Falon Ballard always has such a sharp, fun wit to her books, and this one was no different. I'm a huge fan of women that are complicated and not as "easy" to love, and Ballard wrote this one perfectly. The chemistry was strong, the slow burn was torturous (but gave such a great payoff). I appreciated that she didn't get to caught up in the detail of explaining what Heart Springs was, how they got there, time-travel, etc. Magical realism can sometimes get bogged down in trying to over explain, and Ballard didn't fall victim to that at all. I had a ton of fun reading this one!

3.5 In the first couple of chapters, the female main character was so mean and her language so foul that I almost quit reading. But I didn’t, and ended up enjoying the book. It pokes a bit of fun at Hallmark type movies, which had me cracking up. I liked the secondary characters much more than the primary couple.

Much thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for the opportunity to read and review this book prior to publication.

2.5

Requested and received an ARC from NetGalley.
I hate writing negative reviews for books I received an ARC for because I’ve received somebody’s hard work for free in order to get the word out there. It’s why I request so few now since most of the time I can’t even bring myself to finish them…but I pushed through with this one. I thought this would be an easy breezy cute story to get me into the holiday vibe. I love a slow burn so don’t think that in any way negatively affected this review. I hated Cam. Hated her from the start and she showed no redeeming qualities until at least the 50% mark, by then I was over it and hoping Ben would find somebody else. Of course that’s not how this works. My only “issue” with the whole Heart Springs aspect is their lack of freaking out about it. If I wake up in a place that I literally can’t escape from but everyone is acting like that’s normal there’s going to be more than one meltdown. And I have questions….half the time there were no people, then there would be enough people to have festivals and support shops. Yet Mimi had a coffee shop that was always empty? I would find it more interesting to dive into what that town actually is…but I digress. Anyways…Cam becomes more human little by little (I just don’t care at this point), Ben is likable enough although not very fleshed out and his use of the term “sweetheart” made me want to gouge out my eyes. I checked and “sweetheart” was used 68 times. By the end it felt more like 6800. Sexy stuff starts happening around the 70% mark. I skimmed it because I don’t care but I did get caught on some cringe worthy phrasing like “have your way with me” and later on the fact they hadn’t had penetrative sex is referred to as not “going all the way”. WTF It’s like the main characters kept morphing into 15 year olds when it came to the sex stuff. Of course we eventually got to the HEA even if it felt like it took a million years to get there. I expected and wanted a brain candy book, it tried to go too deep to be effective brain candy but was too shallow to be anything else so it just floundered.

Cute, sweet, not a lot of depth. I was left wanting more of the male main character and their relationship but I absolutely could do with less of “sweetheart”. I liked most of the side characters but Mimi didn’t do it for me.

This was a little cheesy and on the nose, but I always enjoy being in Falon Ballard's world. It was a bit like A Christmas Carol but not Christmas and only one meddling figure instead of three ghosts.

Change of Heart is like a warm magical hug. The storyline kept my interest, and I found myself always wanting to pick it up and see what was going to happen next. While I loved the both characters their relationship seemed to lack depth. I enjoyed my reading experience with this novel, and I feel like the both leads were fully fleshed out. But something still felt missing. Still three stars! ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️!

Thank you to NetGalley and GP Putnam Sons for the eARC.

A Hallmark-esque story with an adorable illustrated cover by Falon Ballard, and I was sold on Change of Heart. Campbell Andrews is not looking for love, she’s only looking to advance her her career. But a disastrous blind date (cause she’s rather be working), she wakes up in Heart Springs—a small town where she finds she has to complete 3 tasks to go home, including experiencing true love. Okay, so I love Falon Ballard, Lease on Love is a book I just absolutely adored. But Change of Heart didn’t work for me. When Cam shows up in Heart Springs, her hair goes from short, icy blonde to long golden waves, and I get there has to be the distinction, but for a book that was about her finding purpose outside of work, it irritated me that her appearance was immediately shifted by this town. And while the chemistry and banter with Dr. Ben Loving—her blind date that wakes up in Heart Springs as well—was really sweet, I wanted to get to know him. He existed to serve Cam, and it’s sweet and I was rooting for him, but he’s flat. There’s not a lot of background to him and he doesn’t grow. He’s a sweet golden retriever from start to finish. And Cam is super unlikeable from the start. She’s rude and cold with not enough background to really root for her until much later. I was on her side still, and her growth was satisfying, if not a little abrupt. There’s some solid angst in this, and the Hallmark-like town felt like diving into Gilmore Girls’ Stars Hollow. I adored the bakery owner, she was just a bright spot. And Cam finding her spot in the community, I just wanted to hug her. I loved the town events and antics and characters. It’s a really bingeable book, I read it in two days and it is a cute, open-door romance read.

