Tenderly rendered, full of wit, keenly observant of the human experience. I had to put down this book because I didn’t want to leave the world Lily King created.

There is a “reveal” (it becomes fairly transparent about a quarter of the way through the book) that may be polarizing. I don’t want to say too much, but although I was initially disappointed, Heart the Lover is so gorgeous that I didn’t care.

The ARC has an editor’s letter at the beginning, which I assume will be removed for the final publication? I would recommend skipping the editor’s letter because it alludes to the “reveal.” Although it is not super mysterious, I would have loved to have organically made the discovery.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for the ARC!

The novel follows three friends who meet in a college literature class and their relationship as they begin the early part of their adult lives. I couldn't put this down - I stayed up late to finish reading and was left crying by the devastating ending. It was nostalgic and so beautifully written.

4 stars ⭐️

Thank you NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for the ARC in exchange my honest review!

I fell into this book as soon as I opened it and it consumed me. My heart broke a few times over and tears were shed. By the end I was desperately trying to keep reading through my tears. However, there is a sense of peace coming out of this that life can still turn out right even when it goes… wrong. This is one of those books that leaves you something when you close it.

This was my first Lily King book and it won’t be my last after this. Heart the Lover was a quick read about complex relationships (read it in a day) but the depth that it’s able to achieve in such a short amount of pages is astounding.

⭐️ Plot - this was a very character driven story about love, loss and friendship set up in a peculiar format that keeps the story about said characters very interesting. I’ve never read a book quite like this, it could be borderline suspenseful/twisty at times and very straightforward at others.

⭐️ Characters - Wow. These characters jumped right off the page. Lily King wrote people that we all know. These characters were so raw, genuine and realistically flawed and frustrating . I wanted to reach through the pages and simultaneously shake and hug them all.

⭐️ The romance - It was gorgeous. Just gorgeous and also terribly heartbreaking and sad. I loved this book so much primarily because this what complex love really looks like. It was done perfectly.

⭐️ You may want to look into trigger warnings.

Overall, this was such a beautiful and poignant story. The only thing that kept it from a full five stars was that some of the parts seemed choppy to read through and other parts (especially towards the end) felt drawn out and focused on the wrong things. These issues did pull me out a bit at the end, however I appreciate that not everything went perfectly. I do feel like that hit the nail on the head regarding the theme.

Definitely recommend if you want a good cry!

Lily King has done it again. Her writing feels timeless and classic but fresh, all at once. She is an instant read for me and this might be my favorite so far.

Euphoria is in my top ten reads of the last decade and I enjoyed Writers and Lovers and Five Tuesdays in Winter, but Heart the Lover? The nostalgia, the very genuine portrayal of life changing love at that very specific age where you’re just trying to find footing in the world, where every single decision can make or break you now or twenty years down the line (but you don’t know that yet!), all of that just flew from the pages into my brain, my heart, and it’s still dancing around in there. If you’re not ready to reflect on all the decisions of your late adolescence, maybe wait on this one. But if you’re ready for the bittersweet, King’s beautiful, sparse language, and something fast paced without giving up anything on its characters, pick this one up.

Thank you to NetGalley for the e-ARC!

Heart the Lover begins as a lively coming-of-age story, made addictive by the unnamed narrator’s witty voice and the delicious tangle of her budding relationships. Twenty-five years later, she is forced to reflect on the choices she made those decades ago. Chock full of love at its most earnest, Heart the Lover is a poignant exploration of grief, fear, forgiveness, and what we risk when we fail to risk vulnerability.

I devoured this book in a day, though it might be more appropriate to say it devoured me.
The protagonist’s unassailable optimism had me rooting for her from the first lines, and the academic banter at the center of her new relationships was so much fun. I was so absorbed and hopeful, I entirely forgot the contents of the back cover, and I was not prepared for the time jump in the least.

