Thank you to St. Martin's and NetGalley for sending me a copy of this eARC. All opinions expressed are solely my own.

This one had such an interesting premise: being able to see how the end of Imogen's relationship with turn out before it starts. The execution of it wasn't what I was expecting, though. It fell a little bit flat for me.

I wasn't really into the whole "high school crush comes back and is like the savior-god" complex they had going for Eliot. The weird friendship/situationship they had going on between the friend group didn't make sense to me either because it almost negated their closeness as friends and if not, then they just weren't very good friends.

I didn't like that Imogen ended up being second choice again, but I also was hoping Imogen would pick a certain person in the book but alas it was not meant to be.

Don't let me deter you -- others will love this one, it's just not for me!

2.5/5

I liked it more than I thought I would. It was a quick read and a beautiful story about friendship and love.

Imogen believes she is under a curse, that she cannot ever be first in anything she tries. This prophecy has then tempered everything she has tried, impacting her choices. Additionally, she is tied to her hometown to care for an aging parent who needs extra attention for safety. As a result, her life has stalled, as she feels quite stuck.

However, the tide is about to turn for her, when Imogen's first and real love, Eliot, returns to town after his father has passed. The two work through her curse and his emotions related to his family, while they also face their feelings for one another.

What I had hoped to be an interesting story with a unique premise read instead as frustrating and difficult to get through. I liked the premise, but I did have to skim read at times and jump to the end to see how it all worked out. I think it is a good book, just not written in a style I liked.

4.5 stars

This book got to me. I didn't see how it could ever possibly end well. I even shed a tear or two. The only thing missing was an epilogue. I would have liked to have seen how things played out 6 months or a year later.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this digital ARC in return for an honest review.

The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch by Jacqueline Firkins

Published: October 31, 2023
St. Martin’s Griffin
Genre: Contemporary Women’s Literature
Pages: 343
KKECReads Rating: 4/5
I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.

Jacqueline Firkins is a writer, costume designer, and lover of beautiful things. She's on the fulltime faculty in the Department of Theatre & Film at the University of British Columbia where she also takes any writing class they’ll let her into. When not obsessing about where to put the buttons or the commas, she can be found running by the ocean, eating excessive amounts of gluten, listening to earnest love songs, and pretending her dog understands every word she says.

This was a complicated story. On one hand, a character keeps putting herself out there trying to find love but always gets hurt. And on the other, of course, a long-lost blast from the past comes in, almost riding a white horse.

I found the writing style engaging, and the storyline was entertaining. There were some mystical elements, but nothing over the top. I found the character development and use of side characters well done.

There was a bit of humor mixed in, but this was kind of a sad one. I wish we could stop writing stories where the main characters don’t feel whole or fulfilled without a partner. We are not half simply because we are single.

There was a lot of insightfulness to Imogen that endeared her to me, and I wanted her to get everything she wanted. Overall, this was a good book, but not necessarily my cup of tea.

The book The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch was an enjoyable read. I would recommend any book written by Jacqueline Firkins. Happy Reading!

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely.

Since The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch is published by Saint Martin's Press, I will not be continuing with this book because of their silence against an employee's hatred towards Palestine. #SpeakUpSMP

I will provide a review when the St Martin's Press boycott is resolved and they acknowledge the harm they have caused.

The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Jacqueline Firkins

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Imogen Finch has just been through her seventeenth breakup. She saw it coming, so she's not as crushed as she might be, but with all seventeen of her exes leaving her for other partners, she's come to believe a prediction her well-intentioned and possibly clairvoyant mother made over twenty years ago: that Imogen would never come first at anything or to anyone. Is her love life failing due to a magical curse? Insufficient effort? Poor timing or personality mismatches? Everyone has opinions on the matter. Imogen's ready to give up altogether. But when Eliot Swift, her secret high school crush, returns to their small coastal town after a decade of nomadic travels, Imogen has new motivation to try again. Eliot's full of encouragement. He suggests that her curse is not only imagined, it's easily breakable. All they need is one win--any win--and she can believe in love, and in herself again.

From trivia games to swimming races to corn-shucking contests, the pair sets out to snag Imogen her first first. But when victory proves more elusive than Eliot anticipated, and when his deep-seeded wanderlust compels him to depart for far away places, Imogen fears she's destined to remain in second place forever. Fortunately for them both, sometimes magic lingers in the most unexpected places. And love is far from predictable.

My Thoughts: Imogen Finch is an uninspired artist that has been dumped seventeenth (17) times. Imogen believes she has been cursed by her mother, whom predicted that Imogen would never be anyone’s first or anything’s first. Enter Eliot Swift who returns home after ten long years. When they were growing up, Imogen, Eliot, and Franny were thick as thieves, until Eliot left. Eliot believes that Imogen can break this “magical” curse if she falls in love. They set on a path to find Imogen a win. This follows the tropes of second chance romance, small town, and friends to lovers.

The story is narrated in third person with flashbacks of some of the failed relationships. Going through some of the failed relationships was heartbreaking and you could see that Imogen definitely deserves better. Some of the scenes between our MCs are sweet and endearing and really moved my heart. You could really see the connection that they shared and that still burns bright. The chemistry was strong between the MCs, and I loved how they communicated, it just worked for them. The characters were developed well with depth, witty banter, chemistry, a true emotional connection, and were creatively woven throughout the story. The author’s writing style was complex, funny, thought-provoking, slightly poignant, intriguing, and engaging.

