Heartstopper: Volume 3
Alice Oseman
Hodder Children’s Books
Published February 6, 2020

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Heartstopper: Volume 3

Boy meets boy. Boys become friends. Boys fall in love. An LGBTQ+ graphic novel about life, love, and everything that happens in between: this is the third volume of HEARTSTOPPER, for fans of THE ART OF BEING NORMAL, Holly Bourne and LOVE, SIMON.

Charlie didn’t think Nick could ever like him back, but now they’re officially boyfriends. Nick’s even found the courage to come out to his mum.

But coming out isn’t just something that happens once – there’s Nick’s older brother, and a school trip to Paris, not to mention all the other friends and family – and life can be hard, even with someone who loves you by your side. As their feelings for each other get more serious, Charlie and Nick will need each other more than ever before.

HEARTSTOPPER is about love, friendship, loyalty and mental illness. It encompasses all the small stories of Nick and Charlie’s lives that together make up something larger, which speaks to all of us.

‘The queer graphic novel we wished we had at high school.’ Gay Times

This is the third volume of HEARTSTOPPER, with more to come.

My Review

I’ve really been enjoying this series so far! The first book introduced us to both Charlie and Nick, but mainly followed Charlie’s story. In the second, we got to look deeper into Nick’s story and get to know him better. This book follows the two of them on a summer trip to Paris with their classmates (and friends).

As the cover copy suggests, the story also gives us a chance to get to know some of Charlie’s friends better. I’ve been a fan of Darcy and Tara from the beginning, and I loved getting to know Tao and Elle.

The story also follows Charlie and Nick as they decide how and when to make their relationship status (and Nick’s identity) publicly known. Though that issue has come up in some of the other books that I read (like GET IT TOGETHER, DELILAH by Erin Gough and HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE by Dahlia Adler), HEARTSTOPPER: VOLUME THREE makes space to explore what it means to Charlie and Nick. It also dives deeper into what coming out individually and as a couple means to each of them. I really liked getting to see that journey and the two of them figuring out how to navigate their feelings about it.

I think fans of the series will find more of the sweet and adorable moments between Charlie and Nick that make the books so lovable. In addition to the romance, though, the author brings readers into what it might look like to come out as a couple for the first time. The story briefly touches on some other heavy issues, but mainly it’s a sweet romance with lots of love and blushing. I will definitely be reading Volume Four, and I hope to read even more by Alice Oseman.

Content Notes

Content warning for brief mentions of disordered eating and self-harm.

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
Charlie is gay and Nick is bisexual. Some minor characters are transgender, lesbian and/or BIPOC.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between two boys. Kissing between two girls. Also kissing between a boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
A girl sneaks a bottle of vodka into her hotel room for a party. She gets drunk and sick.

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