THE ARC is such a unique romance based on the science behind love using a new matchmaking service called THE ARC. Yet even highly refined psychological assessments can't predict love's mysterious twists and turns, as we find out when Ursula, a branding expert, and Rafael, an attorney, are matched. Highly recommended for romance fans seeking a new take on True Love. Out today.

Thanks to the author, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for the e-ARC; opinions are mine.

#thearc #netgalley

Thank you to St. Martins Press and Netgalley for my gifted eARC of “The Arc” by Tory Henwood Hoen.⁣
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You know that TikTok audio that’s like “the girls that get it, get it …” That’s what I think of when I think of this book. It is, I guess, a love story — but not really. There’s a lot of satire; our protagonist, 35-year-old Ursula, is “VP of strategic audacity” at a marketing firm in New York. ⁣
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Tired of the dating cesspool, Ursula pays The Arc an exorbitant sum to find her perfect match. The Arc is peak startup, with its own jargon and certain its matchmaking service that costs five figures is going to change the world. Through The Arc, Ursula is matched with 42-year-old Rafael Banks (who also paid a crazy amount of money for the process). ⁣
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The couple has an immediate connection, but as life unfolds, it becomes less and less certain just how much they can depend on the data behind their “fully optimized” relationship. ⁣
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I really enjoyed this one; I loved the writing, and the subtle humor was perfect. But I think it’s probably going to resonate the most with people — especially women — who have some exposure to startups, VC and corporate life. The book spends as much time on Ursula’s career as it does their relationship — that’s kind of the point.

The Arc is a fascinating light satire about contemporary love and how we sustain our relationships. The writing reminded me of Laura Hankin’s novels and the show Black Mirror. The story immediately drew me in set in privileged elitist New York City. It follows Ursula, 35, and Rafael, 42; who are both successful in their careers but haven’t found the right person. They each spend $40-50k on the Arc’s service, an intensive matching service that employs technology in matching romantic partners. They’re matched with each other and have an instant, deep connection.

I loved Ursula and Rafael’s characters. The dialogue was so fun and punchy and I loved their connection. A few months in they begin having disagreements and old patterns appear. We soon learns what happens after a perfect match is put together. This book made me ponder questions like, how do we make our relationships successful? What makes people compatible? How do our insecurities and past experiences reflect in our relationships and communication? I also pondered the precarity of all relationships. I listened to the audiobook which was deftly narrated by Mary Elizabeth Kelly who perfectly embodied Ursula and the tone of the book.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press / Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The concept of this novel is vastly appealing. I love a good fated romance. As a woman of similar age, I see the appeal of someone else - a company, in this case - take the guesswork and what if's out of the equation.
The ramp up through the testing and even the first date was intriguing and kept my interest. I didn't love the forced conflict though. While no book is smooth sailing in full and I expected there to be hurdles, this one didn't work for me.
The narration by Mary Elizabeth Kelly was well executed. I enjoyed her performance for the content and she made it easy to keep listening. Overwhelmingly, I recommend listening to the audiobook for anyone wanting to read this book.
Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the alc and St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.

I really enjoyed this book, especially the engaging dialogue between the main characters. Witty banter is my jam and this book is packed with it. This is a love story with a twist. Can you find the love of your life using a third party? Ursula and Rafael sure hope so since a matchmaking service has told them they're perfect for each other. I felt these characters were very relatable, especially Ursula and her need of maintaining autonomy while finding the love of her life. I rooted for Ursula and Rafael through the whole book and loved the ending.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was an entertaining, well-written book. It was interesting, clever, funny and creative. It held my interest and I wanted to find out what would happen. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to others.

The synopsis was interesting, and I had high hopes for this. I didn't care for the beginning but hung in there and then it began to pique my interest. But unfortunately, that didn't last. I became disinterested. I didn't really feel a connection with the characters, I didn't feel for their plight. True, there were parts of the book which I found to be interesting, but there were too many parts that just didn't win me over and at the end of the day, this book just wasn't for me.

As promising as the lure of guaranteed lifetime relationship bliss, THE ARC by Tory Henwood Hoen delivered a similar experience of expecting one thing and receiving another. Unfortunately, this story started with a fascinating premise and engaging cover, but the storytelling failed to deliver what I wanted, a smart, delicious escape into another world. I received an early reader copy of this book and the opinions expressed are my own and unbiased.

I'm not a big rom-com reader, and I really didn't love this one. However, I can see how people who like the genre will like this one. The banter between the two main characters was a bit too cute and over the top for me. I found them grating.

