A Thousand Heartbeats by Kiera Cass is a beautiful, sparkling, star-crossed lovers, enemies-to-lovers, epic romance that I couldn’t put down! Swept away into this spellbinding world, full of action-packed adventure, deep revelations, and sparkling, swoon-worthy romance that had me sighing, crying, gasping, giddy, and giggling like a young girl. The descriptives and world building had me captivated as everything else melted away and all that mattered was this beautifully written story and what came next.

“Love has a sound. It sounds like a thousand heartbeats happening at the same time.”

This is Annika and Lennox story and what a wonderful journey it was! Their chemistry was incredible, their banter off-the-charts and swoon-worthy. A love that was written in the stars. And a story that exceeded all my expectations.

It was everything Annika read about and wanted in her life.

“I wanted to swoon, to pine. I wanted passion and tenderness and…a love that might not make sense on paper but was undeniable in person.”

This story stayed with me long after I finished reading it. My new favorite romance of the year!! Loved It!

Received an early copy and this is my honest review.

A huge thank you to NetGalley, HarperCollins Children's Books, and of course Kiera Cass for providing me with an eARC of this novel. I am voluntarily leaving a review, all opinions are my own.

As always, after The Selection series, I will read anything that Cass writes. This wasn't a book I instantly loved from the get-go, but it did grow on me throughout. I loved the multiple POV's and felt like it really added something to the story overall. The book definitely picks up in the second half, but I found myself wanting more world-building, especially with this being her longest novel yet.

I'm glad that things wrapped up the way they did, it was a great ending for this book, especially with it being a standalone, it needed that ending. This book was good, but seemed to fall a little flat for me in some areas and just didn't quite hit the standards of some of her other books. That being said, I enjoyed it and I definitely think that people on the younger side of YA will thoroughly enjoy this. I will still forever read anything Cass writes.

I never know what a Kiera Cass book will bring so I am inevitably drawn to them. I enjoyed the fantasy and changing perspectives in this novel. I was confused by the relationship between Annika and her brother. The book was trying to portray them as extremely close, but some of the interactions between them just left me feeling weird. After reading the Betrothed, I was glad to have a happy ending in this story. However, she really kept me guessing. I liked Lennox and Annika's characters, but I have a hard time getting behind love at first sight romances. I think this book is great for younger YA readers. It is not explicit but has just enough cheese to keep the reader invested.

I struggled with this book initially. I had little patience for the banter between the protagonists, and the constant pov switches got on my nerves. That said, it still kept my attention, and I pushed through because I figured it was more a me issue than the book's issue, and I'm glad I carried on. Things started picking up in the book's second half, and I began to enjoy the world more, although it could have used a bit more world-building.

As a fan of The Selection Series, I was excited to read this novel by Cass, but I confess I'm slightly disappointed. The pacing was good. The character development was okay, and the plot was entertaining, but overall the writing fell a bit flat in places, and sometimes it was difficult to keep track of who was speaking and whose current pov in the later chapters. Additionally, it seemed like some of the characters took a sudden turn toward the novel's end that could have been foreshadowed more. But overall, the book was an okay read, and I enjoyed it.

I liked Annika and found some things about her character really compelling. She’s all about justice and fairness. But there’s definitely kind of a weird self-sacrificial thing about her that kind of… made me sad? I don’t know. Like, I feel like she tended to divide things into two possible outcomes: either she could be happy and everyone else miserable, or everyone else could be happy while she was miserable.

There were definitely some conflicts that split themselves that way where those were legit her only options. But it felt like she tended to view all conflicts that way.

Lennox… That guy took me on a journey. At certain moments, I did not think I could like him. He serves his leader as a kind of enforcer, doing the dirty tasks that no one else wants, but have been decreed to be done. It takes him a long time to realize his own worth and even longer to really decide what to do about it.

I will say that early in the story, we learn that Lennox has done something Annika finds unforgivable. (And I agreed with her.) I wasn’t sure how the story was going to lead us around that fact and build a believable romance. In my opinion, Kiera Cass did a pretty good job at that, though.

Romance aside, I did struggle with some of the other story elements. For example, at one point, a hurricane descends on two battling forces. It’s described as basically a wall of rain approaching with winds so strong they rip trees from the ground. I was like, okay, is this a hurricane or a tornado? Because the thing about a hurricane is that it’s approach weather-wise is more gradual. Winds picking up. Periodic raining. Gaps in between where things slow a little bit. Then, like birth labor, the gaps get shorter and the wind and rain get stronger until the storm reaches its maximum.

Anyway, that’s my experience from the hurricanes I’ve weathered as a native Floridian. So the abrupt arrival of the hurricane kind of took me out of the story a bit. There’s also an earthquake in the middle of the hurricane, which was odd? But okay. The bigger thing was that both armies had arrived at the battle site via ships, and it appeared that the ships were okay after the hurricane forces so strong that trees were ripped from the ground.

