I love best friends brother type of stories! This one was so good. I thought it was a little slow but picked up perfectly! Such a good story!

This was such a fun read! Although I will say our 2 main female characters got annoying at times. We have Eva who are best friends with Maddie and they have been best friends forever. Maddie is planning a rushed wedding and who didn’t expect bridezilla to come out. Eva is present for literally everyone and no one is there for her. I was angry for her. She is an amazing friend.

Maddie has had a crush on her best friend’s older brother and we know that screams drama. Our main male character is shown in the light of being arrogant and selfish but it’s only a front. He tries to be strong for the woman he loves. Which to me is justifiable.

I really enjoyed how the book went full circle to the place everyone spent a core memory from high school. Although I was hoping the epilogue gave me closure but only gave it an excellent cliff hanger for a second book. (I hope)

Kat please don’t have us waiting too long for another book.


Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spicy: 🌶️

Thank you Net Galley for the ARC!

This book is a great break from my usual fare of
international Murder & suspense.
I enjoyed the backdrops and themes.
The characters are well developed and they are
all well written with lots to look forward to in future books.
Eve was fine, if not a bit older than you usual
for still letting a high school kiss plague her.
The theme ot controlling ,messed up parents
while new did provide support for the kids
having all kinds of trouble picking mates.
While there are no shocking spoilers. the
conclusion was what I’d suspected.
I’m perhaps past the ‘sell but date’ for this
genre but I completely enjoyed the story.
My thanks to Atria Books via NetGalley for,the
download of the book for review purposes.

this was a good one from the start. must read and really enjoyed this from page one. I am loving this author more and more. Every book does it for me.

Solid 4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
2.5 🌶️🌶️

Eva and Ashton really got me out of a reading slump after a crappy book! The angst between the two was insane
Neither could get out of their own way but was so glad when everything exploded and they had to put themselves back together to be able to be with each other!
Can’t wait to see who gets their family ever after in Cinnamon Springs next! 💕

I just got done reading How to Break My Heart by Kat T. Masen, which is an ARC (Advance Reader Copy) provided by Artia Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My feelings about the book are a bit mixed, as the beginning really was not great but it did finish stronger than expected. The story follows Eva Woods as she navigates planning her best friend Maddy’s wedding with Maddy’s billionaire older brother, Aston Beaumont. Eva and Aston have some history that doesn’t seem to be resolved when they see each other for the first time after his high school graduation, eight years later. The plot was very much like a Hallmark movie, but with some spice added in. I wasn’t a huge fan of some of the language used, as I felt it was immature and objectifying. There’s also way too many sexual references that I just found unnecessary. The first half of the book felt superficial, with minimal depth to the characters. The second half of the book does get a littler deeper and the last quarter at least kept me wanting to read. Overall I can’t say I would recommend this read, but I do appreciate Artia Books and NetGalley for providing me my first ARC opportunity.

This is the book equivalent of eavesdropping on your high school ex at a wedding and realizing he’s still hot, still annoying, and possibly still in love with you. Kat T. Masen serves up peak enemies-to-lovers angst with a side of small-town cozy. You’ll be yelling at these two to kiss already while stress-eating donuts and mentally planning your own wedding. I devoured it.

Kat T. Masen How to Break My Heart was a fantastic read into a new setting with new characters. If you've read her other books you know she does forbidden and angst well. This story is no different except for the setting. Eva and Aston are connected via Eva's best friend Maddy. You know the trope, best friends older brother and it tropes in this story. There's a shared wrong time, wrong place between Eva and Aston. Fast forward to Maddy getting married and needing her bestie and brother to take care of things for her. Que the all the tension and angst between Eva and Aston. Both of them are dealing with their own emotional baggage that prevents them recognizing what they have. Eventually they get it together. I can't wait to see more of the series characters stories!

I kind of put off reading this book because I wanted it to break my heart lol however it didn't really do that! I found Eva to be incredibly immature almost to the point it was unbelievable. I also wish the enemies to lovers' aspect had a little more enemy to it. The angst was really enjoyable naturally and the pacing of the story kept me coming back for more

This story delivers exactly what you'd expect if you're into the billionaire and sister's best friend tropes. It’s an easy read with plenty of spice that keeps things interesting without demanding too much emotional investment. The storyline flows smoothly, making it a perfect pick for a casual reading session.

While it doesn’t offer any groundbreaking insights or life-changing moments, it holds its ground as a solid choice for fans of these familiar romantic dynamics with the added billionaire familial drama. Aston is the CEO of his family’s company, but still answering to his demanding dad. Eva is Aston’s sister’s best friend. When his sister, Maddie, gets engaged and has a month to plan a wedding, she calls on Eva and Aston to frankly do all the planning for her. Side note- I wasn’t a fan of Maddie. However, she didn’t know that Eva and Aston shared a kiss in high school that stuck with them into their 20’s. Aston is a workaholic with no time for relationships and Eva finds something wrong with all potential relationships. The characters aren’t the most interesting, but if you enjoy light, trope-driven romances with some heat, this book will hit the mark. Overall, a decent read that’s entertaining.

Thank you, Atria Books, for providing this book for review consideration through NetGalley. All opinions expressed are solely my own.