This was a beautiful, slightly sad story that I really enjoyed. The story will cause a roller coaster of emotions. I laughed, I cried, I was joyful, and I was sad. The only con is that it took too long to get to the romance part of the story. I loved Firkins previous book and this one, both following the same format. I highly recommend this to other readers.

Great story of a wonderful friendship and … really true love. I loved the setting and the idea of the past coming back to help, not haunt!

The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch was… well… predictable. It does say it right in the title, so I suppose we were warned. This was a pretty sweet story although I found the characters to be a bit one-note. It was an easy read that I’m sure many would find enjoyable.

This was a cute enough second chance / friends to lovers book. I enjoyed the spice level, but over all never really fell fully into the story.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Friends-to-lovers is my favorite trope and this was a great one! I enjoyed every page!

Jacqueline Firkins writes emotions so well! I absolutely loved how troubled both Imogen and Eliot were, and how they worked to get through their issues to be better for the other person. I also loved the dynamic that the three friends had when they were together, but a lot of the time I was annoyed about the fact that Eliot just stopped talking to them after he left the first time (especially due to them being so close) and that it's never really justified in the book. Other than that, I loved the setting and I thought that it was a very enjoyable read.

I really liked the premise, but unfortunately didn't feel that the execution hit the mark.

I'm all for having some magical elements in stories, but I found it really hard to suspend my disbelief over Imogen's mother's clairvoyance and how Imogen is literally incapable of coming first in anything. I think the story itself sometimes waffled over whether it was truly a curse or if Imogen was sabotaging herself, which didn't help. It really made it difficult to believe Imogen's bad fortune and sympathize with her.

Additionally, I didn't really believe Imogen and Eliot's romance or relationship. They seemed to be from entirely different worlds and altogether too messy to really compromise or work together. The kind of love triangle between Imogen, Eliot, and Franny, and that entire situation was just really jarring and fraught with miscommunication.

Honestly, it was at times sweet and heartfelt, but perhaps too bogged down in angst, slow pacing, and flat characterization.

This book was sweet and fun; all the feels for a light hearted read! Imogen is a likable heroine that you’ll be sure to root for.

Imogen Finch has had a crush on Eliot Swift for as long as she can remember. However, he always seemed more interested in their mutual friend Franny, even taking Franny to the prom in high school. As soon as they all graduated, Eliot escaped their small town (and his overbearing family), swearing never to return.

In the years since, Imogen has kept tabs on Eliot's life through his YouTube channel and occasional updates from Franny. But when Eliot's father dies and Eliot unexpectedly returns to their small town, Imogen can't imagine watching him leave again.

It doesn't help that every guy she has ever dated hasn't been "the One," because none of them have been Eliot. And Imogen's mother is a bit fae and spouts predictions that no one wants to hear. Yet Imogen returned home after college instead of pursuing her own dreams to make sure that her mother was safe and looked after. Unfortunately, that has consigned Imogen to a life of always seeking to please others, to feel worthy of being loved.

So, when she's faced with Eliot's return, it opens a Pandora's box filled with longing, crushed dreams, fears of the future, and so much more. She's usually able to hide all of that from everyone who knows her. But Eliot's always known her better than she even knows herself.

This friends-to-lovers romance was sweet in a lot of ways, but a bit too spicy for my taste, although nicely balanced with moments of genuine intimacy as well.

Thank you to Jacqueline Firkins, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

Rating 3.5/5
(Rounded to 4)

Imogen Finch has never had good luck in the relationship department, in fact she is apparently cursed to always come in second and never win at anything. But when Eliot, the only guy she has ever loved, comes back home Imogen has no idea what to do. Eliot hasn’t talked to her in years since leaving after graduation. But Imogen and Eliot soon pick up like no time has gone by. As awkward talks are had Imogen and Eliot open up about past regrets and feelings. But will Eliot stick around this time and stay connected or has Imogen’s curse made sure their newfound romance will fail?

This romance was very angsty, but I appreciated how much each character had to use introspection and work on themselves and their mental health issues. This was a well written second chance romance.

I loved everything about this book!!! One of the best second chance romance books I’ve read in a long time and one of my favorite tropes! I found myself thinking about the plot of this book after I had finished it!

<i>I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

I wasn't expecting this to hit so hard or go so deep!

At first, I struggled to get into it. It seemed slow, almost plodding, and wasn't holding my interest. But then Eliot and Imogen starting talking about dreams set aside and I was hooked. That moment was poignant and honest and raw and real -- it resonated with me to an uncomfortable degree.

The charachters were great! I loved each of them, even Eliot's awful mother. They're nuanced and quirky and felt like friends.

I understand why this is working the romance market but the romance almost seemed secondary to me. Sure, it's steamy and full of UST and everything delicious! But it was more a story about working on yourself, about being the best version of yourself FOR YOURSELF.

This is a story of restlessness and grief, of care and dreams deferred, of change and taking charge of your fate.

I definitely recommend it but prepare yourself for depth!