"Beyond its subject matter, Locked Heart has all the other qualities of a good novel. The charm of Guo Lianghui's novels has always come from her frankness in getting to the heart of the matter and the depths of human nature, which often has an ironic effect in contrast to the pretentious behavior and dialogues of her characters. In Guo Lianghui's novels, there are few vain romantic scenes, and there are also few typical characters with clear-cut positive and negative sides. Guo Lianghui's novels are also characterized by a deep and accurate portrayal of the inner workings of her characters. The concepts of love and sexuality between men and women at the time are well discussed in Locked Heart, and the protagonist, Xia Danqi, is delicately portrayed as she is torn between love/lust and morality. The quick and crisp transitions and the witty language are also the highlights of the novel."
Kwok's "The Heart Lock" was banned soon after it was published in Taiwan in 1962 on the grounds that it was about incest, and the Taiwan Literature Association expelled her from the organization in a fuss about the controversy.
The function of a literary work should not be limited to the moral evaluation of the characters in the book. Through the characters and storylines in the work, one can recognize the society. It is through the stories of these characters in the work that "Heart Lock" shows readers the confusion and sinking of Taiwanese youth in the 1960s under the impact of modern Western thinking, as well as a true portrayal of family, ethics, beliefs and human desires in the society across the strait. In portraying the character of Danqi, the author does not simply zang her, but through delicate psychological depictions, she moves step by step towards the abyss of sin, both willingly and unwillingly; and when she pulls herself outward from the abyss of sin, she does so equally willingly and unwillingly. In this complex contradiction, when she went towards the abyss of sin, the external force of Fanlin and Jiang Mengshi had played an important role; but when she pulled herself outward from the abyss, the external force of her mother was minimal, and religion was even more powerless. Not to mention that it was only her mother who believed in Christianity, and Danky had never converted to Jesus Christ. At the end of the novel, when she enters the church and hears Pastor Zhao reciting "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do", what can she do? What did Dancie do that she didn't know?