As someone who long ago fell in love with Howl and Sophie in the strange home Calcifer created for them, any book claiming connection to Diana Wynne Jones' and Hayao Miyazaki's masterpieces demands my attention. To capture the whimsy and magic of one of my favorite worlds is no small feat, and to present similarly obnoxiously lovable characters are a hard balance to achieve.

In Foss' world, magic is harvested in hearts, and magic-workers come in all their otherworldly beauty to do that harvesting. As the practical daughter of a butcher, Foss never expects to draw the attention of one of these magic workers, until a chance connection with a sorcerer leaves her missing a piece of herself she would do anything to get back - including leaving everything she knows to chase after him. Led by an ache in her chest she can't shake, Foss finds Sylvester to demand he fix her heart, and stumbles into a house and conspiracy she could never image.

A Harvest of Hearts managed to deliver on the promised whimsy and unique characters. For as much that was delightfully familiar, the world Andrea Eames manages to build in her work carried delicious darkness, bright magic, and the right touches of romance and drama that provided a unique reading experience. The vibes are cozy, and Foss and Sylvester hit all the right beats for unlikely romantic protagonists. While not a perfect book, it was an incredibly fun world to pass a few hours in.

Thank you to NetGalley and Erewhon Books for the advanced copy.

This book is gorgeous! I found it very unique in the story. And enjoyed reading from the FMC point of view and thought process. Very much reminded me of the whimsical feeling that howls moving house gives you!

Foss is a girl who is segregate and ridiculed by her cruel village people. It’s sad to see how kind she is to be so cruelly spoke to. Her father’s love is beautiful to watch. He is unwavering in the way he loves her.

Sylvester is also someone that doesn’t seem to fit into his world. He is ridiculed by his sisters due to his unpredictable power. The combination of the two misfits are a life altering connection. It’s gorgeous to read how it unfolds.

This story evoked gorgeous feelings in me! I adored how it made me feel and it had a wonderful unconditional kind of love.

A solid 3 ⭐ from me.

This book was okay, but I found it was lacking a lot of originality in the first third of the book or so, as it seemingly follows many of the plot beats from the movie “Howl’s Moving Castle”. The personalities and ‘roles’ of certain characters felt a little too closely mirrored to those of that movie, in my opinion.

I enjoyed the first portion, regardless—it was very whimsical, things were lighthearted, and it was much closer to the “cozy fantasy” promised in the synopsis. The rest of the novel feels quite original in comparison to this first section, but it only got darker in content as the plot went on.

The heart harvesting magic was an interesting concept; I just wished it was a little different. With some plot spoilers—Initially, the heart magic is considered to be based on emotion, as sorceresses harvest feelings of love (like awe, or inspiration) from regular citizens as their source of magic, used to keep the kingdom healthy—which I did think was really cool! But later on, this same heart magic is revealed to be a lot more… literal. And violent. This made the “magic” in this book much less interesting to me, unfortunately.

The world building was interesting, if a little under-developed. I wanted to know more about the kingdom, the sorceresses, and the situation between the king and those outside the mist.

The writing itself for this novel was lovely and easy to get into though, and I REALLY loved Cornelius the talking cat. Best character. ♥️

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the ARC!

The perfect book I needed at the time. It got me out of a slump and had me immersed from get go! Throughly enjoyed the plot of this story and enjoyed the characters. The perfect cosy fantasy!

I did not particularly enjoy this book, but I think a lot of other people will. I personally just did not vibe with Howl's Moving Castle at all - and while that was a comp for this book, it was also comped to The House on the Cerulean Sea, which I adored. This was very similar in plot and vibes to Howl's Moving Castle, and not remotely similar to the latter.

The plot was interesting, but I just get icked by any sort of 'I love him without my free will and consent' kind of scenario.

