I am sorry for the inconvenience but I don’t have the time to read this anymore and have lost interest in the concept. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience.

I have really adored Erin Hahn's previous work and this was no different. Getting to see the story of small town America always makes me feel seen in a YA space I feel can be dominated by stories from the coasts. It's real and addresses some realities of the area.

The characters here were charming and witty but also sympathetic and angry. I loved the story and can't wait for more.

While I didn’t personally connect to the God of it all I can appreciate that this story fills a void in the genre of Christian lit and I fully support the notion of female empowerment and the message that breaking out of a mold to be who you are and do what feels right for you does not make you “sinful”. This novel sets the foundation for spirituality to be fluid and the rigid stereotype that is often portrayed.

I received an e-copy of this story for my honest review.
While the MCs were church raised, I think the situations they’re pushed into could apply to any human on Earth. It was their strength, courage, and fortitude to move forward with their lives that made me love these two. And, the secondary characters (Duke!) made this story all the more enjoyable.
I loudly applaud the author, Erin Hahn, for writing this story. There may be some people who would condemn this kind of story, but there are also some who would appreciate the forthrightness, clarity, thinking, and questioning of what You believe. As my Pa would have said: Read it, think about it. Then, go with what your heart and soul tells you is right for you.

“I swallow hard, fill my lungs, and leap off into the sky. I've got a heart to retrieve."

Thank you to @wednesdaybooks for the gifted book. This review has taken me too long to make.

Before I get into my review of the book I think it’s important that everyone reads the Authors note. This is a somewhat controversial book and I think her note helps you understand her goal with this story.

Never Saw You Coming is a coming of age novel about two teenagers who are struggling with their faith. The story tackles religious themes without pushing any beliefs on the readers.

I won’t lie that when I started reading this and realized religion was a huge part of it, I was worried. Like always I didn’t read the blurb so I wasn’t expecting it.
I do think that the author did a great job showing what it’s like growing up in some religious households. Specifically for kids hearing harmful messages at home.

I really loved the both the MCs, Meg was adorable. I would describe her as a ray of sunshine. Also let’s not forget Vada, who is the reason I know this author. I was glad to see her back! While you don’t have to read More Than Maybe before this one, I cannot recommend that book enough.

While this novel was not what I was expecting, I still really liked it. It definitely has lots of triggers so please keep that in mind if you choose to read it.

It’s an important book for teens finding themselves or those who suffer from religious trauma.

I looked at the cover and loved the cover, read the summary of what the book was about. But what I thought the book was about and what it actually was about were totally different. I always go into a story open-minded but...
Never Saw You Coming is a Christian love story between two teenagers that were very cute, open and understanding. This book in the hands of a teen struggling with their faith could be very powerful. I liked that the characters were able to learn to love themselves and their sexuality without giving up their faith. I also like the author's ultimate message. In her world view, God loves everyone just as they are: you will never lose God's love.

I really enjoyed this tender YA romance/coming-of-age story. My high school romance book club read this book and most of the students really liked it. We were fortunate to have the author attend our book club meeting and it was wonderful to hear from her.
I thought it was fascinating to learn about purity culture and to read a book in which religion plays such an important role. I loved how complex the teen characters are in this book as opposed to your usual YA novel. It's quite an important and beautiful book and I hope that more teens read it.

I didn't realise my review never saved for this! Never Saw You Coming was a complex story that honestly took me by surprise. I didn't realise this featured religion so heavily and while that obviously isn't an issue, it isn't to my taste. I do however thing the writing was strong and the overall story was well paced so instead, I'm giving this 3.5 stars based on that. There is definitely an audience for this book and just because it wasn't me, doesn't mean it won't be for someone else.

A great story, title and read. Easy fun read with some deeper storylines that keep me flipping pages. Bravo Erin. Looking forward to your next book!

i really like Erin's writing. it is engaging. This book worked for me and i can't wait what she writes next.

This authors books are always a delightful experience and this was too! So adorable and sweet with good vibes

Not giving any spoilers but this book has to be read by everyone going through an identity crisis (aka maybe all of us).

This might have been one of the books that made cry the most last year. The author does not hold anything back about describing the character’s emotions. Another thing that made this remarkable is each character’s growth development.

