Talking to other people isn’t Kate Bailey’s favorite activity. She’d much rather be out on the lake, soaking up the solitude and sunshine. So when her best friend, Alana, convinces Kate to join their high school’s podcast, Kate is not expecting to be chosen as the host. Now she’ll have to answer calls and give advice on the air? Impossible.

But to Kate’s surprise, she turns out to be pretty good at the hosting gig. Then the podcast gets in a call from an anonymous guy, asking for advice about his unnamed crush. Kate is pretty sure that the caller is gorgeous Diego Martinez, and even surer that the girl in question is Alana. Kate is excited for her friend … until Kate herself starts to develop feelings for Diego. Suddenly, Kate finds that while doling out wisdom to others may be easy, asking for help is tougher than it looks, and following your own advice is even harder.

Listen to Your Heart follows Kate Bailey as she is forced out of her comfort zone when her best friend convinces her to take a podcasting class and by the teacher’s choosing, is made one of the co-hosts of the show.  Kate is fairly private and would rather spend the rest of her life being out on the lake and operating her family’s marina than do, well, anything else.  So this podcast is a real pain in the butt for her, especially since the point of their show is to give advice.  And when one caller makes repeated calls, she finds that she might be falling for him, which isn’t good when she realizes who it is, because it’s Diego Martinez… her best friend’s crush.

I loved the story and all the characters involved, from Kate and her best friend, to the boys – Diego and Frank – and Kate’s family.  Even Kate’s co-host Victoria became likable after a while.  There was good banter between the characters and some good development, which there had to be since characters were being pushed out of their comfort zones.  And though the book was focused on the romance, I would’ve enjoyed it if it had just been about Kate’s family life and relationship with her best friend.

Overall, this book is a fun, quick read that is probably more enjoyable in the summer than the fall.  And out of the books I’ve read by Kasie West so far, this one has to be my second favorite, following By Your Side.

Rating: 3.75/5 stars