HEARTSTRINGS, Ali Novak, Sourcebooks Fire, Oct. 7, 2025, Paperback, $13.99 (young adult, ages 14 and up)
A chance encounter at Comic Con turns into a romance of epic proportions in Heartstrings, the third book in Ali Novak’s Heartbreak Chronicles.
Who cares about being a fan favorite when you’ve found someone who’s there just for you? Indigo, AKA “Indie” loves the art of special effects makeup and sometimes wonders if making monsters and zombies could be more than a hobby. But her sister, Violet, is a TV actress whose career has blown up big and become its own kind of monster. It’s affected everything: their parents have split, their dad’s too busy being Violet’s manager, and Indie’s on her own as she agonizes over her music school application.
Even worse, she’s just been drafted into being her sister’s personal assistant for a weekend. Talk about being overshadowed.
But Indie is about to meet someone who can relate: Xander Jones, the boyishly sweet guitarist of the world famous band the Heartbreakers, who constantly plays second fiddle to the band’s bigger personalities. At a hectic comic con where she’s fetching bottled water for her sister, Indie and Xander meet behind the scenes and hit it off.
Indie knows Xander deserves to step out of the shadows. What if she could find the courage to do the same, by defying others’ expectations of her and making a new path for herself? And what if she and Xander could become more than friends? —Synopsis provided by Sourcebooks Fire
Though the third book in a series, Heartstrings can be read as a standalone novel. But after reading it, you’ll probably want to go back and read the first two books — The Heartbreakers and Paper Hearts.
The series features the four members of Heartbreakers as they each find love. But though the musicians are the key to tying the books together, the books actually unfold from the female love-interests’ points of view.
In the case of Heartstrings, that’s Indie. Indie’s used to living in her actress sister’s shadow. A classically trained musician, Indie has practically packed her bags for Julliard. But working as Violet’s personal assistant for one afternoon sets things in motion that Indie could never have guessed.
While at its heart, Heartstrings is a romance, there are also themes of family, friendship, and owning your feelings and actions. There’s a lot of growth on Indie’s part, and the book is better for it.
Author Ali Novak does a good job balancing humor with heartfelt, and her depictions of both healthy and ailing relationships is strong. And there’s lots of nerdy banter that will appeal to a niche crowd while not going too deep as to alienate other readers.
Heartstrings is a well-paced read that fits well into Novak’s series. I look forward to reading the final book.
Copyright © 2025 Cracking the Cover. Unless otherwise noted, all books — digital and physical — have been provided by publishers in exchange for honest and unbiased reviews. All thoughts and opinions are those of the reviewer.
