Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for an advanced copy of the new Lily King book! This was my first introduction to Lily King, even though I’ve had Writers & Lovers on my shelf for a while now. Definitely moving that up on my TBR. Heart the Lover is, at its core, a book about love (as you might guess from the title). It explores how love shifts and reshapes over time: from romantic to platonic, to that sharp kind of anger that’s really just love in disguise. It’s about friendships that mark you, that change you, that pull you back to a version of yourself and a moment in time that no longer exists. It’s also a book about literature. About the joy, connection, and triumph that can be found in a community of readers and writers. There’s so much longing and regret woven throughout these pages. The main character falls in love in college, and that love stretches across decades, mixed with both pain and beauty. The ending broke my heart a little, but in that satisfying way that reminds you some relationships really do transcend understanding. I loved it.

I received a copy for review. All opinions are my own. Absolutely one of my all time favorite books and I couldn’t put this down. I read it in one sitting. Such a beautiful complicated story of love and life and how it all ebbs and flows. This was so relatable when it comes to our bonds with those in our life and how we navigate the complexities of love and forgiveness. What a captivating read with amazing characters. Lily King is a literary goddess and I love her more with each book I read. I will read this book again and again because I already miss the characters.

Heart the Lover
Lily King
Grove Press 2025

Full disclaimer. I have been a devoted Lily King reader since I first read The English Teacher in 2007. Her books may tell very different stories but they share an array of characters that could walk right off the page . Characters who cut through the emotional morass of their situations to a place that makes perfect sense.

This novel is no different. Loosely connected to her last book, Writers and Lovers, (although I didn’t realize it until the end), this book explores the impact of a first, all-consuming love on the trajectory of one’s life.

The narrator is in her last year of college when she becomes involved in the lives of roommates, Sam and Yash, from her seventeenth century lit class. They are serious students living an intense academic life in the elegant home of a professor on sabbatical. She becomes their third wheel. They name her Jordan, the character from the Great Gatsby, and through them she finds friendship, love, and a literary awakening. They may have lofty ideas but they are young and before long Jordan finds herself in a complicated triangle. As they move on in their lives, the choices made at this pivotal time shapes their future lives.

The book spans three decades. In the latter part of the book, we see how their lives have been shaped by the past. Until there is an attempt at closure, the pain and bad decisions will haunt the future. It ends on the perfect note—forgiveness can be transformative.

Yash is an original character. He is joyful, ambitious, smart, tender and yet he is unable to go after what he really wants and needs. Jordan, the narrator, is a fully realized woman who has achieved her dream to be a successful writer, has a rich life with a loving family, yet is haunted by secrets from that part of her life.

I highly recommend this novel.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Grove Press for the opportunity to read this advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.






f

i relate to this book because i, too, got involved with terrible, pretentious men in college and it set the tone for the rest of my future. it's the quintessential college girl experience, and this book encapsulated it very well.

I enjoyed the complexity of the characters and the way this was written but it just felt like something was missing. I read this so so fast which was great but it also felt like the story progressed a bit too fast maybe. Still I connected to the characters and felt for them and what they were going through. I just wish we got to see more from everyone.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this arc!

I loved everything about this gorgeously written, exquisitely paced book. The plot, the reveals, the dialogue, and the emotions were all perfect. There is so much depth packed into this short novel. Lily King consistently delivers on emotive, thought-provoking literary fiction.

Told in three parts, the plot follows two characters over the course of a decades long complex and changing relationship. It’s a book about friendships, relationships, sex, love, and choices. I found myself gutted at the end and wanting to immediately read it all over again.

Put this on your to to-read lists for when it’s released in October. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review an advanced reader copy of this book.

Excellent book. The dialogue and feelings all felt real, especially in the first third, like when we get to hear about her discomfort at Sam's house, and her thoughts about Yash before they're together (imagining them being friends in the future and being sad when that seems less likely; wanting to make their conversation count before Sam gets home; "I like that I'll know where Yash is in the fall"). Loved when she doesn't want to look at Yash in front of Sam so she taps her knife two times and he taps back. At first I though the end was too heartstring-tugging (in that This Is Us style where it feels a little too purposeful), but it worked, and I realize it probably had to end that way thematically.

My god, Lily King can do no wrong. I was laughing and crying and then laughing and then crying throughout this book.

I am in love with the way Lily King writes, and this book had so many stirring lines and beautiful imagery. I could not put this book down, and I can say with full confidence it will be another one of my favorites. The characters were so well-developed, and the structure of the book and the timing of the reveals were perfect. No one does characterization like Lily King—even background characters have depth and presence. It captures the essence of first love wonderfully as well as the way love matures as you grow older. Easiest five-star rating of the year.

Do we get official rules for Sir Hincomb Funnibuster when the book is released??

Thank you Grove Atlantic for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

"'You know how you can remember exactly when and where you read certain books? A great novel, a truly great one, not only captures a particular fictional experience, it alters and intensifies the way you experience your own life while reading it. And it preserves it, like a time capsule.'"

