What the Heart Wants: A Novel

Audrey Carlan

Jul 2020 · The Wish Series Book 1 · Sold by HQN Books

About this ebook

From the #1 bestselling author of the beloved Calendar Girl books comes the first in a witty, wise and emotionally compelling new series, where coming home is just the beginning…

“Fly free.”

For ten years those words, written on pink parchment paper in her mother’s beautiful handwriting, have been Suda Kaye Ross’s guiding star. Every year on her birthday, Suda Kaye opens another of the letters her mother penned before she passed, heeding the advice inside as she fills her life with experiences. From Italy to Australia, from Rio to Russia, she’s slaked her wanderlust. And then, on her twenty-eighth birthday, she opens the letter that sends her home.

Returning to Colorado means confronting everything—and everyone—she left behind, including her cherished sister, Evie, and her first love, Camden Bryant. Suda Kaye and Cam spent four years and one unforgettable night together. Given the way she ran out on him, it’s no surprise that he’s wary, resentful…and engaged to someone else. Evie, hardworking and überresponsible, just wants her sister to put down roots at last.

For Evie’s sake, and her own, Suda Kaye is trying to build a new life, all the while wondering whether it’s too late to come back home—or if the most important part of her never really left.

Don’t miss On the Sweet Side,the next book in Audrey Carlan's The Wish series! With the emotional pull of Susan Wiggs' and Robyn Carr’s engaging family dramas, On the Sweet Side is a sassy and emotional strangers-to-sisters story about the enduring power of family-both the one you're born with and the one you choose.

Ratings and reviews

A beautifully woven tale of love and discovery! What the Heart Wants broke my heart, multiple times, but with any Audrey Carlan story, I had faith in the journey. She's truly the only author that make me shed cathartic tears and come back for more. This has been my favorite book of 2020 and I've read it twice within the last week. Such a poignant and emotional story that will inspire you to not take a second for granted, love with all your heart and follow your dreams. I can't wait for Evie's story next!

I was not , NOT , expecting to like this book. Instead I found myself in LOVE with this book. The amount of emotion that Audrey can convey in her story is absolutely amazing. You will find yourself rooting, crying and of course yelling at the characters. 10 out of 10 recommend ! Even if you don't like "sexy" books this is so well written, it just adds to the feels.

What the Heart Wants has everything you could ever want or need; it's 352 pages of racy romantic women's fiction at its finest! Luckily for us readers, Suda Kaye's love life isn't the only relationship nourished from the roots up as Audrey Carlan does a fantastic job of bringing raw beauty to the love of sisterhood! Her writing style draws me in every time, there's just something about it - the familiarity, the love of feeling connected, the humor, and the unashamed intimacy. What the Heart Wants is genuinely unforgettable. // Our story begins in the aftermath of Suda Kaye's mother's death as she embarks on what ends up becoming a decade long adventure around the world, experiencing more than most could ever hope for in a lifetime. On every birthday, Suda and her sister Evie open a new pre-written letter from their mother, designated for specific times and milestones in their lives. As she reads her latest letter on her 28th birthday, she knows that it's time to return home. After coming back to her sister, Evie, in Colorado, Suda Kaye decides it's time to dig in and settle down. Although her sister isn't the only person she runs back into... queue, her first love, Cam. // Four days. That's all it took for me to devour every.single.page! It would have been much sooner, but, you know - the life of a mom and wife came calling... and sleep. Yet, when I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it. The heartwarming stories of Suda Kaye, Evie, Cam, the loveable Bryants, elder Tahsuda, and Milo were a joy to read. Although fictional, there was something bittersweet about the realistic feeling within What the Heart Wants. Just make sure you read the author's note at the end as there's much insight on the inspiration and sheer amount research put into this novel. // Quick question before I go, have you heard the song "No Place" by the Backstreet Boys? Parts of this song remind me of What the Heart Wants in many ways; Suda Kaye has traveled the world, but there just ain't no place like home! I am very much looking forward to reading Evie's story in the upcoming sequel To Catch a Dream. The preview at the end just makes me all the more interested in the 'Ross' sisters! // I would recommend this book to everyone because literally, everyone should experience What the Heart Wants. Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers at Harlequin Books, the author Audrey Carlan and her amazing PA Jeananna Goodall for providing me with an advanced reader's copy of this title in exchange for my honest review.

About the author

Audrey Carlan is a #1 New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of over 40 novels, including the worldwide phenomenon Calendar Girl serial, and her books have been translated into more than 30 languages across the globe. Audrey lives in the California Valley with her two children and the love of her life.