This book tells us about a team of workers whose job it is to make coincidences happen. I was excited to read this book and found it an interesting read.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a review copy in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

Update: I finished the book! And I have to applaud the daring and originality of the author.

The unconventional structure of the novel appeals to me. The multiple POVs (points of view) are hard to keep up with sometimes. There's a guy named Michael, and his grieving wife, and his secretary, and a life-or-death decision to be made by a Coincidence Maker. There's hulking Albert, aka the Man with the Hamster. He's never killed anyone, yet he's the world's most wanted Assassin. How is that possible? You'll have to read the book to see for yourself.

For all the monumental decisions at stake, I was expecting a more serious plot to unfold. There's the ethical dilemma of "Would you kill one innocent man to ensure an era of peace," maybe sixty years' worth. And there are the consequences of whatever decision is made.

The philosophical issues are the strong points of the novel. To act, or not to act. Deciding not to act is an act in itself. And so on.

The final scene is satisfying, and Eric, yes, was hiding something, as I suspected all along. So was Emily. "Things are not as they seem" is something we expect in a novel.

Cleverly written, raising lots of interesting questions and what-ifs, this is the kind of novel that book clubbers would enjoy reading and discussing.

Previously:
I'm having a very hard time finishing this book. I almost gave up on it entirely as a DNF (Do Not Finish), but it started to hook me more at about 20% in. The trouble starting out is that regular humans seem like chess pieces on a game board, and someone else is pulling strings, behind the scenes, to influence our decisions. There's this business of parallel universes (or something like that) with the same people living out alternate versions of reality. Or the same guy, named Guy, painting his apartment 257 times in a row.

The Guy-and-Emily situation got my interest. Seeing them suffer a mistaken case of unrequited love is the sort of conflict writers are supposed to write, and readers are supposed to love, but somehow I'm just not getting into this story.

Eric is enigmatic, a bit of a smart alec, but I suspect there's more to him than meets the eye.

Meanwhile, spring weather has arrived, the dogs are overdue for their daily walk, and I'm not motivated to keep reading a book that makes me work harder than I want to work at reading comprehension. Lazy, yes, I'm lazy, unless the reward is promising, and for me, parallel universes are not much of a reward. Needing some angelic sort of being to spill coffee for me or make me miss a bus or get fired - because this would set off a chain reaction of events leading me to some better fate - given the setting of the novel, I'm just not doing the work to suspend disbelief and spend several hours of my life in this fictional world. I'll report back later if I find I've failed to give this book a proper chance. It does happen: sometimes, after struggling so long, something clicks, and I fall in love with a difficult book.

What if there really is no such thing as coincidence? What if all of those moments that just seem to fall together were intricately and painstakingly planned by mysterious people we never even notice? That is the wonderful premise of Yoav Blum's The Coincidence Makers in which we meet Guy, Emily, and Eric, members of the most recent Coincidence Makers Course. They learn to upset full cups of coffee, redirect traffic by means of construction mishaps, and cause electrical blackouts all with the mission of creating circumstances that are inevitably attributed to coincidence. How did those two young lovers meet? Coincidence. Why did that accountant leave his tightly controlled life behind to become a poet? A series of coincidences.

The reader mostly follows along on the missions of Guy, but the perspective alternates between him and several of the people for whom he is arranging various coincidences. These characters are wonderfully drawn and I loved reading about them. The only thing that left me disappointed was not being able to see how things turned out for each of them once the point of the coincidence had passed. That is, I think, the mark of a good writer to leave the reader wanting more of even the secondary characters. I also enjoyed contemplating how many events have to fall into just the right place for life to turn out the way it does.

I adored this book and I think you will, too.

THE COINCIDENCE MAKERS by Yoav Blum is a very imaginative novel and the US debut for its best-selling Israeli author. ... What if you worked for a secret group where your job was to study other people and use the knowledge about their habits and beliefs to make coincidences happen? That is exactly what Guy, Emily and Eric do. In the process, there is plenty of opportunity to reflect on why things happen. At one point the author contrasts people standing at one end of a continuum (those who believe that everything is coincidental) and those at the other end (who are sure there is a plan and nothing happens randomly). Blum says, "people standing at the two extremes are the happiest people in the world. At both ends. Do you know why? Because they don't ask why. Never. Not at all."

