I love you; I loathe youJackson Thorn was my best friend and worst enemy, but that didn’t stop me from wanting him.From first words to high school halls, our childhood years braided a bond that wove in a direction neither of us could predict or outgrow.Forbidden became a word we ignored.It wasn’t that we didn’t care.It was that we cared too much. We had it all planned out.We thought we could make …
We had it all planned out.
We thought we could make it.
We thought we’d been careful.
But all we managed to do was prolong the inevitable.
Our destruction.
Hearts and Thorns is a standalone full length new adult novel from bestselling author, Ella Fields.
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Hearts and Thorns was my first read for 2020 and what a way to start off the year.
“Bug, You’re not only my future, you’re one half of my soul. If you slip away, then a huge part of who I am goes with you. ”
“Because I don’t and never will, love anything the way I love you.”
This gut-wrenching emotional tale will have you glued to the pages as you will need to find out how it all ends. Willa and Jackson’s story will take you on an emotional roller-coaster ride, and you will feel it all, the love, the hate, the anger, the sadness and anguish.
With nail biting twists and turns, the angst in this step-brother romance will have you at the edge of your seat. This author knows how to break you apart, but she also knows how to put you back together. Well done Ella Fields, my first book for 2020 was a definite 5 star read. I would highly recommend this novel to all lovers of stepbrother romance.
An angst filled forbidden romance that tore me up but eventually gave me forever. The path was wrought with pain and heartache, but their love was worth it.
Willa and Jackson were raised as siblings. Not related by blood, but bonded for life like family.
They always shared a closeness. They were best friends. And then as time marched on, those feelings grew and developed.
The love they shared changed. They went from loving each other to being in love. Their love had to be kept secret. Hiding would tear them apart.
How can a love so beautiful be wrong?
They shared a soul searing connection. They loved so hard. Jackson was all alpha but stubborn to a fault. Willa just wanted to love him and find a way for them to be together. The only problem was that everything and everyone else was tearing them apart.
Forbidden love comes with consequences.
The author floors me every time with her incredible talent that makes me feel everything. The angst definitely tested my limits, yet I endured. A love that stood the test of time and mistakes. This story both broke me and gave me hope. Jackson and Willa were not perfect, they were just perfect together.
Holy, Ella Fields!! I am a sucker and completely addicted to stepbrother romances, so naturally I thought Hearts and Thorns would be right up my alley. Well, freaking A, it was a stepbrother romance, but it was so much more. It’s the ‘more’ that you have to worry about with Ella Fields books.
When I hear Ella has a new book coming out, I’m all excited and can’t wait. What my conscious seems to forget is that Ella is sweet and writes amazing books, but those books will chew you up, grind your feelings down in a blender, and spit you out without a second thought. This leaves you a jumbled mess trying to catch a breath while laying crumpled on the floor. Glutton for punishment, party of 1?
Jackson and Willa Thorn were raised as siblings, despite the fact they weren’t blood related. They were everything to each other, as well as best friends. This type of relationship wasn’t a problem until they grew older and feelings/dynamics started to change. This eliciting a forbidden, taboo, and dirty secret relationship.
Despite all this, I couldn’t look away. I HAD to keep reading. I didn’t care if I was going to be shocked, let down, or completely and utterly pulverized. I HAD to read about Willa and Jackson! I needed to know more and see how they would navigate this relationship in a world that isn’t ready for the norm of stepsibling’s romance being ok.
So, be prepared. Grab your tissues, drink of choice, maybe some chocolate and get ready for a gut-wrenching, soul crunching and a heartbreaking read.
4 ‘Bug and Toad’ Stars
Ella Fields
My tear ducts are raw and dry from the amount of crying I’ve done with this novel.
I’ve stated before that the last book Ella has written she had outdone herself but honestly she’s surpassed that with this one. I have to praise Ella with being able to take her readers on an emotional journey like no other and making the reader go on this journey feeling frustrated yet keep coming back for more because you just can’t not finish this journey with the characters.
She’s taken one of my favourite tropes Stepbrother romance and making it her own.
One thing is for sure that this author can write and write so well that even though you might be in for the most excruciating pain, you’ll come back and read her stories!
Part One extirpated my heart and tear ducts.
However Part Two managed the same thing yet put my broken heart back together.
Willa and Jackson’s love is like no other, it’s starts out as the purest form of love and then evolves.
