Hearts Made for Breaking by Jen Klein
Rating: 4/5
Publication Date: April 30th, 2019
From the author of SHUFFLE, REPEAT and SUMMER UNSCRIPTED comes a new novel about mysterious boys, first-time love, heartbreak, and the incredible bonds of friendship.
17-year old Lark knows how to survive high school dating: date boys briefly, let them down gently, remain friends, and move on. Her best friends, Copper and Katie, think that Lark is denying herself the opportunity for true love because she does not want to be hurt. They challenge her to break her pattern by staying in a relationship long enough for Lark — or the boy — to fall in love. Intrigued by the challenge, Lark sets her sights on the mysterious new boy, Ardy, who has been labeled “undateable” by the other girls in school. Lark is curious about, and then completely intrigued by, the enigmatic Ardy — so much so that she finds herself falling for him, only to risk having her own heart completely broken.
Jen Klein has once again crafted a funny, contemporary story sure to resonate with teen readers.
~I received this e-ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review but this doesn’t change my opinion~
The synopsis seemed like a really interesting play on the “fake dating” trope (which is basically one of my all time favorites) so I was definitely intrigued by this book! After reading a bunch of fantasy, I usually always get into the mood of reading something contemporary, so this book came at just the right time!
Though I didn’t really relate to Lark, I did enjoy her character. She had to deal with the normal family drama, and on top of that she was flawed. What I did enjoy was that her reputation for dating didn’t automatically label her as some bad person. I’ve seen too many YA contemporaries where the serial-dating girl is automatically labeled and this was refreshing because she wasn’t shamed for doing that– it was more like her friends were getting annoyed that she didn’t bother getting emotional or attached in a relationship (if that makes sense).
Her character arc was interesting and I really enjoyed her relationship with her friends and Ardy. The cliche romance was turned on its head and Jen Klein made the story her own with some fun drama. I was definitely intrigued by the “mystery” behind Ardy and his own reputation. And as much as I love romance, the drama in this novel (especially the climax) really made the story unique and fun!
Though the book wasn’t what I expected it to be, I was genuinely surprised and got sucked in pretty easily. I wish there was more of a spotlight on the side characters, especially because they were only there as plot devices and didn’t get a fleshed out personality… but I did enjoy the two main characters’ and their individuality.
Overall, this book was fun and dramatic and just what I needed in the moment!
I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys fun high school “drama”, flawed characters, dating “games”, and mysterious pasts. I think fans of Kasie West would enjoy the fun dialogue and witty characters. If you enjoy go karts, quirky characters, hot gossip, and falcons this is something you might enjoy!
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