A perfectly told friends to lovers, second chance romance set in a coastal town in the PNW. Imogen is pretty sure she's cursed. Every relationship she's ever been in she's been left for someone better. Not to mention, her witchy mom had a premonition when she was younger that she'd never be first at anything, and so far.. she's been right. When she's called back to her hometown to take care of her ailing mother, she's finally accepting her fate of always being a failure, until her old best friend (and secret crush) also returns to town. Reunited, they set out on a journey to break Imogen's curse once and for all. This story was adorable. I really enjoyed the messy, relatable characters and their growth throughout the book. The chemistry between ImogenEliot was great and I loved how they were falling in love with each other while also prioritizing themselves and what they each needed at the time. They were always honest with each other and never held the other back and that was something really refreshing to read, however at the same time I wasn't in love with the ending, which made it a 4 star book for me. I just thought Imogen deserved more after everything she'd been through and it seemed like a little let down.

Edit: I've been thinking a lot about this book since I've finished it and I decided to change my rating to 5 stars. Sometimes it is what it is. I can't wait to recommend this to my book club friends!

You'll easily love this book with your whole heart...at least I did! For fans of second chance, friends to strangers to lovers, and steamy romcoms, The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch will deliver exactly what you crave! Imogen and Eliot were close friends when they were younger but as they grew up, they also grew apart. Imogen went on to pursue her dream of being an artist before she had to devastatingly return home to care for her ill mother who revealed a potential curse of heartbreak that Imogen was destined for. With this predicted curse on her mind, Imogen was surprised to find Eliot had also returned home after traveling all over the world the past few years. With both of these estranged best friends together in the same small town, funny shenanigans, inspiring revelations, and blossoming love ensue and Imogen and Eliot realize heartbreak may not be a magical curse, when their burgeoning love is the magic itself! Definitely check this one out when it releases in October so you can understand why it's so meaningful to them and so you can fall in love with these two cuties yourself!

I was happily surprised with the depth there was to this romance. The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch is a quiet romance that mingles grief and love in a way that feels real; it never feels overdone or shallow...it hits just right.

There were funny moments sprinkled in but truly this one is emotional and surprisingly heartfelt.

I love this book so much - it’s about curses and second chances, and beach towns and found family. It’s absolutely beautiful and heartwarming- my heart expanded several sizes. Oh and it’s sexy.

Read this if you liked Every Summer After - very similar

10 * stars. I loved this beautiful and emotional love story. It was so wonderful to see these two broken people find love for themselves, love for each other, and ultimately their happily ever afters. This author never disappoints.

This one was just barely okay for me. I didn’t really like Imogene. I couldn’t get behind the “competition” and the story just never pulled me in.

loved this romance and her trying to find love and finding herself. loved the friends and and the romance. I would read this author again. I really enjoyed the pacing and how the story and the character worked things out.

This was a fun story with messy characters who get a second chance at love. Quick read, very heartwarming.

As with Marlowe Banks, Redesigned, I was happily surprised with the depth there was to this romance. The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch is a quiet romance that mingles grief and love in a way that feels real; it never feels overdone or shallow...it hits just right.

In this novel, Imogen Finch is coming off her kazillionth break up when Eliot Swift, the true owner of her heart, returns to town to take care of things after the death of his father. Fairly quickly we learn that both Imogen and Eliot consider the other one 'the one that got away' and they decide to take some time to explore what being together would be like. Interspersed with that are little vignettes of Imogen's various failed love affairs and snapshots of town life in their home town, a town Eliot couldn't run away from fast enough when he graduated from high school. And mixed in with all of that is an exploration of what it means to love yourself, what it means to be responsible to and for others, and what it means to truly give space to those around you to grow and learn about themselves.

While there are some funny moments, I felt a sense of nostalgia and longing tinged throughout and it's that combo that enriched an already good read. When you throw in some really interesting secondary characters and a moodiness that almost begs you to sit back and reflect on your own evolution, how can you not enjoy The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch.

AHHH 💖💖💖💖💖💖💖
Just from the title & cover itself, I knew this was going to be good. And yes, from the first chapter to the last, I like this so much. so much love for this!! putting this in my favorites list

A heartwarming love story with relatable characters. I loved every moment.
Second chance romance that pulled at my heart a few times. Read in one sitting will be looking forward to more books by this author

This was just fine to me. It took a long time for me to get hooked, and then the hook did not keep me riveted, and I kept looking to see how much I had to read to finish.

