A heart transplant. An unconventional romance. A suspicious death.

As an organ recipient, Rosie Lachlan is grateful for a new heart and new lease on life. She finds herself drawn to her donor’s widow, Morgan Thorne, a famous thriller author whose toxic trait is exploiting the trauma of others for his own personal gain. When Rosie uncovers rumors suggesting foul play in the death of Morgan’s wife, she becomes ensnared in a tangled web of deceit and danger.

Read this if you:
-appreciate reassurance that the cat and dog survive… (but the people may not!)
-believe Taylor swift is a modern day Sylvia Plath
-are captivated by a twisty popcorn thriller

RATING: 4/5
PUB DATE: January 14, 2025

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First I would like to thank Netgalley and Atria books for the ARC of this novel.

This was a very fast-paced, twisty thriller. I will admit I thought I had the whole thing figured out and then bam! It ended up surprising me. I love when that happens.

I really enjoyed the main character Rosie. I love an unreliable narrator and for the most part she really a great job toeing the line between being unreliable and just everyone else in the story being unreliable. I really liked that I couldn’t trust anyone in the book. They all seemed a little suspect to me.

I also think the twist in the middle of the book was fantastic. That came out of nowhere and I didn’t see it coming at all.

I think my biggest complaint was just that it was so over the top with the twists and reasons for the twists. Without giving away any spoilers it just felt to be a little much for me.

But overall I enjoyed the book.

3.5/5 stars rounded up to 4 for this review.

This was the second book I've read or tried to read by Collins. I don't think she is for me. The concept of this sounded so interesting, but I quickly lost interested before the half way mark. Sad to say that I did not enjoy it.

I really tried to love this book! It started off good and I was interested. I just lost interest so quick after the 20% mark and every time I picked it back up I was bored.

I definitely did not expect it to be this good ! It had me thinking and second guessing about everything. I loved the ending .

Cross My Heart by Meghan Collins, the main character is more a character you see on the sidelines as opposed to someone driving the whole narrative, but I digress. Rosie is coming up on a year of having her heart broke and also replaced. Her best friend Nina, who works at the hospital seen when Daphne, the wife of local author Morgan Stone came in and expired in the emergency room and it’s the same night that Rosie got her new heart. so when she contacts her donors loved ones on an app called donor connect and she learns he’s an author. She’s absolutely certain it’s Morgan Thorne. to say that Rosie is obsessive is an understatement. She takes notes of all the things she knows about him. The things he likes, and when she walks her parents dog, she even passes by his house and watches him through the wall size windows and daydreams about them being together. One day when she learns he is at sweet Bean a coffee shop in the same parking lot as her parents bridal store and where she works she can’t help but to go over there to watch him with his best friend Blair. we get to read the messages between Rosie and Morgan, but after the coffee shop incident where she spied on him, we then get to read Morgan’s emails to his best friend Blair all about the great woman he met pink haired Rosie, who he’s really falling for. Rosie says she was left at the altar, and Morgan says his wife fell and hit her head and that’s how she died but when a tragic event happens, the truth comes out, but not before other life-threatening things occur. there were some really good twist in the story, and although Rosie is a little bit thrown off, I still really liked the sweetness and optimism she possessed. I also thought the author did a fabulous job representing transplant survivors. and all they go through after the transplant. Although there were some things I found holy unbelievable none of it had to do with her transplant. I would definitely absolutely 100% read another book by this author and look forward to doing just that. This is a great thriller with even greater twist.#NetGalley, #AtriaBooks, #MeganCollins, #CrossMyHeart,

Easily a 5 star read ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC of this WONDERFUL book.

I’ll be honest, I did not hear about this book until 2 days before I received it. Another reviewer was posting about it and I ✨ had ✨ to have it. Requested it ASAP and then when I got the accepted email I started that night and read 65% in one sitting. While I worked the next day, I thought about this book often and immediately knew I was finishing it in less than 24hrs.

This book fabulously had the perfect mix of mystery, comedy, romance, and dashes of suspense. There legit was a big twist about 50% in that I DID NOT SEE COMING. Which is soooooo refreshing for me because I usually always see twists coming in some form at least and this twist had me question EVERYTHING. As in I even went back a few chapters just to try and convince myself that I was mistaken about the twist being said twist and nope, this book hooked me so much that my Autistic & ADHD brain only focused on the book and nothing else of what’s next or what the twists or endings could be and let me tell you that is RARE.

