Title: A Harvest of Hearts
Series:
Author(s): Andrea Eames
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, YA
Date Published: March 4, 2025
Date Read: March 19-21, 2025
Format: Audiobook
Free?: This book was received as a an eARC audiobook courtesy of NetGalley.

Spice Rating*: 🔥/5
Fantasy Rating: 🦄🦄🦄🦄/5
Tear Rating: 💧/5
Humor Rating: 😆😆/5

-ˋˏ✄ᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧ⇢

🔍 TL;DR
⤷ A quick, cozy romantasy with a magical house and a unique magic system, complemented by whimsical characters and a delightful cat with a fresh writing style that is sure to delight.

📣 Favorite quote
⤷ It never occurred to me that women like me—plain, forgettable, sensible women—aren’t allowed to want things, although that seemed clear as cold water to everyone else.

🎥 Synopsis
⤷ When plain and practical Foss Butcher is cursed after a chance encounter with the kingdom’s only sorcerer, Sylvester, she’s forced to tend his enchanted House—where even the walls have moods and her only friend is a talking cat. As she unravels the secrets of magic, Foss discovers that both she and Sylvester are bound by dangerous spells, and to break free, she must confront the dark magic threatening the kingdom.

📋 Review
⤷ This book was adorable, cozy, and such a fun read. I read this after having just finished a 2-star book and it was just what I needed to cleanse my palate—a unique magic system, an interesting fantasy world, and lovable, relatable characters.

⤷ I usually ignore when books say "for fans of…" because they can be an incorrect assessment or feel like they’re pandering to readers, but the comparison of this book to Howl’s Moving Castle is an excellent choice, and the magical House gave the same enchanted vibes as the Castle.

⤷ I wish that the romance between Foss and Sylvester had more time to grow and develop, as their attachment was focused largely on the curse that bound them.

👍🏻 Recommend?
⤷ Honestly? Yes. If you want a cozy read, this is it. I was entertained, interested, and invested in the story, and it was an overall fun read. Would recommend!

-ˋˏ✄ᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧᐧ⇢

*About Spice scale:
🌶️ BELL PEPPER
Low heat: sweet love story with romance that is closed door or fade to black. Mostly fluff or implied spice.

🌶️🌶️ JALAPEÑO
Smoldering: sexual tension, at least one (not especially graphic) sex scene, not much coarse language.

🌶️🌶️🌶️ HABANERO
Hot: generally two to three extensive/detailed sex scenes, and increasing use of coarse language.

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ GHOST PEPPER
Scorching: four to five explicit sex scenes, much description and detail, lots of coarse language.

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ CAROLINA REAPER
Erotica: is the plot in the room with us? Lots of sex scenes, explicit descriptions. Heavy kink/trigger warnings and/or pure smut.

Wow. 🤯

I did not expect this to be one of my top reads (listens?) of the year, as it sounded like a cozy little adventure a lá Howl’s Moving Castle, but as it stands, definitely in the top 5 for 2025!


My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🫑


This is a proper fantasy, with a small romantic plot line throughout that could be removed without any change to the tone or plot. I feel so wonderfully dazzled by this book and I am immediately grabbing a physical copy from the store (a signed copy if I can find one - note to self: check out the author’s insta bio).

If you like Howl’s Moving Castle and Stardust vibes, talking black cats 🐈‍⬛ with attitude, a grumpy oblivious MMC, a dash 🤏🏼 of Assistant to the Villain, and a non-traditional FMC (not a great beauty, not the CHOSEN ONE, no ultimate power up, etc), then this may be the book for you.

As I listened to the audiobook, let’s gab a bit about the narrator: Jessie Elland. Jessie did an AMAZING job. She gave so much personality to Cornelius (🐈‍⬛) and her accent was so pleasant throughout the book. All her pauses seemed super natural and with even small inflections, she gave every character their own voice and personality. The King Darius voice gave me the super creeps (in a good way 👀).

Thank you to NetGalley, Andrea Eames, and RBmedia for the gifted ALC of A Harvest of Hearts. I really enjoyed it and it was an absolute pleasure to offer my honest review.

There was was something missing in this cozy fantasy. There wasn't enough plot or chemistry between the couple.

The vibes:
Witches
Magical house
Talking cat
Invisible string spell
Cozy fantasy

Everything about this premise seemed so fun and enjoyable, but there was a lot of humor missing.

I found myself so annoyed with the sorcerer and his lack of personality. I didn't connect with the characters and found myself wondering what the plot and motivations were.

I enjoyed the narrator's accent and thought she did a good job with the storytelling and dialogue.

