When most people have ghosts in mind, they're thinking of autumn and Halloween. Pumpkins, leaves changing color, sweaters, apple cider, and a mild chill in the air. But Haunt Your Heart Out takes place in Vermont, just weeks before Christmas. This isn't a common setting for a story about hauntings, but it's a great one; Roberts really gets the magic of ghost stories across. It gave me strong "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" vibes—not the movie, but the story.

A bright spot in this book, aside from the sparkling descriptions, was the main character, Lex. Her anxiety is introduced to us early on, and I made the (bad) assumption she would be a bit meek in her interactions. Not because I believe anxiety leads to insipidity, but because I'm used to authors conflating the two. Roberts doesn't do this. Lex is opinionated, funny, sarcastic, and witty. She has—oh god, am I really going to say it? Am I going to go with that word? Okay, here it goes: she has spunk. Ew. But there is it. It's true. I don't know why it feels like I have to describe her like I'm a 1950s board room executive, but it feels right. She's got moxie and was a joy to read.

I particularly like the time she spends in California with her parents. I'm trying really hard to avoid spoilers here, but all of the interactions in this part are wonderfully written. Her relationship with her sister is wonderful, and the letter her parents write her made me cry. It's just beautiful.

Now, the negatives: the sex scene was a weird choice. I'm not trying to kink-shame by any means—I don't think the kink is outlandish at all—but introducing it for the very first time these two have sex just hit me wrong. (I'm not going to say what the kink is due to spoilers.) It felt more like a second or third time sexual encounter in a book. I have no real logic behind that, but it's how I felt reading it.

Second, I felt like there were some inconsistencies with the Charles/bookstore plot. Why wouldn't Charles outright ask Lex to buy the store? He says he thought she'd never accept it, but early in the book, she already knows this is her dream. When Charles fakes his fear of ghosts, Lex jumps to offer to buy it, and then he acts reluctant to sell. I'm not sure him having a scheme to sell makes sense, but I will say that the resolution to this is quite heartwarming.

But overall, it's a nice, cozy read. It's not overly dramatic, it's sweet, and the backdrop of hauntings is fun.

3.25/5⭐️
2/5🌶️
As much as I loved this book, it truly lacked plot points and was sometimes a bit all over the place. At times it went from 0-100 very quickly and the conflict resolution felt rushed and not well thought out.
In saying that though, I did absolutely love the plot and this book was a quick, easy read!

A cute, small town romance with the perfect, sweet, spooky season vibes. Lex runs the town bookstore which thrives on tourists. She lives in her big sisters shadow and has made a family with her best friend since childhood. James comes into town with New York license plates and a Yankees hat so lex immediately writes him off as temporary. They connect and bond and of course the sparks fly! James is swoony, Lex is independent and together they’re adorable. This is perfect for hallmark vibes with a bit spooky vibes! It’s light and sweet but has its moments where it touches on heavier issues and I appreciated the way the author portrayed things. All in all a good read!

I was really enjoying the first half of this book but then I just got bored unfortunately! I love the small town and spooky vibes, and the fact that Alex works in a cozy bookstore was fun. And I wanted to see how it works out for her with the possibility of her owning it. But I just felt like the story was dragging around the 47% mark and just can’t get into it anymore. Dnf at 52%

I really had high hopes for this book based on the description. However it missed the mark for me.

I enjoyed parts of this book that related to the MCs, that the FMC suffered from anxiety, she was in her 30's and didn't have it all together. The MC who was traveling through on his next adventure. The (fake) paranormal was a bit off and not something I expected, in addition this sets place in winter months.

Some may enjoy this book but it didn't grip me the way I'd hoped!

Haunt Your Heart Out by Amber Roberts 👻
Overall Rating: 4/5 ⭐
Publishing Date: Oct 8 2024

This was such a fun read! I think this would be a perfect fall / halloween book for anyone to enjoy during spooky season in particular - although it was also cute outside of that season too.

I was a bit nervous when I started reading this one since I normally am not super into spooky stuff, but the description had really intrigued me. It is not actually a scary book though, it's totally a feel-good, cute romance.

I found the pacing at parts sometimes too fast or slow, but overall it kept me engaged and would be great to add to your TBR for when it releases in the fall!

2024 is going to be the year for paranormal romcoms because every one I've read (including this one) have been winners! Haunt Your Heart Out will be the perfect book to read during the withcy season this fall!

This book had so much potential, but unfortunately for me it just fell completely flat. Lex is so completely self absorbed it made me want to throw my kindle across the room. For someone who is 33, she cannot see anything beyond her own issues. And when she is reminded that everything isn't always what it seems she just deflects and continues to believe her own narrative.

When the all important "break through" finally does happen she really doesn't get to the root of the problem just kind of throws whatever she thinks will fix it toward the problem. Her relationship with her family is absolute garbage and screams rebel child that no one understands but is really just a privileged kid trying to rebel.

The end wrapped up in a sickly, maple syrup sweet, Gilmore Girls coded, whole town party. And somehow that was the best part.

*Spoiler*
Her entire relationship is basically built on a throne of lies and at the end when it all crumbles she's rewarded? James and Julian apparently already been fabricating things and he's so upset about her not being truthful? Be so for real. AND he's already decided to stay? With barely an apology he takes her back and all of a sudden its all sunshine and rainbows. I don't buy it.

