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Bella Heartwood Book Reviews
š Bookish thoughts, cozy vibes, and honest feelings — all in one place. I mostly review romance and romantasy books, from sweet to steamy (and all the messy feelings in between!), but I also like to explore other genres. I hope my reviews help you discover your next favorite read! šāØ
Hold Me
ā 4.5/5 stars
Author: Anna Savas
Release date: March 24, 2026
Genres: New Adult | Romance | Womenās Fiction
Spoiler-free review
Hold Me by Anna Savas is a wonderful story that captivated me more and more as I kept reading. Itās truly a beautiful story, but also at times a painful one (please check trigger warnings!), and Iām so happy I got to be part of and experience Zoe and Jaseās journey as they navigate the new opportunity they are given.
Both main characters, Zoe and Jase, are beautifully crafted, with deep backstories. While you learn about them throughout the book, itās around the halfway point where more and more pieces start to come togetherāthough there are still heartbreaking twists and turns ahead that keep you wanting to fully understand their story. Their shared passion for ballet is also wonderfully portrayed and easy to follow, even for someone like me who isnāt very knowledgeable about it.
The story goes back and forth between the present and one year prior, when something key happened that shaped Zoe and Jaseās relationship as it is now. While this format took me a little time to get used to, it didnāt take away from my reading experience. Once I was fully immersed in the story and more comfortable with the timeline shifts, it became an absolute page-turner.
I really loved this book. Itās sad and painful, deep and intriguing, but also tender and hopeful. It can be a hard story to read at times due to some of the topics included (one in particular that I donāt want to spoil), but itās also a story that feels incredibly meaningful and worth reading. Hold Me explores themes of family, complicated and broken relationships, as well as new and positive onesālike friendships that are there for you no matter what. Above all, this second-chance story beautifully highlights resilience, self-worth, and love, and how sometimes, if you just hold on a little longer, the right people will appear (or reappear) in your life and make it better.
I will definitely continue the series š¤
Thank you to NetGalley, publisher LYX, and author Anna Savas. I received an advance copy, and all comments are part of my honest review.
Author: Anna Savas
Release date: March 24, 2026
Genres: New Adult | Romance | Womenās Fiction
Spoiler-free review
Hold Me by Anna Savas is a wonderful story that captivated me more and more as I kept reading. Itās truly a beautiful story, but also at times a painful one (please check trigger warnings!), and Iām so happy I got to be part of and experience Zoe and Jaseās journey as they navigate the new opportunity they are given.
Both main characters, Zoe and Jase, are beautifully crafted, with deep backstories. While you learn about them throughout the book, itās around the halfway point where more and more pieces start to come togetherāthough there are still heartbreaking twists and turns ahead that keep you wanting to fully understand their story. Their shared passion for ballet is also wonderfully portrayed and easy to follow, even for someone like me who isnāt very knowledgeable about it.
The story goes back and forth between the present and one year prior, when something key happened that shaped Zoe and Jaseās relationship as it is now. While this format took me a little time to get used to, it didnāt take away from my reading experience. Once I was fully immersed in the story and more comfortable with the timeline shifts, it became an absolute page-turner.
I really loved this book. Itās sad and painful, deep and intriguing, but also tender and hopeful. It can be a hard story to read at times due to some of the topics included (one in particular that I donāt want to spoil), but itās also a story that feels incredibly meaningful and worth reading. Hold Me explores themes of family, complicated and broken relationships, as well as new and positive onesālike friendships that are there for you no matter what. Above all, this second-chance story beautifully highlights resilience, self-worth, and love, and how sometimes, if you just hold on a little longer, the right people will appear (or reappear) in your life and make it better.
I will definitely continue the series š¤
Thank you to NetGalley, publisher LYX, and author Anna Savas. I received an advance copy, and all comments are part of my honest review.
Booked at Midnight
ā 5/5 stars
Author: E. W. Andersen
Release date: March 23, 2026
Genres: Romance | Sci-Fi & Fantasy | Womenās Fiction
Spoiler-free review
E. W. Andersen did it again! Booked at Midnight, book two in the Midnights on the Square series, is a wonderful sequel to The Midnight Book Club, and I loved it!
In Booked at Midnight, we get to follow Aureliaās journey as a writer, bookshop owner, and now in her relationship with Oliver, which has grown and deepened. When I started reading this book, I wondered if it would follow a similar storyline to book one (with some differences, of course), especially regarding Aureliaās relationship with the fictional charactersābut oh wow, I loved the twist this second book had. I wonāt say much because it would spoil key parts of the story, but the different direction this book takes worked so well, and I was completely here for it!
In this second book, we still get that magical realism I loved in book one, set in the beautiful, perfectly suited setting of Aureliaās magical bookshop. This time, though, we meet a whole new group of literary characters, and they were just as amazing and wonderfully written as those in the first book. Iāll admit that when I first āmetā Harriet from Little Dorrit, I wondered how Aurelia would write her story based on Harrietās personalityābut that concern quickly disappeared as I kept reading, which also ties into the twist I mentioned earlier.
I also really enjoyed how Aurelia handled the ācomplicationsā of meeting with the characters every night after Oliver moves in with her. There are some very funny moments, along with others that are wholesome, lovely, and sweet. We get to see much more of Aurelia and Oliverās relationship, and itās truly heartwarming. Even during moments of tension between them, you can feel the love they share, and I really appreciated that. I also loved Aureliaās personal journey, which continues beautifully from book one while exploring new layers that I thoroughly enjoyed reading about.
