Enjoyed!

I enjoyed reading this fanciful story, rooted in Romeo and Juliet, but with hints of other time travel-type stories. No, its definitely not a deep, thought provoking read, nor will I be taking away any life lessons from it, but all in all, it was a quick, easy, escapist read. I'd look for future books from this author.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book, but my opinions are my own.

I wanted to love this one so badly. I am a sucker for and R&J retelling/reimagining. The idea and storyline of the book was really interesting and I thought it was done very well. Romeo and Juliet being brought back together throughout different time periods only to be torn apart each time? And only Romeo knows he’s Romeo? Sign me up! The issues for me were the present day characters and dialogue. Helene herself felt almost like a YA character which, as she was supposed to be a grown woman, felt incredibly awkward. And Sebastian had big “ not like other guys” energy. The flashback scenes, I loved. I thought the characters were done well in those, especially the WWII and French Revolution scenes. But present day didn’t always work for me. Also, there’s not much action until the very end and the conflict felt a little outlandish, even for magical realism. I do think some readers will absolutely love this one. There were some things I liked, but overall, just not the execution I was hoping for.

What if when Romeo and Juliet died, they were cursed by Mercutio? Romeo is cursed to be immortal, finding his reincarnated Juliet throughout the centuries, but they are always once agains separated by her tragic death. That is the premise of Evelyn Skye’s latest book, and boy, were those big shoes to fill!

Sebastien and Helene’s story was a beautiful one, and in her author’s note, Mrs. Skye explains her personal experience that came into play, and that brings it so much of a deeper meaning. I really enjoyed the dual narration, as well as vignettes into their past lives. But around the 80% mark, there was some weird stuff added with Helene’s ex husband for “drama” and it just didn’t land for me, or feel realistic. That said, I adored the hopeful yet open way the book ended and would absolutely recommend this to my audience!

This isn't my typical read (I'm more of a thriller girlie), but I thought the premise sounded cute and fresh. Helene and Sebastien are none other than the star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliette. The problem is that Helene doesn't know it, while Sebastien does. However, Helene strongly suspects that she knows Sebastien from somewhere, while Sebastien is desperate to keep Helene from finding out the truth, as he knows it will lead to tragic effects. This was a cute, modern-day retelling of the classic Shakespeare story and I look forward to more works from this author!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House Ballantine Del Rey Books for gifting me a digital ARC of this novel by Evelyn Skye - 4 stars!

Sebastian and Helene are incarnations of Romeo and Juliet, living many lives that always end in tragedy as different people in different bodies for centuries. In present time, Helene is grieving after the death of her father and her failed marriage, in addition to suffering writer's block. She flees to Alaska to be on her own and soothe her soul. There she meets Sebastian and instantly feels like she has known him forever. Forever is Sebastian's reality - he is immortal and has lost his Juliet over and over for hundreds of years. Can they make this version of the love story work?

While I liked the modern timeframe of this story the best, it was still interesting to go back in time with different versions of their love story. It was a sweet story but the real life author's note at the end is what really touched me!

I think I liked the idea of this book more than the turnout. Don’t get me wrong it was an enchanted story with beautiful character building! I would recommend this to anyone looking for a fluffier romantic piece with a happily ever after. My problem with this book is it lacked excitement and the plot was a little lacking. I was just expecting more overall I guess.

Overall I enjoyed this modern twist on the original Romeo and Juliet story. The book has some of my favorite tropes: soulmates, star-crossed lovers, past lives, and reincarnation. It was an easy read that kept my interest. Romeo and Juliet is an angsty love story, but I found The Hundred Lives of Juliet to be more sappy than angsty. And I found both characters, especially Romeo, a bit one-dimensional, but it didn't detract from my enjoyment. Romance readers who also love classics will enjoy this book.

Finding her husband in a compromising position with his intern was the straw that broke the camel’s back for Helene. Leaving her husband, she travels to Alaska to start over. She plans on working on herself and her novel while living there. Men were not part of the equation. Then she meets Sebastien and feels an immediate connection to him. While Sebastien feels the same, he is determined to keep Helene at arm’s length. Why? Because Sebastien is Romeo, cursed to immortality by his cousin Mercutio and destined to repeatedly watch Juliet die horrible deaths. And Helene is the reincarnation of Juliet. Will Helene find out the truth about her and Sebastien? How will she react?

