did i just watch a hallmark movie?!? because this gave me all the good vibe feels of a hallmark movie!! i loved the spooky christmas vibes! it was meshed together so beautifully and i cannot wait to own a physical copy when it releases so i can read it every holiday season!

Haunt Your Heart Out is an interesting story that follows Lex, an FMC who used to make ghosthunting/ghost sighting vlogs 15 years ago, and James, an MMC working with his best friend to create a ghosthunting documentary in the same town as Lex. I think due to the cover and the title, I was really expecting some fun spooky vibes BUT this book actually takes place in winter! It makes for a very interesting combo to have a spooky book yet sometimes cozy Christmas vibes!?!?! It's a really fun juxtaposition to read! PLUS, the pacing is kind of funky because you start off the book with the MMC and FMC meeting but don't really see/understand where things are going until you actually get into the book!
There is also a lot going on in the background of this story so I would definitely consider it to be something along the lines of Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez, where there are family drama/family centered subplots that really create more depth for a mostly romance book!
Even though this book takes place in winter, I'd def recommend to people who start wanting to get their spooky fall vibes AND wintery Christmas vibes all at the SAME time!!!
Thank you to Alcove Press form an ARC copy of this book!💖

Unfortunately, I am not a fan of this one. I can’t say much about it, as I have almost no reflections on this book. I found it boring and hard to get into. I will say, though, that the whole ghost stories vibe was fun - but not necessarily as a spring-read. The characters had some funny banter, but I didn’t feel much tension between them and their relationship was just bland. Also, I could not relate to the FMC at all - her decision making skills had me baffled. Overall, reading this book did not bring any enjoyment whatsoever.

Haunt Your Heart Out by Amber Roberts was so great - a little romance, a little adventure - all set with the backdrop of Stowe, VT. Beautiful writing with great descriptions of the setting.

Lex McCall manages a bookstore, but is completely okay with a quiet life. She meets mysterious James, who turns out to be a ghost hunter/documenter. Lex resurrects her “Haunted Happenings” vlog to help them out. He has a nomadic spirit, though, and Lex starts to worry that she’s falling for him.

Thank you to @netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Haunt Your Heart Out was a precious little, feel good kind of RomCom. I absolutely loved the ghost hunters spook at Christmas vibes in the Hallmark movie small town setting. It worked so nicely. And would be a perfect Christmas-time read.

The story is about our girl Lex, whose living the small town dream, but dying by 1,000 paper-cuts as she tries to repair the home her grandfather left for her, purchase the bookstore she’s worked in since college, while battling her anxiety and overachieving parents and their expectations of what Alex’s life in her 30s should look like. In to her bookstore (of course) walks an out of town, never stays in one place too long, cutie James, who’s investigating the paranormal stories in town for an indie documentary. It just so happens that most of these stories were creatively embellished by Alex when she was in highschool. Can the drifter inspire some wanderlust in Alex? Or is everyone destined to leave her because her roots are too deep in her snow globe town?

I loved seeing main characters in their 30s. I feel like with older characters, there’s so much more room for backstory and character development. I thought the chemistry between Alex and James was very cute, and I loved Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. I love that both characters dealt with a bit of anxiety, and there was a bit of LGBTQ+ representation as Alex was pan and James bi.

This is a personal preference of mine, no fault of the book, but I need a bit more tension in the beginning. Instalove isn’t really for me, and these characters got together quickly. For me it felt like it made the middle section feel a bit long, and then the third act breakup happened very fast in the end.

Overall I enjoyed this story, and I would recommend as a cozy little romance. Especially for “my we’re never recovering from our emo phase because it wasn’t a phase” girlies.

This books premise had me so excited! And overall it was a cute book. The pacing initially felt really slow and I struggled to get through the first third or so of the book. It was repetitive and a tad boring. Eventually the story picked up and it was rather enjoyable!

This book had an endearing premise but it didn't quite stick the landing for me. Maybe having more inner monologue from the main character would help me feel more connected with the characters and the story they're experiencing.

