My unrestrained thoughts: Talking cat, talking cat, talking cat, talking cat, TALKING CAT! All hail Cornelius!
Now, onto a little sophisticated review – it may contain tiny spoilers!

Andrea Eames’s A Harvest of Hearts is set in a world where women who use magic are more than just the norm – they’re royalty. They are gorgeous (except for the King, he SUCKS) and can make people fall to their feet with just one look. Under their ‘reign,’ you can say the Kingdom is faring well – great crops, healthy livestock, thriving subjects, and no deaths during childbirth. But the basis of these sorceresses’ magic is people’s hearts.

Real, actual hearts that they grab from the villagers’ chests. Yeah…

It is in this environment that we meet Foss, the protagonist, and the self-proclaimed anomaly. She’s cursed (Her mother died in childbirth), ugly in appearance (a little chubby and redhead) and knows how to wield a knife (her Da is a butcher and they own a shop) – everything a proper woman isn’t supposed to be.

Her village is on the edges of the Kingdom, so the sorceresses’ visits are quick but frequent. One day though, instead of beautiful magic workers, it is a handsome sorcerer (another anomaly – they were meant to be!!!) who steps out of a pitch-black carriage. He snags Foss’s heart and leaves without so much as a back glance. The pain of her heart having been harvested is so great that Foss follows him to the City and lives in his House… as a housemaid.

She cooks, cleans, stands up to the House’s antics, finds a friend in a talking cat, and keeps searching for her missing heart in secret. But what she uncovers is something dark and sinister, capable of destroying their Kingdom and everything Foss and the people believed was true…

I wasn’t expecting that much from this book, especially after seeing how the first few chapters drone on and on. But I was surprisingly hooked. Foss is a great protagonist. She’s self-deprecating yet resilient, brave, and caring, even for the people she has met once or twice (Collin and Millie). Her actions are not reactive – she proactively takes the steps to make things happen the way wants. And I LOVE IT!

Another peculiar thing I liked was how it reminded me of Twilight. I don’t know if anyone else noticed, but Clarissa really felt like Rosalie Hale and Foss-Sylvester were like Bella and Edward in the latter parts of the book. Clarissa was peak Rosalie right before she died and Foss and Sylvester were practically replaced by Bella and Edward in the forest scene. Was Howl’s Moving Castle just a deceptive inspiration and it was really Twilight? JK… Haha… unless?


What I liked about the book:

o Cornelius:
Do I really need to explain this? But I will! I think the best thing Foss did was get the cat to talk. Cornelius made the story a whole lot better, with his haughty but helpful attitude, obsession with meat, and tsundere personality. When everything jumped on the boring track (the cooking-cleaning days) or fell flat (the uncovering of the mystery), he was there to save the day, quite literally. I was almost convinced the author would kill him for the ‘plot’ but thank god he was saved. Or I would’ve jumped into that black tunnel and fished him out myself.
Also, did anyone see a hint of Min Yoongi in him? Like if Yoongi were a cat, he’d behave exactly the same. No… just myself? Okay…

o World-building:
Despite the droning on about the world in the early chapters, I liked Foss’s magical world. The author had definitely taken her time to build this world, adding a believable history, an exciting conflict, and a satisfying resolution. Plus, the way the book introduced the magic – as if it was a slightly weird but still a commonplace, expected occurrence – made the world seem like a normal one too.
It was only after I closed the book that I realized that… that’s not right. That them stealing hearts is so wrong, on so many levels. I guess that’s a sign of the storytelling being so immersive that my thoughts were in line with Foss’s throughout the book.

o The narrative structure:
Usually, I find the protagonists’ reasons to kickstart the book superficial. But, in this one, everything just… made sense, you know? I liked the natural progression of the things happening – there was no outrageous curveball.
There was a big enough motive for Foss to go to the city and why she was the only one immune to magic workers’ wily charms. Also, their journey to the Other Kingdom, their reasoning behind the corruption, and the epilogue. Everything fit in together like puzzle pieces for me. In other words, I loved it and I’m so grateful for it!