Ones again to imperfect people come together to form a perfectly imperfect story of love and heartbreak.
“This, us, isn’t what you hoped it would be. It’s been broken now. We’ll never be perfect, Jackson.’ “I know, but there’s no one else I’d rather be imperfect with.”
If you angst lover like myself or just looking for a novel that will speak to your soul this book is for you!
And I’ll leave you with my favourite quote…
‘ We weren’t only soul mates. We were stitched at the seams, unable to part without losing fragments of ourselves. And I’d learned the hard way just how impossible it was to live with pieces when I could’ve been whole.’
*Arc received for an honest review.
I’m pretty sure Ella Fields is trying to kill me… I can’t … my heart … Ya’ll Hearts and Thorns was just EVERYTHING! All the angsty goodness, so much drama, forbidden love, secrets & lies & all the details in between… Willa and Jackson will destroy your heart and then put you back together piece by angsty piece.
“We weren’t only soul mates. We were stitched at the seams, unable to part without losing fragments of ourselves”.
This story/their story begins in childhood and spans years… their relationship was so complicated and complex with so many ups and downs; I may or may not have had a few small anxiety attacks while reading :::insert image of me breathing into a paper bag here:::. Willa & Jackson’s sweet moments will have you walking around with heart eyes and their stubbornness will have you launching your kindle clear across the room & I could not put this book down…SO GOOD!
5 HEART GRIPPING STARS!! Jackson and Willa’s story is beautiful, painful and will touch every emotion button you have. Be ready Ella Fields takes us readers on a journey you will never forget. I loved these characters, but let me tell you….there were times I wanted to kill Jackson and I also wanted to hug him. You definitely need this book in your lives.
Wow, wow, and wow!! Hearts and Thorns book 3 in the Magnolia Cove series was a read that I could not put down once I started reading it. Ella Fields wrote a story of forbidden young love so emotionally capturing, it’s one of my top Ella reads of all time. My review will not do justice to the journey she takes us on. How Ella details and writes their relationship on so many different levels just connected me with Jackson and Willa’s story. Ella is a power house in angst and angst is what you will get. Enjoy!
Rate: 5 / 5 stars
No one pulls at my heartstrings quite like Ella Fields, because she not only makes my heart hurt but my whole body react to the angst in her books. You know what am saying? That heart ache, sick to my stomach feling? Yup, that’s pretty accurate and exactly how Jackson and Willa made me feel at times.
I had been waiting for this book for what truly felt like forever. In Kiss and Break Up we got our first taste of these two, in Forever and Never we got another hint of their story but with all the theories and scenerios I could have come up with, I would have never come up with the crazy ansgt filled ride these two lived.
I loved that Ella gave us a little of their childhood and we got to see a lot of their growing up and how their relationship grew and changed throughout the years.. it really helped in understanding them and their connection better and obviously made me fall in them all the more. Jackson and Willa will make you feel all the things and you’ll get to experience every single emotion with them. Their story is not an easy one and the tittle holds true to its words… there is a lot of heart and there are a lot of thorns and same happens with the old tittle oh yes… there are a lot of lies and goodbyes too. (Excuse me, I’m getting emotional over here)
There is so much I want to say but I feel like I’m already rambling so I’m sorry and please bare with me. It’s all still so fresh and I’m still a mess, truth be told. Ella had me crying before the 20% mark and at the point, I had no clue what was still ahead for me. I started this book last night and well I finished it one sitting, it was 3 am and I read the end and oh boy I’m still processing all the emotions. Jackson and Willa completely consumed me, their story pulled me in and didn’t want to let go. I just had to keep reading and get to that HEA, get to that part where Ella puts all the little pieces of my shattered heart back together. It happens, fear not. After all the tears, heartache and rage of emotions you’ll get to breath out and revel in the beauty of their happy ending.
No matter what I’ve come to expect from Ella and her books, she always manages to surprise me and go so beyond what I had expected and wanted. I love her words, worlds and characters and in this book I not only got to see all the other Magnolia Cove characters but also got a mention of Gray Springs which made my heart full and had me craving a reread. There were also some characters in this book that I kind of hope, if not now then someday, that they get their own stories told, that they get their HEA. Yes, I want a book for Todd (I’m not gonna say who he is, he’s a new character), he went through a lot and my heart hurt for him too and now craves to read his own HEA and I also really want a book for Raven, okay Ella?
