Thank you, NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

After reading "Morbidly Yours," I knew I was a Fairbanks fan. I absolutely loved the writing, and this is no different. There's nothing I love more than a second chance with a dual POV, and this had both! Cielo and Aidan are adorable, and I loved this book's humor, wit, and heart. Cielo is a Cancer survivor and a medical student. She was written as a vulnerable yet resilient badass and is very relatable to many people out there. Aidan is committed to winning Cielo back, and after reading what went wrong, he is the embodiment of "if he wanted to, he would. " This man wrote an entire album for her. Like, who does that?? Aidan does.

I loved their story, and it's one for those who know. You're still tied through an invisible string even if you're not together. Something I do wish we had was a dual timeline. Although I'm not the biggest fan of it, it would have provided us more insight into what was wrong and why at that age.

We also get a little peek into the lives of Lark and Callum (characters from Ivy's first book), and I was here for it.


Read if you like:
- Dual POV
- Muscian x med student
- Second chance

When you read the description and it sounds like there's a lot going on at once, that's because there is. But not in a bad way! Ivy Fairbanks did a wonderful job navigating this and building the present-tense world of Lo and Aidan, through the lens of Callum and Lark's wedding. I really enjoyed seeing the little interactions between Lo and Aidan, but wish there was more build-up of their past relationship to strengthen their backstory. Overall, if you like spicy scenes and dual first-person POV, you'll probably eat this up!

I really liked Morbidly Yours, so I was excited by the prospect of reading the next installment. Unfortunately, this book did not live up to my expectations whatsoever. The premise is based on the FMC being upset/jaded/haunted by her ex, who become a C-list celebrity based on his love and breakup songs about her. So you'd be expecting a little bit of groveling on his end when they get back together, or even a sit down to discuss what went wrong, right? Nope. They get back together after about .2 seconds, barely mentioning the reason they broke up in the first place, but letting it continue to hang over their heads for the next 60% of the book. This is coupled by the fact that there's little to no backstory/flashbacks/etc to give us any sort of context or tension between them, so you aren't really given a clue as to why she was so jaded (for the first 30 pages, anyways), nor do you feel any spark between them when they abruptly get back together like nothing was wrong. Basically, the whole buildup portion is nonexistent, which is why I usually want to pick up this genre in the first place.

On top of that, there are way too many plot lines and conflicts that the FMC is dealing with (most of which could've been solved by her being an adult and talking with everyone) that made it hard for me to really take her seriously- she has issues with her mom, her dad, her health, the MMC, the MMC's manager, and herself. All of these kept interrupting the very bare bones romance that was already having a hard time keeping me interested.

Lastly, the writing felt extremely stilted and "tell-not-show." I had this issue with Morbidly Yours as well, but the plot held up by itself (and I loved the MMC) so it wasn't as big of a deal.

While not a 100% disaster that necessitates any lower of a rating, I was really hoping for this to match Lark/Callum's story, and was pretty bummed that it didn't.

Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam for the ARC in exchange for an honest review 🐑

What to expect from this book:
✂️ He wrote an entire album about her
🎶 Cancer survivor who is going to school to be a doctor
✂️ Exes to lovers
🎶 She’s in control but he’s possessive
✂️ Binding kink
🎶 Dual first-person POV
✂️ 5 open door spicy scenes

“To the ones worth waiting for” 🥂

This is the second book in the Love in Galway series. While it could be read as a standalone, it makes more sense if you read book 1 (Morbidly Yours) first. Heart Strings takes place 2+ years after the end of Morbidly Yours.

Cielo “Lo” is an American living in Ireland while she goes through Med School. Aidan is a singer/songwriter from Galway (born in Cork), and Lo’s ex.

Since their breakup, Lo has done her best to avoid all traces of Aidan…which is hard to do since he has a song (written about her) that is on the radio. But when Lo’s cousin Lark marries Aidan’s friend Callum, Lo and Aidan are bound as maid of honor and best man—bound being the operative word! 🥵

Still guarded with hurt surrounding their breakup, Lo and Aidan decide if giving it another go would be a good idea or if they should leave the past in the past. What will become of their apology tour?

————————————

You know what? I wasn’t into this book for the first 30%. It wasn’t bad or anything, it just wasn’t clicking with me for some reason. But that changed during the last 70%. I liked the dynamic between the two main characters. The relationship conflicts between Lo and her parents was a nice side plot. The book isn’t without faults, but overall I thought this was a fun read. I even liked this book more than the first.

