I loved reading this book. I thought the idea behind it was super interesting and compelling. While we have scientific facts, we can’t negate the possibilities of the unknown. I felt the love and grief of Nadia and her girls, it made me cry several times just putting myself in their shoes. That was definitely the more gut wrenching part of the story. I liked the love story between Greyson and Reid but my main focus was on Nadia, Gemma and Lynnea and then their connection to Greyson. I do recommend this book though, gets you right in the heart. No pun intended…

[arc review]
Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
Heartbreak Hill releases October 1, 2024

2.5

This is both a story of a man born with a congenital heart defect who receives a transplant, and the grieving wife of the man whose organs were donated.

Nadia’s plotline of being a grieving wife and mother to two girls was stronger and more compelling than the romance between Grayson and Reid. Even with Grayson’s second chance at life, I couldn’t warm up to him solely because the way he treated everyone was extremely unfair.
You can’t just string along and friend zone someone who loves you while making it your mission to cockblock the entire male population that dares to look her way. Give her the freedom to make her own decisions with her life if you’re so adamant on not furthering your mutual attraction!
But then to jump the gun and go straight to marriage after miraculously having a transplant when you’ve been keeping secrets the entire time you’ve known each other? Baffling.
The fact that Grayson was born with this heart defect and had preventative medication, yet chose not to take it while also purposely eating a bad diet was such a slap in the face. Like, you did that to yourself! And I’m supposed to be brought to tears over the fact that you get a second chance? Not happening.
His character development (or lack thereof) throughout the story wasn’t enough to sway me either because he kept up his habits of keeping secrets with Nadia and her two girls who’ve already been through such a traumatic life event at such a young age.

I found it too convenient that Grayson dated Nadia when they were younger, and that he was the recipient of her husband’s heart. The reactions and tension would have been better had they been strangers.

Another thing that irked me was the baby talk; wif for with, fank for thank, etc. This change in characterization only happened once each of the pov’s converged, which didn’t make sense since that was so late in the book.

A story about hope, life and death, grief and new beginnings, “Heartbreak Hill”, by Heidi McLaughlin, also opens unexpected, surprising and fascinating twists in super risky medical procedures, inserting them in the narrative thread.
I loved the peculiar issues related to organ transplants, some not scientifically based, the author introduced and how they become part of the story and change characters and plot.
I really liked how Nadia’s grief is written and how ever so slowly something changes while she’s still in bereavement (I thought it could take even a bit longer).
I also loved Kiran’s character and his sweet personality and quiet intervention within the family.
In a way, I felt more moved by Nadia’s story than Grayson’s and Reid. The way Rafe's character is written is also great.
In the beginning I even disliked Grayson’s recklessness and selfishness; later I warmed up to him because of the connection with the girls.
The bonds between Grayson and the girls and the fact Nadia isn’t part of the equation are very interesting. The unexplained dimensions of the process are really compelling to read.
The tension, anxiety and pain of waiting for a matching donor; the donor’s family suffering – all is done superbly well.
I felt Grayson’s rehabilitation was too quick – and he was eating popcorn and drinking champagne already?! – to be fully convincing.

Four chapters in and I was already in tears! This story is both heartbreaking and wonderful, a true emotional rollercoaster.

I was a huge fan of Reid and Grayson, but Nadia's chapters truly shattered me. Her narrative, along with the children's, was where the emotions hit hardest. I felt every moment deeply and couldn’t put the book down.

This is the second book I’ve read by Heidi, and I’m officially a big fan, even if she turns me into a blubbering mess!

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this incredible book

Wow, I am not sure I can do this book justice. 'Heartbreak Hill' is a complete joy to read and yet is also one of the most emotional, heartbreaking books I have read. I read this extremely quickly as I just could not bear to put the book down. The plot is mesmerising and so emotional, McLaughlin has done a fantastic job at capturing the emotions and portraying them so vividly.
A book like this would not work without wonderful characters and this is what McLaughlin delivers us. I cared about all of them so much, I wanted to read about them, follow their story and experience their emotions with them.
This is a soul-destroying read and yet a stunning read and one that I absolutely adored reading.
Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for an advance copy.

A sweet story about how a women lost her husband and and donates his organs and a young man receives his heart and gets a second chance at life and how those two lives come to tout will make you laugh,and cry a absolute wonderful story

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The characters and the plot were believable. It is such a feel.good storyline. I recommend this book.

This was my first read by this author, the writing is fantastic. The title of the book explains the whole story basically. All I can say without giving any details is that it’s an emotional read. I suggest it, just know it’s a roller coaster your going to be on!