What I wasn’t impressed with:

While I’m a sucker for slow-burn romances, I couldn’t see any chemistry between Foss and Sylvester, especially at the start. She spent a whole lotta time cooking for him, without even interacting, save for some meaningful conversations. And then, suddenly Sylvester was trashing the House because he thought she left and… I was confused. It was obvious that they’d be together and that stole the anticipation out of this supposed slow burn.

It was a pretty bland romance that reached its peak right before the big showdown. It would’ve been much better if they had connected/confessed much earlier – that would’ve added more sense and meaning to her reaction when Sylvester died.

And that leads me to Sylvester himself. I can see he was supposed to be likable – beautiful, smart, magical, brooding, complex, what’s not to like? – but he had no personality. And it frustrated me because his backstory is so interesting, but it remains largely unexplored. My initial notes literally had the sentence – I guess the House has more personality than Sylvester – and that about sums up what I thought of him.

Another thing that sort of annoyed me was the villain himself. The King should’ve been really scary, or at the very least, intimidating. And he was none of that. There was no evil streak to his personality (which was barely there, anyway). I didn’t feel the fear of his presence nor was I relieved when he died. Even Clarissa was a better villain than this lame-ass skeleton called King.


My Final Thoughts?

Despite its glaring problems, A Harvest of Hearts is definitely a book I’ll buy for myself or my loved ones. I guess I’m biased about books with awesome world-building that actually makes sense, like this one. But, ultimately, it is Foss and (as a proud cat lover) Cornelius who put this book in a to-buy pile for me!

Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
#netgalley #arcreview

I enjoyed this but ultimately don’t think it was for me - felt like it was for a younger reader although the language didn’t lend itself that way. The opening leans too heavily on Howl’s Moving Castle and I felt like I was reading fan fiction - the narrative style may have lent that way, but I think the blurb didn’t help by directly referencing Howl. After seeing that I was looking for references and it ended up being all I could see, which is probably unfair! I did like the book and the characters, and was glad I persevered.

Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for the advance copy, I don’t want to lower the average score as I don’t think that would be fair, so won’t be publishing my review on goodreads.

3.5☆
Indeed a fitting story for lovers of Howl's Moving Castle highlighting elements like a sentient house and an unusual friendship between a cat and our main character. The book shows not only the superficiality of appearances and a gap between social classes but also a magical and cozy world that keeps you hooked for the entirety of the story with unexpected twists.
The narrative picks up after the first quarter of the book so I had to be a bit more patient then I usually am. On the same note, unfortunately for me, I wished there was a bit more worldbuilding( keeping the reader in the dark made the story more alluring from time to time but-).
The writing takes an interesting form, sounding almost like an ongoing conversation/monologue and even though the dialogue is a bit awkward at times it doesn't interfere with making the reader fall in love with the characters.

My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

2.8/5 Rounded up
I will read anything that compares itself to Howl’s Moving Castle and you can see how the author integrated similar aspects into this story but adding a bit of a darker theme. The source of magic in this world comes by harvesting hearts, hence the title. FMC Foss gets ensorcelled by the only male wizard making her feel so sick that she has to go find him. Pretending to be there as a maid, she manages to live in his house and look for the part of her heart she believes is missing. That’s where I think the story dragged, for the first half not much happened.

Sylvester is described as this powerful sorcerer with otherworldly beauty but that's where the Howl likeness stops. He lacked the personality and barely does anything for half the book and his interactions with Foss where so short that by the time they got together the romance felt rushed. And keeping in mind that Foss was under his spell for majority of the story didn't make me believe in their love either. Also Foss as a main character was so self deprecating, constantly mentioning how ugly she was and how unlikely she was to be loved made me not like her character that much. One thing that stood out to me and this is not something I notice enough to mention but here there where so many unnecessary similes that I hyper fixated on them, taking me out of the story. The story had some whimsy elements like the sentient house and talking cat which I enjoyed, but that was not enough for me to love this story overall..


Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for this ARC, all opinions are my own.

ARC Book Review!

A harvest of hearts by Andrea Eames

3 / 5⭐️

1 / 5 🔥


Okay soo I dipped into my 2025 ARC TBR for this one. 🙈 Thanks @netgalley for the advanced reader copy!

I wanted to love it so badly. It had a unique concept with potentially loveable characters but unfortunately it fell flat for me. Not to say it was bad, but I think it didn’t live up to its full potential and I was just expecting more from it. The pacing dragged for most of the story and then felt like a rushed finished ( think a high school student who has to write a 1000 word essay and once they hit 950 they wrap it up in an unsatisfactory manner…). I found a lot of the resistance was written away using the cat. If the FMC got herself into a bind, well, she was suddenly out of it because the cat followed no rules and just resolved her problem. It was very anticlimactic. I would have liked the FMC to dive into her suffering a bit more. ( let’s hear more about the mother! )

Please keep in mind while reading my review that I have not experienced Howls Moving Castle. One would think that this is a different story and that shouldn’t matter. however, I did read some other reviews that may have suggested a previous knowledge of that story made this one easier to fall into? I can’t say myself but it may be something to explore if you want to try this story out.

This book is for you if you like :

Magic
Slow burn
Cute cat sidekick
Corrupt rulers
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✨A Harvest of Hearts by Andrea Eames✨

I was thrilled to receive this ARC and dove in with high expectations. I so badly wanted to love this book, but, unfortunately, within the first five pages, I had a sinking feeling that it wasn’t going to work for me. While it wasn’t all doom and gloom—there were some bright spots—it ultimately fell short of what I had hoped for.

The beginning didn’t grab me at all. The world-building felt like listening to a 90-year-old recount a meandering, never-ending story. My neurodivergent brain just couldn’t stay engaged and quickly wandered off in search of something more stimulating. On top of that, the protagonist, Foss, spends a good portion of the early chapters lamenting her underwhelming and tragic life. This running commentary oscillated between grating and earning my grudging respect, but it didn’t make for the most compelling start.

Sylvester, the other central character, felt woefully underdeveloped. He lacked personality, and I found it nearly impossible to connect with him. To make matters worse, every time his name appeared, I couldn’t help but think of the Looney Tunes cat, which pulled me even further out of the story.

The villain, unfortunately, didn’t fare much better. A mash-up of themes and characters borrowed from Howl’s Moving Castle and a generic “evil king” trope, he felt derivative and uninspired. This lack of originality left me wanting more depth and complexity from the story’s antagonist, which was yet another letdown.

That said, there were moments of levity, and one of the brightest was a cat named 🐈‍⬛Cornelius. I absolutely loved that name, and he brought much-needed humor and companionship to Foss. Honestly, Cornelius was the true highlight of the book.

Unfortunately, the romance—a central element of the story—was a disappointment. It felt contrived and unconvincing from beginning to end, lacking the authenticity or emotional depth needed to make me care.

On top of all this, the book was just too long—or perhaps too wordy. It felt bloated, and the pacing suffered for it.

Despite my frustrations, I see potential in the author. There’s a strong vocabulary at work here—or maybe just an abiding love for a thesaurus! While I don’t think I’ll be picking up another one of her books anytime soon, I’m holding out hope that she’ll refine her craft and deliver something truly special in the future.

The writing is vivid and well done, I enjoyed the way the story was brought to life and the descriptions of things. Howls moving castle is a favourite of mine so I was excited to read something that drew inspiration from it, but enjoyed that it created its own unique space without taking too much from the Howls Moving Castle Idea. It’s definitely lower on the romance scale, which didn’t bother me, as not every book has to have a huge amount of romance to be great. I would have liked to see the book delve more into some of the characters but overall I really enjoyed the book as a whole.

