What I Liked

The book is mostly narrated by Hannah, but we get occasional pop-in perspectives from Davey that shed additional light on what’s happening for him. I really thought this choice worked well and felt more natural than the books that force a chapter-by-chapter alternating POV. 

Hannah and Davey both have to grow and change throughout the book, and I enjoyed seeing them develop as characters. This arc felt quite real and authentic, and I appreciated that they both made mistakes and learned from them. 

I thought the friendships in this book were really well done overall, and I loved getting to know all of the characters and seeing what they mean to one another. 

The Man I Never Met takes on some heavy topics, and I thought they were overall handled fairly well, save maybe one thing I’ll mention briefly below. 

What I Didn’t Like

I thought the book was a bit slow to start. We spend a good deal of time with Hannah and Davey planning for the future the synopsis has already told us isn’t going to go to plan, and I felt like I wanted to get to the heart of things a bit more swiftly. 

This next bit will be perhaps a minor spoiler, so skip to “SPOILER OVER” you don’t want small plot hints. 

I had a really hard time with Hannah’s rebound relationship in the book. It felt quite controlling and unhealthy, but that’s never really addressed or unpacked. This is something I’m personally sensitive to, so I’m not sure how much it would bother other readers. 

SPOILER OVER

In all, The Man I Never Met is a touching story about missed connections, timing, and a little bit about fate. I very much enjoyed this book, even if I had to take my time a bit due to the emotional weight of it. I recommend this book for fans of love stories that stray to the serious side of life while still adding a sprinkle of true love magic.

I couldn't put this down! I lost sleep because I kept thinking I'd read just a few more pages. The idea of falling in love with a stranger that lives thousands of miles away after a miss dialed phone call? An irresistible storyline I thought, not prepared of the reality that would come crashing into this cozy idea of a cute happily ever after for Hannah and Davey. Suddenly, I felt pulled into an emotional ride, not knowing how the future for these two would turn out, until I had read way longer than intended and needing major caffeine the following day.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this star crossed romance but felt that it dragged a little in the middle. The ending was also a tad convenient, but I enjoyed the characters and appreciated their stories ans growth throughout the book.

something about this is just so cute to me. I love books where these kinds of things could happen in real life and yet they will probably never happen to me. it reminds me of another book that had the sale concept but this one did it so much better. I highly recommend if you are looking for something different.

This is a romance book unlike anything I’ve ever read. When Will accidentally calls Hannah while applying for a job in London, they become fast friends. But soon, they are making plans to meet up when he moves to England.

When the fateful day comes, Will stands Hannah up. When Hannah learns the reason why, Will ends their blossoming love and friendship.

As we see their life paths split, we see them constantly thinking about one another. You will be cheering by the end of this second-chance romance!

wow…… like wow….. i had read the synopsis and been interested in it but this one really surprised me! i was already expecting to like it. it seemed like it had everything i usually like but there was another added element to it that just threw my entire expectations out of the water.

davey and hannah were such sweet characters to follow and seeing them fall in love on paper was just so warm. it seemed like fate. just so absolutely perfect and then… boom! the book was laid out in such a way where i was rooting for their happiness regardless of a HEA because i couldn’t even imagine the struggle either one of them felt. the pain seemed so personal and it was clear from cook’s author’s note that it was in a way. i appreciated that.

i really was so invested in hannah and davey’s life apart and together. their growth in character really made it so mych better. i really love a “right person wrong time”/second chance trope. it breaks my heart and glues it back together in such a meaningful way and cook got it perfect. love love loved it!

This book was such a balm to my soul. After recently reading another meet-cute romance, I expected it to be similar, but the character development of Hannah and Davey were moving and I felt so invested in their futures. After reading the book, the author discussed her own experiences with what Davey and Hannah had gone through and for that the book felt more meaningful and thoughtful.

Cute, cute, cute!!! I love text/email romance stories. Those are my favorites my only issue with this book was the separation of the text. Like who was saying what. It got kind of confusing but other than that this author did amazing in the writing.

Sadly this one was a DNF for me. Thank you again for the ARC but I will not be reviewing on platforms. It just didn't meet what I expected of the book.

Super cute romcom that was easy to get lost in. I loved the way they met (wrong number moment) and the path it leads them down.

Great book to get your mind off of anything crazy or heavy!

Elle Cook's The Man I Never Met is an easy read, told from alternating viewpoints. The premise: two strangers on opposite continents cross paths virtually, strike up a friendship, and then it evolves into something with more potential. The conflict: the long-anticipated meetup cannot happen; is it over between them? Is there still hope for more?

We follow Davey and Hannah in their respective lives, watching them struggle but also find a measure of contentment and peace apart from each other.

