The Key to My Heart
- Downloads：1790
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-09-28 11:21:45
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Lia Louis
- ISBN：1797148699
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Laura Skladzinski
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Natalie is a 30 year old widow; although her husband died 2。5 years ago， she's still wallowing in grief， while her friends try to cheer her up and encourage her to date again。 Someone starts leaving sheet music for her husband's favorite songs in a public piano bench at the train station， and this is what the book description cites as the central plot - but it's actually kind of a minor point in a meandering book about how Natalie heals from her loss。 I found this fairly slow moving; while books Natalie is a 30 year old widow; although her husband died 2。5 years ago， she's still wallowing in grief， while her friends try to cheer her up and encourage her to date again。 Someone starts leaving sheet music for her husband's favorite songs in a public piano bench at the train station， and this is what the book description cites as the central plot - but it's actually kind of a minor point in a meandering book about how Natalie heals from her loss。 I found this fairly slow moving; while books / TV / movies usually introduce everything intentionally （unlike real life， there are seemingly no coincidences / unrelated scenes in well-edited fiction）， this wandered all over and took a while to form a cohesive storyline。 Things finally started coming together about two-thirds of the way through， so I enjoyed the ending， but most of the read was not my favorite and it took me a while to get through。 。。。more
Michelle Aguilar
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First half: 3 stars， second half: 5 stars。 This moved a little slow for me in the beginning。 Once Natalie started spending more time with Joe and Tom， I was a lot more interested。 I loved the banter between Natalie and Tom。 The reveal of the mystery was not all that surprising， but there was another surprise toward the end that was so touching it brought tears to my eyes。 This is the third book I've read from Lia Louis and I've enjoyed them all。 I'm looking forward to reading more from her。Thank First half: 3 stars， second half: 5 stars。 This moved a little slow for me in the beginning。 Once Natalie started spending more time with Joe and Tom， I was a lot more interested。 I loved the banter between Natalie and Tom。 The reveal of the mystery was not all that surprising， but there was another surprise toward the end that was so touching it brought tears to my eyes。 This is the third book I've read from Lia Louis and I've enjoyed them all。 I'm looking forward to reading more from her。Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy！ 。。。more
Jennifer Tucker
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I loved Lia Louis's other books so I was really looking forward to reading this story。 It did not disappoint！ It is emotional， sweet and has a little mystery included。 Our main character is dealing with the loss of her husband and is having a hard time moving on and still very much dealing with grief。 Then she meets some new people and things begin to start looking up。 Loved it！ Thank you for the opportunity to read and review Netgalley！ I loved Lia Louis's other books so I was really looking forward to reading this story。 It did not disappoint！ It is emotional， sweet and has a little mystery included。 Our main character is dealing with the loss of her husband and is having a hard time moving on and still very much dealing with grief。 Then she meets some new people and things begin to start looking up。 Loved it！ Thank you for the opportunity to read and review Netgalley！ 。。。more
Brianna
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Natalie lost her husband a few years ago and is really struggling to "move on"。 She feels so much pressure from the people around her to do so that she spends a lot of time avoiding them。One of the few things she enjoys is playing a public Piano in a train station a few days a week。 But someone has started to leave sheet music in the bench for her， and it's all music that has significant meaning to her。 In her journey to figure out where this music is coming from and what it means， she finally s Natalie lost her husband a few years ago and is really struggling to "move on"。 She feels so much pressure from the people around her to do so that she spends a lot of time avoiding them。One of the few things she enjoys is playing a public Piano in a train station a few days a week。 But someone has started to leave sheet music in the bench for her， and it's all music that has significant meaning to her。 In her journey to figure out where this music is coming from and what it means， she finally starts making new connections and feeling like she might be ready to start letting go。Books about grief always hit me incredibly hard， especially when dealing with the loss of a spouse because that's something I often can't stop myself from worrying about。 Natalie's grief， guilt， and shame feel incredibly real and poignant。 My heart was broken for her at the beginning of the book and watching her slowly come back out of her shell and being to heal made me very happy。This is not a romance， but there is romance in it。 The story overall is about people who are in pain or who've experienced trauma finding ways to heal and ways to connect both with their old and new friends。It's a bit of a slow read in some parts but it's very much worth making it to the end。Thanks to Netgalley and Atria books for the advanced copy of this book！ 。。。more
