This was my favorite of Megan Collins’ yet. Our MC seems a little… off? She’s swapping emails with her heart donor’s surviving husband, and while she is shrouded in the anonymity that donors and donees are entitled to, she has an upper hand because her bestie broke some HIPAA laws so she knows who he is and she wants him. It’s a complicated mess.

Just when I had this one solved, I had to pivot because another plot twist was stirred into the mix. The end was a whole new twist, and it made for a lot of fun. I would say it’s a little unhinged, more of a drama than a thriller, but enjoyable nonetheless. It would make for a good lifetime movie if that’s your thing. Thanks to Atria for my eARC.

This one was a good book but kinda weird too. I thought it was well done and a book I would recommend although there were some things I felt were to crazy. I was hoping for a little more but it was a good book.

This is definitely a page-turner! Lots of twists - some I saw coming, but many I didn't. Overall, I think I preferred the first half of this story to the second half. Some of the characters just really started to get annoying by the last half of the story. My only other quibble is that I thought the messaging of men labeling women as "crazy," while legit, got a little heavy-handed at times. However, I would still highly recommend this enjoyable thriller!

I really love reading books that make you rapidly turn BACK pages trying to figure out where you missed the clues!!!! CROSS MY HEART seems like a simple case of a woman who has a heart transplant, then decides the husband of the heart donor is fated to be her husband!!! Simple....NOT. Megan Collins has gifted readers a character whose logic defies reason, but you can't help but think......she may be crazy, but you never know until you try. As this lovelorn woman connects with the object of her affections through a website designed to allow donors and receivers to connect. She's just turned it into a dating app with a very limited number of participants.

The book is outrageously good. Definitely a new plot line, it's usually the donor relative chasing the receiver, then kicked it up several notches. The writing style is designed to wow the reader and it does. With enough breaks in the POV and the mixed media, you don't have time to get bored. And then.......well, I didn't find any clues I missed so I'll just say, read carefully and don't set your book down for anything!!!!

This is my first Megan Collin’s book and I will be RACING to find my next.

Rosie is having a rough time. She’s been a little less connected to her best friend, she’s been dumped by her finance, and she’s just had a heart transplant! She connects with the husband of her donor through an anonymous portal… or it was supposed be anyway. It’s not long before the pull and connection she feels turns into full blow obsession. I mean how harmful could it really be?

This book is unhinged in all the best ways with twist and turns that literally don’t stop from beginning to end. There is an array of characters that seem like saturated versions of people we all know and love (or maybe hate?). The intertwine and overlap in ways I never saw coming and I couldn’t put the book down. I was hooked from the very first chapter. I wish we spent a little less time with Rosie and some more time with some of the other characters, but I thoroughly enjoyed this and it helped me out of my reading funk.

Tell me more about JACKSON! IYKYK and if you don’t you’ll find out 😉

Thank you Atria Books for the eARC!
All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This story is about Rosie, a heart transplant survivor who begins to fall for her donor’s husband. 👀

This book sucked me right in and just when I thought I knew where it was headed—BAM. The plot twist made my jaw drop (a thriller reader’s dream). I love that I was caught off guard. This book spun me in so many different directions and I couldn’t put it down (literally fell asleep with the ARC in my hands last night).

I’m typically drawn to unreliable narrators and Rosie flirts with that title, nearly blinded by her own obsession with finding “the one.” Yet Megan created such a dynamic character when she wrote Rosie, I felt like I was watching the book unfold as a film. The story really came to life as I read it.

Collin’s writing is sharp, smart and captivating. This story was unique and kept me wanting more with the intense level of suspense that festered in different ways throughout the story. It was everything I love about thrillers.

What happens when a heart transplant recipient becomes obsessed with her donor's husband? Turns out, a LOT.

When Rosie Lachlan begins communicating with the husband of her heart donor, she quickly realizes that he is none other than a local celebrity: bestselling thriller writer Morgan Thorne. Cue the obsession, which sees Rosie soak up every detail of Morgan's life, and has her wondering if this is nothing short of fate, bringing them together. But Rosie's dating history isn't perfect, and the death of Morgan's wife is nothing short of suspicious . . .

CROSS MY HEART is a deliciously twisty thriller about the fine line between love and obsession. This was a rare sub-24 hour read for me. The writing is economical—no extra fluff—and the pacing is tight. Rosie is an enthrallingly unreliable narrator that I couldn't help but root for.