This was a really enjoyable contemporary romance that hit a lot of high points. For lovers of holiday reads, this one hits a nice Yuletide note without being overly Christmas-ey. Add in a little bit of manufactured spookiness, strangers to lovers, difficult families, found families and secret pasts...well you have a five-star cozy read.

The characters were well developed past the classic "tragic pasts' and the chemistry felt very natural and real. While a much cleaner/fade-to-black narrative than I have been reading lately, the relationship still sizzles while also being sweet and realistic. Sometimes I found Lex to be a little irritating, but I will chalk that up to age difference and that her maturing was a central theme of the novel, so it serves a purpose beyond being a "quirky cool girl." The cast of supporting characters were equally rounded and added a lot to the world building. That the story features my family's favorite Vermont town certainly helped, though the atmosphere of the story is owed entirely to Roberts' writing.

Overall a genuinely enjoyable read that will be a hit for lovers of the contemporary romance genre.

I want to thank NetGalley and Alcove Press for this ARC of this story. The cover drew me to this book, it is gorgeous. I really liked the concept of this book. The Blair Witch style blog of hauntings in the town was a nice way to bring back memories of those early Youtube days. I did feel like the romance was rushed in the beginning. I enjoyed the cozy winter vibes and that Lex had someone who was a constant in her life despite her family being terrible.

Favorite quote: "Finding where you belong is an important discovery."

This was SUCH a cozy read! I'm a sucker for anything set in Vermont because it's one of my favorite regions in the US. So the small town vibes, the spooky vibes, the bookstore...all of it was a perfect mix of so many things I love!! I was so surprised by the intricate secrets and romantic arc that appeared in this one, and it was so satisfying. It was also really fun to see a spooky vibe story set during the winter holiday season. That was a nice twist!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this title. These are my honest thoughts.

I absolutely devoured this book! The small town setting, the (maybe) haunted used bookshop, and overall cozy vibes was everything I wanted and more.

I sometimes struggle with strangers to lovers but this may have been the first book I’ve read where it didn’t feel like insta-love/lust and I loved seeing Lex and James’ relationship progress naturally.

I loved that the Lex was an ex YouTuber. I don’t always enjoy when social media is a part of books but I think the author really got it right in this one. The script excerpts from her past videos gave me all the nostalgia and took me straight back to old YouTube days!

I also really enjoyed the exploration of the character’s relationships with their families and their coping mechanisms. I thought this was something different for a Romance book and made it really stand out to me. Even the third act conflict felt so different to that of what I’ve read in so many other Romances and even though it was resolved a little too quickly, I do feel like the MCs had experienced growth both as individuals and as a couple.

Bonus points for including a content warning at the beginning of the book! I’d love to see this in all books.

Overall a very strong spooky season read that I will definitely be recommending👻

I made it about 30% of the way through this book before I ended up DNFing it. The banter in the book was good but it came on fast and hard and there was something missing from it. Even with the bit of back story we eventually get from the main characters, it still felt as though there was depth missing from them.

This is an adorable five-star read. It gives you puppy cuddle feels for most of the story, and what a puppy she is. There were a couple of bits that felt a little over done, but honestly I adored Lex, when you see life from her side it’s understandable to see where she comes from. The spookiness is just so well done, so you don’t have to be scared, its really well done. Stowe just sounds like the perfect place to run away to and settle in and never leave, the question is will James leave? He was someone who you could get behind, and man did he sound lovely in that coat.

Spooky small town? Found family? Anxiety rep? Queer MCs? Adorable pup along for the ride?! Yes, please to all of the above.

I absolutely went into this expecting a fluff romcom and maybe a little paranormal mayhem and got so much more. Lex is enjoying her little small town life, when all of a sudden city boy James arrives out of nowhere shaking her sweet little world like a snow globe. They fall hard a fast, but can their romance survive their families and Lex's anxiety?

