This was pretty good. It started off really strong for me. Honestly though, the second half of the book was just. I don't know that it was an accurate OR relevant portrayal of female relationships and womanhood. Definitely fast-paced and bingeable though.

Megan Collins has done it again! Her latest novel, Cross My Heart, is a gripping domestic thriller that had me hooked from the very beginning. The pacing was incredibly fast, and the plot was skillfully crafted. I've been a fan of Megan Collins for a while now, and her ability to consistently create fresh and original storylines never ceases to amaze me. The main character in this novel is a complex mix of endearing, intriguing, mesmerizing, and at times a little terrifying, which makes for a truly unforgettable reading experience. Cross My Heart is an absolute must-read for fans of mystery and suspense – it's a solid 5-star book!

Cross My Heart is a twisty book about a girl named Rosie, who has been quite unlucky in love and life. She was at the hospital for a heart transplant at just the right time to receive one from a perfect match who just had an "unfortunate" accident at the perfect moment that helped save her life. Rosie starts talking to her donors husband over the donor connect service for families of donors and recipients. From there, it's a rollercoaster ride to the end. I enjoyed this book, it was well written and kept you hanging on to the very end.

I would highly recommend Cross My Heart by Megan Collins. It's a gripping tale of female obsession, passionate love, and getting too attached until it bleeds!

Also, there are a lot of Taylor Swift references, so if you’re a swiftie then I think you’ll enjoy this book!

Thank you NetGalley, Megan Collins, and team for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A gripping read that I could not put down. It’s the story of Rosie, heart transplant recipient and recently heart broken by the love of her life. Her journey and eventual epiphany regarding her life is both thought provoking and inspirational.

The whole time I was reading this, I kept thinking of the Dobler/Dahmer Theory from How I Met Your Mother. ("The theory that when two people are into each other, a big romantic gesture works, such as Lloyd Dobler's boombox gesture in Say Anything. But if one person is not into the other, it comes off as "serial-killer crazy" a la Jeffrey Dahmer.") There were some obvious twists here and the pool of who the killer could be was pretty small, making it kind of obvious, but it didn't detract from enjoying the story.

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first Megan Collins book and it definitely won’t be my last.

This book was a breath of fresh air in terms of thrillers. The plot line was something I’ve never seen before which was definitely nice.

We follow Rosie who received a life saving heart transplant and eventually she reaches out to her donors loved one through an anonymous messaging system and that’s where things all start to spiral.

Every time I believed that I had things figured out or I was on the right track something came along that made me question everything I thought I knew.

If you’re looking for a good quick thriller this is definitely the book for you

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for this ARC for an honest review!

This was my second read by Megan Collins, and it definitely won’t be my last! I previously read “The Family Plot” by this author, and I really enjoyed that book too. So moving forward- I plan on reading everything else on the author’s backlist because I really enjoy her writing. Now, did this book have the perfect storyline and characters? Unfortunately no. But was this book highly entertaining? Yes it was!! And that’s why I enjoyed this book so much.

In this story we have Rosie who receives a life-saving heart transplant. Rosie later learns her heart was from local celebrity author, Morgan Thorne’s wife, Daphne. She then begins to message Morgan on the anonymous service DonorConnect, so they can learn more about each other. I mean if she has his wife’s heart, he’ll probably love her heart too?

While messaging each other through DonorConnect, Rosie and Morgan start to learn a lot about each other (and I will admit that I did love reading the emails to and from each other). Rosie may have even started to become a little obsessed with Morgan, wanting to know everything about him and his deceased wife. And that’s when things may have started to get a little crazy in the book. We are introduced to friends of theirs throughout the pages, and some may not be as innocent as they seem… Also, did Morgan’s wife die mysteriously?

I will say that Rosie’s character was a little much at times, but she did grow on me and I will certainly miss her! I will also say that the first half/part of this book seemed better than the second half/part. I felt like it started to go in a different direction than what it started with, and for that I had to drop a star. In the meantime, I recommend this book to all my thriller friends who are interested in learning about heart transplants, broken hearts, foolish hearts, and savage hearts. ❤️‍🩹💔❣️❤️‍🔥

Many thanks to NetGalley, Atria Books, and the author for an ARC of this book in which I had the pleasure of reading. Publication date is: January 14, 2025.

