Heartsong: A Green Creek Novel

After how lackluster Ravensong was in comparison to Wolfsong, I preemptively wanted to dislike this. I couldn't. Best one so far. Ugh.

Heartsong is yet another treasure in TJ Klune's series, but it deals with trauma and grief in a completely different way from the first two books. While the earlier novels focused on the intensity of loss and anger, Heartsong shifts to a more introspective and tender exploration of healing and acceptance. It delves deeply into the emotional scars of its characters, offering a poignant look at the different paths they take to overcome their pasts.

This book also brings much-needed asexual representation, enriching the narrative with its thoughtful and respectful portrayal. It's a refreshing change that adds depth to the series and broadens its scope. If you're looking for the smut found in the previous books, you won't find it here, but that doesn't diminish the impact of this story. Instead, Heartsong shines through its heartfelt depiction of love, belonging, and the courage to move forward. It's a powerful addition to the series, proving that emotional resonance doesn't always need to come with heat to leave a lasting impression.

Rating Description:

1.0 - DNF/Despise

1.5 - Almost DNFed and wish I had

2.0 - Almost DNFed but had redeeming qualities/just boring

2.5 - Alright with lots of notes

3.0 - Alright with notes but I'm not raving about it

3.5 - Technically good but I'm not raving about it

4.0 - Technically good, and/or I enjoyed it a lot

4.5 - Loved it, I wanted to highlight lines in the book but still with notes

5.0 - Loved it, I wanted to highlight lines in the book, and notes are very positive

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

I wrote this review after I have read Brothersong so my views may be colored from that.

This book started off quite confusing. I wasn’t quite sure if I was reading Robbie before meeting the Bennets or if he moved back for some reason. It was sort of the latter.

I actually didn’t mind this so much. What did bother me was that this book was kind of boring. There was a lot of back and forth about what happened but it was going in circles, in my opinion.

I did like that we learned more about Robbie. I also liked that despite Kelly being Ace, there was more scenes about how Robbie and Kelly build up their relationship as compared to Gordo and Mark in Ravensong.

There are things in this book that just made me scratch my head in frustration:

1. Why were the former humans panicking when Kelly got sick with the cold? They were humans until recently. They should have recognized a cold for what it was.

2. It was said in the 1st and 2nd book that wolves recognize their mates. They get that feeling and then they know that person is their mate. So why didn’t Kelly immediately know that Robbie was his mate? In Wolfsong, Kelly was giving Robbie puzzled looks when Robbie was trying to get close to him. Also, Robbie didn’t immediately recognize Kelly as his mate. He said Kelly was cute though. But it wasn’t how it was with Joe and Mark.

It could be argued that recognition of one’s mate is different from wolf to wolf. However, they made such a big deal of it in Wolfsong that this whole thing feels like they are retconning the whole sentiment.

3. The argument in point 2 applies to Carter and the wolf (Gavin). Also they made Carter seem very dumb. He wasn’t like that previously so what’s up.

The book does have a “big” battle near the end. But it wasn’t really that big. They were basically fighting a bunch of feral children, Michelle, Dale, and Livingstone. It didn’t really give me the sense that the odds were against them or that the fight would be close. The story tried to make it seem that way, but I wasn’t really buying it.

I love this series. This was my favorite by far! I love how much further the author took the story on and how sweet the characters are to each other.

The core of the family is so beautiful and writing is immaculate and purposeful.

This author won a special place in my heart and I am so ready for the next installment

4.5 stars

senti el momento justo en el que el corazón se partió en 20 pedazos

4,75 ✨

This one didn't quite grip me as much as the first two books. Klune kind of goes off format and starts in the middle of a story, working back and then into the future so I spent about a quarter of the book being frustrated and confused. This is why I hate stories with amnesia. Klune's writing is stellar and you do catch up along with Robbie, but it just wasn't as enjoyable because of that. And, because of the end events, you don't even get all the answers. I hope that the final book ties up some things but since it takes place from yet another character's POV who is not with the pack, I don't have hopes for that. Still, this series is brilliant and has made me tear up or laugh out loud on several occasions, resulting in my having devoured all three 300+ page books in a week which is pretty speedy for me - and I only want more.

This one took me a bit longer to get into– I was so confused thinking it was the past, or the future, but now totally understand why we had to have the confusion. Once everything comes to light I was in the groove and didn't come up for air until I was halfway through. After checking on my doggo, I went right back to it and didn't stop until the end.
I wasn't as emotional reading this one as the others, but I mean... I still fell for these characters and felt all their bruises. I'm so very much looking forward to book four.