Imogen Finch is someone who has always put the needs of others above her own, always placing herself second. She is an artist that has come home to take care of her mom and instead of working on art, she takes many different jobs to help make ends meet.

There of course, is a love interest, someone she has shared an unrequited love since High school and this is a sweet addition to the story. I would raise my stars to 4 if it was not so long to me.

Thank you the @netgalley for the preview.

The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch presented a sweet second-chance romance with a slight twist: Imogen knows she will never come first in anything. It was predicted by her mother and her mother's predictions always come true! Her struggle to reconcile this knowledge with the budding romance she finds herself in with her childhood friend was wonderful to read. The insecurities Imogen struggled with felt real, and Eliot was a wonderful love interest to counter them.

The side characters added real depth to the book, with Imogen's mother and friend Franny being portrayed as actual humans with feelings, lives, and goals. The town of Pitt's Corner was also one of the best settings for a romance novel I've seen in a while!

You might think you know where this book is going, but you don't! Or maybe you do. The main quibble that I had with this book is that the author seemed like she actually couldn't decide how she wanted this book to end. You might not be able to have your cake and eat it too, but this book is essentially the equivalent of getting to eat part of your cake and pretending to be satisfied when you get to keep the frosting. But the frosting wasn't even the good part of the cake. So you aren't actually satisfied. Just like I was unsatisfied by the ending of this book.

I expected a cutesy little read but was surprised with all the depth and detail of the story.
I appreciated how the MC found her worth not in a relationship and how therapy was viewed as a positive thing.

I didn’t appreciate the sec scenes that seemingly came out of no where. I prefer more closed-door books.

A gorgeous, poignant romance that touches on the meaning of home and found family. Firkins elevates her game with this touching tale of second chances and first loves. One of the best romances I’ve read this year.

I really wanted to love this one and I did start off loving it, but along the way I kept getting distracted and I felt like it didn’t really hold my attention. I don’t think I really connected to the love story and it felt like it dragged on. There were definitely some moments I loved and I enjoyed it enough to keep picking it up, but I did struggle through it a bit.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for this ARC!

This is a wonderful read! One of my biggest takeaways from the story is how the author just GETS her readers. I found this to be a relatable read and I know many women will feel the same. The cast of characters were excellent!

A solid five stars for this touching and endearing novel. Imogene and Eliot were friends as children and as teens. He broke her heart and she never answered any of his texts or emails. Back together in the same town, they cannot help but cross paths. I found that the personalities of Imogene and Eliot reached out and grabbed my heart with every insecurity and personal obsessions. I really enjoyed the novel.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a cute second chance/friends to lovers romance, with introspection and growth by both the female and male protagonists. There's a nice amount of tension, angst, few steamy bits, and fun supporting characters. It kept me so thoroughly entertained that I finished it in one sitting on a long flight.

CW: infidelity, death of parent(s), plane crash (recounted), depression (recounted)

I would like to thank St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for inviting me to review a free e-ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Imogen Finch has always been second best. Whether it’s her on-hold dreams of becoming an artist or the seventeen times she’s been cheated on, she’s learning to kind of be okay with always being second after the ominous prediction her mother made about her twenty years ago. But, when her childhood friend and secret crush, Eliot Swift, comes back to town after being gone for a decade, he decides that now is the time to break the prediction by giving Imogen her first win and through various competitions, Imogen wonders if her predicament can finally be broken.

Now, it’s not that I don’t like this book, but it was just really meh. While Firkins does a great job with creating interesting characters, it all falls flat in the most boring of plots. For me, there wasn’t a lot to keep my attention and some parts dragged on way longer than necessary. As for the whole “cure” plot, I felt sorry for Imogen and I wondered why Imogen’s mom thought it was necessary for her to know about it (especially as a kid). I also had a hard time dealing with suspending my belief at the ways Imogen’s curse interferes with her life since it didn’t really make any sense.

Don’t get me wrong, I thought Imogen was a great MC. I think a lot of people can relate to her struggles of being a people pleaser and the book’s message that it’s okay to put yourself first. I did enjoy the relationship between Imogen and Eliot and I was rooting for them to stay together.

I really wanted to like The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch since I enjoyed Firkins’ debut novel when I got an e-ARC for it last year (Marlowe Banks, Redesigned), I don’t think this book was for me. If you’re a reader who doesn’t mind suspending their beliefs for a second chance rom-com with a hint of magical realism, you might get something out of this book.