From the title, we know that Imogen and relationships don’t work but we hope for the best. All the contests that are attempted are amusing but sadly reinforce her curse. I wanted a magical cure but it’s not that easy. I really wanted Eliot to wake up and fortunately Imogen convinces him to seek therapy.
I don’t want to spoil the story. It’s categorized as a romance and it ultimately is but for me it was really too little, too late.

I’m a sucker for a good second chance romance and Jacqueline Firkins’ new novel The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch is one of the sweetest ones I’ve read in a long time.

When Imogen was younger, her mother tells her that she is cursed to never take first place in anything she does, including in her love life. Her mom’s prophecies tend to come true, so Imogen isn’t surprised when she loses every sport she plays, every art contest she enters, and she isn’t even surprised when every guy she dates eventually tells her that he has met someone better. She has come to accept the curse for what it is and to just live with it. That is, until Eliot, Imogen’s secret crush from high school, unexpectedly returns to town and appears to take an interest in her. Imogen suddenly finds herself motivated to see if there is a way to break this curse once and for all.

Imogen is an immensely likeable character. She has a huge heart and is always looking out for others, so everything about the curse just broke my heart and made me so angry on her behalf. As soon as I saw how much she clearly still had feelings for Eliot, I was rooting so hard for the two of them to find their way to each other.

I also really liked Eliot and that he is Imogen’s biggest cheerleader when it comes to trying to break the curse. He believes that if she can just score one win, in absolutely anything, that everything will change for Imogen and so he makes it his mission to take her around town trying out any possible game and contest from trivia games to corn-shucking contests to try to score that elusive first place. I loved his determination and I especially enjoyed that it led to so many cute moments between them. Eliot’s nomadic lifestyle had me a little concerned and angsty that a happily ever after might not be an option, but that did not stop me from hoping.

The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch is a moving story with a hint of magic that while sometimes sad, is ultimately heartwarming and uplifting. Give it a read and I’m sure Imogen and Eliot will capture your heart just like they did mine.

I loved this book! I was really rooting for the main characters and wanted them to find their connection. I enjoyed every page.

Thank you to Griffin and NetGalley for my complimentary eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch is a wonderful story of love, second chances and faith. Although it has quite the tear jerker ending, I really enjoyed it. I was pleasantly surprised at all the little bits of magical realism throughout the story.
I knew my heart would be broken and I had faith it would all be worth it in the end.

So many fun and lighthearted when Eliot and Imogen decide to break her curse of never being first. Even though they try so hard something always seems to go wrong. The pancake story had me laughing out loud.

My favorite part “Eliot slips a knitting needle out of the patch of ribbing I made tonight. He gently unplucks a row of stitches. Then he eases the needle back into place.” I thought my heart would burst.

Perfect if you enjoy
Second chance romance
Magical realism
Friends to Lovers

The curse aspect of this book was Great and unique. I just couldn’t get into the romance she should have ended up with her other love interest

I really enjoyed this one. I expected something a bit more cutesy based on the description, which is to say that I expected them to fall in love over a series of contests designed to help Imogen break her always-a-runner-up curse.

What I got was a second chance love story, with two characters kept apart not by a curse or lack of (or lopsided) love, but by their own hang-ups: Imogen, who does for others before she does for herself; and Eliot, who is constantly avoiding the family who never loved him well and the life that never fit him. I liked that acknowledging their love didn't come with an instant cure-all for all their problems, and that their happily-ever-after moment took work and some self-explorations.

Fun and rounded cast of side characters, plus a sweet, small-town vibe.

Definitely recommend.

This is my feedback for the predictable heartbreaks of Imogen finch. I did enjoy this book and am very thankful I was able to preview this book in advance.

Imogen Finch's life in Pitt's Corner, Oregon, is far from the dreams of an aspiring artist. Since she's come back to care for her possibly clairvoyant mom, her creative spark seems to have dimmed. Her mom's eerie prediction that Imogen would never be anyone's first choice haunts her, especially after a string of 17 breakups and a stalled career. But things start to change when her childhood best friend and secret crush, Eliot Swift, returns after a decade.

Despite Imogen's sunny outlook, she struggles with self-doubt, a theme that's heartbreakingly evident in the stories of her past relationships woven throughout the book. Eliot's return initially worries me, given Imogen's unspoken love for him. But their connection is beautifully written, filled with romantic moments and a shared mission to help Imogen win at something, anything. Their bond is strong, playful, and deeply touching.

This story is a bittersweet mix of joy and sorrow. Imogen is the kind of character you root for, selfless and big-hearted, yet unsure of her own worth. Eliot, with his wandering spirit, initially sets off alarm bells, but his love and respect for Imogen are clear and heartwarming. Their relationship, along with the protective community around Imogen, adds layers of depth to the story. It's a poignant tale that made me laugh and cry, typical of Firkin's unique style. I'm definitely looking forward to reading more of her work.

Thanks St Martin's Press!

I received a digital ARC from St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I loved Imogen, Eliot, and the rest of the quirky characters in this novel. The small town where everyone knows everyone, and everything, made for an entertaining read.

I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this charming story of self-esteem, love and taking risks. I’m sharing my review voluntarily. I usually give myself the out of DNR if I’m not into a book by 25%. With this story, I was hooked at 5%. I loved that the story got started right away. The characters were well developed and lovely. The setting was immediately visualized in my mind and I loved every minute of being in this small coastal community. The premise of Imogen being cursed felt a little played out at times but it evolved beautifully. I wish I could read this again for the first time.

After reading and somewhat enjoying Firkin's last novel (Marlowe Banks, Redesigned), I didn't have high expectations going into Imogen Finch. I liked the author's writing style, so I decided to give her another go before writing her off as not for me...and I am so glad that I did.

