Felicity has her entire future planned. Ever since her older sister ran away, she’s had the full weight of her mother’s expectations on her shoulders. So she works hard to get straight As and save for college. Except sometimes the best things in life are unplanned—like when Felicity meets a handsome, masked stranger while she is volunteering at a charity masquerade ball. She never thought he’d flirt with her. And she certainly never thought he’d turn out to be a member of the world-famous Heartbreakers band, Alec.

Then Felicity uncovers a shocking family secret. Suddenly, she, Alec, and her two best friends are off on a road trip to find Felicity’s missing sister. And she’s about to discover that unexpected turns have a peculiar way of landing her right where she needs to be…

Paper Hearts (The Heartbreakers Chronicles #2) by Ali Novak
Published July 4, 2017 by Sourcebooks
Format: Netgalley e-book; 384 pages
Young Adult / Romance
Also By This Author: The Heartbreakers, My Life with the Walter Boys
Goodreads | Amazon
My Rating: ♥♥♥♥

Thoughts

Paper Hearts was a quick, heartwarming read that I really enjoyed, even if I had some issues with the plot. The novel follows Felicity, an over-achieving high school student who is desperate to earn enough money and extracurricular experience to get into Harvard. While working a charity masquerade ball, she unknowingly meets Alec, a guitarist for The Heartbreakers, the most popular boy band in the world.

I actually love premises like this, when a celebrity falls for a non-celebrity, and they have to try and make their relationship work despite the different lifestyles and social circles. Paper Hearts was no different. I was immediately pulled into Felicity and Alec’s journey, and I had a hard time putting the book down as they grew closer together. There were some really sweet scenes, and fun ones involving Alec’s band mates.

The only issue I had with Paper Hearts was with a couple of the minor characters, specifically Felicity’s mom and sister, and the way that part of the plot is resolved. It seemed very out of character and unrealistic to me, and I would have given this book a lower rating if it wasn’t for Alec and Felicity.

Read this book if…

• You enjoy contemporary YA romances.
• You love books with adventure and road trips!
• You’re like me and you like reading about fictional celebrities falling in love with non-celebrities.
• You’re in the mood for a relatively clean but romantic book.

Final Musings

Paper Hearts is actually the second book in Ali Novak’s Heartbreakers Chronicles series. The first book, The Heartbreakers, follows Alec’s friend and band mate Oliver, whom you meet in this novel, too. I haven’t read the first book, but I don’t think it’s necessary to be able to follow and enjoy Paper Hearts. I will probably read The Heartbreakers sometime, and since there are 2 other members of the Heartbreakers, I’m hoping Ali Novak will continue her series with two more books.

Also, the entire time I was reading this book, I had My Paper Heart by The All-American Rejects playing in my head. Flashback to early high school :)