[ARC Read] I really enjoyed this, I thought it was the sweetest and cutest fake dating situation to happen. Alli and Jared's connection and friendship was just the cutest and made me smile throughout this book, I loved both characters individually and together! Thank you NetGalley for the access to read this early!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

Heartstruck is a cute banterful university romcom. If you’re are into fake dating, slow burn romance, sport person with a soft side, this book gives you that.

I really liked the main characters who you can vibe with. A girl with anxiety and a boy with an unforgettable past. It’s a very easy read and you can follow the story very easily.

Heartstruck

I really liked the character development and growth that Alli went through in this story. I was happy to see her standing up for herself by the end. I think we've all had an overbearing relative like Tia Mary in our lives at one point or another.

I didn't realize this was the second in the series. I'm going to look into the first- Serena and Tyler's story!

This was an overall good read. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy to enjoy!

I was expecting this to be the traditional college romance but it was a little different and I have to say that I enjoyed it. Alli and Jared have such a sweet connection, that you couldn't help root for them.

Alli is part of a large Mexican family and seeing those relationships and the struggles that come from them, were greatly done. I come from a large Hispanic family and I could identify with so much of Alli's life and struggles. I loved seeing her learn to stand up for herself and set boundaries.

Jared is the first college football player that I have read that does not enjoy the attention and fame of being such a widely known athlete. It was refreshing to see that although football was something important for him, it wasn't everything.

A few things to note, there are a few phrases that are written in Spanish but the book doesn't provide the English translation for it. I am fluent in Spanish so it wasn't an issue for me but I could see how it might bother others. I don't think not knowing what those phrases mean deters from the overall story.

There is a 3rd act sort-of breakup. I know many people don't like that so just a heads up.

Overall, for me it was a great read. I enjoyed it and found it refreshing.

This is my first novel with the author, not knowing there's a book prior to this one. This is a good one.

The pacing is good, the tropes are good, the lead-ins, the break, all that are good.

Jared Collins, wide receiver for the college football team, and Alli Castillo, former HS Cheerleader, now nose to the book nerd; reconnected at college. They both weren't exactly avoiding each other, but they weren't exactly thrilled to be back into the orbit. Their connector is Alli's BFF, also Jared's sister, Serena.

Unavoidable, they have classes together, and he realized she needed a confidence boost, and he needed the fight the girls off his back. His last school caused enough trouble for him to carry on. They came up with being fake boyfriend/girlfriend. Yet somehow the actions is more than fake, what's going on?!

They finally came together and this is an open-door. And they finally be honest, it was done so beautifully for them to be so honest and laid the cards out. Of course, drama ensues, he has baggages, she has baggages, and all of the planets aligned just right to tip off all the insecurities young people each carrying.

I will say, their break was done well, not in a useless way, but you can sense both of their insecurities and hope are tugging. I do appreciate the break to move the plot along, and them coming back together was yet another very honest, all-in kinda of conversation, which is very mature and very honest.

All that said, I'm glad Jaren has the football family that he has, who senses his needs and barge in anyway. Totally hates Alli's family, why the hell does her mom AND dad not stand up for her is beyond me. But family dynamics, amirite?!

Thanks to NetGalley & author for the ARC, truly enjoyed it.

There was a lot I liked about this one. The banter was super cute, and their friendship felt really natural and sweet. I loved how they showed up for each other in the small ways.

Jared was such a softie (in the best way), and I really liked Alli too. She had a lot going on emotionally but was still confident and resilient. That said, my biggest issue was how underdeveloped their history was. It kept getting hinted at, but never fully explained, which left things feeling a little unfinished. Also, there was a side character who got introduced early on and then totally disappeared by the end? Felt like a loose end.

Still, despite some things that could’ve been fleshed out more, I enjoyed my time with this book and it keep me hooked.Thanks to Seraphina Chen and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

a sweet and gentle read with added fun and emotional depth that give it an all rounder great time of a read.
the characters all had me rooting for them. the parts that touched upon the deeper theme were touched upon well. which must be hard in a book like this. i think that balance must be really hard, especially in this day and age when struggles like this are far to real. so you must want to represent it sometimes but also offer people a time away from it in books or something to feel you can get safety from it when its touched upon in books. and there is always also the need never to make it trigger or harm those who do struggle. again, i appreciate anyone who tries and does get this balance right. because at the end of the day we all want to be SEEN for being us. and that is what this book gave me in buckets.
the writing of this author is new to me and i really enjoyed her. i think she could be someone i look out for in whats to come.
the banter and interactions with our pair were great. and i liked how they had history but also were coming to this new age and new stage kind of new. added to that the fake relationship that grew to something more... haha it was sweet and cute.
this book felt very wholesome and cosy. it felt like a feel good book and im always in for one of those. the added history for our main characters added some lovely depth and made their connection better which isn't always the case and sometimes seems only for drama. but for these two it felt real and made the coming together of their relationship work.
i really enjoyed this book. i cant imagine coming to the author game. in this day and age it must sometimes take an epic feat. so i bravo to this author.

I really wanted to like this one, but I couldn’t get into it. The writing style was very stilted and unnatural, and didn’t make a lot of sense sometimes. Honestly, I ended up DNF-ing because I wasn’t really sure what was going on more often than not.

Ok so I read this book very fast, however I don't feel like I loved either character or felt the chemistry.
The spicy scenes felt awkwardly written and didn't really fit, like one minute I thought it would be closed door and the next it was open but a little messy.
The push and pull he had towards her annoyed me and the fact she was so quick to forgive after he broke her heart twice didn't seem believable to me!

⭐️ Rating: All the stars in the sky
🌶 Rating: 2/5

I am absolutely IN LOVE with this book!!

I could not put it down at all! I was just so smitten with the characters and so invested in their relationship, I needed to know what happens next!

