It was not that long ago that I was reviewing Erin Hahn’s Friends Don’t Fall In Love where I was praising the fact that I liked that the author’s characters weren’t straight out of college…and then she comes out with a YA book with characters right out of high school. Despite this, I was really intrigued by Even If It Breaks Your Heart because I wanted to see if I would enjoy Hahn as much as a writer in this genre.

The only thing keeping nineteen-year-old Case Michaels together after the death of his best friend, Walker, is a list Walker left behind of things he wants Case to accomplish in his absence. So far, though, Case hasn’t even been able to continue riding bulls in the rodeo circuit, something he’s done his entire life, balking at the thought of competing without Walker by his side. But the list? Case is determined to follow it to the letter—and he follows it all the way to Winnie Sutton.

Eighteen-year-old Winnie Sutton just wants to keep her family together. She graduated high school early to work long shifts at the Michaels family ranch so she can support her younger siblings and a father who’s more than happy to let Winnie fill the responsible parent role. If she sometimes sneaks out to ride the horses herself and forget about life for a while– well, that’s no one else’s business– until the day she crashes headfirst into Case Michaels. Case sees her riding skills and immediately ropes her into competing for the ranch and becoming his friend.

Winnie and Case couldn’t be more different, but Case can’t help but be inspired by Winnie’s badly-hidden passion for riding and competition. And there’s something about Case that makes Winnie want to try grasping onto a dream for herself, whether that’s a shot at a rodeo trophy, the annoyingly handsome rancher’s son who won’t leave her alone, or maybe both.

I never thought I’d say this, but I like Hahn’s young adult stories better than Built to Last and Friends Don’t Fall In Love. Did these characters feel like they were just out of high school? No, and maybe that would matter to a younger reader, but both main characters had a reason for their maturity that I believed. They were great separately, and they were great together, too.

What didn’t work for me

Winnie’s father: I totally understand that her father had to be a total screw-up for a lot of the plot points to make sense, but I feel like the story resolved itself almost too easily—making anything having to do with Winnie and her dad feel fake or unresolved (even though it was meant to feel resolved).

Some of the rodeo language: I know absolutely nothing about rodeo. I don’t know what barrel racing is and have barely ever even seen a horse. I felt like sometimes I was the tiniest bit lost when they were talking about horse things, and though that didn’t affect my experience or understanding of anything, I just wanted to point it out.

What I liked

The slow burn: Generally if the burn is too slow in a book, I get disinterested, but the way that these characters truly became friends (more than friends, really, because they depended on each other) and then sort of just realized they were in love was so sweet. They were always on the same page and there was no third-act breakup, which is becoming a trend that I really, really enjoy.

The main characters: I’m putting Case and Winnie separately here because it’s the first time in a while that I’ve read a book where there is a dual POV—and that I both care equally about each character and feel like if they didn’t get together I would still be happy for them. They each had really rich, fulfilling storylines separate from each other, and their coming together was just icing on top.

Garrett: I loved Winnie’s 10-year-old genius sister. She added levity while also adding some real-world stakes for Winnie. I sort of wish she got a spin-off book of her own, but I also know that it wouldn’t be marketed to me, and I’d miss it. #GarrettForPresident

4 STARS

“So that’s not a thing. We’re not a thing. Which is freeing, because it allows me to concentrate on being a good friend to her. Or, at least, to convince her to be my friend. Or convince her to want a friend in the first place, useless as I may seem. But if I’m ever presented with the option of being a friend who gets to kiss her, I absolutely volunteer.” —Erin Hahn, Even If It Breaks Your Heart

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced book copy in exchange for my honest review.