Heart of the Sun by Mia Sheridan
Heart of the Sun by Mia Sheridan
I have read other books by Mia Sheridan that I have enjoyed, so I was excited by the premise of her new book. However, the execution was lackluster and unfortunately, I did not like much about this book.
The book started off with some promising commentary on an ex-con’s difficulty in gaining a second chance after being released from prison. You are feeling sympathetic towards the MMC and hoping he will receive his second chance and find a home again.
But then for the first half of the book, I was annoyed by the FMC, which wasn’t a promising start for a romance. Emily was whiney, shallow and naive and although it was understandable that she didn’t fully trust Tuck with his past, some of her vitriol toward him was dramatic and uncalled for. Then, once we hit the apocalyptic portion of the storyline, she is pretty useless and insufferable in every situation. Although she was young and obviously living in the modern world, she did grow up on a farm so I’d assume she be at least a bit more versed in certain things. I tried to appreciate that Sheridan made her slow to accept the new reality as of course it wouldn’t be easy to suddenly be living in the chaos that was happening. However, some of her comments and actions were silly and juvenile and had me rolling my eyes a bit too many times to just brush it off as her being in denial, and really she needed a second chance on her entire character.
The romantic relationship between Emily and Tuck also seemed non-existent until the very end of the book. They started off butting heads but the rekindling passion was just the fact they got in each other’s faces during these fights, is that actually passion? I’m not so sure even if it was meant to be slow burn. Their interactions are mostly negative and although they have inner thoughts of finding each other attractive, there should have been a bit more substance to their conversations or flashbacks to wonderful moments when they were teens to redevelop a true relationship. Instead, even the flashbacks from their past are mostly negative interactions with no chemistry. It is not until very late in the book that they begin having positive interactions and then suddenly everything is rushed to push them together before the end.
I think this book would have benefited from being a bit longer in order to develop the relationship more as well as explain this new world they are navigating. I completely understand the initial slow reveal of everything happening in the world, as they wouldn’t have been able to receive more information in their situation. However, there weren’t enough scenes to truly build everything up and the ones that were added felt out of place, and true chaos comes completely out of nowhere in just a few days. Maybe that is a very accurate portrayal of what would happen in this world if we were cut off from technology and electricity since so much depends on that but again, some of what was described seemed thrown together.
I’m not sure if the annoying mannerisms of the FMC in the beginning made me annoyed by the rest of the book, and although she gets a bit better I never felt she was truly redeemed enough for the esteem Tuck then holds for her. Tuck himself is also not the most interesting character so I constantly felt a bit bored and frustrated by what was going on.
I would still recommend other books by Sheridan such as “Unwanted” and will try another of hers in the future.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
Synopsis: Amid the sun-drenched orange groves of California, childhood friends Tuck Mattice and Emily Swanson shared a bond that seemed unbreakable—until life ripped them apart.
Thirteen years later, Emily is a rising pop sensation in need of security, and Tuck, a brooding ex-con, is in need of a fresh start. When fate brings them together once again, Emily hires him on as her new bodyguard. They butt heads and bicker, just like the old days—yet neither can deny the heat rekindling between them.
But when a cataclysmic solar flare disrupts the electrical grid, society is suddenly plunged into chaos and darkness. For Emily, the familiar comforts of fame and fortune crumble, but for Tuck, this stark new reality could be the chance he needs to finally prove himself. As they come to terms with all they've lost and the bitterness that's kept them apart, they must find their way back to one another and discover a new place, under the sun.