The Coincidence Makers is an interesting novel that is truly unique. It had existential questions flitting through my mind for the entire read, but was not so much that I was not also entertained by the story.

I loved this "what if" novel, and I can picture this as an amazing movie. Lots of action and fascinating takes on the impacts of what one decision does to a situation. Such a great and well-executed concept.

What a very cool concept for a novel. The idea that each choice we make will set into motion another series of actions and consequences is such a cool concept. This book tackles this phenom well.

What a quirky and completely original book! I loved the theories and ideas woven throughout the story, and this was well written. I do wish that we would've gotten a "why" on the last coincidence though.

This novel feels like a movie - all is charming and lovely and you see the little golden sparks around, the summer sunshine and the smell of autumn leaves and a cocoa in the winter...pleasant, warming blockbuster.
The concept is an innovative take on "there is a plan behind every happenstance" - as Eric, Emily and Guy are the coincidence makers; the powers not above us, but around us; who precisely as engineers arrange the small motivational acts to happen to move the person on their best periphery - to meet the one to love, to become a poet, to make amends with your estranged family. We do not know who moves them and decides the course of their actions - and we do not care, because we are charmed by the concept itself. And when a girl fall in love with a boy who is not able to forget the past love...then yes, we definitely know the pain.

Yet, while the novel is really sweet and written by a sensitive author, the tone is still the same. Little wisdom here, a witty remark there. And while I understand the truth hidden in them (the author definitely knows what he is speaking about!), I started to wish for a change of tone during the reading. There is a reason why for example "Love, Actually" is one of the most successfull movies on love - because the tone can balance all the parts like love, pathos, with, sadness and understanding well, one part does not have the bigger part than another. Here, more humour would do miracles.
Yet, having said that, this was still a very charming read. I will remember this novel.

OK, so I am *not* really into fantasy/science fiction/etc. but I found this digestible and a brain-blast! I definitely have a few friends in mind that I would recommend it to!

St. Martin's Press and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of The Coincidence Makers. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

What if random occurrences were actually anything but? The world of Yoav Blum's making includes the coincidence makers, people who work for a private organization that has the sole purpose of creating and carrying out coincidences. The three makers in the story, Emily, Guy, and Eric must follow their assignments to the highest precision, as to not cause a ripple that may change the timeline that has been carefully orchestrated. When Guy is tasked with his most difficult job to date, will he be able to put aside everything else to concentrate on the assignment? Despite being the ones to pull the strings, is there something larger at work that has an impact on the coincidence makers themselves?

The Coincidence Makers represents a missed opportunity to create a world that is truly unique and different, as it reminded me too much of science fiction movies that have come before. Part of the problem is that the book is very disjointed, leaving the reader disconnected from the story as a whole. For a relatively short novel, I had real trouble getting through the sluggish plot and, for this reason, I would be hesitant to recommend The Coincidence Makers to other readers.

I tried on at least three different occasions to get into this book. It may just be the case of expectations not matching the reality of the book. To make it clear, that's on me as a reader. I think I was expecting more cons, light-hearted "coincidences", so I became lost at times with the more philosophical discussions this book brings to light. This is a great book for someone wanting to think differently and go a little deeper.

Special thanks to Yoav Blum, St. Martin's Press & NetGalley for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.

I loved the premise of this book. I often contemplate coincidence/fate/destiny and the idea that coincidences are actually created was so interesting! While this book was well-written, I felt a disconnect to the characters. About halfway through, I was checking to see how much was left. I finished it and it was worth it, but I didn't completely love it.

3.5 Stars. Behind the scenes, imaginary friends, dream weavers, luck distributors, and other types of "reality-backstage workers" are pulling the strings. Much of what happens in the world—from the beginnings of love stories to the discovery of penicillin—is orchestrated by coincidence makers, beings who gently nudge everyone to where they need to be.  The job isn't easy; each arranged action produces even more complications to account for.

Eric, Emily, and Guy have been working together as coincidence makers for 16 months. Eric is narcissistic and uses his skills to arrange dates for himself. Emily is a perfectionist, but lacks confidence. She's trying to inspire a stubborn, overly rational man to become a poet, but isn't having much luck. Guy is the most passive of the group. He's content just to observe and has a tendency to retreat into his own daydreams. His most recent assignment is the most mysterious task of his career. They usually receive thorough dossiers to prepare for their missions, but this time he was only supplied with a single page containing a time, place, and a cryptic sentence. The coincidence makers are essentially just cogs in the machine, but they're starting to yearn for something more. What happens when they start tinkering in each other's lives?

I really enjoyed the movie The Adjustment Bureau (based on Phillip K. Dick’s short story Adjustment Team ), so the description of this book immediately appealed to me. The story begins with a bang as Guy arranges the meeting of two people in a coffee shop. It takes a lot of effort and planning! New perspectives are introduced at random and they can switch within chapters, so you must pay close attention. This book is all about the concept. It can get really philosophical and over-explanatory. Some chapters are textbook excerpts that were so dry that I had trouble seeing what the author was getting at. There are lots of ideas in this little novel and I felt overwhelmed fully connect them to the greater story. I think the dryness of the textbook chapters contributed to that feeling.

