Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'Broken Hearts & Zombie Parts' by William Hussey.

'Broken Hearts & Zombie Parts' is a beautiful story about health, love, movies and chaos. I loved Hussey's writing and ir shows how personal and beautiful this story is for him. I was attached from the start and I was excited from the get go. The only reason why this didn't get a higher score is because I just felt like it dragged in the middle. The start and the end? Five star quality but that middle wasn't the greatest.

First of all I would like to say thank you to Usborne and net galley for this arc !
Going into this book the first initial time we meet the main character I did find full on he is written to be awkward but charming but I did at times find this too much and struggled to get through certain chapters and connect with the character HOWEVER you soon begin to love Jesse for all his quirks and actually getting to know the character the longer you read the more you can see things you relate to . He has captured teenage angst and realistic teenage conversations and mannerisms really well even with the unique characters all were well thought out and everything they did seemed so on character that there was no point in the book were I was guessing their motivations for certain actions . I loved how character driven this book was whilst still having a strong plot .
Everyone deserves to be able to see themselves in a book and I cannot stress the importance of queer love stories especially young adult and showing that they aren't just a side character for comedic relief and they can have love stories centered around them too .
This did take me longer to read than usual but I feel like this actually was a good thing as it allowed me to feel more connected to the characters and like I had known them longer too .
There's nothing like a good book you finish fast but the stories that take you longer often stay with you longer too .

If like me you hate zombies, don’t fear there are no real ones here! However, William does write such a relatable story surgery, body image and falling in love that by the end your heart will ache in sympathy! Jesse and Cas are such lovable character and Morgan was so easy to relate to. You can tell this one came from the heart!

I loved this authors other books but I didn't get on with this. The MC should have been awkwardly charming but came off grating & cringey. Covers issues well but not my favourite reading experience. (Sorry)

This wasn’t the vibe I thought it was going into it. I wanted something along the lines of Warnglestone or All That’s Left in the World, but alas, the zombies aren’t real and the world hasn’t ended in Jessie’s story.

Aside from the writing being somewhat erratic - thanks to our eccentric main character - it did at times feel very American teen drama cheesy, especially with a lot of the dialogue.

However, that isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy this. Despite feeling overwhelmed and frustrated with the way it was written, I adored Jessie and I came to love the way Hussey managed to make my sympathise with Jessie and how his worries became my worries.

If you’re looking for a fluffy, funny but surprisingly deep gay story that focuses on real life worries and issues and highlights the wonders of real friendship, this is the book for you.

It helps that we get quotes like “…the more love he’s shown, the more pain he inflicts. Mum says this makes him a pretty typical male”.

Thank you to Usborne Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC.

A rom-com-zombie book has my name written all over it, especially when it’s a queer romance! I haven’t read a book by William Hussey before, although The Outrage has been on my TBR from my school library for quite some time, so I wasn’t sure what to expect…but I loved what I found.

This is a story with heart…pardon the terrible pun! You can tell this has been a real labour of love for Hussey and it really comes across to the reader. It feels like this was quite a personal novel, especially give. His own experiences and it does nothing but add authenticity to this story.

I immediately grew attached to Jesse. He’s loveable and awkward and, like his friends (and most teenagers) seemingly incapable of sharing his feelings for fear of looking silly or putting upon or upsetting anyone. Something I found extremely relatable and realistic. It was refreshing to see teenagers written this way rather than vomiting their thoughts and feelings so articulately a la Dawson’s Creek (showing my age) or so many YA books out there. Did it make me want to shake the characters at times? Of course! But that’s what made me love them so much more, because they felt real. Even the fact that he doesn’t talk to his mum, apart from on a superficial level, despite them being incredibly close was painfully accurate.

Did I see the twists coming from the beginning? Yes. But I do devour pretty much any romance book I can get my hands on and I promise this didn’t detract at all from thoroughly enjoying reading this book. It made me laugh and cry (sad and happy tears) and left me with a warm fuzzy feeling inside as I turned the final page.

If you’re a love of film, particular horror, you’ll have a field day spotting all the nods to beloved horror characters and directors throughout the book. It felt like a fun little treasure hunt, spotting them throughout the book and I just wish that Argento’s restaurant was a real place!

Don’t hesitate to read Broken Hearts and Zombie Parts! It’s a wonderful book that will have you chuckling away one second and then feeling all the feels the next. Enjoy!

William Hussey is an auto-buy author for me. His queer YA Hideous Beauty is a gem about love and loss, and The Outrage, a dystopian YA story, is chest-tightening and incredibly scary. He also writes adult books, Killing Jericho is a mystery about a disgraced and penniless gay detective. And his latest book, Broken Hearts and Zombie Parts, is a rom-com about a boy who needs an open heart operation.

I love William’s writing. I’ve said it before. He writes ‘showing’ like no other, and his writing is energetic, almost frantic at times, especially when there’s an MC like Jessie who spits out strings of words and can’t seem to stop talking. Broken Hearts and Zombie Parts is a very personal story, and if you follow William on social media, you probably know why.

Unlike his other books, this story doesn’t seem scary at all. It’s hilarious and fluffy and cute. But the scariness lies beneath the surface. Because what does it do to you when you’re facing an open heart operation at seventeen? When people tell you there’s a ‘huge’ chance you’ll survive? And when the result of that operation is an enormous ugly scar? Jessie must face all these things, and the underlying equation between Jessie’s psychological battle and the zombie film he was making is beautifully done.

The Outrage and Hideous Beauty were exceptional and have a special place in my heart. Broken Hearts and Zombie Parts is more common and mainstream, but the open heart operation and the personal story of William made this book special in a different way. It’s a wonderful book that will definitely appeal to lovers of Simon James Green’s books.

Oh, and William, I swallowed a few times when I suddenly read there was an Ellis Bell Memorial Drama Studio, and laughed out loud when I saw the titles for the tracks for the movie. Great way to refer to fellow British authors 😂!

I stayed up until 3:30am to finish this book, and I may have cried a couple of times. Just like the main character, Jesse, I have congenital heart defects. I've had open heart surgery twice. However, my first open heart surgery was when I was 4 days old, so I've had a big scar down my chest for my whole life. I've never seen my body without it. But despite this, I understand Jesse's body image issues. Even though I've never known any different, there were times - especially in my teen years - where I felt like my scar made me ugly. But I know now that it doesn't. Our scars are a sign of strength and survival.

It was quite surreal reading about these cardiology appointments and tests, and especially the open heart surgery and recovery. It's all so relatable. I mean, the author has been through it too, so it's very realistic. I didn't realise how emotional it would be for me to read about open heart surgery in this way.

One of my favourite things about this book was reading about the zombie film being made. I wanted to be part of the Zombie Honeys cast, even just as an extra, playing a zombie sounds cool. Everyone (okay, *almost* everyone) seemed to have a great time filming. And every time things came together and went well on the film, I was quietly cheering for Jesse and the rest of the cast and crew.

I love the characters in this story! The secrets and lies were a bit frustrating at times, but I was just rooting for Jesse and his badass zombie film the whole time. When various truths were revealed towards the end of the book, I was angry at certain characters and disappointed in others. But mostly, I was relieved that Jesse got his best friends - Casper and Morgan - back properly after their friendship group had been fractured for a while. Cas and Morg finally opened up and then put everything behind them to focus on supporting their friend through his recovery.

Jesse's story is heart-breaking and heart-warming in equal measures. Covering topics such as body image, self-confidence, and homophobia, as well as accurately portraying medical procedures in a delicate way, while still managing to keep the story fun, is a great feat from William Hussey.