This was such a fun and quick read!!! I listened to most of it on audio and read the last bit physically and enjoyed it in both formats!!

I’ve read all of Falon Ballard’s books and this is probably one of my favorites! It was such a fun premise and the romance was so sweet. I also loved the found family with the townspeople and seeing the journey Cam went on throughout the book.

Overall, really enjoyed my reading experience!

3.5 ⭐️

After a blind date with Dr. Loving where Campbell acts very dismissive, she wakes up the next morning in a town that resembles one you would find in a Hallmark movie. In order for her and Dr. Loving to return home Cam is given three tasks she must complete. This book was filled with a vivid small town atmosphere and side characters that I adored. The one issue that I had with this book was the lack of scenes between Campbell and Ben. I feel like their relationship felt very "insta-love" even though they were within the Hallmark town for months.

This book is perfect for fans of Prime Time Romance by Kate Robb and A Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston. I want to thank Netgalley, the Publisher, and the Author for the Chance to read the arc of this book in exchange for a honest review.

High powered lawyer Cam doesn't think she's missing anything in her life. But after a bad first date with doctor Ben, she wakes up in the Hallmark like town of Heartstrings. There she must find what she loves in life, with the help of Ben and several busybody townspeople in order to go home.

This was a cute one! Here's what I liked:

The magical realism: The alternate universe feel of this book worked well. I liked the concept and the town. All of the characters worked really well in this. They were quirky and much larger than life. A perfect set of characters with an imaginative setting.

Ben: I adored him. He's really well written. I loved his quiet personality and how he approached everything, Book boyfriend for sure.

The humor: Ballard has a perfect sense of humor in her dialogue. This book was more of the same!

All in all, a great magical realism romcom!
Thank you to the author and publisher for the gifted copy!

FMC was a bit too grating for me- like an over-stereotyped version of the harsh female boss who works too much. MMC threw an unhinged amount of "sweethearts' around, first sarcastically, then for real? Idk.

The plot had the set up for a really lovely found family situation, but everything was too glossy and it never got beyond surface friendships.

The ending was cute and wrapped up in a bow.

All in all, not my favorite of Ballard's books. (I'm usually a huge fan!!!)

Thanks Netgalley for an ARC.

I love, love, love this book! I picked it up in the morning and was finished before 5 pm.

There have been a lot of attempts to be "meta" about romance in romance novels recently. Sometimes it is as simple as the character being very into them, or noting the tropes an emerging relationship is following. Some integrate the idea into the plot, with Emily Henry's Book Lovers being a pitch-perfect example of that.

Falon Ballard's Change of Heart is right there with Book Lovers.

Cam is the tough-as-nails, career-focused, big-city lawyer. The morning after a disastrous date with Dr. Ben Loving, Cam wakes up in the Hallmark moviesque Heart Springs. Everything is pastel and perfect, she wakes up with her hair and makeup done, and her closet magically picks out a (not)perfect(for her) outfit each morning.

Trying to figure out what happened, she meets up with Mimi, the waitress from the previous night. Mimi gives Cam the path to going back home--she needs to find a career she loves, become an important part of the community, and find true love. Along for the ride to help her on the way? Ben, her date.

Being locked in Heart Springs, with a daunting to-do list, forces Cam to reckon with what made her unhappy in her "real life." Is her high-powered career as a mergers and acquisitions attorney actually what she wants, or is it just an attempt to appease her grandmother? Will she fall for one of the pre-selected, Mimi-approved dates, or is Ben the real love of her life? What does it take to be an important part of one's community? How much work will she put in to return to NYC?

There are a lot of parallels between Change of Heart and Book Lovers that I can't get into without spoiling the plot. Just know that they both are absolute five-star reads for me, with heart and humor at the core.

* Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review! *

(Actual: 3.5⭐) Man, oh man. I love Falon Ballard, I truly do, and I have enjoyed every one of her previous books. However, and it pains me a bit to say this, but CHANGE OF HEART....... hmm. How do I put this? This book surprisingly didn't *WOW* me in the same way her previous novels have. It's good, but not great; it feels almost like a step backward imo, because despite it featuring many tropes I enjoy and despite me breezing through it all fairly quickly, it definitely felt like something was missing. I don't mind fair doses of cliches and cheesiness in my romances, it's somewhat to be expected of course, but COH overstepped into OTT territory in this regard for me and I can't help but wonder where that falter came from considering the quality of Ballard's previous works. One thing I did like though, or at least found to be very compelling, were our MCs, Campbell ("Cam") and Ben, respectively, and how neither of them are portrayed as being perfect* (*especially Cam, who comes off very strong and rather unlikeable in the beginning, but gradually softens as the novel [and her arc] progresses). And while the magical realism aspect of this book was cute, the romance between Cam & Ben could have also been better developed and fleshed out because I wasn't completely sold on it by the end as I think I was supposed to be? Regardless, I still had fun reading this & consider it to be a cute, easy romcom that most will probably still enjoy for its cozy Hallmark-esque vibes (unless you're not a fan of too much cheese or predictability, than this might not be for you). I'm still a Falon Ballard stan though and will always be ready to read more from her!

Lighthearted, fluffy, and very predictable romance. It is quite cheesy and Hallmark-ish, which I get that it is supposed to be, but it was very in your face. It was okay but not my favorite from this author unfortunately!

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Change of Heart by Falon Ballard brings in a touch of magical goodness, with a spicy Hallmark romance that I was just here for. Cam is a big city girl, who’s focused on her career and doesn’t have time for love or relationships. She goes on a somewhat disastrous blind date with Ben, and then the next morning is magically transported to Heart Springs to complete three tasks before she’s allowed to return home. Surprise! though, Ben is there too…

I really enjoyed the small town vibes we got with Heart Springs, and the cast of characters Cam and Ben interact with there. I really did feel like I was watching a Hallmark movie as I was reading, and even though Cam is somewhat prickly and could very much so be unlikeable by a lot of people she has her reasons and it was sooooo lovely to witness her growth and development as the book progresses. I definitely laughed out loud multiple times as I was reading – especially when Cam was working in the bookstore and the reccs she was giving out to the townspeople. The only other thing I wish we would have had is Ben’s POV – because he was just so supportive and there for Cam and I would have wanted to be in his brain just a little to see his motivation.

Overall, it was a cute and fun read. I’m a Falon Ballard fangirl and yet another one of hers that I have enjoyed.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book provided to me through NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Falon Ballard and Penguin Group Putnam for giving me the opportunity to read this book!

3.5 rounded up
This was a cute romcom with the little bit of magic in it. It was a very cute premise. I enjoyed the ways the author followed the stereotypes of a Hallmark movie, but I liked even more the way she deviated from them, bringing a fresh take to the overused formula.

I liked how Campbell, the female main character, developed in the story. It was well-paced, and she grew without her entire personality changing. I also like that there is a female friendship that develops.

As for the romance, I like the two characters together, but there wasn't quite the spark I wanted. It was very one-sided, The story is only told through Campbell's perspective, so this makes sense to a certain extent, but there could have been more to show Ben's interest. I didn't experience that rush of relief when the characters finally got together. Still, they made sense together, and, most importantly, I knew why they were good for each other.

The story was well-written, but something I found interesting was that Falon's writing tone comes across very sweet and wholesome, yet her main female was more of a hard-boiled character. The tone and the character just didn't quite jive.

Overall, it was a cute story!

Change of Heart by Falon Ballard
Release Date: Feb 11


I was 90% sure I would hate this book when I first started reading. Cam was extremely unlikable and rude and fell squarely into that ambitious city girl in a Hallmark romance movie so much so that it was over the top. I thought I would never come to appreciate the character.
Fortunately, I was wrong and I ended up really enjoying the story. It was over the top, but it felt like it was supposed to be like that because of Heart Springs. Cam came a long way and I ended up understanding more of why she was the way she was. I had so much fun with her growth!
My only actual complaint is that I wished I understood Ben more. He was great and really supported Cam as a friend despite the way she treated him, but I still didn’t understand him. He was like a blank perfect guy canvas, but people aren’t just placeholders and I just wish I knew who he was.
Still, I liked the book and thought the romance and set up was pretty cute and it was a fun story. I definitely recommend to fans of romcoms. Add this one to your TBR!

