Reviews

She'll Steal Your Heart by Rachel Lacey

crdestef15's review against another edition

emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

thescariestmary's review against another edition

5.0

I LOVE RACHEL LACEY!!!!! I am usually not a series girl, okay. I tend to read maybe one or two out of a series and not finish the rest because I can't get with the unnecessary referencing of pairs from other books, but my fucking god Rachel Lacey has perfected the art of a series. This book goes full circle from the first in the series and the other three couples are so masterfully woven into the story in a way that isn't forced!! It just works!! Generally, I am hesitant to read books where crime is at the forefront because I'm not interested in that at all, but I am SO GLAD I didn't push this one away. Definitely one of my favorite reads in a while. Everything about Mia/Lauren catered to my niche, I swear. I love it. I love Rachel Lacey.

ghostlycreature's review

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

chainynkr's review

emotional hopeful relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

isaaf05's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

mstaples98's review

emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

oddgirlsmedia's review against another edition

4.0

Lauren spent the last year running from her problems, including the robbery she committed to help her brother. Now she’s back to clean up the mess she made, but first she is going to meet up with the only friends she has left. Her online friends, and her fanfic writing, has kept her going the last year. Especially her friendship with, ex-lawyer and now Cat Cafe owner, Mia Solano. When they discover a shared connected to Lauren’s crime Mia has to revisit her old life to help.

For a book where the main character has a felony charge there is a surprisingly low about of angst. Lauren and Mia’s relationship is a classic friends to lovers tale. Mia is starting to live her life after a divorce and career change, and is able to offer help getting Lauren back on her feet. With uncertainty due to her legal issues, Lauren is able to care for Mia in different ways. Their friendship is loving, and the progression to a romantic relationship is almost a forgone conclusion.

I loved the representation of fandom in this book! Lauren’s path to becoming a published author reflects so many of the authors I love to read. Although now I want to know what fandoms Rachel Lacey is a part of.

Sidenote: I always appreciate the acknowledgments section of a book, and Lacey lays out exactly how this book came to be. Particularly in regard to its place in her book universe and the character profile changes throughout the outlining process.

ashleyrk207's review

emotional lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

judeinthestars's review

emotional funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

Okay, let’s be clear from the beginning: this book not only stole my heart, it also stole my breath. Which is exactly what I look for in books. God, the longing. The pining. Feelings, people, so many feelings. Also, collarbones. Hot.

If you’ve read the first book in the Midnight in Manhattan series, Don’t Cry for Me, you already know Lauren Booker. If you haven’t, close this page and go get the book, you’re about to be spoiled. She’ll Steal Your Heart is set a year after Lauren disappeared. She’s finally coming back to Manhattan to make things right. But first, she’ll allow herself one carefree weekend, meeting online friends IRL for the first time, binging the new season of the show that brought them together, In Her Defense, starring Piper Sheridan from Come Away With Me (book 3). One of these friends is a bit older than the rest of the group, a bit less of a fangirl. Mia Solano, whose marriage ended after eighteen years, also quit her job as a lawyer after a burnout and is now the owner of a cat café.

Lauren and Mia are so lovely, so perfect for each other that my heart is all soft and warm and every corny feeling you can think of. She’ll Steal Your Heart is the perfect book to conclude the Midnight in Manhattan series, with references to all the previous ones and more.

On a personal note, just like Piper’s panic attacks in Come Away with Me felt very real to me, I can relate all too well to Mia’s post-burnout anxiety. “What if I fall back into old habits?” is a question I ask my therapist (and my wife) at least once a month. It’s been seven years and I still miss the adrenaline of the job I loved but felt was killing me. So yeah, I understand Mia’s fears and know how important it is to know you have unconditional support from the woman you love when faced with hard choices.

As for Lauren, despite all the hardship she has had to endure, she’s not bitter, not blasé, she has hope in the future and in humanity and it could be too much but it simply works. She and Mia are two women looking for a second chance at life, not so much at love, even though they’ll get that as well, but at fulfilling who they know they can be. It’s inspiring, it’s exciting, it brought me so much joy because even though I know it’s fiction, Lacey writes it in a way that is also very relatable.

On top of cameos by characters from previous books, there are a few new secondary characters, some of which I wouldn’t mind reading more about, and, as always in Rachel Lacey’s books, cats that will, too, steal your heart. Lots of cats, including a very shy one I would have loved to meet for real. Thanks to all these cats, I didn’t have to think long about what I wanted on the graphic for this review (if you're reading this review on a platform that won't let me share the image, go to my blog for the real deal). Ginny is always trying to help and this time, she got to stay. Which made both of us happy.

If there weren’t so many promising books being released all the time, I’d probably would have reread this one right away. I’ll just have to wait a few months for the audiobook to come out and give me an excuse to enjoy this story and the characters for a bit longer.

I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.

Read all my reviews on my blog (and please buy from the affiliation links!): Jude in the Stars