Thank you to Atria Books for this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is the third book I've read from author, Megan Collins and like the other two, this one had it's thrilling moments. "Behind The Red Door" and "The Family Plot" were previous books I read and enjoyed, so I was excited about this latest novel.

I will admit this started out a bit slow for me. The chapters are told in a weird, alternating perspective that I didn't quite understand until almost halfway through. Once I realized what was happening and the twist "clicked" I was completely hooked!

This is a story about obsession and secrets, and is full of twists. It is full of characters, each one more mysterious than the next. Every single character could be a suspect and it wasn't until the very end that I knew who the killer was.

I am glad I went into this book knowing very little about it, and I think every reader should too. It made for a fun and exciting read.

Thanks to Netgalley, Edelweiss, and Atria books for the advanced digital copies to read and give my honest review. It was a 4 star read!

"Cross My Heart" is available today, January 14, 2025 here in the U.S. so get your copy today!

Happy Reading!

This book was so different from what I was expecting but in the best way. It had me feeling all the emotions and kept me on the edge of my seat. I loved it.

Wow! The first half of this book had me hooked! I loved the email aspect and the concept of someone falling for their recent donors spouse. The second half had me questioning everyone as a suspect and I loved the final twist and seeing everything come together! This book was so hard to put down and I loved every minute of it!

I thoroughly enjoyed this wild ride! It kept me on my toes the whole book, constantly guessing what was going to happen next. I didn't figure it out until maybe 2 chapters before the reveal happened. This might be my new favorite by Megan Collins! I thought the plot was unique, it didn't feel like another variation of the same plot as so many thriller out there do.

I defintiely recommend this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Atria Books for my #gifted copy and thank you Simon Audio for my #gifted listening copy of Cross My Heart! #AtriaPartner #atriabooks #simonaudio #CrossMyHeart #MeganCollins

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐂𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐌𝐲 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐌𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐬
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬: 𝐆𝐚𝐢𝐥 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬 𝐀𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐰 𝐂𝐢𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐚
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐉𝐚𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝟏𝟒, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓 - 𝐎𝐮𝐭 𝐍𝐨𝐰!

𝟱★

Megan Collins, this book was brilliant! This book was so twisty in the best possible way and I loved it. I constantly found myself asking myself ‘what is going on?’ It grabbed my attention from the very first page and it was such a wild ride.

Rosie wants to find her one true love. After receiving a heart transplant, she connects with Morgan, the husband of her donor on DonorConnect, the anonymous messaging service. She is convinced that Morgan is the one for her now that she has the heart of his wife. As they continue to talk and she learns more about him, could Morgan be responsible for his wife’s death?

🩷Psychological Thriller
🩷Dual POV
🩷Mixed Media
🩷So Many Twists
🩷Unreliable Narrator
🩷Fast-Paced

🎧I listened to the audiobook, which was narrated by Gail Shalan and Chris Andrew Ciulla. This book was epic on audio! I without a doubt recommend this one on audio. It was like a movie playing in my head as I was listening to this one. I loved the dual narration with these two narrators. Seriously, these two were amazing. I highly recommend the audio!

Posted on Goodreads on January 14, 2025: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around January 14, 2025: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on January 14, 2025
**-will post on designated date

Thank you Atria, Cross My Heart was such a fun twisty suspense read, one that grabbed me and took me on a perfectly paced engaging plot filled with just enough fun twists and turns to keep me staying up late to finish it. I loved where the plot went, how the story leaned into but shifted around the unreliable narrator trope, and how themes on mental health and problematic relationships were woven into the story. Megan Collins has another solid story here, one that confirms her as a must read suspense writer (for me).

I thought this story is very interesting with its two points of views. I felt like it took you in this journey through how all the girls through and their was plot twist after post twist. I think you should definitely pick up this book if you get the chance.

This was one twisty thrill ride! I couldn’t help but to like the main character, Rosie. After her fiancé left her, she suffered from a broken heart…literally! She underwent a heart transplant and now she wants to love again and has sights on her heart donor’s husband!

Told through alternating perspectives, dark and unhinged motives emerged causing me to see a different side of the characters. I had some idea of where the storyline was going until a clever plot twist turned it all upside down!

I’ve been in a huge thriller slump these past few months, so I went into this book unsure of how I was going to feel.