This is another prime example of "Never judge an author by the first book you read by them." Because if I had, I would have missed this delight of a novel.

rating: 4 STARS
genre: romance, women's fiction
release date: 10.31.2023 (OUT NOW)

I think it's important to start this review with this fact: This is NOT a straightforward romance. While there are elements of falling in love and second chance romance, this is more about a woman's journey to fall back in love with herself than it is falling in love with someone else. Imogen spends much of the novel lamenting about how she never comes first - she's never the love of someone's life, she never wins a contest, she never gets the job. Ever since her eccentric mother predicted that she would always be second, and with her mother's visions almost always coming true, Imogen had no reason to think otherwise.

She never threw her whole heart into a relationship.
She never truly reached for the stars with her art.
She accepted that her best friend was better and more well liked than she was.

But then everything changes when her childhood crush comes back...and it turns out, he's into her too. And has been for a long, long time. And he shows her there's more than one way to come in first.

Things I liked:
I enjoyed the dynamics between the three main characters. I totally believed that they were best friends who had lost touch but could pick right back up.
Elliot & Imogen's relationship was honestly very cute. Because it wasn't big moments - it was a lot of small moments.
Imogen was such a realistic character. Right down to the bad breakup haircut.
The narration was very good! I listened to this one in about a day and couldn't stop.

I think if you're looking for a sad, sweet book about a woman finding herself, then this would be a good book to grab!

Brilliant execution! I couldn't put this one down! The characters are beautiful, complicated, messy, and so full of life and love that you can't help but connect to them. The friendships and relationships are just the same, which makes them that much better. I loved how this story unfolded and I was not at all disappointed with the ending.

Well done, Jacqueline Firkins! 👏👏👏 I am looking forward to reading more stories from this brilliant mind!

Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for sharing this digital ARC with me in exchange for my honest review.

Ok so I read this one just a couple of weeks ago and already forgot what it was about, I guess a 3 is pretty spot on for that. Imogen has recently been dumped but as with all her relationships it's not really a surprise. She has known from a young age that she will never be anybody's first and lives this each time she is broken up with for another woman. Things begin to change as her childhood best friend comes back to town and they pick up their friendship like he never left. Imogen must learn that maybe she never put her self first so how can others put her there as well. I felt this one was more woman's fiction than romance and I think thats where I struggled with it. I do really enjoy this authors writing so I will be picking up books by them in the future, this one just fell a bit flat for me. Thank you St. Martin's Press for my gifted copy for review.

i hope imogen gained some self confidence after even this book/story ended. it was such a nice story showing how you keep learning new things when relationships end and try to figure out the why if it isn't clear

Oh, love and heartache seem to go hand in hand, I am a sucker for first love books, and complicated childhoods, I found this story endearing with lots of love and hope, power of friendship and who you call family.

Imogen Finch believes she is cursed in love; seventeen breakups is not proof then I don't what is. She puts everyone first before her own happiness, she is ready to give up on love all together until Eiiot Swift her first high school crush returns home, maybe she can try again.

He is determined to break her unlucky curse, from trivia games to corn shucking, as they grow closer and closer can he put his need to wonder around the world on pause?

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this book for my honest review.

3.5 ⭐️
I enjoyed this one but I just needed a little bit more from it. I really liked Imogen and I could see a lot of myself in her. It made me so sad that she was always doing everything to make everyone else happy but that she was unable to do that for herself. I did enjoy Imogen and Eliot’s relationship but I still don’t really see how it will all work out. I feel like their lives are just too different and neither of them are that willing to change their lives to really be together. I think maybe what I needed was an epilogue to really understand how everything would work. There were just a few too many loose ends in my opinion. This book was very quick and I never felt bored I just didn’t feel as connected to it as I have with other books. Overall, I enjoyed it and the story had some depth to it, I just needed a bit more from the relationship and ending.

Fun and quirky - Imogen Finch was a unique and romantic read with a touch of magic! Imogen is thought to have a curse to always be “second best” in everything in life, especially in her past failed relationships. She was such a great, relatable character. I really enjoyed the childhood friends to lovers/second chance relationship with Eliot - you could feel their chemistry. Something was missing a bit for me, or maybe a little slow through the middle... I can’t put my finger on it. Overall, a fun read!

The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch by Jacqueline Firkins

This was a sweet second chance romance, with lots of funny moments and lessons and growth. Imogen believes she is cursed with never coming in first. And after a long string of terrible breakups, Eliot returns to town and they have a chance to finally act on their teenage feelings.

I really loved these characters, especially Imogen’s mom. Imogen and Eliot seemed meant to be and I loved their chemistry. I read the first half of the book very quickly, but the second half dragged a bit. I don’t know if I loved the writing style. Every scene seemed quite long and drawn out, so even though I was enjoying it, I was ready for the end.

Thank you to @stmartinspress for my early copy with @netgalley!

What a heartbreak and I didn't predict it because I enjoyed this author's previous book: Marlowe Banks, Redesigned. Similar to the name of the town this story takes place in, I really felt like I was in the pits reading this. There was a melancholy as the curse and predictions hovered. Even as our heroine and hero got together, you're just waiting for the doom to drop.

Likely, this atmosphere is crafted but I also struggled with where this story was going in the long run. Sure, we get some small wins along the way -- couples getting together, people learning they're enough to be #1, people realizing they're loved -- but a sprinkling of small wins in what felt like a long read still didn't amount to a good enough book for me to recommend.

What a beautiful and wonderful book! This book was done well with some of my favourite tropes (second chance; friends-to-lovers). I appreciated all of the characters and their respective growths, how the story unfolded, and the slow build-up/unravelling of the love story. Firkins wrote a beautiful book and I highly recommend it. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC. All opinions are my own.