Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

An amnesiac high school senior embarks on a Valentine-themed quest to recover her past.Ella Fitzpatrick is a planner who had her life under perfect control until a terrible accident took away her memories of the previous 11 weeks. A year later, shes still agonizing over why, exactly, she broke up with her boyfriend and became estranged from her lifelong friends; but an anonymous note in the shape of a heart begins a scavenger hunt she hopes will return everything she had forgotten. Anyone who has seen a Hallmark movie will recognize every trope and narrative beat, although they fit awkwardly into this novel. Even readers who suspend disbelief to embrace the premise will likely tire of the brand-name-dropping, and Ella, who is a stereotypical, self-centered Type A protagonist, feels likable mostly for being less awful than her mean-girl friendsand for her self-awareness in recognizing how easily she could be much worse. Shes a pretty girl from a wealthy family who seems entirely unaware of her privileges; her love interest is neither quirky nor charming enough to save things, and their bickerflirting becomes tedious. The paper hearts gimmick is cute, but once everyones secrets are revealed, the superficial romance is overshadowed by many characters creepy, manipulative behavior. A few surnames hint at ethnic diversity; Ella and her love interest are cued as White.A fluffy enough diversion for voracious rom-com fans. (Romance. 12-18) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

An amnesiac high school senior embarks on a Valentine-themed quest to recover her past. Ella Fitzpatrick is a planner who had her life under perfect control until a terrible accident took away her memories of the previous 11 weeks. A year later, she’s still agonizing over why, exactly, she broke up with her boyfriend and became estranged from her lifelong friends; but an anonymous note in the shape of a heart begins a scavenger hunt she hopes will return everything she had forgotten. Anyone who has seen a Hallmark movie will recognize every trope and narrative beat, although they fit awkwardly into this novel. Even readers who suspend disbelief to embrace the premise will likely tire of the brand-name-dropping, and Ella, who is a stereotypical, self-centered Type A protagonist, feels likable mostly for being less awful than her mean-girl friends—and for her self-awareness in recognizing how easily she could be much worse. She’s a pretty girl from a wealthy family who seems entirely unaware of her privileges; her love interest is neither quirky nor charming enough to save things, and their bickerflirting becomes tedious. The paper hearts gimmick is cute, but once everyone’s secrets are revealed, the superficial romance is overshadowed by many characters’ creepy, manipulative behavior. A few surnames hint at ethnic diversity; Ella and her love interest are cued as White. A fluffy enough diversion for voracious rom-com fans. (Romance. 12-18) Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.