Hearts and Thorns is so much more than a forbidden stepbrothers romance though, it’s a story about family, a family that runs deeper than blood and about forgiveness, forgiving those who hurt us the most, sometimes the ones who we love and love us the most too. It’s a story about first loves that are never forgotten, about heartbreaks that time and distance don’t heal and about second chances that might take some time but are so worth it.
Ella Fields did it again! Jackson and Willa were everything and so much more! Their story was a rollercoaster of angst that built and built with each chapter. These two characters are so lovable, even with all the frustration and craziness of their actions that had me a mess, it’s impossible not to love them and pray and pray for them to work things out. I’m kind of hoping this wasn’t the end to this series and that I’ll get to see all these characters again but if it was the end for Magnolia Cove than it was a fantastic one!
Life happens and lately I feel like I’m just too damn sleepy to read most nights. I DEVOURED Hearts and Thorns! Leave it to Ella to leave me jonesing for the next page, locking my attention in place wholeheartedly throughout the entire story. Jackson and Willa are two of the most heartbreaking characters I have read in a while (probably since Ella’s last book…LOL!). They had me in the beginning as two kids comforting each other during a storm, and they definitely had me later when they stepped into the forbidden and proceeded to break apart slowly and devastatingly.
Jackson and Willa both make mistakes and it is infuriating and gut-wrenching…but c’est la vie, I think inevitable to remain true to their story. Those mistakes cost each of them their hearts, and it’s a long tortuous, sometimes hateful road back to mending them. Through it all (and for me one of the most heartbreaking things), their love for each other never wavered, even when it WAS hateful. And in the end, that unbreakable bond by love and a lifelong friendship is what restored light and hope in their lives.
This Magnolia Cove world has been one of the best book worlds with some of my favorite characters. Jackson and Willa and their story in Hearts and Thorns has once again reinforced why Ella Fields is a favorite author of mine! 5 plus stars for this angst-filled, heart-aching NA beauty!
It wouldn’t be Ella Fields if she didn’t cut my chest with a rusty knife and rip my heart out then proceed to tear it piece by piece. And if that weren’t enough, those scattered pieces are swept and left in a pile collecting dust waiting and hoping to be put back together.
I. Am. A. Mess. In true Ella fashion she has once again destroyed me. You’d think I’d be used to feeling this way knowing firsthand what reading an Ella Fields book does to you. But here I am again having shortage of breath, heart rate skyrocketing at high level, and an immense rage at wanting to throw my kindle and stomp the ever living hell out of it. And just when I think I’m safe (SPOILER ALERT: it’s never safe, ha) the hits just kept on coming and I was left wondering how long it’d take to not feel as if my heart was put through a meat grinder.
It feels as if I’ve been waiting eons for Willa and Jackson’s story. We got our first taste of them in Kiss and Break Up, and then a little more in Forever and Never. Those little hints just made me that more desperate for their whole story. Though I never would’ve imagined at the tumultuous barrage of emotions these two would make me feel and what their story would put me through.
Jackson and Willa destroyed me. Their story isn’t easy, but my gosh was it everything. There are many reasons why these two shouldn’t be together, but there’s no denying the connection they share. I felt every ache Willa and Jackson endured at the hands of each other and also because of their own actions. I was left breathless and chawing at my heart because the angst was excruciating. But there’s no doubt of Jackson and Willa’s love. Their love was inevitable and so were they—they were always meant to be.
Hearts and Thorns is a forbidden step-sibling romance that’s packed with so much emotion. It’s about first loves and second chances. It’s about family and forgiveness and ultimately digging deep and forgiving those who hurt you. It’s about love and how that love lives through the test of time and life’s countless obstacles. I tend to lose pieces of my heart in every Ella Fields book I read, and nothing could’ve prepared me at the huge piece I’d lose to this book. Jackson and Willa will forever hold an enormous piece of my heart. There’s no way I’ll ever forget Jackson and his Bug.
DEFINITELY RECOMMEND
Hearts and Thorns
By Ella Fields
5 +++++ Stars
Amazing! Perfection!
Full of angsty! Full of loss, love, and heartbreak! Captivated my interest throughout!!
Ella Fields wrote this so so so beautifully!
Very highly recommended! You definitely won’t be disappointed!
“Of all the truths I’ve ever been told, the loudest lie was yours.”
