House of Hearts snatched me up and tossed me into a gothic wonderland I didn’t want to leave. This dark academia gem, dripping with Alice in Wonderland whimsy and a haunted boarding school vibe, deserves a solid 4 stars for making my heart race and my suspicions spiral.

Let’s start with the good stuff. Violet Harper, our tough-as-nails heroine, is out to solve her best friend’s murder, and she’s not here for anyone’s nonsense. She stormed into Hart Academy, ready to infiltrate a secret society like she’s auditioning for a Nancy Drew reboot. 

The setting? Love. Picture gothic towers, a haunted hedge maze, and a masquerade ball with a ghostly visitor. Arndt’s prose is lush, painting every creepy corridor and forbidden glance so vividly I felt like I was sneaking through the school myself. The mystery kept me guessing.

Now, the romance. Oh, Calvin Lockwell, you brooding, handsome descendant of the school’s founder, why must you be so dreamy? The dislike-to-lovers tension with Violet is delicious, with banter that had me smiling. Their chemistry crackles in moments. But here’s my beef: the soulmate angle. Meh. It felt like a shortcut, as if Arndt didn’t trust her own (very capable!) hands to build that slow-burn spark naturally. I’m not here for fated love when I could’ve had 100-200 more pages of Violet and Calvin snarking and circling each other until they combust. Gimme that organic chemistry, not a magical shortcut that’s been done to death.

The pacing is brisk, which I loved, but it also left me wanting. The book’s under 300 pages, and while it’s packed with twists, I craved more room to linger in the eerie world and let the characters breathe. Violet’s grief over her friend could’ve hit harder with a few extra scenes, and the secret society’s history deserved a deeper dive. It’s like getting a killer dessert but only a tiny slice—girl, I wanted the whole cake!

Still, I dug this book’s vibe. It’s creepy, romantic, and just the right amount of unhinged.