thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for providing an e-ARC, in exchange for an honest review!

a full review to come.

I thought this was a very different book. It reminds me of Black Mirror, but with unreliable narrators. In that regard, I think it's not for every reader, because it does take awhile to get into and parcel through what all is happening, separating fact from fiction. But for the right reader, they'll really be taken aback.

Unfortunately this was a book I didn’t finish.

From what I did read, I could see the possibility of an emotional story and setting did seem to add to the atmosphere.

I just couldn’t get through the slow beginning, and the confusion.

I think I've come to the conclusion the Joan He is just not for me, and that's super disappointing. This is my third book by her and I just did not enjoy it. What did I even read? I literally have no idea. I'm all about big twists and secrets but I hated this twist and I still don't even know what happened. There was so much time jumping and none of it was made clear. The time jump was used for the "reveal" and while I do understand what happened the story as a whole is just still lost on me. I just did not like the pacing or the story itself. And most of that was due to the characters.

I get it that Casey was supposed to be this morally grey character but she just came off as emotionless and annoying. There wasn't a single part of her that I liked. She was flat and boring and I hated her story line. Cecilia was a little more interesting at least but she still felt flat as well.

Overall, The Ones We're Meant to Find by Joan He was a huge miss for me. I just don't think I click with Joan He's writing style and I've decided this is the last book I'm trying by her. Instead of creating this interconnecting story it was just confusing with all the time skip in order to reveal the "twist". And as soon as it was revealed, I hated it. There was just so much about this book I did not like. The characters, the pacing, the confusion. I'd recommend reading other positive reviews as this one is not.

This book wasn't for me. I didn't get the writing and found the story hard to keep up with. I was interested in the summary but the story just didn't work for me.

"The Ones We're Meant to Find" by Joan He is a captivating and thought-provoking novel that explores the themes of family, identity, and environmentalism in a unique and imaginative way. The story is set in a dystopian future where the world has been ravaged by climate change, and people are living in a highly advanced, technologically-driven society on two separate islands.

The novel follows the parallel journeys of two sisters, Cee and Kasey, who are both struggling to find their place in this world. Cee is stranded on an uninhabited island and suffering from amnesia, while Kasey is living in a highly regulated, controlled environment on the other island, working to solve the world's environmental problems. As the story unfolds, the sisters' paths begin to converge, and they must confront their past and their deepest fears to uncover the truth about their world and their place in it.

Joan He's writing is skillful and engaging, with vivid descriptions of the islands and the technology that sustains them. The characters are well-developed and complex, with their own motivations and secrets. The themes of identity and family are explored in a nuanced way, as the sisters struggle to reconcile their past with their present and find a way to move forward.

Overall, "The Ones We're Meant to Find" is a beautifully written, compelling novel that will leave readers thinking long after they've turned the last page. It is a must-read for fans of dystopian fiction, but also for anyone interested in exploring complex themes of identity, family, and the relationship between humans and the natural world.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

Cee has been stuck on an island for three years, desperate to find a way off to get back to her sister. Kay is living in an eco-city, protected from natural disasters outside because of the actions of her ancestors. She believes her sister is dead but won’t give up looking for answers. The only issue, she isn’t allowed to do any science because of choices she made in the past.

I was very intrigued by the beginning of this book. I loved the commentary on climate change and was shocked at how beautiful the writing was. The plot twists were also a surprising element in a sci-fi novel. As the story went on, I somehow became less interested in what was happening. Perhaps this was because some of the more scientific explanations came further into the book as we learned more about what was going on, but I found that I was getting confused by transitions and storylines. This is definitely a unique novel, but I don’t think it will be for everyone.

Very surprising plot and an unexpected story. The cover is beautiful and is the main reason I picked it up. I'm not usually a fan of sci-fi, but this book definitely held my interest and had a beautiful storyline. Stretches the imagination for sure!

This is a great recommendation for teen fans of Black Mirror, but I would recommend with a caveat about triggering climate anxiety. Good twists and reveals, one twist in particular really stuck with me.