After being snagged and following the kingdom's only sorcerer back to his home, Foss Butcher becomes his cook and maid with the assistance of his sentient home. Foss must grapple with her own feelings for the Sylvester. What is genuine and what is the effect of being his magic?

It was such a lovely story and I loved the world building. I thought it was a great pace. It was tough to connect with Foss; all the negative self talk was a big barrier for me. I absolutely loved her friendship with Cornelius and the way she instantly connected with the house but I would've loved to have read more interaction between her and Sylvester.

Bit of a mixed review I'm afraid.
I read this with my teen Grandaughter and we had very differing views. I liked the Ghibli type vibe and just read and enjoyed the story, although I found the pacing a bit strange throughout the book and rather distracting.
My Grandaughter ,on the other hand , found that the main character was annoying, wingeing and just annoying. She says that she was self obsessed and probably had mental health issues.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

A harvest of hearts was a precious story of self exploration, love and triumph. I loved the plot as it was definitely a unique twist to similar stories I’ve read in the past. The characters were witty and easy to read as well. For me, it’s giving Studio Ghibli but make it a slow-burn fairy tale. My only critique is the FMC herself. Foss frustrates me. While I understand what was trying to be done, her constant insecurities and negativity felt exhaustive. I still enjoyed the experience and think others will find it a fun easy read.

Well. This was a cute little stand alone.

Foss is the daughter of a butcher who is accidentally "snagged," or spelled, by a young sorcerer. When the pain of being away from him becomes too much, she sets out to find him. But he is unaware of his accident, so their relationship is not what either of them expect. As a blight begins to affect the heart magic the kingdom relies on, they (along with the talking cat) set off on an adventure to set everything right. But nothing is quite as it seems.

This was a cute story. The premise is good. The magic is unique. I had a really great time going through the internal struggles Foss faced. However, I think 150 pages could have been cut out of this book. It was really long for the content, so the pacing felt a bit off at times, and it took me longer than expected to finish it because of this.

I wanted to love this book. The cover is gorgeous, the synopsis drew me in. But some things just fell so short of their potential.

The biggest things that turned me off about this were 1) Foss, the FMC, being so self-deprecating without any clear reason why. It felt like she believed her only worth was her looks, and spent the whole book talking about how ugly she thought she was; 2) the writing was very YA despite being an adult coded novel; and 3) the first half of this book (while def giving Howl’s vibes) was completely different than the second half and I almost got whiplash from it.

I was happy that the second half felt like more of the authors own voice rather than a Howl’s reimagining. I liked the potential of the slow burn in this, but did struggle at some points to believe it since it was kind of…meh. Definitely not a romance book, maybe more of a whimsical fantasy.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I have mixed feelings about this book. I enjoyed the first half of the book, but the last half felt like a completely different book. The writing felt like a different style from the first half, and the flow was inconsistent with how the plot progressed.

I liked the writing and dialogue at the beginning, and I was pulled into the story pretty quickly. The style is different than what I usually read, but it was enjoyable to read something different. The plot was interesting, and the flow worked well with the personality of the characters. However, once I got about half way through, the plot felt like it was jumping around and the flow of time really sped up. This pulled me out of the story and made it difficult to finish the book.

I really do think this could be a great story with an interesting plot.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this book.

