This was an okay romance novel. It was still light and fluffy though, and a good pallet cleanser if you are in need of one.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.

Review originally withheld as part of the pro-Palestine St. Martin’s Press reviewer boycott.

Jennifer Chen is a new-to-me author, but I was drawn both to the cover (Leni Kauffman FTW!) and the premise of Artifacts of An Ex. A lot gets made of the process of either being the one to return your ex’s things or destroying them after a breakup, and I loved that this book presented a new layer of attempting to get closure, through creating art from it.

Chloe is very relatable, and I loved following her journey as she navigated both emotionally getting over her ex, Jake, and becoming ready to let new love in, and also figuring out exactly the right way to run the “Heartifacts” exhibit that felt authentic to her. I especially cringed when, after swearing off contacting Jake again, she contacted him for “advice,” which led to mixed results for the exhibit. But I loved that she found a way to “follow her heart” with the intent of the “Heartifacts,” and focus on the goal of forming authentic connections with people who’ve been through similar situations.

Daniel is a really solid love interest. I appreciated that he set boundaries early on, based on his prior experiences, not wanting things to be more than platonic with Chloe until she was sure she’d moved on. And while the narrative gives a vague idea of Daniel’s past as the “rebound guy” initially, I appreciated getting more context for it later. Allowing Chloe and Daniel’s connection to grow as friends, and letting her fully heal, meant that their romantic relationship could start on solid footing, and I rooted for them to get there.

This was such a sweet read, and I’ll definitely read more from Jennifer Chen in the future. If you’re looking for a fun YA contemporary romance.

"My favorite thing about art is how we can all see the same thing and yet interpret it so many different ways."

I had the absolute delight of listening to this book in one sitting while I was working the stroller kiosk at the zoo one very slow August day. This was the perfect story to accompany the afternoon summer heat: a lighthearted romance that didn't require much deep thinking. We all need these books in our lives sometimes, especially in the dog days of summer.

Chloe has just moved across the country to LA from New York City and is thrilled to get a jump on exploring the art scene in LA. When her boyfriend dumps her via a USPS package, Chloe is inspired to start her new art exhibit: collected artifacts from exes donated by various people. Chloe puts together this gorgeous exhibit and ends up running into Daniel on the first night of her new exhibit. Daniel is filming his friend's reaction to seeing his ex's stuff in the exhibit. What follows is a budding friendship between Chloe and Daniel while Chloe works to grow her exhibit's popularity. As she and Daniel spend more and more time together, Chloe finds herself falling for Daniel while he realizes he has become yet another rebound.

This was a super cute & fun young adult contemporary romance. It seems all of these modern romances have me yearning for the simplicity of Sarah Dessen's trademark romance stories: ones without social media and being constantly connected via cell phones. Yet I recognize this is reality for today's teenagers and they need to see realistic representations of themselves in literature. I was a bit confused how these characters were going to school as that is rarely mentioned. It seems like a pretty big piece of a teenager's life to avoid spending time with and made this book a little less relatable for me. This was a cute little story but unfortunately, not one that will likely stick with me long-term.

Recommended for: Grades 9+

**Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

A cute idea, but the story felt a bit forced with too much back and forth. I did like the family subplots and how supportive they were, but this one just wasn't for me.

Artifacts of an Ex was exactly the fun-loving book that I needed this weekend. a cute, light-hearted story about friendships and relationships told through art.

"Artifacts of An Ex" was a cute YA contemporary rom-com by Jennifer Chen. The novel is about Chloe - who just got dumped by her ex via USPS mail and who then decides to create an art exhibit called "Heartifacts" - an exhibit made up of her and other teens' break-up boxes. On opening night, she meets Daniel who she befriends and eventually develops a crush on. The only problem is that Daniel doesn't want to be another rebound and he feels that Chloe still isn't ready for a new relationship.

I was really excited to read "Artifacts of An Ex" because of the Asian-American representation and the unique friends-to-lovers arc between Chloe and Daniel. As a fan of YA contemporaries, I really enjoyed reading this. I thought the chemistry between the two of them was great and it was just so cute. Outside of the romance between Chloe and Daniel, I loved reading Chloe's character development, with the growth she shows on her journey post-breakup and her evolving friendship with Daniel.

Overall, if you're a fan of YA contemporary romances and coming-of-age stories by Jenny Han and Emma Lord, definitely give this a go!

I LOVED THIS BOOK!!! The concept and story line was amazing. I felt like it was real life and who would have ever thought to get items leftover from your EX and show them off. GENUIS!

In the tradition of Jenny Han and Emma Lord, Jennifer Chen’s Artifacts of an Ex is a story of love, art, and finding your way when everything you know has changed completely.

When Chloe Chang gets dumped via USPS after moving across the county from NYC to LA, her first instinct is to throw her box of memories in the garbage. Instead, she starts buying other teenagers’ break-up boxes to create an art exhibit, Heartifacts. Opening night is going great, until she spots Daniel Kwak illicitly filming his best friend’s reaction to his ex’s box. When she tries to stop him, an intense discussion ends up launching a creative partnership and friendship… and a major crush for Chloe.

