The first thing I noticed about The Arc was its statement bold cover design, which will immediately set it aside from its counterparts in the fiction genre.

It might have been love at first sight with the cover, and then I read the blurb, which told me this was a story aimed at fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid, Sally Rooney, and Rebecca Serle. Some of my favourite authors. I somehow knew that right away this was a novel I would love, and boy was I right. Hoen completely swept me away with her debut.

It’s one of those books that you’ll open, read the first few lines of, and decide that yes, you’ve made the right decision, and yes, you’ll be devoting the next day of your life to reading.

Protagonist Ursula Byrne was exceptionally well written, engaging, heartwarming, but most of all, she was downright hilarious. I adored getting to know Ursula as I excitedly turned the pages of The Arc, following along on her romantic escapades through the jungle of modern day dating apps.

Ursula will be relatable to many. Even us guys out there who have swiped left and right to meet our one true love. I think her relatability and the fact that she’s realistic is what makes her so lovable as a character. She’s also super quirky and weird, in the best way possible.

It wasn’t just Ursula that I loved, it was all the characters in the book. They were just as captivating! Rarely does it happen that I read a book and fall for the characters like I did in this one.

Using Manhattan as a setting made me love this book even more. I’m in love with New York City, and I grew to imagine Ursula there, almost as a young Carrie Bradshaw at times: intelligent, wildly driven, successful, stylish, and navigating single life.

Writing about a service like The Arc was intelligent of Hoen, I couldn’t help but wonder at times if that’s where we as a society are headed. It definitely added some depth and layering to the overall storyline. It was also an amusing and realistic take on startup culture, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Overall, I simply adored this story and couldn’t put it down. It was lighthearted, memorable, and beautifully written.

I’m looking forward to what Tory Henwood Hoen’s future has in store for her, and I can’t wait to see this glorious love story illuminating bookshelves when it goes on sale February 8th. It’s also available for pre-order now wherever books are sold.

My thanks to Raincoast Books, St Martin's Press, and author Tory for the advanced reader's copy.

This is a really quirky story about two people willing to let a “relationship architect” service give them their ideal match. I kept guessing where it was going and being surprised at every turn! I found both main characters flawed but extremely loveable and enjoyed how original the story was!

I started this wanting something lighter and less dense, but I ended up thoroughly enjoying it anyway. The premise wasn't new to me, but the twist in the middle was AMAZING, and I was totally fascinated by the idea of it and how difficult it would be to get past something like that. Overall, I thought this was excellently written, had well-defined characters, and was an engrossing read. I look forward to what its author comes out with next!

What if you could be guarenteed a perfect love match? That's just what The Arc promises....but is it too good to be true. The Arc by Tory Hoen is fantastic, I couldn't put it down!

A rare romance read for me, but it was blurbed as being for fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid, which I absolutely am. I think this one worked for me while others don't because I LOVED the dystopian element. This is for fans of John Marrs' "The One" although way less dark. I enjoyed it!

That was an interesting read. Very imaginative and out there. I just sometimes thought it was a little too out there. Also she used a vibrator as a face massager so weird. Not for me.

Does the perfect soulmate exist for everyone? If so, can an algorithm find that person? That's the question at the center of The Arc, Tory Henwood Hoen's debut novel.

Ursula has had it with relationships. She's dated a variety of men, thought she found the right person, only to have the relationship end or end it herself. She's successful otherwise—she's the VP of Audacity at a NYC branding agency, she's smart, beautiful, and funny. And maybe a little weird?

"'The point is,' said Ursula, 'I'm not normal, and my weirdness has never properly aligned with someone else's weirdness, and I don't know if it ever will. I just can't imagine it. But I refuse to rein myself in anymore.'"

After an encounter with a mysterious woman in a steam room, she learns about The Arc. It's an exclusive, expensive service that promises to curate your soulmate for you, using a series of complicated psychological, emotional, and physical assessments. When a professional windfall helps her conquer the price point of the service, Ursula is matched with Rafael, a 42-year-old lawyer, and from the very moment they meet, they feel something special.

As they fall deeper in love with one another and begin thinking about the future, a bump in the road throws them off course. But aren't they supposed to be soulmates? Shouldn't they be able to weather any storm?

This was an interesting book which had its moments, but I think it tried too hard to be a satirical commentary on modern society. There are so many over-the-top things in the book, like when Ursula goes to lunch with a millionaire and the narration goes into an at-length description of the foams, purées, reductions, shadows, breaths, etc., they're served, or when the book mocks a client meeting Ursula attends in which the name of a toilet-paper-on-demand company is debated. So often I just rolled my eyes at these things, but they completely distracted me from the story.

