Caroline "Chuck" Wilson was looking forward to spending her spring break perusing estate sales for vintage finds and touring the fashion school of her dreams. Instead, she's stuck working at her family's run-down bowling alley. As if that wasn't torture enough, Chuck accidentally stumbles upon a big secret her father has been keeping from her: Bigmouth's Bowl owes thousands of dollars in back rent and if they don't come up with the money fast, Chuck might as well kiss her home in San Francisco goodbye and say hello to her grandparent's house in Arizona.

Chuck refuses to leave the only home she's ever known, so she does the unthinkable. She teams up with her ex-best friend, Beckett Porter, and the pair devise a get rich quick scheme: they're going to infiltrate the Bay Area bowling scene and hustle players out of their money. The deeper the pair dive into the seedy underground scene, Chuck fears her mental health will spiral just like her mother's did before she died. She also can't help the feelings bubbling back up for Beckett. Failure isn't an option for Chuck, if she doesn't win the money to save her family's legacy, she can kiss Bigmouth's and all her dreams goodbye. But if she wins, she'd have pulled off a perfect game.

I'm a terrible bowler, but I love it anyway, so I was looking forward to a story revolving around the sport. I enjoyed the characters and thought Chuck and Beckett were adorable together. They felt like real people, and I loved their banter back and forth. The writing was witty and fun and so easy to fall into. I pretty much read this in one sitting because it was so breezy. I also appreciated the way mental health was approached and handled in this. My only issue was the actual scheme Chuck and Beckett came up with. It was just so far-fetched that it was hard for me to believe it could actually happen. Other than that, I did still enjoy it and would recommend if you're looking for a quick read.

This was such an enjoyable read that I flew through! It was very easy to read, and I found myself finishing the book before I knew it! This book does address suicide and mental health, but it doesn’t get super dark. I addresses the important of getting professional help and taking medicine, along with leaning on your family for support.

The romance in this book was very sweet and innocent, but still managed to be swoony! I love a best friends romance, and that’s exactly what this was. With a best friends romance, they already have the connection and the strong friendship, so they are able to build their romance off of that.

I also absolutely loved the bowling and the hustling aspect of this book. While I was in it for the romance, the bowling was a main plot point, and one that only enhanced the story. This had be turning pages at lightning speed to make sure they were going to be okay and to find out if they would win and save the bowling alley.

4 stars
I received this book for free in return for an honest review.

Ahhh there is something to be said about a book that is charming like this one. I absolutely adored this book. It is sweet, heartfelt, and genuine. I found myself getting lost in this light story, which touched on romance, family, and struggles.

There's quite a bit of suspension of disbelief involved to start with - beyond how much miscommunication/lack of communication it all relied on, and the idea that becoming a bowling hustler/gambler is the prime viable way to save your family business, it was sort of baffling why Chuck thought that their obviously desperately failing bowling alley was the only thing that was allowing their San Fran lifestyle (and then turning out to be sort of right?).

I did really like how lovingly described the city was, which is obviously very important in a book that centers around place. I appreciated how Chuck's family structure was dad+aunt, and Beckett's was mom+sister, and both were loving but with their own issues. Despite the odd initial buy-in requirement, I liked the realism of the ending: not picture perfect but still happy overall - though I did question some of the serendipity involved, and wonder about the loose ends with the minor storyline about Beckett's father.

I'm still not sure how I felt about the portrayal of mental illness/mental health issues (maybe it didn't click with me because it got a bit lost in the descriptions of bowling games) but I think it was at least relatable in its questions about how familial inheritance impacts your life.

Finally, I did feel for a book with so few characters, the cast didn't really pop off the page for me, with Aunt Fiona as the prime exception. Chuck and Beckett were sweet enough as a couple, and I liked that that they both had their own issues and stresses to deal with instead of it being only about one person's problems. Still, I don't know that I fully connected even with them as characters, and having things like Chuck's online friend Mila mentioned and then almost entirely forgotten doesn't exactly give the sense of a robust life and world around them.

Try recommending to readers who liked When We Collided by Emery Lord, those looking for step up into YA following My Life in Pink & Green, or someone seeking a somewhat lighter alternative to Rachel Lynn Solomon's You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone.

Loved the characters, I found myself rooting for Beckett and loved the honest talk about mental illness, Chuck and her self talk can be her biggest downfall, however, I love her vulnerability and her self-awareness.

