A charming lovely read.Alisa Rae twenty eight has finally had the heart transplant she’s always needed.Now she’s ready to start living to make up for everything she’s missed,She’s warm snarky funny really enjoyed getting to know her.#netgalley#st.martins

Ailsa wasn’t supposed to survive, with three quarters of a heart her life expectancy was short. At 28 a heart transplant saved her life. Now she mist learn to live without the medical barriers holding her back.

Coming to terms with the loss of a childhood friend, opening her (new) heart up will be difficult, but in order to feel alive she needs to be courageous.

I loved this book. From the unconventional story telling to the beautifully written characters. Oh my goodness did I cry?!

Thank you netgalley and publisher for the early copy.

I checked out this but could not connect with the writing style.

The Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae was a fun read that moved quickly yet also dealt with difficult themes. We come to know the story of Ailsa Rae through her blog, emails, flashbacks and 3rd person narration. We meet her right before she receives her new heart and so are with her as she navigates what it means to be given a second chance at life. I did not know a lot about organ transplant and enjoyed seeing the impact they make for those needing them. Ailsa Rae is cute and funny and while having the maturity of a twenty-eight year old also had a naiveness to her. Now that she knows she will be around for a long time she learns more about relationships and begins forming deeper ones while also taking time to learn about herself.

I received a free e-copy of The Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae from NetGalley for my honest review.

Ailsa Rae, who is 28 years old, hasn't really lived yet. She was born with a congenital heart defect, and wasn't expected to live past her teen years. Now, Ailsa has a new heart and has to learn live a life worth living for.

I loved being able to see Ailsa grow and develop as the story develops. The strength she found to believe in herself and grow as a person was such a wonderful journey. I enjoyed how the story also went from past to present so we learned so much about her.

A joy of a read!

“ The Curious Heart of Alisa Rae” by Stephanie Butland was a surprising read to say the least. Going into it, I admit, I didn’t know what to expect. Let me first state that this book is nothing like ‘Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine”. I don’t know where that comparison came from, but the two books are nothing alike in my opinion. This was an easy read. It flowed effortlessly and you could tell that the author really did a lot of research, which I always appreciate.
I absolutely loved how the story was told. The use of emails, blogs, interviews, and more was simply brilliant. I loved that aspect. I found the character enjoyable and likeable although Alisa herself acted younger than twenty-eight. Overall, this was a multilayered read with a good message. I look forward to reading more from this author in the future.

* I received an advanced digital copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Born with a once fatal heart defect, Ailsa Rae is in desperate need of a transplant in order to make it past her twenty-eight years. Ailsa’s blog, her window into the outside world, has kept her company throughout countless extended hospital stays. BlueHeart, as she is known to readers, is a reference to the color of her skin a pale blue for most of her adult life. When Ailsa finally gets the heart she has long been dreaming of her mother Hayley tells her that her life is about to begin. Now for the first time in her life Ailsa needs to think into the future. Never before has she been allowed to consider long-term goals or plans having been an inch from death her whole life. While most of her peers have long since checked off their typical life firsts - jobs, apartments, babies - Ailsa now has to ask herself “What do I do now?”. “The Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae” was a sweet, warm-hearted (pun-not-intended) read that really opens your eyes to what it’s like for transplant patients after the the dust settles and life begins. With the book set in Scotland you will have to navigate some language and euphemisms that may not be familiar to the reader. (Nothing a true Outlander viewer couldn’t handle.) If you are looking for a feel-good read that has a bit more substance than the traditional boy-meets-girl story then add this to your TBR list. Big thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, Ailsa is finally living a life beyond illness after having a heart transplant at age 28. She has chronicled her journey on her blog, where she is known as BlueHeart. But now that she's free to live a "normal" life, she's finding that maybe she isn't sure how. Moving from a life of day-to-day to one that is full of possibilities is both amazing and confusing.

Though she is 28, Ailsa reads as though she is more of a teenage character in the beginning of the novel. This is fitting given the life she has lived up to this point and the fact that she hasn't lived a real adult life beyond being ill. She leans heavily on her mother for everything, but now she is trying to become more independent. It's an awkward shift. I did appreciate that this evolved over the course of the book, showing that there was substantial character growth as the narrative moved on.