Lily King's Heart the Lover was one of those rare books for me in that, while I was reading it, it seemed that the rest of the world fell away and I was so much in the moment that I'm sure I will be able to recall the specific day when I read it (and yes, I did read it in a day -- I started it just before bed on Sunday evening and finished it before bed on Monday). There are three main players in this book: the narrator and two men she meets in a creative writing class in college, Sam and Yash. They call her Jordan, after the character in The Great Gatsby. She begins dating Sam, but that relationship doesn't last the year, and when she decides to delay her graduation to pursue a thesis, she can't deny her growing attraction to Yash or his attraction to her. But there are romantic relationships and there are friendships, and when the two collide, things become even more complicated. Years later, all three have moved on and the narrator has achieved success as a published writer when Yash comes back into her life. And when tragic news brings all three back together, they are all forced to confront how they handled things decades ago. This is one of those books where not that much happens but the beauty is in the characters and how they interact with one another. The author does such a stunning job of looking at love, friendship, forgiveness, and personal growth. I'll admit I cried at the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Press for providing me with an ARC of this book in return for an honest review. This book will be published October 7, 2025.

Wow. Heart the Lover is a beautiful but brutal story of love, friendship and grief which will stay with me long after I’ve finished reading.

The story follows our unnamed (nicknamed: Jordan) main character and her journey through college, her relationships and into her adult life. King’s writing immersed me immediately, jumping straight into ‘Jordan’s’ life.

I loved the style of writing which jumped straight in, and while has some beautifully written segments, was also starkly straight forward and almost blunt in segments which felt so raw and real.

I completely fell in love with the characters, despite a lot of their floors, and found myself wanting to spend more time with them.

Would really recommend, thank you NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for the ARC!

Lily King’s writing is undeniably strong, and I can see why so many readers love her work. This one just wasn’t quite to my taste. That said, I appreciated the introspective tone and thoughtful prose, even if the story didn’t fully land for me.

Heart the Lover is a story of love, friendship, loss, grief, growing up and finding yourself.
In the first part of the book we follow our main character and narrator, nicknamed Jordan, at university. She discovers her interest in writing and becomes part of a friendship group that results in a love triangle. In the second part of the book, she is somewhere in her early 40's and living with her husband and children when she gets a visit from a long lost love. We learn more about what happened in between and how she is doing now.
Part three takes place another few years later, when the complexities of life take central stage, and she is forced to face her past and the choices she made.
I love how we watch her grow and learn in each part of the book. This is a quiet one, a character-driven story, with lots of depth and emotion. There's also a wonderful link to Writers & Lovers, one of my all time favourite books.
I absolutely loved this and I sobbed throughout the entire third part, but still came out hopeful somehow.

"Heart The Lover" did not live up to expectations. I was so excited about this new book by Lily King and I am so disappointed. All the characters are unbearable and not in a good way. Sam was very underused and his character had potential.

I haven’t ever read anything by this author so I wasn’t sure what to expect going in, but I found that I really loved her writing style and the way that she made the characters come alive through her words.

Always will be a huge fan of Lily King. Writers and Lovers and Five Tuesdays in Winter were both fantastic reads. However, I had a difficult time connecting with the characters in this story, which was the same feeling I had after finishing Lily King’s Euphoria.

I saw so many glowing reviews of this book on Goodreads, so, I could be the minority here but, with how heavy the subject matter of the latter half of this story was, I felt it was a bit lackluster.

I’m definitely going to pick up Father of the Rain sometime soon and anything King may write in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Overall, beautifully written with lots of impactful moments to take away. I’d love to hear some interviews with the author closer to pub day with her reasoning behind the structure and format of this book because you never feel connected to the FMC. We don’t learn her name until the last sentence of the book. I know there is reason for that!

This book packs a punch! Lots of reflections on life, love, and loss.

I adored this: the follow-up AND prequel I didn't know I wanted or needed to Writers and Lovers. Lily King doesn't miss!

This one felt like sinking into a deeply familiar yet challenging love affair. King’s prose is as delicate as it is powerful, capturing those bittersweet moments when love feels both transformative and destructive. I was moved by the honesty with which the characters confront their desires and the inevitable heartache that follows—no sugarcoating, just raw, genuine emotion.

I’d wholeheartedly recommend this to anyone who enjoys literary romance that makes you think as much as it makes you feel.
Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5)

As a huge fan of Lily King's "Writers & Lovers," I was super excited for "Heart the Lover" and it delivered. Lily King truly masters her style of beautiful, pared-down writing that cuts straight to the heart of things?

The characters felt so genuine and the connections were unbelievably beautiful. Seriously, this book is beautiful and deeply moving. I could have read this book in a single sitting if I had the time. I devoured this!

Definitely recommend this one. If you love Lily King, you'll love this. This would have been 5 stars at the end but some of the content matter toward the end was something I typically avoid (especially as a mother). I completely understand why the author chose to incorporate it, just felt a little too forced and traumatic for my personal preference.