The wreckage the second half of this book wrought was sudden and thorough. I was emotionally leveled (in the best way). I didn’t expect how much joy and heartbreak would come from experiencing a protagonist who can grieve the past without regretting it. Lily King renders human emotion with so much consideration. To her, I say — thank you so much for this book. You owe me a pack of tissues and a hug.

It's 11pm on a Saturday night. I'm the Mom of a 10 month old, so I know I have a 6:30am wake up call. But I decide to read the first chapter of Lily King's highly anticipated new novel HEART THE LOVER to get a taste before sleep. Cut to, 2am and I'm finishing the book in bed, huddled under the covers with my Kindle, everyone in the house sound asleep and I'm bawling because this novel just cut me to my core. I simply could not put it down and it made me truly emotional - which books rarely do, surprisingly.

So, with all that said, yes. I adored HEART THE LOVER. Sure, the concept is putty in my hands - a coming of age story of a girl in college in the 90s, first love and first heartbreak, following characters over 3 decades. Everything I love in a story. But when this is combined with King's incredible writing, which I can best describe as sinking into a warm pool of her words, floating between her gorgeous sentences and knowing you're safe with her and where she is going to be taking you, that is where the book soars.

I don't want to give too much away, but if you liked WRITERS & LOVERS, King's most recent book, this is a must-read for you. I loved the wit and world-building of the characters, the surprises within the plot, and the emotional highs and lows. I loved it and you will too.

Thank you for the chance to read this beautifully written and moving novel. Tightly structured, it also has the feel of a minor epic. It depicts a young woman’s coming of age, beginning when she’s at university and following her into her 50s. It touches on themes of education, friendship, love, and loss, managing to capture the complexities of a life with the lightest of touches.

It’s my first Lily King and now I can’t wait to read more! Read it if you like Sally Rooney, Donna Tartt or Sigrid Nunez,

This is one of the most memorable books I’ve read in 2025 and easily my favorite new release of the year so far.

Before this, I’d only read Euphoria by Lily King, though Father of Rain and Writers & Lovers have been on my list forever. Now I know I need to read them as soon as possible; I loved Heart The Lover that much!

The premise immediately drew me in: a campus setting, literary and philosophical references, and a story about three friends whose connection reverberates through their adult lives. I expected to enjoy the intellectual themes, but what surprised me was how deeply I connected to the emotional heart of the novel.

Despite the references to literature and philosophy, which will definitely resonate with fellow book lovers, this novel is anything but pretentious. It’s emotionally rich and completely approachable. King’s mastery of dialogue, detail, setting, and character brings every scene to life.

I flew through this and have already recommended it to friends. I even told them I’d happily reread it with them once it’s released. I loved this story, these characters, their flaws, their humanity.

The title, the structure, the second-person voice, every element is brilliantly done.

Highly recommend. Huge thanks to Grove Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

Lily King is one of my favorite writers, so I was thrilled to read Heart the Lover and it did not disappoint! We meet "Jordan", nicknamed for the Great Gatsby character, as a college student. She falls in love, and this is the story of that relationship over the decades. It's not what you think! The story gets more intriguing as it goes on. King writes so beautifully, and never predictably. I find it impossible not to be affected by her books! Loved this one and am already wishing for her next work.

I seem to be in the minority here, but Heart the Lover just wasn't for me.

There's no denying Lily King's writing is beautiful — lyrical, poignant, and at times quite immersive.

That said, I struggled with the story, especially in the latter half. Without giving away any spoilers, the decisions made by the female main character left me frustrated and disconnected. They felt so unfathomable to me that I found myself pulled out of the narrative, unable to relate or even understand her choices.

I've seen so many glowing reviews, and I wish I felt the same. But this one just didn't land. A solid 3 stars for the prose alone, but the emotional payoff I was hoping for never really came.

Thank you NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC.

