This was a very cute read! I loved the way Davey and Hannah met and how fate brought them together. My only criticism was the pacing throughout the middle of the book. It felt repetitive at times and could have been shortened slightly. I also wish that at the beginning of the chapters, the narrator was stated every time. It wasn’t always consistent, so I would be expecting to read another chapter from Davey’s POV, but it would be Hannah, and I wouldn’t realize this until a few sentences in.

Davey mistakingly calls the wrong number and ends up talking to Hannah. He lives in Texas and she lives in England. What starts as a misdial turns into texts, phone calls and then video calls. When Davey has a job interview in London, Hannah plans to meet him at the airport. But he never shows up.

I read this book so fast. I couldn't wait to find out how it was going to end. Thinking of all the possibilities of what could happen made me not want to put this book down. My curiosity was piqued the entire time. I really enjoyed the flow of the author's writing. With the romance, humor and an emotional storyline, it had just about everything.

The progression of Davey and Hannah's relationship felt so natural. Their conversations flowed as they talked about anything and everything. There were a few other relationships in the book that I also loved. Overall, a book that I thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend.

The Man I Never Met may just be my favorite book of 2022! For fans of Josie Silver's One Day in December, this is a must read! Hannah receives a phone call from an unknown number. On the other end of the line is an American guy from Texas who's trying to reach a potential employer in London for an interview. After clearing up the confusion, they go their separate ways....until the guy, Davey, texts her the next day. From that point on, the book in a complete emotional roller coaster. There are times when I wanted to yell at Hannah and Davey for the choices they made, but at the same time loved them through it because they truly were relatable and flawed. Loved every single moment from cover to cover.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC!

Can a misdialed phone number lead to happily ever after? Davey, an architect living in Texas, is supposed to call Jonathan White, the head of a London architecture firm, for a job interview, but he wrote down the number wrong and he called a woman named Hannah instead. She politely tells him he has the wrong number, and he hangs up and redials, once again getting Hannah. Davey cannot believe he misdialed the same number twice, and when he recites the phone number he intended to call, Hannah informs him that is her number. They chat for a little while, and Hannah suggests he "google" the phone number for the architecture firm and wishes him best of luck in finding the right number and with the job interview. Davey later sends her a text informing her that he got the job. They text for a while, including sharing names and other details about themselves. The texting progresses to WhatsApp calls and then video calls, as Hannah and Davey build a long-distance friendship, and possibly something more. Davey is moving to London in January, and they arrange for Hannah to meet him at the airport. However, Davey fails to show up. When Hannah is finally able to get in touch with Davey, Davey has the best possible excuse for missing his flight but also one of the worst (in terms of tragic/devastating) possible reasons.

As I was thinking about my review while reading the book, I was not going to share Davey's reason for not going to London, letting it be a surprise for other readers. However, after reading the "Author's Note", I decided to include it. The reason Davey misses his flight is because he is in the hospital, where he will be diagnosed with stage 3 testicular cancer. The author's husband also battled testicular cancer, and the author, with her husband's permission, uses parts of his diagnosis and treatment when formulating her story. Her husband hoped that this story would encourage readers to tell the men in their lives to check their "downstairs regions" regularly for any changes/lumps/bumps/irregularities.

Returning to the story, after Davey starts chemotherapy, he tells Hannah that he is ending things between them. This is not how things were supposed to be between them, and he does not want her to put her life on hold for him. It is not fair to either of them to attempt this long-distance relationship right now. Davey asks Hannah not to call him again. The story then progresses with Hannah getting on with her life, including a vacation to Thailand with a friend/trainer from the gym that turns into a relationship (although not the healthiest relationship), Davey's struggles with chemotherapy and desire to quit before finishing all three rounds of treatment, and Davey's choices about what to do once treatment is finished. Hannah and Davey will talk or almost talk on several occasions over the ensuing year, but largely their lives will progress separately, with occasional thoughts about the other person but no attempts to contact. They will eventually meet in the most unlikely circumstances but also the perfect setting given their past history.

My favorite part of the story is the exchanges between Hannah and Davey as they get to know each other. There is a sweetness, joy, vulnerability, and openness to these conversations. I also liked the friendship between Hannah and her neighbor Joan, with their Sunday morning ritual, and Joan finding love again after years of being a widow.