Booked at Midnight has love, grief, tension, sadness, and joy. Itās a wholesome story, and I love its characters and plot so much :) Aurelia is one of my favorite female main charactersāsomeone I can relate to deeply at times, especially in her journey as a writer.
Thank you to NetGalley and author E. W. Andersen for the opportunity to read this wonderful story. I received an advance copy, and all opinions are my own.
Author: E. W. Andersen
Release date: March 23, 2026
Genres: Romance | Sci-Fi & Fantasy | Womenās Fiction
Spoiler-free review
E. W. Andersen did it again! Booked at Midnight, book two in the Midnights on the Square series, is a wonderful sequel to The Midnight Book Club, and I loved it!
In Booked at Midnight, we get to follow Aureliaās journey as a writer, bookshop owner, and now in her relationship with Oliver, which has grown and deepened. When I started reading this book, I wondered if it would follow a similar storyline to book one (with some differences, of course), especially regarding Aureliaās relationship with the fictional charactersābut oh wow, I loved the twist this second book had. I wonāt say much because it would spoil key parts of the story, but the different direction this book takes worked so well, and I was completely here for it!
In this second book, we still get that magical realism I loved in book one, set in the beautiful, perfectly suited setting of Aureliaās magical bookshop. This time, though, we meet a whole new group of literary characters, and they were just as amazing and wonderfully written as those in the first book. Iāll admit that when I first āmetā Harriet from Little Dorrit, I wondered how Aurelia would write her story based on Harrietās personalityābut that concern quickly disappeared as I kept reading, which also ties into the twist I mentioned earlier.
I also really enjoyed how Aurelia handled the ācomplicationsā of meeting with the characters every night after Oliver moves in with her. There are some very funny moments, along with others that are wholesome, lovely, and sweet. We get to see much more of Aurelia and Oliverās relationship, and itās truly heartwarming. Even during moments of tension between them, you can feel the love they share, and I really appreciated that. I also loved Aureliaās personal journey, which continues beautifully from book one while exploring new layers that I thoroughly enjoyed reading about.
Booked at Midnight has love, grief, tension, sadness, and joy. Itās a wholesome story, and I love its characters and plot so much :) Aurelia is one of my favorite female main charactersāsomeone I can relate to deeply at times, especially in her journey as a writer.
Thank you to NetGalley and author E. W. Andersen for the opportunity to read this wonderful story. I received an advance copy, and all opinions are my own.
Scythe & Sparrow
ā 5/5 stars
Author: Brynne Weaver
Release date: February 11, 2025
Genres: Dark Romance | Romance | Contemporary
Scythe & Sparrow by Brynne Weaver is a dark romance that completely pulled me in. I especially loved how the charactersā darker sides were explored in a way that felt fresh and different from the previous two books in The Ruinous Love Trilogy. While this book came very close to becoming my favorite, Butcher & Blackbird still holds that top spot for me.
Rose Evans, the female main character, has spent years traveling with the Silveria Circus, constantly on the move and without close family or lasting connections. Fionn Kane is a doctor living a quiet, isolated life in small-town Nebraska after experiencing a deeply impactful heartbreak.
Both Rose and Fionn have their own ādark instincts,ā and while they approach them very differently, those instincts play an important role in both their lives and their connection.
Rose and Fionn are perfectly matched, and I loved experiencing both their individual emotional journeys and the slow, meaningful development of their romance š©·š¤ Their connection felt authentic, intense, and incredibly satisfying.
Overall, Scythe & Sparrow is fun, hilarious, witty, sexy, deep, and dark. It truly delivers a little bit of everything and serves as a strong, emotionally rich conclusion to Brynne Weaverās Ruinous Love Trilogy. The subtle connections to the previous books (no spoilers!) are beautifully done and absolutely the cherry on top.
Author: Brynne Weaver
Release date: February 11, 2025
Genres: Dark Romance | Romance | Contemporary
Scythe & Sparrow by Brynne Weaver is a dark romance that completely pulled me in. I especially loved how the charactersā darker sides were explored in a way that felt fresh and different from the previous two books in The Ruinous Love Trilogy. While this book came very close to becoming my favorite, Butcher & Blackbird still holds that top spot for me.
Rose Evans, the female main character, has spent years traveling with the Silveria Circus, constantly on the move and without close family or lasting connections. Fionn Kane is a doctor living a quiet, isolated life in small-town Nebraska after experiencing a deeply impactful heartbreak.
Both Rose and Fionn have their own ādark instincts,ā and while they approach them very differently, those instincts play an important role in both their lives and their connection.
Rose and Fionn are perfectly matched, and I loved experiencing both their individual emotional journeys and the slow, meaningful development of their romance š©·š¤ Their connection felt authentic, intense, and incredibly satisfying.
Overall, Scythe & Sparrow is fun, hilarious, witty, sexy, deep, and dark. It truly delivers a little bit of everything and serves as a strong, emotionally rich conclusion to Brynne Weaverās Ruinous Love Trilogy. The subtle connections to the previous books (no spoilers!) are beautifully done and absolutely the cherry on top.
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