The story was OK but the pacing just fell flat and I wasn't interested enough to keep going and it was too easy to put down.

The main couple were in a relationship so soon into the book, that I think I need more interactions.

This was a super cozy book, and I can predict it will be a popular seller during October if it gets marketed correctly.
I loved it! The idea that the MMC discovered her through her years-old youtube channel that featured exaggerated ghost stories was super cute. And he didn’t even know it was her, but he still talked fondly about it! Adorable.
Not only was the story cute and cozy, but it was relatable and emotional and very real. The MMC and Lex bonded over absent parents/no family support, and mental health played an important role in this book. They became each other’s support. I loved seeing her become an advocate for her own wants and needs in the face of her struggles and mental health issues. It made the book have more a serious, message-filled plot than your average small-town romance.

Thank you so much to Alcove Press and NetGalley for the ARC and the chance to review! All opinions are my own.

December in Vermont. A bookstore. Ghosts. All in! When her family all leaves her home state, Lex is left with her best friend, Nat and their shared love of the local ghost lore of Montpelier (the truth of it, however, is debatable). When a film documentary crew arrives in town to ghost hunt and capture the local spirits of the town, life changes suddenly for Lex! Haunt Your Heart out is the perfect guilty pleasure to start reading in September when spooky season starts (at least it does in my house) and keep re-reading merrily through Christmas.

Review is on Goodreads and will be posted to Instagram ahead of publication.

Amber Roberts is a queen!!
I loved text appeal and was thrilled with this one too !
James and lex are a perfect couple and the library was a great book boost for me !!
I wished they were chasing ghosts though …I got scared 😱

This was such a delightful read! Lex and James had such fun banter that I was hooked from the beginning. If you love a little mystery mixed with small town romance, this is for you! I’m looking up more from this author now!

Super Cute! Definitely a great read for spooky season!

Loved the character development between Lex and James, from hilarious banter to sweet moments! Throw in our FMC struggling with her own demons had me sold! It was a great read! Wintertime, ski resort town in Vermont, bookstores and Gilmore girl vibes? So down! The HEA ending was chefs kiss!

This is my first read from Amber Roberts and I will read more!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

Absolute pumpkin spice perfection in book form, Hallmark meets Halloween in this spooky-themed contemporary romance. Don't expect a paranormal romance or real hauntings, this is definitely more Stars Hollow than Sleepy Hollow. I personally loved the Gilmore Girls and Good Witch vibes of the feel-good story, which follows a small town bookseller who reluctantly relies on out-of-towners and seasonal trade to keep the second-hand bookstore afloat.

Lex describes her home as a "snowglobe of a town" and I'd have to agree. Her best friend makes a living in her family's Christmas focused businesses such as a tree farm and horse-drawn sleighs. They both rebelled in their youths by adding some fuel to the fire of local legends and ghost stories, filming hauntings and ghost hunting for their YouTube vlogs. Though the channel died long ago, their legacy lives still lives on to this day and draws some filmmakers to the town to start their own investigation. This is a very low-stakes and cozy read, it reminds me of a made-for-TV Christmas movie.

The story does take a more emotional turn when Lex and her love interest bond over their lack of familial support. I really connected with Lex's ferocious independence and struggle to advocate for her own wants and needs in the face of her parent's disapproval. Her problems with loneliness and her mental health were also really relatable, particularly in the face of living up to the plans her parents had for her future. I think seeing Lex confront this troubling dynamic and her relationships with and perceptions of the rest of her family was very healing and added depth to what otherwise would have been a sugary sweet romance plot.

Thank you Alcove Press & Amber Roberts for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Amber Roberts "Haunt Your Heart Out" is her sophomore novel and it delivers romance, quirky fun, and an all around enjoyable read.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC.
I enjoyed this light and fun ghost story themed rom-com. I thought this book started out really strong, but then ended up being a little longer than I would have liked. I felt the last fourth of the book was dragging on and the plot made me not like Lex as much as I did in the beginning. Overall, a fun read that would be great to read during Halloween or the Christmas seasons.

Despite a cute premise for this story, early on, Lex and James had me worried. I was questioning some of their interactions and didn’t fully understand their motivations.

I was drawn into their story by the town and the plot though and slowly the characters started to feel more real, especially Lex.

She’s not your typical rom-com lead, she has some real depth to her and by the end I was tearing up with her as she began to have some realizations about her family and her home that demonstrated realistic and hard-earned character development.

I loved the elements of found family, of the stories that make up who we are and where we live and love, and my whole heart belongs to Lulu and Tony.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC, this is one I’ll definitely be sharing with friends this fall.

I really liked the premise for this book but I DNF'ed at about 30%. The pacing just fell flat and I wasn't interested enough to keep going. I needed a little bit more tension or action.

This book felt like a warm hug and made me nostalgic for a town unlike any I’ve ever been to. Normally, I prefer more tension and slow burn. However, I really appreciated getting to see the main characters grow together so that by the end, nothing felt rushed. The characters were written in a way that felt like a movie in my mind. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this arc! I can’t wait to read more from this author in the future.