What a twist

This novel saw the formatting and issues with the first 2 books and used that to take the readers on a wild ride

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packpackpack

Heartsong is the third book in the Green Creek series, and it was this book that had me wondering if this series really just wasn’t for me. Similarly to Ravensong, this novel starts off with a few things that I really don’t like. But while Ravensong had little pieces that kept me going, I didn’t feel the same about Heartsong.

Now, while I didn’t enjoy the beginning of the book, that was because I have a strong dislike for amnesia plots and unreliable narrators. This book — which is the shortest in the series with just under eighteen hours of audio — starts off in a feeling of unease that had me almost… bored?. This is not the fault of the book, I don’t think, and it might have been a bit more enticing if I hadn’t purposefully spoilered myself, but I seriously hate unreliable narrators, and as soon as I heard that this book had an amnesia plot, I reached out to a friend to figure out what was going on. I had enough of an idea to keep me from being confused and angry, but not knowing much of the details.

However, it all sort of left me… wanting for more? In the first quarter of this book, Robbie is away from the pack with no memories of the Bennett’s or his time with them, and I pretty much spent every single second wishing he was back with them. That is likely because of how much I love the pack, but this beginning really dampened some of my enjoyment of the book and set the mood for the rest of my listening experience.

I will say, however, that once Robbie was back with the pack, I started enjoying this a lot more — the only problem is that it took a quarter of the book for this to happen. I think it’s clear that the pack will forever be my favourite part of the Green Creek series with not a single other found family ever comparing, and I was so happy to see how (most) of the pack welcomed Robbie back in.

FINALLY being back with everyone, even when Robbie didn’t know who anyone was, even when he was fighting his way past the pack, was so good. Just hearing the different voices of the pack I loved so much made me so happy, and I was on the edge of my seat as Robbie was trying to figure out the truth of what was going on.

I also really liked Chris and Tanner as wolves? Obviously I would have loved it if Team Human could have kept going strong, but there was something so ridiculous about these two old hicks becoming wolves. It almost brought a new sense of levity to them, and while they were silly and playful before, there was more of it now.

The first pack dinner was absolutely fantastic, even if it was underscored by Rico and his hesitancy towards Robbie. Don’t get me wrong, I totally get it, and I actually didn’t mind that there was some contention among the pack. It was just so nice to see everyone after so long (literal hours of listening time) of being apart!

On top of absolutely loving being back with the pack, I was also overjoyed to be back in the town of Green Creek! I love love LOVE this town, and when Robbie first escapes and gets into town, I loved all the little things that he noticed. The wolf on the welcome sign, but also the silver on the shops, the openness to the civilians, and the overall acceptance that Green Creek has of the Bennett Pack.

I was a little sad that we didn’t get to see all of this development, but I was really happy when we got to see some of what the town became in Robbie’s absence.

As happy as I was to have him back with the pack, there was something especially heartbreaking about it. I’ve heard that some people call this book “Heartsick”, and while I definitely didn’t find it as sad as Ravensong, Robbie pulled at my heartstrings for most of this novel as he tried desperately to figure out who he was.

The way that he felt like a stranger in his life… gah my heart?? There was obviously so much history where he was, so much so that he couldn’t deny that Green Creek was his truth, but he didn’t know anyone or know anything about his life that he had apparently lived. There was so much that had been taken from him, and as the story went on, we just learned that there was more and more and MORE that had been taken.

Learning all of this with Robbie was really sad, but it was also really interesting to see him slot right back into Green Creek. He fits so well with the Bennett pack, his family, and it was lovely to see them close ranks around him as he slowly figured out where and how he fit with them all.

Part of that was his relationship with Kelly, which was probably one of the most painful parts of this book simply because I was aching for Kelly the entire time. I couldn’t even imagine what it would have been like to see this story from his point of view, and it likely would have absolutely broken me. With that said, the way Kelly was so endlessly determined to win Robbie back, and the way he NEVER faltered in this bond even when Robbie was lost to him, made my heart feel so full.

I loved the way he would sit in the basement and read just so the two of them could be close. I loved how he took Robbie for lunch when Robbie was back at the garage. I loved the way they would just… exist together, even if Robbie didn’t know who he was. They were both missing parts of who they were, and the way they still gravitated towards each other was so sweet.

