Unfortunately this book was not for me. The writing was choppy and often jumped from topic to topic. This made it hard to follow what was happening in the story. When Helen finally connected with the love interest I did not feel any chemistry between them, and I was not invested in their storyline.

The language used to refer to Helen's best friend Elle was stereotypical and unnecessary. Elle is Lantina and is referred to as "spicy" and "fiery" repeatedly throughout the book. She says she can dance because it's in her blood, and people who she's just met call her Amiga. Stereotypes like this are harmful, and I can't support a book that perpetuate them. I am hopeful the author will change these in the final version.

Thank you to NetGalley, HQ Digital, and Hayley Quinn for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book is so good!!!! I was hooked from the start. I love coming across new authors to me as it gets me excited about what’s to come!!

Helen feels like an old spinster after her ex-boyfriend gets engaged and she sees the post on instagram. She decides to try online dating and has an amazing first date with Brody while visiting her hometown. After that first date, the dating app has a data issue and all matches/information is gone. At this point in the book, Helen becomes very obsessive with trying to find Brody again. Along the way, she meets Ish, who protects her while she's walking home alone one night and they start a friendship. Ish helps Helen track down her grandma's past love. Is the last first date the amazing one with Brody or what is standing in front of Helen with Ish? I did like the overall story, but the neediness and the way Helen obsessed over a guy she went on one date with was a bit much for me. Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Last First Date

Sweet, funny and extremely heartwarming, this book is sure to capture all the romantics at heart.

This book didn't go in the direction I thought it would, and I was totally ok with that!
I would have liked alittle more detail in the opening chapters regarding Helen and Brody as we had alot more telling of their connection than actually seeing, so it was alittle hard to feel it. They had this great first date but it was slightly brushed over!

I found Ish to be super adorable and I was secretly rooting for him as the book went on!
There was also some great female friendships in this book, and who can forget Nanny G?! Helen also goes through alot of personal growth which I always like to see in my stories!

This was an easy read that is perfect for them days you just want to relax and get lost in the story.
I really enjoyed it!

The Last First Date

Another ARC courtesy of NetGalley and HQ 💛

The Last First Date follows the life of Helen, a woman on a mission to find the love of her life and her last first date.

This book was a really sweet and easy read that was both endearing and fun at the same time. It had a real sense of a typical rom com to it and all the characters had a very cosy comforting vibe to them. I really enjoyed Helen’s relationship to her friends and family and found this book a very wholesome read.

The only issue I had was that I found myself cringing at many points in this book. I found Helen’s character to be quite immature at many points and I found it quite difficult to like her. I also felt she was a very needy person and that she used and relied very heavily on her friends.

As you probably know by now - I love a bit of angst and tension and that was somewhat lacking in this book. I wanted there to be a bit more drama and excitement so that I became fully invested in the characters and plot.

⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 from me! Def one to try if you want a quick easy fun rom com 💛

https://www.instagram.com/p/CcijzsGLzZ6/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Mein Leseerlebnis

Das Buchcover sah einladend und süß aus, dazu sprach mich der Klappentext direkt an, da habe ich mit Vorfreude zugegriffen.

Beim Lesen habe ich aber leider schnell gemerkt, dass die Geschichte nicht mein Fall ist. Der Humor der Autorin hat meinen zu selten getroffen und Helen fand ich als Heldin der Geschichte eher bemitleidenswert als faszinierend.

Zu Beginn des Romans trauert sie immer noch ihrem Ex hinterher, der vor einem Jahr mit ihr Schluss gemacht hat. Die Beziehung hörte sich alles andere als gut und gesund an, nur Helen kann das nicht sehen.

Darauf aufbauend entwickelt sich die Geschichte. Im Verlauf des Romans kam ich mit Helen zwar etwas besser zurecht, aber so richtig habe ich mich beim Lesen nie für sie interessiert.

Nicht funktioniert haben für mich auch die Passagen mit Textnachrichten oder Instagram-Posts. Beides hat mich eher verwirrt als amüsiert.

Alles in allem hatte ich ein eher mäßiges Leseerlebnis, immerhin gab es hier und da Szenen, die mich leicht lächeln ließen und mich einigermaßen gut unterhalten konnten. 🖤🖤1/2

Für wen?

