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Verdict: A warm, laugh-out-loud slow burn at a seaside B&B, with two grown-up leads who simply click — and a pair of precocious ten-year-old twins who steal the show. Most readers adore the girls; a vocal few found them grating and felt they crowded out the romance.
Best for: Readers who want gentle, funny, family-centred romance between women over 40.
Heat level: Low (reviews focus on humour and warmth)
Rating: ★★★★☆ (4.1/5 — a 4.44 Goodreads average across 128 ratings, 4.43 on StoryGraph from 7 reviews, and 4.7 stars across 166 Amazon ratings)
Tropes: Slow burn, small town, found family, grief, career sacrifice, city girl meets local.
Hungry Hearts is Saxon Bennett and Layce Gardner’s 2018 contemporary lesbian romance. Best-selling mystery writer Claudia Montgomery has had writer’s block since her parents died, so her agent sends her to a Bed & Breakfast on the coast. There she meets Kate Ferguson, an archaeologist who gave up her career to raise her imprisoned sister’s ten-year-old twins and help her ageing mother run the B&B.
It holds a 4.44 average across 128 Goodreads ratings, with 86% of them four or five stars, 4.43 on StoryGraph from 7 reviews, and 4.7 stars across 166 Amazon ratings.
What Is Hungry Hearts About?
Claudia’s extended stay fills with love, laughter and the chaos of twins Punk and Charlie. The attraction between her and Kate is instant, but Claudia plans to go back to the city, and Kate has her mother’s health and the girls to worry about.
It is a story about finding family, and love, when you least expect it.
What Works in This Book
- The twins: Readers laughed until they cried at Punk and Charlie.
- Grown-up leads: One reviewer praises women who act like legitimate adults, and several love that the couple just click.
- Setting: A small seaside town readers wish they lived in.
- Humour and heart: Reviews mix “hysterical” with “touching”.
Book Synopsis
A novelist with writer’s block checks into a coastal B&B — and into the life of the woman who runs it with her mother and two small whirlwinds.
Only love can satisfy a hungry heart.
My Review
Bennett and Gardner do comfort well: the family is lovingly drawn, the town is inviting and the couple’s connection is easy in the best way. Readers say they finished it in hours.
The twins are also the main complaint. A few readers found them unbelievable — one quotes a ten-year-old philosophising about war as population control — and felt they overshadowed Kate and Claudia. One found the misunderstandings that keep the couple apart frustrating, and another thought it less funny than the authors’ other books.
My honest note: If precocious kids charm you, this is a delight.
| Element | In Hungry Hearts |
|---|---|
| Central relationship | Claudia Montgomery (mystery novelist) & Kate Ferguson (former archaeologist), both mid-40s |
| Core tropes | Slow burn, small town, found family |
| Setting | A family-run seaside Bed & Breakfast |
| Heat level | Low |
| Length | 259 pages (Kindle) |
| Ending | HEA |
| Content notes | Grief for parents, an incarcerated sister, past abusive marriage (sister) |
How Spicy Is Hungry Hearts?
Readers barely mention heat; the book’s energy is comedy and family.
Heavier threads include Claudia’s grief and Kate’s sister’s imprisonment after an abusive marriage.
Who Should Read This Book?
You’ll likely love it if: you want a feel-good romance between women in their forties. It is on our women over 40 list.
You may want to skip it if: child characters who steal scenes annoy you.
In short: Sweet, silly and full of heart.
What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)
On Goodreads the split is 58% five stars, 28% four, 10% three, 2% two and no one-star ratings. Readers repeatedly mention laughing out loud, and several want a sequel for the twins.
Why readers love it (according to the discourse): The twins first. Second, the adult couple. Third, the small-town warmth. Fourth, the humour.
What readers argue about and complain about: The twins, above everything. Second, misunderstandings.
The comparison worth making first: That Woman Next Door, another romance between women over 40.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who are Punk and Charlie in Hungry Hearts?
Kate’s ten-year-old twin nieces. Most readers call them the funniest part of the book; a few found them annoying and unrealistically precocious.
Is Hungry Hearts a slow burn?
Yes. Readers describe a sweet slow burn, though one felt misunderstandings kept the couple apart too long.
How old are the leads?
Both Claudia and Kate are in their mid-forties, which is why the book appears on our women-over-40 list.
Does Hungry Hearts have a happy ending?
Yes — readers mention a great, happily-ever-after ending, though one wished it had also helped the twins’ mother.
Is Hungry Hearts on Kindle Unlimited?
Yes, at the time of writing; otherwise the Kindle edition was $7.99.
If You Loved Hungry Hearts, Read These Next
Browse our women over 40 list, our small-town lesbian romance reviews, or the full Book Reviews archive.
The Bottom Line
Hungry Hearts sets out to be a warm, funny seaside romance, and it is. What holds it back, for some, is how much the twins dominate. Recommended, especially on Kindle Unlimited. Check Hungry Hearts on Amazon →
The Eikna Overall Ranking
On the Eikna scale, Hungry Hearts ranks as a very good comfort read — funny, tender.
The Evidence Scorecard
Overall ★★★★☆ 4.1/5
- ✓ 4.44 average across 128 Goodreads ratings
- ✓ 86% of Goodreads ratings are four or five stars
- ✓ 4.43 on StoryGraph from 7 reviews
- ✓ 4.7 stars across 166 Amazon ratings
Romance ★★★★☆ 3.8/5
- ✓ Instant click
- ✓ Slow burn
- ✓ Adult leads
- ✓ Misunderstandings for one
Characters ★★★★☆ 4.1/5
- ✓ Beloved twins
- ✓ Warm grandmother
- ✓ Grounded Kate
- ✓ Twins divide a few
Writing ★★★★☆ 3.9/5
- ✓ Laugh-out-loud
- ✓ Quick read
- ✓ Educational tidbits
- ✓ Unrealistic kids for some
Emotional Impact ★★★★☆ 4/5
- ✓ Heartwarming
- ✓ Grief handled gently
- ✓ Family
- ✓ Uplifting
Heat Level ★★☆☆☆ 1.5/5
- ✓ Low
- ✓ Rarely discussed
- ✓ Comedy-first
- ✓ Sweet
Ending ★★★★☆ 4.3/5
- ✓ HEA
- ✓ Great ending
- ✓ Sequel wished for
- ✓ Twins’ mom unresolved
Re-read Value ★★★★☆ 4/5
- ✓ On Kindle Unlimited
- ✓ $7.99 Kindle price
- ✓ 259 pages
- ✓ Comfort reread
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