He’s a Hozier coded musician. She’s a fiercely independent med student.
Setting: Galway
Trope: Second chance romance
Tears: some
Yearning: immense

They couldn’t make it work the first time. Well, less couldn’t and more barely even tried. He was getting signed with a major label and moving to London. She was just starting med school in Galway and barely had time to eat, much less navigate a long-distance relationship with a rising star. Their decisions left them both feeling hurt.

Now, years later, a wedding brings them back together. Lo doesn’t waste time on second chances. But Aiden has spent the last two years writing songs about the one that got away and he’s not about to let her slip through his fingers again.

I enjoyed this one quite a bit. It sits firmly in the better half of my second chance romance pile. I love a man who yearns and Aiden delivered. I didn’t initially love Cielo but her arc had me warming to her by the end.

Lo’s mom was so annoying and the way Lo always conceded to her bothered me. There were a few scenes that were too cheesy for me (if a man ever took me to his bedroom at his PARENTS’ HOUSE to sing a song he wrote for me, I'd jump out the window). And the smut was not really my thing.

I will be absolutely coming back for Saoirse’s story.

Thank you Putnam and Netgalley for the eARC!

4.5 stars!!! This love story was absolutely adorable! I loved the culture and Irish aspects and seeing Lark and Callum again! This is a second chance, forced proximity story. The FMC is a fierce warrior determined to not ruin her cousins wedding by having to see her musician ex, she’s also a medical student so I love seeing the stem aspect. The MMC is an Irish musician who’s torn between his muse and his career but his love for her does stop and he is swoon worthy. Their story was sweet, fun, lighthearted, and pulled on my heartstrings. Highly recommend.

This is a spicy, and heartfelt second installment in the Love in Galway series. It's an interconnected standalone, you can read it out of order, but the couple from book one features pretty heavily here.

Cielo (or “Lo”), an American med student and expat living in Ireland, is the maid of honor at her best friend’s storybook wedding. The only problem? Her ex, Aiden, an Irish, rising-star musician, is the best man.

I don’t usually go for second-chance romances, but this one won me over with its blend of heartfelt emotion, a touch of medical drama, popstar glam, and an absolutely swoon-worthy Irish castle setting.

If you enjoyed Morbidly Yours with its mortuary humor and over-the-top fun, you’ll appreciate the subtle nods here, this time with a ‘dose’ of musical wordplay. This is a super enjoyable addition to the series, and it plants the seed that a rivals-to-lovers romance might be coming next in the Love in Galway series.

Spice: 4/5
Plot:4.5/5
Writing: 4.5/5
My Enjoyment: 4.5/5

Cielo “Lo” Valdez doesn’t believe in second chances. Surviving cancer taught her life is too short to spend time on someone who wronged you. But Aidan O’Toole is determined to show her life is best spent together. When the tough-as-nails Texan moved to Galway for medical school, she wasn’t looking for love. Aidan, a gorgeous, tattooed, mandolin-playing lawyer, slipped past her defenses. They each fell hard and fast. But when Aidan was given the opportunity of a lifetime—to move to London and record an album—he took it, breaking Lo's heart. Yet more than two years and a successful album later, every song he writes is still about her, the one he let get away. And every time Lo hears his voice on the radio singing about love, it’s an arrow straight to her soul. Now they’re on a collision course as maid of honor and best man at a weekend-long Irish castle wedding. Are some mistakes worth forgiving? Can Aidan convince Lo their song wasn’t meant to end?

Thoughts
I love a good Irish love story. This was a fun follow up to Lark and Cal’s story. Had some heavy undertones but generally lighthearted and sweet. This got some good chuckles out of me and who doesn’t love a sweet Irish musician. Looking forward to Saoirse story next.

Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.75 stars)

Another second-chance romance to add to my ever-growing collection! This story transported me right back to Galway—clearly, I’m in my Ireland era, and I have no regrets. After falling in love with Morbidly Yours, this follow-up gave me a soft spot for revisiting familiar characters and scenery.

The novel picks up a few years after Lo and Aidan’s breakup. Their relationship ended when Aidan moved to London to pursue his music career, leaving behind a love that neither of them truly got over. Now, reunited for Callum and Lark’s wedding, Lo and Aidan are forced to confront not only each other but the heartbreak they never fully healed from.

Both characters had valid reasons for walking away years ago, but time has a funny way of bringing clarity—and possibly second chances. The emotional tension, slow reconnection, and the underlying question of “Is love worth the risk again?” made for a compelling, heartfelt read.