““But if I’m your future, will you slip away from me?”“Bug.” He’d laughed, poking my cheek, then cupped the side of my face. “You’re not only my future.” His forehead pressed into mine. “You’re one half of my soul. If you slip away, then a huge part of who I am goes with you.””
“We weren’t only soul mates. We were stitched at the seams, unable to part without losing fragments of ourselves.”
This author and book is a first for me.
I didn’t really know what to expect.
This book and story moves up through the childhoods of the children Willa and Jackson until they are teenagers.
Willa is six years old and Jackson her step brother is eight years old to begin with.
At first I didn’t know if they just had a close loving bond like siblings do or was it something else ?
Does Jackson abuse Willa ?
They both do start having a sexual relationship secretly that gets very physical until one day somehow they both get found out.
There parents try and do what they think is best for them book at the time by trying to keep them apart.
Five long years pass until Willa and Jackson come face to face again.
I think the author writes brilliantly however I just wasn’t feeling the story line.
I wasn’t really sure about this book and I think that this time that this story wasn’t for me.
Thank You to the author and publishers for allowing me to read an early copy of this book.
ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
Ella Fields gives to us the third book „Hearts and Thorns”.
The story of Jackson and Willa is a sweet-bitter adventure.
They were stepsiblings, they fallen in love to each other, but in the end they can’t be together.
A few years later when both of them have arranged life everything changed.
Because this two worlds have meet again.
And everything collapsed.
I am accustomed that Ella’s books have my heart after reading the first chapter. In „Hearts and Thorns” I didn’t feel anything until I read ten chapter. It was this moment when finally I couldn’t breathe because I’ve must read a whole story.
Jackson is my weak side. I love this name as much as I love this hero. He is a perfect man for Willa, but not only for her. He is perfect for all of us. We want a bad boys, but in the end we need a lovely guy, who will do everything for us and for the feelings.
Willa is a nice heroine, but she is a little hesitant. She wants Jackson, but she didn’t fight for him when he needs it. I like her, but I like previous heroines in this series more.
And when we are here I must write that we can meet Lars, Dashiell, Daphne and Peggy too! They are in this story and they are the best support for ours heroes.
This story is more bitter than sweet. Even though the action is growing so long, when it finally starts, you can’t break away!
‘Hearts and Thorns’ is a story of forbidden siblings, but it is also a story about family. Family is more than blood. Family are the people, which knows how to forgive and gives us advice to be a better person for everyone and for oneself.
I like this rollercoaster of angst and heartbreaking moments. If you love the first two books in „Magnolia Cove” series, you will totally love „Hearts and Thorns” too!
I read this book in one sitting, and I’ve waited a full 24 hours before writing my review because I want to be able to give this book the justice it so fully deserves. Even still, 24 hours later I’m not sure I have all of the right words. I can always count on Ella Fields to write a book that will feel like it’s ripped my heart out, caused me to sob, and then put me back together in the end. Every. Single. Emotion. That is what this book did to me. I felt the highs and lows of every part of Willa and Jackson. When ‘Hearts and Thorns’ hit my kindle, I put work aside and dove right in. I’ve been waiting for Willa and Jackson’s story since Peggy and Dash’s book and this book surpassed every one of my expectations. I didn’t expect their road to happiness would be rainbows and butterflies, but I wasn’t prepared for everything that their journey entailed.
This story was heart and gut-wrenching at the same time. You immediately know that you will be rooting for Willa and Jackson, but the odds are stacked against them from the beginning. Obstacles that most in relationships face, seem to be tenfold for them. To watch them navigate through not only life but also relationships was amazing. Ella has a way with words, that’s really all I can say. She has such a way of drawing the reader in and you can’t help but feel everything her characters feel. The loss, the heartbreak, and the love that I felt while reading this book is something, I don’t think I’ll be able to forget. I discovered Ella Fields at the beginning of this year, and she is now an author that I know will give me a book that I’ll fall in love with, and that is exactly what happened with this book. Trust me, you need this book in your life.
Ella’s writing is truly poetic. Her ability to engage you as a reader is phenomenal. Her stories are an experience, a journey that can break your heart while simultaneously filling your soul. The journey between Jackson and Willow is taboo. Yet everything about their relationship feels right, them being together is what dreams are made of.
The pull Jackson and Willow have towards each other stems from years of friendship, trust and devotion. Their love is forbidden, but they are tethered together so tightly its hard to imagine a life without them as one. We know the road to happiness is painted with uncertainty and heartache, but we’re willing to take that drive.