Jenn
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DNF。 This just isn't working for me。 DNF。 This just isn't working for me。 。。。more
Jodi Schulz
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Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the Arc。 This book is exceptionally slow。 I really wanted to love it and there was some poignant moments but I had a very hard time getting into it because it was just such a slow moving book。
Aubrey
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This one took me a little bit to get into but once I did I LOVED it， it was heartfelt and sentimental and it proved that there is still love after loss。 Natalie， our main character is struggling with the grief over the loss of her Husband and is feeling like all her friends want is for her to just get over it。 Her friends introduce her to Tom and they strike up a friendship。 Tom is there for her in a way that no one else is and when mysterious music starts showing up at the Piano in the Subway N This one took me a little bit to get into but once I did I LOVED it， it was heartfelt and sentimental and it proved that there is still love after loss。 Natalie， our main character is struggling with the grief over the loss of her Husband and is feeling like all her friends want is for her to just get over it。 Her friends introduce her to Tom and they strike up a friendship。 Tom is there for her in a way that no one else is and when mysterious music starts showing up at the Piano in the Subway Natalie sets off to figure out who is leaving it and finds more than she could've ever hoped for。 This book was AMAZING， I'm not going to lie though。。 I teared up a few times。 。。。more
Me
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The pace of the storyline was to slow for me。 I lost interest after a short while。 DNF。 ****************************I received an ARC for my honest opinion from NetGalley。**************************************
Marta
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This book totally swept me away completely， and was such a wonderful read。 I found myself tearing up multiple times， as the content is really quite heavy。 Natalie is grieving the surprise death of her husband。 There are friends and characters that are like big hugs， and others that grate on your nerves。 I found the author’s descriptions of grief， and the depth of Natalie’s difficulties to feel very real， very raw。 I loved the gentle humor dispersed throughout the book， as it really helped lighte This book totally swept me away completely， and was such a wonderful read。 I found myself tearing up multiple times， as the content is really quite heavy。 Natalie is grieving the surprise death of her husband。 There are friends and characters that are like big hugs， and others that grate on your nerves。 I found the author’s descriptions of grief， and the depth of Natalie’s difficulties to feel very real， very raw。 I loved the gentle humor dispersed throughout the book， as it really helped lighten the darkness。 I found the writing to be really lovely， very engaging and quite beautiful。 The romance is gentle and wonderfully sweet。 I loved the book and can’t wait to read more by Lia Louis。 Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to provide an honest review。 。。。more
Hannah - Most Likely in a Library
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I'm not usually a sappy reader， but MAN this book got me in the feels！ I loved Eight Perfect Hours， so I knew I had to pick up Lia Louis's next book。 If anything， The Key to My Heart just took my love for her to the next level！ This book is sweet， but it also handles grief in a very real-feeling way。 It doesn't gloss over the loss of a loved one and the desperation to hold onto them in any way you can。 Louis also focuses on the struggle of just not being able to move on yet， despite all your fri I'm not usually a sappy reader， but MAN this book got me in the feels！ I loved Eight Perfect Hours， so I knew I had to pick up Lia Louis's next book。 If anything， The Key to My Heart just took my love for her to the next level！ This book is sweet， but it also handles grief in a very real-feeling way。 It doesn't gloss over the loss of a loved one and the desperation to hold onto them in any way you can。 Louis also focuses on the struggle of just not being able to move on yet， despite all your friends and family thinking you should have。 The past couple of years since the pandemic have been hard， and I typically avoid the topic of grief in books because it's my escape。 I was hesitant to pick up this book because it focuses on a young widow， but ended up loving this book so much！ It ended up being really healing for me to watch someone else process through their loss in a way that I never could have expected。 All that gushing to be said， there were some points that felt a teensy bit drawn out or slow to me。 Take that with a grain of salt， though， because I tend towards plot-driven books over character-driven ones anyways。Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion！ 。。。more
Mindy Workman
