I will try to read again at some point… but I really did not like how this book ignored the romance readers actually would enjoy for one that goes nowhere.

I was so intrigued by the premise of this story - fated love. A grandmother who can foretell the date someone will meet their love match with absolute certainty. Based on a history of successful couples, and failed marriages when the foretold date was not adhered to, the date is a well known and sacred secret in the Meyer family.

This story begins on main character Edie's foretold date. She is on her way to her twin sister's surprise engagement in Portland, Oregon. She is hyper-aware of every male - could he be the one? When she meets Theo on her flight, she convinces herself that he must be her destined match. Edie is a stylist living in New York and Theo is a singer for an up and coming rock band. The story follows their developing relationship.

Edie thinks often of her previous boyfriend, Jonah, who she broke up with because she did not meet him on her specified date, and therefore can't be her true love match. I could understand her reasoning and her belief in her Grandmother's premonitions. What I had a hard time with, was her constant comparisons of Theo to Jonah. How Jonah and she had and pretty immediate and consuming love which she didn't feel with Theo. How Jonah fit easily into her Jewish traditions (even though she admittedly followed the traditions with no acknowledgment of the religious significance of the them). For a character that the author never really gave any backstory on (Jonah), there was a lot of him in the story.

Parts of the story felt contradictory to me, and the ending felt very rushed. I didn't really feel the spark in Edie's relationships that I look forward to in a RomCom. However, I loved the relationships with her family and her close friends and loved how they were all very supportive of one another. I loved how she was career driven and had a strong self-image. In the end, I liked this book, but I didn't love it. It is a solid 3 star to me.

Hannah Orenstein's latest novel was a delight, which is exactly what I have come to expect from this author.

Edie Meyer is a romantic - like a can't eat, can't sleep - believes in fate, die-hard romantic. And what's better? She knows the exact date she'll meet her soul mate. While she doesn't know the actual time and place he's set to show up, she does know that her dream man is set to appear on June 24, 2022. How? Simple, her grandma Gloria is a matchmaker who's accurately predicted the date every other one of her family members met their perfect match. So when Edie meets a handsome musician on her flight to her sister's engagement, 6/24/22, she knows this guy is the one. But what happens when fate and real life don't seem to align as perfectly as you thought they would? Edie finds out in this tenderhearted romantic comedy about love, family and not so perfect timing.

Hannah Orenstein is an auto-buy author who consistently delivers thoughtful, well-constructed romantic comedies. I thoroughly enjoyed her latest, Meant to Be Mine, a sparkling romantic comedy that challenges the notion of fate and free will. Block out an afternoon, you'll finish it in one sitting.

Read/Listen If You Like:
❤️ Stories set in New York
❤️ Diverse Characters
❤️ Political Undertones
❤️ Discussion of Soulmates
❤️ Closed Door Romance

Book Review:
This was my first book by Hannah Ornstein and it definitely won’t be my last. I loved the sweet lightness of the book but I did want for a little more in some places.

The premise of the book is surrounded around Edie and her time to find her love story as predicted by her Grandmother. Her Grandmother has predicted the date family members would meet the love of their lives and we are start the story on that day where she is to meet the love of her life.

As the story progresses she meets a handsome rocker on her day and figures it has to be him. Very soon though we see that if they will be a fit it would take a lot of work and comprise between her and her her hunky date match musician.

We get a reveal towards the end that I won’t spoil, but it changes everything for Edie and allows her to really look hard at whether love is as simple as she thought and being destined, or if we are in control of our fate and great love.

Please add this to your TBR as it will be out June 7th!

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC of this book! I am so grateful to obtain a copy to read in advance of its release in exchange for my honest feedback!

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for sending me an eARC of this book. I was so excited about the premise of this book - A grandmother who can predict when you'll meet your soulmate! Edie is so excited on "her day" to meet her soulmate! She meets Theo and immediately knows he must be the one...but what if "the one" has different goals/ambitions? Does one of you have to change or can you make it work somehow?

I enjoyed reading Edie's story and I loved her relationships with her friends and family in the book! I did expect a bit more romance but unfortunately I felt like some of the romance felt forced. I loved the way it turned around in the end and I wish there could have been a bit more of that - the ending felt a bit abrupt.

4.5/5. An easy summer read about fate, romance, trusting yourself and family. I enjoyed this book about as much as this authors last book - quite a bit! The book paints a good scene of NYC and the main characters life, it left me wanting to follow her story! Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an early copy in exchange for my honest review!