⊹₊⟡⋆ In a fantastical world where magic fuels power, an unlikely adventurer must navigate curses, an enchanted house, and unravel kingdom's dark secrets to break free. ₊˚⊹☆
. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁
I was really excited when I read that this book would have Howl's Moving Castle vibes, and it did! With all its whimsicalness included. The premise itself I found compelling as well. I felt like the magic system was quite interesting and unique, and the book itself in general felt quite magical and enchanting, I enjoyed this story. It's very much a slow-burn romance with little dialogue. It completely lets you feel what Floss is going through and wraps you up in her thoughts. I have a bit mixed feelings about the writing style. It for sure is, like I said, very magical and it gave me that sense of wonder and curiosity, which I really enjoyed. However, I didn't expect that the writing could be quite vulgar and ''modern'' at times. It took me a bit out of the story from time to time, because I was like: ''Wait, what?'' However, I did like the poetic feeling the writing gave off and I think that fitted the book. We as reader are reminded a lot about Floss' self-awareness/self-critique and how she is considered ugly and feels this way too. I didn't particularly like that that was being repeated so many times and it took me a bit out of the story, because It felt like I was reminded a lot that she was ''ugly''. I also would have loved to read more dialogue, because I wanted to learn more and sometimes we got just a little of information. I really loved the cat companion, and the slow-burn romance, even though it felt a bit off and underdeveloped at times. I did enjoy the story!

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys a cozy magical whimsical fantasy with a unique magic system and immersive worldbuilding!

*E-Arc graciously provided by Kensington Publishing via NetGalley*

Before anything, I now fully intend to pre-order the physical version of this book.

When I first read the synopsis of A Harvest of Hearts, I figured it was right up my alley : a grumpy character, an imbecile of a powerful sorcerer, and of course the whole Howl's Moving Castle vibe.

To me, A Harvest of Hearts was split in two : the first part where it is a good retelling, and the second part where it takes a life of its own.
These are not 50-50, but the beginning definitely steps on Howl's toes.

Now, Foss is an interesting character, strong witted and no-nonsense butcher's daughter, having to leave everything she ever knew in her little village to -unwillingly- follow a magnificent sorcerer. Being in her shoes was the best part of the story, letting the Sorcerer be mysterious and almost sacrosanct, while she discovered a system of magic almost unheard of. Her temper was, at time, hilarious, but her very down to earth view of the world around her made the journey a lot more intriguing and understandable at times.

However, as much as the parts where Foss is getting used to novelties, settling up and making her place in this strange world, the actions parts were very rushed. To the point I wondered, about 80% in, if I had missed that A Harvest of Hearts was going to have a sequel. The revelations are almost not hitting, being dropped in chapters where everything goes so fast.
Not that they are not gripping, but they feel almost like a tale that would be told to an audience, very detached to the actual shock, grief or anxiety that should be felt. Some chapters definitely deserved a bit more time to reveal themselves and their stories.

This feeling is what made the end a little less enjoyable for me. All the emotions, the plot finally coming to an end, went so fast and almost didn't touch the characters, it seemed to barely be happening at all. Like a fairytale where the names and people don't really matter, just the prince and princess.

However, I loved Foss journey and sarcasm throughout the book like I loved Sophie's rambles and admonishments, and so loved A Harvest of Hearts all the same.

4.5 stars — I loved this book! A great mix of Howl’s Moving Castle love story between a sorcerer and “dull” human girl, with the macabre of Brothers Grimm and T. Kingfisher-like fairytale stories of magic and kingdoms.

I think this was really well done. The beginning follows similarly to Howl’s Moving Castle, in that Foss finds herself as a housekeeper to a sorcerer who has ensnared her heart. The house is made of the sorcerer’s magic and therefore ‘alive’ in a way. She gets to explore the house and even makes a talking feline friend (with some attitude too of course!).

But the sinister truths surrounding the ‘snagging’ of hearts, as well as literally taking the hearts out of chests and the poor state it leaves the humans in, puts the story in a darker tone, akin to T. Kingfisher’s take on fairytales.

I really loved how this story progressed. How it touched on both literally and metaphorically the effects of beauty and power. Foss goes through such an interesting and relatable growth in the story. Similar to Sophie in Howl’s Moving Castle but I felt like there was a more mature tone to this book. However there isn’t an abhorrent amount of profanity , which I appreciated as it keeps in tone with a fairytale.