Once again Falon Ballard speaks to my soul. This book has a magical, fantastical twist, which is new for Ballard romance. But it's well done. It's fun and moves the romance along nice. Our plot follows Cam and Ben from a disastrous blind date to the next day they wake up in a picturesque Hallmark-esque small down with no escape until Cam can accomplish three things and where everything is happy.
I very much enjoyed the premise and the start to this story, it's funny, engaging, and it introduces Cam in a way that gives her plenty of room to grow and play through the storyline. The side characters are lovely. I do wish we got a little more of Ben. We're seeing through Cam's eyes and she undergoes a pretty drastic transformation, whereas Ben is relatively perfect (and therefore a little flat) throughout.
But it's a quick, easy, full of love read that I highly recommend.

I’d like to thank Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Fallon Ballard’s new book!

I would love to give this more than 5 stars if possible. It reminded me of a Hallmark movie and the Wizard of Oz all wrapped up into one adorable story. Campbell (Cam) Andrew’s, a successful, cutthroat lawyer who lives for her career gets set up on a blind date only to self sabotage it right from the start. The next morning she wakes up in a strange bedroom in a Hallmark-y adorable town called Heart Springs (because of course it’s called Heart Springs!). In order to get back home, she has to complete 3 tasks. Change of Heart follows Cam’s journey of discovering that there’s more to life than work and the mishaps she encounters along the way.

When this book comes out, you have to get your hands on it!

I have been recommended by a friend to read Falon Ballard books so I was so excited to get my hands on this ARC, but this book wasn’t for me. At first, I was very excited for this book because I enjoy a romcom, hallmark, cheesy novel but this lacked connection between the characters. I feel has if Cam and Ben had no real connection or time to fall in love at all, I wasn’t not shipping them together. One minute Cam didn’t care for Ben and next she was in love with him. I will be reading more Falon Ballard books, but this one wasn’t for me.

The premise of this book had all the makings of a fun, magical rom-com, but unfortunately it fell flat for me. While the idea of a no-nonsense lawyer being transported to a Hallmark-style small town was intriguing, I really struggled to connect with the characters, especially Cam. Her constant swearing felt out of place at times and made it hard to root for her when she never seemed to grow on me or soften at all.

Ben also had his issues. While he was clearly meant to be the charming small-town hero to Campbell's strong-city personality, his excessive use of the word "sweetheart" made me cringe more than swoon. It felt forced and gave me the ick every time it popped up.

The story itself had cute moments - some of the town's quirkiness and charming residents were sweet- but, the romance didn't feel fully believable for me. The emotional payoff felt rushed. Overall, it was okay - I liked it! Didn't love it!

I was not entirely sure what to expect from this book, but to my surprise I LOVED it. My only criticism is that I really dislike when MMCs have a pet name for a character to get under their skin. The fact that Ben called Campbell "Sweetheart" all the time from the get-go got under my skin so hard. I rolled my eyes every time. Otherwise I truly loved the premise and couldn't put the book down. I'll be putting Falon Ballard on my follow list immediately!

Thank you so much for this ARC!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁:
✨ magical realism
✨ black cat x golden retriever
✨ wakes up in a hallmark-like town
✨ single POV

Falon does it again! I always love Falon’s books because I know I’m going to be instantly hooked, it will be fast-paced and I’ll end up loving it so much. Change of Heart did just that for me.