Lo felt especially relatable. As a hyper-independent woman who avoids asking for help and puts up walls to protect her heart, her internal struggles hit close to home. Watching Aidan work to break through those defenses to earn her trust back was both sweet and satisfying. Their personal growth was one of my favorite elements of the story.

I did feel the writing was more polished than in Morbidly Yours, though there were still moments—especially in the dialogue—that felt a bit uneven or unrealistic. That said, the emotional payoff was strong enough that I rounded this up to a solid 3.75 stars.

All in all, this was a lovely book. And fingers crossed that Saoirse gets her own story next!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group for the e-ARC!

First off I loved Morbidly yours when I read it a few years ago. Heart Strings was a cute follow up. Second chance romances aren’t normally my thing but I loved the first in this series so I gave it a shot.

Lo is an independent woman, med student, and cancer survivor. Aiden is singer-songwriter that is starting to hit his stride after his first album was a hit. They have to survive their best friends’ wedding after their breakup 2 years ago. But they quickly realize they both still love each other.

The yearning in the book happened in the past so meh for that because I love some yearning. I did love Aiden and how open and communicative he was, Lo on the other hand took being independent to the extreme some times.

The speaker scene was surprisingly spicy.

While I didn’t love it as much as the first book in the series it was still cute and I plan on reading the next in the series as well.

“We can face whatever the future holds together when the time comes, but in this moment, we’re safe. We’re home. We’re not alone anymore.” –Aidan O'Toole 🥹❤️

Wow! This was my first Ivy Fairbanks experience, and I officially love her. (Yes, I’m absolutely going back to read Morbidly Yours next..) Lo and Aidan’s second chance relationship felt so special. I loved the nuanced portrayal of a cancer survivor female protagonist and a self-made rising musician navigating fame. Somehow, they fit together perfectly—Lo’s raw vulnerability and sharp logic balanced beautifully with Aidan’s golden-retriever, head-over-heels energy. The dreamy setting, the stunning cover, the emotional depth… this book had it all!
5/5. A new favorite 💫
BTW I can't wait for the Saoirse lore!

I haven’t read the first book in the series, but I feel that I was given enough information to follow along. And spot the set up for a third book in the series. This book was fine. I think I have read too many romances of musicians and a love interest with a chronic illness/diagnosis. So unfortunately, this book just didn’t stand out as memorable for me. The spicy scene with the ribbon and with the speaker was interesting though.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC!

“Being the inspiration for a hit love song is my villain origin story.”

Another hit from Ivy Fairbanks. I adore the Galway series.

Cielo is a fantastic FMC - she is headstrong and fiercely independent, but learns to open her heart to second chances.

Aidan and Cielo have great chemistry and banter. The longing was so good! We love a man that yearns!

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read and review this book early!
I loved Morbidly Yours and was foaming at the mouth to dive into this one.

It is well written and kept me involved, the pacing was great. I'm not too sure how I feel about Aiden and Lo, though. I couldnt connect myself as much as I could in Morbidly Yours. I will still definitely recommend it to people looking for something with the same tropes though!

Let me start by saying that Morbidly Yours was my top read of 2024, so getting the chance to travel back to Galway was a dream (and getting to see Callum and Lark get married? The icing on the cake!)

Our MCs are characters we know and having read Morbidly Yours, it was fun to get to see where their story has been over the couple years between books. To say the least, they’re both surviving, not thriving. Pushed back together after years of no communication to help with C&Ls wedding, feelings and attraction are brought to the surface and things left unsaid are finally spoken.

I will say that I didn’t feel the same connection to Ceilo and Aidan as I did Callum and Lark, and that their coupling was a bit harder to connect with. It was interesting to see their own personal journeys, how they grew while apart and how they wanted to grow together. You are rooting for them to pull their heads out of their arses though, and to figure it out. Once again, the setting of Galway (I town I’ve been fortunate enough to go to twice and absolutely loved) made for a great backdrop to their story and this story had some great, touching moments, as well as some hapless, funny, and LOL ones.

I will add though, TW (and spoilers!!) for the big C discussions.

All said, I’m so glad to have read this story and to have spent the time back with this crew. I can’t wait to see where Ivy will bring us next!

Thank you so much Putnam Books, Ivy Fairbanks and NetGalley for the opportunity to ARC read this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and thank you to the publisher for the chance to review this ARC. Full review coming soon.