In the grand scheme of the plot, those were minor details. But there were things kind of like that at different points throughout the book. Just little things that didn’t make sense.

The romance is absolutely the selling point of the story, so I think readers who pick up this book for a sweet, star-crossed love story will get exactly what they came for. I think fans of Kiera Cass’s earlier novels will enjoy getting carried away in another princess romance.

I had a hard time getting into this book and won't be continuing at this time. I think it will be better on audiobook.

I had a difficult time getting started on this one and thought about setting it aside a couple of times. I am so glad that I stuck with it!

This book is about a man, Charlie, who is seemingly and elderly man, making it day by day, with a nagging wife and a disabled daughter. He wants to keep his daughter is the facility she is currently in but can't afford it anymore. In his attempt to get the money to pay for the facility, he finds himself in quite a lot of trouble with some bad people, both from his present and his past. This book alternates between timelines "before" Charlie goes missing and "now" which is the present moving forward. It also is told from several perspectives, including Charlie, the neighborhood house cleaner, the detective to name a few. It was good, but just ok for me.

I really enjoyed this new book by an author that I have loved for a while. The story started off a little slow but once I got through the 1st 25% it really picked up. I enjoyed the romance I found it to be a fun read and I love the direction that the story took. Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

A Thousand Heartbeats is told from two POVs. Princess Annika lives in the kingdom of Kadier while Prince Lennox lives in the rival kingdom where he is the most feared Dahrainian soldier. Annika is the seemingly “fluffy” type of princess who has more going on than meets the eye while Lennox is the tough killer who has a hidden softer side. When Annika is on her engagement tour with her arranged fiancé, Nickolas, she is captured and held hostage. The group that captured Annika is led by Lennox and the two of them get to know each other and about the secrets of their kingdoms and how their histories intertwine.

As Annika wanted to marry for love but is forced into an arranged marriage for the sake of the kingdom, she has a lot to deal with internally with her feelings. On the other hand, Lennox has a complex family life where he has a moral greyness to him. He is colder based on this past, but he sometimes dreams of escaping it. While it was easier to see Annika’s true self early on, Lennox was a mystery as he was constantly a contradiction. Slowly his real personality came together for the reader, although I would have preferred a few more pieces sooner to better connect with his character.

The pacing of the story is slow at the start as the politics and characters are introduced. Once Lennox and Annika meet, the story does pick up, although it does build up a lot to an ending that seems too rushed. There are some elements described in tons of detail and others that seem glossed over, so I wish these elements were more balanced. Additionally, Annika and Lennox have different personalities yet there were times when their chapters read like the same person. Since I knew the dual POV pattern through context, I think a little more distinction would be nicer in the writing. This slight confusion happened with the ages of the characters, as I was not quite sure where to place them as sometimes they read older and sometimes they read a lot younger. For me, I would have preferred a little more clarity to make my reading experience a little more seamless.

As Kiera Cass’s Selection series (mainly the first three) is beloved by many fans, they hold out hope that her other writing will stack up, myself included. This is a very difficult task to accomplish for Cass as nothing, so far has quite gotten to the same level. While this one, unfortunately, did not match, it was still difficult to put down and was an enjoyable read. The ARC version has a space for a map, so I cannot wait to see what the final version looks like as I love maps in stories. This may be a very long story yet it does go by quickly. Overall, this was a sweet enemies to lovers story and I cannot wait to read more by Cass.

**I give a special thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, HarperCollins Children’s Books, HarperTeen, for the opportunity to read this enjoyable novel. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.**

As a huge fan of the Selection series and this author, I would read absolutely anything and everything this author writes. This book may have started a little slow, but it was well worth the buildup. I loved the characters, the side characters, the story, just everything was gorgeously done! I really enjoyed getting to know the characters and how they grew in the story. It was enjoyable to see what they portrayed for others to see of themselves, but how they really felt was different. I thought the strength of the characters and the heart of it was also really beautifully done. From the main characters and their back stories, from piecing everything together, to just the beauty of the story this book was amazing! And the cover art alone is just breathtaking. This book was longer than the others this author has done, but it was so enjoyable and would highly recommend! I'm so glad I've already pre-ordered this book and can't wait to read it again!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Kiera Cass is one of my favorite authors and I have been looking forward to reading this book for quite some time! The cover and synopsis drew me in and made me want to read it as soon as an advanced readers copy came available. If you can appreciate this for what it is, a standalone forbidden love story, you will enjoy it. I expected more events to take place, but I was surprised more time was spent on character building and forming their love story. That aspect made me really connect with and understand the characters on a deeper level. I did enjoy that this love made no sense whatsoever because that is a realistic depiction of what falling in love is. Some of their love story includes them falling in love with each other from afar, which was a unique approach. With her other stories i am so used to characters being nearby each other through these parts. However, it made complete sense with the stories and their dynamic in this world.