THE COINCIDENCE MAKERS involves romance, mystery and adventure centered on fate and free will. As one character muses, "you didn't get to new places when you followed the same path every day." You will stretch your thinking and be surprised by this unique and sophisticated novel which received a starred review from Booklist. THE COINCIDENCE MAKERS is one of my favorite books of the year so far.

Not my cup of tea, which was quite disappointing because from the blurb it totally seemed right up my alley. What should have been easy to understand was too complicated. What should have been serious, seemed silly. And parts that should have been exciting were dull. Almost gave up several times, found it hard to get through the first half of the book. I absolutely loved the concept, and it honestly was one of the most unique things I have ever read, which is why I’m giving it an extra star. I did like the end.

Yoav Blum’s COINCIDENCE MAKERS is reminiscent of Philip K. Dick’s short story “THE ADJUSTMENT TEAM” that was later made into a Matt Damon movie. Both feature bureaucratic entities that engage in choreographing the choices people make in their lives which appear to be coincidental and random when, in fact, these life changing events are controlled not by the fickle hand of fate but by others determined to alter and control the destiny of others.

Blum’s fictional universe focuses on three trainees Eric, Emily and Guy, and the role they will play in creating the domino effect coincidences that will influence others in their motivations and actions. Each of the trainees is flawed and possesses individual imperfections and vulnerabilities that influence their actions and impacts the outcome of their assignments ….not to mention the unforeseen impact of a little boy named Michael.

While I normally shy away from the fantasy and sci-fi genres, Blum’s astute and perceptive novel proved to be a step above the rest. The thought provoking manner in which it subtly addresses man’s instinctive nature to question and challenge the status quo is further enhanced by the very human search for answers as to the real purpose of our lives.

The ultimate question requiring an answer: “Is it fate, free will, or something else shaping lives and calling it destiny?”

A clever and extremely entertaining read, with a great central concept. What if coincidence is not really an accident? What if there really are agents of fate, " coincidence makers", whose job it is to subtly nudge and tweak events in peoples lives to ensure a specific outcome?
We follow three such people , Guy, Emily and Eric, all relatively new to the job, and each with different strengths , and see them work their magic on several ordinary people, creating couples and inspiring creativity, but things get a little more complicated when we realise that one of them may be trying to make coincidences for their own, not entirely altruistic reasons.
At first the book felt a little confusing, as we are dropped into the middle of the action with no explanation, but as the book unfolds, the layers of the story do too, culminating in a somewhat surprising but entirely satisfactory ending. I particularly admire the author's ability to take a clever concept and really make it work, the little explanatory inserts disguised at textbook chapters and exams were a really clever idea, and helped to ground the somewhat fantastical concept.

This is such a lovely book that will lead you to question every chance of fate/coincidence that you have ever encountered. I look forward to more from Blum.

Finishing this story left me with mixed feelings, hence the not quite excellent rating. I was eager to begin this story of a world where the so-called coincidences of life were actually carefully orchestrated by trained professionals. Creating these shifts in behavior and actions required care and thought which made the events more cerebral than dramatic. In fact sometimes the narrative got so talky with the twists and turns of these manipulators that I became thoroughly exasperated. "Enough already!" I wanted to yell at the author. Then he would plunge into an incidental story that was written with such flair it would carry you along to its ultimate and very satisfying conclusion, at which point I would be returned to the major plot and disappointed all over again.
If you were a fan of Matt Damon in The Adjustment Bureau, you may want to try this. I've decided I prefer my coincidences to be random.

What a clever idea! I’m sure many people, like me, have experienced some pretty astonishing coincidences in their lives. I often marvel at how something small like getting tied up and not leaving the house when I wanted, turned out to be a good thing. I love that this author turned the idea into a novel where there are people who orchestrate these coincidences. They even go to school for to learn how to do this. The class size is small, only three people are in training at the same time: Guy, Emily and Eric.

Guy was formerly an imaginary friend before he was promoted to this position. He and Eric talk about what they did before while Emily is completely silent. Her past is a mystery.

It never seizes to amaze me that there still are truly original book ideas out there. Sometimes I see the same idea reproduced by so many authors that I really just hunger for something new to come along. If you feel that way too, read this.