Schaut euch den Klappentext an und lest bei Interesse unbedingt eine Leseprobe. Findet ihr Helen in dieser interessant und nicht nervig, könnte der Liebesroman etwas für euch sein.

A grand, zippy book that was enjoyable overall but some bits were hard to read – the protagonist's feelings of inadequacy are really strong and was pretty heavy for a zippy book.

This should have been a light, fun, and quick read based on the premise of the book. Unfortunately, I did not connect with or really like the main character. She seemed quite immature and not at all what I think of when I think of a young woman in her 30s. Her chasing after Brody seemed a bit stalker-ish and I just grew tired of that narrative within no time. I rarely give a negative review and will not post this review on social media out of respect for the author. This book just wasn't a win for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an advanced reader's copy of this book. This in no way affects my review, all opinions are my own.

The Last First Date, was a fun and light hearted read! It’s hard for me to write a full review without giving away too much. I loved the chase Helen was on to find love and I love how the author took a dive into some pretty emotional and real topics that happen in the world of social media and dating nowadays. I do feel like some of the writing was pretty choppy. There were a few times I had to flip back and forth to make sure I hadn’t previously missed a paragraph, and I hadn’t. I did enjoy the storyline, however I was hoping for a bit more. I loved reading at the end that Nanny was inspired by the authors grandmother! All in all it was a good light hearted fast read!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

Wow, does Hayley Quinn have a window into my diary / texts with the girls? She captured all of the anxious thoughts we have as single 30-something women forced to engage in the online dating scene. I can think of multiple texts I have with my bestie building someone up in our heads only to be let down by reality. In the end, I really appreciated the message of the book—we do need to try to find peace in being single and appreciate what we have while we have it. We need to strive to avoid allowing others / society to make us feel like we are doing something wrong. I only give it 3 stars for two main reasons: the pacing and the characters. For a short book,it took me awhile to get through because I kept getting bored with the internal dialogue. Additionally, although the the themes were relatable, the characters were not. So much else about the book felt normal—can we please stop with making characters successful influencers? That’s not the only thing millennials relate to—in fact, most of us don’t relate to them! And if we gave our protagonist a run-of-the-mill job, then her feelings of being average or ordinary would feel like they came straight from my diary that I write after a long day in front of my computer in the office. Which is what she achieves with every other part of the book.

I ended up having to put this book down before finishing, unfortunately. The main character Helen, came across as incredibly desperate and naïve throughout and it made continuing a struggle.

I believe it also only needed to be mentioned once that she had a Latina friend. Maybe not every time she came up in the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ Digital for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars for this romantic comedy!

I was debating the half star because, though I enjoyed the overall story, the writing felt rushed. I didn't connect with the characters that much because of it. I don't mind books being short and sweet, but in this case I felt like I was missing something by the end.

Apart from that, the book is easy to read, sweet and a lot of us can probably relate a bit with Helen (though at times I wanted to scream at her or something).

A cozy Sunday read for sure!

This book is so funny, it is the perfect book for a light read that put you in a good mood. I fell in love with the characters and what they went through to find love. This is a must read especially if you want to laugh! This book is well written. Would definitely recommend to anyone.

Charming characters and a wholesome plot!! I really enjoyed the development of Helen, our lead, and her journey in overcoming bad relationships. It was light and refreshing and the perfect book to end a long day with! Really lovey and cute read and would recommend!!

This was a story of a girl who was dependent on others. She was a mediocre food blogger who rarely baked. She was constantly doing things that she didn’t want to do to be liked others and to feel accepted in their lives. There were a lot of twists in this book and I was irritated with the main character most of the story (she definitely did not act like a person in her 30’s whom was actually concerned with her career, which she should have been! 30?! You have bills to pay at this point not just search for months for a guy you had one date with.) I was really happy with the ending however!

The Last First Date
⭐️ ⭐️⭐️💫

Release date: May 20, 2022

3.5 stars.

☕️ Summary:

When Helen matches with Brodie on Connex - an online dating app- they meet up and have the best last first date they have ever had. They have a great time and both promise to reach out for a second date. Big problem? The servers at Connex, the dating app (and Brodie and Helen’s only means of communication), crash and all user data is lost. Helen feels devastated by this and begins a search for Brodie - desperate to find her true love.


