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Amanda

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Amanda rated a book it was ok

Heist of Hearts (Heist of Hearts, #1)

by E.A. Winters (Goodreads Author)

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Amanda said: " Edit to add: I just looked at her publishing schedule, and I think she's using AI to write as well as generate the covers. Either she's a modern Shakespeare or Alexander Hamilton (definitely not), or she's using AI. Her books are coming out way too f Edit to add: I just looked at her publishing schedule, and I think she's using AI to write as well as generate the covers. Either she's a modern Shakespeare or Alexander Hamilton (definitely not), or she's using AI. Her books are coming out way too fast. The only other reasonable explanation is that she already had these series almost completely written before publishing the first book of each series, because they are just coming out way too fast. She published HOH and its sequel this year (2025) alone, and the third book is scheduled to come out in January.
I am currently not far into HOH, but I have thoughts. My husband bought it for me for my birthday (at my recommendation) because I heard about E.A. Winters and wanted to read some fast-paced, clean fantasy. As I said, I'm not far in (Chapter 7 currently), but I'm already cringing hard and not sure if I want to finish the book. There are constant similes and general over-description. I find it distracting and boring. I frankly don't care about the main characters (Grigg and Adelina), especially after Grigg's description of Adelina on page 46. It was dehumanizing of both of them. For all her similes and overdone descriptions, E.A. Winters still has a hard time provoking a clear mental image at times. In the very first paragraph of the novel, she references a "green paper siren." I had no idea what that was until it was described as a folded paper mermaid a little later on. There are some simple factual errors, too. On page 4 she refers to flower blossoms as flower bulbs. (Bulbs are the root part of the plant, not the flower, and wouldn't be visible above ground.) She also refers later on to striking molten glass with a hammer, which is not any glasswork technique I know of. There are certain techniques that involve gently hitting cooled, solid glass with a hammer to make cracks, but not hot liquid glass like she describes. I can only imagine she was thinking of a blacksmith hammering glowing hot metal. There are other logical improbabilities, like the Guerrori wearing animal skins in the jungle, where it's always hot and wet. That would be miserable. These are the sorts of things that a halfway-decent editor would pick up on and ask her to clear up, so it's clear she doesn't have a good content editor. I also took a good look through the book for information on the cover art and didn't find any. That, combined with the general oddness of the design, leads me to believe that it is AI generated. I am a firm believer that artists should support other artists, not give their jobs to AI. If the cover is human-made, then the artist should be credited, even if she did it herself.
My two bits of praise are that I haven't noticed a single typo or grammatical error yet, and I am at least vaguely interested in this mysterious temple and what's inside it, but I don't know if that's enough for me to overlook all of the issues I have described. If I do finish the book, I will try to remember to update my review with my later impressions. For now, two stars. ...more "

Nov 14, 2025 08:28PM · see review