First, I loved the premise; my favourite part of what I read was just the description of the setting and culture. And the beginning, setting up Madi's story was engaging. The problem was as the story shifted to the present. I couldn't connect with Madi or any one of the other characters, and I felt that there was too much repetition to really get into the story. The insta-love fell flat and overall, Madi's inner monologue felt a little juvenile and kept me from caring about who she ended up with.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Love of My Lives was a really cute read! I loved the storyline, the hang up of the initials (lots of my fellow Latinas know the importance of signs or things that are “meant to be” in our lives! Haha!), and the Puerto Rican rep! This was a fantastic book and I loved the characters and especially the environment of the book. I felt like I was there. Overall, this book is a fantastic beach read!

I love how the author describes the place! It feels like I'm in Puerto Rico because of how detailed the description. It's like convincing me to go for a trip!

The book is such a cute read. If you want a quick and easy read, this one's for you! Unfortunately, the whole storyline didn't stick with me. I think everything is happening so fast, like the emotions of the characters isn't setting in on how it should be. It's a fast-paced and insta-love, I guess? Not my cup of tea because I prefer slow burn but this is still a nice read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for the digital ARC!

Love this interesting take on where fate leads us! It also shared some wonderful details about Puerto Rico that more people should know. You'll fall in love with Madi AND the island, finding yourself rooting for a bright future for both.

3.5⭐️

Madi believes her soulmate has the initials JR, until she meets Peter in her trip in Puerto Rico who’s perfect for her and she has feelings for but her beliefs with the initials has her questioning this relationship.

the book was a fun fast-paced read, the romance between Madi and Peter was so cute.
I loved the cultural aspect of the story and the set up in PR.
I struggled with Madi’s character at some point in the book and got bored of the initials issue but other than that I enjoyed the book.

Love of my Lives is a cute read that made me want to book a trip to Puerto Rico. The premise of the book is interesting and definitely intriguing to romance readers, however, I didn’t find myself rooting for the couple in this book.

Madi and Peter have a chance meeting and find instant love amongst many obstacles suggesting it won’t work. Unfortunately, I found it difficult to find their love believe or want to root for it.

It also bothered me that Madi referred to her ex as a “good man” at the end after sharing earlier that he made homophobic and racist comments. Not really my definition of a good man.

Overall, it is a cute idea and I wanted to love it but it just fell flat for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington books for this ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for an advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Madi is 13 when she loses her abuela, who isn't just her grandmother but her friend. She makes abuela a promise that she will scatter her ashes in the mountains of Utah where they live, and her favorite place in Puerto Rico. Eighteen years later, Madi finally has the chance.

But all of this is also happening:
She's chasing the idea of the "Love of her lives," which came to her in a dream at 13 with her abuela promising to give her signs. She's a yoga teacher, and they're looking for locations in Puerto Rico for retreats. Her boyfriend Jayden (one of many men with the initials JR that she's chased over the years) has broken up with her. And this new man she's just met feels like someone she's always known...

I loved all of this story. Madi is focusing on and loving herself while also feeling all of her feelings: grief for her abuela, fear and confidence as she approaches an uncertain business future, the possibilities of love... and the story just feels so good. The only thing I questioned was a moment when 13-year-old Madi referred to her abuela as "extra" - not really a term that you would have heard in that context 18 years ago. But still, an amazing story!!!

CW: mentions of death and cancer, grief

For as long as she can remember, Madi has been searching for her soulmate. As a teenager, her beloved grandmother visited her in a dream and revealed to her that the love of her life would have the initials JR.

Now in her 30s, she’s pursued and failed at multiple relationships with men that match her vision, leaving her heartbroken but still hopeful. When she embarks on a trip to her ancestral Puerto Rico to spread her grandmother's ashes, she meets her alluring tour guide Peter- who she spends an unforgettably magical evening with.

But despite their immediate and electrifying connection, his name doesn’t fit her vision. Now Madi must decide whether to give her feelings for Peter a chance, going against fate and everything she’s held true.

This sweet contemporary romance set on the enchantingly beautiful island of Puerto Rico will delight readers who enjoy diverse and multicultural characters and storylines prominently featuring spirituality and travel.

