This is such a fun twist on the Hallmark-y romance. I looooove our "unlikeable heroine" and relate to her on so many levels. Maybe I need to be whisked away to a small town to learn to prioritize for me instead of for someone else... :-) If you're a fan of Hallmark-style movies and all-the-tropes, Change of Heart is a fun and unique twist on the subgenre we know and love (and often joke about).

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for this eARC.

This was a cute rom-com magical realism combo that worked so well. I found myself loving Heart Springs and picturing it as such a beautiful small town by its description. It’s a grumpy vs sunshine with a heavy dose of Hallmark vibes. I really liked that the goal set for the FMC to find love for herself. Overall, I enjoyed this read!

This story was adorable and sweet! I loved the premise of the female MC needing to experience true love and eventually realizing that true love was for herself. It took a bit for me to get into this but once I did, I flew through it. Another great Falon Ballard book!

This is the first book I’ve read by Falon Ballard. The novel starts with a workaholic lawyer, Campbell, and her blind date, pediatric surgeon Dr. Ben Loving. The date doesn’t go well and the next day Cam and the doc wake up in a Hallmark channel type of town. There’s a lot of hoops to jump through to get back home and she’s very resistant to them. The story was interesting at first and moved along at a good pace until it just started to slog along. The constant use of “sweetheart” by Ben to Cam really started to get on my nerves. It was used almost every time he spoke to her. Some of the story was predictable and some characters too perfect while Cam is a randomly cursing train wreck.
The story was tolerable and I hope it finds a good audience, but it’s just not for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the opportunity to read this eARC.

Thank you to the publisher for my early copy of this title!

It is going to physically pain me to write this review, but reviews are meant to be honest, right? *sigh*

For starters, I've liked or loved the other four books I've read by Falon Ballard. They were fun, fast paced, had likable main characters (both male and female), and great banter. Great romcom's, and she's been an auto read author for me since I read her first book, Lease on Love.

Unfortunately, CHANGE OF HEART had none of those characteristics. And I am so, so sad about it.

The plot read like a horrible Hallmark Christmas movie with 50 plot holes. The FMC was intolerable throughout most of the story, and she was the narrator - so if you don't like her, you're stuck with her! The MMC seemed decent and charming...from what we saw of him, but he was hardly present for the first 50% of the story. So the banter and chemistry we're used to getting in her books? Basically non existent. And for whatever reason, the pacing felt sooooo sloooooow - probably because the book was almost a Groundhog Day sort of trope, but not really.

And don't ask me how many times the MMC said the word "sweetheart". My soul (and will to continue reading) crumpled a little more each time he said it, and it was easily over 200 times throughout the story. It started out as a sarcastic pet name and turned into an actual nickname that he used for her after they fell for one another - I was not at all amused.

Once I got to the 70% mark or so, I was so bored that I found myself essentially only skimming and reading dialogue. That's when you know it's bad.

As much as I love Falon Ballard and will read another book of hers in the future, this one was a no from me.

I received a DIGITAL Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I've read a few other books by this author that I enjoyed a lot more then this one. I think most of it had to do with the FMC, she might have been just a little too unlikeable for me. I also don't really think she truly changed that much on this whole journey of hers. She's still pretty bitchy and unlikeable except now she's a lawyer for a better clientele.

If you're a Hallmark movie fan, you'll enjoy this one. This is a cute and quick rom-com. I would've loved more chemistry between the MC's. I think the setting was perfect, but the romance was a little flat.

⇢ Small-town Romance
⇢ Magical Realism
⇢ Spicy Matchmaking
⇢ Hallmark Vibes
⇢ Career Driven FMC
⇢ Reverse Grumpy Sunshine

Thank you to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for the arc copy of this book. Opinions expressed are entirely my own.

From the dedication, I had a good feeling about this book. Like my mind already knew it was going to love it, and I did.

Campbell Andrews doesn't have time for anything, including dating. She has been training to be a lawyer and take over her grandmother's firm since the reasonable age of 9, which is going well and she's made partner at 34. For some reason, her grandmother thinks she needs to make time for dating, so she keeps setting up blind dates for Cam. When Cam and Dr. Ben Loving, a pediatric surgeon, go on their date, Cam is upfront and tells him she will never see him again. Also, they don't even have to talk to each other during dinner, since she is super busy replying to emails. Ben is taken aback and the pair decide to end the date early, but not before their waitress Mimi leaves them a note with her unsolicited advice on the bill.

