This was a quick and fun read for me! I had a bit of frustration at the beginning, because I had some qualms about the love interest, but I really liked the way things played out. It felt true to the characters without the typical romance “wacky miscommunications.” I really enjoy how this author’s books are high-quality romance with the added bonus of some depth.

I read this in almost a day, which is extremely rare for me. From the very beginning I was HOOKED. This is a charming book about a quirky, whimsical, yet very relatable, New York woman whose grandmother has a special gift of predicting when people close to her will meet “the one”. As a 30ish year-old woman myself, I found that the author did a really good job at capturing our inner monologue and our daily lives. Plus I loved that this book took place in my favorite city, New York.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4733283442

Gloria has visions, accurately predicting the day every single member of the family has met their soulmate. Having waited 29 years, Edie Meyer has been anticipating this date ever since she learnt it. When she boards a flight to her twin sister's surprise engagement and a handsome musician sits beside her, she knows its fate; this is her match. But, soon Edie begins to have suspicions that "meant to be" may not have perfect timing.

"Meant to Be Mine" is my first Hannah Orenstein novel and I AM OBSESSED! The writing was was effortlessly beautiful, the story was charming and the supporting characters were incredibly lovable. I loved the Jewish rep and the exploration into finding your Bashert (Yiddish: באַשערט) – in our culture it's often translated to mean “soulmate” however the literal translation is “destiny.” The concept refers to how some romantic loves are just meant to be. An obvious nod to the title. But, if you knew how parts of your future would play out, do you follow the prophecy or your heart?

There are so many cute moments, especially between various familial and platonic relationships that added to its sweetness. I can always deal with less pining over an ex, but I understand how it was important to the plot. This is the perfect summer read and I highly recommend!!!!!

I had high hopes for this book. But I found the main character unlikeable and she kept making exceptions for Theo. This could have been so much better.

I was attracted to Meant to Be Mine because the premise was different to the usual romcoms. I liked the whole idea of fate coming into play. Would I want to know the exact date I would meet my soul mate? I really don’t know… but I lean towards I don’t think so.

I loved the relationships Edie had with her family and friends, but especially her Grandmother. In fact those were my favourite parts of the book. Edie is a confident twenty-nine-year-old woman, she runs her own business and is successful, but when she meets her match she starts to come across as desperate– which I never appreciate in a main character. There’s a scene where her match does something pretty hurtful, nothing major, but a conversation definitely needed to be had. Instead, Edie just let it slide because it’s meant to be. In fact, she let a number of things slide, which infuriated me every single time. I didn’t love the direction the ending took, it all wrapped up very quickly and felt rushed. I did enjoy that this made me think though. If you knew you were destined to be with a specific person, do you think you would be more likely to let bad behaviour slide because they’re your soulmate? Would you even bother to date before that person? What if you aren't supposed to meet them until you're in your 60’s but you know you want kids? It’s a whole can of worms and one I will be thinking about for a while.

Thank you Atria and Netgalley for the digital review copy.

Meant to Be Mine was a cute story about finding that kismet love. This is my first time reading Orenstein's work. I enjoyed reading a love story that takes place in NYC with a family at the front-and-center. I didn't love that it seemed like it took forever to get to the meat of the story. As a reader, we knew that the love story at the beginning was not meant for survival, so I would have liked to see the friends-to-lovers story developed more in the beginning and build slowly over the entirety of the book. Overall, it was a cute, quick read, and would be a great summer read. Also, I really want to try out that Matzah Ball Soup recipe listed at the end.

3 stars

After reading the description of this book I had to read it. I’m glad I did but was left with wanting more. Edie's grandma, Gloria, has predicted the date that Edie and all her family would meet their soulmate and Edie can't wait for her turn. She puts so much stock in her grandmother's predictions that she ends a great relationship to have time to mourn it before her date comes.

