Very unique premise and I loved the author's inspiration for this book 🥺

Rosie was a surprisingly relatable protagonist I could empathise with. Her experiences and commentary on the modern dating scene, her being labelled as too intense, too much, too everything... 💯 so well done!

As a thriller, I thought this was just fine though. It wasn't particularly thrilling nor did it blow my mind despite some surprises (that felt excessive at times). Good read overall, but forgettable too.

I enjoy the premise of this book , It was fun read, i know it was lightly inspired by Taylor swift song, which i love. This is my first time reading a Megan Collins books , i can't wait to read more from her.

Of course my first review of 2025 would be @megancollinswriter‘s newest novel, Cross My Heart. I’ve been a huge fan of her books since her first and I can honestly say this is her best work!!

Rosie Lachlan is in love with her heart donor’s husband - he just doesn’t know it yet. But through a series of emails back and forth through Donor Connect, she’s able to form a bond with the one and only Morgan Thorne, successful author and likely suspect in the murder of his wife, at least, if the online gossip is to be believed. As Rosie grows closer to Morgan, she begins to wonder if maybe those rumors are true after all.

I don’t want to say too much more about the plot because there’s just so much to discover that’s worth waiting for.

From the amazing Taylor Swift references to the ending I never saw coming, Cross My Heart is one epic read.

Get it now at one of my favorite retailers. Thank you @netgalley and @atriabooks for the gifted e-copy in exchange for my honest review.

I tore through Cross My Heart. This book had me hooked from start to finish. I think this book has taken the top spot in my Megan Collins’ reads. Highly recommend!!

I am not fully sure about this one. It was an easy read that I was able to get through quickly, but some of the conversations were awkward and just unbelievable. Ultimately, it’s a story that I liked while I was in it, but won’t remember for long.

Ha. This one was deliciously fun to read. There was literally no one to root for but I couldn't get enough. The whole time I was reading this, I was trying to figure out who was going to be the true victim in the end. He's super creepy and she's a stage five clinger. What more could you want in a thriller?

“𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐝? 𝐓𝐨 𝐦𝐞, 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐨 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭 𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐬.”

Cross My Heart is Megan Collins’ most bingeworthy thriller yet.

Collins has crafted a compelling story - one filled with clever reveals, and a quality unreliable narrator. It centres around Rosie, a recent recipient of a heart transplant, and her communication with the husband of the donor, Morgan Thorne. As Rosie develops a connection with Morgan, questions arise such as what actually happened to his wife? Was her death an accident or something more sinister?! Once Collins’ story got going, I couldn’t put it down. It is the definition of a popcorn thriller, with its over the top premise and twists in narration. It touches on the idea of the consuming nature of the search for love, which I could definitely relate to (especially how we sometimes wear Rosie-coloured glasses in our approach to people because we are scared of being alone in the future and miss some red flags)! I understood where Rosie was coming from, as bad love can sometimes feel safer than no love at all, no matter whether it’s platonically or romantically. There are a lot of morally gray characters, yet Collins does a good job at balancing their unlikeable traits (for example, Rosie really does let love consume her and makes some stalkery questionable choices) with wanting to root for them. A couple reveals surprised me, leading all the way to satisfying ending that relates back to all the themes Collins touched on throughout.

Cross My Heart is a riveting blast of a page turner that I couldn’t put down. If you love a highly entertaining thriller, I definitely recommend. Thank you to Atria & NetGalley for the ARC!

I found this book rather hard to follow.
I also didn’t care for the changing formats from texts to emails to stanzas then back to normal narration.
It just really didn’t grab me

In "Cross My Heart," Megan Collins weaves a suspenseful tale centered on Rosie Lachlan, a woman who receives a heart transplant and becomes convinced that her donor was Daphne Thorne, the deceased wife of famed author Morgan Thorne. As Rosie navigates the complexities of her new life, she becomes obsessed with Morgan, believing that their connection is destined due to her new heart. Using an anonymous service called DonorConnect, Rosie reaches out to Morgan under the guise of learning more about her donor, but her true intentions are far more personal. As their correspondence deepens, Rosie uncovers unsettling rumors about Morgan's past, raising questions about Daphne's death and whether Rosie herself may be in danger.

Unfortunately, "Cross My Heart" fell short of my expectations. While the first part of the book was engaging and held my attention, the second half became muddled with an overabundance of indistinguishable characters, making it difficult to follow the plot. The narrative's use of doubling was confusing, and the motivations behind the murder felt unconvincing and forced. Additionally, the portrayal of the female characters as overly dependent on men was disappointing and unrelatable. The ending, particularly involving the cop, was unsatisfying and left me more frustrated than intrigued. Overall, I cannot recommend this book, as it failed to deliver a coherent or compelling story

Loved this fresh take on female obsession, passion, and getting in over your head. The premise was great and I loved the story. Domestic thrillers can be so hard to write and the author totally nailed this! Thank you to Netgalley, the Publisher and the Author for the opportunity to read and review this prior to publication.

