The Heart Principle

Definitely more serious than the two previous Kiss Quotient books, but I don't see why everyone is freaking out about it and claiming that they're not getting the rom-com they were “promised.” Apparently Helen Hoang had a difficult few years, and this book was the result. She doesn't owe her readers any specific book; her only obligation is to write the book that feels right to her. Okay, end of rant. I actually liked this more than [b:The Kiss Quotient 36199084 The Kiss Quotient (The Kiss Quotient, #1) Helen Hoang https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1527983633l/36199084.SX50.jpg 57828311] or [b:The Bride Test 39338454 The Bride Test (The Kiss Quotient, #2) Helen Hoang https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1548428073l/39338454.SY75.jpg 60976615]. It's more heartfelt, as Anna is faced with serious issues that are obviously personal to the author (being diagnosed with autism as an adult, dealing with artistic block and the weight of expectations). The pace is a bit uneven - the first part focuses on Anna and Quan's romance, the second part nosedives into stress and grief as Anna struggles with the caregiver role for her father amidst her family's tough love attitude, and the third wraps things up very quickly and a bit too neatly. But I felt so much for Anna and wanted her to find the acceptance and unconditional love she deserved. She does make some poor choices that are hurtful to Quan (and herself), but it's not hard to understand the longstanding family dynamics that led to those decisions. I've also read that some people are disappointed that they didn't get the story that Quan (who was a standout secondary character in the previous books) “deserved.” Frankly, I don't remember the details of the previous books so I didn't have strong feelings about Quan, and again, Hoang is not required to fulfill readers' expectations. She's writing a novel, not fan fiction. Quan's story is definitely secondary to Anna's, but he does get an arc of his own.TL, dr; I enjoyed this book on its own merits, and everyone else needs to stop harping on whether it is a romance or not. It's a good story with engaging characters who deal with lots of baggage before they can be together. And that was more than enough for me.