I personally feel like I could give a valid opinion especially on the main issue this book is addressing. I too, come from a religious background, and while I don’t consider my family to be ‘conservative’ (they’re just normal believers BUT where I live is already a conservative place, so I think we would be very conservative for the US standards), I feel more Meg and I think we have a kinship over shared experiences, with me being the ‘rebel teen daughter’ just because I’m progressive.

I really appreciate the author’s efforts and intentions by writing this book. I appreciate it very much. While I don’t read books centered on Christianity, I agree there are people, especially young people, who need an affirmation or assurance that what they feel are valid and they are not just the rebel who challenges the church’s views. I like how the church is portrayed and how even though we have been taught all our lives that ‘Jesus is love’, that doesn’t necessarily mean it is reflected in the community that claims to follow Him. I like how Meg is someone who struggles with her faith instead of a random teenager having a moment of truth and hitting the gas on abandoning her faith. While the intentions and the main idea is good, I think it needs some nuance or a plot device that could further this point. What happened, in my opinion, is that this book seems to drive for the romance more than the faith issue or the issue that Micah is facing. Their struggles are―most of the time―background noise. It is mentioned occasionally while Micah and Meg are building their relationship, but it was done without much weight, and only picked up when the book is nearing its end.

While we are on the topic of romance, the romance in this book is so… <i>vanilla</i>. Meg and Micah fall in love pretty quickly and the only thing that happened in their romance (strictly the love story), is how Meg is struggling with her beliefs about sex.

The writing is easy to get into and while most of the conversations feel relatable and comes naturally, some still feels corny to me. Some of the scenes, however, still feel a little overly done for me.

I feel okay towards Meg and Micah and while I don’t hate them, that does not mean I like them. Meg annoys me and strikes to me as immature sometimes and she said some things that I personally find a little hurtful toward other people but since we are talking about a teen girl, she gets a pass for this one.

I’m also not a big fan of the ending. The ending is too rushed and anticlimactic. The matters we are dealing with are just tossed away so casually just to have an ending.

While my review is pretty mixed for this book, I’m honestly floored by the amount of bravery the author must have. This book to me, has a positive impact and I do appreciate her idea. It just needs polishing a little bit.

Erin Hahn’s characters Meg and Micah are so beautifully portrayed and their chemistry was very palpable and love so true! This book packed a lot of diverse subject like religion, purity and LGBTQ.

Meg is a free willed, modest teenager living in a very conservative family. She learns that her entire life is a lie and the family she has been living with is not her real family. She goes in pursuit of her real family and meets this cute boy Micah. Their love story was the best part I enjoyed in this book!

Thank you Wednesday books for the advance galley in exchange of my honest opinion. This book publishes on September 7, 2021

I was surprised by this book. I have read two other books by Erin Hahn, and I enjoyed them, but I was never blown away by either book. "Never Saw You Coming" grabbed me in a way that Hahn's other books were not able to. The strength of this novel is Meg and Micah. Hahn's characters are complex and realistic and make the book worth reading. The slow evolution of Meg and Micah's relationship was charming and adorable. Plus, Hahn's exploration of faith was well-crafted and relatable. At first glance, "Never Saw You Coming" is a fluffy romance, but the book is actually a well-developed coming-of-age story with complex characters that I highly recommend.

While this story is very adorable with Meg and Micah's relationship, it felt a bit too naive/preachy for my taste. I understand that I am coming from a cynical ex-Christian viewpoint, so please please take this opinion with a grain of salt. It was a delightful read irregardless of my own personal beliefs and I thoroughly enjoyed Hahn's honest discussions about the church and their role in faith/losing faith. If you are not inherently anti-religion/anti-church, this will be a great read for you to pick up.

This just didn’t end up being a book that interested me. When I first read the premise, I was very excited and invested, but getting into it made it clear that it just wasn’t for me. Hopefully it works for others out there!

At its heart, Never Saw You Coming is a young-adult romance novel about an isolated Christian girl named Meg who runs away from home after finding out her real father died before she was born and she was conceived during a brief fling. The truth about her conception goes against everything Meg’s mother and the Church raised her to believe. So Meg leaves home to meet her biological father’s family, and to explore who she is without her mother and the Church. When she meets a boy and falls in love, Meg struggles with her convictions that girls should be modest, pure, reserved, and practice abstinence. Deep-seated shame haunts her, but she’s never felt so alive and free.

Never Saw You Coming won’t be for everyone. The author knew that. She tackles big issues like religion, abstinence, shame, family secrets, and growing up. This book is about love and acceptance, finding balance between your history and your future, and that big step between childhood and adulthood where you decide who you are and what you believe, what to hold on to, and what to let go of. It’s an important book, and I think it maintains a perfect balance between telling reading it’s okay to grow up and make your own choices without encouraging them to cross any lines. It’s masterfully done.