But I will say, there were some instances where I thought there must be some sort of dialect or accent that Foss had, that made it difficult to read her POV at times. For the sake of narration, it was a distinctive choice that really added a lot of pleasant color to the story. I just wish that it was explained to us as the reader. I don’t believe the author is American, so perhaps it’s just more in her native dialect? I can’t be sure.

But overall, I had a wonderful time reading this cozy and whimsical fantasy book! The ending and love story between Foss made me tear up, truly.

Thank-you so much to NetGalley and Erewhon/Kensington Publishing for the chance to read this ARC! I can’t wait to grab a physical copy on release day 😄❤️

This book was very unique in respect to the magic used throughout. The idea of sorceresses using hearts to create magic was super interesting. The main character fell very flat to me. She seemed very self-deprecating by constantly referring to herself as ugly and boring. I did not like the way she constantly lowered herself especially as it didn't really seem like anyone around her viewed her that way. I understand having low self-esteem, but it honestly didn't seem like there was any reason for her to feel that way. I also feel like the sorcerer wasn't super well developed character-wise, and I did really like him, but I think his character could have been fleshed out more earlier.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

A Harvest of Hearts by Andrea Eames is a first person-POV romantic fantasy. Foss lives in a kingdom where sorceresses not only travel from town to town, they take pieces of people’s hearts, leaving these villagers bereft or desperate to search them out. Told her whole life she was ugly, Foss cannot even imagine that she could get the attention of a sorceress and yet when the lone sorcerer, Sylvester, arrives for a brief visit, he takes some of her heart with him when he leaves. Foss will do whatever it takes to get her heart back, including being Sylvester’s maid.

This felt more like a romantic fantasy to me rather than a cozy fantasy. It sits in a very similar place to The Last Unicorn, Howl’s Moving Castle, and Terry Pratchett, so if one would get cozy vibes from reading those works, they would absolutely find cozy here. For me, Howl’s Moving Castle and The Last Unicorn have always read more fairy tale, which A Harvest of Hearts firmly fits, and Pratchett is more social commentary fantasy that is comedic. Because the romance is so prominent and the plot begins and ends with Foss’ heart and it’s relation to Sylvester but it’s not quite hitting what I would expect of something romance genre-adjacent, I would put this in romantic fantasy with strong fairy tale vibes.

I loved the romance between Sylvester and Foss. I’m not always into slowburns, but this is the kind of slowburn I like because Sylvester is just trying so hard to be a person and do the right thing while Foss wants to get things done and go back home as she fights the magic that draws her to him. There’s something fascinating in how Sylvester is disturbingly attractive to the point where it’s unnatural and Foss is captivated by it but it also makes her uncomfortable. She’s uncomfortable with herself and her own looks and how it makes her look to be attracted to Sylvester, which blinds her to Sylvester’s growing attraction.

One of the biggest treats is Cornelius the cat. He lives in Sylvester’s house and can speak but Sylvester is just as perplexed as Foss about where Cornelius came from or that he can speak. Is it the house that granted him magic, is it Sylvester by mistake? Who cares. We have a talking cat who is full of snark and knowledge and tries to support Foss.

I would recommend this to fans of romantic fantasy that has a similar feel to The Last Unicorn or Howl’s Moving Castle, readers who love fairy tale-esque fantasy, and those looking for a longer fantasy involving literal heart stealing

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This book is utterly delightful! Foss is the perfect mix of practical and relatable, and Sylvester is as charming as he is infuriating (in the best way). Their banter made me laugh out loud more times than I can count, and don’t even get me started on the cat! The world is so cozy and vivid, like a magical hug wrapped in sarcasm. If you love cozy fantasies where magic is unpredictable and love feels like home, this book will steal your heart—though hopefully not literally.

This just wasn't for me. Read too much like a YA novel and I just couldn't get into it/didn't keep my interest.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.