I saw the title of this book and I instantly wanted to read it and then I read the blurb and it said Howl's Moving Castle and I was sold. Howl's Moving Castle is my favourite Studio Ghibli movie of all times and I absolutely couldn't pass on the opportunity to read something with similar vibes. The I started reading and a few chapters in, we have a talking cat! A TALKING CAT! Can you imagine how thrilled I was?
"They said that magic, real magic, not the shite that the hedge witches peddled with all their bags of powder and herbs, could only be performed in exchange for a human heart. "
The story starts with our heroine, Foss, narrating about the magic system in her kingdom which requires heart magic. The sorceresses came to the villages to buy herbs and other goods and sometimes took bits of human heart with them, sometimes they left their victims enchanted and the victim would follow their enchantress to their own doom and return after a while with most of their heart gone. These were the Snagged. But Foss had no worries about being taken because why would anyone want to take the square daughter of a butcher? She rather took pride in her accounting skills, which she did for their business.
Other girls in the village pittied her or jeered at her, and boys didn't pay attention to her. And the one who did, ended up being a total dunderhead who very cruelly insulted her after making her feel like he was trying to court her. But one day the only Sorcerer of their kingdom came to their village, with his charming aura and unearthly good looks and suddenly Foss found herself bound to him. And from there her jouney of finding the sorcerer starts. She eloped from her father's house, hitchhiked to the city and followed the pull towards the sorcerer's house only to find that the sorcerer probably didn't know that she was snagged! And so the plot thickens.
I absolutely loved the no nonsense attitude and dry humor of Foss. She was totally relatable. She didn't need anyone to rescue her. She felt weak at times and cried to her heart's content but then she picked herself up and carried on with life. Our Sorcerer, Sylvester though seemed super non chalant at first was a true pookie. He admired Foss from the very first day, he loved how sure she was of herself and the rightness she had in her heart and he saw her for who she was.
There was a part in the book after Foss reaches to the mansion, where things didn't really move for the longest time. There was no significant development of the plot. But then it suddenly escalated and took up the pace which might seem a bit rushed but after that bit I was so hooked to the story that I basically couldn't put it down.
Cornelius, the cat was the bravest boy. I'm not even kidding. I absolutely need to pet him and he was this clever black cat who had his kitty ways with magic and almost gave me a heart attack towards the end. And well even Sylvester had me bawling towards the end of the book. Another thing which I absolutely love in fantasies is a house with its own personality and whims and this book clearly served.
I absolutely loved the wholesome ending of the book. And I'm going to recommend this to like everyone.

Fans of Howl's Moving Castle will find echoes of charm in this imaginative tale. The premise of down-to-earth Foss unexpectedly entering a magical world, complete with a captivating sorcerer and his spirited enchanted house, is delightful. Foss's practical nature provides a lovely anchor to the fantastical elements. While the world could be richer and the pacing a little smoother, the story offers a pleasant escape with hints of romance and a compelling underlying mystery. A promising and enjoyable read for those who appreciate lighthearted fantasy.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with this e-ARC!

In a world where sorceresses snag pieces of a person's heart, our strong and resilient Foss Butcher is snagged by the male sorcerer that visits her village. Experiencing an intense bout of heartsickness, she leaves home, headed for the city to find the sorcerer and signs up to be his housekeeper.

Full of fantasy, and mysterious magic and a talking cat for companionship, this is a story that slowly but surely tickles your interest. The storytelling can be quite slow to begin with - there were times where I got lost about the storyline but it steadily builds on. The world-building is different and fun and intrigued me greatly, and would love to know more of the outside world.

The tone was slightly confusing. Overall while the concept, the world building and mix of characters was fun, the storyline seemed to tangle upon itself and lack structural integrity. Still a recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for providing me with the eARC and the opportunity to read and provide an honest review!

I would like to start by saying the world building was great. Such a cool concept! Heart magic! I loved the sentient house and talking cat.

There were a few things that didn’t work for me. The first was the length. This was very long. Or it felt very long which is worse. There were quite a few times that I was shocked at being around the 50% mark but it had felt like I had been reading for so long. The second thing I struggled with was the pacing. It moves very, very slowly and then the end is over so quickly. The third thing is our main characters. Foss is a tough sell for a leading lady. She has zero confidence in herself and must mention how ugly she is roughly one thousand times. And Sylvester stays very two-dimensional.

So, my feeling with this book was, though the potential was there in spades, the execution didn’t work for me, unfortunately.

I think some editing could really help this book become what it has the potential to be.

3.5🌟 rounded-up.

💛 Whimsical
🫀 Beauty & The Beast Vibes
💛 Unique Magic
🫀 Cozy + Animal Companion
💛 Unique Overall Vibe


I enjoyed this. It's an immersive and slightly odd read. There is a unique overall vibe to this story story, and while the romance fell short for me, I still had a good time.