Single, dubious of traditional forms of finding a partner, and recently in possession of a financial windfall - Ursula is ready to find the real deal. Enter, The Arc - a mysterious match-making service for the wealthy. They promise you the perfect match…in exchange for $50K. But can finding love really be optimized? And even if you find love, can an algorithm really guarantee you'll keep it? ⠀

I was drawn in by the premise but found so much to enjoy about this debut.⠀

I liked Ursula a lot. Ursula as a character is successful, sexy, kind of weird, and discontented with life. The tone of the writing matched her very well. The writing had a bite to it - it was sarcastic, witty, and at times insightful. This led to palatable chemistry between Ursula and Rafael, as well as some really fun banter.⠀

I've mentioned before that I really vibe with books that satirize wellness and startup culture and loved that the world of this novel was filled with so many satirized touches. ⠀

I was intrigued, I had a good time, and I came away asking myself (and others) if they would use the service this book is named after. Most importantly, I felt connected to the story and our main character.⠀

In a world rife with shiny new dating apps, how far is too far to go to find the one without having to suffer through dozens, if not hundreds, of bad dates? That's the question Tony Henwood Hoen poses in her debut novel, The Arc, in which the eponymous Arc promises clients just one perfect romantic match--in exchange for a week of time spent plumbing their physical and emotional depths and a $50,000 fee.

Ursula Byrne is crushing it at her job as v-p of strategic audacity at a branding agency in Manhattan that fills her bank account but not her soul. Woefully single, she's tired of her dating options and about ready to embrace life as a single lady with a cat when she is introduced to the Arc, whose website reads: "Lasting love is in the details. It's time to be more particular." Somewhere between skeptical and optimistic, Ursula signs up. When she's matched with Rafael Banks a few weeks later, it feels too good to be true: their first date stretches across an afternoon, evening, an overnight--the timeless thing first date dreams are made of, infused with "an entire day's worth of sexual tension, an entire life's worth of wondering if she would ever find someone that made her feel like this."

This magical first date doesn't happen until more than 100 pages into The Arc, during which readers have learned much about Ursula and nothing about Rafael. While this pacing feels uneven at first, it starts to feel more deliberate as the new couple's relationship takes off; The Arc is a romance novel, but even more so a story of self-discovery and womanhood, of Ursula coming into her own both as an individual and as one half of a perfectly happy couple.

As any reader of romance knows, that perfect happiness cannot possibly last--or has the Arc figured out how to make it happen? Ursula and Rafael grapple with this question as they come together, then apart, and then together again. Along the way, Hoen's attention to the detail of Ursula's life provides ample opportunity for humorous and cutting insights into corporate life, modern-day dating, ridiculous venture capital investments and the absurd consumerism of the wellness world (among other topics). It's a lot to pack into one novel, but the frame of the Arc as "relationship architecture" holds it all together along the way, resulting in a delightful debut about love and dating and modern womanhood that asks as many questions about self-determination and free will as it answers.

I liked this book but I wanted to like it more. Ursula and Rafael were very well developed characters who I liked and enjoyed reading and I really loved that the theme of the story wasn't fairytale happily ever after but love takes work. However the middle of the book just felt really boggy. I think the author just spent too much time on the beginning of their relationship. That almost ruined it for me but I'm glad I stuck it out and finished it. It was definitely a character driven book but when a book is labeled romance I think you expect it to be plot driven so that threw me off a little too.

The Arc was an interesting read with a unique take on dating in the 21st century.
We've heard of dating apps, but have you heard of the science behind pairing two people up and what would go into finding the ultimate soulmate?? This is what The Arc is about.

Ursula is a successful corporate business woman, working in the creative industry. She is at the top of her game and her peers look up to her. She lives in Brooklyn with her cat and has a good friend group. The only thing missing is someone to share her life with.

Raphael is a successful lawyer that works his 9-5 job, but then leaves that life at work. He knows how to separate work and colleagues from his everyday life. He also has a good friend group and is close to his family. He is in his 40's and is ready to find "the one" and have a happy family life.

Ursula and Raphael both dive into the Arc world and pay the fee to be "matched for life". This had a little bit of a futuristic feel to it with all the testing and scientific matters this matching company did for each individual. It pushed beyond the swipe rights and lefts of today and I enjoyed seeing it play out with matching these two up and how they possibly could've gotten it wrong.

Since this is a romance story, it was fun to watch two individuals that were paired up because they were perfectly matched navigate dating and falling in love. The pacing felt just right, even when they went full steam ahead in their relationship. I liked that we got to see Ursula and Raphael deal with real life and see how The Arc was always behind the scenes, even when we least expected it.
Ms Hoen took the dating world and gave us a glimpse into the future. But you still have to wonder if we make relationships work because of the science behind it, or is it about the age old communication and putting in the work??