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This book is so precious！ It’s about loss and grief， starting over， rekindling， old friendships。 I had a hard time putting it down！I learned so much from this book。 It taught that HOW or WHEN to STOP grieving。There were two significant plot twist in the book， that literally had me saying OMG out loud！ Natalie was so strong， and such a forgiving person。 I really adored Tom’s character in the story。 I don’t want to give too mych away， but PLEASE GET THIS BOOK！ You won’t regret it！ Thanks to Netgal This book is so precious！ It’s about loss and grief， starting over， rekindling， old friendships。 I had a hard time putting it down！I learned so much from this book。 It taught that HOW or WHEN to STOP grieving。There were two significant plot twist in the book， that literally had me saying OMG out loud！ Natalie was so strong， and such a forgiving person。 I really adored Tom’s character in the story。 I don’t want to give too mych away， but PLEASE GET THIS BOOK！ You won’t regret it！ Thanks to Netgalley for the chance to read/review！ 。。。more
WendyLikesBooks
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THE KEY TO MY HEART， by Lia Louis， is a nice， slow-romance that deals with the incredibly heavy topic of grief。 Natalie lost her first husband to a biking accident。 As expected， this completely upended her life。 Still grieving three years later， Natalie is trying to move forward， but then again， doesn't think she needs to move forward when she is still grieving。With the "help" of her friends， she meets Tom at a local pub。 They form a fun， easy friendship。 And then， of course， it eventually turns THE KEY TO MY HEART， by Lia Louis， is a nice， slow-romance that deals with the incredibly heavy topic of grief。 Natalie lost her first husband to a biking accident。 As expected， this completely upended her life。 Still grieving three years later， Natalie is trying to move forward， but then again， doesn't think she needs to move forward when she is still grieving。With the "help" of her friends， she meets Tom at a local pub。 They form a fun， easy friendship。 And then， of course， it eventually turns into more。 I LOVED Eight Hours More by Lia。 I think THE KEY TO MY HEART was just as enjoyable， but I did not like how elements of Nat's friendships were handled。 I think her friends were toxic at times， yet， Nat also seemed to be oblivious to her friends own problems because she was grieving。 The resolution was fast and not as detailed as I wanted it to be considering her friendships were a B plot in the story。 This is a tricky subplot to write。Nonetheless， THE KEY TO MY HEART would be a great read for any Lia Louis readers。 I'm ready for her next book！Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an e-copy of THE KEY TO MY HEART to review。I rate THE KEY TO MY HEART four out of five stars。 。。。more
JeniReadsTooMuch
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❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️All the hearts， all the stars。 This was SO good！ I loved the mystery of music sheets appearing， the whole range of emotions the reader experiences right there with Natalie。 I want to immediately start again at page 1 and watch it play it out now that I know the end。 :）
Amy
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The Key to My Heart follows Natalie， a young widow that is finding it very hard to move on from the loss of her husband over 2 years ago。 A former music teacher that was on the brink of releasing a musical she was writing with her friend finds that she is now only able to play piano anonymously at the train station。One day she starts to find sheet music to songs that were significant in her life and marriage。 With this music， she starts to find happiness in life again。This book is a truly touchi The Key to My Heart follows Natalie， a young widow that is finding it very hard to move on from the loss of her husband over 2 years ago。 A former music teacher that was on the brink of releasing a musical she was writing with her friend finds that she is now only able to play piano anonymously at the train station。One day she starts to find sheet music to songs that were significant in her life and marriage。 With this music， she starts to find happiness in life again。This book is a truly touching journey of finding yourself again after feeling lost amongst the crowd and finding the strength to not forget， but to continue on。Lia Louis did a fantastic job taking the reader on a journey from feeling lost to found。Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more
Sydni
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Tropes:-He Fell First-Widow The Good:My favorite part was probably the dialogue。 Lia Louis definitely knows how to write。 While reading I felt super immersed in the story。 My emotions jumped along with the characters， I felt sad when they felt sad， happy when they felt happy。 The writing was just so realistic， so amazing。 There is a lot of light hearted banter， which I felt offset the angst nicely。 I loved loved loved Tom， but I also loved Natalie。 The character development in this book i Tropes:-He Fell First-Widow The Good:My favorite part was probably the dialogue。 Lia Louis definitely knows how to write。 While reading I felt super immersed in the story。 My emotions jumped along with the characters， I felt sad when they felt sad， happy when they felt happy。 The writing was just so realistic， so amazing。 There is a lot of light hearted banter， which I felt offset the angst nicely。 I loved loved loved Tom， but I also loved Natalie。 The character development in this book is also done very well。 You can really see how Natalie changes and grows progressively in each chapter。 