OH 👏🏾 MY 👏🏾 FREAKING 👏🏾 GOSH! Y’all, this book…..this book was the thriller I didn’t know I needed.

what I loved
•I was hooked from the very beginning. The whole premise of the FMC being drawn to have an emotional connection to the husband of the woman whose heart she receive was executed so well
•the twists and thrills throughout the book had me on my toes and my jaw on the floor! It’s not easy to shock me but baby I was shooketh (idk if that’s a word but it is today)
•Rosie! I just loved her and all her flaws and messiness. The second half of the book, although shook me even more, made me love her even more.
•this book was so creatively and well thought out! The details were well written and perfectly paced.

This book should definitely be a on your must read list for 2025.

Thank you @atriabooks and @netgalley for my #gifted copy.

Calling all fans of unreliable narrators, this is one you’re going to want to check out!

Our main character, Rosie, has been through some things. She got dumped in her wedding dress, had to receive a heart transplant, and is slowly trying to rebuild a life for herself. Thanks to a friend’s insider information, she already knows her heart donor was Daphne, wife to local celebrity author, Morgan. What she doesn’t know is anything about Daphne’s marriage, but she’s about to find out, as Morgan reaches out on the anonymous service called DonorConnect.

It’s a lot to unpack, but Collins does a fantastic job of swiftly delivering all the backstory and details regarding both Rosie and Morgan. This allows readers to be thrown right into their budding relationship. Collins smartly builds in several twists that keep readers guessing not only about where the plot is going, but who they should be suspicious about. Let’s be real here…no one is really winning readers over with telling the truth in this book and that’s exactly what makes this a fun and entertaining read!

I was thoroughly entertained throughout reading Cross My Heart and highly recommend it to readers looking for something on the lighter suspense side that’s fit for a binge read.

Cross My Heart is a gripping psychological thriller that delves into obsession, identity, and the complexities of the human heart. The story follows Rosie Lachlan, a woman who, after receiving a life-saving heart transplant, becomes fixated on discovering the identity of her donor. Her search leads her to Morgan, the widower of her donor, and she becomes convinced that their lives are destined to intertwine. As Rosie integrates herself into Morgan's life, she uncovers unsettling truths about his past and his late wife's death, blurring the lines between love and delusion.

Megan Collins crafts a narrative filled with suspense and unexpected twists, exploring the depths of human emotion and the lengths one might go to find connection. Her portrayal of Rosie's internal struggles and the unfolding mystery keeps readers engaged until the final page.

This novel is recommended for fans of psychological thrillers and domestic suspense, particularly those who appreciate complex character studies and intricate plot developments.

Rosie had a heart transplant a year ago, and has been communicating with her donor's widow. She and her sister figure out that it's author Morgan Thorne, and Morgan just happens to live right down the road from them. Rosie, against Nina's better judgement, seems to embark on a relationship with him through both physical contact and the email portal provided by the donor network. Rosie is obsessed, and she's torn between the man she's finding out Morgan is and the man she's built up in her mind. Then a shocking event tears her whole world apart and Rosie finds herself the prime suspect in a murder...

I could NOT put this book down. It had me from the first chapter. I had to know what was going to happen to pretty, obsessive Rosie in her quest to know her donor's widow better. It isn't every day that you find out that the heart you received in a transplant belonged to the wife of a ridiculously famous thriller author that happens to live down the street from your parents, after all. Rosie can walk past his house and look into his window...and she does, using the pretext of walking her parents' dog. Rosie is crazy obsessive, having run into problems in all of her relationships, including it ending her engagement just 18 months earlier. I think we can all find a little of ourselves in Rosie--who hasn't been obsessive over a new boyfriend, wanting to basically live in their skin? Fortunately most of us know to keep that obsession in our heads or within our group of closest friends and Google.
I do think we needed to spend a little bit more time with some of the other characters, like the jilted fiancé who returned her dress and wanted to be friends because Rosie had gone through the same experience. I wanted more of Daphne, too, and I am getting really tired of how many women in the books I've been reading lately have been taken advantage of by the men closest to them in their lives. I really wish this wasn't a plot device, because the reason it's such an effective plot device is because it happens to just so many women. Women have a good idea and what happens? A man takes credit for it, leaving her left behind.

Cross Your Heart is faster paced than Collins' other books, and it was a nice change of pace, though I do love the slow burn thrillers, too. This is a good one if you need something fast that will keep you turning pages long past your bedtime.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025 and it did not disappointed. I really loved the formatting, the prose, the cover, and the title-all of it. I liked the first half better (shockingly because the second half is more suspense-heavy), but it was all solid. You kind of have to suspend your belief because there's a handful of coincidences.
4.5 rounded up. Thanks to NetGalley & Atria Books for the ARC!