I received a copy of the e-book via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Hannah and Davey meet when he misdials her phone. A continent apart, they begin a fun and flirty relationship. He is moving to her country and they plan to meet when he lands at the airport.
He is a no show and his reason throws everything and Hannah into a spin. It is an emotional up and down story that proceeds through a year and a half of their lives.
I thoroughly enjoyed the story and hoped that Hannah and Davey would one day meet, even if they were old and gray when it happened.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A heart-wrenching read with loveable characters and a story that draws you in so deeply you won't want to stop reading. The story is about much more than two people falling in love and that's what makes this book wonderful.

One misdial changed the course of Hannah's life in an instant. She receives a call from an unknown number and on the other end of the line is Davey, an American man calling in for a job interview in London. Hanna wishes him luck and expects to never hear from him again until he texts her that he's gotten the job and will be moving to London. The pair continues speaking and as their friendship grows so do the sparks of romance. Then, a shocking event prevents the two from meeting at the airport and may even end their relationship for good.

The Man I Never Met is an interesting story that draws you in right from the beginning. It is a will-they-won't-they romance about the characters finding their identities through rough circumstances. The story is slow to medium paced and happens over the span of about a year, but never feels boring. I also find the use of different times, seasons, and weather throught the story an interesting element.

There are happy moments, sad moments, and frustrating moments throughout the novel which made me feel for the characters and genuinely care about how things would turn out. The characters deal with heartbreak, loneliness, internal struggles within themselves, and even some right person, wrong time themes.

The author made me fall in love with the characters and the adorable relationship that forms between them, then suddenly the story takes a gut wrenching turn. I was left feeling frustrated but sympathetic for both of the characters and worried at some points for their future. I was engrossed in the story and just had to know how it was going to end. Don't expect your typical romance but I promise the journey will not disappoint. A great read and I would recommend it 100%!

Themes: identity, loneliness, right person wrong time, will they won't they, romance

Story Elements: plot twist, dual POV

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really liked the premise of the book but the execution fell short for me. It starts out as a chance meeting with a wrong phone number between two people who live in different countries. While the author tried to pan this out slowly it still came off a bit insta-love...especially since our main characters relationship purely exists on the phone. And once it starts to seem like they might actually meet in person...[ the main character suddenly gets testicular cancer out of the blue. He stays in America and stops speaking to our female protagonist. A huge chunk of the books doesn't even involve our main characters interacting at all with each other as they both go on to have relationships with other people. We get sporadic chapters from the male protagonist POV that seem oddly placed. In fact, most of the book doesn't even involve our main characters interacting with each other but yet they still have feelings of love for each other despite never actually meeting in person. (hide spoiler)].

The ending feels rushed and not very satisfying. After all the drama throughout the book it felt like the book finished right when the real story should have been taking off. I feel like this book would have been so cute without the manufactured drama that went on just a little too long.

***Advanced copy obtained from Random House/Ballanttine via Netgalley***

'The Man I Never Met' was an engaging, unique and heartfelt story of two people who connect with each other through a misdialed number. This is a story that I didn't want to end, and it will stick with me. I thought Davey and Hannah's choices were ones that I wouldn't have made, but there was a realism to the times we live in that made an impression. The mostly British setting is appealing to me and I highly recommend this to all.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Who would have guessed that when Hannah picked up a call from a number unknown, she would end up making a connection that would change her life? Davey is an American who was trying to reach a number for a job interview. And when he lands the job in London, he and Hannah start making plans to meet. But when he doesn't show, and the reason why is life-altering, can they both move on?

I felt like this novel was very British--the writing, the plot, the dialogue (which was very cute), all had a different flavor. It was almost like watching a British rom com. The whole thing was sweetly atmospheric. I could FEEL the story, the setting, the characters' feelings--everything. The writing was very upbeat and hopeful, until it wasn't. Hannah really feels ALL the feels. Both characters make self-destructive decisions in a way that kept me screaming in frustration and turning the page, hoping they'd wise up. It was a satisfying book in the end, and I felt invested in seeing it through. I do recommend it for fans of the genre.

Oh my heart. You know a book will stay with you for a long, long time when your heart is broken and then put back together again. This book took me by surprise. A romcom to start, a tortured romance to hold hope for, with heartbreak and hope in between. I wanted to keep reading and reading and then I didn’t want it to end.