There is a bit of a tangle in language use within the narrative that caused me some pause here and there. A merge of Scottish, British English, and American English, the terminology and euphemisms used weren't always clear and sometimes felt conflicted. It was likely a silly personal issue, but it did detract from the "real" feel of the novel.

I also took some issue with the Ailsa/Seb angle. I'm not a fan of what feels like "insta love" in the beginning. I did eventually warm to the situation, but the initial creation of their interaction/relationship felt a bit too rushed.

The writing of this novel is mostly comfortable, other than the aforementioned language conflicts, and I did appreciate the evolution of the characters as the plot developed. Though there was certainly plot movement, the book did tend to lean more toward a character driven novel in my experience.

A decent read with some good messages, I did enjoy this one. I will admit though, the ending was solid, but lacked the impact I was hoping for.

Ailsa is struggling. She has had multiple surgeries throughout her short life. And now, with a heart transplant, she can start living. But, can she do it? She has been sheltered and kept at home. Can she actually start living the life she has always hoped for?
Ailsa is a blogger. She has blogged about her multiple surgeries and her heart transplant. She is asked to do an interview about the importance of the transplant list. This leads her to Sebastian. She and Sebastian become good friends. And then they become more. But, because her medication, Ailsa has put on some pounds. The internet and journalists bully her on line because for her weight. No one can believe Sebastian would be dating her.
There are multiple story lines in this novel…The mystery of Ailsa father, her life as a transplant patient, and her life as a “sort of” celebrity. Her strength and resilience are astounding. Her ability to overcome and keep going through ALL her issues really amazed me.
A heartwarming novel of courage and tenacity. Do not miss this one!
I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

A well researched book which deals with the impact of a heart transplant on the patient herself and her close friends and family. It is very well written and the writing of the blog is a clever way of conveying the feelings and hopes of the patient herself.

After surviving a heart transplant Ailsa Rae has decided to LIVE! This is such a fun, beautiful story, just in time for the holiday season. I hope others curl up and enjoy the season with it.

⁣The book is about blogger Ailsa who has just had a heart transplant and is now essentially experiencing much of the world for the first time. The book alternates between current-day narrative, Ailsa’s blog posts, e-mails, and narrative from before Ailsa’s heart transplant. I enjoyed the variation in the way the story was told because I always enjoy shorter segments/chapters more than longer.⁣
⁣
I loved the premise of the book, but the execution fell flat for me. I felt like the book dragged, and part of that may be because I read it on my kindle and always enjoy physical books more, but I think the main issue was that the storyline was predictable, and I just wasn’t invested in the characters. At points, I had no idea what the characters were talking about and the dialogue was kind of funky. Looking at reviews online, it appears most people really liked this one, so I’m not sure if it’s just me or what I’m missing.⁣

Alisa Rae is 28 years old and lives in Scotland. She was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a three chambered heart.
Though she has never felt well, and her entire life is ruled by her condition, she has tried to live as normal a life as possible.
Her father left before she was born, he couldn't handle the thought of a severely sick child who might not make it. But her mother Hayley has always been there for her and more than made up for her lack of a dad.
Alisa gets the transplant she needs to save her.
Now she must find out how to live a healthy life, full of choices.
She takes up the tango and begins to gain physical confidence.
Alisa meets another transplant recipient, an actor named Sebastian, who had his cornea replaced after an eye infection damaged it. They embark on a relationship of sorts.
The world is now open to her and she's not sure where she wants it to lead.
This is a sweet, endearing story with an important message. The need for organ donors and how many lives can be saved by them.
A lovely and thought provoking book.
Thank you to St. Martin's Publishing Group for the e-ARC via NetGalley.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae was a heartwarming (no pun intended) story about health, family, friendship, love, grief and quite simply ‘adulting’. Ailsa was born with a heart condition which meant that for most of her life she was too ill to really live. She wasn’t completely unexperienced and sheltered although she missed out on a lot of the ‘normal things’ that kids, teenagers and young adults experienced because her heart and body simply couldn’t handle it. She started to blog about her ‘blue heart’ and what her life was like as she waited for a transplant, until she finally gets the new heart she has literally been waiting for her whole life. It's not a fast paced read and while there's a lot of changes that happen, it's not a larger-than-life miracle story either. It's set in Edinburgh and as you might know by now it’s one of my favourite places! The author really made the city come to life and I could practically feel myself navigating the streets alongside Ailsa and it was such a wonderful feeling!

