A sweet tale that about more than teen angst. Chloe turns her disappointment at being dumped by her boyfriend on the east coast after her family moved into art-using her memory box to create something unique. She's not happy when she thinks Daniel is making fun but as it turn out, there's more to the story. This has good cultural diversity and a big spirit. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Yes it's YA but it also makes a good light adult read.

This was a quick, cute read. I felt that parts were a little more immature than other YA romance books that I have read, but I am also out of the target audience age range so teens may feel a better connection to the characters.

I enjoyed the idea of Heartifacts and it was really easy to imagine the scenes. I recommend Artifacts of an Ex to anyone looking for a quick, cute read especially young teens.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.

3.5/5 ⭐️
I am a sucker for a cheesey teen romance and this perfectly scratched that itch. It’s great for any fans of To All the Boys I Loved Before, hitting a lot of the same vibes.
I’m torn because I loved this was a quick, light read that can be devoured in one afternoon, but I also sort of wished we savored the moments so more, stayed in scenes longer. It felt like we were running a race rather than going for a jog. Even the dialogue was like that too, cutting straight to the points. Thought that kind of matched the FMC’s personality. But that being said, I still was swooning and giggling at all the cute moments and completely invested in all the characters. Would definitely recommend this to anyone else who’s a fan of fun, cheesey, lighthearted teen romances.
Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for providing an advance reader copy of this book for my honest review.

📖 ARC REVIEW 📖

Thank you @wednesdaybooks for an early copy of Artifacts of an Ex by @jchenwriter. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. 🤍

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐.5/5
Release date: November 14th, 2023

Blurb: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59653720-artifacts-of-an-ex?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=OeutnjcvKE&rank=1

🛑Read on with caution; review contains spoilers🛑

Artifacts of an Ex is a pretty light and easy read. I really enjoyed the main characters’ passion and their drive to make their respective art shine. I loved how Chloe, despite being dumped oh so selfishly by her ex Jake, used her sadness and turned their breakup as an inspiration for Heartifacts, an exhibit that showcases the objects and memorabilia that people kept from their relationship even after it ended. Having the items from their relationship displayed in the exhibit brought closure to some people, it certainly did for Chloe, with the help of her new friends and Daniel.

Though I understood his reasons, there were several times when I wanted to knock some sense into Daniel, who clearly likes Chloe but has rejected her twice. Sure, he has been a rebound six times straight after one or two dates (is this even realistic though?) and has never been in a relationship, but I’m not really sure why he’s so afraid of heartbreak if he just went to up to two dates with those six women then they went back to their exes. I mean, he shouldn’t be too hung up on them right? I don’t think you get to know a person too deeply after two dates. Anyway, I’m not sure Chloe even deserved two rejections from the same guy who insists he just wants to be friends, but I’m glad they ended up together in the end as they bring out the best in each other’s art.

DNF at 15%.

I just couldn’t keep reading this book and that is so sad and disappointing because I usually love contemporary ya about Asian culture.

This book is about a girl who has too much life experience for a 17 year old. She had an internship at the MET, she curated exhibits in eighth grade, her ex-boyfriend is well known on the OPPOSITE coast of the US in high school? It felt like either this started as an adult book and the FMC was aged down or the author did not have a normal high school experience. I can’t imagine high schoolers would enjoy reading about the “oh woe is me, my curated exhibit flopped so now I’m a failure” FMC here.

She barely even cares that she moved across the country from her boyfriend and then is upset he doesn’t want to wait for her? She barely cares about the breakup itself and moves on in 2.5 seconds, checking out a guy she thinks is taken but… “a girl can look.” 💀

And what male teenager keeps the stuff that he sent back in the box? Tickets and cards and things that normal teenagers throw away? He has a teddy bear that his grandma gave him ON DISPLAY in his room??? What.

Is this generational? Is this a gen z thing? Is this normal for young people nowadays?