As a whole, my main criticism of this book boils down to me believing that there is not only one soulmate for anyone. My husband and I are approaching our twentieth anniversary; we are well suited to each other and continue to be friends and care about and love each other. I am better because of him being in my life. However, if we had not met, I have no doubt we both could have had happiness with another partner, even if our lives would have looked different and we'd taken different paths. This book supposes that if the soulmate gets away, there is no hope for a truly happy future with another. This can lead to the alternate partners to be portrayed with almost-suitable-but-not-quite characterizations. On the surface, they seem as if they would suit, but then glaring issues arise. I fully recognize my view of the world doesn't translate well to a meaningful story, but all the same, I would have preferred the substitutes wouldn't have been such sub-par alternatives.

I always appreciate hearing of what motivations lead an author to write, and we learn at the close of the book that this genre was a departure for the author, having come about during the pandemic as well as some inspiration from her husband's life. It's a pleasant read, even with my minor quibbles.

(I received a digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.)

This one was definitely hard to put down towards the end, and should definitely be made into a movie! There were so many times I could feel the suspense, the buildup, the excitement, and could hear the appropriate music in my head as I was reading it! The beginning was a little all over the place which made it hard to get into at first, but I'm so glad I stuck with it! I loved all the protagonists, and I especially loved to hate the antagonists! Most people have probably dealt with these kinds of people in their lives too.

I feel like this is a great case for the phrase "people come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime" as always, make sure you read the author's notes.

Who would have thought that an accidental misdial would lead to some of the most honest conversations Hannah has ever had in her life and then to suddenly have them taken away leaving Hannah heartbroken and confused. Hannah and Davey start out slowly getting to know each other via texts then phone calls and video chats until Davey finally arrives in London only for their plans to halt completely when Davey is diagnosed with cancer and cuts Hannah off. Hannah and Davey “move on” with their lives making choices but always thinking or trying not to think of the other until fate intervenes again in an unexpected place.

I liked the realness of this story and liked that it was told in dual POVs but I wish we got more of Davey’s pov especially early on. I wanted to see things from Davey’s view and to really feel what he was going through especially early on when he and Hannah were getting to know each other. Miranda (and Paul) and Joan are the perfect friends for Hannah and really supported her. I was not a fan of George from the get go and how he made her so self conscious. I wish the story didn’t wrap up so quickly- I wanted to see more of Hannah and Davey actually together.


Thank you publishers and @netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

From reading the premise, I knew I was going to enjoy this book and it hit all the right points for me. Romantic, fate, meant to be, believe, trust and following your heart through the good and bad. I adored this story and thought the plot was brilliant. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to the author, publishers, and NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC of this book!

Unfortunately, I choose to DNF this book after Chapter 2. The premise of the book is was drew me in, but in my opinion, the story was too slow for me. I tried to see if the mystery of Davey would keep me interested, but I lost interest fairly quickly.

I was not able to become a fan of any of the characters introduced so far due to how slow and how little we got to know about them. The main character seemed relatively generic and a bit bland. The only character that seemed mildly interesting was Joan.

I think there is an audience for this book, and hope that people who are interested in the plot will give it a shot.

I love this kind of story, which is becoming harder and harder to imagine in this digital age. This is a reminiscent of 90s rom com era but let me be very upfront this is not a rom com.. Hannah answers the phone and on the other end is Davey, an American. It was a wrong number and she never expects to hear from him again. Not long after she gets a text that he is moving to London and he got the job. Over the next month their texts turn to phone calls and a real friendship is formed. I don't want to say too much more because it is truly best to go into this one blind.

Thank you #RandomHouse and #NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Man I Never Met by Elle Cook is one of those books I wish I could read again for the first time. It reminded me in spirit of Landline without the magical realism elements.

It builds off the concept of how one phone call from a wrong number can change your life. What if that call happens to be from your soulmate?

That is exactly what happens to Hannah.- although fate intervenes in some really challenging and poignant ways.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

A beautifully written deeply emotional story. Hannah and Davey have an adorable “meet cute” via a misdialed phone call from across the ocean. They slowly get to know each other and develop a wonderful friendship, but each hope that this is just the beginning for them. Hannah shows up to meet him at the airport and is shocked to find herself all alone while holding a sign with his name on it. She has seemingly been ghosted and she is perplexed and devastated. When she finally finds out why she is knocked off her axis. The question is can they both move forward without each other knowing how good they’d have been together? I adored this book. The writing, the people, the emotions….all of it. I really hope that someone has optioned this for a movie.

This is a beautifully written love story with some heartbreaking components. I could not wait to see how it ended.
I was gifted a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Delightful, funny, and heartwarming! The Man I Never Met is a delicious romance that is hard to put down. Highly recommend!