4/5 ⭐️ 1/5 🌶
This was such an adorable cozy romance! Lex is a small town bookstore employee with dreams of taking over the business and James is traveling while working on a ghost hunting documentary. They bond over her ghost story vlog and their similar family issues. Their story is super cute and one that I definitely enjoyed!

Amber Roberts' "Haunt Your Heart Out" is a delightful and heartwarming novel that will appeal to fans of romance, mystery, and small-town living. Lex McCall, the protagonist, is a relatable and lovable character who is easy to root for. Her journey of self-discovery and acceptance is both inspiring and empowering. The supporting cast of characters is equally well-developed and adds depth and humor to the story. The plot is engaging and suspenseful, with just the right amount of twists and turns to keep readers guessing until the very end. Roberts' writing is witty and charming, and she has a knack for creating vivid and atmospheric settings. "Haunt Your Heart Out" is a must-read for anyone looking for a feel-good romance with a touch of mystery and suspense.

If you're into cozy mysteries and love stories with a touch of ghostly fun, this book is your perfect match! Set in a sleepy Vermont town, it follows Lex, a bookstore-loving homebody with a strict "no dating tourists" rule. But when a charming stranger named James rolls into town with a ghost-hunting crew, things get spookily interesting.

What starts as a quirky encounter soon turns into a tangled web of secrets and romance. Lex, fearing her chance to buy the bookstore might slip away, decides to mess with the ghost hunters' research. But as she spends more time with James, she can't help but catch feelings.

With its mix of humor, romance, and a dash of mystery, this book is like Gilmore Girls meets ghost hunting. So, if you're looking for a light-hearted read to cozy up with, grab a copy and get ready for some ghostly vibes!

☆☆☆

This book is downright adorable. Spooky vibes during Christmas time? It somehow worked so well.

Haunt Your Heart Out is about Lex, a thirty something woman who lives in the small, “snowglobe” town of Stowe, Vermont and works at the local bookstore. After dropping out of college due to struggling with her mental health Lex thinks she’s content with her life, and never leaving Stowe until she meets James, the paranormal documentary filmmaker while he’s investigating the ghost stories of Stowe. Lex tries to resist James’ charm, knowing all tourists eventually leave but as he wears her down, she has to consider everything she’s ever thought she wanted in her life.

It was refreshing for there to be a FMC in their thirties instead of early twenties, like many romances have. It was also great to see LGBTQ+ representation with Lex identifying as pansexual and James as bi.

While there is a third act “breakup” it was different than the typical romance tropes. The problem felt like it was solved so quickly and James’ decision, while it was what I hoped for felt sudden in terms of the progression of the story. It also felt like Lex and James had so much chemistry in the beginning, but that faded as the book went on.

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺, 𝘈𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘙𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘈𝘭𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘦-𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.

This book was a fun little delight. I love a good small town romance, and the setting of Stowe, Virginia with our main character tucked behind the counter of a used book store checks the box for quaint. James shows up with his film crew looking for ghosts from Alex's teenage past, but literal ghosts. Her best friend is a family loving, rough and tumble snow plow driver. And, there's a cute fluffy sidekick in the form of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.

I dislike the "keeping secrets" trope, and that was a major theme for the main character. She wasn't doing anything intentionally malicious but it kept my stomach in a knot for much of the book waiting for the other shoe to drop. However, that same feeling is one the main character sits with for much of the story so perhaps it is fitting.

My other minor problem with the book is that it was billed as "he's bi" and "she's pan," but those identities were represented in only a mere sentence or two in the book. It was otherwise MF, and was still great, just not something I would use to promote the book since it didn't really show up.

Make sure to check the trigger warnings, just in case. The main character is affected by anxiety and grief as well as family troubles and infidelity.

Thank you to Net Galley and publisher for an arc of Haunt your Heart Out by Amber Roberts.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I love a good cozy small town romance.
I will say the beginning chemistry between the two mcs was lacking and their romance was rushed but picked up pretty quickly.
I found the MFC very relatable and experienced a few giddy moments with the romance.
Overall good book and I’m looking forward to reading more by Amber.