Foss (our fmc) sets out to find her heart after it's snagged by a mysterious sorcerer. However, she doesn't expect to unearth deeper secrets surrounding these mysterious magic wielders and a mysterious blight that is overpowering her kingdom.

My favourite thing about this story was Cornelius, the cat. He reminded me of Salem from Sabrina the Teenage Witch with his sassy remarks and no-nonsense quips. He stole the show. I have complicated feelings about Foss (our FMC), she really doesn't hold herself in a remarkable light, but she's also a very good person who wants to help anyone she can. Foss did have some great character development throughout, and I loved her coming to realize her value. Sylvester (MMC), however, felt pretty underdeveloped as a character. He just doesn't stand out, and his limited interactions with the FMC in the first half of the story just didn't sell the romance portion of the story.

The first half of the story hit me a lot harder than the second. There's a noticeable change in pace and a sense of urgency that develops. The villains also fall a little flat because there's no real depth to why they are bad. It's more just "bad guy wants to be bad and powerful."

That said, Andrea Eames does a great job of building a kind of cute and cozy story that is, at times, quite dark - but has an overall whimsical tone that supersedes the darker themes. The magic system was really neat, the theme of capturing and stealing hearts was well done, and the animal companion was top-notch. Overall, it reads like a coming-of-age, whimsical, dark fairytale, and you can feel the beauty and the beast references seeping through the pages.

𝓣𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓴 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓽𝓸 𝓝𝓮𝓽𝓰𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝔂 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓚𝓮𝓷𝓼𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓽𝓸𝓷 𝓟𝓾𝓫𝓵𝓲𝓼𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓐𝓡𝓒 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓫𝓸𝓸𝓴. 𝓐𝓵𝓵 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓭𝓫𝓪𝓬𝓴 𝓬𝓸𝓷𝓽𝓪𝓲𝓷𝓮𝓭 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀 𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓶𝔂 𝓸𝔀𝓷.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the chance to read and review this book!

I actually really liked A Harvest of Hearts! I think Foss is a very good character and I adored that she wasn't magically made beautiful by the end of it. As someone who has been pouring an unholy amount of money down the beauty industries throat this last year, I really do want more characters who don't magically become sirens, but are loved for who they are and beautiful to those who love them. The anger towards pretty girls was also interesting; I don't think you're allowed to often talk about that in books and I'm very sure some people will criticise the author for doing it; but I think it made Foss a more well rounded and extremely capable character.

The plot is also pretty good; the heart magic and the darkness around it were very well done. Some elements like the mist we saw earlier in the book were very well tied in with things that happened later.

I do do unfortunately feel like the author made some rookie mistakes that will leave a lot of people disappointed; namely that so many elements were rushed. Some things do need to happen quickly, like when the magic wielders attached Basil and his group, but the end of the book and the way Sylvester releases the spell could have been done better. I also know that she feels really bad, but it was a stupid immature MC mistake to go back for Millie and hang on to Colin like that. Da and how easily he lives is also strange. The book could have been made a duology.

Cornelius is my favourite, obviously, and I honestly would have picked a fight if something had happened to him.

Well deserved 4 stars.

A charming and whimsical read with a unique take on magic. The worldbuilding was easy to follow, and the characters had a delightful dynamic. While the pacing slowed at times, the enchanting atmosphere kept me engaged!

This was such a cute story to have a title like A Harvest of Hearts. Yes hearts are harvested literally but the main character, Foss, was such a down to earth and relatable character that the book had a cozy feel. I didn't love that Foss's appearance was referred to so often. Its great to have a heroine that is not beautiful but there was a little too much harping on how ugly she was.
Of course, my favorite character was Cornelius, the talking cat. He was such a typical cat. The villains were a little flat and especially the main antagonist, Clarissa, could have been more complex but oh well.

I liked the premise and thought this book had a very strong opening, effectively introducing the world and magical system. After about the first three chapters, I thought the plot dragged and it felt like the story couldn't quite decide whether it wanted to be a magical, cozy domestic story (like Howl's Moving Castle) or a dark, bloody romance. Although Foss, the main character, was relatively interesting, I thought Sylvester was pretty bland and had a hard time seeing him as a convincing love interest. Based on the descriptions of heartsickness, I was expecting more tension and angst from the earlier chapters. Because the focus seemed to be more on domestic chores, the whole rest of the book felt relatively more lower stakes than it probably should have. There was a bit of a tonal shift towards more darkness in the second half, but I would have liked for that vibe to have been more present in the first half as well.