This is a unique and unusual romantasy that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys the genre. It features a reluctant sorcerer, a talking cat, a sentient house, a butcher’s daughter, and a grotesque magic system. It was a bit of a slow start, but it was worth it in the end. I would read more stories set in this universe.

Despite having many similar elements to other prominent fantasy stories, A Harvest of Hearts feels like a wholly unique story, and I believe that is largely due to the tone of the novel. A Harvest of Hearts is set in a world where literal hearts are plucked out of people's chests (a la Once Upon a Time) and used for magic. Our main character finds her heart taken, and herself quite literally lovesick, so she ventures to get it back. In doing so, she meets the materialistic sorcerer who stole it, the sentient house he inhabits, and his talking cat. All of these elements sound very whimsical, and while they are, that doesn't mean the novel's tone is lighthearted. Two of the most prominent themes are the loss of autonomy and insecurity. A lot of people seem to have disliked these themes, but personally, I found that they made the story more well rounded. I think the first chapter or two of the book is a little heavy handed in it's depiction of Foss's everyday misery and self-esteem issues, but once the novel picks up, I really loved reading about her and her growth. I also loved every scene with Cornelius, who might I add, felt like an incredibly realistic depiction of what a cat would act like could it talk. Overall, I understand that this book may not be what everyone expects, but personally, I really enjoyed how the whimsical, cozy fantasy elements mixed with the darker themes and scenes of horror.

A very cozy fantasy romance with a magic system at the same time familiar and fresh.

About the audiobook:
Great narrator; loved her voice and accent. As someone who listens at 3x speed (because that matches the speed I read at when I read physically, and I like to follow along with the ebook), it took me about 4 chapters to get used to it. I would say '''non-native-english-speaker issue'' but let's be honest: lots of native english speakers still have trouble with some UK accents. Still, I got used to it quite fast.


About the book itself:
I might not remember the actual plot forever, but I'll remember the whole Heart-Magic or at least the way people in this world describe it. The characters are nice enough, not memorable enough, though. I'd recommend this to anyone who loves cozy fantasy in general, but more specifically to those who love sentient houses, ominous talking animals and whimsy.

Pretty much for a Coraline fan who wants something a bit more cheerful but still creepy when you write down the facts.

I enjoy reading about FMC who make decisions that move the plot along, and not just have things happening to them. It only took a few chapters for our main character to take matters into her own hands, which I appreciate (both the action itself but also the fact that we did not waste time thinking and pondering about what to do). Plus, the cat. Always something to enjoy there.
I would've liked to get to know the MMC a bit better, to get me to care about the romance in general. Even with that being said, I feel like the story went on for a bit too long for me to absolutely love it.

This is a 7/10 for me, a 3.5 star if you will

A heart snagging cozy fantasy perfect for anyone who loves Howl’s Moving Castle. Easy to follow storyline with an interesting magics system & clean romance.

***3.0 Stars***

Overall,
There were quite a few good things about this book that I enjoyed and there were quite a few things that left me wanting. The book was fine. The main character, a cynical young woman who has gone through life shunned and being told how ugly and unwanted she is by everyone except her father finds herself snagged by a Sorcerer who is not the most talkative young man. For much of this book I was honestly confused about the magic system, I think the author was going for we only know what the main character knows since everything is being told from her perspective, which I understand, but I am not a big fan of being just as confused as the main character for 75% of the book. When we do get more understanding there is a lack of actual detail about how things are done, which again I felt lacking. The story is refreshing and new, the overall plot is does not feel like a carbon copy of anything else. I would recommend this book to those who are interested in a more gothic fantasy genre (though not really a gothic setting it gives off the same vibes). The Audiobook was done well the voices and narration was good, I was reading it tandem and found that the audio did not always match the ebook, as these are arcs it could be due to some editing.

I received an eARC and an Audio Arc of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my free and honest review.

Conceptually, a very interesting book. Execution was incredibly flat.

There were a lot of frustrating things about this book. First, the constant emphasis on the FMCs appearance and appearance of others. It added nothing and was grating by the end. There was also this overwhelming need to continually remind us that she was under a spell. These things bothered me to no end and pulled me out of the story 80% of the time.

The characters had a lot of potential. Neither really had much personality though, which made it incredibly difficult to connect the love interests together let alone give them any growth.

Honestly this isn't a whimsical fantasy, it's just thin and underdeveloped. A true shame. I wish I could have liked this one.

Thank you so much to the author and Netgalley for the opportunity to review this title. I attest that I am leaving my review honestly and voluntarily.

This was a sweet, whimsical cozy fantasy with a light touch of adventure. Jessie Elland’s narration was a great match for the tone—pleasant and immersive without being overdone.