There’s just one problem: Daniel is dead set on not being another rebound.

Five times he’s been the guy who makes the girls he’s dating realize they want to get back with their ex. And he refuses for there to be a sixth. She insists she’s over her ex, but when he shows up unexpectedly with his new girlfriend, it turns out Daniel was right. She isn’t ready for a new relationship.

She throws herself into making Heartifacts successful, but flashy influencers threaten her original vision of the exhibit. To create the exhibit she’s always wanted, Chloe needs to go back to basics, learn to work with artists in a more collaborative way, and discover what love can be. Only then will she convince Daniel she’s truly ready for everything they could be to one another.

Broken up with through mail?? Yes please.

At least it wasn’t a text 😖 the mail actually requires work, right? 😅

But anyway. Chloe and Daniel are very likable. This is a quick, fluff YA story that I’ll definitely recommend to students. I enjoyed it. It was cute.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read and review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC of this book in exchange for honest feedback.

I found the story to be sweet but this book reminded me of other books I had read before with similar plots. I still enjoyed it but for me it wasn’t anything to rave about which is why I’m only giving it 3 stars.

3 stars

Artifacts of An Ex is a touching and introspective read that will resonate with anyone who has navigated the tumultuous waters of heartbreak and self-reinvention. Jennifer Chen's ability to capture raw emotions and the complexities of moving on is commendable. Despite its flaws in pacing and character development, the book offers a genuine and relatable look at the aftermath of a significant relationship. It's a worthwhile read for those seeking a contemplative and emotionally honest narrative, even if it doesn't fully stand out in the crowded genre of contemporary romance and self-discovery tales.

Artifacts 0of an Ex was a rom com type story that just left me wanting. Overall it was a good story but I don't know if it was our MC just kind of acting like she over her ex when she not or that nothing felt real to me it just wasn't a story for me personally. With that I'm sad to say it was a 2 star read for me but I'm sure this book has an a reader out there for it.

I tried this book during two different reading attempts. Unfortunately, it is not for me, even though I love the book cover. I may not be the right audience for this book. I will not be reviewing this book on my social media accounts.

This was a great friends to lovers story. I loved how the characters grew throughout the book. There were some parts where I was on the verge of tears and there other parts where I was laughing my head off. The only real problem I had with this story was that towards the end it felt like it was dragging in a way. I would recommend this to those that love a good emotional story about love.

Thanks netgalley for the e-arc!

This book was super cute. I love the approach they had to art and making heartifacts a whole immersive project & such a successful exhibit.

I feel like the romantically aspect wasn’t as heavy and left me as meh (which could be due to it being YA) so more of my preference than a fault of the book. Chloe was so focused on her ex it started to become blahhh and the repetitiveness of “not wanting to be a rebound”… we get it

I think the main focus was showcasing friendship and relationships through the art exhibit & honestly think it could have been explored even more since it was such a great concept.

Solid cute read def recommend for a light fluffy read

While this sounded cute and the cover drew me in, unfortunately this book was a miss for me. I really couldn't connect with the FMC and found her really intolerable. I wanted to like this, but even though it was fairly short, it just never really captured my interest and I struggled to get through it.

Chloe is an aspiring art curator who recently moved with her parents from New York to LA. As if the transition isn’t hard enough, her boyfriend, Jake, breaks up with her through the mail by sending her a box of their items. This sparks her best idea yet: an art exhibit titled “Heartifacts” that displays items from other teens’ break ups. At opening night she meets Daniel, an up and coming filmmaker, and they begin a friendship and creative partnership that turns into more. Chloe makes her feelings known, but Daniel doesn’t believe Chloe is over her ex yet. Chloe has to prove that she is completely over Jake, but when he makes an unannounced trip to LA, Chloe isn’t so sure that she is.

I love the art storyline and settings of galleries and museums. It’s a different concept for a YA romance that makes the friends to lovers trope a bit more interesting. As a main character I found Chloe insanely cringey at times, but I liked Daniel and the supporting characters. All of the characters seem more like twenty somethings traipsing around LA than high school students, though, which is a minor complaint and doesn’t at all impact the plot, but it stood out to me as strange. Thanks to NetGalley, Wednesday Books, and Jennifer Chen for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Artifacts of an Ex was the fun-loving book I needed this week. The characters and romance were fun and each had their emotional arc to follow. I like that the story has many layers, so it doesn't feel formulaic. Overall, it was a very entertaining book and I recommend it.

Cute, lighthearted YA novel. Going into this. I thought it was a romcom, but to me it read more contemporary fiction.

Didn’t love it, didn’t hate it. Would recommend if you’re looking for an easy read.

This was a very cute book and I really liked Chloe as the main character. I loved how diverse the characters were without it feeling like the author was just trying to check boxes.

The only problem I had with this book was that all the Happy Planner product placement seemed very odd. Whenever the products were mentioned it felt like a commercial for them & it pulled me out of the book.