Sophia Henry

*This is a review of Playing By Heart by Sylvie Stewart - part of the Holiday Heart-On Anthology.

Cute and sweet
5 stars

I’m a big fan of Sylvie Stewart - she’s great at filling her stories with a combination of comedy and likeable, relatable characters. While this is the first short story of hers I’ve read - she still manages to make it everything I hoped and expected. But that’s not to say it didn’t leave me wanting more - but in the best possible way.

At a Christmas in July pet pageant (I mean, why the hell not?) Kat luck turns around when her crush turns up with his adorable dog. Better yet, he’s in a bind and the only one who can help him out, is Kat! And cue the music!

I liked both our characters instantly and they have the cutest chemistry. It’s quite nice to read a story with such innocent smittenness. It’s not that the story is innocent (although there’s only kissing), it’s just that they’re so totally adorable that it feels fresh.

For such a short story, I still definitely believed in their connection. Of course I wanted more. And of course I wish it was longer. But I was sucked in immediately and was left satisfied and with a smile on my face. I couldn’t ask for much more.

—-

Playing By Heart is Sylvie Stewart’s contribution in the larger Holiday Heart-On anthology. This set of 18 festive stories has been pulled together to raise money and awareness for women’s heart health. 100% of proceeds will benefit the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women® movement. There’s a whole set of different stories (averaging around 40 pages each) with different styles, tones and steam levels.

In this anthology you’ll also get:

🎅🏻 Playing by Heart by Sylvie Stewart
🎅🏻 Better than Christmas by Brenda St John Brown and Serena Bell
🎅🏻 Hang Your Heart by Arell Rivers
🎅🏻 Hockey Hotties Heart-On by Piper Rayne
🎅🏻 Hell of a Heart-On by Marika Ray
🎅🏻 Hardware Hard-On by Tracey Pedersen
🎅🏻 Christmas Eve with KXBZ by Roxie Noir
🎅🏻 Heartly in Love by MK Meredith
🎅🏻 Love by Chance by Claire Marti
🎅🏻 Christmas Cabin by Elizabeth Lynx
🎅🏻 Mistletoe Wishes by Stina Lindenblatt
🎅🏻 Rock Hard Around the Christmas Tree by Tawdra Kandle
🎅🏻 Always Be My Babka by Melonie Johnson
🎅🏻 Hooking Her Heart by Sophia Henry
🎅🏻 Santa Claus is Coming by Hope Ellis
🎅🏻 Heart-On for Her Beaver by Dylann Crush
🎅🏻 Heart Healthy Hot Sticky Buns by Kameron Claire
🎅🏻 Ants in Santa’s Pants by Amy Award… (more)

This is a wonderful anthology, with something for everyone's taste. I cannot review all of the stories, so here's three chosen (almost) at random:
Marie Skye's 'I Still Hate You'. I really wanted to like this story and in the end I did, but I have to say that at the beginning, with the complicated history between Ash and Perrie I found it hard going.
Maria Ann Green's 'Once Upon That Time He Was Stuck in the Friend Zone' is a friends-to-lovers about Colton and Emma. An interesting story, well-written with a good supporting cast. The likeable protagonists devastate one another, but in the end…There is a thing about Colt's nickname for Emma and in the end it will make you cry.
Dakota Davies' 'Falling for My Fling'. I'm a big fan of Davies and bought this book to read this story and it doesn’t disappoint - except it isn't a HEA - yet. The great outdoors is important to this author; she has written about swimming, zip-lining, rock-climbing and here it's rafting. Lori is working at a summer school while waiting to go to Stanford. She meets Caleb, who works for his family's rafting company and who is known for his frequent, short-term hook-ups. There is a lot of background angst for both protagonists which makes their feelings for one another all the more sweet.
… (more)

"For this full book I give it 3.4 out of 5 stars, each story was charming in its own way. I enjoyed the glimpses that we got of all the characters ... just some stories I wish were fleshed out a little more than others. Overall, I definitely recommend this anthology to any romance reader, especially for those who want to get into the "St. Patrick's Day spirit." "

Read more of this review, individual reviews for each story, and THREE TEASERS here: rel="nofollow" target="_top">https://frommetoyouvideophoto.blogspot.com/2020/02/made-grade-tiny-treats-2-st-p...… (more)