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A review by bee_thebibliophile
The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang
2.0
The Heart Principle was one of my most anticipated reads of 2021 and I quickly realized I was going to be disappointed. I was so excited for Quan’s HEA after reading the first two books in this series and ended up unhappy with where things went. Biggest thing to note: this is NOT a romance - it may be billed as once, but it’s more women’s fiction than anything so if you’re looking for a romance storyline, you won’t find it here.
Quan really got shafted in this book when this should have been his time to shine. His story was constantly upstaged by Anna’s and he even disappears for a huge chunk of the book, only coming back for a quick weekend visit. After playing such a big role in the previous stories, he deserved more...more time on page, more positive character development, more from his significant other, just MORE. And where was his family? They’re such big parts of his life and we just get little glimpses of Michael and Khai and mentions of his mother - so disappointing.
Anna was my biggest problem with this story. I know Anna’s story was based off of the author’s own history, but it didn’t feel like it fit with the series or with the character we’ve come to know as Quan. This book largely focuses on Anna, her family struggles and her coming to terms with an unofficial autism spectrum diagnosis. It all felt repetitive, heavy, toxic and overbearing and had me rushing to finish it as soon as possible.
I didn’t really buy their HEA - the entire ending felt rushed. Anna went through a lot of things that were just mentioned quickly and Quan was continually there for her. Based on how it was written, it didn’t seem like Anna was a good partner to Quan and that he continually supported her while she had minimal involvement in his life at all.
Quan really got shafted in this book when this should have been his time to shine. His story was constantly upstaged by Anna’s and he even disappears for a huge chunk of the book, only coming back for a quick weekend visit. After playing such a big role in the previous stories, he deserved more...more time on page, more positive character development, more from his significant other, just MORE. And where was his family? They’re such big parts of his life and we just get little glimpses of Michael and Khai and mentions of his mother - so disappointing.
Anna was my biggest problem with this story. I know Anna’s story was based off of the author’s own history, but it didn’t feel like it fit with the series or with the character we’ve come to know as Quan. This book largely focuses on Anna, her family struggles and her coming to terms with an unofficial autism spectrum diagnosis. It all felt repetitive, heavy, toxic and overbearing and had me rushing to finish it as soon as possible.
I didn’t really buy their HEA - the entire ending felt rushed. Anna went through a lot of things that were just mentioned quickly and Quan was continually there for her. Based on how it was written, it didn’t seem like Anna was a good partner to Quan and that he continually supported her while she had minimal involvement in his life at all.