My grateful thanks to Caitlin Raynor at Headline for sending me a surprise copy of The Road to Tender Hearts by Annie Hartnett. It’s my absolute pleasure to share my review today.

The Road to Tender Hearts was published by Headline imprint Mountain Leopard Press on 21st May 2026 and is available for purchase through the links here.

The Road to Tender Hearts

At sixty-three years old, million-dollar lottery winner PJ Halliday should be the happiest man in town – but everything in Pondville is another reminder of the child he lost, and the way his marriage fell apart.

So, when PJ hears that his high-school sweetheart, Michelle, is unexpectedly back on the market, there’s nothing stopping him driving straight to the Tender Hearts Retirement Community in Arizona to win her back.

But before he can hit the road, a spanner in the works: a tragic incident has suddenly left PJ as the only guardian of his estranged brother’s grandchildren.

Anyone else might be deterred, but it seems like the newly orphaned kids might enjoy the trip out of town. And PJ’s adult daughter, Sophie, has been roped in to help babysit.

There’s one final surprise passenger – Pancakes, a former therapy cat with a knack for predicting death, who recently turned up outside PJ’s home . . .

My Review of The Road to Tender Hearts by Annie Hartnett

PJ Halliday is about to find his life changing dramatically.

What a glorious book. I loved it.

The plot of The Road to Tender Hearts is, quite frankly, somewhat exaggerated and a bit bonkers at times but actually completely believable and totally absorbing. It’s fast paced and perfectly balanced between the most outrageous premise of the seemingly death dealing cat Pancakes, Luna’s obsession with her paternity and the sheer humanity of providing a family for those most in need of one. The initiating events are shocking and tragic, but whilst they introduce the theme of grief and lead to the creation of a dysfunctional group taking a road trip, they are never morbid and nor do they feel contrived. What Annie Hartnett provides for her readers is sheer entertainment that encompasses humour to sadness and everything in between. This is such fabulous writing.

I fell in love with PJ from the first moment and my goodness it was brilliant to have a middle aged man rather than a gorgeous hunk 30 something as the protagonist. I rarely make comparisons between books but I felt PJ was rather like an amalgam of Harold Fry, Ove and Don from The Rosie Project. He is, however, equally distinct and his own self too. He drinks, he’s had driving convictions, he’s often unintentionally reckless and irresponsible. He’s also generous, vulnerable, a dreamer and caring so that it is impossible not to want him to find Michelle and have his own happy ending.

I am not usually a great lover of children in fiction (or real life!) but here my heart was broken for Luna and Ollie because they are developed with conviction, realism and pathos. There is a moment between Luna and Sophie that will stay with me a very long time, but you need to read The Road to Tender Hearts to find out more. I didn’t so much want the children here to have a positive outcome, but NEED them to because I cared about them. More importantly is the understanding that the characters are ALL children, shaped by their past, their parents and their upbringing. Annie Hartnett teaches her reader not just about her characters, but about themselves in a supportive, funny and sensitive manner.

Whilst there is a physical road trip, the real road to tender hearts is an emotional journey, providing insight into the characters for the reader. However the greatest ‘journey’ is the level of understanding each person gains along the way. Wrapped in their own grief, Ivy, PJ and Sophie have lost sight of one another and themselves. They learn emotional honesty, compassion and connection as the adventure progresses. Here we see that real family may not be those with a genetic link at all.

I’m aware that this review is rather vague, but it’s so hard not to reveal crucial moments that a reader needs to discover for themselves. What I can say, totally unreservedly, is that The Road to Tender Hearts is a narrative that deserves spreading far and wide. It’s wonderful. It entertains. It’s funny and sad. It is packed with human understanding and written with skill to draw in the reader perfectly. I absolutely loved it.

About Annie Hartnett

Annie Hartnett is the author of three novels: The Road to Tender Hearts, Unlikely Animals and Rabbit Cake. Unlikely Animals was listed as one of the best books of 2022 by the Washington Post and BookRiot, and was long-listed for the Joyce Carol Oates Prize. Rabbit Cake was listed as one of Kirkus Reviews’ Best Books of 2017, was a finalist for the New England Book Award, and was long-listed for the Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize.

Annie has been awarded fellowships and residencies from the MacDowell Colony, Sewanee Writers’ Conference, and the Associates of the Boston Public Library. Annie co-runs Accountability Workshops for writers, helping writers commit to routines and embrace the long, slow, joyful, terrible process of doing the work. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband, daughter, and dog.

For further information, visit Annie’s website, and find her on Instagram.