This book went from zero to sixty & I loved every bit of it! When a new transplant patient connects with the husband of her donor heart, things get pretty wild. I don't want to say too much but I kind of went in blind & I think that's best when reading this one. This was a fun & twisty domestic thriller with really unlikeable characters but I was here for it. This was my first Megan Collins book but it won't be the last! 4 STARS!

Thank you NetGalley, Megan Collins, & Atria Books for this ARC!

Cross my heart was a fun read. This book kept me on my toes, just when I thought I knew who our “bad guy” was my head was thrown in another direction. Great book! Really enjoyed the emails and writings as clues.

I thought this was a great read!!! Once I finally got through the first few chapters, I spend through it!! It was so creepy and suspenseful. Thoroughly enjoyed it!!

*Thank you partner @atriabooks for the #gifted e-galley.*

Edge of my seat reading this book. I liked the set up of this book and was instantly intrigued with the emails going back and forth. Getting into the fmc’s head and her thoughts was really interesting. Nail biting and anxiety inducing read dealing with matters of the heart!

This is probably a 3.5, rounded up. The premise is great: a woman who receives a donor heart connects with her donor’s husband, becomes a bit obsessed with him, and then learns he may have been responsible for his wife’s death. And the way this book is set up is top-notch. I can’t say much without spoiling it, but it’s VERY clever. It’s been a while since I was actually surprised by a twist.

Unfortunately, I think the story loses some steam in the second half. I ripped through Part 1, but Part 2 took me a while to get through. The ending was also a bit underwhelming, especially since I had already guessed one of the reveals.

Still, this is an enjoyable, fast-paced thriller and definitely got me out of a reading rut.

I love a good steal your life plot line, but I don’t know if this one delivered quite as much as I was hoping it would. Overall, it was a quick read and kept me interested, but I guessed the twist pretty early on. Overall, I recommend this to anyone who is looking for a fast read to get out of a reading slump.

Very entertaining but the main character was a bit cringy at times and definitely a stalker. There were a few twists— one I saw coming pretty early on but the end had a surprise in store for me. Overall, this was an entertaining thriller that held my attention.

Rosie is the recipient of a heart transplant. She is pretty sure that she has received the heart of the wife of a local author, she becomes romantically obsessed with him. As she digs into his life and connects with him on DonorConnect, she becomes more interested in him but also discovers there might be secrets about his marriage that are unsettling.

Thanks to @atriabooks and @netgalley for this read!

Rating: 4/5 stars

Rosie is just looking for love…and after she receives a heart transplant she hopes that she might find love in a place familiar to her new heart—with the husband of her donor.

This one was the March pick for my book club and I’m happy to report it was a hit for me. I was entertained the whole way through, and my jaw actually dropped at some of the mid-book twists (it has been AGES since that happened to me!)

The characters were all a little awful (that is generally fine with me for a thriller!) but I was so invested in their stories anyway. I also found the epistolary format of the first half really fast-paced and fun to read, and I loved the audio production! Highly recommend this one as a unique thriller that may just make you gasp out loud.

CW: Murder/death/blood; mental illness/depression; medical content

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for an advanced copy to honestly review.

Megan Collins' Cross My Heart is a gripping psychological thriller that delves into themes of obsession, identity, and the complexities of human connection. The narrative follows Rosie Lachlan, a 32-year-old bridal shop manager in the Boston area, who, a year after being jilted at the altar, undergoes a life-saving heart transplant. She suspects her donor is Daphne Thorne, the wife of renowned author Morgan Thorne. Through an anonymous messaging service called DonorConnect, Rosie reaches out to Morgan under the guise of learning about Daphne, leading to a complex and intense correspondence.

As Rosie and Morgan's interactions deepen, she begins to uncover unsettling details about Morgan's past and his marriage to Daphne. This discovery propels Rosie into a whirlwind of emotions, blurring the lines between admiration and obsession. The novel expertly explores how vulnerability can lead individuals down unexpected and sometimes dangerous paths.

Collins' writing is both taut and emotionally charged, keeping readers on the edge of their seats. The plot is filled with unexpected twists, leading to a pulse-pounding finale that is difficult to put down. The author skillfully examines the complexities of human desires and the lengths to which individuals might go in search of connection.

Cross My Heart is a must-read for fans of psychological thrillers that dive into the intricacies of human relationships and the darker aspects of obsession. This novel offers a thought-provoking and suspenseful experience that will stay with readers long after they’ve finished it.

Obsession, stalker vibes, questionable characters… it has it all!

I went in blind & think you should too!

I went with the audio of this one & found it to be easy to follow and addicting. I didn’t want to stop listening.

*this is one that if you think about things TOO hard it might seem a bit “out there”, but the obsessive vibes really did it for me so much so I didn’t care about some of the unrealistic parts.

4.5 ⭐️