Thank you to NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons and Ivy Fairbanks for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.75 stars Overall I thought this was a good read. I loved that we got to see Lark and Cal’s wedding. What was a miss for me was that there wasn’t a real glimpse into the initial relationship between Aiden and Lo. It was only briefly mentioned. Initially I had a hard time buying into their love story. Also, I feel that Lo’s character came off as annoying to me. However, Aiden was very likable. There were a lot of parallels to his story of being a musician to other books I have read from other authors so I felt there was a lack of originality there. I did enjoy it overall but I felt it was a miss in comparison to Morbidly Yours. I will read the third one when that is finished though.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

I loved the first book in the series, so was very happy to get an early arc of the sequel.

Cute overall, but really, really slow, that the reconnection between characters took quite some time to get into.

Great read! I didn't expect to love Aiden as much as I did. He was the best part, and I loved the way their stories came together.

It was hard describing this book in quick little soundbites because there’s a lot going on in it, which I find to be one of Ivy Fairbanks’ strengths as a writer. The main character, Cielo (Lo), is the maid of honor at her friend Lark’s wedding, and has to work with the best man, Callum, for a week, Of course the catch is that Callum is her famous ex-boyfriend who has written and performed and album full of love songs about the two of them, It’s very fun to watch the two rekindle their romance in a castle in Galway. They have tons of chemistry, and it’s easy to see how well they fit together. Ivy Fairbanks also does a great job of writing about their sexual preferences, and particularly about their interest in domination and submission during sex. Another big issue that Fairbanks portrays is cancer. Lo is a nurse, and deals with sick patients, and has also been in remission from cancer. Callum’s little sister is in remission as well. But there’s a cancer scare and Lo has a tough relationship with her parents. The emotion of the book isn’t just about the romance—it’s about how Callum and Lo can learn to trust each other and be there for each other through some hard times. Overall, I found the characters to be really likable, and this was an engaging book.

Thank you NetGalley for the free digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ivy Fairbanks is a new favorite of mine. I recently read Morbidly Yours and was so excited to get an advanced reader copy for Heart Strings to read her follow up. Did not disappoint, think I like it even better than Morbidly Yours!! Rooted for Lo and Aiden so bad! I’m a huge sucker for second chance romances and this was chefs kiss. As a bonus, really nice, well-thought our representation. More like this, please!!

A quick, spicy, second chance romance between a Latina med student and a rising Irish musician with the backdrop of Galway.

This could have checked all the boxes for me but unfortunately it was a worse reading experience than Morbidly Yours.

I was about 25% into the first book of this Galway series when I saw that the ARC for Heart Strings was available, and since I was enjoying Morbidly Yours up to that point, I decided to request the sequel. But the issues that I had in Morbidly Yours became even more of an issue in Heart Strings.

My biggest gripe with these books is the amount of telling that happens. Constantly being reminded of the characters romantic goals every single chapter was baffling. I just read the previous chapter, why are you telling me yet again that you have to do anything and everything to win her back/keep him away?

For a romance book, I found the romance to be a little lacking. I honestly don't understand what Cielo sees in Aiden. She has one line where stating that "Aiden gave me the permission to live in a moment perfectly imperfect" that left me like ??? Is that it? Because everything else about him that she likes is physical. To the point where upon seeing him for the first time again post break up, two years later, she judges his physical looks harshly. He changed his appearance because his management was advising him to but she did not know that. He could have been insecure about certain things and chose to change them and that is his right. Its his body. Its been two years! People change! But shes upset because his beard hides his dimples and he might be wearing an Invisalign. "He's not the Aiden I fell in love with". Idk maybe you didn't really love him as much as you thought if some facial hair, a tan, and straight teeth changes your opinion of him 🤷🏼‍♀️ but anyways that happens in chapter 6 and soured my impression of Cielo. I understand she's still hurting over the breakup but idk yall. Its been 2 years and they dated for 6 months. The intensity of their feelings, especially the more you read, is so physically charged that I never came around to rooting for them on a deep level (There are like 5 or 6 sex scenes and they were meh).

Aiden had his music career but all his music is about Cielo. Every other waking thought was about Cielo and how he can grovel. And don't get me wrong, I love a good man trying his hardest but not Aiden O'Toole. I found him annoying. I love that my partner is obsessed with me but not like this. Like he kept calling her babe and multiple times Cielo says she is not his babe. And yet he insists. I don't find that cute at all. He's pushy. Theres one scene where he encourages her estranged father: "don't give up on her because she's stubborn". I think aiden should mind his business tbfh. He sees Cielo's dad trying and empathizes but, personally, I don't think its his place to go behind her back and tell her father that. Cielo can and does figure it out at her own pace. That man showed up to a family event as a surprise. Its so inconsiderate. Mind your business, Aiden. Mind your business. He just gave me all around ick.

The main characters in the previous books weren't the best but they were alot more endearing; I was happy they got together at the end. With Cielo and Aiden, I think they needed to see other people.

There are moments where Cielo and Aiden interact with family and friends and I thought those were much more interesting than whatever type of hot/heavy mess they had going on.