When I saw that this was a Romeo and Juliet retelling, I was immediately drawn to this book. I am a big Shakespeare fan and like to read (and watch) any stories or adaptations of his plays. I am happy to say that this book lived up to my expectations!!

The main storyline of The Hundred Loves of Juliet centers around Helene, Sebastien, and their romance. It was bittersweet to read, making this book so good. This book has medium to fast pacing, and it suits the storyline. I also loved Sebastien’s growth and healing throughout the book.

Several secondary storylines feed into the main storyline, adding extra depth. The main one that stood out to me was Helene’s relationship with Merrick.

I liked Helene and loved seeing her character grow during the book. She was damaged when the book started. The death of her father when she was in elementary school changed her. What also changed her was her marriage to Merrick. I didn’t blame her for running to Alaska after what she witnessed. I would have done the same. I also understood her reaction when Sebastien showed her that room and when she read the journals. Everything she had written was true and were memories. Her mind was blown. By the end of the book, Helene had morphed into the woman she should have been from the beginning. I loved how she took down Merrick (with Sebastien’s help).

I loved Sebastien. The author revealed reasonably early that he is Romeo. But then the author took that storyline down a path I didn’t see coming. Romeo is cursed to an immortal life and is forced to meet Juliet and watch her die repeatedly. By the time he meets Helene, he is a shell of a man, tortured by what has happened, and has extreme survivor’s guilt (along with some PTSD). His last interaction with a reincarnated Juliet never happened because Sebastien couldn’t stand to watch her die again. When he met Helene in Alaska, I understood his reaction. I would have reacted the same way. I loved seeing his growth throughout the book. The Sebastien at the end of the book differed from the Sebastien at the beginning, and it was a big difference.

The romance angle of The Hundred Loves of Juliet was bittersweet. The author kept 90% of the romance focused on Sebastien and Helene. But she also highlighted the other Juliet romances, which all ended horribly. So, I was rooting for this incarnation to survive and help heal Sebastien.

There are sex and sexual situations in The Hundred Loves of Juliet. But, the sex is either off-page or described in a non-graphic way. There is also a couple of fade-to-black sex scenes between Sebastien and Helene.

The end of The Hundred Loves of Juliet was sweet. I loved that Helene and Sebastien could get their happily ever after. The author’s note had me in tears, and I agreed with what she wrote.

I would recommend The Hundred Loves of Juliet to anyone over 16. There is mild language, mild violence, and nongraphic/fade-to-black sexual situations.

Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Del Rey, NetGalley, and Evelyn Skye for allowing me to read and review The Hundred Loves of Juliet. All opinions stated in this review are mine.

I love romance & I love love. This book is such a beautiful retelling of one of, if not the most, popular love stories of all time. I love the elements of fantasy. Reminded me of Age of Adeline or time Traveler's Wife...in the best way. Thank you to Random House Publishing Ballentine for granting my wish! 4 stars.

This a cute retelling of Romeo and Juliet, but with a twist. This takes second chance romance over 700 years. Romeo is cursed to go through life always losing his Juliet, until he meets Helene. They both have hope this might be the last time and through this meeting they will finally break the curse. I enjoyed reading this version of one of my favorite Shakespeare plays.

In this reimagining of the classic Romeo and Juliet story, Juliet has been cursed to die over and over again, while her true love Romeo is forced to find her in each new lifetime.

Fated mates is one of my absolute FAVORITE tropes, so when I saw Evelyn Skye was penning a new version of it, I got very excited! I feel like this is a classic plot for many reasons: readers have seen the soulmate reincarnation trope over and over again within various media and I always find myself drawn into the way it sweeps the reader (or viewer) away into these tragic love stories. Romeo and Juliet seems like a no-brainer to adapt into this trope.

Unfortunately, I struggled hard with this novel. I started it months ago and immediately didn't find myself connecting with the voice or the characters. It feels paced incredibly quickly, which is understandable because Skye took on a huge undertaking of showing so many lives and snippets of a relationship to build to this moment in Helene and Sebastien's romance. I just don't think it was long enough or developed enough for me to connect to them. I think this novel struggled heavily with it being so parsed down. Had it been even a duology, the characters and their relationship could have breathed a little more and made it feel robust and rich like I think the author intended.

