A Harvest of Hearts

by Andrea Eames

Howl's Moving Castle meets The House in the Cerulean Sea in Andrea Eames’ debut cosy fantasy: a cheeky butcher's daughter, a befuddlingly handsome sorcerer, and his clever talking cat unlock magical secrets in the dark heart of their kingdom – and just might discover the meaning of true love.

Everyone in Foss Butcher’s village knows what happens when the magic-workers come; they harvest human hearts to use in their spells. That’s just how life in her kingdom works. But Foss, plain, clumsy, and practical as a boot, never expected anyone would want hers.

When a sorcerer snags a piece of Foss’s heart without meaning to, she is furious. For once a heart is snagged, the experience is … well, unpleasant. So, Foss finds herself stomping toward the grand City to keep his enchanted House and demands that he fixes her before she keels over and dies, or whatever happens when hearts are Snagged.

But the sorcerer, Sylvester, is not what she expected. Petulant, idle, and new to his powers, Sylvester has no clue how to undo the heart-taking, or how to do much of anything really, apart from sulk. Foss’s only friend is a talking cat and the walls themselves have moods.

As Foss searches for a cure, she accidentally uncovers that there is much more to the heart-taking – and to the magic-workers themselves – than she could have ever imagined…

• ISBN13: 9780008687168
• Publish Date: 13 March 2025 (first published 4 March 2025)
• Publish Status: Forthcoming
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: HarperVoyager
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 448
• Language: English
• URL: http://harpercollins.co.uk

Reviews

[Metaphorosis Reviews]

3.5 stars, Metaphorosis Reviews

Summary
Foss Butcher is likely to never amount to more than a butcher's life and perhaps some widower's second wife - until a sorcerer steals a piece of her heart, dooming her to follow him to his magical home, where she finds herself unwittingly involved in the fate of the entire kingdom.

Review
I read this book immediately after The Lost Bookshop, and for some reason linked them, though they really have very little in common. As I noted there, Bookshop has better prose, and this book has a better story. Rather to my surprise, I ultimately found myself rating this book higher.

A Harvest of Hearts has some trouble getting off the ground. The prose is clunky (though you get used to it) and there are a fair number of awkward (or just wrong) formations and word choices. I found it a notable obstacle, initially.

Gradually, however, I was won over by the plot, which is innovative, if built on familiar elements. The characters that move it along are fairly standard types, and there’s no great surprise in their choices or resolutions, but they’re well deployed and engaging. There’s a little inconsistency (or maybe tension) – e.g., the protagonist sees herself as ugly for reasons beyond her control (and unsurprisingly, learns to think she isn’t), but sees no problem with describing a villain as ugly (with the hint that that means lacking in moral fiber). Foss’ choices aren’t always consistent, and at times feel forced for the sake of plot movement, but overall the lapses can be skipped over.

There’s a talking cat, which ordinarily I’m not keen on, as being a very overused device. But here, it’s charming and adds to the story without being coy or overly cute.

The prose isn’t great, frankly, but the story as a whole is engaging and fun.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.