☕️ My thoughts:
This book is so hard to discuss without revealing spoilers- so I’ll have to keep it very general here. I loved how the begining just jumped right in. I was so invested that I was practically yelling at my kindle “why didn’t you exchange phone numbers, Helen!!!!!!”

Helen gives me major vibes similar to Iris from the Holiday when she is infatuated with Jasper in the beginning of the movie. The lengths she goes to to find Brodie definitely hits cringe level and made me uncomfortable. It’s all a part of Helen’s journey though, and I feel like this book is about Helen finding herself - rather than Helen finding a man. I read that this book has similar vibes as Mhairi McFarlane books- and I do find that to feel true for me.

This book was advertised as a “laugh out loud romance”- and I feel like it’s so important for readers to know that I think this book is significantly miscategorized based on that label alone. I would never consider this as a rom com. I also wouldn’t consider romance as it’s primary genre. This felt very chick lit or women’s fiction for me. Yes- there’s an underlying theme of romance, but it’s not enough for this to fall into a rom com genre for me.

With that said- it was an easy read and an overall enjoyable experience to read.


Thank you so much NetGalley and Hayley Quinn for providing me with an ARC to read and review.

#thelastfirstdate #netgalley

Thank you so much to @netgalley for sending me a digital version of "The Last First Date" by Hayley Quinn, set to be released May 20th, 2022. I truly appreciate the opportunity to read this ARC!

What it's about: Helen is devastated to discover that her most recent ex, Jonathan is engaged to another woman via social media. She is extremely hung up on him. After some deliberation, she signs up for the fictional equivalent of Tinder, known in the novel as "Connex", an online dating app. There, she matches with a man named Brody, and goes on one date with him before the app crashes, losing all of it's previous matching data when it reboots.

What I liked: I liked that Helen had best friends from different cultures. Sophie is Asian, and Elle is Latina. I related more closely with Elle in this novel than the main character, mostly because I don't have time for other peoples' mind games and bullsh!t. I don't waste my time on people who don't have the decency to give me the time of day. I like that this storyline had so much potential, though I feel as though some parts of it fell short somehow, somewhere. I can't quite put my finger on it.

What I wasn't a fan of: Helen is portrayed as an immature main character, despite the fact that she is actually around 30 in this novel. Every time she talked about her breasts, she referred to them as "bobs" as if she were some sort of middle schooler. It kind of made me want to punch her in the face. Also, she is a high-key stalker, looking not only for Brody in order to reconnect with him, but also for an old lover of her grandmother's. The plot twist involving Brody seemed to come out of left field as well when they met each other over again, though I know the idea was to show the reader that he wasn't who Helen originally thought he was.

Overall, I would rate this novel a 3/5 stars. It was alright, but definitely not one of my favorites.

Thank you Netgalley for the Arc !!
Overall i rate this book a 4/5. I was super excited to read this book. It did feel slow at some points during the beginning but it got better during the middle. This book was a combination of cute, funny and charming. Although the main character did get me frustrated at some moments it was still 100% worth it. Quick and easy read.

If you are looking for a book which is easy to pick up and put down, then this one could be for you - I personally didn't find anything compelling about this story at all. I liked the premise of the book, but the delivery was sadly lacking. Helen spends about 75% of the book hung up on Brody unnecessarily and not enough time spent on development of her relationship with Ish; which also felt a little clunky - the story didn't flow well at all. Overall, I didn't feel invested in either the characters or the relationships; plus the plot felt pretty weak and the writing didn't flow. I wish I could report that I liked this book more, but I really found it all a bit boring. Thanks anyway to NetGallery and HQ Publishing for allowing me to get an early copy of the book.

When Helen finds out her ex-boyfriend is engaged, she gets on a dating app in hopes of having her last first date. She matches with a hot guy, Brody, who she thinks is exactly what she has been looking for, but the dating app has a world-wide crash and all previous matches are gone. Helen attempts to track Brody down, but she cant seem to find him. When she does find him, things are not as she remembers and she is questioning how much she really knows about him. Overall, a really cute story where Helen finds herself and learns about what she likes.