I will say even tho I ate this book up, I did read A LOT of anticlimactic and slow reads lately and some DNF’s before this that slightly might have made this book sparkle more than it would have normally. But honestly, with the Taylor Swift, Gilmore Girls and Great British Bake Off references, I’m sure I would have given it at least 4 stars no matter what mindset I was in.

How far would you go for love?

Cross My Heart follows Rosie, who after receiving a life-saving heart transplant, connects with her donor's husband. What begins as an innocent crush morphs into something Rosie never expects.

This was so convoluted, but in the best way! Collins really knows how to keep readers on their toes. Just when I thought I'd figured it out, she takes me by surprise. A twisty, turny, fast-paced thriller I wholeheartedly recommend.

**A note on the writing: I know most people read thrillers for the plot, and the writing/prose is rarely even mentioned in reviews. But I was continually impressed by the quality and depth of the writing itself. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go read Megan Collins' backlist!

5⭐️s!! So good!!! @clearysbookstore was right!! This book gave all the twists and turns. I couldn’t put it down. I’m not even a mystery/thriller reader but Megan Collins is now an auto buy author. So thankful to @netgalley @megancollinswriter and @atriabooks for the opportunity to read and review an advanced reader copy. Coming next Tuesday! January 14!

Rosie has received a heart transplant and it’s been a year with little issues. Discovering the husband of the heart donor is a very well known author, Rosie can’t help but reach out anonymously through a donor website. As they communicate, a relationship builds. Rosie now wants his heart too. What will happen when she finds that some believe he is responsible for his wife’s death. Will Rosie be in danger? Or will her desire to have him come true?
#crossmyheart #megancollins #netgalley #mystreythriller #advancedreadercopy #bookstagram

𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬:
First off, I don’t usually judge a book by its cover but this one is so fun! I was immediately drawn to it and knew I HAD to read this book ASAP! This book is SO good, twisted, suspenseful, and a definite page turner! The characters are completely unhinged, unreliable, and unlikeable. The MC, Rosie, constantly makes questionable decisions, but I was all here for it🙌🏻 I loved the plot and how the author included mixed media in the chapters, such as e-mails and text message. Unfortunately, I was NOT a fan of the long drawn out chapters! Also, if you did not know that Collins is a HUGE Swiftie, now ya know! Taylor Swift is mentioned way too much throughout this book, but I will let that slide😅 Overall, this was a fun and entertaining psychological thriller that centers around the desperation, obsession, and length that someone will go in order to find love.

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗜𝗳 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗘𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆:
✦Taylor Swift references (TONS of them!)
✦Unhinged, unreliable, and unlikeable characters
✦Characters that make questionable decisions
✦Plenty of twists and suspense
✦Mixed media included throughout (e-mails and text messages)

𝐌𝐲 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️4/5

Megan Collins writes thrillers that I always enjoy, so I requested this one.

Rosie recently had a heart transplant and finds out that the donor was the wife of author Morgan Thorne. Rosie is a fan of Thorne and his thriller books and is pleased to find out that they have this connection. She starts messaging him, knowing who he is but leaving herself anonymous. Rosie, it turns out, has a bit of a history of taking things too far, and her obsession with Morgan looks to be going in that same direction.

I had a very unsettled feeling from the first chapter, which I loved. I was empathetic to Rosie’s situation but also found her kind of creepy. She wasn’t a narrator that I felt like I could trust.

The ending was a bit of a surprise because there were some red herrings that had me questioning character motives. I also loved the very last chapter and the set up for the future that we can assume.

When I first read the synopsis, I thought the heart transplant was going to have an almost supernatural pull on events in the book. That is not what happened. That’s also not Collins’ usual MO, so it makes sense, but the synopsis gave me different feelings about the book than what I ended up getting. The plot of the book could have been largely the same without the transplant aspect, and that to me was a little disappointing.

Really enjoyed this one and will continue to read whatever Collins puts out!

Megan Collins never disappoints, and her newest book is fantastic! It was SO good. I didn't want to put it down!

