Emotional, raw and honest. “Heartsick” follows three people exploring past relationships. Jessie Stephens delves into themes of love, heartache and grief, through the retelling of real life experiences performed in a fictional format. The characters are of different ages and backgrounds, however, they’ve all had their hearts broken. Stephens examines how each character has been affected and considers how their crises will influence their ability to love again.

The author performed her audiobook and I loved listening to her Australian accent.

A huge thank you to #NetGalley and #Macmillanaudio for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook.

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* Better than expected, i wasn't sure if this how much i would like this book. I don't think i would reread but would recommend

Third time was not a charm.

I have tried and tired to connect with this book. I cannot connect with the narrator who I no is the narrator.

I appreciate the opportunity, and know that these stories will help those in need.

I will freely admit that I didn't finish this.
What I did read was interesting, but it didn't draw me in enough to really make me seek time to finish it.
I don't know if I can even say what it was that didn't draw me in, but it just wasn't my cup of tea.

First, let me say thank you to GoodReads for winning this ARC printed book as a giveaway on the app as well as Henry Holt & Co. (@HenryHoltBooks) for providing said title!

As well as a big thank you to NetGalley for the audioARC.

Both of these were in exchange for an honest review.

Heartsick is a Non-Fiction work that follows three individuals (Claire, Ana, and Patrick) who are willing to divulge their personal experiences with love, love loss, and ultimately feelings of being unlovable. JS reveals the heartache, the tiny actions each day by our loved ones that ooze rejection, how love can suddenly disappear from one and not the other, and that love doesn't make any since. Through steady progression, JS allows the reader to truly dig into the lives and experience their losses. No one is exempt from love's loss and everyone has to face one of two options. Acceptance and healing past those damaging relationships or denial and avoidance. JS wrote this book for individuals who just want to dwell in that loss and know they are not alone.

After first reading this title and then listening to the audiobook version (read by JS herself), I came away with two very different opinions. Both of which I'll get into here shortly, but I also must state that, for me, this title had a HUGE negative trump card.

I.e., trump card... Within the Introduction, JS writes that the three individuals providing the information have holes or gaps in their recollections and that she filled said gaps with fictional material. Not outlandish material, I assume, probably material that is well deduced and close to correct. But yet "fictionalized to varying degrees". However, this title is categorized as Non-Fiction/Self Help. To me, this is the equivalent of a "little white lie". And while the LWL is not devastating in itself, the tremendous doubt it carries with it is.

That said, let's break down the two ARC versions. Plainly put, I DNF'd the printed book version. After reading the tidbit about the LWL, I was second-guessing everything. I'm not a normal reader of anything non-fiction and I just couldn't justify the time spent reading a Self-Help when I couldn't actually apply it to my life nor take anything away from it for future happiness. Rating: 0/5 stars

The audiobook I did finish. By JS reading her own book (with a lovely Aussie accent), she was able to emphasize where she wanted the reader to focus for the development of the title. I also had a little bit of an attitude adjustment and simply listened as if this title were a FICTIONAL piece. With those two changes, the story came alive and I could identify with the characters and what they were going through. In the end, I took away an okay fiction story with a good self-reflection ending and hope for a more positive future within a relationship. Rating: 3/5 stars

Those two opinions leave me in a very conflicted status as to whom or if I would recommend this book to others. After taking almost two weeks to write this review, I will leave that decision to this answer. IF I am in a conversation that is leading toward the contents of this book AND the other person in said conversation could benefit from it, THEN yes, I would recommend it. Otherwise, no, I will not freely and of my own accord bring it up to recommend.

HEARTSICK is like THREE WOMEN, but about the destruction of love rather than desire.

"This book was born in the hours I've waited for men to message me back and who never did. In the years full of almost-relationships, where I thought I cannot handle another rejection and then found myself turned down by someone I wasn't even sure I liked. This book was forged over hundreds of conversations with people who cried and yelled and laughed as they watched their lives be upended by a breakup."