The story had charm and a fairytale-like quality, with rich descriptions and a soft atmosphere. The stakes were fairly high in concept, but the tension never quite reached that same level in execution. It made for a relaxing listen, but I did find myself wishing for a bit more depth in the plot.

Sylvester, the sorcerer love interest, felt underdeveloped for most of the book. He spends a large portion of the story acting like a dry biscuit—amusing, but not exactly layered. I hoped for more growth or complexity from him, especially given the emotional themes at play.

Overall, it’s a cozy and enjoyable read for fans of gentle fantasy with heart, but don’t expect a deep dive into character or plot. It’s more of a meandering, feel-good tale than a tightly woven fantasy journey.

Foss lives in a town where beautiful sorceresses come to visit and steal pieces of the towns people’s hearts to fuel their magic. The towns people know this happened to keep them safe, so they don’t think too much of it. Then one day a sorcerer shows up and Foss is the accidental recipient of a heart spell binding her to him. After he leaves she is so heartsick that she decides she has to travel to the sorcerer’s city to find him and when she dies, she offers herself as a house keeper to his magical house. Here she befriends a talking cat, who names himself Cornelius and starts to unravel the mysteries of the sorcerer’s magic.

This story is great and I liked the magic in the book. I am not familiar with Howl’s Moving Castle and now feel like I need to check it out. Pacing was good, liked the characters.

The narrator was fantastic! Loved the accents and different voices for the characters, especially the cat!

Thank you NetGalley and RBMedia for this ARC!

At 25% this was a swift dnf. The writing was mostly fine but every other sentence the MC was moping about how unattractive and about how borderline hideous she was and would be alone forever.
Then the author kept throwing the most out of pocket random sentences everywhere the main problem being "his cat arsehole winking at me with every step" which is a hard no for me. Another was "I wanted to take his limbs and suck on them like cinnamon sticks" ok then.
Unnecessarily horny as well, I understand it's a romantasy but for an MC who said they didn't really want love with one meeting of the MMC she wants to jump him every chance she sees him and it was not a fun time.
Add that with the narrators choice of accent for one of the characters who will be a big part of the book and I can't see myself finishing this unfortunately.

A Harvest of Hearts is a cozy, enchanting romantasy full of delightful surprises, featuring the unforgettable Foss—a strong, captivating heroine—and her scene-stealing companion, Cornelius the talking cat, whose adorable bond added so much warmth to the story. With its whimsical world, unpredictable twists, and a satisfying happily-ever-after, this book is pure comfort magic, perfect for anyone who loves heartwarming fantasy with a romantic spark. Andrea Eames crafted something truly special here, and I’m already craving more cozy romantasy just like it!

The narrator for this book was perfection. Really created a vibe for the story.
I'm not sure why it was marketed as cozy, it's pretty dark. But I guess anything that isn't an epic fantasy gets called cozy, what do I know?
I think I would have rated this book higher if the main character was different, her lack of self esteem was disappointing. If that doesn't matter to you I'd recommend this one, it's whimsical, dark and have a great cat!

This was marketed as in the tradition of Howl’s Moving Castle. While I agree this is somewhat whimsical, A Harvest of Hearts is actually quite sinister with dark themes.

Our FMC, Foss, gets accidentally Snagged while in her village. As the yearning for the sorcerer grows, Foss makes the journey to the City, unsure what else she can do. Once there, she begins to learn more about Sylvester, his unpredictable magic, his continuously growing house, and his talking cat, Cornelius.

I really enjoyed the story and magic system here, which was completely new to me. There were a few things I wish could have been elaborated more on: more background on the king and his sorcery, more of Sylvester’s thoughts going through his head, and possibly some background for Foss’s mom. Additionally, I love an HEA as much as the next gal, but I felt like the very ending was not only rushed but “corrected” too conveniently.

Overall, I really enjoyed A Harvest of Hearts. The unique magic system was interesting. Foss was very relatable, and Cornelius was amazing. I need a Cornelius of my own!

A big thank you to NetGalley and RBmedia for this ALC!

A Harvest of Hearts by Andrea Eames was such a fun and cozy read. This story blended elements of my favorite stories like Howls's Moving Castle, The Labyrinth, and Coraline, while being its own unique and captivating story of its own. The narration for the audiobook set the tone for the plot from beginning until the end creating a truly immersive experience.

I'm glad I listened to this book - Jesse Elland has a lovely voice that was perfect for this story. I had some gripes but overall I'm happy with having experienced the world that Eames set out to build!