There’s a lot to love about this book. There are songs sprinkled throughout the book - not lyrics, but artist names and song titles - and I looked up each song and played them when they came up so I could feel them in that moment. It brought depth to the reading experience. There’s humor and love. There’s excellent description and realistic teenage angst. There’s also emotion - so much heart-pulling, tear-streaming emotion. Hahn had me crying again and again. I laughed and cried, I felt outrage and pain.

Never Saw You Coming is a rollercoaster of emotions and I loved every minute of it.

This was a very sweet alternative christian coming of age story where two young adults face their relationship with the evangelical church and their faith in general. They have different reasons for feeling burned by the church and come from different communities but in the end their reasons are equally valid and compelling.

I appreciated how the author discussed the pressures put on young women that are not put on young men and the shame, judgement, and ostracizing that can happen in a religious community. This was a romance and it addressed body image, modesty, sex before marriage, double standards, gender dynamics, and so many more relevant topics. Meg and Micah were excellent three dimensional characters and the story was so easy to read that I breezed through the entire book in a few days!

Christian fiction is not my go to genre but this alternative christian was a very sweet, welcome, and worth while read.

Erin Hahn is quickly becoming a favorite author of mine. Her books have so much heart and emotion to them, in such an effortless way. Time slips by as I read her books and I don't notice it at all, it is fully captivating and the writing is just beautiful.

Never Saw You Coming features Meg's story as she comes to grips with new information about her parentage. She goes through a religious journey to understand how she really feels now that she knows she was conceived on a one night stand at a youth group convention in Michigan and her father died in a car crash. Micah is dealing with the after effects of his pastor father's embezzling and sexual harassment charges. Together, the two help and support each other in their lives and faith.

I personally loved the religious journey depicted in this story. I found it very relatable as someone who grew up in a Catholic household. It also calls out some of the hypocrisy within the Christian church and how it treats women. The romance was perfect - absolutely perfect. Together they were super sweet and supportive of each other as they figured out their plans. Also, the side characters truly added to the story in a meaningful way.

I will always read Erin Hahn's books from now until the end of time and will always suggest everyone else reads the too.

**Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review**

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the arc of this book. All opinions are my own.

This was really cute! As someone who had to go through a similar journey as Meg, I could kind of see where she was coming from. Obviously everyone's journey of finding yourself is different, especially when faith is involved. Full disclosure: I haven't considering myself catholic in a very long time so I might not have been the direct audience for this book. With that said, I didn't enjoy it any less.

I thought the relationship progressed really well. It felt natural and well thought out. It was almost like looking in a mirror at times when I was in my first relationship. The book was well paced and I thought the main point of growing up and growing into yourself were well done and evident. I think both Meg and Micah were well developed characters and had great chemistry throughout the book. It was sweet and heartwarming. Of course there were times when your heart hurt for them during their confusion and I just wanted to hug them. Overall though, this was a really sweet book and I think it's a really good one! I'd still recommend it, despite not thinking I'm apart of the target audience.

Never Saw You Coming is a coming-of-age story about first love and found family. I didn't realize it was very religious as the two main characters, Meg and Micah, are struggling with their conflictions with the church. Despite not being able to personally relate to the Christian themes, I enjoyed this story more than I thought I would! Highly recommend to any young adult dealing with an identity crisis.

Okay so this story is really cute. I liked the romance and I liked the side characters. I think what fell a little flat for me is how much church and religion impacted these characters decisions. I didn’t grow up in a church so I wasn’t able to relate, but I could see this really working for someone who did.

Never Saw You Coming is a Christian coming-of-age story following two young adults who are navigating their religious views. I appreciated that they each had different reasons for questioning their faith and what the church they attend stands for.

This book covers heavy topics from modesty to gender dynamics, to body image, to sexuality, and to premarital sex. Meg and Micah were well-developed characters. I think both of their journeys to self-acceptance and love were important. My favorite part of this book came towards the end, when the pressure for just the young women to be pure was addressed and how that was a double-standard when the young men aren't held to the same standard. I didn't expect or enjoy how religious it was and the mantra of "I leave it up to God" played such a big role. Likely that's because of my own beliefs and the way that the church I grew up in burned and harmed me.

I think this just solidifies for me that Christian fiction is not something I enjoy. But if you like coming-of-age stories and can get past how heavy a role faith and religion play in a story, you'll enjoy this one.

Thank you to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday books for the e-arc of this title.

Never Saw You Coming centers around Micah and Meg, both who are questioning their faith for two very different reasons. Together they explore their faith while questioning many of the teachings and church itself.

