-book ending beautiful, but it’s us. It’s our story.”

I found this book to be a pleasant read and definitely true to the nature of its genre. It’s a well written novel that is sure to bring joy to those who read the contents. Definitely a must read.

AM Brooks has redeemed herself!

I totally had forgotten I'd read the first book, Hearts and Bruises, so when I got started on Hearts and Flowers, I realized how familiar the characters were. Then, I remembered the storyline, Brooks's writing style that I loved, and the cliffhanger from hell...yes, THAT cliffhanger!

Nora and Darrian's story goes much deeper in book two, and where I'd been on the fence with them in the first book, this time I saw them in a different way. The drama was still at an all-time high, but I loved the way things played out. Their maturity and actions were so different and things were at a much slower pace, a slow-burn if you'd like to call it that. The depth of Darrian's love for Nora is definitely heartfelt, unlike before.

Hearts and Flowers has that redeeming quality that I admire in stories. Second chances are some of my favorite reads and this one proves that two people can work things out with hard work and determination. Brooks gave these two the ending they definitely deserved!!

So, I didn't rate this book higher only because I didn't know when reading this that it's the second book. I did enjoy this even though I was a little confused. It was slow for me in parts and I just didn't care for the characters too much.

Thank you Netgalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Hmm... I don't know what to say. I'm not sure if I liked it not. Everything felt so dramatic and OVER THE TOP!!

No-one can say that I didn't complete the dang book because I did. I don't like to DNF a book unless it's horrifically bad.
I read it book and I didn't like.

Hearts and Flowers is the conclusion to Darrian and Nora's story which started in Hearts and Bruises. This is an emotional romance. It shows the struggles of overcoming one's past! This second chance romance will leave you satisfied!

My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
<u>Hearts and Flowers</u> is the second book in a young adult series, <Hearts and Bruises</u> being the first book in that series. Nora Sutton is a sweet, studious girl, but Darrian King is a bad, bad, bad rich boy: the ultimate James Dean on crystal. To top off his dangerous attraction, he is heavily addicted to drugs and ends up by breaking innocent Nora's heart (no spoilers here, but you can probably fill in the gap). (The reasoning behind the need to betray and destroy Nora was so contrived, it blew any chance of my being able to suspend my disbelief any longer.) I am becoming weary of these high-strung characters who live in a constant state of melodrama.

I did not read the first book in this series, nor do I intend to. This author writes very well: in my opinion, she exhibits enough talent that she should NOT be writing stories that are just a rehash of what is already out there in the romance industry. This story line resembles the over the top antics made popular by the <u>After</u>/Anna Todd series. But hey, some women love the idea of having a guy flip his lid and behave like a possessive ape: they think this is so romantic. Sigh. Billionaires, untamed passion, acrobatic sex and stalkerish obsession seem to be the only themes that sell romance novels these days, The blurb for this book sounded so promising. Unfortunately, I am probably over-saturated by these recycled story lines because I couldn't work up any enthusiasm for this highly rated novel. Maybe check out other reviewers if this is the type of story you like to read. I am going to give this a 3.75 out of 5, rounded down to a 3 because this author showed so much potential.

Okay, back to the story at hand:

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley!!

this is book two in the series, so it's super helpful to read book one before you jump into this one.
This book starts with Darrian being sober and Nora avoiding him for now. the sober side to Darrian is fantastic.
Nora is in danger though... is Darrian going to save her?

Second chance romance. Great storyline. Great characters.

I was unable to finish reading this book. There was this big thing that went down between the characters that seemed like there should have been a whole book before it, and I just couldn't get into the story or the characters. We were constantly told that they were in love, however; I didn't feel it. I don't think I'll be picking up any of the others in the series.

Darrian is sober now and of course full of regrets for how things went down with Nora. He also wants to protect her from his past, from the people and things who want to hurt her because of him. Will Nora allow him in? Is a second chance anywhere in the realm of possibility? Or is Darrian doomed to love her from afar?

Nora just wants to get through her last year with her head down. She knows she has to face Darrian at some point, but does it have to be now? Sigh...

Damn! This conclusion to Darrian and Nora's story was pretty brutal and angsty. Darrian really did a number on Nora's poor heart and I loved seeing her keep him at a distance for a bit. And I loved how much he really groveled to her, to get her to forgive him and allow him back into her heart. I have to admit, though, that if I had been her, I probably would have kicked him to the curb and wouldn't have let him back in. But I'm vindictive and Nora isn't so...

I really liked Hearts and Flowers. Darrian and Nora make for a compelling, interesting couple. As second chance romantic suspense goes, this one is pretty damn great.

I love second chance romances and this one definitely hit the spot. We left off with Darrian King destroying Nora’s heart. This book we find out the truth about everything. We see a whole new side to Darrian which I love! Nora is in danger and the last people she wants to help her are there. This isn’t all romance it’s about trust and forgiving and getting the help you need to change your life around. I loved every page and intense moment in this duet. I wish we could have all the other characters stories as well! 5/5 stars

So in the last book which I loved but hated the heroine because of how weak she was, in this one she had grown some spine and made Darrian regret but that was not enough for what he did.

Nora"s life was in danger and Darrin wanted to protect her but she didn't let him come near her, she made him feel remorse for his behavior but again, he was too arrogant. I didn't feel like he was at all remorseful, CUZ he <b>grinned, kissed and smirked</b> infront of her where he should have said sorry and when he did, it was like we was forced to do it.

to be honest, I love Darrian, he is fucked up. he is a drug addict, arrogant, a bad boy. he is like <b> hardin and Travis</b> except, he is worse. Where the first book Was interesting, this book the plot Was getting dragged and the plot of Nora being in danger was so unnecessary because nothing happens to her and the criminal goes to jail. that part of the book was literally so boring and unnecessary.

Ethan and Elijah are not good friends, they know how Darrian hurt Nora but they were on his side ( justified CUZ he is their cousin) but as Nora"s friend, they should let her go away from Darrian.

I loved the first book CUZ it got me hooked up but this book was boring, however we also get to see Darrian"s perspective for the situation and how he feels which we didn't get to see in the first book and THATS why i finished this book and didn't dnf it. I liked the writing and the chemistry between the characters a lot!

I always loved second chance romance and this book proves why I really enjoy a great love story. A beautiful story that goes through a lot of angst and obstacles to finally have that happy for now if not happily ever after ending.
I liked the characters and the dynamics between them was really good, the banter, the tension,everything made for an enjoyable read.