What the Heart Wants

by Staci Hart

[Angie]

What the Heart Wants is a novella focused on Kat and Kim’s parents, set in 1984! I liked getting this glimpse into one of the instances where two gods were messing with people’s lives, but not for a competition. Aphrodite wanted Katsu to be happy, because he was caught in a horrible sham of a marriage. Meanwhile, Hera was working on Yuki, Katsu’s wife, to help her keep her man, since she’s the goddess of matrimony and all. Of course, we already know that Katsu winds up with Kim and they have two children together, but it was an interesting journey to get there.

I really liked learning more about how the Yazuka works in What the Heart Wants. Katsu is on a mission in Las Vegas which is how he first sees Kim. There’s an immediate connection there (thanks, Dita!) and he knows he can’t just walk away from her. I was a bit less than thrilled with how they got together though. I’m certainly glad that Katsu was honest about who he was, but Kim just accept that all too easily. Like, “Yeah, sure Mr. Married Gangster, I’d love to be your mistress after meeting you 18 hours ago!” I don’t think so. And after a month she can’t live without him and they’re planning on starting a family. It was a bit much all at once.

My favorite parts of What the Heart Wants, oddly, were Yuki and the fighting between Dita and Hera. Yuki really is awful. Katsu did try with her, but she’s just so selfish and manipulative that it’s impossible. She’s completely nuts, most in part to Hera’s needless meddling. I also loved Dita confronting Hera and calling her out on her crap! Dita may not be in a committed relationship, but she does know that love and commitment don’t always go hand in hand, and one does not automatically lead to the other, like Hera does. Tensions are super high between them!

In the end, I did like What the Heart Wants a lot. I just wish it had been less on the insta-love end of the spectrum.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.