Overall, I didn't have a great time and sadly can't recomend it. But it was a quick read and the cover is neat.

The next book is about Saoirse, a character I've liked in both books so I am going to give this series and author one more try. But based on the two books I've read so far, this author is not for me.

Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons for the eARC.

This is a quick easy read but with all the feels. Cielo is a medical resident student in Ireland after visiting her cousin, when her boyfriend and current music star-Aidan returns to town. for his best friend and her cousin are getting married. They maid of honor and best man for the wedding so of course they will be circling each others' orbits. Will they rekindle the romance? The chemistry is off the charts between these two, but getting them to work through the complexities of their relationship is the journey. Can they make it work.?

I enjoyed this one even more than Morbidly Yours! Cieilo and Aidan were a compelling couple and their journey back to each other was fun to read!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

Singer Aidan and med student Cielo dated 2 years ago before an abrupt breakup, when they are brought back together for their best friends wedding and 2 years of songs written about her unfolds into this absolutely delicious rom com. Ivy Fairbanks has a uniqueness to her writing where she takes what we expect in romance novels and adds elements that are so individual to her works. I adored these characters and the pining and the care they had for each other was just delightful. This was fun and heartwarming and kind of everything you’d want out of a romance. I do think, though, that if cancer is a trigger, this might be a difficult read as it plays a part in Cielos past.

I got to the 50% mark fairly easily, but then it took me a while to finish it, so I would give it a 3.5!

Firstly, from the book description, I thought Cielo was going to be a bitch, excuse my language. However, thankfully, I had misunderstood her severely. While I was reading, I realized that she has just been through so much and has a lot of expectations on her, both from the people around her, like her mother, as well as herself. She is an ambitious woman and I related so hard to her sometimes when it comes to expectations and even just overall, obviously minus the romance part 🤭. Her character, her demeanor, the way she handles the problems in her life was so inspiring.

Aidan was such a sweet guy. Honestly, giving goals! He wrote songs about their relationships which I think is so cute. The way he took care of his family was sweet and the way he wanted to just write songs.

The relationship dynamic was nice. I did feel a little bit of insta-love and insta-lust elements, but I didn't mind it too much. I wish there was more angst.

Overall, I definitely would recommend this book. It is book 2 in the series, but idk if it's standalone or not. I felt like I could understand everything, so maybe consider reading book 1 first for more info about some of the other characters.

Second chance is literally such a good trope and you couldn't ever tell me that it wouldn't hit!

Thank you to Ivy Fairbanks, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, and Netgalley for this arc! 💕

I was invited to read this book early, and let me tell you—I’m so glad I did! I loved Morbidly Yours, but I actually liked this one better! I think it’s totally doable to be read as a standalone, but you should still read the first one for my favorite meet cute of all time. Second chance romance isn’t always my favorite, but I really liked this story. And that hearse scene…amazing! 😂 I loved the way they grew together, and this book not only had the humor mixed in that I loved, but it was also very emotional. Loved it!

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Loved how it connected to morbidly yours! A great, fun, and spicy follow up to it. Adored the character cameos as well! However I don’t think you need to read the first to read this one if you haven’t!

I gave this a 4 rather than 5 due to me not being as invested in the characters and story. This was still enjoyable though and I’ll recommend it, but it didn’t impact me as much as the first one.

Second chance romance was a nice touch here and done well. However I wish I saw more about their relationship developing and glimpses of the “before, during and after.” I wanted to see more yearning and fighting for eachother, developing overtime etc, but they got back together quite fast I think.

I really enjoyed this second novel. It had a lot of laugh out loud moments. I like how it is still in the same universe as the first. Im looking forward to more in the A Love in Galway series.

I love love loved the first book in this series, Morbidly Yours. And I wanted to love love love this one. And I just didn’t. To be sure Ivy Fairbanks is a good writer. Her characters are full and complex. This second chance novel just didn’t connect with me. Lo and Adían are adorable in the last novel and start of as exes in this one. But the enemies part is not believable. So you spend a fair amount of time wondering why these two adult people didn’t have an adult conversation about the break up. Because I think the writer is top notch I give it 4 stars. If you like second chance (and Irish) rom coms with heart, then give it a shot. You might love it. I read an ARC.

Fun, spicy read! Great follow-up to Morbidly Yours. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

An easy-breezy second-chance romance that was well written and very readable, but it lacked the angst I prefer in a second-chance romance.

I found that the first-person present POV didn’t allow for either Lo or Aidan to have much depth as characters, and there was too much telling vs showing within their inner monologues.

This isn’t a bad book by any means - as my rating reflects - but it didn’t jump to the top of my second-chance list either.

Thank you to Penguin Group and NetGalley for the ARC!