I loved reading about the characters and their journeys, and the things the novel had to say about art, love, and recovery. I would definitely recommend The Heart principle as long as you understand that what you are getting yourself into is an incredibly emotional ride i have very conflicting feelings about this book and simply rating won't sum up my feelings.
to start, when i finished this book i felt... angry. angry for anna, angry for quan, and then angry that no one properly warned me what this book was all about. i read reviews and i certainly got the feeling that this wasn't going to be a romcom but i didn't expect to come away from this reading experience, frankly, traumatized.
reading that back, it's sounding a little melodramatic and maybe I'm just the most sensitive bitch on the planet but i
have a bitter taste in my mouth after finishing. anyway lemme try and explain:
I would say about 70% of this story is sad. Anna is tasked with caregiving for a sick relative which I found traumatizing to read about. she's gaslighted continuously by friends and family. she's in a horrible mental state before all of this happens and it just gets worse as the story goes on. Quan is feeling self-conscious and sad after his cancer treatment and surgery. he fights for anna who is in no place to give him the love that he needs.
and the other 30% is a romance, sort of. early on in the book I had so much appreciation for Quan's patience and all of the sweet scenes between him and anna. but as the book carried on, the romance had to take a back seat to the life stuff and as a result, we get two people clinging to each other for IMO unexplainable reasons.
to be clear: I did not hate this book. I will forever be in love with Helen Hoang's focus and attention on autism representation. I was rooting for these characters! and overall the book elicited an emotional reaction a few times which must mean something right? I don't cry over just anything. but when I look at this book as a romance, and especially as one of my most anticipated of the year I can't say that this is going to be a favourite.
to start, when i finished this book i felt... angry. angry for anna, angry for quan, and then angry that no one properly warned me what this book was all about. i read reviews and i certainly got the feeling that this wasn't going to be a romcom but i didn't expect to come away from this reading experience, frankly, traumatized.
reading that back, it's sounding a little melodramatic and maybe I'm just the most sensitive bitch on the planet but i
have a bitter taste in my mouth after finishing. anyway lemme try and explain:
I would say about 70% of this story is sad. Anna is tasked with caregiving for a sick relative which I found traumatizing to read about. she's gaslighted continuously by friends and family. she's in a horrible mental state before all of this happens and it just gets worse as the story goes on. Quan is feeling self-conscious and sad after his cancer treatment and surgery. he fights for anna who is in no place to give him the love that he needs.
and the other 30% is a romance, sort of. early on in the book I had so much appreciation for Quan's patience and all of the sweet scenes between him and anna. but as the book carried on, the romance had to take a back seat to the life stuff and as a result, we get two people clinging to each other for IMO unexplainable reasons.
to be clear: I did not hate this book. I will forever be in love with Helen Hoang's focus and attention on autism representation. I was rooting for these characters! and overall the book elicited an emotional reaction a few times which must mean something right? I don't cry over just anything. but when I look at this book as a romance, and especially as one of my most anticipated of the year I can't say that this is going to be a favourite.