The Not-So-Good:The beginning， besides meeting Tom， was a bit dull for me。 I don’t know if it’s just cause I’m transitioning from more fantasy/ series reading， but it took me a bit longer than normal to get into the book。 Once I was in though， I loved it。 Overall:This is definitely going to be a book that I re-read。 It just made me feel so warm inside。 I loved the dialogue so much， seeing the relationships with all of the characters。 The character development， as I mentioned before， was done spectacularly well。 While it did take a bit of time to get immersed in the book， once I go into it， I was fully into it。 I wouldn’t say that this is a new comfort book， there is quite a bit of angst as Natalie is navigating her grief， but it’s definitely one I see myself frequently going back to。 Hero Rating:Tom ranks at 4。9 stars for me。 I really really adore him and appreciate him。 I loved his character， how he interacted with her， how aware he was。 From the second he was on the page I liked him。 He says and does the sweetest things， and he is just so patient and open。 I loved how he interacted with and treated Natalie。 While I didn’t feel personally attached to him， like Aaron Warner or other characters， I really loved how he loved her。 He’s definitely a top 10 book boyfriends for me。 Heroine Rating:Natalie ranks at 4。5 stars for me。 I really liked her character。 She was just very real。 She made mistakes， she was often too caught up in herself， she broke down， she lived。 I felt very connected to her and my heart hurt for her so many times throughout the book。 Seeing her develop was truly wonderful。 Pace:Nicely paced。 Medium-Slow Triggers: Safe for most （view spoiler）[-Death of a spouse （past）-Cheating （past， not Hero and Heroine） （hide spoiler）]Thank you Netgalley for sending me this ARC to for an unbiased review。 。。。more
Emily Christopher
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The Key to my Heart⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Genre: RomanceFormat: Kindle eBook Date Published: 12/6/22Author: Lia LouisPublisher: Atria Books Pages: 352GR: 4。43I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Atria Books and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased。Synopsis: Natalie Fincher has it all—a handsome new husband， a fixer-upper cottage of her dreams， and the opportunity to tour with the musical she’s spent years writing。 But when her husband suddenly dies， she’s devastated。 She only The Key to my Heart⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Genre: RomanceFormat: Kindle eBook Date Published: 12/6/22Author: Lia LouisPublisher: Atria Books Pages: 352GR: 4。43I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Atria Books and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased。Synopsis: Natalie Fincher has it all—a handsome new husband， a fixer-upper cottage of her dreams， and the opportunity to tour with the musical she’s spent years writing。 But when her husband suddenly dies， she’s devastated。 She only plays piano where she can be anonymous。 When anonymous sheet music of her husband’s favorite songs at the station’s piano， Natalie begins to feel a sense of hope and excitement for the first time。 As she investigates just who could be doing this， Natalie finds herself on an unexpected journey toward newfound love for herself， for life， and maybe， for a special someone。My Thoughts: While there is romance in this novel， the first half focuses on Natalie and grieving her husband’s death， struggling to move forward。 Louis has an uncanny ability to write about grief in a graceful， poetic way that just warms the heart。 The last part of the story had me in complete tears， it was so touching， endearing， and just perfect。 The characters were well fleshed out， had depth， were emotional， wonderful banter， chemistry， and were written in a creatively genius way。 The author’s writing style was complex， graceful， connective， authentic， and brilliantly written。 The tone of the story was perfectly set， you could feel the emotions Natalie was going through。 The pacing and flow of the book was perfect， everything happened just at the right moment。 This comes out in December and I would suggest preordering！ 。。。more
Jenna
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Cute。 Sweet。 And enjoyable。 Emmie Blue is still my favourite of Lia’s
Michelle
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I really empathized with the heroine， Natalie Fincher。 Having been widowed 2 years already， she simply cannot find inspiration or motivation in her life。 The grief is still hanging over her， but her friends and family want her to be the old， fun Natalie again。 She’s a musician and was well on her way to bringing that talent to the forefront before her husband died， but now she’s content enough to play public piano in a train station anonymously。 However， sheet music starts mysteriously appearing I really empathized with the heroine， Natalie Fincher。 Having been widowed 2 years already， she simply cannot find inspiration or motivation in her life。 The grief is still hanging over her， but her friends and family want her to be the old， fun Natalie again。 She’s a musician and was well on her way to bringing that talent to the forefront before her husband died， but now she’s content enough to play public piano in a train station anonymously。 However， sheet music starts mysteriously appearing and each time it is a piece that holds significance to her memories of her husband but she has no idea who is responsible for this。 