This was one of those love stories that made me remember all the feelings of first love. The excitement, the anxiety, the butterflies, the anticipation, the worries, the first fight. I fell right into the pages of this book and stayed there until the very end, and then, I just sat lost in daydreams. I received a complimentary copy of this book.from NetGalley and Dell Publishing. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I was not prepared for all of the emotions to hit me in this book. The meet cute was adorable, and then I thought I was prepared when Davey didn’t show up thanks to the blurb. I was not. I thought I was going to hate him, but my poor heart was breaking for both him and Hannah. I liked seeing Hannah and Davey grow throughout the book, through their struggles and their triumphs. It’s. A good book, a romance with a heavy dose of real life problems. It’s heavier than most romances, but that’s definitely not a bad thing!

Davey is trying to call to London from Austin, TX for a phone interview for a job he is hoping to land. Imagine his surprise when a young woman answers the phone. After some problem solving, he quickly hangs up and proceeds to complete his interview. He quickly messages her that he made the interview. And then again when he got the job. And then again to see if she had any suggestions on where to start looking for a flat. Messages led to phone calls, which eventually video calls. And then the day he was supposed to make the big move, he doesn’t show up. He doesn’t respond to any messages. Was she fooled?

I loved it! "The Man I Never Met" by Elle Cook is a heartwarming, enjoyable, endearing and interesting love story of two people, on different continents that fall in love, yet life gets in the way of their union. Wonderful build up, complex entanglements, fabulous characters, all told in a relatable note. Thank you NetGalley, the author and publisher for the e-reader for review. All opinions are my own.

4.5 stars. This is EVERYTHING I want my contemporary romances to be!! Fate, swooniness (silly spell checker does not believe this is a word), wrong place-wrong time scenarios, angst, personal growth, missed opportunities, etc. etc. etc. I take off a half star because I get very frustrated by the "I'm doing this for your own good" BS that characters in romances tend to pull, but that's just a personal thing for me. For heck's sake, as an adult, kindly give me the information I need and let ME make the decision on what's best for me...grumble, grumble!!! I was super-impressed by this writing and story and highly recommend. Those sensitive to certain triggers may want to hunt for some spoilers and tread carefully - but I didn't think it was anything too triggering.

I can't wait for this to be published, so I can chat with more people who read it! The romance and light suspense swept me off my feet. It was cute and I found the characters to be realistically written.

4.5
I really loved the beginning of this book with Hannah and Davey’s misdial meet cute. It had all the feels! I wondered what would happen since the arrangement to meet each other came fairly early in the book. I had visions of “The Impossible Us” but doubted it would go down that route. I was as shocked by the twist in the middle and it quickly turned into the type of book I don’t like with miscommunications and disconnection. But, these things happen. You don’t always take a straight shot path to your HEA. So, I appreciated the set up of the story of a connection, a relationship, that went through many trials and errors over time. The supporting cast of characters was so well crafted that I think we need another book for Grant!
*Thanks to Dell & NetGalley for this advance review copy.

This was such a cute book. I loved how we were able to see the characters grow throughout the year & I LOVED that it switched to dual POV. I felt the ending was rushed.. I wanted more of Hannah & Davey.

(Big thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for giving us this eARC in exchange of an honest review!)

I really liked Davey and Hannah as characters, their interactions felt very real and personal. I instantly fell in love with their relationship when they began video calling and texting. I liked that there was a long distance relationship type feel to it, how this couple is not able to see each other and may never see each other. Going with the title of the book, I was super excited to see what the premise would be since the character doesn't ever meet the other love interest. I just wished that there was more of Davey's perspective, because we don't see his perspective until much later in the book. It felt like there was a lot left unsaid and the pacing of the ending was a little too fast. There needed to have more explanation. The pacing within the beginning and middle of the book felt incredibly slow and were very heavy on the internal thoughts. When it came to the twist and why Davey never went to meet Hannah at the airport felt off, like it didn't really make complete sense to me and I didn't think the twist was super well developed. Overall, it felt like a typical rom-com and definitely the type people are looking for if they want a little bit of something on the emotional side but with a happy ending!

Thank you for the opportunity to review this new novel.

I think the synopisis for this is wrong. There was way too little of Davey and Hannah and the ending was rushed. I'm disappointed that we didn't get almost any pages of them together. Also, Davey's POV should have been more of.

4.5 stars. Oh how I loved this book. I am not giving it the full 5 stars because I wanted more of Hannah and Davey and I felt the end was a little rushed. It was a quicker read and I gladly would have read more of the two of them. They complimented each other so well and their entire relationship throughout the book was really amazing. I loved the back and forth with the different points of view. Just goes to show you that sometimes what people say, they don’t necessarily mean. Put this book on your ‘must read’ list. You will not be disappointed.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.