We are so excited to bring you the Release Day Launch for Ann Aguirre's incredible THE SHAPE OF MY HEART! THE SHAPE OF MY HEART is a New Adult contemporary romance, published by Harlequin HQN, and is the third book in the 2B Trilogy Series. Don't forget to grab your copy of the first two books and fall in love with her characters all over again!
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THE SHAPE OF MY HEART Synopsis:
Some people wait decades to meet their soul mate. Courtney Kaufman suspects she met hers in high school—only to lose him at seventeen. Since then, Courtney’s social life has been a series of meaningless encounters, though she’s made a few close friends along the way. Especially her roommate, Max Cooper, who oozes damaged bad-boy vibes from every pore.
Max knows about feeling lost and trying to move beyond the pain—he’s been on his own since he was sixteen. Now it’s time to find out if he can ever go home again, and Courtney’s the only one he trusts to go with him. But the trip to Providence could change everything…because the more time he spends with Courtney, the harder it is to reconcile what he wants and what he thinks he deserves.
It started out so simple. One misfit helping another. Now Max will do anything to show Courtney that for every heart that’s ever been broken, there’s another that can make it complete.
Make sure you grab the entire 2B Trilogy!
I WANT IT THAT WAY
AS LONG AS YOU LOVE ME
THE SHAPE OF MY HEART
EXCERPT:
So many questions ricocheted around my brainpan, but Max’s shoulders were pulled up almost to his ears, his chin nearly on the table. Without looking at me, he shredded the napkin in his hands into four pieces and then in half again. The waning sunshine streaming in the smeared window behind him haloed his hair, so that the highlights shone blue instead of tawny or copper.
“You don’t have to tell me a bedtime story,” I said gently.
“No, you need to know. So you understand what’s going on and why it’s so tense when we get there.”
“Okay. If you’re sure.”
“I’ll set the stage.” His tone was brittle, uneven, and the bits of paper in his hands kept getting smaller. “I was sixteen, just got my license. My dad was drinking, acting like a fuckhead. Business as usual. When he started in on Mickey, I grabbed the keys. Figured I’d get us both out of there for a while. I don’t know if you’ve noticed but taking off is kind of my specialty.”
“Between your bike, the garage office, and the place you showed me by the river, I’ve picked up on the pattern, yeah.”
“I thought I was doing the smart thing, you know? But I was driving too fast and some asshole blew the stoplight. T-boned us. Mickey got the worst of it… weeks in the hospital without knowing if he’d make it. Then once he stabilized, we found out he’d never walk again.” He curled a fist and slammed it onto the table, making the pizza box dance. “Ironic, huh? I was worried that my dad would hurt Mickey but I’m the one who—”
“Not true,” I cut in. “That’s a textbook accident. Don’t tell me you blame yourself.”
“It’s impossible to do anything else. No, wipe that look off your face, Kaufman. I didn’t open up to make you feel sorry for me. I just want you to know the deal going in. I mean, my dad’s the biggest asshole I ever met and he hates me, too.”
“What about Mickey?”
“We weren’t talking much when I left. Every day I think, what if I’d put up with my old man’s shit for five minutes more? What if I’d picked a fight with him instead of grabbing those keys? I—” His voice broke on a shuddering inhalation.
Until this moment I didn’t realize how much weight Max carried on a daily basis or how good a job he did hiding it. I came out of my chair and rounded the little table before I consciously decided to make a move. Standing beside him, I hovered, unsure what to do. He answered the question by wrapping both arms around my waist and pulling me onto his lap. Unsettled, unnerved, even, I let him press his face into my shoulder, resting a hand on his head.
His breath warmed the skin of my throat, rousing an inappropriate shiver. Now is not the time. It wasn’t like I’d never noticed his hotness; he specialized in a scruffy, soulful appeal that women of all ages seemed unable to resist. But it was so much better for him to call me Kaufman and confide in me instead of flirting. At the moment, Max needed a friend. I stroked his back for like five minutes before he raised his gaze to meet mine.
“Sorry. The closer we get to Rhode Island, the worse I feel.”
