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.

It was just ok for, Imogen letting everyone run over her and read over and over how these guys chose someone else over her was not for me, I couldn’t not think of this other women who would take a guy who was with someone else two minutes ago and didn’t care to hurt them, that put me off and I could never recover.

This was a fun, yet emotional second chance romance. I enjoyed the way this story unfolded. I liked the flashbacks to the previous relationships that Imogene had. They were both heartbreaking and funny. 17 breakups is rough. I found Imogene to be a very likable character. She was very relatable, well minus the curse!

I really enjoyed both Imogene and Eliot’s characters, but I’m not sure I really I was invested in them being together. It felt like they would both be settling and Imogene deserved more. I was personally a Dutch fan myself.

Even though the ending wasn’t as satisfying as I had hoped it would be, I’d still recommend this book to readers who enjoy emotional romances with lots of great side characters.

Thank you Netgalley and publishers for this ebook arc!

Second chance love tropes are my weakness. And this one does not disappoint. The characters are unique, the storyline kept me wanting more and their development and self awareness was mind blowing. Thank you

The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch, by Jacqueline Firkins, is a bit of a heartbreaking story with surprising depth. It’s a story about Imogen Finch, who seems to be cursed as second best in all things, including love. Imogen has suffered through seventeen breakups and has given up on love, even while longing for more. When her old friend and quiet crush, Eliot, moves back to town, things change. He believes the curse can be broken, and from there the antics and adventures begin.

Whereas Imogen is a charming character, her mother was someone I didn’t quite care for. This story is eventually a sweet, authentic romance, and though not light-hearted, it is heart-warming and thoughtful.

Not my favorite read by this author but still very good! I wanted to know more on the back story of Imogen’s mom and her need for so much care. The rekindled friendship of Eliot, Imogen, and Franny was a good one and I loved how franny pushed to make sure imogen was always happy. Overall, a great read!

Beautiful cover and concept, but unfortunately this read wasn't for me. I would try another book by this author, however, because I liked the idea of this story.

**Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.**

It took me a little while to get into this, but I ended up loving it! Imogen has been second at everything in her life, something her mother predicted. Then her childhood crush and best friend, Eliot returns to town for his father’s funeral. Ever since graduating, Eliot has been on the move, traveling the world. I loved seeing their friendship progress into more even if they weren’t sure how much time they’ll have together. I loved how Eliot spent time convincing Imogen that she was first and deserved so much better. She had so many terrible past boyfriends and it was nice to see her get what she deserved. I also liked seeing her get to celebrate her art and spend more time on herself.

I enjoyed this book. You really have to feel for Imogen. I know my heart simply ached for her. I also like her and Eliot a lot. The story was entertaining and tugs firmly on your heartstrings.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5 stars
🔥🔥 - 2 spicy scenes, moderate details

[ thank you @smpromance & @netgalley for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own! ]

PUB DATE: October 31, 2023 (out now!)

THOUGHTS:

This was a cute second chance romance! I really enjoyed this story, it flowed well and kept me engaged the entire time.

I really liked Imogen & Eliot as individuals and in their relationship. Were they cute? Yes. The chemistry was there, I loved the little knee taps. But I struggled because these two have very different lives and it was hard to see it working? I wish we had just a glimpse in an epilogue or something to see how it would work. I was stressed at the end because for a moment, I didn’t see this as an HEA (happily ever after). Don’t worry, it is but maybe not your typical HEA? I don’t know, I just needed more at the end.

Now don’t get me wrong, it was cute. I loved seeing the friendship with Franny, Imogen, and Eliot. I liked the town community. But wanted more from the romance side of it!

This was a great second chance romance. I loved Imogen and her big heart! My only qualm is that I felt unfulfilled as far as Imogen’s relationship with Eliot. I would love to know it works out for her, but I still don’t feel sure after having time to reflect.

This is not my usual go to trope so my expectations weren’t set super high. I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed this one.

I have chosen to withhold my review of The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch in accordance with the boycott of reviewing and platforming titles published under St. Martin’s Press and associated imprints. As a company, St. Martin’s Press has yet to meaningfully acknowledge and address the harm caused by a marketing employee who perpetuated Islamophobic sentiments against those of Palestinian descent specifically, and has a documented history of discriminating against readers of Arab heritage in general. As a reader, I refuse to participate, even passively, in perpetuating harm.

Once action is taken by St. Martin’s Press as a company to address the harm caused, I will upload my review of The Predictable
Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch.

Just like Firkins’ debut, I absolutely devoured this book!
What I loved:
Lush evocative prose that situates you in the quirky small town setting as you’re reading.
Characters with flaws and insecurities the author doesn’t flinch away from portraying.
A satisfying, slow burn, mutual obliviousness pining romance that will make you swoon.
Recommended for readers of Kate Clayborn and Emily Henry..

This book was a fun and charming read. Imogen and Eliot were so sweet together. I loved how they pushed each other to evolve and grow. But long, drawn-out, angsty conflict isn’t really my thing. So the last third of the book just didn’t really do it for me even though it was well-written.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
The synopsis of this book sounded interesting to me so I requested a copy to read.
Unfortunately, I have tried reading this book on 2 separate occasions and during this 2nd attempt, I have
decided to stop reading this book
and state that this book just wasn't for me.
I wish the author, publisher and all those promoting the book much success and connections with the right readers.

I really liked this book. It was a nice romance with some real depth to the characters that made their story and their struggles believable and relatable. I appreciate in a book when the things keeping characters apart feel real and not a trope.

A heartfelt story about friendship and finding love from one of my favorite authors. I was so hyped for this book that's been getting such rave reviews. Unfortunately it wasn't quite the romance I wanted.

Imogen's clairvoyant mother predicts that she will never come first in life or love and I really hated how that sort of became a self-fulfilling prophecy. The one guy Imogen's always loved is her globe-trotting best friend Elliot and when he comes home to deal with a family death he determines to stay for a while and try to help Imogen break her cursed love life.

I was rooting for Imogen and Eliot hardcore and while the book is filled with great scenes between them and their other friend, Franny, he still takes waaaay to long to choose Imogen and I found myself rooting for the other guy more if I'm totally honest.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review. Lots of people have loved this one and I guess I just wanted more of a romance focused story and less of journey of self-discovery for the MMC (who had a LOT of issues to work through).

This was a cute book, but not a top favorite of mine. I really loved certain aspects of this book; in particular, dealing with grief, family matters, mental health and discovering of ones selves. Learning to put yourself first and self care - all very prominent in this novel.

However, I wasn't sold on a few strange parts. Imogen and her 17 breakups. SO MANY BREAKUPS and all for the same reasons. They all left for others. I just couldn't put my finger on the reality of 17 men all leaving her for other women. I couldn';t grasp her 300 jobs. And I couldn't quite wrap myself around a childhood friend being 100% out of her life, coming back and rekindling things within a day and falling in love within a few. Then being off, o, off, on. It was just all very messy and a little unrealistic (lets not get into the mother predicting things).

Alas, it was still a cute book. Just not something I went crazy for.