Hearts are like balloons. Sometimes they inflate… Sometimes they deflate..May Falkner’s past two years have been a craptastic road. When her father suddenly passes away, May needs to find a job to help out her mom and possibly find some laughter along the way. Working at the bookstore helps with that problem. It also leads her to cross paths with Nico Evitts, who begins as just a co-worker, but … just a co-worker, but becomes so much more.
When life finally seems like it’s almost normal again, reality steps in and pitches another curveball May’s way, causing things to crack a bit. What May has to learn is, eventually, you just have to rip the bandage off.
Perfect for fans of Jenn Bennett, friends to lovers, and second chance romance.
**Contains mature themes, yet quirky and cute.
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I’m sitting here still trying to get my emotions under control after reading this very moving book. Hearts Are Like Balloons is the kind of book that, after you read it, it stays with you. I was deeply affected by the beginning when May lost her father, because I, just months ago lost my sister, and even though circumstances were different I was there with May. I really felt her pain. But it’s more than just my personal tragedy, throughout the book I felt May’s ups and downs in life. This is how well Candace Robinson wrote her characters.
Speaking of the characters, May was a very strong young girl who experienced a lot at a young age. I liked May a lot. I liked her wit, her strength, her passion and she really had a wonderful heart. Niko…sweet Niko…the perfect boyfriend for May. There really isn’t anything negative I could say about Niko…he’s just about perfect. Just about. Jessie, May’s best friend. The bestest of best friends. Jessie was great. Violet, Niko’s purple loving sister. Violet is a bit of a crazy artist, but also a good sister and a good friend to May. Jana, May’s mother. May and her mom have been through a lot, but remained close through it all. Jana was a really good mom.
I loved this book!! This book touches the heart. It will make you cry, laugh, smile, cry again, laugh some more….you get the picture. ALL THE FEELS!!!! This one is a solid 5 stars for me and one I won’t soon forget. I will be buying this for my bookshelf.
“Hearts Are Like Balloons” by Candace Robinson is a wonderful novel, about life and living, ups and downs, hurt and healing, loss, and perseverance. The story focus on May Falker, who is seventeen-year old at the beginning of the tale, a happy, bright, art-loving girl, whose world abruptly comes to a halt, as her father is diagnoses with terminal cancer, barely trying to process the news, May would have to cope with her father’s death, being just the beginning of a long strain of ups and downs that will accompanying her for almost a decade.
As May goes through the motions, the reader is more than a mere witness to the events, becoming a companion, that suffers, hopes, and dodges every curve ball life feels like throwing May’s way. Candace Robinson gift for storytelling is undeniable, she has an uncanny ability to interweave the various elements of the story into a solid, coherent plot, which despite the heartbreaking moments, retains the overall feeling of hope and confidence into everlasting happiness.
“Hearts Are Like Balloons” is a real-life story that don’t interlace any ‘otherworldly’ elements into the plot, in contrast with some other stories and series by the author; it offers, however the same unique prose and description richness that characterize all and everyone of her works. A wonderful reading, highly emotional and overall positive despite the series of tragedies that May have to endure before arriving at the moment and place that fulfills her destiny.
I’m fairly certain this was my first crack at contemporary, and boyyyy was it worth it!!!
The author did a spectacular job intertwining the realities of life with May and Nico’s story. My heart bled, laughed and cried for them in their journey. There is genuine emotion in the storyline, and you can tell the author knows what she’s talking about. We all put a little bit of us in our stories, and I think with Candace, it shines through amazingly well.
Other great points. The characters developed nicely throughout the story. A lot of teenage books may end with the character still acting like a child, but not here. May truly grows into a woman, owning and learning from her mistakes. Though she doesn’t make the best decisions always, she does stick by them and survives through the consequences.
Nico… Ahhh as the male lead, he melt my heart. He is everything, by May’s side at times when other guys would not have bothered. Even though he’s human and makes mistakes, you end up rooting for him in the end.
The detail in the storytelling was great as well, from the description of the settings to the actions of the characters, etc. No part of it felt boring, and once I got into the story I could not put it down until the end.
