There’s something so satisfying about two characters that absolutely hate each other, and seeing those feelings change over time.  I will never get tired of the enemies to lovers trope.  Or opposites attract. Or roommates. Throw in the college sports romance element and I am all in.  This book took a lot of familiar themes and added sweetness and heart and fun, which made up for a great read.

In Heart Stopper, by Michelle Hercules, we meet Troy and Charlie. Their first impressions of each other are awful. When they are forced to live together after Charlie’s house suffers a small fire and she has nowhere else to go, they start to realize that maybe there is more to each of them than meets the eye.  Maybe a jock and a nerd can find common ground.  It might take awhile, and there will be pranks and revenge plots along the way, but we can still hope that they will get there in the end.  It was certainly fun to see them bump heads, and the banter was great.

I really liked getting to know these characters.  They each had so much more to them, especially Troy.  I loved learning about him and I fell for him right along with Charlie.  I also enjoyed the side characters in the book, like Charlie’s brother and Troy’s sister.  I look forward to reading more about them in future books.  Heart Stopper seemed like it was going to be a familiar Jock vs Nerd story, but it was a lot deeper and I very much enjoyed it.  It’s out now, so pick up your copy today - and enjoy that sexy cover - I certainly did.
Thank you to the author and to Give Me Books Promotions for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.