Cam wakes up the next day in a Hallmark movie set, which for her is hell. And guess who her neighbor is? Ben. While trying to run away back to New York City, Cam runs into Mimi, this fantasy town's mayor, at the cafe and confronts her. According to Mimi, Cam is stuck in her town until Cam completes three tasks: feel true love, get a career she's passionate about, and get involved in the community. Not only is Cam stuck, but so is Ben, who has been tasked with something different. As the pair work to complete their tasks and quickly become best friends, Cam starts to realize that perhaps her old life wasn't as great as she thought. When it comes down to it, Cam must decide which life is right for her.

I devoured this book. I love how bitchy Cam is right off the bat, and how patient and supportive Ben is. They f0rm a great friendship, have fun banter, and Cam slowly starts to become the loving person she always was deep down. This is a great story about someone realizing their true potential and happiness, learning to love themself in the process.

4.5 stars rounded up.

Goodness, Falon Ballard always knows how to pull on my heartstrings! If you LOVE cheesy Hallmark movies, but also want the big city career FMC to remain true to herself, Change of Heart is for you. There were a few times I was a little worried about where the story was going, but it ended up being full of love, empowerment and strength. Cam was such a fun character and I loved seeing her grow and discover what truly makes her happy. The town of Heart Springs was absolutely adorable and it goes on the list of Fictional Towns I Wish I Could Visit. I was ehhhh on one or two things. I did really like Ben, but him calling Cam sweetheart every other sentence was a little grating after a while. I do wish we could have seen Cam at her job and interacting with her grandmother more to really pack that punch of why she needed a change in perspective. Heart Springs happens VERY quickly in the story and I just didn’t feel like I got to know that side of Cam well enough to see the difference. However, I still very much enjoyed the book and I think it’s such a cute romance with a lot of heart!

Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam Books for an advanced digital readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

I've adored all the Falon Ballard books I've read in the past so I was excited to get an ARC from NetGalley for this one. But this book was very different than her others and I can't say I loved it. I went into this one totally blind but knowing that I love Falon's other books so I was taken aback a little when this one went a different direction than I was expecting.

Change of Heart is filled with magical realism, which I know isn't really my cup of tea, and had some positive aspects to it. I found the characters really lovable and the magical realism was well done. That being said, I thought the character development of the two main characters felt incomplete and their relationship developed was too fast to be realistic. I expect some parts of romance books to be unrealistic, but this didn't even feel like it was fully developed before being written and the relationship moved on for the sake of the plot moving on.

All that being said, while this wasn't necessarily the book for me, I still love Falon Ballard and will continue to read her books.

I'm grateful to have gotten an early digital copy from NetGalley and Penguin Group. My review is honest and voluntary.

Cam Andrews is a young partner of her grandmother's law firm, and she certainly has no time for love or those people who fall in love. She obediently goes on a blind date for the sake of her grandmother, and although the date is a sweet doctor, she reads her work emails through dinner and completely ignores Ben. The waitress is an older woman bent on making the "cute" couple happy. But dinner ends, and Cam rushes home. She wakes up the next morning in Heart Springs, an idyllic small town with cookie cutter houses, cute coffee shops, and Ben next door. Quickly, Cam realizes that she's trapped unless she follows the formula to "fall in love."

I have enjoyed other Falon Ballard novels, but Change of Heart was not a home run for me. While the idea was cute, it has been done before and quite recently in another book I read over the last year. This version did not hit the mark for the make believe perfect small town where the big city girl finds love. Instead, the main character is an awful person, although somewhat redeems herself by the end, but not enough to make me like her. Can we have a romance without all the vulgar language? Who finds that romantic or sexy? This may have sat better with a little less harsh female lead that had some friends to support her.

Penguin Group Putnam and NeGalley for the ARC. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!
I can always count on Ballard to deliver a fun, cute, and unique rom com! This met those expectations. I loved the Hallmark movie vibes and enjoyed watching our FMC and her journey. I read this in one day and enjoyed my time with it!

Change of Heart by Falon Ballard
✨Releases February 11th ✨

3.5⭐
2 🌶️
Tropes/Themes: magical realism, hallmark vibes, small town, snarky banter
Single POV 1st person

I’m pretty torn on this review. Mostly, I enjoyed it. I read it in almost one sitting. This story is sort of a mashup of Pleasantville and The Truman Show- After going on a “date” with Ben (date is a term I use loosely since he just sat there while she ignored him) Cam wakes up the next morning in the magical town of Heart Springs, where she has to do 3 things to be able to return to the real world.