Those of you who follow my reviews know I love a good romance, so I wish The Arc had stuck more to that storyline than all of the other extraneous stuff. But others have enjoyed this, so maybe I'm not the satirical type?

NetGalley and St. Martin's Press provided a complimentary advance copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making it available!

The Arc publishes 2/8/22.

How much would you pay to find your perfect match? Apparently some people who use The Arc are willing to pay a lot! Participants pay $50,000 for men and a little cheaper for women (to account for the gender wage gap) to find true love. This one had a bit of The One vibes but without the darkness. Ursula is at the top of her career but she doesn’t have the love she’s seeking.
.
Rafael is a 42 year old lawyer looking to settle down after past failed relationships.
.
They are matched and the sparks fly immediately. With every month checkin they realize love isn’t perfect even when it’s carefully calculated.
.
The characters witty banter really worked for me and I was fascinated with some of the services she received at a spa/club. For example a soothing service where your hair is just brushed, or a purple rain room blasting Prince. Anyway, there are many many different services that were unique.
.
I didn’t love Ursula’s career destruction but I know it was part of her arc (see what I did there )
.
I did really enjoy these characters and I definitely rooted for them the entire time. I enjoyed this one.

Thank you St. Martins press for an advanced copy!

The Arc publishes on February 8th! Thank you to the publishers for my review copy and ALC!

The Arc is essentially a modern day take on finding or creating your perfect soulmate. I really enjoyed this one! The audio was so well done. I loved Ursula and Rafael as they take on this new challenge of finding love on their thirties and early forties. This book has all the modern day advances of technology helping people find love. But it also touches on career goals, (Ursula put off finding love until she was established in her career), racism and family of origin. Both Ursula and Rafael have the face the ultimate challenge: do we let a dating program decide if we are (emotionally) compatible with each other? Or do we let fate decide?

This book reminded me a lot of The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren, so if you read that one and enjoyed it, I recommend reading this one as well!

Ursula and Rafael have both shelled out a lot (a lot) of money to be matched up but something's sort of off. Actually, something is also off with this novel, which is probably best read as a satire or send up of a range of things. Neither character is especially likable but they do feel more real than the situation they are in. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A surprising meh from me.

meh. I don’t even really say meh. it wasn’t bad. it wasn’t boring. it was just blah.
.
.
brief synopsis: Ursula is a 30-something year old marketing professional who pays $40k for essentially an AI dating service called the Arc, through which she meets Rafael. he’s an estates attorney and not a particularly well-developed character. they follow the arc of a relationship, as couples do.
.
.
I finished reading THE ARC because it was an advanced copy. yep- an ARC of THE ARC. it didn’t spark joy. not terrible, but wouldn’t recommend. 2 stars

The Arc is a masterpiece and one of my faves of the year. The novel manages to be a deep meditation on the nature of love and relationships while also being a funny satire with romance elements.

The writing is fantastic- well paced with multiple twists and great characters. I especially liked that there was an almost sci-fi element to this novel in that the shadowy company that matches Ursula and Rafael- The Arc- use a secretive mix of technologies that never really get explained, but are at the core of the plot.

I can see why Henwood Hoen is being likened to Sally Rooney, since both write about affluent, educated folk trying to come to terms with their own privileges living in late-stage capitalist society while also navigating personal relationships. But the main difference is that The Arc is a lot more playful than any Rooney novel.

Recommended for fans of the classic movie- Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind.

Thanks to NetGalley & St. Martin's Press for giving me the opportunity to review this advance copy of The Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Tory Henwood Hoen wrote such an interesting book, it gave me Vanilla Sky & Truman Show vibes with a dash of a Black Mirror quality to it (just not as dark). I know, I know...that's quite a fusion of things. It wasn't like any other book I've read in recent memory.

In this book, you'll go on a roller coaster ride through the cycle of The Arc and what they promise to do for their clients for the small sum of like $50K. Good news ladies, as a female, you get a little discount...ya know, to account for the wage gap.

Towards the beginning of the book, I was like geez, this perfection between the MCs is just starting to wear on me it was TOO perfect...until, it wasn't. Things change quickly and your heart will break for Ursula and Rafael.

I loved the little clue in the NPR interview when Rafael was in the car AND I thought the ending was very well done too.