The plot was a mystery to me for most of the book. I'm more amenable to that type of discovery in novellas or short stories. Since I couldn’t tell where the story was headed, I didn’t have specific questions that I needed to be answered or the feeling of hope or dread that usually tie me to a novel. It's a pleasant surprise when everything falls into place, but the concealment of the central story kept me at an emotional distance and lessened the impact. It might be rewarding to read it again now that I know what the story is!

I've been thinking of this novel a lot lately. During the worst time in my life, there were all kinds of unlikely coincidences that eased the way. This was actually the last book I read before that time. Perhaps another sign from the universe? ;) It's comforting to think that there's something greater guiding us along, but it's also disconcerting to think that we might just end up being collateral damage along someone else’s grander path! The ultimate end goal is rarely immediately evident, even to the coincidence makers. A seemingly insignificant event or something overheard twenty years ago could potentially set the stage for a major event today. This book also deals with the nature of love and happiness. Sometimes people have the tendency to idealize something to the point that the things they've always dreamed of are unrecognizable, even when it's right in front of them. The Coincidence Makers is worth the read for the thought-provoking concept with engaging writing, but I think I would have liked it more if there was a little less mystery surrounding the story. If I actually had an organized shelving system, I would put this book right between All the Wrong Todays and The Clarity.

This is a fascinating book. It is a story within a story within a story.

The book is about specialists in engineering coincidences. They get their orders and then need to think out the action that causes a reaction that causes another action and so on, until the end is achieved. And to make it even harder, there are special conditions, i.e. you cannot do this or you must use this....

It is the story about 3 such specialists....and some of their assignments, and the story keeps broadening and broadening.

It is a very conceptual story and well worth the read. And just when you think you have gotten the full picture, the camera pulls back and you see another level to the story.

I liked it a lot.

The premise of this book, warranted an extra star. I always appreciate reading fresh ideas. However, overall I cannot say much else about the book that I enjoyed. I did not find it to be well written, and struggled with finishing.

Apologies this has taken so long to review. I loved this story - it's different to other books out there at the moment which is very hard to achieve. My book club is now reading. Thanks.

My Rating: 3 of 5 stars

My Review:

Thank you, St. Martin's Press via Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book!

The Coincidence Makers is a unique and interesting tale. The concept that every little thing that happens was put into play by puppet masters behind the scenes really starts to make you think about the happenings around you. Though interesting in concept, something just wouldn't click or connect for me. Since getting this ARC, I have picked it up, started reading, and put it back down several times. Finally, this time, I was able to finish, but there were many times I almost put it down again.

The writing was not poor and the characters were okay characters, but I just never felt pulled to read or as excited as one would expect to feel through the types of scenarios being written. I wish I could put my finger on it in order to be more constructive, but I just don't know what it was.

I can say that the sporadic chapter that were written as academic text and teaching were not for me. After the first few, I started skipping them entirely. I don't like reading academic text when I have to and I certainly don't want it in my fiction! (I use the words "academic text" loosely; it was fictional academic text, but academic text none the less - the author included teaching the coincidence makers had to learn/go through in order to become coincidence makers.)

I'd still recommend you give this book a go if the concept intrigues you. Many other reviewers loved it and I think it has merit.

I was provided with an ARC of this book by the publisher or author in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I am not compensated for any of my reviews.

5000 stars, if I could. This book, you guys. THIS BOOK.

It's one of the best I've read ... maybe ever. It's certainly one of the most original: human lives are orchestrated by Coincidence Makers -- not quite human, not quite spirit beings that manipulate the universe in myriad ways to execute something like destiny.
But it is so much more than that. The prose is gorgeous and thoughtful without being pretentious or overly philosophical. The plot twists and turns so gracefully, it's simply masterful.
The way the last third of the book wove the characters and their stories together was breathtaking.

I have the best book hangover and it is delicious.

I've tried to get into this book 3 times. This time I made it to chapter 7. It just isn't holding my attention at all, so it's time to call it quits.

Is it a coincidence? Is it fate? Or, as some of my friends will assert: are there really no coincidences at all?
This book explores this intriguing topic, and it made me grateful for the magic in my own life.

Once I let go of my pre-conceived notions regarding free will and embraced the magical realism of The Coincidence Makers,I enjoyed the ride. The three main characters are tasked with making the "random" coincidences occur - and we get to see the planning and execution behind the end result. Small bits reminded me of the movie, The Adjustment Bureau, as the concepts are similar.
The premise of the book was excellent but the execution left me a little dismayed. The chapters jumped from character to character viewpoint and it became a little hard to keep track of the process points. I read it on Kindle, which makes flipping back to check something more difficult, so perhaps that influenced my feelings. The novel is entertaining and I would read more from Yoav Blum.

For most of this book, I don't see where The Coincidence Makers by Yoav Blum is going. I mean that in the best way possible. At times, the story is a set of distinct threads. I know that they are coming together. I have hypotheses as to how, but it is not until almost the end that everything does come together. It does so in a way I do not see coming. So, clearly, I concentrate on the wrong thing, and for that reason have a great reading experience.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2018/06/the-coincidence-makers.html

Reviewed for NetGalley

I enjoyed this translation of a novel originally published in Hebrew in 2011. It starts off a little slowly, and there is one fairly major plot hole, but overall the story is interesting and the writing is solid. Weirdly, my favorite character by far was the hitman.