What I liked:
The story concept- like the whole gist of the story: workaholic lawyer who refuses to deal with her own trauma and treats people like shit gets magically transported to the “perfect” town where she has to face up to her own flaws.
Cam’s personal growth- This was really well written. Like she’s kind of a heartless bitch when she first arrives but definitely starts to learn from it.
There were some really funny parts- I laughed so hard at the books she sold to people in the town.
It’s mostly a cute, quick and fun read
The sarcasm and snark between Cam and Ben was great

What I disliked:
Ok, I know I said the character growth was great but….Cam’s character is a terrible person. I’m really glad she changed but I still kinda hate her.
Even though it’s obvious that Cam and Ben are the couple in the story, I hated her for him. He just really deserved better.
The way she “fulfills” the three requirements. IDK it was a good message I guess but eh.
The shit talking “straight white men” trope is getting old. We can acknowledge issues and work toward change without trashing entire groups.

Change of Heart by Falon Ballard just was not for me. I see where Ballard was trying to go with this book but I found the FMC incredibly insufferable. I enjoy the twist on reality and the bit of fantasy/magical realism but the groundhog day aspect/ anti-feminism feel just was not for me. A lot of people found this book corny (in a sweet way) and endearing but it fell flat for me.

A cute book, but it contains magical realism which I didn’t know until I started reading. I wouldn’t have read it had I known, but I rated it as I would have had it not contained these elements because it was my error in misreading the description.

Cam is a career-driven women in her mid-thirties who has no desire to be in a relationship. Her grandma who controls the family law firm sets her up on a blind date with Ben. During their date, Cam tells him that she's not actually interested and works on her phone during their time together. The next morning, they both wake up stuck in a dream world with objectives to achieve in order to return to their real lives.

The premise is cute, but the execution was a little rough. Cam just seems mean, not driven. People can be driven AND courteous. Ben's perspective would have been insightful and could have made him more interesting. I still don't fully understand Cam's mom abandoning her with her grandma or the logistics of what her childhood was like.

The characters felt surface level and they were living in an alternate reality, so they were really difficult to relate to. If you're looking for a book by Ballard, I'd recommend Lease on Love.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

Campbell is a hard person to like - she's brusque, does not suffer fools and has no need for a life or friends because of her high powered job (and makes it known To anyone who tries). She gets set up on a blind date with Ben but barely says a word to him during their short date (like reads emails the whole time and then rather than eat at the table takes a doggy bag short). The morning after her pseudo-date she wakes up in a different bed, different house, different town. She's in an ideal storybook town with Ben as her neighbor (he also somewhere ended up there). The only way to get back to her life is to fulfill a few tasks, including finding true love. Cam will need to change a lot to be able to complete the tasks, the question is whether or not she can do it.

This is my first book by Ballard and I will read more of hers because I found it to be a nice, light and fun read with the addition of magical realism that I always appreciate. While I did enjoy it my main issue with the book was I felt like I was trying really hard to like Cam because she was quite terrible and I didn't totally understand why Ben liked her at all (and that wasn't the part I was supposed to suspend reality for) and it was also a very predictable storyline (the whole story not just the happy ending). However I liked the concept, even though I have seen it/read it before and I thought it was done creatively.

3.75 stars

Thank you to GP Putnam and Netgalley for my ARC to review

This book was a solid 3.5 stars for me- so I rounded up to 4! The story was cute and kitschy with a dash of magic. I was surprised that it was taking place around Christmas for a good chunk of the book based on the color scheme and its publication date being Feb 11th. Ben and Cam were adorable together- though sweetheart (his pet name for her) was a bit overused to the point where it started to annoy me some. Cam’s family definitely sucked- though the ending did wrap that aspect up in a satisfying manner for me. Cam had a lot of good character growth and development throughout the story which I liked- I couldn’t really stand her at the beginning, but really liked her by the end. Her stint in the bookshop was hilarious, her giving a kid Priest by Sierra Simone without realizing what it was definitely something. The book was at times a tad cheesy, but it was overall a fun read!

3.5 ⭐️

This was a fun, escapist read that was written with so much humor and romance! It felt like I was in a book of some 2000s magical realism rom coms (Just My Luck, Freaky Friday) and I loved that! Falon’s writing takes you into a different world and it was a quick easy read. I really enjoy the FMC’s journey of self-growth and we LOVE a supportive MMC who just watches and encourages her along the way 🫶🏻 Cam + Ben were lovable characters overall. It was a cheesy romance story- sometimes repetitive and unrealistic, I also thought their chemistry felt a bit rushed - therefore it didn’t knock anything out of the park for me but still worth the read!

I don't know why but I was not feeling this at all. For the life of me I couldn't get into the story or the characters. The plot had the potential to be whimsical but i found it lackluster and rushed. The characters, particularly the FMC was closed off and we didn't even start to really get to know her yet so I couldn't become invested in these characters