First of all, thank you for not giving away too much in the synopsis!

Secondly, I love a title that forces me to stop and contemplate. My mind immediately went to the most challenging section of the Boston Marathon, also called Heartbreak Hill, and I presumed that the story held in my hands featured a defining incident and/or a challenging feature of a relationship between the main characters.

I wasn’t far off.

The same way extreme athletes require mental fortitude to push through the pain and keep going in order to conquer this section of the marathon, so do Grayson and Reid. They embrace a challenge, push through the pain and experience the triumph of conquering. Like the athletes, there is a physical and mental toll at a crucial point; especially when their journey intersects with that of Nadia and Rafe Karlsson. Heartbreak Hill is the most challenging place in any relationship. We’ll all face it at some point. How will we fare?

This book is really about a change of heart.

Grayson Caballero and Reid Sullivan both work at Wold Collective, live in the same apartment complex, are single, and have an obvious attraction to each other, yet Grayson keeps his distance. The thing is, if he waits too long, Reid will become tired waiting. Suddenly, something out of his control happens and it forces them to reconsider…everything.

I appreciated an opportunity to reevaluate and recalibrate. I learned about love in the face of death, about making life-changing decisions, and got a glimpse of the misunderstood and unique journey of grief. I was reminded that every loss is a death of sorts and was left considering where my feelings of love come from - is it a reaction or is it a stored memory?

This book about love, second chances and loss is one you’ll want on your reading list this summer.

I was gifted this copy by Montlake and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

I really loved this one! This was my first time reading by this author and save to say I'm excited to read more of her books. I absolutely loved the characters. They felt so real. The story is really emotional and heartbreaking and had me tearing up so many times. I'll have to say the relationship between Grayson and the girls was my absolute favorite. Though it is written in 3rd pov I had no issues connecting with the characters. It started out a bit slow but as the story built up I couldn't wait to read more.

Thank you so much to net galley for the arc.

Heartbreak Hill is a tear jerking, contemporary romance novel that centers on the lives of two couples after a tragedy. The book is told through a third person perspective and is narrated by the four (technically three) main characters; Nadia, Rafe, Grayson, and Reid.

The story opens in a filmesque style with long-time friends, Reid and Grayson, at a community rec center after a game of basketball where they argue, which sets off the catalyst of the book. Grayson is rushed to the hospital and undergoes emergency surgery on his heart, then placed into a medically induced coma. Then we have Rafe, husband of Nadia and a father of their two little girls, who joins in a race where he is tragically killed. His organs are donated to those in need and his heart is transplanted into Grayson. But, ironically, Grayson is involved with Rafe’s family in more ways than just having his heart.

I like how the story started and appreciated that the ‘big moment’ happened at the end of the very first chapter to jumpstart the rest of the book. The bond between Reid and Grayson was cute—I love how they started as friends before they started going out and loved how they supported each other through everything. Nadia’s first chapter had me in chills (and almost brought me to tears) the entire time!! I knew it was coming but I was just astounded by how beautifully written (and how heartbreaking) the entirety of her chapter was. Kiran was so good for Nadia from the moment he was introduced in the book and always stood by her and her children. I wasn’t annoyed by him like I was with Grayson, who only made me cringe almost the entire time.

There weren’t many things I disliked about the book, but one of them was the way Grayson acted toward Nadia’s children?? I understood the premise of the book before requesting it and thought it sounded so cool, but toward the end of the book, all Grayson could do was talk about he needed those girls—children he only met once briefly; the daughters of his ex-girlfriend from high school and the man who donated his heart—in his life. He insisted it was the only thing that could make him happy in life and I was just weirded out . . . Anyway, everyone was just cool with the idea of this. That, and him taking one of the girls to a father-daughter dance (this was during their second or third encounter by the way, because of a connection they all felt). I did find the book to be pretty flat between the midway point to about the 22-25 chapter mark when things really started to get going again. And then I was kind of disappointed in the epilogue. It was just another basic happy ending for a generic romance novel.

Thank you NetGalley and Montlake Publishing for the free advanced copy of this book for an honest review.

Heartbreak Hill will break your heart.
This book is so apty named.

I would have liked to have given this 5 stars. However, the book being written in the third person was distracting. That being said, it was definitely an emotional Rollercoaster. And I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The story follows Grayson, who has a heart defect, so he keeps everyone at arms length. Especially Reid. The woman he loves. When an unexpected tragedy causes him to be hospitalized and in need of a new heart, he changes his view on life. And what's to make the most out of his second chance.

Reid is a mature, strong character who has loved Grayson immensely. She learns quite fast that he's been keeping a secret from her.