I was really intrigued by the premise of this book and enjoyed the character development, side characters and touch of magic realism. Unfortunately it left me wanting more of these elements so, overall, it fell a little flat for me. Although Madi and Peter started their relationship with insta-love which I have trouble connecting to, I enjoyed where their relationship went. I thought the third act break up was a little unrealistic but I enjoyed rooting for Madi to find herself throughout the book. I think this is a fun book to read in a beach setting (especially on vacation) but I wish it stood out to me more than it did.

Thank you to Kensington Books and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Not going to lie...I went and looked at booking a trip to Puerto Rico while reading Love of My Lives. The author does an amazing job at describing the location and taking you on a tour all over the island. It temporarily satisfied my travel bug. I love how the author highlighted real life issues that the US territory faces such as affordable housing for locals, electricity and cell phone outages, and supply chain issues. The story focuses on 3o something year old Madi searching for her soulmate and also finding herself during the process. I enjoyed following her journey and learning that sometimes you just have to let go and let life guide you rather than set expectations. The ending seemed a little rushed and left me for wanting more. Overall a great romance and adventure read!

Thanks to Netgalley and Kensington Books, Kensington for a digital ARC.

Thank you, NetGalley for this arc copy. This book provided the Puerto Rico atmosphere and I really liked it. It was pretty beautiful traditions and vibes! it was interesting about how a girl knows only initials and wants to find her love. It was a nice read.

I wasn’t interested in this story because I couldn’t relate to the characters. The characters were a little one dimensional and just overall blah. The issue between the couple was cute. Overall I believe this is a cute romcom but nothing life changing.

I think I was more interested in learning about Puerto Rico than I was invested in this book. I started it a few times because I couldn’t get into the story. Overall, it is a solid read it just didn’t do it for me hence the rating.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing Corp. for the eARC! All opinions are my own.

I really wanted to love this book, but it just fell flat for me, unfortunately. I think what enticed me the most was the premise of dreaming of a soulmate and searching for it. The book follows Madi, who goes to Puerto Rico—for business, of course. Puerto Rico is where she starts to find herself and maybe her soulmate?

I enjoyed learning about the history and the culture in Puerto Rico. I thought that it was nice to learn about while reading. I liked the idea of having a dream and seeing your soulmate in it. It gave just a hint of magical realism and I wish there was a little more to it.

This book has a good concept behind it, but it wasn't executed very well. While the characters had chemistry, I felt that it was too insta-lovey. I could see that they did, but I just couldn't get over the fact that she was in love with him after a night. I also found myself not into any of the characters. More or less, I couldn't care about any of them, maybe Audri and Mariela. I thought they had something going on and I was more interested in that than the main romance (lol).

Not a bad book if you're into insta-love and it was a fast read, but not my cup of tea.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for an ARC of Love of my Lives.

While I was drawn to the premise of this book — a woman knows she is fated to meet the love of her lives (past, present, and future) — someone with the initials “JR,” I found the rest of the book a little lackluster. I didn’t find myself caring if Madi ended up with Peter or Jayden. All of the main characters were likable, but I never felt invested. The author did an excellent job with the storyline and incorporation of Puerto Rican culture, but I felt like I needed a little more from the characters.

"It's too perfect. I think it was destiny. And I think it's destiny that brought you and me to this moment."

-self discovery, insta love, one bed trope
-Madi believed the love of her life would have JR initials after she saw those letters in a dream once
-business trip to Puerto Rico to get away from it all leads Madi to Peter ☀️🌊
-enjoyed learning about the culture and thought it was incorporated well
-the book was a quick and easy read
-thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for this ARC!

3.5⭐️

I could not put this down! What an exciting book that is set in fabulous Puerto Rico with the backdrop just as important as the 2 main characters. The magical power of dreams and how it can effect our lives. This book will be placed on my forever bookshelf! I want to read it again and again!
I just reviewed Love of My Lives by Yamile Saied Méndez. #LoveofMyLives #NetGalley
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I loved the travelling aspect.
The magic through me off a little. The title, too, I kept imagining it as a telenovela, The Love of my Lives ...

I received this novel as an advanced reader copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This book was just OK to me. I liked the premise of the vacation romance.but it dragged in some areas.

I requested this ARC because I saw a setting in Puerto Rico and a bit of magic and I was sold. I really enjoyed this book and give it a solid 3.5 stars, rounding up to 5. Learning more about Puerto Rico was really fun and I loved the forced proximity trope!