I didn't like Edie as much as I wanted to. I did love her family and friends, especially, Gloria, Shireen, and Rae. When she meets her "soulmate" Theo she overlooks lots of things that were dealbreakers for her. She wanted Gloria's prediction to be right and ignored her feelings until there was no choice but to move on. While romance plays a big part in the story, I think it is more about Edie's character arc than a traditional rom-com.

It's a quick read and I love all the New York details, family interactions and the food!. The end is a bit rushed. I feel a lot of time was wasted on the love story that wasn't to be instead what wound up being her real love story. I'd love a book from Rae's point of view if anyone out there is listening!

The Meyers Family has a special gift. Gloria the grandmother knows when everyone is going to meet their soulmate. Her track record is impeccable! So when Edie's match date comes, she is on the lookout for anyone and everyone who could meet her criteria. Just when she think's it's not going to happen and she hops a plane to her sister's surprise engagement, she meets her seat mate Theo, an up and coming musician checking all her boxes. Or does he? The connection is instant, but as we learn more, subtle deal breakers leaving Edie reeling. Can the man her grandmother chose really not want the same things as her? But when a secret is revealed, Edie is left reeling about her Grandmother's gift and wether Theo is really the man she wants to end up with.

I love Hannah Orenstein books! I love that she casts these beautiful jewish characters and features the wonderful traditions and close knit families without being too stereotypical or negative. The whole time I questioned who Edie was gonna end up with. 1. The predictable route: the person her grandmother chose 2. The old flame she dumped because she knew her match date was coming, or 3. The unpredictable family friend who always was there at the right moments. There was some predictability to this story, and sometimes I found myself not liking Edie because she was too much of a stereotypical New York fashionista. It wasn't a deal breaker by any means on my end, but it just feels like that type of character is overdone.

Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for an honest review. This book releases 6/7!

This one was so fun!! Having read Head Over Heels and loving it, I was excited to read this new release by the author. The concept was so different and made me think and question so many things throughout the book. Edie was such a lovable main character from the very beginning, and I loved following her journey of self-discovery. The setting in NYC provided a vibrant environment for these characters to thrive in. This book really made you feel all the emotions, and I absolutely loved the ending!! I can’t wait to read more by this author soon!

This book has a such a cute premise, and delivered on that, but I still found the romance to be a bit boring. I wanted more, and less of a predictable ending. Overall, this was cute, and an easy ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 read..

Sometimes a gal just needs to read a little romance. This is not my usual go to book genre. But the premise sounded adorable, and I was definitely intrigued.

Imagine if you knew the exact date you would meet your true love. Convenient right? But maybe a little bittersweet with any other romance leading up to the date. Edie is our main character and set to meet her true love on June 24, 2022. You see her Grandma Gloria was able to see the date she would meet her one true love. Ever since then she is able to do it for anyone in the family. This gives us one of my favorite book tropes: the soul mate trope. But sometimes love isn't what we expect. The story follows along with Eddie and her path of finding love. Maybe things aren't always as they are planned.

What I loved:
-Eddie's life sounds pretty darn cool. A stylist in the Big Apple, twin sister not far from her, and a great best friend. She is seriously living her best life in her 20s
-her relationship with her Grandma Gloria. Seriously the sweetest thing ever.
-. We are surrounded by love throughout this story. Not only for Eddie but everyone around her.
-the prophecy element is a really neat concept. I liked the idea of knowing when you would meet the one.

This was really fun, and I loved the pacing of this story. I also loved Edie, and her journey to figure out love. The ending was absolutely perfect! This book is perfect for any romance fan. I can't wait for future books from this author. 4 stars out of 5! Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I've been following Hannah Orenstein even before she became an author, and when she published her first novel Playing With Matches, I became her reader too. I was thrilled to be approved for an advanced copy of her new novel Meant to Be Mine.

Let me start saying I'm not very familiar with the Jewish religion (I'm Mexican, raised Catholic and currently atheist), but I'm always open to learn. This novel was very informative and out of my comfort zone. I enjoyed the family dynamics and their traditions. I could relate very much in that aspect, since in Mexican culture we are kind of the same way. Family is always first and we always look after each other.