Review: I am so, so sad to say that this fell flat for me. While I absolutely loved Aidan, I was not the biggest fan of Cielo as a character. To me, it felt like she just kept expecting the worse from everyone, so she never provided them the chance to do anything else. I did enjoy the banter between the two and how much Aidan loved Cielo and his family, I just didn’t fully buy the relationship between the two. It often felt very one sided to me. Like Aidan couldn’t forget Cielo because he loved her still and Cielo couldn’t forget Aidan because she was still mad they broke up.

Synopsis: She doesn’t do second chances. But he's not done writing their song.

Cielo “Lo” Valdez doesn’t believe in second chances. Surviving cancer at seventeen taught her life is too short to spend time on someone who wronged you. But Aidan O’Toole is determined to show her life is too long not to spend it together.

When the tough-as-nails Texan moved to Galway for medical school, she wasn’t looking for love. Aidan, a gorgeous tattooed mandolin-playing lawyer, slipped past her defenses. They each fell hard and fast. But when Aidan was given the opportunity of a lifetime—to move to London and record an album—he took it, breaking Lo's heart. Yet more than two years and a successful album later, every song he writes is still about her, the one he let get away. And every time Lo hears his voice on the radio singing about love, it’s an arrow straight to her soul.

Now they’re on a collision course as maid of honor and best man at Lo’s cousin’s wedding. Are some mistakes worth forgiving? Can Aidan convince Lo their song wasn’t meant to end?

This super cute, second chance romance is sure to be a hit for rom-com fans. My main gripe was that the miscommunication trope didn't seem to work. I'll still recommend it to my romance fans though!

Loved this book! It was so fun seeing glimpses of the characters from Morbidly Yours, as well as learning about Lo and Aiden’s second chance romance. I absolutely adored Aiden, Lo a little less so. I didn’t love that she let others seemingly rule over her life when she’s an adult, though I can see where it comes from. I do hate miscommunication and could tell they previously broke up and hated each other for really stupid reasons, but it made for a fun reconciliation.

Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for allowing me to read this ARC!
I am a big big fan of Morbidly Yours the first book in the series which is why I was super excited to read more about this little universe.
Cielo “Lo” Valdez doesn’t believe in second chances, especially not after Aidan O’Toole broke her heart chasing his music dreams. But two years later, every song he sings is still about her, and fate throws them back together as best man and maid of honor at Lark and Callum's wedding.
I'm disappointed to say that this one did not work out for me /:
I honestly did not vibe with the main characters. Lo is quite annoying (sorry!!) and I was not enjoying reading the numerous meltdowns. In my opinion their conflict could have been fixed with good communication, like just sit down and talk guys !
I'll still be looking forward to anything Ivy writes, I'm sure the next book will be for me!

This was very much liked. It was a story i did not want to put down. A second chance romance gets me to believe in love happening again for two people. There was lots of feelings with this story.

Heart Strings by Ivy Fairbanks is the follow up romance to her first book Morbidy Yours, following Cielo “Lo” and Aidan as they come together for Lily and Callum’s wedding, despite their own romantic fall out.

When I was approved for the arc of this novel, I was so excited and stopped everything to read it. This novel was such a good read just like its predecessor and I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys romances.

I would like to thank Netgalley and GP Putnam and sons for the advanced reader electronic copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and G. P. Putnam’s Sons for the ARC! This was such a lovely second chance romance, and I’m giving it a solid 4 stars. Lo and Aiden reunite at a wedding in a Scottish castle, years after a whirlwind romance and a painful breakup. The setting is dreamy, the chemistry is still there, and their emotional journey felt both real and satisfying. I loved the dual POV, the little moments of humor (shoutout to Aunt Sharon and Aiden’s prank-loving siblings), and seeing familiar faces from Morbidly Yours.

Lo’s backstory as a cancer survivor gave her character real depth, and I appreciated how the story let both her and Aiden grow individually before finding their way back to each other. Their reconnection wasn’t rushed or overly dramatic—it felt natural, honest, and earned. The family dynamics, wedding chaos, and emotional tension all blended together in a way that made me fly through the pages.

Overall, it’s heartfelt, fun, and filled with charm. I’m definitely looking forward to the next read especially if we get more of Saoirse, who completely stole the show in her scenes. I totally recommend!

Ivy Fairbanks has an uncanny ability to weave romance books that have never been seen before. She creates stories that are unique to the multitude of other romance books. In this day and age, that is a nearly impossible feat, but she executes it perfectly. While I didn't fall head-over-heels in love with this couple in comparison to the first book's couple, I still love the author's writing style and plots. I'm a cynic towards second chance romance, but I'm a die hard Ivy Fairbanks fan.