I can’t even begin to describe how much I loved this book! Between jonah and Bennett I was left until the very end trying to figure out who her true love would be and there is nothing better than a book that keeps you guessing and not predictable!

A quick, sweet story about following your supposed destiny or following your heart.

Edie’s grandmother has the ability to tell the exact day you’re meant to find your true love. And Edie does in fact met the perfect man on her expected date. But begins to question if she has met her destiny when she begins to have feelings for another.

Decent read.

Meant to Be Mine was a slog for me.

The concept was really interesting: Edie’s grandmother had a vision years ago predicting the date she’d meet her future true love, and since then she has successfully predicted multiple family members. Including, Edie and her twin sister.

Edie is so stuck on this family prophecy, that she breaks up with her loving boyfriend purely so she will be single and prepared for this day. Then once she meets who she believes to be her true love, she is constantly comparing him to the loving ex-boyfriend. It really got old, how often she compared them.

I got about 50% through Meant to Be Mine before I just couldn’t go on anymore. Edie was so selfish and focused on herself that I couldn’t imagine her in a happy relationship (no matter who her significant other was). I skipped ahead to the end and she honestly made no sense in her relationship decisions.

A swing and a miss from Hannah Orenstein this go around.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the review copy.

4 Stars!!

This is a romance all centered around family history and traditions. Edie is looking for her perfect match as estimated by her grandma. Overwhelmed with a major life choice and sticking to fate, Edie needs to decide to follow tradition or trust her heart.

I loved the characters in this one! Many strong supporting characters that made the story enjoyable.

Fair warning, this does have some heavy topics like death of a loved one and mention of school shootings.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy!

This was my first time reading a book by Hannah Orenstein, but it certainly won't be my last--I really enjoyed Meant to Be Mine! It's an excellent read for the summer: a quick, fun, sweet escape!

Edie's got it planned out exactly when she'll meet her soulmate thanks to her grandmother who has predicted, without ever being wrong, the dates that family members will meet the loves of their lives. June 24th is Edie's day, and just like her Grandma Gloria predicted, she meets a handsome, charming musician named Theo, and sparks fly between them. Edie just knows he's the one, her soulmate, her perfect match...or, is he?

Like I've already said, I enjoyed Meant to Be Mine so much! It's quirky and loveable and while it's less of a romance than I had in my head that it would be, that's okay. What I mean is that while it's undoubtedly about Edie and how she pursues a romance with Theo as she believes he has to be "the one" based on Gloria's prediction (after all, she's never been wrong before), it's more about Edie's growth as a person, her self-awareness, and her journey after tragedy strikes. As Edie is in this new relationship with Theo, she has to decide if she can let go of all the things she wants for her future to be with a man who wants totally different things just because they are meant to be together or if letting fate decide isn't the way for her after all.

Definitely grab a copy of this sweet read with the intriguing premise: are soulmates fated? Or do we choose the ones we love?

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

-review posted to Goodreads and Twitter on 5/28/22 and will post to Amazon and B&N on publication day

📚Book Review📚

Thank you to Atria Books for my gifted e-book advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. These opinions are solely my own.

Genre: Romantic Comedy
Setting: Present Day New York City
Format: First person POV
Spice: Mostly closed door with a few adult descriptions
Pub Day: June 7th, 2022

Blurb: What if you knew exactly when you’d meet the love of your life? Edie Meyer knows. When her Grandma Gloria was a young woman, she had a vision of the exact day she would meet her soul mate—and then Grandpa Ray showed up. Since then, Gloria has accurately predicted the day every single member of the family has met their match. Edie’s day arrives on June 24, 2022, when she’s twenty-nine years old. She has been waiting for it half her life. That morning, she boards an airplane to her twin sister’s surprise engagement, and when a handsome musician sits beside her, she knows it’s meant to be. But fate comes with more complications than Edie expected and she can’t fight the nagging suspicion that her perfect guy doesn’t have perfect timing. After a tragedy and a shocking revelation rock Edie’s carefully constructed world, she’s forced to consider whether love chooses us, as simple as destiny, or if we choose it ourselves.

Review: 5 Stars

I had previously read this authors book Head Over Heels and enjoyed it. When I was able to request Meant to Be Mine, I was excited to have been sent the arc. I thought the main character’s growth during the book was well done and I loved where she wound up. I felt like the family “Drama” was realistic and the whole prophecy was entertaining. While this is a rom-com, you can also classify it as contemporary fiction because the family parts and self-realization were as much if not more apart of the plot. There were moments I laughed and also may have had a tear or two. I had been in a reading slump and this pulled me out of it and I couldn’t put it down.

