The Hearts We Sold-Book Review
The Hearts We Sold by Emily Lloyd-Jones
Summary:
Demons walk the earth and they are here to make a deal. And teenager, Deirdre (Dee) Moreno, is desperate to make one. In an attempt to escape a calamitous home life, she makes a trade that could be more than she bargained for. As Dee navigates her new heartless life, she runs into another group that have made their own "deals with the devil." At the center of the group is James Lancer, a charming artist that befriends Dee and opens her eyes to what life has to offer. But their lives may be short-lived when the demon calls on them to complete missions as a part of their deal. With each mission, Dee, James, and the rest of the group uncover secrets and discover their world is nothing like what it seems. Will they be able to escape with their hears intact?
Review:
I bought this book randomly on my Kindle last month. I've been in a reading slump lately and made myself finish this one once I finally picked it up. My overall rating is hovering between a 3.5 and 4 (on the Goodreads 5 star scale). The last few chapters of the book bumped it closer to a 4.
Characters: (3.5 coffee cups) When I read a book, I can tell within the first 50 or so pages whether or not I'm going to connect with the characters. With some stories, you know you are going to love a character right off the bat. This book was a bit of an oddity for me in that aspect. As the story progressed, I slowly found myself connecting more with Dee, but I still wasn't wholly invested by the end. To be honest, I felt more of a connection with James' character. I will say that there was excellent representation in this novel...part-Latina main character, lesbian roommate, and a trans character.
Themes: (4 coffee cups) As far as the themes of the story go, I really like how the story tackled parental abuse. Abuse isn't always physical, and this story really showcased how abuse can come in many forms, many times verbal and emotional. Dee encounters the full gambit of verbal and emotional abuse from her father. Her mother is very much a passive bystander in these exchanges. The scenes between the three of these characters were some of the most powerful storytelling in the book. As a result of this abuse, Dee has closed herself off from trusting anyone or letting anyone in. One of the most beautiful aspects of the story is that as it moves forward, you see Dee learn that you can make your own family.
Plot: (3 coffee cups) I really enjoyed the concept of humans giving up pieces of themselves for deals with the demons. That was one of the more engaging plot points--seeing what people wished for in exchange for pieces of themselves, sometimes those pieces were their most basic essence. There was a point towards the later half of the book that revealed something about the demons that I was not crazy about. Other than that, the plot moved along at a fairly decent pace without any places that drug the story down.
Romance: (3 coffee cups with a shot of espresso) Sweet, slow-burn (for a stand-alone novel). The shot of espresso is for there being no love triangle.
Overall, I really enjoyed this story. The last few chapters were heart-breaking and beautiful. I'm not sure it is a book that I will pick up again, but I am glad I pushed through my reading slump to finish this.
Favorite quote(s):
~"We're all just moments and most of us don't matter. We study less than one percent of all humanity in our history books."
~"Anything comes at you, burn that motherfucker down."
~"She became her own knight; she collected those broken promises and whispered apologies and fashioned them into armor."