This was a great read! It is a sweet romance between ex best friends Chuck and Beckett. I did not expect to love reading a story about the Bay Area bowling scene would be so entertaining but as Chuck and Beckett come together you can’t help but root for them. I truly loved Chuck’s growth throughout the story. She has been through a lot in her life and is a strong character who may not always make the best choices but does it for the right reasons.

My favorite part of this book is how it addresses the stigma associated with being diagnosed with a mental health disorder. Having family members who live with a mental health diagnosis I feel particularly sensitive to how these diseases are often portrayed in movies and the media. This story helps to highlight how damaging these stigmas can be in a person’s mental health journey and I truly appreciate the author including that message within this book.

This was a really strong debut. Don't let the seemingly sweet cover fool you, this book has some depth. Chuck and Beckett decide to hustle bowlers to make money and save her family's bowling alley—they only have 10 days to make $8,000. 

The mental health aspect was interesting. Chuck is afraid she'll end up like her bi-polar mother, especially once she experienced her own depressive episode. All the relationships were really special and unique. Chuck and her dad are very close, as well as her aunt who lives with the family. Her Aunt Fiona is almost like an older sister. 

I wish the relationship was paced a little better. They never really made it to the friend stage before skipping to love. They were friends for so many years and after a year of total silence following a fight, I feel like friendship should have been the first step. 

This was fun and I'll definitely read from Amelia Diane Coombs in the future. 

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Simon Pulse for giving me an advanced copy of this book!

This book was a rollercoaster of emotions. I was anxious, then happy, then nervous, then elated. WOW! It was truly a well set-up book to discuss depression, bipolar disorder, and other potentially triggering subjects.

It started off strong with a great first chapter. We received a lot of background without it feeling like a dump of information, and the problem was presented. It was woven together seamlessly. I was sad that the book seemed to slow down quite a bit after that. There were definitely some points of action, but it all seemed to take a big step back.

That being said, I loved the way Coombs described Chuck's love of San Francisco. It seemed to encompass everything she was as a person and, as a fellow SF lover, I found myself nodding and smiling with memories of my own of the city. Coombs even does a great job of describing where Chuck is in the city. If you're familiar or not familiar with SF, you still get a good look at where she's at and what it's like.

As I mentioned before, the book does talk a lot about different mental health issues. I don't feel like I'm spoiling anything when I say Chuck suffers from her mental health. Because of this, the book is a little bit darker and a little grittier than I thought it would be. However, Coombs represents it all so well. In an author's note at the end of the book, she talks about how her own experience dealing with mental health issues shaped much of the book. I really appreciated her vulnerability and honesty in taking on a subject not talked about enough. And she did it so wonderfully. A great book that positively represents mental health!

Overall, this really was a great book about the road to recovery, rediscovery, and redemption. I didn't connect with it as much as I would have liked, which is why I gave it lower stars, but I think there will be lots of people who do.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to #NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing for allowing me to read a digital ARC of Keep My Heart in San Francisco by Amelia Diane Coombs. This contemporary young adult novel is set to be released in August of 2020. All opinions are my own.

Caroline "Chuck" Wilson plans to spend her spring break antiquing and touring the fashion school she hopes to attend when she graduates. Those plans go down the drain when her dad informs her that one of their employees (they own a bowling alley called Bigmouth's) has quit and she'll need to cover for him. Chuck begrudgingly agrees and is forced to face her former best friend, Beckett, on her first day of spring break. The two overhear her father talking to the landlord and learn that Chuck's dad is way behind on back rent. Beckett approaches Chuck with a plan to save the bowling alley. She agrees to participate but things get complicated as their friendship starts to heal and it seems like it might be something more.

I wanted to read this book for the cover and concept of ex-best friends being thrown together to complete a wacky scheme where sparks were sure to fly. This book, however, is so much more than a YA romance. It deals with a topic not often covered in books or even really spoken about: mental health. The relationship between Chuck and Beckett and losing Bigmouth are both conflicts in the novel, but I think the larger and more important conflict is Chuck's internal struggle with her mental health and her view/understanding of her mother. Her mental health journey and the realizations she makes throughout the book are incredibly powerful. I think it makes it even more powerful that this story is in some ways a reflection of the author's own journey with her mental health. Mental disorders are highly stigmatized and this book does an amazing job of explaining this and helping the reader develop a better understanding of mental disorders and those affected by them. I really enjoyed this book and think it is an important book to include in a classroom library due to the topics it addresses.