There was a lot going on in this book, some good and some not so good. What I loved was the best friend’s brother romance aspect of the story and how obsessed the MMC was with the FMC. What I didn’t love as much was the additional storylines when it came to the MMC’s dysfunctional family and all the drama it came with. I also the MMC was a little too much of an arrogant jerk throughout the story.

Read if you like
- Best Friends Brother
- Billionaire Romance
- Forced Proximity
- Small Town Romance

3.5 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria books for the ARC!

Eva is just a small town girl who had a crush on her best friends brother, Aston, in high school, who kissed her and then broke her heart and left town. 8 years later, the best friend is getting married in 1 month and needs all the help planning and has enlisted her Eva (her maid of honor of course) and her brother. Aston is now a billionaire CEO for his and Maddy’s father’s company and doesn’t seem to have changed much at all. Except with every minute they have to spend together Eva realizes maybe her feelings haven’t changed much at all for Aston…. But can he not break her heart this time?

This was cute! There were parts I really enjoyed and others were just eh. It was a hit surface level but I love small town romances so here we are!

How to Break My Heart by Kat T. Masen is a raw, emotional romance that pulls you in from the start. The chemistry between the characters is intense, and the writing captures heartbreak and healing beautifully. While some plot points felt a bit predictable, the emotional depth and strong character development more than make up for it. A great read for us fans of angsty love stories.

3.5 rounded up to a 4 for me! Read this in two days. It was very relatable and gave me similar character relationship vibes as a spicy version of Noah and Elle’s relationship in Kissing Booth movies if that makes any sense. I would certainly recommend this book to others.

I was lucky to get this Netgalley ARC to read this cute romance novel. It was the first book I'd read by this author so I had no idea what to expect. This book reminds me of a spicier Hallmark movie. The setting was what you'd expect from a Hallmark movie and I worried that it was be too superficial and not have enough depth/content, but I found myself getting sucked in and hoping that there would be a Happily Ever After for the main characters. Once I started reading, it was definitely an easy binge.

How to Break My Heart by Kat T. Masen is a fun, flirty, and emotional enemies-to-lovers romance. The chemistry between Eva and Aston is electric, and the small-town charm makes it a heartwarming, unputdownable read!

I’ve tried picking it up a few times, hoping it would click, but I just couldn’t quite get into it—even after pushing a bit further each time. Sometimes a book just doesn’t vibe with you, and that’s okay! While it didn’t work for me, I can see how it might resonate with someone else. Different stories speak to different readers.

Okay this billionaire romance that is also best friend’s brother mixed in but make him secretly not a complete jerk because he does everything for his family even if it means not being happy in life… not until he is forced to work with his sister’s best friend on the wedding. She brings him back to life and he challenges her and pushes her. I love them together and I love the whole house thing. So cute.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC of How to Break My Heart by Kat T. Masen

Eva Woods is a cinnamon roll heroine (fitting, since she owns a café), fiercely loyal and stubborn to a fault. Enter Aston—her best friend’s brother and the man she’s been side-eyeing since a teenage kiss gone wrong. Now they’re forced to co-plan a wedding, and it’s a high-stress, low-patience kind of setup… at least until the sparks start flying.

The slow burn here burns, and while I wouldn’t call it full-on enemies-to-lovers (let’s be honest—it’s more “grudge to lust with unresolved tension”), it’s got just enough angst and stubbornness to scratch the itch. Their chemistry builds with each page, and when it finally tips over? Whew. Emotional, steamy, and so earned.

That said, there were moments that felt slightly overdramatized—Eva’s eight-year heartbreak over a single high school kiss stretched credibility a bit. And Aston walks a fine line between brooding and emotionally unavailable billionaire with some possessive tendencies that might not work for everyone.

But Masen’s strength is in her pacing and emotional layering. The dialogue is sharp, the small-town setting is comforting, and the romance pays off in a way that feels swoony and satisfying. The ending gave me the serotonin boost I needed.

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

📚 “How to Break My Heart” gave me everything I crave in an enemies-to-lovers, angsty, small-town romance book. This story has sharp angst, spicy tension, emotional depth, and characters that you’ll quickly fall in love with.

E & A’s journey had just the right amount of emotional grit. The slow burn? 🔥 Absolute fire. The angst? ❤️‍🔥Torturously perfect. The spice? 🌶️Chef’s kiss—delicious, emotional, and totally earned.

I loved the small-town charm of Cinnamon Springs—Kat T. Masen makes it feel cozy and familiar—but what really stood out is how she wove in big world dreams that we all have. A’s high-powered billionaire life clashing with E’s grounded world created the kind of friction that hurts so good.

📚The story development was also on point. Nothing felt rushed, and the emotional growth between the main characters felt natural but still kept me on edge. Every chapter pulled me in deeper and I could NOT put this book down.

🔥If you’re into second chances, witty banter, heat that simmers until it explodes, and characters torn between the independent lives they built and the love that could’ve been—this one is for you!

Can’t wait for more from Kat T. Masen & the Cinnamon Springs Series.❤️‍🔥
-Grace Kavanaugh | @thegkav ✨