We’ve all had something happen “by coincidence,” like running into your childhood best friend on the side of the street when you have a flat tire. Or meeting someone new in a coffee shop after you knock your drink off the table onto their shoes. But what if those things don’t just happen by chance?

Guy, Emily, and Eric are Coincidence Makers: they work for a secret organization, creating the coincidences they are assigned through complex manipulations and machinations. Sometimes, they create a love match. Sometimes, they just give someone the push they need to live their dreams.

Guy used to be an Imaginary Friend, and he fell in love with another Imaginary Friend. He’s never forgotten her, and thoughts of her haunt every day, so he tries his best to ignore Emily’s overtures. But when Guy is assigned a coincidence that’s higher than anything he’s done before, he realizes even his hidden world has deeper secrets.

I liked this book. The concept is unique and fascinating—even if the “science” is sometimes a bit over my head. Guy, Emily, and Eric are characters I liked, and they would be fun to hang out with. The book is dreamy, and reading it felt like floating…or I probably would have enjoyed it more (not the right type of book for my mindset at the time), but it was a good, creative read.

(Galley provided by St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

The Coincidence Makers by Yoav Blum is a highly recommended genre-bending novel that is part science fiction, part fantasy, part love story, and part mystery. Read this novel and you will never believe in coincidences again.

Guy, Emily, and Eric are the coincidence makers in this novel. The three were recruited and trained together by the General to be a part of the secret organization devoted to creating and carrying out coincidences. Guy and Emily were promoted from the ranks of imaginary friends, to join the coincidence makers. See, nothing in the world is the result of a random occurrence, even imaginary friends.

The secret coincidence makers maneuver people and events to create or design the changes or realizations that will provide people with the inspiration or desire to change a worldview, create a work of art, or fall in love, or discover a remarkable breakthrough or write poetry. Nothing is left to chance. The coincidence makers are highly trained agents who carefully, skillfully plan and time events so they achieve the desired outcome, resulting in the completion of the plan and their mission and do so without generating the sense of an artificial encounter.

The Coincidence Makers has an original premise and, when the coincidence makers are working, the novel is fast paced. There are sections between the action that includes excerpts from the books and the lessons the three had to take in order to become a coincidence maker. These lessons, while interesting, slow down the pace of the novel. Other parts can be funny, witty, and quirky. It is probably better to not give away a lot of the story before you read it. This is also a novel that required a bit more leeway from me, at the beginning, to stick with it longer than I might have normally, but the ending was worth it. 3.5

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of St. Martin's Press.
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THE COINCIDENCE MAKERS belongs to a genre of books and movies that share a conceit, namely, that humans are oblivious to the machinations of other beings, behind-the-scenes of their ‘reality’, who orchestrate their lives. This is a genre that plays with free will and destiny while tackling human emotions and grand accomplishments. We’re meant to wonder, did humans really invent that cure or did an angel-fairy-elf whisper it in their ear? The tales that embroider these ideas can be engaging and mind-bending, if done well, and make the reader/audience yearn for the comfort of special beings hidden in the ether. This book has a good tale and spins it out well. The resolution to the plot is nicely done, a genuine surprise. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley

Like light science fiction, fantasy and/or romance? Don’t mind a slow build-up to a fantastic finish? If so, the Coincidence Makers is for you.

Emily, Eric and Guy meet in a 16-month training class for Coincidence Makers (CMs). CMs are secret agents that work for the government. They “are creators of possibilities, givers of hints, winkers of tempting winks, discoverers of options.” Some examples of their work is Lennon meeting Paul McCartney, the development of corn flakes, and the discovery of penicillin. There are other behind-the-scenes government workers too like imaginary friends, dream weavers, luck distributors, etc.

I love the idea of mixing Men in Black with Harry Potter’s first year at Hogwarts. However, the execution was rather sluggish for the first half. I enjoyed the flashbacks to their schooling much more than their jobs immediately after graduation. I think it would have been better as a trilogy of books with the first only showing the training, the second standard CM work and the third book showing the highest level of CM work. With all of those topics put in this relatively short novel, it seems like an opportunity for a more in depth exploration of this world was missed. For the intriguing world, the Coincidence Makers receives 3 stars. However, the excellent ending ups the stars to 4.