This is one of those books you throw across the room but quickly retrieve and apologize to because it's not its fault that the major plot twist is just that GOOD.

I don't read a lot of sci-fi, but I really enjoyed He's debut novel and was drawn in to this by that gorgeous cover, painted by one of my absolute favourite artists. I should have known I would be kicking myself for letting this sit on my shelf for so long. What an absolute masterclass in storytelling! The mystery within these pages is told across dual POV, and the way it unfolds is absolutely breathtaking. I mean, once I got into it, it was near impossible to put down because I had to know what happened next.

There's a slightly unsettling air to this futuristic climate dystopian mystery, something I would compare to an episode of Black Mirror. It's a world you hope never comes to be but is so well grounded that the odds are pretty high our future could look like this. And if it does—well, sh*t. The earth has been devastated by climate change and catastrophic natural events, such as mega-quakes and horrific hurricanes. Enormous eco-cities float above the earth's surface, populated with people let in based on their rank of environmental impact. To conserve energy, citizens are forced to spend a percentage of their life maneuvering the world as holographs rather than in person.

The story is so fascinating, as is the mystery at its core. It's told in dual POV from sisters Kasey and Celia. Or Kay and Cee.

Kasey lives in the eco-city and is trying to attach meaning to her sister's disappearance at sea three months earlier. She is a somewhat ... unethical person. Smart as hell, but there's a reason why she was banned from hacking and upper level science experiments. Still, she doesn't believe that her sister would just leave, and we follow her as she traces Celia's last steps.

On the other hand, Cee has lived alone on a deserted island for three years, and all she does every day is try to figure out a way to find her sister. She woke up on that shore naked and without memory, but she knows she has a sister named Kay, and she will sail across the raging ocean to find her, no matter the cost. If that means building a boat with scraps, so be it.

Despite the obvious time gap between their chapters, the story of the sisters unravels with the most intriguing parallels. It practically leaves the reader frothing at the mouth to find out what happened to Cee, and to wonder if Kasey will ever find it out. But when I tell you this has a major plot twist, you need to believe me. I did not see it coming at all, but it clicked so many pieces of the mystery into place with almost heartbreaking speed. I can only offer a round of slow applause to He because that gets five stars all on its own, and I can't even tell you why.

He has proven to be an incredible author with absolutely stunning skill and prose, and I am so looking forward to the rest of her books.

Sci-fi rooted in human connection.

There is a floating tech city - Kasey lives there. It is an interesting, eco friendly city made for those who are either super important in the fight against climate change or those who went above and beyond to save the planet. The rules and regulations are strict, but Kasey doesn't mind. She is an introvert, and very comfortable with the limitations. Her sister though, hates it. She loves the world, and experiencing it. What is the point of life, if it is limited? Both sisters are very different, but they are also a single unit and love each other very much. One day, Cee just vanishes. Kasey refuses to believe her sister is dead, and she spends the novel trying to find her sister, and learning to understand why she lives her life the way she does, and what propels her forward even when the reasonable choice would be to hold back.

Cee somehow ends up on an island. She spends her time trying to escape, and get back to her sister. Very exciting part of the story, as she has to survive and find ways to get off the island. She is all alone, until one day she meets this one guy who seems to come out of nowhere. In the aftermath a lot of interesting, kind of disturbing things start to happen... and that's all I'll say about that because explaining anything would be a spoiler, and the ending is too good to be spoiled.

I loved that at the heart of this sci-fi novel is a burning love between sisters. Their love is a power all on its own, and it is interesting how it propels some things into motion. The ending is unique, and the whole novel moves at a decent pace. Definitely stands out as a thoughtful, intriguing, YA sci-fi novel.

First of all, we need a standing ovation for ~*THAT COVER*~....oh my goodness, how gorgeous! This was a gut punch of a book. It was so hard to read and so gripping and the writing was so lyrical. I may have cried a few times while reading it. This book will stay with me for a long time.

Joan He is a fantastic author and The Ones We're Meant to Find was hauntingly beautiful. I can't wait to pick up anything else she writes because this made me absolutely fall in love with her writing.