While I didn't really relate to these characters, the road to their relationship successes and failures was all too real. I enjoyed the take on dating life and liked how the author took us on this journey. It was a breath of fresh air.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC of The Arc (haha) in exchange for my honest opinion.
The Arc is an expensive matchmaking service that Ursula signs up for ($40,500 for women, $50k for men) that promises perfection for the arc of the relationship. I loved reading about her meeting Rafael and the progression of their relationship. I loved the ending and the questions it left. Perhaps I'm the right audience, as in late-30s, frustrated by the dating scene, and potentially interested in such a service! I especially loved Ursula and Rafael's ever-changing nicknames for each other.
This book was a quick read that I couldn't put down. I am excited to recommend it to others when it's available this Tuesday!

I didn’t know too much about the Arc before diving in and I was surprised by the plot!

Ursula is 35 and has tried everything when it comes to love and hasn’t been successful. She decides to take some drastic measures- she signs up for the Arc. The Arc is a very high end matchmaking business who uses lots of science and algorithms to find your perfect match. Ursula goes through extensive testing and compatibility quizzes and gets matched up with Rafael, a handsome 42 yr old. Things are going so wonderfully and they are singing the praises of the Arc until they hit a roadblock. Maybe things aren’t as rosy as they seem?

I thought this was a very interesting book as we use more science and data for almost everything we do now. But it has been done a few times now. I saw several comparisons to the Soulmate Equation. If people have the money for this service, I can see it working pretty well. But the cost is just so prohibitive, I feel like you are alienating a lot of potential matches. It also matched Ursula and Rafael so quickly. If you have ever dated in a big city before, I think you’ll enjoy this fast paced book.

Thank you so much to @stmartinspress for my finished copy and @librofrm for the ALC! The Arc will be released this Tuesday, 2/8!

When I first started this book, I was a bit skeptical - it felt like it was starting off slow. However, it quickly picked up and I really quite enjoyed it!

It is a bit of a quirky book - simply just based on the premise - but I genuinely did enjoy going on the journey with Ursula and Rafael. I was eager to see if this relationship architecture worked and how their relationship would change along the way.

And the ending - woah. I'm so so intrigued and have been left pondering if we saw the company covering for themselves...or if that truly was in their master plan all along.

I did not like this even though I can totally relate to Ursula as a character and wanting to find a mate and doing anything she can to achieve it. Enter 'The Arc." She is paired with Rafael, who is just as successful career-wise as she is but I did not really feel their chemistry in the book, it fell flat for me. Plus the book does not finish well IMO.

Just ok. Other readers might enjoy this more than I did. I liked the cover LOL.

Thanks to netgalley, Tory Henwood Hoen and St Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 2/8/22

Would you pay $40k ($50k if male) to a match making agency that guarantees a love match? That’s what Ursula and Rafael do with The Arc. Through a proprietary process, The Arc matches you with the ideal mate and guarantees you’ll be together at the 18 month mark.

While there are aspects I enjoyed in this book, I had a difficult time connecting to the characters. Ursula was a bit too quirky for me and got on my nerves. I couldn’t relate to her at all! I connected more to Issa and think everyone needs a friend like that in their life.

The story is told from both points-of-view but in third person, which is why I felt so disconnected from it. It’s mostly from Ursula’s view and the parts where we see Rafael’s view feel disjointed and out of place.

The overall themes of feminism, capitalism, and self-acceptance are central to the plot and raise good points about our society today. In my opinion, it just wasn’t done in a way that’ll connect to most people, myself included. Overall, a decent story that was entertaining but fell flat for me.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy.

It does not follow the usual path toward romance. In the beginning it introduces a billionaire and a hard working authoritative heroine, but he is not the love interest. Instead it focuses on a matchmaking service which promises, and delivers, true love but 18 months down the road. There is angst on both sides over the cost. There is a long preliminary matching process, instantaneous attraction, cutesy naming banter, extending even to genitalia, aggravation that builds toward a threat to the relationship, but finally mutual antipathy towards The ARC and its personnel which leads back to that HEA.. If you believe, or want to believe, in a matchmaker who can find for you the kind of love you most desire, this book meets the bill.

This was an interesting read. Ursula Byrne and Rafael Banks have been matched by The Arc, a revolutionary new relationship architecture firm that uses proprietary methods to create perfect matches. Their methods seem very manipulative, mind games and hypnosis? But, Ursula and Rafael seem to have truly met their perfect match. Until it isn't so perfect after all.

The whole concept of The Arc just gave me the creeps - the sensory deprivation methods used during the intake process seemed so cultlike. I wanted the whole thing to be exposed as a scam. Ultimately, I was satisfied with some aspects of the ending but frustrated by others.

In some ways, this reminded me of Christina Lauren's Soulmate Equation - using science to facilitate a love match. The characters in The Arc just weren't all that likable and I found it hard to root for them. I really didn't care if Ursula ended up with Rafael or with Mike or whoever.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read a digital ARC in return for an honest review.