Nadia and Rafe. Okay, so if you thought that Grayson and Reid had a sad start. It's nothing compared to Nadia and Rafe. He tragically dies in a freak accident, and Nadia makes the difficult decision of giving the gift of life to many.

This irrevocably ties Grayson to Nadia.

Nadia was a lovely character. I had to stop reading many times because of the tear fest from her point of view. Her grief was palpable and done tastefully. Believable.

I would have liked a little bit more of a story towards the end. Because after I was done. I was like , "So that's it?".

This is a story about loss, forgiveness, perseverance, hope, and making the most out of every situation using the hand you've been dealt.

A lot of unexpected twists and turns in Heartbreak Hill. The book is mainly two separate stories that form a connected thread. I enjoyed this book but i think i would have liked the story a little bit more if the plot was split into two separate books and then connected in the second book.

Heartbreak Hill is a heartbreaking story. I truly have to give the author kudos for her writing style. This story had me on an emotional roller coaster ride and I have to say that if feels as if you have to be prepared to read this story. I wasn't ready for this! This is not the type of story you read when you are not emotionally ready. I expected there to be heartbreaking moments within this story, but I expected more moments that would make me laugh and lighten things up. I thought I was ready for this story, but I don't think I was actually ready to read a story this emotional at this time. It wasn't a bad story; I just think I read it at a bad time if that makes sense.

I don't think this was the best time for me to read such a sad book. The story is heartbreaking and difficult to stop crying, reading it at some points. The author really knows how to write! I so appreciate the ARC from NetGalley.

Nadia y Rafe han estado juntos por una década aproximadamente, son felices y tienen dos hijas una 8 y otra de 6 años. Rafe participaba anualmente en un maratón, ese año todo parecía normal hasta que pasó una desgracia y la vida de los cuatro cambio para siempre.
Reid y Grayson han sido amigos por mucho tiempo, ambos se aman, pero él no permite que pase nada más porque tiene un problema en el corazón y en cualquier momento puede dejar de latir.

Los capítulos de Nadia son muy tristes, me la pasé llorando.


Contiene spoilers ⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️
No me gustó que Grayson fuera a buscar a Nadia cuando se enteró que Rafe era su donador y sobre todo cuando explicó que ya se conocían, además de que no le dijera a Reed. ¿Qué hubiera pasado si Nadia fuera la razón por la que le dolía y no se sentia completo? Se me hizo egoísta, puso en peligro su relación.



Me espantó esta parte:
Her choice will unwittingly alter the course of Grayson’s future—and tie his fate unexpectedly to her own

Todos los libros que he leído en donde el esposo, novio o prometido muere y dona su corazón, quien recibe el trasplante termina amando a la mujer del donante, afortunadamente esto no pasó aquí.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The characters and the plot were believable. I recommend this book.

Honestly, this book left me speechless at times. It was so sad and I related so much to the depiction of grief that I even cried. And that doesn't happen often.

This is a beautiful and complex story about Greyson, a man who has a heart defect and tries not to get too close to people because he knows his life is fragile. At the same time we have Nadia, whose husband has suffered an accident and she has to donate his organs.
This is how the lives of both are intertwined, one completely affected by loss and the other one open to a new, full life that he has never imagined before.

This story, although it is not a romance, is romantic. It's also tragic and I think that was the best part. How you could see their damaged minds and still think there was a little bit of hope for them.
The ending really completed this journey for me and made it perfect.

I need everyone who likes sad books to read this. Anyone who feels alone in their sadness will find company and hope and, oh, so many feelings you don't want to feel but know you need to at the same time.
Let's just say it really hit me. But I loved that.
The writing is also very beautiful, just the right amount of poetic.

I definitely need to read more from this author!

*Thanks to NetGalley uk, the publishers and the author for the ARC*

McLaughlin's storytelling prowess shines through, making this book an absolute must-read for anyone who craves a story that will leave their heart full and their emotions tangled in the best possible way. Simply loved this.

A man dies in a tragic accident and he donates his organs. This book was about the impact of his death on the ones who loved him and one of the people who got one of his organs.

This book is extremely sad and depressing for the first half and may not be for everyone, keep that in mind. The details of the grief of his wife are heartbreaking.

I think the biggest thing I didn’t like about this book was that it was in 3rd person. I felt like it would have been better told in 1st person- more powerful and less boring parts. I did find it hard from about 1/2 way through the book to about 3/4 of the way to stay connected to the story.

The ending was very heartwarming and made me wonder if people who get organs ever actually experience these feelings. It did have a somewhat happy ending where everyone comes together, so that definitely made it less depressing overall.