3 stars.

'The Ones We're Meant to Find' initially appealed to me because of its unique premise and its gorgeous cover. I thought the idea of eco cities was a highly intriguing look into another world that's perhaps not too far removed from reality. Whilst the first half was fairly slow, it definitely picked up in the second half, and I liked reading about the various twists and turns that happened as the narrative went on.

A large part of why I couldn't rate this book higher than three stars was because I feel like a lot of it went over my head, and there were certain parts that were confusing. I particularly found this to be the case when it came to the more complex areas of the world - details that would've made everything less vague were often glossed over and I found myself wishing for specifics to learn more about the setting.

Nevertheless, I still enjoyed my time with this book and I loved the writing style, so I'll definitely be checking out more books by this author!

I had a hard time getting into this one, but about half way through it was hard to put down...pretty much when you hit the twist.

This one just wasn’t for me, I couldn’t get into it. I’m rating it a 3 star because I do think that others will love it. It’s got a weird sci-fi vibe that I know is popular with the right people. I will still be recommending it. It just wasn’t a good fit for me.

This book wasn't for me for the large part. What I did enjoy was the pov of Cee and her story, but that was about it. I felt a bit thrown into this world, and I needed more information to know how everything worked, but sadly I never got that. This was my main issue, as it made me scan certain pages rather than read them. I really wanted to like this but alas, I didn't.

The Ones We’re Meant To Find is a deep dive into the world of love and commitment post ecological disaster.

Banner for "The Ones We're Meant To Find"

The caption reads "Some secrets are best left at sea."
Source: Joan He Twitter
The story follows two sisters. Cee, the life of the former party, finds herself washed ashore on a deserted island. With no memories except that she needs to return to her sister. And Kasey, who’s living in one of the few habitable sanctuaries left, bombarded with voices telling her to move on. Dealing with the weight that she might be able to save humanity from their doom.

If you’re familiar with Joann He’s work, you know that the traditional idea of sequels isn’t her thing. Instead, she crafts entire worlds and stories in the confines of a single book, and she does this spectacularly!

The Ones We’re Meant To Find is a slow build, and the pace reflects that.

As the initial chapters go by, we see the alternating perspectives of the sisters. As well as their internal conflicts about the lives they’re living.

Cee’s sole focus is to escape the island and find her sister. Even though she’s got no clue where to sail too. But, she also battles her realization that maybe she could have a decent life alone in the routine she’s established. Kasey, on the other hand, is on the run from parties and people. Everyone assumes that the missing sister is no longer alive, but Kasey refuses to entertain the thought.

It brings a level of disjointedness to the story. Yes, the sisters adore each other, but something happened. Why are they apar? Especially when the sanctuaries are to be the only safe places to live?

As the first half of the book chugs along, He weaves in details and development that seem minor and mundane. That is until you reach the twist, and we’re talking Blue Exorcist level twists!

Not to spoil The One We’re Meant To Find for you. But the reveal of this twist instantaneously changes the mood and pace of the story. It’s as if He slammed her foot in the accelerator; you sit there gripping the pages. Holding on as the story takes you places you could not imagine. The vague hints and subtle details all of a sudden become tangible and impactful to the plot.

Leaving you almost stunned at the possibility of this Black Mirror, Altered Carbon esque world. A world where technology can so easily become a weapon. A reality where the earth is in ecological collapse. And your hope at survival is to live in a sanctuary city. Your identity and privacy are privileges that can be stripped away from you so quickly. You find your emotions and convictions put through the wringer over and over,

If you enjoy YA SciFi that makes you question society and your role in this is the book for you. Overall I give the book a solid 8.5/10. Taking the 1.5 off because the build to the twist left me feeling a smidge disengaged at times.

But, after speaking Joan (keep an eye out for the interview!) I am even more hype for everyone to read this book. It’ll help prepare you for all the amazing things she’s got in the works.

This was disappointing, to say the least.
I was confused the whole time and made zero connections with the plot and characters.