My first review from author
Robert Perry
 
I had the honour to review Poet Peyton Heart’s debut collection of works, and though no major poet myself, I really enjoyed the book. I found the poems to range from cheerful, hopeful and light, to morose and realistic. Present in every work was an energy and realism that could come only from life experiences. Heart includes a lot of herself in each work, something that adds to the emotional power of the collection overall.
 
When I first picked up her collection, I regarded it as a simple “love me, love me not” type of construction for love-struck fools. Forgive my candour, but I am a horror writer, and thus one with no proclivity for happiness and joy. What I found, however, was a compilation of poems that expressed the harsh realities of the emotional experience, and lightness of romanticism, as found in the bliss of union? Needless to say, I was surprised.
 
Heart’s poems seem to fall into two brackets; love, and despair (I especially liked the latter; see note above).  Of the love category, each poem expressed sentiments ranging from youthful happiness to matured bliss. Heart writes about her life experiences, which forms a very realistic corps around each poem. I found there to be a lot of energy in some of her works. She speaks with evocative power, relating her own experiences and forcing to mind some personal memories of the reader. I found myself reflecting on many of her poems, my own mind wandering down loves old pathway.
 
Of the despair category, I found some darker places to hide. If part of Heart’s collection is light, then certainly the other half is dark. Here, Heart expressed the hidden sentiments of the tortured heart. Raw emotions, feelings of betrayal and desperation are all present in the works. Such works like “Loves Uncertainty” ring powerfully with lines like: “I was happy in a world of joy and laughter, then overnight- my heart was taken prisoner.”  Some of the works have a sudden change, as expressed here, while others are built around the reactionary emotions, with the reader left to see what has happened, and not what is happening. I related more to these darker forms of poetry, as in them she captured what I consider to be one of the essential elements of gothic literature: the agony of despair. A few even have characteristic traits of the old gothic works. I was delighted to read these.
 
Heart has a simple vocabulary, but the stanzas are constructed so as to place emphasis on certain words, and thus force to the surface certain emotions. I was challenged on many occasions to face painful memories from my past. Sometimes, the words of her poems struck very dangerous cords; that is, however, the power of her work. It will make you face and feel your own memories.
 
There are only a few suggestions which can be offered to Heart in the form of a critique. First, I think she should learn and experiment with different styles of poetry, so as to use them as tools in her future projects. The collection seemed to follow the same vein. Try some rhyming, some narrative, and what other styles may be available. Second, I believe her work would benefit from an exploration outside the realm of love. Although replete with power itself, there are many avenues for emotional experience. Love it but one of many.
 
Peyton Heart drafted a good first edition compilation with her A Collection of Hearts. It is provocative, a work which will seemingly bless and haunt you. Take it and read it, but remember, when you have finished, Heart’s book will be your own memories.