And every single moment they spent together, every single second of them falling in love with each other all over again, had me absolutely cheering them on like nothing else. When they sat in the clearing and Kelly gave Robbie a blade of grass? Haha I was unwell.

With the gushing about these two characters aside, I… there was something about Heartsong that just didn’t hit. Obviously, Robbie and Kelly were up against impossible odds. And while I did absolutely LOVE the way that they fell back in love with each other, I felt like there was a level of intimacy missing from this novel. Maybe a sense of closeness? And not even because of the lack of explicit sex. I actually LOVED the way that Klune glossed over the sex in this book. I read a review that theorized it was Klune’s way of highlighting other types of intimacy beyond sexual, and while I love that idea, I just… don’t think the mark was hit here?

I would hazard that there’s more non-sexual intimacy between the other couples than there are between Robbie and Kelly, and I don’t really know why that is? Because even with the glossed over sex scene, there is a depth missing from Robbie and Kelly, even after they’ve fallen back in love with each other.

I did, admittedly, feel like a large part of this book was focused on the ever evolving and thickening plot that revolved around Robert Livingstone, and I think some of the time that could have been lent to Robbie and Kelly was spent there? Because now, looking back while I review this book, I really felt like Robbie and Kelly got cheated. In the other three books, there is SUCH a focus on the mated pair coming together and falling in love, that I was expecting a lot more from the one literally called Heartsong.

Because there IS a lot that Klune could have done with these two, but he didn’t, and because of that it felt like this novel sort of missed the mark on the romance. Which seriously sucks, because this was the one couple I was actually most excited for, especially seeing them start to orbit each other in Wolfsong.

With everything that happened in Heartsong, with the way Robbie had to claw himself back into being himself, the romantic relationship between Robbie and Kelly really fell to the side.

I also really didn’t like that these two didn’t get a moment to shine together. In Wolfsong, Ox and Joe had a smexy epilogue. In Ravensong, Gordo and Mark moved in together at the end. But we didn’t get to see Robbie and Kelly have THEIR moment in this book, and I think that is part of what’s left me feeling like we were almost cheated out of seeing them together. Sure, we got to see them slowly fall back in love with one another, but we never really got to SEE them together.

Especially with the way the final scene of this book was stolen by Carter setting up Brothersong.

Honestly, maybe I just wanted this book to be longer. It IS the shortest one in the series, and it doesn’t need to be. Even one more chapter could have made all the difference for me, probably, and I think if we had gotten a really impactful moment between Robbie and Kelly, this would have been a five-star read for me.

Even now, I can’t help but feel like there was something lacking. In fact, when I wrote this review I realized that there wasn’t anything that particularly stuck out to me from the entire novel? Not just about Robbie and Kelly, but almost at all. As much as it hurts my heart to do so, I’m bringing my initial four-star rating down to three, because this book just doesn’t feel like it got the love and attention that the other three did.

As it is, with the way Heartsong starts, the pretty consistent pain, and the lack of heart-wrenching intimacy between Robbie and Kelly, this book was a three-star read and a little bit of a let-down considering how much I loved the rest of the series.

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quit playing games with my heart

t j klune, please stop making me cry, my heart can't take it. also screw Robert Livingstone

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Ripped from Love, Family and Pack

I Love this book series. After listening to this third book I cannot wait to read or listen to the last in the series. Lost memories cut ties and rediscovery of oneself, is someone the same person when the memories that built them are torn away. There have been very few books that have effected me on such an emotional level, it is fabulously written. This Achillean romance series brings with it sadness and tragedy, violence and action, family and bonds, love and hope. Let’s not forget witch’s, werewolves and magic in a modern day settings. “The real question is how gay can 1 pack be lol.”

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Pack Pack Pack ♥️

I love this series. it's a wonderful ride on an emotional roller coaster. The characters are well developed. Each one of them has something you that draws you to them. The story keeps you on the edge of your seat just waiting for the next scene where TJ rips your heart out or makes you laugh out loud.. Kirt does an amazing job narrating such a large cast of characters. Can't wait for Brothersong.

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