Caroline "Chuck" Wilson loves San Francisco - she would do anything to stay living there. When her father's bowling alley, Bigmouth Bowl, starts to go under, Chuck thinks she can help out. Her ex-best friend, turned new best friend, Beckett suggests they participate in illegal bowling gambling by hustling bowlers under the table at lanes across San Fran. While she's bowling her heart out to stay, she's giving her heart away to someone who broke her trust a long time ago. Will she be able to save her family's bowling alley?

A main focus of this book is Chuck's struggles with her mental health, and the potential of turning out like her mom - who killed herself when Chuck was young. Her mother had bipolar disorder, and Chuck has already experience several depressive episodes. Every decision she makes, she wonders if it's a decision that should be made or one she made impulsively - which would denote the manic side of bipolar. Due to the afterword, the reader knows this is an Own Voices novel, and I cannot speak on the mental health portrayal in this book as it's likely very personal for the author.

The other main plots are the bowling and the romance. As someone who has been bowling for over 20 years, I have to say that there are several bowling inaccuracies in this manuscript, which could potentially be cleaned up in edits or with further research. However, the romance felt very flat and unconvincing to me. I'm all for friends to lovers and hate to love tropes but Beckett as a character was very one dimensional and I didn't buy the romance. The date scene was good and unique, but it all fell flat for me.

Overall KMHISF was a decent Young Adult rom com with the unique twist of bowling. It wasn't my favorite, but I guarantee there are many people who will read it and love it.

Charming with deeper twists.

Have to say, I wasn't expecting the story. It took me by surprise. The prose was endearing and kept me interested. Whenever I picked it up again after not reading it for a while, it sucked me into the story. The characters are pretty cool. The plot twists are pretty crazy.

I found this somewhat difficult to get through, but I think it would be great for readers with more interest in the subject matter. This would also be a great book for teachers who are seeking to introduce more female voices into their curriculum to give to otherwise skeptical (OK, male) readers. Its focus on gambling and bowling might help draw them in.

KEEP MY HEART IN SAN FRANCISCO by Amelia Diane Coombs is a YA novel with bowling, hustling, vintage clothes, and a hot ex-best friend. The main character, Chuck, discovers she has to save her family's bowling alley if she wants to stay in San Francisco--and she can't imagine life anywhere else. That's when the above-mentioned hot ex-best friend shows up with a plan. This is a super-fun read that also has positive mental health representation.

Sweet, heartfelt, and atmospheric, Keep My Heart in San Francisco is a genuine but light story of romance, family, and home. Think the family struggles of Lauren Spieller's She's the Worst meets the ex-best friends to lovers of Jenn Bennett's Starry Eyes, all wrapped up in San Francisco, bowling, and with mental illness rep!

Would definitely highly recommend for an entertaining and modern romance. This was exactly what I needed right now, and it was so comforting and sweet, while also being sharp and earnest.

I’m sorry to say I didn’t enjoy this one that much. I think for being a YA it’s kind of a lot to take in for that age group. I’d definitely categorize it under a more mature YA. I think it was good to bring awareness to bipolar depression buy the roller coaster of emotions that we're taken on took some getting used to, it was at times too much.

I did not like the things they were doing to earn money. It seemed unnecessary to do it the way they did but I get how it helped the story round out in the end.

This book surprised me a little.

Set in San Francisco, Chuck works for her family's failing bowling alley when Beckett walks back into her life. Formerly Chuck's best friend, Beckett has a plan to help her earn some money to help save the bowling alley...but at what cost?

I have never read a book about Bipolar Depression before, and it was new for me. The roller coaster of emotions that we're taken on took some getting used to, as I have personally never experienced it to that level.

I liked the storyline and Chuck's love for her city. I appreciated the character arcs as they both realized they still have unresolved feelings for each other.

I did not like the dangerous thing they were doing to earn money. It seemed ridiculously unnecessary to do it the way they did and have such disastrous results. I understand why it was written this way, but I just could not see how it would end well at all. The end ties it up with very important lessons learned all around, though not necessarily how the reader expected.

Additionally, I don't understand the point of the Mila character; she was mentioned once in the beginning as an important online friend for Chuck, even showing us a conversation between the two, and then nothing else until the very end, where she's briefly mentioned.

In the end, I would recommend this book, but take the trigger warning at the beginning seriously. This book could have some harmful effects in the wrong hands.

This was a cute YA romance! Both the main character and the love interest were compelling and well-written, and the romance was well done. I also liked how the author wove in real-life issues such as mental health and coping with loss in the story.