Because the story focuses so heavily on Foss and Sylvester's relationship, I thought that other interesting aspects of the worldbuilding were slightly overlooked. I wanted more from the other sorceresses (we really only meet one, besides Sylvester) and the group that Foss meets, with others who have had their hearts harvested. Interesting backstories were revealed very close to the end, and the main conflict wrapped itself up so quickly, especially when compared to the pacing at the beginning/middle.

Overall, I wanted this book to lean a little harder into its dark premise and to have more character development. I did enjoy Cornelius (the cat), and am very glad that he was included. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants an adventure led by an intrepid heroine and her animal sidekick (her love interest doesn't really feel like one of her sidekicks, and I'm not really sure how to classify him, although he is present for most of the adventure).

Thank you Netgalley for this arc. I really wanted to read this because of the synopsis and the beautiful cover was a bonus. the characters and plot was very enjoyable. The world building was not too complicated to understand, which I really thought was a plus.

Unique magic and adorable main character. I love that the main character, Foss, is an average sized girl and isn't the "amazing" can do anything kind of person. The use of an animal companion was amazing and the slow burn but little insta love of Sylvester and Foss was truly great.
This story is very wordy. I had trouble keeping focus because Foss's inner dialogue just went on and on. Also the use of first person narrative of being written as if it's a spoken story to be inclusive of the reader.
The world building was pretty minimal but enough to understand the magical world it was set in. The magic itself was pretty well explained and I liked how it was more of the unique style of magic style. This story was cute and I enjoyed it.
Thank you NetGalley and Erewhon Books for the opportunity to read this book

Review of A Harvest of Hearts by Grace R. Ferguson (3.5 Stars)

A Harvest of Hearts is a sweet historical romance about love, second chances, and small-town life.

What I liked:

Good characters: The main characters are relatable and easy to root for.
Romantic build-up: The romance grows slowly and feels genuine.
Nice setting: The small-town feel is well done and adds to the story.
What could be better:

Pacing: The middle of the book feels a bit slow.
Predictability: Some plot twists are easy to guess, which can make the story less exciting.
Overall, it’s a nice, cozy romance, perfect for fans of slow-burn love stories. It’s not the most surprising book, but it’s still enjoyable and heartwarming.

Thanks NetGalley and Kensington for an advanced copy of this book.

A Harvest of Hearts is reminiscent of Howl's Moving Castle, with more death and destruction. Foss is a lively and amusing narrator, Sylvester and his magic house are complicated and a bit sinister, and Cornelius the cat is, naturally, the best sidekick one could ask for. Foss is accidentally magically snagged by Sylvester the sorcerer, so she is compelled to follow him into the city. She must come to terms with her own feelings of inadequacy while also trying to save the kingdom from the megalomaniacal king and his sorceress "daughters" who harvest people hearts, both in little bits and in whole, ostensibly to keep the kingdom safe from outside threats, but also to satisfy their own greed for power. Part cozy, part creepy, this was an engaging and heartwarming (sorry, sorry) story with a fun cast of characters.

A truly captivating novel with a unique storyline that makes for a great read. It weaves a whimsical and dreamy narrative, infused with magic controlled by the heart. The characters were delightful, quirky, and full of charm.

Overall a different take on magic, combined with a little bit of adventure really made this one stand out to me, and even though it wasn’t as fleshed out as I would’ve hoped, I quite enjoyed it.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this book in exchange for an honest review!
DNF @ 20%

This is a... strange book, that I do not believe really marketed well at all. I expected whimsy and Studio Ghibli vibes. Instead, it's very weirdly sexual, which nothing about the blurb really made it feel like it would be (especially with describing it as whimsical), and the writing style just comes across very stilted. It's like it's trying to mimic the writing style of the Howl's Moving Castle book and just failing.

Worst of all, though, I was just bored. 20% in and we don't really know anything. We literally have a cat who just constantly says "I don't know" to things. We just did learn the love interest's name. It also just feels pretty ick to me just how Sylvester's 'hook' in Floss works. Maybe that one's on me for not reading the right vibes from the blurb, but it just feels very... uncomfortable.

So yeah, this book isn't for me. Maybe others won't be as bored or will like the writing style more, but for me, there was just nothing enticing me to keep going while multiple things encouraging me to stop 🤷‍♀️