Writing
Eames' writing feels really accessible to me. Especially paired with Elland's soft-spokenness, it felt like listening to a relative reading from a storybook. The words are descriptive without getting too into the muck, and the scene setting feels grand but with enough room for the reader's imagination to play around. But I hesitate to accept the category of "cozy" fantasy. Admittedly I haven't read many others and truly don't mind some spice, but I was a little taken aback the first few times that Foss describes what she wants Sylvester to do to her, while under his spell.

Characters
I really enjoyed Cornelius' relationship with everybody - I think he grounded each of the characters and really brought out everybody's humanity. And isn't that what pets tend to do in real life as well? I'd describe him as reluctantly lovable. I had problems with Foss - without meaning to be, she's written as very anti-woman and she never gets over it. It's very "I'm not like other girls", and she comments multiple times on the sorceresses' names: "Of course she has a name like ..." There are plenty of other problems with the magic workers that you really don't need to rag on their names, of all things. Sylvester is a typical broody and mysterious love interest - it's not bad but I didn't find him particularly exciting because of it.

Plot
Maybe it was Elland's voice bringing me along through the story, but the plot somehow felt lo-fi. Even though the stakes were relatively high, only a couple of moments were actually high-tension. For the rest of it, the book was either slice-of-life or conversations of speculation. This works well for a "cozy" fantasy. The concept is interesting but I felt the book was a little slow-paced for my liking. That might just be a feature of the genre though, and that's okay.

Nostalgic with a dark twist. I would compare this to a gritty Howl’s Moving Castle. The themes and general mechanics of the world are very familiar, but quite a bit darker than the original story. I liked, but didn’t love it. The writing was lyrical, but the pacing was noticeably uneven. The FMC was very self deprecating, it took 365 pages for her to stop the monologue of “I’m very ordinary” which was entirely too long in my opinion. The MMC was a little too flat for me personally. The actual star of this book is, of course, Cornelius the Cat. I would say that this book rating is entirely for him, because he was my engagement throughout. Overall, a generally enjoyable read if you’re reading for the cat.

Thank you to RBmedia for the provided ARC via NetGalley!

If it has the same charm as Howl’s Moving Castle, it’s full of magical elements and emotional depth. The themes of found family, friends to lovers, and the idea that appearances can be deceiving are always so engaging.

A Harvest of Hearts is a new Romantasy from Andrea Eames. Foss is a plain girl who works for her father at his butcher shop. She’s never felt beautiful or worthy of anything—especially when in comparison to the Sorcereses.

The Sorcereses take hearts. Most often just tiny pieces as they flaunt their beauty through the outlying kingdom towns. On occasion they take a whole heart from a villager, leaving them a husk of who they once were. They say it’s to help provide for the kingdom and keep it strong. One day, everyone is surprised to see the first ever Sorcerer make an appearance and Foss feels a deep urge, something tying them together. She is snagged by his magic and follows him back to the city where she requests to be his housemaid in order to stay near and avoid the pain the separation causes. What follows is a charming taking cat, a house with a kind of its own and a legion of magical ladies fully corrupted by darkness.

This book is so Howl’s Moving Castle coded. There’s a moving house, an aloof sorcerer, missing hearts, and a talking cat. And Foss comes to be a maid after being lured here under mysterious circumstances. There are varying bits that differ from that story, but you can see it’s heavily inspired.

I think the concept for this story is very fun, though it may not be the most unique. Taking bits of hearts to fuel your power hungry king and his magic sounds about right. I did like the twist of how the magic users are made. Magic isn’t readily available to everyone—only to the sorceress’s (and now sorcerer.) It’s very grim and sad and just goes to show how those who hunger for power will do whatever they need to keep it.

I really loved Cornelius the cat. Heather was an utter delight in this story as most talking cats usually are. I found Foss to be a decent protagonist. She feels realistic in that she has moments of confidence and moments of indecision and anxiety—she’s not too girlbossy. I feel like girlbossing has become too akin to a girl just slamming a club into someone and being super angry all the time which I personally don’t love all that much.

I thought Sylvester was a pretty good character with a perfectly tragic backstory. Heather may be as pretty as Howl but not quite as charming!

The only big thing I found issue with in this book is that it felt a little insta lovey.

Spoilers here

Obviously Foss fell in love with him due to a spell gone awry, I get that. However, there is a moment where all the magic stops and she has real feelings again. Almost immediately, they have this romantic love and attraction? Like girl, I know you don’t feel like you’re under a spell, but you could fully be projecting onto this man. It just felt off to me.

I do love a classy true loves kiss though, despite how cliche it is. Wonderfully fairytale.

Thanks NetGalley for the early audio copy!