It begins to spark a bit of life into her trying to figure this out and she begins to make new friends， too， who didn’t know her from before so they don’t carry the same expectations of who she ought to be。 Natalie isn’t looking for love， but her life is at a standstill， trying to decide if she can move on from the future she originally created with her husband or carve a new one for herself and leave him behind。 Her struggle was palpable and her attention to detail could be selective given how wrapped up she was in her own world。 I enjoyed her journey， how she found meaning again in music and how she could share that with others because music was also her therapy。 Then there’s the topic of her spouse who she misses dearly but the new friend that she has now seems to be beyond helpful and supportive as she slowly discovers that she enjoys his company。 This slow burn of friendship first was both sweet and funny， giving her exactly what she yearned for at the time and I loved how neither of them were even considering the other as a romantic prospect at first。 The purpose behind the sheet music and who was responsible lends a tender note to the story in how people are often touched by artistic expression and need that shoulder to lean on in difficult times。 Finally， I also appreciated how Natalie reconciled with her longtime friends because ultimately， they love her and want the best for her and she needed them。 Even with the melancholy theme， there was still plenty of humor and entertaining dialogue mixed in with some life lessons。 。。。more
Brianna Crowder
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This was a very sweet and comforting book to read。 It was a relaxing and funny read， with a deep amount of heart。 I loved the main character Natalie's humor and she was flawed but understandable。 I'm not sure if I would consider this book a romance。 There was romance but it felt more like a book about finding yourself after being incredibly lost。 I highly recommend this book。 It was one of those books that put you in a good mood after。 Thank you to Netgalley for the chance to read it。 This was a very sweet and comforting book to read。 It was a relaxing and funny read， with a deep amount of heart。 I loved the main character Natalie's humor and she was flawed but understandable。 I'm not sure if I would consider this book a romance。 There was romance but it felt more like a book about finding yourself after being incredibly lost。 I highly recommend this book。 It was one of those books that put you in a good mood after。 Thank you to Netgalley for the chance to read it。 。。。more
Debbie
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In the author's signature style， this one was emotional and warm， sad in places but overall so uplifting。 We get to see Natalie's journey， after losing her husband。 Her grief but also her journey to rebuilding her life。 Delightful！ In the author's signature style， this one was emotional and warm， sad in places but overall so uplifting。 We get to see Natalie's journey， after losing her husband。 Her grief but also her journey to rebuilding her life。 Delightful！ 。。。more
Jamie Lund
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This book WRECKED me。 I loved it so much。 Following Natalie through this period of grief and growing and love and rediscovering herself after losing her husband 2 years before was everything I wanted。。 Natalie turns to music as a way to cope with the grief， and has begun playing a piano in a train station on a weekly basis， when someone starts leaving sheet music of important songs in her life in the bench for her to play。 She begins to search for whoever is leaving the music for her， making new This book WRECKED me。 I loved it so much。 Following Natalie through this period of grief and growing and love and rediscovering herself after losing her husband 2 years before was everything I wanted。。 Natalie turns to music as a way to cope with the grief， and has begun playing a piano in a train station on a weekly basis， when someone starts leaving sheet music of important songs in her life in the bench for her to play。 She begins to search for whoever is leaving the music for her， making new friends and begins to grow into the new version of Natalie。This book was full of heartwarming moments while still being so funny。 I loved everything about it， and I truly loved Natalie and Tom。 I can't wait to reread this book！Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the arc！ 。。。more
Drache
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I love two of the author's previous books and had high hopes for this new book。I liked it， was really drawn into it， but after 75 % I began to struggle a bit with the main character Natalie。 She hurt people with her words， she kept things from people she cared for， but didn't forgive other people when they kept things from her。 The not talking about important stuff got the story going， but I just wanted to sit down with her and talk to her to make her see how she affected other people， too， not I love two of the author's previous books and had high hopes for this new book。I liked it， was really drawn into it， but after 75 % I began to struggle a bit with the main character Natalie。 She hurt people with her words， she kept things from people she cared for， but didn't forgive other people when they kept things from her。 The not talking about important stuff got the story going， but I just wanted to sit down with her and talk to her to make her see how she affected other people， too， not just the other way around。Spoiler ahead:There was one thing I couldn't get my head around。。 while Edie had never mentioned her one night with Russ until Russ' funeral， why wasn't some of Natalie 's hurt based on the fact that the love of her life， Russ， had never mentioned it， either？ This I didn't get at all。 This was an emotional rollercoster and sweet， some scenes put a smile on my face， but for me it wasn't "hilarious" at all， as the front page states。3，5 - 4 stars。 。。。more