The story was told in various formats—including excerpts of blog posts, emails, letters and newspaper clippings. Although I don’t normally love when so many mediums are used in a story, I thought it was done well and made it an easy read. I loved that snippets of Ailsa’s blog was included because it was a very big part of her journey. Perhaps what I enjoyed the most is how realistic the story was. Yes, Ailsa's life got much better after she received her heart transplant but she also didn't go on to immediately have this perfect life, with a perfect love story and a perfect job that fell into her lap once she became healthier. Much of it is about Ailsa figuring out what she wants and how she's going to finally live it now that she doesn’t have to worry about her failing heart. I think the author did well in showing that although life obviously gets better, moving forward after living with a lifelong illness doesn't happen quickly. It's life saving, but life is also full of struggles. I also think the author did a good job in showing what it means to live with such a debilitating illness and about the importance of organ donation in a way that's not preachy and the subject is well explored throughout the story.

I liked pretty much all the characters in this story. Ailsa had such a wonderful and supportive group of friends and family. I thought she was a great main character who experiences some real growth throughout the story. She struggles with having a new heart, trying to understand it and the many changes it brings to her life. One of the points of contention was her father, who was never a part of her life, but who she now wants to find and learn more about. This created one of the biggest conflicts in the story with her mother, Hayley, who is such a strong and inspiring woman! Now that she no longer has to be around Ailsa around the clock, the relationship between them has changed drastically and I thought the author did a great job in navigating the complexities of it; the change, tension and reconciliation of both their ‘new lives’ post-transplant was very well done.

There’s a bit of a love story between Ailsa and Sebastian, a celebrity she meets at a radio interview on people who’ve had transplants. While I enjoyed their interactions and watching their relationship slowly and steadily grow through email and the occasional meet up, I have to be honest and say that I didn’t really feel the chemistry between them. I liked how their story played out though; again, it was realistic and gave just that right bit of hope without being unbelievable.

Overall, I quite enjoyed this book. It was heartfelt and quite emotional at times. I thought it was also quite inspiring to see Ailsa be so resilient and find her way to the life that she wants. I was rooting for Ailsa to find her way and after reading the final pages, I closed the book with a warm feeling and a satisfied sigh.

Ailsa inhales, feels the perfect four-four beat of this gifted heart. She has made mistakes. She has hurt people she loves. She can walk away, or she can be brave.

Ailsa Rae's heart is failing. She has been waiting for a heart since she was a baby. She has what is known as Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. In the 1980's it meant a mother had to watch her baby die. Ailsa as had 3 operations before she was 4 years old and is now waiting to have a new heart. Her father abandoned her and her mother after she was born. Mother and daughter have fought this battle for her life alone, together, and with the help of specialists. Her mother says what she thinks while Ailsa uses her blog Blueheart/Newheart to share her journey.

Once Ailsa has her received her new heart, which she lovingly calls Apple, her journey to life begins. She wants to live on her own, work, dance, and she wants to meet her father. She is curious about living and not missing out.

The narration goes back before her heart surgery and afterwards both centered on a love interest. Serb, an actor that is quite taken with Ailsa. He has just received an eye transplant and is coming back into his profession. The two are working together on a project where they instantly attracted to each other for different reasons. The play of words is their love language and they connect hesitantly and fiercely. The other love interest Lennox is from her past and was awaiting a liver transplant. Lennox knows Ailsa before her heart transplant and their relationship is driven by the unknown. Each relationship reveals a different Ailsa and her journey. Emotional read with heart and much to see.

The narration is heavy on the emotional roller coaster of waiting for the transplant and the feelings of knowing someone died so you can live. Ailsa is very contemplative in her feelings and with her blog so as the reader you go thru the emotions as well. This book is real advocate for doners and the like.

A Special Thank You to St. Martins Press and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

Thanks so much to the author, NetGalley, and St. Martin's Press for the complimentary advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are entirely my own. All of my full, honest reviews can be found on my blog at tacklingtbr.home.blog and on Instagram @TacklingTBR

If you had spent your entire life feeling sick, and fragile, and literally blue, what would be one of the first things that you would want to do with the start of your new life post-heart transplant? As someone who was fortunate enough to have been born healthy, and who has stayed at least relatively healthy throughout my lifetime, these aren't questions that I've ever had to think about answers for. But our heroine Ailsa Rae has thought of little else while waiting for the heart transplant that would save her life, and this is where the book begins.