This was a nice contemporary novel. I liked the character dynamics and development and would recommend this to young adult readers.

While this book was to religion heavy for me too love it, I really enjoyed the varying perspectives and opinions on religion explored through the lenses of our two main characters. For anyone who grew up going to church and youth groups, this novel talks about all the things we grew up being instructed to abstain from and avoid. I also appreciated seeing the two MCs struggling with different aspects of their faith as a result of what life has thrown at them. For those reasons, I highly recommend as I know a lot of us are often too hard on ourselves and hopefully you can connect with these characters like I did.

A contemporary YA story that tackles religious themes and conservatism without impressing beliefs and/or preaching at the reader, I feel like Never Saw You Coming is unique and I like the aspect of offering a nuanced conversation regarding religious beliefs and coming-of-age.

Kids struggle with crises of faith, and this text can offer them two perspectives of grappling with that particular coming of age moment.

Overall, I don't tend to lean towards texts with subliminal or overtones of religion, but I can appreciate how and why this narrative is needed and represented in a classroom library.

Erin Hahn's books always hit me right in the feels, and Never Saw You Coming was no exception. Great plot.

Id give it 3.5 stars. It was just ok to me. I liked it but not sure how some people would like the "religious" aspect of it. It was just a tad too religious for me. I think Micah was my favorite out of the characters.

Thank you, St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the ARC in return for my honest opinion.

I’m not much of a fan of religious based books. It was okay. The characters weren’t interesting to me. And I just had a hard time connecting to the story

As a former Religious Studies major during my undergrad years, I am always intrigued by YA novels that tackle the topic of religion, though many popular titles in the past few years have seemed to focus more on the extreme side (Devoted, The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly, The Project, etc.). I was intrigued to read a novel where the religious aspects seemed more naturally woven in with the contemporary elements, which is definitely the case in Never Saw You Coming, which follows 18 year old protagonist Meg as she strikes out on her own for the first time in a bit of crisis of faith after finding out a deeply buried family secret.

Though I didn’t always agree with Meg or her love interest, Micah, I appreciated that the story was a coming of age tale of two teenagers who are struggling with their faith and relationship with their church in different ways, and have to work through those issues not just for themselves but in order to have their relationship work as well. They both go through a reckoning of having to unlearn certain lessons, morals and beliefs that were impressed upon them at a young age and examine which align with their personalities and how they want to live their lives, and which ones don’t. I think it’s a brave topic to explore in a mainstream YA novel as religion is so personal and at times controversial in its execution and interpretation, but for many teens I imagine it’s a huge part of coming into their own as a young adult, which is a perfect fit for the themes of the YA genre in general.

That being said, there were elements of the book that while sweet, didn’t always hold my attention, such as Micah and Meg’s budding romance with working next door to each other (at an outdoor sporting goods store and a bakery, respectively), the stereotypical mean girl ex-girlfriend, nosy, interfering neighbors, etc. I was really intrigued by the journey both Meg and Micah had with exploring their own beliefs and limitations and processing complicated emotions about their faith, and that’s really what stood out for me with this book, rather than the contemporary romance element.

Overall: A contemporary YA story that tackles religious themes and conservatism without impressing beliefs/preaching at the reader, I think Never Saw You Coming is unique in the vast sea of contemporary releases. I do hope we continue to see books that tackle religion in such a nuanced way being released!

I swallow hard, fill my lungs, and leap off into the sky. I've got a heart to retrieve."

I highlighted this quote on my kindle while reading, and I realized after that it's the scene from the cover, how perfect! This review is long overdue. I'm trying to play catch up on a bunch from last year. I think I read this last Summer? Fall? It's been a while!

Meg Hennessey, raised by uber-religious and conservative parents, has just graduated high school when she learns everything she knew about her family is a lie. The father she knew isn't her birth father, and she leaves for Northern Michigan to find what's left of her biological family.

While in Michigan that summer, she meets Micah, another young adult raised in the church who struggles with his own faith.

This coming-of-age story was definitely not what I was expecting. If you're looking for a young adult romance, this one probably isn't it. It focuses a lot on how being raised in the church impacted both Meg and Micah and the issues and pressures that teens face today.