I also found myself disliking the tone of the overall novel. Helene feels so childish in many of her inner dialogue and it just didn't sit well with me as a reader. I needed more from the prose and more from the characters to prove that they had grown and shown this life would be different. As it stands, it feels too rushed, too reliant on the reader understanding that they'll be together regardless, and makes the overall novel feel a little stale.

The author's note at the end of the novel is heart-breaking, and I feel for Skye as someone who has also had to sit by and watch someone very near to them slowly succumb to an illness. It was a beautiful thing for her to pen this novel for herself and her husband and I wish them all the best.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group, Ballantine, and Del Rey for providing me a copy of this book for an honest review.

Initially skeptical of the concept, I became increasingly invested as I read. The modern-day twist on Romeo and Juliet was intriguing, especially with Helene’s struggles affecting the curse. However, the frequent shifts to past stories disrupted the narrative and hindered my connection to the present-day love story. Still, it was an enjoyable read, and the audiobook narration added to the experience. The book provided depth through glimpses into their past lives, and I couldn’t put it down, making it one of my favorite reads this year.

A modern day retelling of Romeo and Juliet with a twist. Helene flees to a remote town in Alaska as she awaits her messy divorce. She decides she’ll use this time to write the novel she’s always dreamed of. After all, writing has always helped her to cope. But when she arrives, the strangest thing happens - the first man she meets is the hero of all her short stories incarnate. And it’s not just the way he looks, but his mannerisms. While she’s trying to figure this out, he’s trying to prevent her from discovering the truth about his past, knowing what harm will come to her.

I thought this was such an interesting premise and really enjoyed the short vignettes sprinkled throughout, but the main characters lacked any chemistry imo. The end also just felt first, very weird, and then too convenient and easy for me. The author’s note did share that her inspiration for this was her husband’s illness that was diagnosed very early in her marriage, and I have the utmost respect for how she utilized that to write this romance.

Thank you to NetGalley and Del Rey for a copy in exchange for an honest review!

When I began reading this I didn’t really like the concept. So I put it off for a while and read a few pages here and there. But about midway through I became a little more invested and enjoyed the climax. It’s an interesting concept: a modern day Romeo and Juliet where Romeo never dies but Juliet always does. It was interesting how Helene’s (the most recent Juliet) current issues affected the curse. If nothing else, this was different.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Hundred Loves of Juliet by Evelyn Skye
Narrator: Joe Arden and Aspen Vincent
Rating: 3.5 stars
Pub Date: 8/1

This was such an interesting and unique idea that I had to give it a go. The story of Romeo and Juliet is real, but it didn’t happen the way Shakespeare wrote it. Juliet did die, but Romeo was cursed to live forever and to watch his love die repeatedly. After being reincarnated each time, Juliet is destined to find her Romeo in each life, only to die shortly after falling in love with him. Now, as Helene and Sebastian, they are determined to break the curse and be together once and for all.

This was a quick, cute read with a lot to love. The story weaves together the themes of love, loss, and destiny, written in an engaging and entertaining way. I love the dual POV and how we learn about each life they live together throughout history. Some beautiful quotes are swoon-worthy, and you can feel Romeo’s emotions throughout the story.

While I mostly enjoyed this, I felt like each story of how Romeo and Juliet reconnected through time took us out of the narrative and made it difficult to connect with their current relationship. I didn’t feel any chemistry between Helene and Sebastien, though they had longed for each other for centuries. There’s a subplot involving Helene’s ex-husband that kept things interesting but, once again, detracted from the present-day love story.

Overall, this was a fun read, and I’m glad I was able to listen to it on audio. Joe Arden is one of my favorite narrators, and he did an excellent job as Romeo. Thank you to Random House Ballantine and NetGalley for my ARC and to PRH Audio for my free ALC.

Read if you like:
*star crossed lovers
*retellings
*fated mates
*destiny
*strong FMCs

Beautiful. Enchanting. Sweet, like honeyed wine.

I love reincarnated love stories that transcend time; however, rarely is it done well. There were times during this novel when I was very, very worried about if the author was going to be able to pull off all that was promised. In the end she wove a Romeo and Juliet retelling so magical and beautiful that it restored my faith in retellings.