Author Jessie Stephens recounts three people's stories of heartbreak, Claire, Ana, and Patrick. While their stories are true, Stephens notes that she fictionalized parts "to varying degrees" but did not "invent plot." Still, as a frequent longform journalism reader, I'd have liked footnotes letting the reader know where that sort of license was taken. As much as I soaked up these stories, I can't help but wonder what was real (especially given that we're already getting the story as told by one partner in the relationship).

I really appreciated the spirit of this book -- that heartbreak is universal, and it doesn't mean anything's wrong with you.

The author narrates the audiobook; I particularly liked listening to the preface and a first-person essay at the end of the book. I needed to listen more slowly than usual, given the author's Australian accent. That worked for me, as did reading the text (I switched back and forth).

Love hurts; especially when a relationship ends less than amicably. Author Jesse Stephens dives into the romantic lives of 6 individuals and uncovers their doubts, fears, and longing as they navigate the rocky waters of romance. Not my usual read, but still well-written. The author sets out to capture some of the raw emotions, but I think anyone who has been through a breakup or helped a friend through one will be able to connect with one or more of the characters in this account. Not light reading.

I really enjoyed this audiobook. It was heartbreaking, but also it made me happy at the same time. Very good.

Heartsick is three stories surrounding the heartbreak of different individuals-Anna, Patrick and Claire. The lasting effects of these experiences change them forever. I wanted to like this book but I honestly couldn’t connect to any of the three plots. I found myself bored within the first few chapters and never really got invested. I love a good heartbreak book but this just wasn’t it for me. I do think it was very realistic, though.

Thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook ARC!

Heartsick is a very interesting read! The three individuals are very interesting and representative of a lot of people in the modern world. I'm sure it was cathartic to tell their stories, and I'm sure it will be helpful to others to hear them.

Thank you netgalley for a chance to listen to this book it just wasn’t for me. I thought there was gonna be more to Patrick’s story it lacked and the audio was hard to get through the concept was there it just wasn’t for me.

The only way I can think of starting this review is by saying, I'm conflicted. Did I enjoy this audiobook? Yes. Did I find it a compelling listen? Yes. Did I want more? Also yes.

As I came to the close of Heartsick, one thing was painfully clear. Though I was appreciative of the storytelling and the relatability we saw in Claire, Patrick, and Anna, ultimately we were missing the reflections, data, and/or research on "why should we care", "what do we learn from this", the "what do we take away", "why is this important" etc.

We got a brief glimpse of this in the epilogue and the final section titled "On Romantic Rejection". If more of what was discussed in these sections had been added or scattered throughout I think this would have been a far more successful book.

With how little we have, and only added on at the end, the majority of this book was only the retelling of three individuals' personal accounts of love, loss, rejection, regret, etc. And even then it was heavily focused on the love and "good" parts.

I also personally struggled with Anna's story. It was difficult to read openly and mostly unregretfully about the deception and cheating that occurred. Is it common, yes, so is it important to explore this type of love, loss, etc. as well? Yes. But I felt there wasn't enough "why", "how", and "now what" to make it worthwhile.

Ultimately, I would have liked it more had there been more discussion, reflection, and research/data shared and added to the whole book rather than just right at the end. Without it scattered throughout it was really just a sad story time about love and pain, but very little in-between.

Really interesting approach to a self-help style book. It is essentially a 3 person case study on finding and then losing love, and the grief process. It lacks toxic positivity, instead giving value to the feeling of having lost a part of your body that is still walking around like nothing is wrong. The audiobook is read by the author, and was an enjoyable read.

ARC from the publisher via NetGalley, but the opinions are my own.

What a perfect book to listen to on audio! The narrator was phenomenal. Following along with Ana, Claire, and Patrick on their journey with heartbreak was an experience unlike any other. I found myself relating to some parts of their stories, and then being surprised at others. We as humans can be so self-centered, not realizing what others are going through in their relationships. Being let in on the nitty gritty of these three heartbreaks gave me such an insight on what others go through that I had never thought of before. Nonfiction isn't my usual genre but this story had me so engrossed from start to finish!