I feel like the timeline was shorter, as if this story only took place over a 1-2 week period. Maybe I misunderstood the timeline that was really being depicted. It made it harder to understand the strong bond of their love and how realistic that can even be in that timeframe. Especially when they were rarely with one another. However, by the end I was much more of a believer so the parts when they were together were written very well.

In all reality I would have given this book a 3.6-3.8 rating, but I rounded up because she is so good at writing YA love stories and I love her as an author!

A Thousand Heartbeats follows the story follows two star crossed lovers that are caught in the middle of a battle for the right to a kingdom. The book has romance, distrust, castle libraries, and sword fights. I would recommend it to young readers who are fans of fantasy. I grew up reading the Selection series by Kiera Cass and became swept up in the story. I still long for the excited feeling I got reading The Selection for the first time. Because of this I will always respect Cass' writing and give her novels a fair chance. Her series prior to this most recent release The Betrothed left me disappointed. I found A Thousand Heartbeats more intriguing and the drama throughout the plot easier to get into. There are some parts of the story that are slow and I do not like the way the story ended but I appreciate how it was easy to read. I can see middle school girls devouring this and I value anything that will help young people love reading.

A breathtaking story and journey of star-crossed lovers with the feel of a fairytale! The beginning seemed slow to me, but it was a building of the world and characters and soon I was fascinated and couldn't put it down. Love to the sound of a thousand heartbeats and many secrets unfold thru the pages. I loved the perfect ending, and I could not turn the pages fast enough. Thanks to #NetGalley for the ARC copy to review.

Princess Annika is required to marry for political gain and must deal with her once warm father now gone cold. Lennox dreams of helping an army reclaim the throne that was stolen from his people (Annika's). When Annika and Lennox first meet, they hate each other as enemies do, but they cannot stop thinking of each other. Who will rule the kingdom, and will the star-crossed lovers end up together?

Enemies to lovers with different social status' meets heroic fantasy theme sounds like it could be a winner. The story is told in dual POV, The characterization was really good. Both of the main characters are pretty well described and thought out, Lennox was more enjoyable for me personally. He has that snarky, brutish attitude with sarcasm and sass. Both of the main characters suffer from dysfunctional family issues, resentments, wanting the best for their country, and they both have the attitude they will sacrifice anything for their countries.

Kiera Cass loves to tell the same type of story - it's like her MO. She loves and enemies to lovers story, with different social status', throw a love triangle in there - and one has to be royalty. All that being said she had a lot of success with The Selection series, and hadn't really seen much success in any of her books in the past few years. I'm sure it has been a difficult road for her, as all the other books she has written are constantly compared to The Selection, and it seems like a high mark to hit. I think others, along with myself, kept reading her books because there is something about her stories she does really well and we were hoping to see it again. I think ultimately this book is a good read, and if you are hoping to find a book that will take you back to when you read The Selection series, this might do it for you.

Thanks to #Netgalley for an advance reader copy of this book.
#AThousandHeartbeats

4.5 stars! An absolutely beautiful story. This has everything: Kiera Cass's signature grand fairytale writing, a feisty princess who can save herself, a gruff, yet gold-hearted hero who has no clue he's actually a prince, war, jealousy, dying kingdoms, myths, etc.
This is the story of star-crossed lovers Lennox and Annika. Prepare yourself to be swept away.

*Special thanks to NetaGalley and Harper Collins for this e-arc.*

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
This book was alright, I feel like it could have been betters if it was just a lot shorter. It also gave me very strong Dance of Thieves/Kiss of Deception vibes, honestly if you told me this was Mary E. Pearson's book, I probably wouldn't have been able to tell a difference. I thought it started off pretty strong, I just wished it was either a lot shorter or a duology with more world building/conflict added to it. Yeah, that's about all I have to say about it.
(Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for this arc in exchange of an honest review!)

Fans of The Selection will love A Thousand Heartbeats. Annika and Lennox are both dedicated to their kingdoms, but can’t help the draw between them, despite Lennox committing an unforgivable crime against Annika. Overall, an action packed novel with a sweet love story.

The Selection series is a top guilty pleasure read for me. It's cheesy and predictable but oh so addictive. And I loved The Siren so much that it was a 5 star read.

So I jumped at the chance to read another book by Kiera Cass, hoping it'd be somewhere between The Selection series and The Siren in terms of enjoyment, but I was mostly just bored.

Unfortunately, this missed the mark for me. It was predictable, but the writing and story didn't draw me in as much as with Cass's other books.

There wasn't anything inherently wrong with this book, but it felt reminiscent of YA fantasy romances of 10 years ago, and nothing about this made it truly stand out. I feel like I've read this exact same plot hundreds of times.

This may have worked better as a single POV- I found it difficult to distinguish the voices of the two POV characters, and knowing where the other character was coming from removed any of the potential mystery and tension.

On top of that, Lennox and Annika's relationship was too close to instalove for me.

Overall, this was a standard YA fantasy enemies-to-lovers that didn't do enough to distinguish itself from the other books of this genre for me.