Heart Like Mine is a great fictional family drama. Dramas normally don’t keep my attention but this one on did. I couldn’t help but feel for the characters while watching them go through abrupt life changes. If your looking for a book that brings the deep emotions of family to the forefront, this is a great pick!

A captivating and emotional novel that explores the complexities of blended families and motherhood. The writing is raw and honest.
Many thanks to Washington Square Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book is one that was just okay for me. I liked the plot, but felt like the execution was a bit lacking. The characters were great.

This book was just OK for me. The build up to certain events was great but the outcomes of those events left me less than excited. This was my first book by this author so I am willing to see what else she has to offer.

What would you do if the man you were dating had children and an ex-wife? And then, all of a sudden, no ex-wife. Would you step in to care for the children? Oh, maybe you're the motherly type and you think, "Of course I would." Well, our heroine wasn't the motherly type but she did it anyway. How do you think it worked out?

And that is how Amy Hatvany's story begins. Grace met Victor while she was on a date with a rather primitive man. Victor stepped in to help and the proverbial one thing led to another. By the time the dreadful phone call came about Victor's ex-wife, he and Grace were living together. Does that level of intimacy require that she remain in the relationship and do what needs to be done?

This is a serious story that raises many pertinent questions. I was extremely glad I read it.

Amy Hatvany was an author who was new to me and I am pleased that her book and mine crossed paths.

Heart Like Mine was a good read. It pulled on my heartstrings, and I felt a rollercoaster of emotions. It's a book about loss, grief, family love, and second chances. I could relate to the characters both when it came to the emotions of depression and that of motherhood.

Grace has a successful career and has found a man she feels she can spend the rest of her life with. She's content that Victor is not looking to have more children and that his two children live with their mom. But just after they get engaged, Victor's ex-wife dies suddenly leaving the children shocked and grieving. Victor and Grace must now take care of them full-time amidst this tragedy. This is when Grace and Victor's relationship takes a different turn and they must learn to navigate their new roles or risk losing what they've built as a couple.

The story is told alternately from the first-person point-of-view of both Grace and Ava, and flashbacks of Kelli. So the story moves back and forth in time. This was well done as the author peels back layers of the past of all the characters to give us an in-depth look at what brought them to where they are in the present. I thought Grace was a strong character, and I could clearly understand her dilemmas throughout the story. I really felt the anguish of what Kelli went through and of the great loss Ava experienced with the sudden loss of her mother. I thought Victor was a great dad but a little oblivious of the strain the whole situation was having on Grace.

If you like contemporary women's fiction that deals with family issues with strong female characters, you will enjoy Heart Like Mine.

I could identify a lot with the main character, Grace. Some aspects of this novel mirror my life, others don't, but the feelings the book evokes are very real. The fast-paced tale is easy to read and makes you think about life and the choices we make. It certainly could stand up to a sequel as well, to further develop the characters and complete the story.

I have so much love for this book! The writing is perfection and I couldn't get enough of this story, so much so that I read it in one sitting!

I received a free copy from NetGalley. After years at building up her career, she thinks she has finally found the perfect man for her who also doesn't want kids (he already has two that his ex-wife cares for). They get engaged just as his ex-wife dies and the perfect kid-free life she saw with him is no longer a choice. A moving story of three women and how their secrets, lies, and lives mix together in a moving story of friendship, loss, and self discovery. Don't start it before bed or you might miss out on some sleep.

I enjoyed this story of a woman who is in a relationship with a divorced dad. Her role in the lives of the children suddenly changes when their mother dies. We are taken on a journey of their lives, and given insight into how they ended up where they are as they decide where they are headed next.