This felt more like something aimed at a much younger audience, and not in a way that held my interest. The pacing was way too fast, with scenes jumping from one to the next before anything could really land. It lacked the emotional depth I was hoping for, especially in the family dynamics, which felt surface-level and underdeveloped.

The characters were sweet but one-dimensional, and the romance, while kind, didn’t have much weight to it. Everything felt a little too neat and overly simplified. I also found some moments unrealistic or exaggerated, which made it hard to stay grounded in the story.

Toward the end, the writing did start to improve with more emotion and detail, but overall it just read a little too young and too rushed for me. I think younger readers might enjoy it more, but it didn’t really work for me.

This book reminded me of My Fault in all the best ways—and honestly, I think I loved it even more. I don’t usually gravitate toward step-sibling romances, but this story completely pulled me in. The author didn’t hand the characters their happy ending; they had to fight for it, and that made it so much more powerful. After all the heartbreak and years apart, seeing them finally find their way back to each other was incredibly satisfying.

One moment that really stood out to me was the subtle yet emotional play on words—especially when she mentioned that he didn’t leave a heart on her last letter. It seemed like such a small detail, but it tied everything together and made the meaning behind the book’s title click in a really cute way.

If I had one critique, it’s that the pacing felt a bit rushed in places. With a little more time and detail, some scenes could have landed even harder. But overall, I absolutely loved this book.

This is short, sweet and a little silly but for a YA romance novella it’s not going to be life altering!
The characters are a little Disney, as in you have an evil stepmother, a clueless yet strict dad, star crossed lovers and a whole host of fun and vibrant friends with a peer baddie.
It is well written and enjoyable and is innocent enough for the younger readers of YA

I received this book as an ARC and provide an honest review.

Thank you to netgalley for sending me an arc of this!

late to reading this book but it was a good quick read and i liked our main couple and bff!
If i read this back in high school i would have ATE. IT. UP! i still enjoyed the read but i did switch my high school brain on so i could enjoy it better, because i think i have passed my prime ya reading years sadly.
also hated the dad, stepmom, and THAT guy iykyk
if you are into contemporary ya romances i would give this a try ☺️

Hearts on Paper is a light, breezy Young-Adult romance with a fun premise, an unexpected stepbrother crush during a sticky Georgia summer, but it doesn’t fully deliver on its emotional stakes. Emery’s voice is relatable, and her chemistry with her new stepbrother feels genuine in moments, yet the story often relies on predictable tropes and glosses over the deeper complications of falling for someone you’re suddenly related to by marriage. While the writing is easy to devour and the setting adds charm, the plot lacks the originality or tension needed to make this love story stand out, leaving it feeling pleasant but ultimately forgettable.

Hearts on Paper is a light, sweet YA romance that gave me major “My Fault” vibes in the beginning — fun, dramatic, and full of that teenage intensity. The second half felt more emotional and reflective, with a slower pace and a more sentimental tone.

I especially loved the use of letters — there’s something so intimate and old-fashioned about written communication that instantly pulls me in. It gave the story a romantic, nostalgic touch I really appreciated.

That said, I did feel the emotional connection between the characters needed more time to breathe. Their relationship developed quite fast, and I would’ve liked to see more character depth to get fully invested.

It’s a great quick read for younger audiences, with clean romance, emotional themes, and a touch of that classic YA angst. If you enjoy stories with forced proximity, forbidden love, and a soft nostalgic vibe, this one’s worth checking out!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️/⭐️⭐️ ⭐️. 5
– NetGalley Review (thank you for allowing me the chance to review this book)


This was a sweet and heartwarming 3-star read, clearly written with a younger teen YA audience in mind.

Emery is a bright and optimistic character who handles difficult family situations with humour and grace. Dean is caring and dependable—their romance is gentle, kind, and built on mutual respect. The friend group is fun and supportive, with the kind of energy that younger readers will enjoy and connect with.

I especially appreciated how the story addressed a challenging moment directly, rather than brushing past it, and the twist near the end added just enough surprise to keep things interesting.

I’m only dropping stars due to a lack of story depth and complexity, but from a teen reader’s perspective, that actually works in the book’s favour. It’s straightforward, accessible, and positive—ideal for early YA readers or those just getting into contemporary romance.

A lovely, light read that I’d definitely recommend to younger teens looking for a feel-good romance with sweet characters and solid messages.

Thank you netgalley the publisher and the author for a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

This book I would have loved when I was 14 and in my wattpad era. It was very very very fast paced and there was no dimension in the characters. Very basic, very straight to the point.
A lot of this felt very superficial, things felt unrealistic and could have done with more depth, more understanding to what was going on. The father-daughter relationship could have used maybe a bit more dialogue, more talk about what had made them so distant. The cruel stepmother felt very exaggerated.
I do think that the author could have benefited in re-writing some of these scenes to a more mature level. This is more fanfiction/ wattpad level than published author level.

I did feel that at the end the writing got a bit better though, more emotional, more descriptive. It was a bit too fast paced though and could have been written in a better way of sticking to the junior year. Scenes were flicking from one another too quickly.

This was a really quick and easy read! I thought this was a very cute story and was very entertained, as I read it in one day. It may not be life altering or a book that teaches you a valuable lesson, but it reminds you of what it is like to be in high school before a lot of change comes your way.

Emery has been through a rough patch. Her mother died when she was very young, her father blames her for it, and that same father never tells her life altering information until she is in that situation. She took it very well and I know I wouldn't be able to handle it. I do wish she had more depth to her, maybe a distinct personality trait, but I think this book is targeted towards the lower age of the YA genre.

I liked Dean, but I felt there were some inconsistencies with him or the author missed some chances of conflict. Dean is known to be the heartbreaker of the school and neighbor, but Emery never doubts that he will use her. I feel like that would have been a good conflict to have in the story. None of Emery's friends express their worries that she's going to get used by him. They're more supportive of their relationship instead of having some valid concerns.

I really liked Piper! I thought she was a good support system for Emery moving into this new period in her life and I really enjoyed seeing their friendship grow. I also liked seeing all of the characters after high school and what they were doing with their lives.

Overall, I enjoyed this story. It may not be the most life changing story or have complex characters, but I think it's still a good story to check out.

This was such a lovely read!
I am sure many teenage girls are going to swoon over this story.

It was sweet, romantic, enough drama and lots of fun characters.

Emery is such a happy go lucky girl. Even though she is pushed in quite some uncomfortable situations by her father and stepmum, she keeps her head held high and tackles it with lots of humour.

Dean is a sweetheart, with his heart in the right place. The way he takes care of Emery is absolutely lovely.

The friends surrounding them are super cool and I can imagine every teenager would want to hang out with them.

I loved the way a difficult situation in the book got solved, nothing got swept under the carpet, but it got dealt with right away. I think teenage girls can really learn something from this and I'm glad this was written down so well.

The last few chapters were quite a twist which I enjoyed a lot!

All in all, such a fun book! And I will definitely recommend this to the teenagers I know who love to read as well.