Brooke's Reviews > The Heart Principle

This series has been cute so far. I have been enjoying the romantic aspects of the books as well as the dive into the cultural heritage of the characters.
Anna is a violinist gone viral. But the sudden fame is overwhelming for her. She prefers order. When her long time boyfriend decides he wants an open relationship, Ana is determined to climb out of her shell and find more for herself. But will the tattooed, motorcycle riding, escort boy be the answer for her?
I enjoyed the plot of this book a lot. It's very Pretty Woman, which is a favorite movie of mine. But it's role reversal since it's the man who is the escort in this book. But these characters truly did give me all the feels and that made me want to give it a hug. It was especially intriguing to watch Anna's struggle with her family. She's forced into situations by them and they have no idea what she struggles with. I'm glad she learns how to stand up for herself.
Let's give a shout out for dual point of view. I feel like this is so important in these types of romance books. The author previously chose to use third person. In romance I feel that first person really allows the reader to connect so much more with the characters. To feel what they feel and experience what they are going through.
Anna is a shy and introverted character. The author does a good job developing this aspect of her character in the book. She is relatable and I certainly felt empathy for her throughout the book as she struggled with standing up for herself versus doing what her family thinks she needs to do. Over the course of the book it was nice to watch her open up and flourish. The author presented the characters struggle with Autism in a realistic and sensitive manner. Her entire journey through this struggle is so emotionally tugging and I felt for her the entire time she was trying to figure out who she was. I loved that she took hold of it and even went to therapy to address it. Her personal growth is truly the crux of this book.
Quan I knew from the previous two books. He has always come across to me as someone who doesn't give over his emotions or what is going on easily. It was nice to see him break out of this shell during the course of this book. For his POV it's all about his self-esteem and what he needs to do to survive. Yet, underneath what appears as brashness is this sweet and caring man who will do whatever it takes to make Anna feel she is important and matters.
The romance here is a slow burn, with many failed attempts by the characters to connect during their first few interactions. And there is a true focus on what Anna needs from Quan during the times when they finally do become intimate. He continually assures her to let him know what he needs so he can give that to her.
The pacing was good and the story flowed easily. I was never taken out of what was happening by things that didn't somehow relate to what was going on.
Like any good romance, I was really looking for an happy ending. But to get there, I had to watch this really hard struggle and I think Hoang did a fabulous job showing life is not all sunshine and rainbows even when you are able to accept yourself.
3 stars