Heather
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Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review。 This wasn’t what I was expecting and I absolutely loved it。 There’s a romance to be here for sure - a slow， sweet， charming friendship turned romance， but there are also wonderful and complicated friendships and siblings relationships and even a form of maternal-type love。 Natalie’s grief and fear when it comes to moving forward without her husband was perfectly written - I simultaneously wanted to hug her and shake her。There Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review。 This wasn’t what I was expecting and I absolutely loved it。 There’s a romance to be here for sure - a slow， sweet， charming friendship turned romance， but there are also wonderful and complicated friendships and siblings relationships and even a form of maternal-type love。 Natalie’s grief and fear when it comes to moving forward without her husband was perfectly written - I simultaneously wanted to hug her and shake her。There was humor and heartache and lovely writing， and was a pleasure to read （like all Lia Louis novels）。 。。。more
Elizabeth
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The Key to my Heart by Lia Louis is a challenging and rewarding novel which involves a young happy married couple who are separated by a tragic cycling accident and her struggle to move on with her life。 Her friends try to help her but all she wants to do is play the piano at the train station with a music left in the piano bench by a mystery stranger who seems to know her husband Russ’s favourite songs。 She meets Joe and Tom along the way who try and help her heal and starts to have feelings fo The Key to my Heart by Lia Louis is a challenging and rewarding novel which involves a young happy married couple who are separated by a tragic cycling accident and her struggle to move on with her life。 Her friends try to help her but all she wants to do is play the piano at the train station with a music left in the piano bench by a mystery stranger who seems to know her husband Russ’s favourite songs。 She meets Joe and Tom along the way who try and help her heal and starts to have feelings for both of them。 The author ， Lia Louis gives us a wonderful story and keeps the reader guessing right until the end。 This book is about forgiveness and how to move on and start your life again without your first love 。 Bravo Lia and I look forward to your next book and thank you to NetGalley for this early E-book arc copy and reading a delightful book。🙋♀️🇨🇦🥰📚🤗👏💐🥳 。。。more
Tash （tash_turns_pages）
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First off， let me say that this is not a holiday book 😆 I know with her last book people were disappointed as they thought it had a winter or Christmas feel to it。 This is a book about Natalie and grief that she is coping with。 Starting this book， I was like oh， so depressing， but then it took a turn。 It’s about so much more。 I loved it！ Gave me all the feels and loved the story and chemistry of some of the characters。 This one really warmed my heart。 Thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books and Netg First off， let me say that this is not a holiday book 😆 I know with her last book people were disappointed as they thought it had a winter or Christmas feel to it。 This is a book about Natalie and grief that she is coping with。 Starting this book， I was like oh， so depressing， but then it took a turn。 It’s about so much more。 I loved it！ Gave me all the feels and loved the story and chemistry of some of the characters。 This one really warmed my heart。 Thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books and Netgalley for my arc in exchange for an honest review。 Publish Date: December 6， 2022 。。。more
Rebecca Walsh
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Thanks， NetGalley！ This book really picked up in the final chapters， but for about the first 15-20 chapters I was reading and felt like I was just waiting for something， literally anything to happen。 When it finally does and things start moving， the book pulls you in more。 I really did not find Natalie likable until the very end either。
Marsi Darcy
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Wow -- what to say about this book？ Two words。 Beautiful。 Heart-wrenching。I absolutely loved this book but don't know if I could read it again。 It should be obvious given the synopsis but big content warning for grief。 It is such a raw book and I loved Natalie and her journey towards healing。Thankfully I read this book at home b/c I ugly cried at times。 I also laughed。 Thank you Lia Louis for writing such an amazing book！ I received a complimentary copy of this book from Atria Books through NetG Wow -- what to say about this book？ Two words。 Beautiful。 Heart-wrenching。I absolutely loved this book but don't know if I could read it again。 It should be obvious given the synopsis but big content warning for grief。 It is such a raw book and I loved Natalie and her journey towards healing。Thankfully I read this book at home b/c I ugly cried at times。 I also laughed。 Thank you Lia Louis for writing such an amazing book！ I received a complimentary copy of this book from Atria Books through NetGalley。 Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own。 Thank you， Atria Books！ 。。。more