I absolutely love all of Megan Collins's books so I was super excited to receive Cross My Heart as an ARC. I was hooked from the very beginning of the story, and every time I thought I knew what was going to happen, I was wrong. This is definitely a 2025 must-read for mystery lovers.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and Atria books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rosie had a heart transplant a year ago and although the donor's identity should be anonymous, she finds out that the donor is the late wife of a famous author, Morgan, that lives nearby. She starts a conversation with him through the donor website and starts to stalk him on social media and a little bit in person too, but when she sees comments that imply Morgan may have been responsible for his wife's death, she starts to wonder if there could be any truth to the rumors. But Rosie went through a bad break up before the heart transplant and can be a bit obsessive in her relationships and she wants to believe Morgan is a good person.

4.5 stars.

This was an interesting premise and I was hooked from the start. Things took a turn at 50%, and what I thought was real, wasn't necessarily real, and things could have gone in one of two directions, which kept me guessing. I really had to think about what I had read and how it all went together. The ending was pretty good. I belive this is my third read from this author and definitely the one I enjoyed the most.

I love an unreliable narrator! This story had me questioning everyone and kept me guessing at every turn. Even as I started to piece things together there'd be something else to send me off that path.

I definitely recommend if you're looking for a quick, suspenseful thriller!

For Fans Of: Peter Swanson, Catherine Ryan Howard
Avail: 1/14/2025
Rating: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕
Genre: 🔪 Thriller
Violence: 🪓🪓🪓
Spice: 🔥
Triggers: Gaslighting, stalking

Synopsis: Rosie’s new heart belonged to Morgan’s late wife. Now she thinks Morgan should belong to her, too.

Thoughts: Great premise, right? Not earth shattering but interesting enough for a good thriller. And as we soon learn, Rosie & Morgan are perfectly compatible in one way: they both play relationship games, even if one is playing checkers & the other Russian Roulette. But this is not that story. All I can say is: this is a clown car of a book. That comment won’t entirely make sense until you read it. But read it you must. Every time I think I have the inside track of what this story is about to reveal—like a little wink from the author herself—a new technicolor twist tumbles out. As a volume reader of mysteries & thrillers, I’ve gleaned many writer tricks that hint at plot twists. So for Collins to blindside me, with masterful plotting & characters, delighted me & earned only my 2nd 5⭐ rating of 2024. You initially cringe at Rosie’s thoughts & deeds—which are...problematic. But she, like this book, is deeply empathetic and ultimately relatable, illuminating the power & perils of love. Its affirmation & effervescence poised on a razor’s edge with vulnerability & loss of control that can leave anyone feeling—and perhaps acting—a little unhinged.

As someone who reads a lot of thrillers this book was like a breath of fresh air. The concept of this book is new and fresh and finally not something I’ve read over and over in other books. The plot was so interesting and kept me engaged and I enjoyed following along with the characters as the plot unraveled. If you are a thriller/mystery reader I would definitely pick this one up as it is very, very well done!

I really enjoyed this book! It was so entertaining, the characters were so likeable in a crazy way. it was so entertaining to see how far people would go to make things the way they wanted them to pan out so it was funny, interesting, crazy, and maybe a little bit unrealistic at times, but it kept me hooked!!
Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and especially the author for this ARC in exchange for my honest review of the book!!

Megan is a must read author for me and she did not disappoint with Cross My Heart. It kept me guessing up until the end and who doesn't love a happy ending?

I love a Megan Collins book, so I was thrilled when I was approved for this one. It is less thriller-ly than precious books. More womens contemporary fiction, this time around, but still splendid. I didn't have a lot in common with any if the characters, but the way they are written sparks empathy nonetheless.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Megan Collins has done it again! I finished this in one day, I was so hooked by the story. It manages to be sweet and twisty all in one- you won't regret grabbing this book. Just make sure you clear your day out first- you won't be able to put it down!

If you love unhinged stories. pick this one up! The twists truly got me.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Wow! LOVED it! First book I’ve read by this author, and it was the perfect amount of twists. Literally a book that will constantly keep you guessing. Just be warned, literally 50% of the way through the book, your jaw will drop! As for the ending, buckle up! It will blow your mind… highly recommended!

WOW! This was such a surprise for me. I went in thinking this was going to be mediocre and I had to put my foot in my mouth.

This was beyond interesting. Incredible writing skills and just WOW!