It's more of a cerebral contemporary romance...a little bit sci-fi-ish. Honestly, I would've liked more of that in this book and less of the annoying animal names that Ursula and Rafael called each other...I cringed every time they used one.

I've seen a lot of DNF (y'all are missing out) and just "ok" reviews for this one, but I don't know, I really enjoyed it and the more I think about it, the more I like it.

I’ve read a good handful of reviews for The Arc by Tory Henwood Hoen, and must say that the overall feelings seem to be quite mixed. I guess I’m an outlier because I really enjoyed this quirky and entertaining story about dating in the modern world. Not only is it a great character study on the two main characters, Ursula and Rafael, it also takes things a step further and explores the ins-and-outs of their relationship. The couple’s connection is solid and immediate, and the fun banter between the two of them was extremely enjoyable. I also appreciated the cute concept of involving a highly-sophisticated matchmaking service to find your perfect life partner. The Arc is perfect for fans of The One by John Marrs or The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren. If you get the opportunity to listen to the audiobook, definitely go that route if you can. The narrator consistently held my attention for the duration of the entire novel, so that’s a win for me. I found myself smiling away as the novel flipped from Ursula’s perspective to Rafael’s. Overall, I thought this was a strong debut, and will definitely read whatever the author comes up with next. Be sure to grab a copy on release day - February 8th!

This book was like reading an episode of Black Mirror, but not in a creepy way. My favorite episode of Black Mirror is "Hang the DJ" and I love watching it. This kind of reminds me of that episode.

About halfway through the book i had decided i wished it had multiple alternate endings to choose so that i could read them all. I felt like it could go in ANY direction and I wanted to know ALL the outcomes.

Overall, I LOVED this book. I felt like I related to Ursula so well (which perhaps most 35 year old women can) and I understood what she was going through. I wound up tearing up at the last part of the book. I did NOT expect to become emotional, but it just brought me back to a place that I had forgotten (and had tried hard to do).

I do think I will carry this book in my soul much like "Hang the DJ",

DNF. I really wanted to like this one as the description really intrigued me, but I couldn’t get into it. The characters didn’t hook me and the storyline fell flat for me. I think I will be in the unpopular opinion category on this one as I’m sure a lot of people will love it.

I started out listening to it and really loved the narrator. I listener to the first 80% of the book and read the final few chapters. I want to listen to more books narrated by her!

So The Arc looks at dating through an elite, scientific matchmaking process that's a little futuristic. After $40k-50k and an intense 7 day process The Arc matches you with the one perfect ideal match.

So while I didn't love this book, I did find it entertaining. From the almost ridiculousness of Ursula and her job, her membership at The Stake (a private women's club) it was a weird quirky pretentious combo that I found annoying. And didn't want to root for her. I did like Rafael though. The whole book is a interesting premise...

If you're going to read this I highly recommend the audiobook. I don't think I would have finished the book if i had started reading it.

The Arc comes out February 8th.

I wasn't into this book. It never hooked me in.
The characters were undeletable. and I didn't care about them.
I finished it just to review it but otherwise would have DNF .

This is an interesting story. Ursula and Rafael are both successful professionals in New York who, despite a series of relationships, have yet to find something that lasts. They each learn about The Arc, a secretive and expensive service that claims that ,through their proprietary model of extensive testing, can identify a perfect, lasting match for its clients. Both take advantage of the service, and are matched with each other. At first, everything seems perfect -- their new relationship is full of deep connection and free from conflict. But over time, as professional demands and past hurts come to the fore, their seemingly perfect relationship is challenged and Ursula and Rafael must navigate obstacles they had hoped were in their past.

This was a very creative idea for a novel to explore modern relationships. It also is a story about family, friendships, and what it means to build a life.

Highly recommended!

2.5 Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC and ALC, and Libro.fm for an ALC as well. As you can see from all the advanced request, I was excited to read this. I was expecting a Black Mirror esthetic with a romance that could have gone either way. This was just a run of the mill romance where the couple happened to meet via an advanced tech-y matchmaking company. The characters, aside from maybe the leading man, were the definition of the worst. They were all out of touch rich people. “Am I that insufferable?”— yes Ursula, you are! Wish the story had taken more of a gothic/sci-fi turn, with less soapbox preached values. Recommended for fans of The Ramblers by Aidan Donnelley Rowley or The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney.

Also, from an audiobook perspective, the women characters names all sounded very similar (Ursula, her friend and her mother), and it made it difficult to keep track of who was who audibly.