This is a good beach read. I read it very quickly. I wasn’t a fan of the character. Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Meant To Be Mine
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Romance Fiction
Format: Kindle eBook
Date Published: 6/7/22
Author: Hannah Orenstein
Publisher: Atria Books
Pages: 288
Goodreads Rating: 3.86

TW ⚠️: Loss of a loved one, grief, and school shootings.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing a digital copy of the book for me to read in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Gloria has accurately predicted the day every single member of the family has met their match. Edie’s day arrives on June 24, 2022, when she’s twenty-nine years old. She has been waiting for it half her life. That morning, she boards an airplane to her twin sister’s surprise engagement, and when a handsome musician sits beside her, she knows it’s meant to be. But fate comes with more complications than Edie expected and she can’t fight the nagging suspicion that her perfect guy doesn’t have perfect timing. After a tragedy and a shocking revelation rock Edie’s carefully constructed world, she’s forced to consider whether love chooses us, as simple as destiny, or if we choose it ourselves.

My Thoughts: The author does a really amazing job at describing the Jewish culture, traditions, food, and history, it was so authentic that I could feel the presence. This story is a romance but focuses more on family relationships, such as the relationship between Edie and her grandmother and of Edie and her twin sister. There was some political undertones, which you usually do not see in romance books unless it is the MCs job. I felt as if Edie was so focused on her grandmothers prophecy that she misses the big picture of connection. The author’s writing was descriptive, authentic, and had some depth taking place in New York City. I loved the ending and wish more time was spent on cultivating it, I won’t say more because I do not want to spoil for anyone. Overall, a good read that I enjoyed.

What would you do if your grandmother had a sight gift where she knew the date you would meet your true love? Edie and her twin Rae are both aware of the date they are to meet their true love. Edie's date is when she is in her late 20's, Rae's was much earlier. Rae met her match as a freshman in college. The story begins on the day Edie is to meet her match and follows her as she tries to make a relationship work with the guy she meets on "that day". A secret revealed by Rae makes Edie question everything about her grandmother's prophecy. This was a good read!

Edie Meyer’s grandma, Gloria, has accurately prophesied the date each member of their family will meet their soulmate since she met her own husband many years ago. When Edie’s date finally comes she meets a handsome musician on a plane ride and believes she’s found the one. But as they get to know each other she starts to wonder if this is really the person meant for her.

This one wasn’t for me! The writing was good, the characters were fine, but I didn’t particularly like where the story itself went. I wish where it ended up had been worked more fully into the overall plot from the very beginning, because the end didn’t feel like an ending at all and it just didn’t scratch my romance itch. I also wish there was a lot less anxiety running through this one, because being stuck in Edie’s brain was not a great time even though I think her thought process was realistic given the circumstances. It just wasn’t fun and when I think magic soulmate prophesy I think fun 🤷‍♀️

Too much ex-boyfriend, too much focus on a relationship that isn’t meant to be, and not enough focus on the actual love Edie finds.

I do think there will be many readers who really like this book, but I just happened to not be one of them.

First of all this book is set in NYC so it's a winner in my book before I even read the first page. And the premise...a grandmother that predicts the day you will meet the love of your life (and better yet, it has happened to every family member?!) HOOKED! I started this before bed and then stayed up way past my bedtime to finish it because I just had to know how it would end. In a difficult world, this was such the perfect summer escape! Highly recommend it if you are looking for romance with a twist!
Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

I liked the concept and thought Edie was a strong character but I just did not like the structuring of her romantic partners. I thought Jonah was brought up way too much for a character we barely actually meet. I get that he played a pivotal role in showing the reader that Edie had stronger feelings for him that Theo but I don’t get the point of adding Bennett to it all. I think it would’ve been a better structure for us to see Edie and Jonah’s story play out, her hesitant to actually “love” him and then meet Theo on June 24th and realize it didn’t matter and Jonah was for her. That’s not to say I did not enjoy Bennett but I just think we didn’t get enough of him and Edie together to really buy into that ending. If Bennett was always end game, then I think there should’ve been less Jonah and Theo and more Bennett. It just felt really rushed at the end.

n interesting premise, and an adorable family, made the read for me--unfortunately not so much the central romance.

The idea of fated loves, or soul mates, meeting and instantly knowing has been played with a lot. I liked the idea of this particular take more than the execution, I think because our heroine kept making excuses for her "fated mate" so much that it began to feel like a Problem Novel.

But that's my take--other readers might totally disagree!

Meant to Be Mine is perfect for lovers of modern romantic comedies; a perfect beach read written for the 2022 reader