The Hundred Loves of Juliet is the love story of Romeo and Juliet throughout history. The twist in this story is that Romeo is immortal, but Juliet is not. Every new lifetime Juliet is reincarnated and meets Romeo again. Romeo remembers each and every time they have fallen in love; however, Juliet never remembers her previous lives. Each time they fall in love Juliet dies an early. Sometimes their love lasts for 2 years while others only last a few days. The current Juliet is different. She partially remembers their past, but only as stories she made up as a kid. When they meet in the current lifetime events are triggered that are very different from their past meetings.

One of the favorite parts of this novel was the peak into their past lives. The snapshots of historical times and places gave their love more depth. No matter who or where Juliet was in a previous life she always crosses paths with Romeo and loves him.

Once I started this book I wasn’t able to put it down. Throughout this book I laughed, I cried, I swooned, and at times I was at the edge of my seat. One of the best books I read this year.

The Hundred Lives of Juliet is a contemporary re-imagining of the Romeo and Juliet story. In this version Romeo is immortal and survives the death of Juliet only to find and lose her over and over in different lifetimes.

When Helene was a child she wrote about an imaginary boy who was her devoted friend and eventually became her ideal boyfriend. She created romantic and epic love stories with him as the star. So imagine her surprise when she flees her disastrous marriage to hide out in Alaska and finds a handsome crab fisherman (Sebastian) in a bar who is the exact doppelgänger to her fictional friend. But Sebastian is cold and aloof and Helene can’t figure out why he hates her on sight.

Sebastian has lived hundreds of years only to lose the women he loves over and over. He is the only person that knows that Sebastian Montague is really Romeo Montague and the “curse on both your houses” means he will find and lose his Juliet repeatedly with sometimes only a few nights together. He’s hoping that by avoiding the most recent incarnation of Juliet (Helene) he can break the curse all together. But fate throws the two of them together and he has no choice but to share their epic love story and let Helene decide if it’s worth the risk.

I really liked the concept of this novel but in the end it wasn’t for me. The conversations were often unnatural and didn’t feel like how real people actually talk. The love story was corny and a little too Hallmark movie for me. Helene’s estranged husband was the mustache twirling villain that only seems to exist in books like this. I found the whole thing over the top and hard to enjoy.

In the end, although the concept is great I didn’t enjoy this reimagining of Shakespeare’s classic love story.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️

As a young girl Helene dreamed of her perfect love. She would write him into her stories hoping for a future as idealistic as her heroines had. Now as an adult Helene is deep in the weeds of a bitter divorce settling into her new life in Alaska in order to hopefully write her novel. On her first day in town Helene meets some of the locals and one of them looks so incredibly familiar. The man she spent years writing about in her stories was now standing right in front of her. How could someone look so similar to her dreams? Determined to keep Helene at an arms length, Sebastien, scared from so many heartbreaks, does everything within his power to avoid contact with her. Yet somehow the two keep crossing paths as if fate has other plans for the two star-crossed dreamers. I feel really conflicted reviewing this book. I didn't dislike "The Hundred Loves of Juliet" but I also didn't love it either. Slightly outside of the normal genre I read with its Fantasy leanings I had a hard time really believing in the story. With themes like immortality, reincarnation all rolled into a retelling of Romeo & Juliet the author had high ambitions for her love letter of a book. Maybe for the right reader this will be a perfect five star but it felt too disconnected for me personally. Thank you to NetGalley and Ballentine for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I never do highlights on my Kindle. But I'm definitely going to start. Because this book gave me one of my favorite quotes that I can remember... "Perhaps a life well lived isn't measured in months of years, but in love. In kisses and gentle twining of hands, in fiery embraces and soft, whispered affections." This is a beautiful love story and definitely one I hadn't read before. It's creative, it's heart wrenching, it's a book that makes you think about the ones you love and what you would do in the same situation. Would you choose to love or would you choose to run? Sebastian and Helene are characters you will fall for quickly, but there are so many more in this story to love as well. If you loved The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and The Time Traveler's Wife (two of my all time favorites), there are similar threads in this one. Highly recommended!

Forget everything you thought you knew about Romeo and Juliet.

I have always loved Romeo and Juliet, and this was such a beautiful and creative retelling. Helene was such an amazing character, and I loved how she learned how much strength and bravery she had inside herself. Sébastien was loving, protective, and vulnerable. And kind of grumpy. This was definitely a grumpy/sunshine trope. This will, for sure, give you all the feels. Beautifully written.