Jessica
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Natalie is struggling with grief after the loss of her husband。 She hasn’t been able to play music- until she finds sheet music of her favorite meaningful songs left at the train station piano。 She wants to solve the mystery of the sheet music， and looks forward to playing piano at the train station。 After a failed set up from friends， she meets Tom， and they form a sweet friendship。 He helps her repair her cottage home and listens to her without judgement。 She also joins a grief group and conne Natalie is struggling with grief after the loss of her husband。 She hasn’t been able to play music- until she finds sheet music of her favorite meaningful songs left at the train station piano。 She wants to solve the mystery of the sheet music， and looks forward to playing piano at the train station。 After a failed set up from friends， she meets Tom， and they form a sweet friendship。 He helps her repair her cottage home and listens to her without judgement。 She also joins a grief group and connects with Joe， who is also grieving a big loss。 Tom， Joe， and music have helped Natalie begin to enjoy life again like she hasn’t in years， but is she ready for love？ This book was so raw， real， and heartwarming。 I read it one day because I just couldn’t put it down。 It was my first from this author but won’t be my last。 Natalie is such a likable main character who has been through so much that you can’t help but root for her to find happiness。 Tom is the sweetest， and their friendship and banter is perfection。 This book deals with some heavy topics like loss and grief， but at the same time is hopeful and uplifting and funny。 It reminded me of a lovely combination of the movies PS I Love You and The Holiday。 I’d recommend it to anyone that enjoys a bittersweet but heartwarming romance。 Thank you to Netgalley， Atria books， and Lia Louis for the arc in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more
Nilufer Ozmekik
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This is so far my favorite Lia Louis book！ It’s even better than Dear Emmie Blue！ It’s so sentimental， genuine， heart warming with it’s realistic， lovely characterization， promising plot with honest approach to sensitive subjects。 The author just played a magical symphony with the strings of our hearts。 She knows how to touch the souls with her powerful words。 I wanted to give hugs to Natalie and tell her everything is gonna be all right at each chapter。 Here’s the recap of the plot;Natalie Fin This is so far my favorite Lia Louis book！ It’s even better than Dear Emmie Blue！ It’s so sentimental， genuine， heart warming with it’s realistic， lovely characterization， promising plot with honest approach to sensitive subjects。 The author just played a magical symphony with the strings of our hearts。 She knows how to touch the souls with her powerful words。 I wanted to give hugs to Natalie and tell her everything is gonna be all right at each chapter。 Here’s the recap of the plot;Natalie Fincher is having a problem to move on with her life， living in a wrecked cottage needs a lot of restorations as the horny foxes outside giving her sleepless nights。 Two and half years ago， her husband had an accident。 She kept playing piano in the hospital to connect with him when he was in coma。 It worked！ He came back。 But then…she lost him forever。 Now she’s stuck in a house she’s planned to rebuild with her husband and she cannot sell the place because guilt feelings to say goodbye to a place she bottled up memories are eating her inside。 Her plans to create a musical with her best friend has failed after they fell apart。 One day when she waits for the train at St。 Pancras station， she sees a piano。 Suddenly she gathers her courage to play it without thinking any further。 And it turns into her routine to play the piano on Tuesday and Thursday mornings and heading to coffee shop close to the station to chat with lovely owner Shauna。 One day she finds sheet music left for her next to the piano。 That is not regular sheet， that is her husband’s favorite song。 As the days go by she finds more sheets related with their marriage and their happy times。 Could her husband try to connect with her？ Could someone close to the couple be involved in this？ As Natalie conducts her own investigation about the mysterious person who is leaving the sheets， she finds herself bumping into charming photographer Tom she’s met in the bar and befriending the Notebook Guy she’s seen at Shauna’s coffee shop。 She slowly realizes the life is full of surprises but if she wants to embrace them， she has to learn how to let go and give herself time to heal！ I loved the revelation about the big mystery and the romance parts！ Especially the last gesture at the end made me cry so hard！ It absolutely deserves my musical， poetic， photographic five stars！ Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for sharing this incredible digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions。 。。。more
Laura
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