If it is, then maybe this is just a very generational read, with very little staying power. I can’t even imagine the stuff that this FMC says. Too much life experience for a 17yo and I can’t relate. At 17, I was hanging out with friends and doing clubs, not curating exhibits and interning at famous museums. 🤣

I really wanted to like this book cause the idea is cute, but the main character bugs me. Her obsession with her ex is annoying. The art installation about heartbreak and how she gets pieces from people sounds like it should be interesting but instead I had no interest. I don’t know how to explain it, it’s like there’s a detachment from everything in her POV. Like I’m reading about someone reading their diary entry instead of just getting into her head and feelings her emotions. Cute idea but not for me.

this book was so cute and fun to read! I honestly enjoyed every second of it! I will definitely be ordering this for my library

Artifacts of an Ex is the perfect book for you if you loved the movie The Broken Hearts Gallery. It's a diverse, inclusive YA romance featuring a young aspiring curator who has moved across the country from NYC to LA and is struggling to adapt. Chloe was forced to leave her boyfriend and best friend behind, as well as all her favorite food and culture, especially pizza, bagels and the museums. Struggling to adjust to her new reality, she’s excited to get a package from her boyfriend… until she realizes it’s a break-up box of all their memories. Trying to turn things around and make something positive of a crap situation, she starts buying breakup boxes and curates an art exhibit, Heartifacts. On opening night, one of the subjects of a contributed box attends, with his best friend filming his reaction. Chloe is instantly attracted to Daniel, the best friend, but after telling her that he is always the one being dumped so the girls can get back together with their exes, the pair quickly become friends and creative partners. It gets complicated when her ex shows up in LA, wanting to help with the exhibit, because she’s left more confused than ever. Part coming-of-age, part YA romance, with a vividly diverse and supportive cast of characters.

Sadly, this story was not for me. I really think I am the problem here, not this story. I could not get behind the main characters cross country long distance relationship and hello, of course it didn't work out!! The idea of an art show presenting items from past relationships is creative and interesting but not something I needed or wanted to read about. I think this book could be right for lots of YA readers, but it wasn't for me.

This book was adorable, we have an aspiring curator, Chloe, who just moved to California with her parents, after her grandmother suffered an accident. And while she is away, her boyfriend from New York, breaks up with her, so this actually inspired her, after checking out a gallery opening, to showcase, and actually ask people, to donate their break up stories.

Then, of course, Chloe meets Daniel, who wants to help her add more into her exhibit, which was most definitely the cutest thing ever. Daniel has his own issues which was so different to see and how they got closer and closer and the ending was the icing on the cake.

overall a quick read, that left me feeling...fine.

i think the book was super light-hearted and i was smiling while reading, but there wasn't much more to it than that. i think this is a solid choice if you're wanting a simplistic YA book to pick you up out of a slump.

i think the whole idea and concept of this book could have been something spectacular. when it came down to it, though, i feel like things were described in detail wayyyyy too much and left me skimming at some parts.

thanks st.martins press + wednesday books for the ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review || all thoughts are my own.

What a cute rom com. This story about young love , break ups and friendships. It follows Chloe and her exhibit which examines things we collect during relationships. She has just been dumped by Jake , who she believes is perfect. The story was a bit predictable but otherwise was light and fun . Thank you to Netgalley and St Martins Press for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

A warm, delightfully sweet young adult debut romance! Loved the art and rep in this book, constantly hungry and thirsty the whole book!

As an art teacher I was very excited about the artistic plot of the book, but I ended up falling in love with the characters as they fell for each other. They were so cute and their romance was so wholesome. What a great time!

THOUGHTS

This book is very cute, but it doesn't have a lot of substance. It moves too quickly for readers to really get invested in the characters or their lives. And the believability factor was just... nonexistent. It wasn't bad for what it is, but it's also not, you know, great.


PROS
Younger Voice: There are a plethora of books on the market right now definitely meant for the older end of the YA range (or, I have argued several times recently, older than that). So it is really nice to find a book that feels perfectly suited to those younger teens just moving into the marketing category. This book is light and fresh, and the characters sound and act very young. It is immature, but in a good and refreshing way. I loved that.

