Keep My Heart in San Francisco Review

Hello, all!

Big thanks to Netgalley and Simon Pulse for the copy of Keep My Heart in San Francisco by Amelia Diane Coombs!


Pub Date: 7-14-20
YA - Contemporary

Caroline "Chuck" Wilson was looking forward to spending her spring break perusing estate sales for vintage finds and touring the fashion school of her dreams. Instead, she's stuck working at her family's run-down bowling alley. As if that wasn't torture enough, Chuck accidentally stumbles upon a big secret her father has been keeping from her: Bigmouth's Bowl owes thousands of dollars in back rent and if they don't come up with the money fast, Chuck might as well kiss her home in San Francisco goodbye and say hello to her grandparent's house in Arizona.

Chuck refuses to leave the only home she's ever known, so she does the unthinkable. She teams up with her ex-best friend, Beckett Porter, and the pair devise a get rich quick scheme: they're going to infiltrate the Bay Area bowling scene and hustle players out of their money. The deeper the pair dive into the seedy world of underground bowling, Chuck fears her mental health will spiral just like her mother's did before she died. She also can't help the feelings bubbling back up for Beckett. Failure isn't an option for Chuck, if she doesn't win the money to save her family's legacy, she can kiss Bigmouth's and all her dreams goodbye. But if she wins, she'd have pulled off a perfect game.

I'm a terrible bowler, but I love it anyway, so I was looking forward to a story revolving around the sport. I enjoyed the characters and thought Chuck and Beckett were adorable together. They felt like real people, and I loved their banter back and forth. The writing was witty and fun and so easy to fall into. I pretty much read this in one sitting because it was so breezy. I also appreciated the way mental health was approached and handled in this. My only issue was the actual scheme Chuck and Beckett came up with. It was just so far-fetched that it was hard for me to believe it could actually happen. Other than that, I did still enjoy it and would recommend if you're looking for a quick read.

Rating: 3/5

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