The story is definitely worth a read. Be prepared for a roller coaster of emotions – and have that Kleenex box ready for both happy and sad tears 🙂
Oh wow! I loved this! So sweet and heartfelt! Hearts Are Like Balloons deals with some intense, sad, and difficult things, and this story is just beautiful. May has recently lost her father, so to help her mother out, May decides to get a job at a used book store where her best friend works. May meets Nico, who also works at the bookstore, and the two have an instant connection that quickly becomes a friendship that turns into more, but when life throws another curve ball, will their relationship survive? May and Nico are so adorable! I love their little jokes with each other, and I love the depth of their connection. Their relationship is wonderfully sweet, and my heart hurt for them both during some trying times. The connection between all of the characters was wonderful, May’s best friend and Nico’s sister, were awesome side characters, and I loved the personalities of each character. I love the quirks that Candace Robinson gives to her characters, the quirks make the characters seem more real, which adds reality to the characters and the story. Hearts Are Like Balloons (Love the title by the way and the cover) touched my heart. Loss, Hurt, Hope, Love, and Heart. Loved it all.
Thank you so much to Candace Robinson for the PDF download of hearts are like balloons , I love this book it was amazing , it was like a coming of age story it had so much going on especially with may’s dad dying and all . it told a story about life’s up and down’s , love , heartache , tragedy , and how to move on after loss and find love this story had so many emotions in it I would definitely recommend this book to my family and friends LAURA8759 .
Hearts Are Like Balloons by Candace Robinson is a standalone and her second book that she’s written.
Just before her seventeenth birthday, May Falkner loses her father unexpectedly and due to the circumstances of his death, the family are left with only her mother’s wages to live on. May decides to find a part time job to start saving for college and with the help of her best friend, Jessie, gets a part time job at ‘New and Used Books’ where Jessie also works. During her interview, May meets Violet who loves anything purple and is an aspiring artist but currently manages her parents bookstore. She also meets Nico, Violet’s younger brother, who works at the store part time and is given the task of training May.
Working at the store and keeping busy helps May to start healing after the loss of her father. Violet and Nico soon become part of May’s life and more than just her manager and work colleague. May finds herself growing closer to Nico and would like to be more than just friends with him but she’s not sure how he feels about her. Then Nico surprises her and she begins a journey that changes her life forever and helps her develop an even greater strength than she already has. Can May and Nico survive the challenges that life throws at them or will it just be too much?
“When I’m finished with her rubbing, I admire all the different colors that resemble a rainbow, reminding me that once the rain has cleared, something beautiful can always appear.” – May
This is the first book that I’ve read by Candace Robinson and I loved it from start to finish. I couldn’t put it down as Candace Robinson takes her readers on an emotional roller-coaster and throws surprise after surprise at them. I liked how this wasn’t the typical story of girl meets boy and boy helps girl heal. It was so much more and Candace Robinson takes great care when dealing with sensitive subjects. At no point did I find myself unable to continue reading or feel the characters weren’t reacting in a realistic way.
My heart broke for May so many times and I desperately wanted her to have the HEA she deserved after everything she had gone through. Nico was the stability she needed and he never gave up on her even though she thought he would. The couple had to deal with something that even adults would struggle with but they eventually found each other again and became even stronger. I fell in love with May and Nico who were destined to be together. Violet and Jessie were the friends that May needed and they didn’t turned their backs on her when she tried to push them away. I’d love for Hearts Are Like Balloons to become the first in a series and for there to be books about Violet and Jessie who have their own stories to tell.
Candace Robinson is an author I’ll definitely be keeping updated with and I can’t wait to read her first book called Quincy Wolfe’s Glass Vault, which is book 1 of the Glass Vault series and available now. Book 2, The Bride of Glass, is due out in September 2017.
I would fully recommend this book!
The beginning of this book was a little rough for me. It seemed to jump around a bit much and no solid segues so I was confused as to what was going on and it was a bit hard to follow. After that first 10 pages or so, however, it seemed the author found her flow and I was able to really get into the story.
Poor May has to deal with a lot of anguish and grief in her short life and you’ll be moved to tears at several points throughout the book. You’ll wonder how May stayed so strong through parts only to fall apart at others. Jessie, Violet and Nico are fantastic supporting characters and well written. I love that they all have a kind of back story and solid hobbies and family lives.
I think that the emotion after the tragedy that happens to Nico and May is very real and tangible. And it’s very believable that people as young as Nico and May (or even older) would react this way in the situation. I wish we had gotten a little more of what was going on in Nico’s life while May was grieving, in fact, I wish we had gotten a little more of what happened in May’s life during that time too.
The destiny or fate or whatever you want to call it that brings the two back together after so many years is very touching. I enjoyed seeing them get a second chance at happiness.
This story was heartfelt and emotional and real and if you’re a fan of contemporary romance, realistic fiction and YA/NA books, you’re going to love this one.