Niche Passions: I do love a good romance that features some niche interests and hobbies. These characters are fully invested in what they love to do, and what they love is documentary-making and art-curating. Add to that the fact that they both have a thing for being well-organized (and a love for post-it notes that I can appreciate), and their passion for art is very fun and cute to read as this relationship develops.

A Grandma's Love: It is a truth very rarely recognized in YA books that characters, you know, come from somewhere, which is why I adored the inclusion of Chloe's grandma--especially because Chloe's grandma is struggling. They've moved across the country to help her grandma, whose memory and ability to care for herself is fading, and Chloe has some excellent (and also heart-breaking) bonding moments with her grandma that I loved. I would love to see more YA books feature family and roots like it.


CONS
Intense MC: Chloe is really... intense. Her emotions are very strong on the page to the point that the feel almost hyperbolic. Though I appreciated the intensity of her emotions at times (because she is fairly young, and strong emotions make sense), a lot of the time, it felt like too much. The fact that she's so invested in art curating, too, just feels like a hobby that no real teenager could have--or no real teenager could commit to so successfully, especially with no parental help whatsoever. It all felt like it was too much.

Too Fast: This book doesn't really give you a chance to take a breath. Chloe's first receiving a surprise breakup box from her boyfriend and then, in the very same scene (and a minute or so after the fact) is starting a break-up art show. And it doesn't slow down from there. There's no processing time for readers or characters, and so it was really hard to get invested. It just didn't feel real.

Over-Repped: I'm really tired of books that focus on big cities on the coast. I know that a lot of writers are based in these cities, because the creative industries are based in these cities, but give me a little bit of rep for the average teen out there. There's a whole diverse country in the middle! Not only does this book feature a New Yorker, but she's an NYC native who has moved to LA. And that's just kinda blah. Write what you know... but maybe get to know something else for a change.


Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
5/10
Those who loved the soft summer romance of Abigal Hing Wen's Loveboat, Taipei will love Chloe Chang's passion for art and artists. Fans of Julie Abe's low fantasy The Charmed List will love the dumplings-and-date-night sweetness of this love story.

I really liked the premise of this book and the two main characters. It was a quick read for me once I was able to sit down and read it because I just got sucked into it

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm sad I didn't love this as much as I was expecting. I think the first hiccup for me was everything happened much faster than I was expecting. Maybe I should have recognized how quickly Heartifacts was going to be put together based on the synopsis but I thought it would still take her a little bit more time to work through the idea. So I started the book out a little off kilter. I also never ended up fully connecting with the main couple, Chloe and Daniel, which is a bit of a problem in the romance book. I did like them both individually as characters but their romantic relationship was missing something for me. I also enjoyed the side characters. From the beginning they felt just as developed as our main characters and in some cases I might have preferred them a bit more to our two mains.

My favorite part of this book was all the discussions about art. You can really tell how important art is to the author and there were so many different types of art displayed in this book. I truly loved all the different scenes we got talking about art and exploring the art the characters were making in the book. For those moments alone I would still recommend this book even if the romance was not for me.

I spent a lot of this book very annoyed with the main character. I also felt like the book was more of an advertisement for stickers and planner materials than an actual book.

Artifacts of an Ex had a very interesting premise, but it felt underdeveloped to me. Chloe moves, makes new friends, and deals with an aging grandparent...all while being a social media influencer and art curator. The thing that seemed "off" for me is that these teens are all mini-adults who seem to spend zero time at school. They're all creative geniuses, having art shows and movie premieres -- which maybe is normal in LA? It may have made more sense if they were all at art school (or a university that caters to the arts).

This is exactly what I was hoping from it, and more. It's a solid debut YA romcom, and one that has me very excited to see more from this author!

What really stood out for me in this book are two elements: the incredible eye for detail, and the focus on art. Every description in the book is so vivid and detailed that it was so easy to picture everything, and it made for such an enjoyable read to know so many details about every scene. It made everything feel very real.

And it was so fun to read about Chloe's art project, which was given a lot of thought and attention, and sounded so very interesting. Chloe goes through a lot of growth through working on this project, so it's truly entwined with the story.