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A review by leahegood
Heidi Lucy Loses Her Mind by Gracie Ruth Mitchell
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
Summary
Heide Lucy is having a very surprising and confusing day. Night? She just woke up at the hospital with a head injury and no memory of the previous day. As if that wasn't enough, right before her accident, she called one of her bookshop/cafe patrons and left a rather frenzied voicemessage. Responding to the voicemessage, Soren is the one who found her unconscious in the bookshop and took her to the hospital. Soren. Why did she call Soren of all people? He's her all-time-favorite-author, not her emergency contact. And why was she freaking out? When an elderly patient dies in the bookshop the next day, Heidi is desperate to recover her lost memories. The death may have been a murder, and Heidi thinks she knew something about it. Through it all, Soren is a steady presence.
Thoughts
The romcom plot of this story flipped the gender stereotype of empathetic women and emotionally constipated men in the most adorable way. Heidi is kind of scared of feelings (emotionally stunted, in her brother's words), while Soren is very aware of them and willing to patiently help and wait for Heidi to sort through hers. His tender patiences is most definitely the cutest element of the story.
On a more serious note, after reading this book right after the first book in the series, Juniper Bean Resorts to Murder, it seems clear the author is interested in exploring themes of how people grieve and how we remember people after they die. This book also delves into the importance of how we treat people--even unpleasant people--while they're alive. This is something I think about a lot, and I enjoyed seeing a story draw out the importance of treating the forgotten, crabby members of society with kindness and respect. You never know what people are going through behind the mask they show the world. This story also manages to explore this theme without getting bogged down in it. It remains a cozy mystery and light-hearted romcom.
Content
Romance: PG level physical touch. PG-13 level attraction and kissing.
Violence: Minimal. Mention of a headwound and a woman dies of unseen and non-graphic causes.
Language: May have been some minor curses or mention of swearing in diologue tags.
Religion: Minimal.
Trigger Warnings for death and infertility.
Tropes
Cinnamon Roll MMC
Found family
Sibling reltionship
Cozy mystery
Small town
He falls first
Heide Lucy is having a very surprising and confusing day. Night? She just woke up at the hospital with a head injury and no memory of the previous day. As if that wasn't enough, right before her accident, she called one of her bookshop/cafe patrons and left a rather frenzied voicemessage. Responding to the voicemessage, Soren is the one who found her unconscious in the bookshop and took her to the hospital. Soren. Why did she call Soren of all people? He's her all-time-favorite-author, not her emergency contact. And why was she freaking out? When an elderly patient dies in the bookshop the next day, Heidi is desperate to recover her lost memories. The death may have been a murder, and Heidi thinks she knew something about it. Through it all, Soren is a steady presence.
Thoughts
The romcom plot of this story flipped the gender stereotype of empathetic women and emotionally constipated men in the most adorable way. Heidi is kind of scared of feelings (emotionally stunted, in her brother's words), while Soren is very aware of them and willing to patiently help and wait for Heidi to sort through hers. His tender patiences is most definitely the cutest element of the story.
On a more serious note, after reading this book right after the first book in the series, Juniper Bean Resorts to Murder, it seems clear the author is interested in exploring themes of how people grieve and how we remember people after they die. This book also delves into the importance of how we treat people--even unpleasant people--while they're alive. This is something I think about a lot, and I enjoyed seeing a story draw out the importance of treating the forgotten, crabby members of society with kindness and respect. You never know what people are going through behind the mask they show the world. This story also manages to explore this theme without getting bogged down in it. It remains a cozy mystery and light-hearted romcom.
Content
Romance: PG level physical touch. PG-13 level attraction and kissing.
Violence: Minimal. Mention of a headwound and a woman dies of unseen and non-graphic causes.
Language: May have been some minor curses or mention of swearing in diologue tags.
Religion: Minimal.
Trigger Warnings for death and infertility.
Tropes
Cinnamon Roll MMC
Found family
Sibling reltionship
Cozy mystery
Small town
He falls first
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
Minor: Infertility and Infidelity