This book is everything. I love romance books that include mental health representation and anxiety as well because that means that I can connect with the MMCs more since I know how it feels. It also shows that not all romance is cute and fluffy. There are hard times and it's important to know and acknowledge those hard things in order to become better. And Heartstruck tackles this wonderfully 💕

Jared is a book boyfriend. He really is because what do you mean he looked at Alli's Amazon wishlist and got her a puzzle from there??!!😭😭😭

And Allison making matcha?!!!! FOR JARED!!!!😫😫✋🏼 They are just so perfect for each other. Literally had me giggling and kicking my feet with those two🥰

I also loved the whole Mexican household. Because don't I know how chismosos everyone is 😒
ANYWAYS, I woul 1000% recommend Heartstruck for anyone starting romance and all romance readers like me ☺️

a friends to lovers story with a sprinkle of second chance. we follow alli, a college student who is stuck with family who judges the choices she makes and a ton of loss confidence, as she adventures another year at school. but, she finds herself in class with no other than her best friend’s brother, jared. who not only had to transfers school due to crazy stalker fan girls but was also the guy she was in love with growing up. when jared notices some issues that could be solved with the help of a fake relationship, they embark on a wholesome, steamy fake relationship together. feelings and puzzles ensue.

i thought this book was overall okay. it was cute in a sense that they had grown up together so knew each other. the beginning had a lot of heat due to their past but the way their relationship folded into one another was smooth. i didn’t think they were too memorable but i still thought they were interesting enough to read about. there were also a couple plot points that totally got dismissed and we never heard from again so like okay lol just a simple football x ex-cheerleader story and a lot of goofy conversations. i did enjoy their banter, it made their conversations sometimes easier to get through.

this is so rough, you guys. i barely made it through a chapter. I kept rereading the same page because everything the author writes is so awkward or it just doesnt make sense. its the way she writes, its clunky and doesnt flow at all. i was questioning my sanity. early on the character says "i was just having a moment" and the response from the teacher was "dont we all?" i am not kidding i reread that at least a hundred times trying to figure out how to make that response make sense.

⭐️⭐️⭐️½

Heartstruck is a sweet, slow-burn college romance with fake dating, late-night study sessions, and just enough emotional depth to keep you turning pages. Alli’s struggle with anxiety and finding her place in the world feels authentic, and Jared—brooding football star with a soft side—brings a grounded vulnerability that complements her journey.

Their chemistry grows steadily, with some genuinely heartfelt moments and quiet tension that builds through shared glances and fake kisses that become increasingly not-so-fake. While the plot hits some familiar beats and the pacing drags a bit in the middle, the emotional arcs feel sincere, and the exploration of mental health is handled with care.

It’s not a game-changer in the college romance genre, but it’s definitely a comforting, feel-good read with a soft emotional center. Fans of fake dating and introspective characters will find plenty to enjoy.

This was such a cute story about friends navigating their way through life and love! Jared and Allison are childhood friends who happen to have a history together. They meet again in their college chemistry lab and something just feels right for them. I just want to be apart of their friend group. They seem like such fun people! I am so glad that in the end they were able to love each other where they are and not changing just because someone has negative options!

It’s a 2.5 for me. I was excited to read this because I read her other book and liked that but I think this one just wasn’t for me which is sad because the characters were really cute and I loved how it focused on mental health too. 🥹 I think someone else will absolutely love this romance but this time it wasn’t my match.

This was such a cute read. I loved everything about this book. The story was cute and easy to follow and had a good mix of characters. This was a new author for me and I will definitely be reading more by them. I highly recommend it.
💜 Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for my arc ebook copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Heeheehee, this was so fun.

I always love a fake dating situation and this had a really good one. I think that the dynamics of these characters was just so much fun. These two characters have also known each other for a long time (basically, a childhood friends to lovers situation), so I felt like that really added a lot to their dynamic and how fun this was.

And yes, we get both POVs.

This book follows a fellow anxious girlie and the new football star at their university. The two start fake-dating and it turns not-so-fake. It gets a little messy, but in a fun and entertaining way. Sometimes, I find that the drama in romance books can be a bit annoying and childish, but this didn't feel that way to me.

Their dynamic was really just so great, they had some really nice wholesome moments that I adored. I think it matched with the tension of their chemistry really well.

This was super cute and I read it so fast. Would definitely recommend if you need a new romance read.

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! My Goodreads review is up and my TikTok (Zoe_Lipman) review will be up at the end of the month with my monthly reading wrap-up.

Heartstruck is a cute cozy, university, rom com similar to Elle Kennedys Off Campus Series. While I did, enjoy the setting of the book and liked some of the family dynamics in it. Unfortunately, the authors writing style feels a tad immature for me and takes away from the story.

This was a fun, easy, and cute read. In a world full of traditional cutesy romances, this one stood out very well. I would put it up there with the likes of henry, hazelwood, and Jimenez. The banter was great, I do wish that the slow burn, burned a little bit brighter however it was one i really enjoyed regardless.

3.5 stars. This book was hard for me to rate. There were many parts in this book that I enjoyed. They had some cute banter and were there for each other. I loved how sweet Jared was, and how he would always show up and the little things that he did for Alli. I liked Alli too. She has a lot of emotions and really worked through them. She was sweet and did the little things for Jared as well. There were a few things that took away from the story. First, there seemed to be plot holes. They start as lab partners, they start because she crushes on another guy but half way through they don't mention much of any of that. Also, the history with Alli's mom and the history between Jared and Alli could have been explained better. I liked how this book had mental health rep. I thought parts to it were done very well, but other parts could have been better. Overall, I enjoyed this book. It had a little bit of everything from a college sports, fake dating, book.

Thank you Seraphina Chen and NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.