Heartless

by Tasma Walton

At 7, she discovers that love isn't necessarily forever.
At 21, she finds love but it escapes her.
At 35, she learns that love can be dangerous.
By 49, she realises that the greatest love of all comes from the heart.

As her life's milestones come and go, you will recognise yourself in her: her loves, her mistakes, and her belief that she doesn't deserve more.

Australian author Tasma Walton's debut novel is a moving and confronting fable about the power of the human heart, the worthiness of its desires and the often dire consequences of ignoring them.

Genres: Contemporary, Australia

216 pages, Paperback

First published September 28, 2009

Reviews

[Calzean · Rating 4 out of 5]

When this book was good it was very good. Covering the life of an unnamed narrator, each chapter moves 7 years forward in her life. These are gritty stories of a a fairly wild girl who parties hard and as she ages grows wiser as see seeks her Great Life Purpose. There are also some very dark parts - a rape, domestic violence, drugs, suicidal thoughts. There are no names for any of the characters - there is just a set of tags - "Beautiful Man", "Little Baby Girl", etc.
The recurring theme in the book is of the woman's heart, how much it hurts when it is broken, about cutting it off from the world to protect herself from this hurt but learning it's not too late to open yourself up to love.

[Larissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

As life flashes by it is the milestone that we remember most, those moments in time that have had the most profound affects on the heart. The joyous highs that set hour hearts dancing and the crushing lows that tear our hearts apart. It is these moments that our hearts remember and carry through guiding our every decisions, shaping our every dreams.

At seven years old a little girl is dancing for joy, she has all hopes in life ahead of her, she has her pure and glowing best friend Astintina and she has her Great Life Purpose. With a heart as happy and heavenly as hers how can she not succeed in her dreams when following her heart.

But at seven years old a little girl is no longer dancing, she no longer sees any hopes in life, she no longer feels her pure and glowing best friend and she no longer believes she has a Great Life Purpose. For when she needed her most her happy and heavenly heart was not able to bring her her dreams, but instead lay broken and crushed, forgotten on the floor.

Her first experience with heartbreak has a dramatic effect on her, haunting her throughout her life. No longer will she trust her heart nor believe her worthy or beautiful and so she turns her back on her heart, making decisions to spite her, giving up her hearts dreams for a cold and broken existence. But a life lived without a joy and dancing is a lonely and heartless life.

Heartless is no way to live, lonely and closed off from the world. But if there is only one lesson to take from this story it is that it is never too late to believe again, to find love again, to let go of the hurt and mend a broken heart. A raw and emotion look at love and life that is engaging and evolving. Looking at both the beautiful and destructive sides to our nature, this story will touch something in all of us.

[Kat at Book Thingo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read my full review at Book Thingo.

This is a beautifully narrated tale of heartbreak, heartache and love. It's a fairly easy read, and even though there are some brutal scenes, Walton dwells less on the actual violence than on its impact on the heart and spirit of the story's protagonist. Heartless is an excellent debut novel and, for me, a much-needed palate cleanser. It reminded me of why I love discovering new authors and, of course, reading about matters of the heart.

[What to read next ....... · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Heartfelt emotional and gratifying read.

This book is not what l expected, it is going to stay with me, for a very long time .
An unforgettable outstanding 📚 read.

At 7 years old she discovers that love isn't necessarily forever.

At 21 years old, she finds love but ir escapes her 💔

At 35 , she learns that love can be dangerous.

By 49, she realises that the greatest love of all comes from the heart ❤

Following her journey is heartbreaking, and hard to read at times.
Proves what humans can do, to other humans, that can shatter your heart to pieces.
But also this story proves what strength 💪 and just a bit of joy, can do to pick us up, and find that feeling and word Happiness 😊

I should definitely mention the cover of this book is so stunning, the book is so beautifully written, l can't praise it anymore than that .
You won't regret reading it !

[Amanda Woolley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this tale of heartache and hope eerily relatable. Although I have walked a different path, the hurt and numbness resonated, as I am sure it will for many other readers. I think we should all strive for a list of "twenty things that bring us joy" 🙂

[Teagan Prentice · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 really. This was pretty brutal and confronting at times. A quick read and written in an interesting style.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love a book that makes me feel for the character.

[✧.* chels de haas · Rating 3 out of 5]

i liked it! it was sort of like poetry, it definitely felt like it. a very quick read, it was hard to understand at first but i really enjoyed it :)

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

A beautiful story of the pain and suffering endured and how easily it can fracture the human spirit but how with hope, healing is possible.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful read. Stumbled upon it by accident, read it in one sitting.

[Gavan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully told, but somewhat bleak. Written with great heart & love for the central character. Compelling.

[Mnemofysh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this a while ago, but never got around to writing a review, so here it is at long last...
I was in Drama class one day, and we were working on tone (trust me, this is relevant). For this, my teacher read excerpts of books. This was one of them. I was struck by the narrator's voice and ended up borrowing this myself.
Perhaps it's because I loved this so much that my review will be short. I was at a loss of words. I cried twice. No other book has ever, EVER made me cry. Perhaps I have felt tears, but I have never cried, let alone twice. I read through it a second time. And cried again. I really loved as well how character development continues despite no names being revealed. That alone is hard, and just makes this book all the better. I was dying to know the main character's name.
Whilst I really enjoyed this book, it is not for the faint-hearted. It covers some very dark themes and has some swearing in it (which kind of made me feel uncomfortable at times). While there are no 'graphic' descriptions, it is still by no means a feel-happy book. Not something you would really snuggle up on the couch with. But even so, an amazing book.

Line: Only the HEARTLESS will not be profoundly touched by this book.

[Aimie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me awhile to read this book but I'm so glad I kept reading it.
Tasma's writing is so different to other writers I read, it's so touching and heart wrenching! I was on the last page when I realised no body has names (except the imaginary fairy Astintina) everybody else have kinda nicknames like a boss she refers to as succabus, and boy friends are my rugged man and my beautiful man.. It's such a clever way of writing.
I hope we get more books from Tasma Walton!

[Livia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tasma Walton is not just another actor who's decided to write a book for the heck of it - she has written screenplays & scripts, so she knows what she's doing! :) Heartless is a well-written story and is an interesting concept.
I wouldn't recommend it to everyone, because of some swearing, sex, violence & drugs - which is why I'm not giving Heartless 5 stars.

[Chelsea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is brilliant. The life story of a heart, and of love. Finding love, losing love, heart break, learning to love yourself, and how it can take a lifetime to learn how to love.
It is raw, emotive, destructive and healing. I enjoyed the writing - sweet, innocent, broken, hurting, angry, frustrated, fulfilling.
Walton explores love through one life's events - turmoil, hurting and healing.

[Kewl Badool · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was a very interesting book that showed how hearts are easily broken and how it takes a lifetime to put them back together. I enjoyed it and would recommend it to some, not all as it was a bit heavy and involves drugs and sex.

[Liane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book rather cynically - thinking that it wouldn't be much - just another celebrity thinking they can write but boy was I wrong! I loved it. Extremely well written, I loved the personification of the heart and I cried all the way through. Well done Ms Walton. I definitely recommend.

[Claudz]

very interesting book. i like the way each chapter jumps 7 years so you can see how her life continues to change.

[Caitlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I soooo loved this book. I found it very heart-repairing.

[Sofie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book over the course of a few hours. I loved every bit of it. I laughed, I cried and was very upset when it was over. Amazing read!

[Kim J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Couldn't put this one down....

[Vicky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recommended reading for females of all ages.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Odd little book. Not in a bad way. The prose is gorgeous and it makes you feel a great deal of things. But definitely odd!