The most outstanding character has to be Gloria, it reminded me of my own grandmothers, who always cared of looking presentable and had a kind word for whoever crossed their path. They loved their children and grandchildren with a kind but fierce manner. The prophecy part of the plot gave me Isabel Allende vibes with her magical realism. Even though the plot is very predictable since the beginning, I was satisfied with how everything turned out.

To be honest, this book took me out of a reading slump and it was the kind of story I was excited to get back to. It's a light read, but still touches serious topics which makes the plot realistic and not out of a fairytale.

Meant to Be Mine is definitely Orenstein's best work yet. I've read all her novels and in this one you could really see her growth as a writer. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to get my hands on this before publication.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4634687027

I really enjoyed this book! Edie’s grandma has predicted the date that many family members will meet the love of their life. On the date Edie’s grandma predicted for her she did all that she could to meet someone, but where they the right person?

As a believer in fate and having a similar story where I was told I end up with a certain someone (but didn’t) I could totally relate with the main character Edie. I love how the writer delves into staying true to yourself.

Although I could tell where this book was going, I still thoroughly enjoyed the journey of getting there. This is a light read, but will still leave you thinking about it if you let it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria books for the advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

Interesting premise of whether fate governs our love lives or if we are allowed our own opportunity to make decisions. This book was alright, don't know that it was strong enough to really care to read anything else by this author any time soon.

The premise of this book is delectable and though at the start I enjoyed Edie and Theo. I found this tough to continue reading. This was very detail heavy and did not contain the lightness that I expected more like a rom-com. Was still enjoyable and I would love to give this another go being more prepared for what I'll read.

From one Hannah to another…. Why’d you have to do **** like that?! 😭

But on a serious note, I really enjoyed this book. We follow fashion stylist Edie on her journey to find her one true love. She thinks she’s found him in Theo, an up and coming rockstar, but is theirs the one to beat all loves?

While I wouldn’t have chosen the ending, I wasn’t *too* mad about it. This book was so unique and I love Orenstein’s writing. Our MC was a bit too picky at times, but I ultimately loved following this story. Definitely pick this one up!

It’s hard to enjoy a romance when you don’t like the main character.

Edie Meyer knows the exact date she will meet her soulmate. Her grandmother, Gloria, has accurately predicted the date each member of the family will meet their match and fall in love. So when on her predicted date Edie meets a handsome and charismatic musician on her flight she knows everything is falling into place, except as time goes on she discovers her fate may not be as straight forward as she thought it was.

Unfortunately throughout this book I just found myself cringing at Edie’s actions and internal dialogue. She felt like a “pick me” girl and I was just feeling like I would not be making the same decisions as her. Ultimately I was happy for her in the end but it was all too predictable.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for inviting me to read an eARC in exchange of an honest review.

While I loved the premise of this book and at first really loved Edie and Theo it ended up being a bit hard for me to get through. I very much love detail but there was a bit more than was needed in this story. I also was expecting more lightness and laughs but this read more like women's fiction than rom-com. I am interested in other books by Orenstein though and while I was a huge fan would recommend to someone looking for more of a serious read.

This is my favorite of Hannah’s books! I loved the premise and it was such a sweet story with great characters and family dynamics.

This felt so personal, which helped Edie to feel like such a real person. I wish we got more time with Bennet.
this was a very quick, fun read and would definitely recommend for summertime.

Edie is from a family of true love as predicted by her grandma. Her date to find true love comes and she meets Theo, but is he her true love? Or is there someone else?

This premise was so interesting. It definitely kept me in suspense. I really wish, though, that we had gotten to see more of the secondary male character and more of their relationship develop. I did feel as though the book ended too quickly, and I would’ve liked more information from the other family members and the prophecy. Or even a tie back in for the family members who didn’t follow the prophecy.

Overall, the book was a fun, quick read.