Change of Hearts was a cute rom-com with some spice. The magical concept was super unique and I love Falon’s sense of humor written in the book. However, I didn’t like the character development of Ben. I know he was written as a super caring and sincere guy but I feel like I don’t know much about him throughout the story. He calls Cam “sweetheart” from the beginning which is a little odd for me since he didn’t exactly know her and “sweetheart” was used a lot in the book. I still like the book overall but it wasn’t one of my favorite of her books. Thank you Penguin Group Putnam, Netgalley, and Falon Ballard for this ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for giving me an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was really excited for this book because I’m a big fan of Falon Ballard. Unfortunately this book just wasn’t the one for me.

I couldn’t connect with the main character, Cam, at all and although I liked Ben, he was a really bland character that I feel like we really didn’t get to learn much about.

I liked the premise of the the story. Big time city lawyer gets trapped in a Hallmark movie town so she can learn and change into a better/happier person, but the way it was done made all of Cam’s growth seem forced. It seemed like she was only changing so she could get home. Also, why was Ben there? It seemed like he only got sucked into the world to be her love interest. I also didn’t feel like the characters were very genuine.


The concept for this book was great and if you’re looking for a fluffy low key read, this one may be for you.

A career focused, allergic-to-love heroine wakes up in a small town that would make a Hallmark Movie jealous? And Falon Ballard wrote it??

SIGN. ME. UP.

When tough as nails Campbell Andrews wakes up in Heart Springs, the dreamy small town is her living nightmare. To get home, all she has to do is complete three tasks. Cam is convinced she can easily get them done and get home to NYC. But this magic little town has a plan of its own.

Falon’s upcoming release Change of Heart is a delight. Her books are always the perfect balance of rom and com and this is no exception. Cam’s story weaves just enough magic to keep you on your toes and keep a smile on your face. It’s a cozy, warmhearted read that you can’t help but fall for.

Change of Heart by Falon Ballard comes out on 2/11.

A big thank you to Putnam Books and NetGalley for the ARC!

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. The main character, Cam, was just so mean and unlikable. The whole vibe of the book was just off to me and it took me so long to get through it. I’m sure there will be people who love this book but I am not one of them.

I had to DNF this. The plot sounded whimsical and fun, two things the FMC is not. She was very unlikable and was rude to the MMC for no fucking reason. He also kept saying sweetheart every 5 seconds and it came off as condescending to me. She also used "farce" like 4 times and I only read 31%. There is no need for that. I really wanted to like Falon Ballard's writing. I hate being a hater but this book was not for me :/

Change of Heart was an okay read. While there were several elements I enjoyed, I unfortunately just couldn’t connect with the story or characters.

It’s in the heroine’s POV only, which I did feel like it hindered the story at times by not having the hero’s POV as well. There were some great tropes though like, grumpy-sunshine, forced proximity, a black cat heroine, and a small-town romance.

The overall premise was decent. The magical realism aspect was pretty enjoyable and all the side characters were great. However, the main characters especially the hero felt very one-dimensional. There was a lot happening as well, which did make it a bit difficult to see where the plot was heading.

The romance felt very underdeveloped as well. We were told instead of shown their romantic development. They did have some good banter and spice though.

There were also several subplots that were rushed at the end. But the conclusion was still cute. Overall, a decent read just not my favorite from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I’ll be honest, I was disappointed in this book. While it has all the right ingredients for a cozy romance, I feel like it fell into the Hallmark movie trap. The love story isn’t believable, they don’t have chemistry because Ben’s character isn’t developed enough and falls flat. I’ve really enjoyed her other books, which is why I’m so surprised that I’m having this reaction to this book. Cam is unlikable and entitled and her character arc isn’t warranted, it all feels so forced. TBH, I’d rather watch The Merry Gentlemen again than read this, and that’s saying something.

This was pretty cute! At first I didn’t love the FMC, but that was kind of the point, and we did see growth in her character. I loved the mmc but I wish there was a bit more substance to their friendship stage. Despite that I had a really good time!

A sweet, Hallmarky rom-com with a touch of magical realism. I found this novel to be a bit on the predictable side.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for this ARC. What would you do if you were a career focused woman who gets transported to a Hallmark-esque town after a tolerable first date? Well Campbell Andrews gets to find out in this cute tale of grump versus sunshine. Cam has been agreeing to dates to appease her grandmother but this time it’s backfired and she wakes up in a new reality where finding love is supposed to be her only focus. A lighthearted story about finding your priorities as well as happily ever after.