“It’s understandable. You have to be worried about how your brother will react when you see him.” The rest of his family sounded like jackwagons. Though he’d only told me about his dad, if he had any decent aunts, uncles or cousins, they would’ve stepped up when his old man went upside his head with a bottle. A scar like that would take eight or ten stitches, minimum. I imagined Max as a scared kid with blood gushing from his scalp, and all of my protective instincts roared to life. People had been calling me a bitch since I was fifteen, and I was ready to wade in against Max’s family. Yeah, the funeral might be tense and shitty, but if his family said one fucking word—
About Ann Aguirre:
Ann Aguirre is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author and RITA winner with a degree in English Literature; before she began writing full time, she was a clown, a clerk, a voice actress, and a savior of stray kittens, not necessarily in that order. She grew up in a yellow house across from a cornfield, but now she lives in sunny Mexico with her husband, children, and various pets. Ann likes books, emo music, action movies, and she writes all kinds of genre fiction for adults and teens, published with Harlequin, Macmillan, and Penguin, among others.
Review:
What to say about The Shape of my heart? It was my favorite in the series, it was also the most angst-filled and dramatic. And truthfully, I just, well, loved it. Not because this was written any better or the story line was so much better. Nope, that's actually not it. I think. Honestly? I am not quite sure why, actually. But I was a contently sighing puddle of emotions by time I was finished.
The prose is great. It's Aguirre we speaking about, so duh! I think she is a great writer.... And in TSOMH she proved me over and over why I will read anything she throws at me. Her writing is beautiful and she is a master at taking me on a emotional rollercoaster. I was totally invested by the end of this.
Well, frankly the end.. was... uhm, well to perfect for my taste. But I still did nonetheless grin happily even when I rolled my eyes at it.
The story line is in some way the typical romance plot- but Aguirre added bits and pieces that changed the rich girl poor guy story into a unique tale. The pace of this is perfectly crafted. I was growling in frustration at the two MCs by the time the finally got their act together and we got to the good bits- which is halfway through by the way! Then I kept on waiting for the other shoe to drop, saw a million scenarios play out, but only really go the right idea, when Aguirre dropped a hint the size of a football field on me. And that was literally just before it happened. Then I was totally taken aback by the pain and was hopeful and lost hope and oh well you got the gist. Let's just say it:Great pacing make for great storytelling, people!
The good bits - also known as smut- were not my thing, I was really really under-whelmed by them. In fact when it finally happened, I kinda couldn't believe that was it, went back and re-read it, but yeah it was that, well, for the lack of a better word and a need to be nice, let's just say: boring? I had hopes it would get better, but sadly not by much.
Not that it phased me much- Because this in my opinion shines through the character building. I adored Max in the first book already and was really looking forward to reading his story, especially after knowing how unlucky he was, after reading As Long As You Love Me. And Max did not disappoint- he was a tad melodramatic, but I enjoyed that, apparently if melodrama is written well, I gobble it up. As I read The Shape Of My Heart, I got to know him better and started to understand where he was coming from, this is even more impressive, since this is written entirely from Courtney POV. Now while I connected to Courtney, I didn't like her that much for most of the book actually. I found her whiny and spoilt. And the whole he-is-too-handsome-for-ugly-duckling-me line irritated me to no ends. But then she grew up, changed and well, stopped whining and I ended up not only rooting for her, I like her. The banter and relationship between Max and Courtney is probably not only the most entertaining but also the most happy fuzzies inducing thing in the entire series! Just superb. Though a lot of it is about the two MCs- I really liked the support cast as well. There were quite a lot of new characters added and they were interesting and one got the feeling that one knows this group of friends, understands their dynamics.
The only thing I didn't like when it comes to characters were the parents, they were all super cliche and super one sided. Kinda odd, especially since all the other character building was done so well. In fact most badies felt too black and white and with that a bit like cardboard people. Sad really, cause I think this could have been so avoided.
No matter, this is a great end to a fun New Adult series. I can only recommend it to lovers of the genre and fans of Aguirre.
By the way this end of this left me with the question: Will Aguirre write a book about Michael?
I seriously hope so, if not, I for one vote that she must keep writing contemporary books as well as her fantasy. I am for sure going to keep reading them.
Rating:
ARC was provided by Publishers through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
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