This book was emotionally devastating for me, which means it was a five-star read. Lily King's writing is exactly what I want to read, every time, and I don't know why I haven't read all her books yet. What am I waiting for? I sink into her words and I don't want to leave. It took me a minute to get into this one, because I wasn't sure if I cared about this girl and her relationship with a terrible boy. But it wasn't about the terrible boy -- it was about a lovely one. I almost want to read it again right now.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance reader's copy of this novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Press for the ARC!

This really brought back so many memories of my time in Champaign! My only issue is the end of the book and the character’s decision making. No spoilers here!

Some writers, great and otherwise, you read their work and can see the mechanics, see the construction buried in the plot. Whenever I read Lily King, her work is always the opposite: dazzling and fluid and effortless. Eminently readable and at times heartbreaking, I flew through Heart the Lover in two days. The characters felt like old friends, the settings were grounded with detail, and the plot was very human. A sadder book than I'm normally compelled to pick up, but I will read anything King writes.

Oh my gosh I loved this so much. My favourite Lily King novel to date. Gorgeous, profoundly emotional, hilarious in parts (I snorted), with a heartbreaker ending. I genuinely didn't want it to end.

Heart the Lover by Lily King is a tender, emotional, and complex story about life. Told in three parts, the story follows a group of 3 friends as they navigate their relationship with each other and with their own lives.

This was my first Lily King book and although I personally found it quite hard to get into at first, I ended up devouring it, finishing it in one sitting. The three characters and their struggles just felt so real and complex, and reading about their struggles ended up evoking such strong emotions in me. The third part in particular was my favorite part of the book, it was so so emotional and extraordinarily well written.

Thank you NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for this arc!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an early copy of Heart the Lover.
I’m honestly a bit speechless right now . I think I could’ve used an entire box of Kleenex while reading the second half of this book. No book has ever made me cry this hard. Lily King, you are SO talented. I can’t believe I waited until so recently to pick up Writers and Lovers, but THANK God I did it!!! I was not expecting this gut punch of a novel to follow it. I am blown away by how REAL Casey feels. Her emotions truly feel so well developed and raw. I genuinely felt my heart breaking with hers. Well written and developed friendships in fiction are genuinely SUCH a gift, and Lily delivers that. A standing ovation from me! 5/5 stars!

2025 has been so good to me. I read Fredrik Backman’s My Friends in early January and wondered how this earth could deliver anything better this year, but a couple of reads have left me challenged. This book is a masterpiece. Let me quote the author herself…” 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 you’re reading it. Then preserves it, like a time capsule..” The way I found myself inside this novel…when you can envision climbing inside of someone else’s words and story and being truly known and seen. It was truly beautiful. I found myself setting it down at times for a moment to breathe and recover, and I also dove into certain moments and just absolutely sobbed to release the profound emotions this invoked. Sometimes I think I could write a book, and then I read something like this and feel like I know absolutely nothing. Please, for the love of all things, don’t ruin this by turning it into a movie.

Loved this book and counting down the days till publication so I can buy it for people I know.
Lily King is a writer to study and emulate. Her sentences are exquisite and she developed characters so well, I felt that I knew them. Shocking, beautiful, romantic love. If we are lucky we get it, but maybe not with the person we marry. 💔

I think the ending of which his book was one of the most touching I have experienced especially when she felt while holding Yash's hand that she actually was holding her mother's. The love between Jordan and Yash was palatable for all to see which she expressed that she has always loved him in their final moments. This book really reiterates how important it is to be present because the reader never knows what could happen next. Jordan quickly realized that her and Sam was passing but it was Yash that she found true love both physically and emotionally. She had never loved anyone like him and in Paris, she found a piece of herself missing. However, this book does raise the question if this type of love is everlasting or should one seek stability. Yash even admits to Hink that he was unsure if he could have ever married. He liked his solitude much more than a constant companion. That is why Casey met and married Silas and had two boys with him. He was safe and stable and she did love him but in a completely different way. I absolutely loved this book and will read it again as I am sure I will pick up nuances that I didn't see initially.