We may not get the most likable characters at times, but we’re all flawed. Ella’s characters are flawed, but she has a way of making us love them anyway. The range of emotions she squeezes from your heart makes you lose your breath and gasp for air. We’re all a glutton for punishment, we want that burn while reading as we grab for that quintessential HEA.
Ella makes us dream there is a world with no rules and boundaries. We believe in that all-consuming, life altering love. For better, for worse, this is the love of Jackson and Willow
Wow! Ella definitely lives up to the title of Queen of Angst. This book was filled to the brim with angst, lies, heartbreak,misunderstandings, and love. A love some may feel is taboo, but as the story goes on those lines become blurred and it isn’t as taboo as previously thought.
Willa and Jackson broke me. My emotions were all over the place. Jackson made me so mad at times I found myself talking to, or yelling in some cases at him. In true Ella fashion she gets you all twisted up inside. To be honest? I loved the ending but at the same time I feel it wasn’t overly thrilled. Maybe because I was still so mad at Jackson.
The book was amazing as all her books are, it is definitely worth the read. Just make sure you wrap your kindle in bubble wrap because you will want to throw it at times, will need wine and chocolate for others.
Jackson and Willa made me feel every emotion known to man. This book was so angsty, I was crying, and wanting to throw my kindle. This book was everything. I loved that we got to see them grow up together. They had so much chemistry the older they got.
The twists of this book had my stomach in knots. I would think now I can breathe then another twist, and I was flabbergasted. It felt like Willa paid the price for everyone’s mistakes.
This is one of my favorite passages…
“I’m not sure how it happened, but somewhere along the way to our forever, I lost track of right now. And I ask myself, all the time, if things would’ve been different had I just stopped and breathed with you.”
Sigh… I just melted! We got to see some of our other characters also which I always like.
I loved this book if you can’t tell! You sure don’t want to miss it!
Why do I keep doing this to myself? Why do I put myself through all this angst and heartbreak? Ella Fields that’s why! She puts me through hell with Willa and Jackson. Makes me frustrated and pissed as hell but the pay off is so damn worth it.
Hearts and Thorns is an addictive step siblings romance. So entertaining and even though I could anticipate the mistakes Willa and Jackson were about to make I couldn’t look away. I didn’t want to! I’m a glutton for punishment. Oh boy did these two screw up big time. They are young, they’re in love and it’s forbidden. They were bound to make mistakes and indeed they did. It hurt. How they both treated each other was uncomfortable and sad but their redemption arc back to one another was fabulous. There was no doubt that there was only one love in this story. Willa and Jackson’s love and it was inevitable. They were meant to be even though they couldn’t/wouldn’t see or admit it at times.
Hearts and Thorns is another roller coaster of a story. Ella Fields takes the reader on a journey where you get to experience all range of emotions through these flawed characters. I sure as hell did. What can I say except Ella Fields knows how to pull on my heartstrings and she succeeds again with Hearts and Thorns. I need a drink now!
4 Bug and Toad Stars
This book is a stepbrother romance. Willa and Jackson have grown up together but are not related. I would say there is a lot of different pieces to the puzzle of their relationship. After they break up and finish college there seems to be a lot of revenge toward Willa from Jackson.
I usually enjoy stepbrother books but I just don’t like the vengeful ones. I liked this book because it has a good plot and is written well. Ella Fields writes awesome books and I recommend this one. Just keep in mind that if you don’t like cheating or revenge romance it’s not for you. By Kristina
Finally we got Willa and Jackson story and per usual it was a case of not being able to put it down and reading it one big hit.
In the previous books we only got a slight insight on who Jackson and Will were and we kind of got the gist that something was happening but i was not prepared for their story in the least.
I loved both Jackson and Willa but god there were times i just wanted to bash their heads together and tell them to both wake up. This book had to getting angry and giving you all the feels and to be honest i didn’t know how to handle these feelings.
At some point i hated Jackson he was mean and callous and i wanted to thirst punch him. I loved Willa and could understand the way she was but goodness i just didn’t know how to feel.
I don’t want to say too much because if you’re a fan of this series or Ella fields you need to go into as blind as you can and get the real feels of the angst, hatred the surprises and just sink into the story.
I also loved how we still got all the previous characters and really brings the series together.
Absolutely loved this one, if your a fan of angst and getting the feels with the step sibling stories this one is for you loved it