Magical realism is one of my fav tropes/sub-genres of romance and having Cam wake up in a town plucked out of a Hallmark movie had me so giddy. There are lots of laugh out loud moments that I enjoyed.

Cam is our black cat and Ben our golden retriever. It was a breath of fresh air to have our FMC be super pessimistic 🤭. Ben was the sweetest ever and literally my only critique of this book is that I wanted more Ben! I could just imagine what some chapters from his POV would be 🥹.

Campbell Andrews despises exactly three things in life: incompetence, tardiness, and love stories. Making partner at her law firm at thirty-four, she has no time for anything or anyone else. And certainly no respect for those who choose love over work. That is, until she wakes up in Heart Springs—her own personal hell.

The good news? She’s not dead. She’s been magically transported to a small town straight out of the Hallmark channel, complete with a meddling mayor, seasonal festivals, and friendly townsfolk. Cam can’t stand it, but in order to make it back to her real life, she has to fulfill three tasks . . . foremost among them, experience true love. It seems impossible. But anything’s possible with a change of heart.

Ballard writes a fun and entertaining romance in Change of Heart. I don't normally like magical realism, but this was fun! Living your own fairy tale. I loved Cam and Ben, and it was fun to watch their relationship grow on-page. Adorable. Highly recommend this for a light read!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced digital reader's copy (ARC) in exchange for an honest review!

First, thanks to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons for providing me with an early copy to read and review. The

Second, this is probably my least favorite novel of the author’s. I’m normally not a huge fan of magical realism, but I allowed myself to suspend disbelief for a bit to try and get into the spirit of the story.

While it’s a cute, sugary and easy read, I didn’t particularly care for the character development. I felt like the main character was self-centered to the end.

I did appreciate the descriptiveness and the author really painted the scene of the setting well.

Falon Ballard’s first foray into magic realism is everything I didn’t know I needed in a romance novel. She brings her signature banter and character development to this snarky, spicy take on a classic Hallmark romance, and it works. Campbell, a big city attorney wakes up one day to find herself trapped in a charming small town, where everything’s picture-perfect, smiling and friendly. She has a magic wardrobe that provides her clothes, and wakes up every day to perfectly curled hair and a full face of makeup. Her next-door neighbor Ben is the handsome pediatric surgeon that she spurned on her last blind date, and it seems they are stuck together in this town until she can fulfill three important tasks.

As a protagonist, Campbell is a bit hard to like at first, but Ballard writes her in a way that makes you still want to root for her. The romantic tension is palpable, a delicious slow burn. I read it in just a couple of sittings and really enjoyed it. This book will be a big hit with fans of Ashley Poston,

I wasn't sure about this story but not too far in, I ended up really enjoying it and looking forward to how this author was going to give this couple their HEA. It was definitely a very unique twist on a romance which is what threw me at first but I think that Cam's journey to finding and appreciating her true self is what kept me reading. Thank you to Putnam Books for giving me a chance to read this arc early on NetGalley for an honest review.

If you like Schmigadoon or Hallmark movies, Change of Heart is for you. Very sweet, quick read, I wish we would have gotten fuller characterizations of folks outside of the female lead, but an ideal turn your brain off kind of read.

I’ve become a fan of Falon Ballard’s, but this one (unfortunately) missed the mark for me. A big city lawyer gets stuck in a Hallmark movie town, and has to accomplish some tasks to make it back home…it sounds like a book I’d enjoy, but I had a hard time getting into the story. The main character was not likable (and there really wasn’t much backstory to explain it), the love interest felt rushed (and if I read “sweetheart” again I think I might have puked), and the Hallmark-esque storyline felt incomplete. It was a cute read once I got into it, but it just wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be.

This really did not work for me. The main character was unlikeable but in a bad way, not in a way I usually like (just mean and rude to people, self centered). You want to root for the main character, and I found that so hard to do. I liked the concept of being put into a hallmark movie set unexpectedly, but the execution was just really off. You never really got a sense of how or why it made sense for that to have happened, and the twist in the ending was just too painfully cliche. I feel like the author took every stereotype about working women and made it a bad thing, and leaned way too hard into the “love will save you” trope. Just really did not enjoy.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review