THANK YOU!!
I really enjoyed Emily Giffin's latest book.
She always delivers a fantastic story.
I could not put it down.

Meant to Be by Emily Giffin harkens back to the golden age of the writer and of American history. Introducing readers to Joseph S. Kingsley III and Cate Cooper, this Cinderella-esque love story is loosely based on the Kennedys.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

Inspired by the Kennedy family, Emily Giffin centers her latest novel around the wealthy Kingsley family. After his father's untimely death, Joe Kingsley III inherits the famous legacy (think John F. Kennedy, Jr.). Cate, on the other hand, is born on the other side of the tracks. She grows up with an abusive stepfather and leaves home before she can graduate from high school. She supports herself as a famous model, and when she's on an assignment, she encounters the handsome Joe Kingsley, whose poster used to hang on her bedroom wall.

I usually enjoy Giffin's breezy novels, but this time, her characters were hard for me to connect with. Joe came across as spoiled and entitled, and the biggest hurdle in his relationship with Cate was how to deal with the paparazzi. Unlike JFK Jr., everything works out perfectly for Joe Kingsley. On the other hand, the pages practically turned themselves, so the book provided me with a few hours of escapism. Take this one to the beach: the plot developments are worthy of a soap opera. Just don't go into this book expecting realism.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my opinions.

This book was unbelievably good, better than I anticipated. I couldn't put it down. Such great characters, written in such a way you really understood them. Even though I just wanted to scream at Cate at times for her low self-worth (just tell him what's really going on already would you!) it was so believable and well-written and even gets to the nitty gritty of how some feel such low self-worth and sabotage things for that reason. I love how the story line flowed from Joe to Cate, telling their stories in their own viewpoints and letting us, essentially, grow up with them and see their relationship develop. This is the type of story that takes you by the heart and doesn't let go. Well written, highly recommended, the type of book that makes it hard to find something good to read afterward.

This was a bit of a miss for me. There were aspects of it that I really liked, such as that it was clearly inspired but the Kennedy family. But for some reason this story never really picked up fully for me and I was always on the outskirts of feeling fully immersed. As a whole I love Emily Henry but I just don think this was the story for me.

This is my first Giffin to read in over a year, and it was lovely.

Joe Kingsley comes from a prestigious family. His father was an astronaut and politician who died on a space mission, recognized as a hero. Cate Cooper comes from a single-mom household and an abusive stepfather. After getting picked up by a modeling agency, she drops out of high school and moves away from her abusive home. Her paths cross with Joe’s one day in the Hamptons, and this starts an up-and-down relationship in which they have to navigate their very different backgrounds.

This shifts POV between Joe and Cate, an element to the story that I loved. I enjoyed reading about their relationship development and was overall happy with the plot of the novel.

Usually I love Emily Giffon books, but I don't have anything memorable about this one. Definitely based on the Kennedys, but I didn't feel or believe the attraction between the 2 main characters.

Emily Griffin cannot write a bad book, just sayin. I loved the story and was entralled the whole way through. One thing I will say is that I felt the end was rushed a wee bit, but would still recommend .

I've always loved Emily Giffin books' and this one didn't disappoint. I felt like it did start a bit slow, but it eventually picked up in the middle of the book, and I'm glad I stuck with it.

I like the way the characters went back and forth throughout the book, and I thought it was an easy and enjoyable read.

I like the romance that was included in the book, but definitely didn't go into too much 'romance' at all.

Can't wait for the next Emily Giffin book.

I got swept away by Cate and Joe’s romance, a result of Giffin’s ability to craft compelling dialogue and keep a novel moving at perfect pace. This was my favorite of hers to date!

If you’re nostalgic for the Camelot of the Kennedy administration, and fascinated by the powerful family’s day-to-day life, Meant to Be may be meant for you! Loosely based on the romance of John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette, the novel follows Joseph S. Kingsley III and Cate Cooper. Joe is the reckless and charismatic son of American royalty. Cate grew up in an abusive household, and found an escape route through modeling.

When the two meet by chance, the connection is electric. Can the pair find their place in the world together and avoid the Kingsley curse?

This was such a beautiful and timeless love story. I would love to see this book made into a movie. I thought this was such an easy read. I loved the plot and the characters in this book. I loved the dual POV in this book. This book is loosely based off the Kennedy’s. It’s such a beautiful love story, I highly recommend checking it out!

Thank you Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book. The characters reminded me of the Kennedy family.
Loved the story. I could see this becoming a made for tv movie.

Meant to Be is a novel loosely based on the life of JFK Jr and Carolyn Bassette. It was engaging and interesting but also nostalgic, for those of us old enough to remember. I really enjoyed this story and was a hit from Emily Giffin. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

If People Weekly magazine wrote a romance novel, it would read a lot like this. Easy, very readable peek into the lives of the famous, but lacking the depth and emotion that Giffin fans are accustomed to.

2 stars! Meant to Be missed the mark for me.
Thank you to Emily Giffin, Random House Publishing-Ballantine, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Emily Giffin is so fun to follow in Instagram and her stories with the Kennedys had me excited to read this book, Cate and Joe are very clearly based on JFK, jr and Carolyn. Cate is a strong woman and the romance was so lovely. It was a fun romance to follow. It was a fun beach read.

I have always enjoy Emily Giffin's books but this one was just not for me. I had a hard time keeping myself focused. It may have been the Covid brain but I think it was just that I didn't like that it seemed to be about the Kennedy's. Or more precise JFK jr and his wife. While I loved him my whole life I didn't want to read about him. I just didn't.

While the story is touching in parts and has a dynamic ending, it just was not one I enjoyed. Not like her earlier and some previous books.

I"m sorry but I just didn't enjoy. That doesn't mean it was not well written in any way. I highly suggest you read this for yourself.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc.

3.5 stars

Enjoyable romance novel. Hooked me right away. Joe lives a life of power & influence, while Cate came from an abusive household from which she escaped to make a life of her own. A bit predictable, but still enjoyable.

Young, handsome, and wealthy, Joseph S. Kingsley III was mourning the early death of his father and managing the conflicted feelings that came with his legacy of privilege. Joe knew he was expected to do great things, but he was a bit of a rebel, undecided at what his place in history would be.

Cate knew she did not want a life that was anything like her mother’s, finding a series of loser boyfriends and working at unskilled jobs. Cate wanted more, and when she started modeling, she was sure it would lead to the exciting, successful life she’d always wanted. Upon meeting Joe, she knew instantly her life would never be the same.

Well. This was not at all what I had expected. To me, the book seemed flat, that even though the characters had plenty of drama in their lives, it didn’t leap off the pages the way I wanted it to. Based loosely on the relationship of JFK Jr and Carolyn Bessette, Meant To Be was repetitive in places and the characters never really developed. I’m normally an Emily Giffin fan, but this book just wasn’t a good fit for me.