The Coincidence Makers is recommended for soft science fiction or fantasy readers that are willing to wait patiently for a big payoff. Don’t quit reading before the halfway mark as the finale is definitely worth a few more hours of your time. If you are not patient, just wait for the sure to be awesome movie (or movies) based on this book.

Thanks to the publisher, St. Martins Press, and NetGalley for an advance copy.

The idea of someone actually being behind coincidences sounds so intriguing. I was very curious to read what this meant in a book plot. But somehow it sounded like a regular story.

The so-called coincidence makers simply came across as regular people. I don't know if I was expecting more of a paranormal hero stuff, but there didn't seem to be anything that special about this story in the end.

That being said, it's not a bad story. It's fast-paced, filled with just enough characters not to overcrowd it while still keeping it interesting. It has plenty of little twists and keeps you on your toes.

This book is about love and destiny and fate. It takes a little time to get into this one but it’s a beautiful story of how little things called coincidences can change a person’s life. It makes you ponder if everything that has happened in our life is due to coincidences or because it’s destiny or because someone else is pulling the strings. It’s a well written story that makes you think and also appreciate the love in our lives.

Yoav Blum’s The Coincidence Makers is a fabulously unique novel about the truth about chance. It is a charming story of master puppetry with the best of intentions.

I jumped into this book with both feet so to speak. I was intrigued by the premise, and I truly enjoyed the characters. The details were rich and meaningful. Once I got the gist of the coincidence makers’ job, I started paying more attention to the subtle detail in the story. I felt like the author was telling me to be more observant in my own life and I might see a coincidence maker at work nudging something to create a thought toward a specific decision.

I quickly became wrapped up in the characters backstories including the stories of their careers as imaginary friends, igniters, and the elusive distributors of luck. Some of these stories were soulful and tragically romantic. Each made the surreal Emily, Eric and Guy seem more like the humans they are influencing.

Interspersed in the story are chapters from the coincidence maker training classes. I skimmed most of these chapters, but I did get a feel for the perspective and ethics of coincidence making. These chapters also provide a skeletal structure to the story (in terms on the characters somewhat bureaucratic jobs).

In the end, a master coincidence maker is revealed as is his massive manipulations toward successful implementation of his monumental mission.

I loved the flow and layout of the story. At a critical juncture in the book, the chapter numbers change, reflecting the dramatic turn in the storyline. I found this to be a perfect little detail. The idea of a greater power or different realm influencing choices could be a bit disturbing to some, but Yoav Blum made it a delightful, heart-felt adventure.

4.5 stars

After reading the blurb for this one, I was excited to start reading it, so I loaded it up on my Kindle immediately and dove in. More than a month later, after laying it aside numerous times, I was still trying to finish. I did finally make it to the end, but for such an intriguing premise, the delivery fell quite short. The book is a bit of a hodge-podge of genres ranging from Sci-fi to romance and even some mystery. The reader is treated to some rather boring, textbook-like 'excerpts' from the Coincidence Makers... Umm... Manual? But, that wasn't the worst of it for me. No, that came when I finally hit about 50% and was still waiting for something to happen to show me where this convoluted tale with its lackluster characters was heading. At that point, I started skimming, but that didn't work either because then things made even less sense. Maybe this one just wasn't for me, but I came away sorely disappointed with the end result of what started as such an interesting concept.

I tried but this one just didn't resonate with me. I get where Blum was going but .... I DNF at about 30 percent.

I received a free Kindle copy of The Coincidence Makers by Yoav Blum courtesy of Net Galley  and St. Martin's Press, the publisher. It was with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes and Noble and my fiction book review blog. I also posted it to my Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google Plus pages.

I requested this book as I am looking for different authors and the description sounded itneresting. It is the first book by Yoav Blum that I have read.

It is rare that I am unable to fulfill the commitment to read a book that has been sent to me for review, but this is one of those exceptions. I was unable to make any connection with the plot due to the writing style of the author which I find unengaging or even mildly interesting. Other reviews on this book run the gamut from one star to five stars (check Goodreads)  so others may find this book to their liking. My suggestion is to wait for it to be published and check out a copy from your local library before investing in a copy.