This book was a pretty slow read for me, only because of the formatting of the book itself. There aren't necessarily chapters, the book is separated into ten parts instead that, for me, were about an average of about an hour and a half to two hours per part. The story is told through blog posts, online news articles, flashbacks, and more typical in the moment story portions. It was really interesting getting information from all of these different POVs, and I really enjoyed this form of storytelling. My only issue with this was the very long parts in lieu of chapters, since it made it a bit slow seeming while reading it.

I will also say that I wish we got to see more of the character of Lennox. As stated above, bits of the book are looking back at before Ailsa's transplant. Only one or two of these flashbacks include Lennox as an active character, most of them are still after his death. While I love understanding how she was dealing with his loss, and how she was able to come to terms with that, I wish that we had just a little bit more time with him as well. I was really wanting just a little bit more time to truly fall in love with him the way that she had.

All of that being said and out of the way, I really enjoyed this book. I fell in love with all of the characters, but especially with our lead Ailsa. While she was a sweet and young character, who had had a pretty difficult time throughout her life, at no point was she presented as a perfect character. If you know me, you know that I love a flawed character. But, while I have never been in the situations that Ailsa is in during this story, I still found myself relating to her quite a bit, and therefore loved getting to watch her journey. She has a blog that outlines her transplant experience and on the blog she often posts polls for her followers to help her decide what to do in any given situation (whether or not to travel to London, where to go for an outing, etc.) I know that there were some other people that disliked this part of her character, I really did enjoy it because indecisiveness is a flaw that I daily struggle with as well. This morning I asked my Instagram followers to help me pick my next read, and last night I literally gave my fiance four options of activities and asked him how I should spend my evening. Not something that I am always proud of, but I loved seeing this in a character and watching her work through it with the help of the people who love her.

Overall, I really did enjoy this book, and as long as you have time to devote to a little bit of a slower read (more character driven than story driven) then I would absolutely recommend it.

This is a sweet story that follows Ailsa as she gets a heart transplant. She has missed so much life waiting for this moment and now that it’s here she has to make a new life. Written as a blog it gives just a little glimpse about friend Avery and her relationship with her mother. I liked the concept and story. Something just felt missing. It certainly should inspire people into looking up information about organ donation. I received a copy of this arc in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. Ailsa is such a warm, charismatic, and neurotic person that it is simply impossible not to love her. She is born with a heart that has three chamber and lives her life on hold. She continues to get worse and is worried about never finding a transplant. She uses a blog as a way to communicate her feelings and to share her story. As the story unfolds, she gets the transplant and has to learn how to live as a normal adult. This book was at times sad, yet so overwhelmingly human at the same time. Thanks for the ARC, Net Galley.

I was unsure as to exactly what this book was going to be about, a tear jerker or something lighthearted or something in between and I can say that it was all of those things rolled into one enjoyable book. I didn't know much about transplants but I certainly know more now. It's sad that in the case of a heart transplant someone has to die for someone to live, but I've known a family that did lose a loved one and the heart and several other organs were given to others in need. It gave great comfort to the grieving family his death wasn't for nothing. Especially when they met with the heart transplant recipient and they were able to hear their son's heart beating.

There were so many ups and downs and so much nuance in this book, it had all the feels. I cried tears of sadness and happiness. Such sadness and then just a few pages later, such happiness. I enjoyed reading about Ailsa and her starting a blog so others could help her live again. I liked seeing her figure out how to live again, not a normal life, because it isn't with a transplant, but a new and different life for her.

It was a thought provoking and enjoyable book. I look forward to reading others by this author.

Ailsa has just received a life saving heart transplant and now wants to make up for lost time and take advantage of her new life. During this story we see Alisa’s transformation, triumphs and struggles as she adjusts to her new life. Watching Alisa grow and mature as a person warmed my heart. There is a love interest, Seb but I liked that this wasn’t the main focus of the book. This story also touched on organ donation and really made me think about possibly becoming a donor. It truly is a big life changing decision and one not to be taken lightly. This was my first time reading Stephanie Butland and I really enjoyed this heart warming story.