Heart the Lover by Lily King

Let's start 2026 with a wonderful book, "Heart The Lover" by Lily King. This novel is an exploration and remembrance of first love, a college love, a messy love that was bundled up in the safety net of academia, and the warmth of time spent at a university. Our narrator meets Sam and Yash senior year, in her 17th Century Literature class. Sam and Yash are best friends, and they are amused she is there on a golf scholarship. They nickname her Jordan, after the glamorous golfer in "The Great Gatsby." We don't find out her real name until the end of the book. They invite her back to the home they share, belonging to a professor on sabbatical at Oxford. The three of them match wits, flex their intellectual knowledge, and play cards. Jordan finds herself strangely attracted to both men, but strikes up a relationship with Sam. However, when senior year of college comes to an end, they all go their separate ways. Years later they are brought together again under trying circumstances, and the troika must untangle their feelings for each other, as adults with families. Many people have a lost love from college, and no doubt King writes from her own experience. What is so striking is how much she makes us care about Jordan, Sam, and Yash, as if they were our own friends from college. "Heart The Lover" is a beautiful way to welcome in 2026, as it stands before us with so much hope and promise. To buy this book on Amazon click here