Rosie Lachan has had a rough year, not only was she dumped wearing her wedding dress, but she also needed a heart transplant. Now, with her new heart, she's working at her parents' wedding salon waiting to find the one. She believes her heart donor was Daphne Thorne, wife of local celebrity author Morgan Thorne, and decides to reach out to him through an anonymous site called DonorConnect. She'd like to learn more about the woman who saved her life, but she can't help feeling that maybe this is a sign that she should be with Morgan. As the correspondence grows more intimate, Rosie starts to question his previous marriage and rumors about Daphne's death. Is the man she's falling for really a murderer?

Told in multiple POVs and mixed media format, this book was addictive and thrilling! From the bat sh!t crazy characters to the intriguing plot! The twists were totally unpredictable, and I seriously didn't know who to trust! Rosie's obsessive behavior was definitely over the top, and it kept things very interesting. If you're looking for a bingeable, gripping thriller with mindblowing twists, look no further. This is it! I HIGHLY recommend this one!

CROSS MY HEART was a fast paced thriller. I had a hard time putting it down. I like unreliable narrators so I really enjoyed this. The ending wrapped up nicely, Overall, this is a winner and I highly recommend it.

What a great read! This book had so many twists I sometimes had a hard time keeping track; there were so many ways my brain tried to connect the dots and I was only right once. Rosie (in my mind) made some questionable decisions but she always came from a place of love. I definitely recommend this one to any thriller fan.

The first half of this book really had me intrigued, the mystery starts to unravel in the second half and it’s not as fast paced but still enjoyable.

This was SO good. A great start to the new year. I loved the pacing and the twist half way through; I did not expect Morgan to die.

Our main character Rosie has just received a heart transplant and currently works in her family’s upscale bridal shop. She longs for a fairytale romance and her happily ever after. After a hard break up as well as the after effects of the transplant she is feeling a bit down and decides to connect anonymously, via DonorConnect, with her donors husband, Morgan Thorpe. He is a local author that is a bit of a celebrity in their town. As the messages progress things start to feel a bit ominous.

The story was broken into two parts and part one focused more on the messages and the relationship between Rosie and Morgan. This was my favorite of the two parts as the second was a bit slower in my opinion. This certainly held my attention and while not necessarily believable, it was still a fun read. Rosie made me cringe several times with her actions, but that’s what made the book was Rosie and her questionable decisions.

I enjoyed this and it certainly was a quick read. For fans of psychological thrillers with a little bit of over the top events this would be for you.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, for my advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

There's something special about a thriller with an unreliable narrator that leads the reader down a winding path, grabbing for clues, and sifting through fact vs. fiction. Megan Collins does an excellent job of creating a complex character in Rosie, who has just gone through heartbreak, literally and figuratively. With her new blood-pumping heart and her mended broken heart, she finds herself in another situation that puts her to the test.

This book was interesting to me right at the start! It was different than any other stories I've read and I was intrigued! About halfway through it took a turn I wasn't expecting and I started to not enjoy the story as much. 3 stars from me for creativity and unexpected twists!!! Thank you to Atria Books for the ARC via NetGalley!

If you need a book to remind you that being delulu is dangerous, this is that book! 😂

Omg you guys. What a wild ride this book was and I also need you to read it!!

The plot was very interesting. Our female lead Rosie had a heart transplant and she became romantically obsessed with her heart donor’s husband. She started sending emails to him through Donor Connect and that’s pretty much how our story starts! PSA: DonorConnect is not an online dating platform, okay? 😂

After reading a good number of thrillers, you kinda get the formula. And so I love it when a book just surprises me out of the blue!

Honestly, I started with the audiobook and just flew through it so quickly. I love how unhinged and delulu our main character was 😂 And then I get to the end of part 1 and I had to literally be like “wait. What happened?” Then I had to flip back a couple of pages to make sure I didnt miss anything. I love a book that can confuse me without being confusing at all! Haha. The storytelling here was amazing! 😂

I honestly don’t like unreliable narrators and leads that are so frustrating in thrillers and this book had both but I still enjoyed it so much! 😂

The ending was okay, it wrapped up the story so you don’t get left behind with questions after you’ve read this but the best part of this one was thinking you’ve got the storyline figured out until you don’t and I loved it so much for that!! It was so bingeable too!!

This comes out next Tuesday and I need you to preorder it so you can read it and tell me what you think!