Shape Of My Heart is the 3rd book in the Heartthrob series. Unfortunately I missed out on Book #2, but did read All I Ever Wanted earlier this year. I didn't really miss out on too much by skipping book #2, as each book focuses on a different one of the Heart brothers and his love life. This one focused on Jimmy. The book starts with Jimmy outside on his balcony trying to write a song while his neighbor Maggie's dog will not stop barking interrupting his train of thought. He ends up throwing a pretzel at the dog in an effort to shut it up, which set Maggie off as the dog was not to ever have people food! Jimmy asks for a few treats in an effort to win the dog over - and as you can probably guess - he starts to win Maggie over as well.

Maggie is well aware of who Jimmy is - she had quite a crush on him during Heartbeat's hey day but is trying to play it cool like she has no idea he is a famous pop star. The chapters alternate between Jimmy and Maggie telling the story from their point of view, which I really like because you can kind of get into each of their heads and see where they are at in the relationship. It took a while, but Jimmy finally gets Maggie to cave and have dinner with him... and things progress from there.

I really enjoy this series and am kind of bummed I missed out on Book #2 and #4 on NetGalley :( I'll have to see about finding It's Gotta Be You and As Long As You Love Me on Amazon!

I received a free e-copy of this book in order to write this review, I was not otherwise compensated.

LuAnn McLane has long been a favorite author of mine since I first visited her fictional town of Cricket Creek. She easily won me over with the quaint setting and memorable characters. Although the advance copy I read of this book is my first in the Heartthrob series, this seems like quite a departure – so much so I wondered if it was written by a ghostwriter. It was an enjoyable story, but holy cow, Maggie and Jimmy couldn’t seem to stop themselves from tripping into bed with every turn of the page. Okay, that’s a slight exaggeration, but I’ve read a fewer number of detailed sex scenes in books that are clearly in the erotic romance genre, and it got to the point where I would think, “Oh boy, here they go again,” and skip to the next scene of actual storyline. If that’s your thing, then you’ll love this book. I prefer complex characters who endear themselves to me and have a deep emotional connection that takes center stage. I’ve recently become a fan of rock star romances, but I’m on the fence about reading more books in this series. I really liked the Heart brothers characters but don’t want to spend time on a book knowing I’ll likely be skipping several scenes.

*I reviewed this book freely and voluntarily, having made no commitment to provide a review and receiving no compensation of any kind from any source for this review.

Shape of My Heart by LuAnn McLane is the 3rd book in her Heartthrob series. Having loved the first two books in this series, I was looking forward to reading this one. I am happy to say that The Shape of My Heart was equally as good. Refresher: This series revolves around the brothers of a former boy band ‘Heartbeat”, and in this book, Jimmy Heart is the hero, who gets to meet the woman of his dreams. Just when he watched two of his brothers find love, Jimmy doesn’t plan on falling in love. Jimmy is the song writer of the former band, and is content to not have to be on the stage. While trying to write a song for Oliver & Belinda (last book heroes), he plays his guitar on the deck of his condo, and is distracted by the yapping of a dog. Jimmy is annoyed, as he knows his neighbor Maggie owns the dog, who seems to hate him.

Maggie Murphy, lives next door to Jimmy, and keeps her distance. Maggie is a writer of novels to help teen girls, and though she is new to the condo, she recognizes Jimmy as a member of the former band, Heartbeat. Seems Maggie as a teenager was obsessed with Heartbeat, and Jimmy was her favorite member.
Jimmy will eventually confront Maggie, as her dog is distracting him so much, he is having writers block. Jimmy will convince Maggie to allow him to try and get her dog to know him (give treats, etc), so that he won’t be so vocal. Jimmy finds himself attracted to Maggie, who does everything she can to keep her distance. Maggie is afraid to get hurt, as she loved Jimmy from afar. In a short time, they will become friends, and Jimmy will win the dog over (this was fun to watch too). What follows is a slow build sweet romance, with Jimmy doing all he could to win Maggie’s affections. Jimmy learns more about Maggie’s difficult childhood, and gets advice from his brothers how to find a way to get her to open up and trust him. Once Maggie allows herself to relax and enjoy Jimmy’s attentions, she turns out to be fun and I loved them together. It was great to see all the brothers and their girls again, especially when Maggie got to meet them. Another plus for this series is the closeness of the brothers in helping each other out.

Shape of My Heart was a sweet sexy romance, a super fun couple with hot chemistry, wonderful recurring characters and a story that was very enjoyable. LuAnn McLane once again gives us another wonderful romance, and I look forward to the next book.