This book was a lot. There’s so much here to unpack, but we’ll start with quite possibly my favorite part: the setting. See, this little beauty was set in the Yoop, the Motherland, the great wild’s of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Marquette, to be exact, which is only about 40 minutes from where I live. It’s a place that’s got all the trappings of “city” life while also being very much in tune with nature, nestled right on the shores of Lake Superior. It was so much fun for me as a reader to really be able to live this book with the main characters as I could vividly picture exactly where they were and what Marquette is like.

Now let’s talk characters. Both Meg and Micah are children of the church. Both of them have a very strong relationship with Jesus and God, and it has influenced their entire lives.

Meg ends up in Marquette because a family secret - that her dad isn’t actually her dad - is spilled and she goes in search of the family her mother never allowed her to know. Her relationship with God and the church is shaken because her mother had a one-night stand and ended up with Meg, when her whole life she’s been preached to not to bare her shoulders lest the boys get the wrong idea. She repeatedly gave herself over to Jesus, living her entire life in service of him.

Micah is the son of a former pastor turned convict, and since that day over five years ago when his father was sentenced, Micah’s own faith has certainly seen better days. His relationship with God is still strong, but he refuses to set foot in an actual church and worship like he used to.

When these two meet, they both find a way to help the other one heal from the wounds they’re still nursing. They fall hard and fast for each other, and both start to think that something that good and pure and wonderful and loving can’t possibly be a sin. They both find a way, through the other, to forgive those that have wronged them and move on from it, into a better and brighter future. They manage to find themselves again in each other, and it’s such a wonderful first love story.

I’ll admit, as someone who isn’t particularly religious, I was a little wary when starting this one. But I am so glad I gave it a chance. Hahn once again wove such a beautiful tale that broadcasts such a beautiful message. Even if you don’t believe in God, there are so many important lessons to be learned about how being who you are, who you’re truly meant to be, can’t ever be a sin because it’s exactly what your creator had in mind.

I don't know how she does it, but Erin Hahn writes some of the most authentic, relatable young adult characters. I didn’t think she’d be able to top my love for Luke and Vada, but I couldn’t get enough of Meg and Micah! Hahn's not afraid to tackle tough subjects, and I think she handled this particular subject (Christianity and Purity Culture) extremely well. The book didn't shy away from the real issues teens struggle with, especially as it relates to religion. Never Saw You Coming was a compelling read, one that I couldn't put down once I got started.

Note: I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I’m not the targeted audience for this book. This book does a great job of showing how teens may struggle with their faith and religion while growing up. Growing up and making mistakes is part of the journey. This shows how these former church kids are trying to learn to live their lives as adults with lots of urges and feelings while still loving god. The characters were all pretty flushed out and they all had their flaws which made them more human. This book had LGBTQ characters as well. While I was not the targeted audience I still really enjoyed this book.

After learning that her real Dad died before she was born, and that her Mom had her out of wedlock, Meg Hennessey decides to take a one year hiatus before enrolling in college. Decidedly, Meg escapes to her Great Grandmother’s hometown to meet her real Dad’s family and to find herself.

While soul searching, Meg runs into Micah Allen, a conflicted young man struggling with his own demons and faith. Drawn together by their similar miseries, Meg and Micah develop a friendship that eventually evolves into something more than what they bargained for.

Never Saw You Coming is a faith based novel that explores the conflicts that Meg and Micah have to face as they navigate their way through adulthood. Written in multiple points of view, readers get to see Meg’s and Micah’s perspective of the world around them and how each of them deals with conflict and how they resolve them.

With frequent religious references, some readers may be deterred. However, Never Saw You Coming is a very wholesome read with a wholesome and relevant storyline.

Likable characters add to the story’s landscape and with a sweet and charming plot, what’s not to love about a novel that you’ll feel good about at the end? Five endearing stars.

I received a digital ARC from St. Martins Press through NetGalley. The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions.

This is a DNF for me. I didn't realize how religious it would be and Christian fiction is not for me. The cover is cute so I was hoping for a sweet summer romance, but the heavy handed religiousness didn't work for me.

I could type for hours and not get all my thoughts about this book nailed down. This is hands down one of the most phenominal books I've ever read!

Often there is no way I would let my daughter read a book that is considered YA, but this book is going to be required reading. The way Hahn handles some tough topics within, and without of the church is spot on. There were numerous times I wanted to stop and go jot down a quote from the book in my bible. So part story, part devotional.

LOVED IT!

A nuanced and thoughtful look at two teenagers dropped into situations that test their faith in God and their relationship with the church--as they confront the ways those might be two different things. As with her other works, Hahn brings her sharp prose, sparkling banter, and palpable flutters of first love to her story. The romance is super sweet and these kids are hard not to root for. They're charming and brave and they adore each other, making this an engaging read for any YA romance fan. That said, the conversation around religion is central here, so this book will likely appeal most to readers who are interested in that dialogue. For those who are up for the deep dive, the topic is presented with both a critical eye and a loving heart.