This is absolutely sweet, lighthearted YA romance novel you want to cuddle with just like any other Kasie West books I usually devour in one sitting.

It also represents the negative effects of social media and questions dysfunctional family dynamics.

Wren, at the age seventeen, still harboring resentment for her mother who left her own family behind for selfish reasons. Wren wants to take control of her own life, writing her own rules about dating not to get hurt just like her father who barely raises his kids by himself, working day and night.

But her strictly planned life derails when she meets Asher at the coffee shop her best friend working. Asher waits for his date Gemma appear as his mean bestie records everything with his phone. Wren realizes this cute, nerdy boy is catfished, about to get humiliated before his friend’s eyes. She has to do something to prevent that! She changes her clothes and flees from back door to make her big entrance, acting like she appears for her date with Asher!

She doesn’t have time to tell the truth before Asher leaves the store. But a few days later, he visits her at the shelter she’s working at the best day when she is about to get rejected by her coworker Chad: she’s having long time crush. Now Chad acts jealous when Asher introduces himself as boyfriend candidate.

As Wren spends more time with Asher who also starts working with her at the shelter, she realizes living with strict rules and plans might not be the right choice to enjoy the life! She also realizes she’s liking Asher a little more. What if clean about her white lie ruins everything between them?

There is a smart twist in this book which is also thought provoking. I liked the characters, blooming romance between Asher and Wren.
Rounding up my 3.5 stars to 4 enjoyable, tiktoker, catfishing stars!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Children’s/ Delacorte Press for sharing this lovely digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

I knew I would like this book before the first page. If you like dogs too, you'll see why. So, if you like fuzzy creatures and saving them, as well as as swoon-worthy YA romance, this is the book you need. I'm calling it now; Asher and Wren are going to be YA couple goals. I can't wait to see character art for them!

There is also catfishing, TikTok, parental issues, and basically all of the juicy components that we like to see in a YA book. This was my first YA read of 2023, and I'm so happy that it was! This is a must-read.

Absolutely loved it... could not put it down. Can not wait to buy it for my high school library as soon as it comes out.

This book was adorable, fun, and easy to read! The characters were adorable and fun, the setting was great, and the writing was incredible! The story was too cute, the dogs were beyond adorable, and the characters were so well done. The author has a way of telling a story so wonderfully that you don't want the book to be done. A wonderful and captivating story that was thoroughly enjoyable! Highly recommend to anyone who wants to read a great story!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

This story was fun and sweet. The text was a bit tell versus show at times, but not necessarily to its detriment. I liked the characters (especially Bean, seriously) and the story as well. I had some secondhand embarrassment at the catfish stuff but I carried on and was rewarded with a sweet story.

Kasie West has my heart. Her stories are some of my favorite ya books. Catfishing is such a relatable topic and I like the way it was handled in this story.

I did not enjoy this book. The story revolves around Wren who makes a lot of rules for herself in response to her flighty mother who left when Wren was ten. The novel opens that while Wren hanging out with her friend Kamala, she overhears a conversation between two boys regarding a meeting with a girl one of the boys met online. She quickly deduces that he is being catfished and so she decides to try to help him save face in front of his friend. She ends up starting to like this boy, Asher, and they begin to hang out. Of course, there must be an appearance by the flighty mother and a complication, but these two end up working it out in the end, nice and tidy. This book was filled with almost every YA trope and even that was not done well.

I loved Kasie West’s first few books, but the last few have just been so so for me. This one reminded me of why I always pick up her books. Such a cute story!

Wren sees Asher getting bullied by his friend in a coffee shop because he’s getting stood up by an online crush. So, Wren impulsively decides to pretend to be the girl to save Asher from the humiliation. And thus ensues a story about romance, a dog shelter, and lies. Yep, lots of lying. The fake dating trope is only good when both parties know it’s fake, and the lying here lasted way too long. The story would’ve been good without the lying. Wren’s family and her friends and her work at the dog shelter were all good, but the lying ruined it. She could’ve come clean with Asher earlier and the rest of the story still could’ve happened. Instead Kasie West chose to make readers uncomfortable for too long, then reveal the lie to have everything be okay, to only then bring up a last act conflict that’s very quickly forgiven. I’ve liked other West books, and there were parts of this one that were good, but the lying really killed the story for me.

Borrow My Heart was an adorable take on mistaken identity with a techno-twist. In an attempt to save a boy being mercilessly teased by his friend, Wren pretends to be the girl that Asher has been communicating with online. Wren has a specific set of rules to protect her heart, but she finds she keeps breaking them when it comes to Asher. We also meet Wren's dependable father, sister, and flaky mom.

Kasie West takes on an emotional journey as Wren navigates her life, which includes coming clean with Asher that she isn't actually the girl he was talking to online. It turns out, though, that Asher was keeping secrets, too.

This is a no-brainer addition to a high school library, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to an 8th grader.

#BorrowMyHeart #NetGalley Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel. I encourage you to check this one out!

Borrow My Heart by Kasie West is about Wren. She overhears friends giving grief to another friend, Asher, after he is being catfished. Wren jumps in to save the day and pretends that she is Asher's online crush. As she gets to know Asher more, she starts to develop feelings for him. She breaks out of the shell she has built. Asher also helps Wren at an animal shelter.

I do enjoy Kasie West's books. However, this book missed the mark for me. A lot of the book is built around deception, and I couldn't get into it. I will still look forward to the next book by this author.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was a refreshing new take on catfishing stories. I loved the characters and the sweet romance in the story.

This was so sweet and touching, I truly enjoyed it and will seek out more books by this author. I normally think it's a bad idea to use current technology as a plot device because it won't make sense once that tech becomes irrelevant, but I understand the necessity here, and hope that future readers will be able to suss it out via contextual clues.

I cannot wait to share this title with my middle schoolers who love romance books! Kasie West is an author that my students just cannot get enough of!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC.

Kasie West writes the cutest stories! I love her other books so Borrow My Heart was one that I had to read ASAP! I was so glad I read this novel, all in one day, as the characters really related to me. The horrible thing about the online time we live in is that anyone on the internet may not be who they say they are and with love that can really burn. When the FMC steps up for her love interest I was swooning.

Kasie West has done it again! "Borrow My Heart" is my new favorite by her. Sweet, romantic, quick read. Loved it!

Wren and Asher are a cute, fluffy rom-com couple. Katie West writes a sweet story of falling in love and self-acceptance. Borrow My Heart is a middle grade appropriate (aka no vulgar language or open door scenes) but is strong enough to hold the attention of an older demographic as well. Dog-lovers will definitely have a soft spot for this book and the characters. Overall a cute story that offers a nice reminder - especially for young people today - that online life isn't "real" life and people are always more important than screens.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's, Delacorte Press for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I love Kasie West! I have her books all in my classroom library! Thanks to this my students love her too! West's newest novel is another I know my students will love!

This was a cute, fluffy rom com. If you like Kasie West’s other YA romances, you are sure to like this one as well.