(3.5 stars)

*queue Thank You, Next by Ariana Grande*
I love the plot of this book. A woman revisits her seven exes in hopes of finding the one that was actually her true love. I really enjoyed the flashback chapters into her life with each of them, although I do wish they had been longer. The book was also really fast-paced and definitely kept me hooked whenever I picked it up! It was nice to see Ester's character development (because to be honest, I really did not enjoy her for most of this book). I'm also so glad she ended up with Nick!!!! I wish there had been more shown between the two of them other than the epilogue. He was just such a good character.

This was a fun summer read that kept me hooked from start to finish.
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

A quick and enjoyable read, but ultimately not entirely a book for me. The main character leaned too heavily into the “messy clueless girl whose life is in shambles” trope. While things come together in the end, the disarray at the beginning of the book was a bit too big of a hurdle for me to get over to feel like I could root for the characters or their happy ending.

I somewhat enjoyed this book. It wasn't really something I thought it was going to be which threw me off. I also had a few moments where I was fairly uncomfortable, the largest of them being in the very beginning where the girls said that "STDs are more fun than using condoms." I believe that part tainted my view of the book in general.

The main character, Esther, reflects on herself and her past experiences, as well as past relationships, in order to find out how to find the right guy. This book was a little long, but funny. I enjoyed reading about the exes, and also enjoyed tagging along with Esther and her great friends.

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank Net Galley for giving me the opportunity to read this book early as an ARC. I really enjoyed the stories and the characters. I laughed out loud multiple times. I really liked the side characters, but I found the main character to be extremely immature at most points throughout the book. She is supposed to be 29 and acts like she is 16. Overlooking the immaturity, I thought this was a super fun and easy read.

A hilarious and relatable read! I laughed and cringed at the crazy exes. Lucy Vine is brilliant!

I received an advance review copy for free from NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

DNF at 42%

Although the plot of this book sounded cute, if a little predictable, the execution, in my opinion, was poorly done. The entire beginning of the book our main character, Esther, repeatedly complains over and over that she doesn't have a boyfriend, and how horrible dating is, then decides to revisit her past relationships to see if giving them a second chance will magickly make her find love again. After every encounter she is so hopeful that things are perfect and are going to work out, while failing to consider that her ignorance and lack of care about the other person may have been the reason the relationship went sour in the first place.
From what I've read so far Esther is whiny, careless, and seems unwilling to change her ways in any significant way. She also doesn't seem to have any other interests or hobbies outside of chasing after her exes. Until about a chapter before I stopped there was little to no subplot (and from what I could gather, the subplot that was beginning to show was going to be very minimal anyway). The only thing happening was the flip flopping chapters between past and present outlining the current ex she was chasing.
Honestly, I'm not even sure this book passes the Bechdel test. While it clearly has more than one female character (Esther's two best friends and roommates are women), there is rarely a time where they aren't talking about men, relationships, or going out to their local bar to hang out with whatever ex Esther is currently fixating on. Neither of her friends seem to have a real personality outside of their current relationship status, and if you cut them out of the plot the only thing different would be one less person to encourage Esther's unhealthy fixation on her "lost loves".

I'm sure for someone else this might be a cute, quick-witted book, but between my annoyance with the main character and the lack of a solid plot, it just wasn't for me.

Seven Exes was a delightful read! Esther, on the brink of turning 30, starts to go through seven of her exes to see if one of them, upon reconsideration, could be The One. Along with her on this journey are her two roommates/best friends, Louise and Bibi. The book details her encounters with her exes, both from the past as well as the present reconciliations, and her friends' stories are also woven in.

I gave the book 5 stars because I really enjoyed this read! I felt like the book was the right amount of chaotic, with Esther making unwise decisions on her mission to parse through her past. I also loved the relationships she had with her friends, and the drama that came from those as well. The writing had a lot of Esther's stream of consciousness which I know is not for everyone, but I for one really enjoyed it.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a light, easy romance! Something hopeful and fun to read. Great book!

Honestly, I didn't love this book. I was really looking forward to the whole premise of this book. Seven exes and the journeys with those exes sounded so exciting. The main character bothered me more than anything. She was messy and unreliable. The pacing was confusing and felt rushed and slow at the same time. I got so confused with the different exes. The MC's friends were also aggravating. It felt like their only personality trait was sex. I needed more depth! It wasn't for me but I understand the five star reviews that others gave!

So I loved this book!! And can we take a moment to appreciate the cover?

I was hooked from the start on this one. The whole idea of the seven loves/seven exes really had me and sucked me in to the story.

The flashbacks and current day timeline worked really well in this story and provided necessary context for each character and each relationship.

The side characters were really fun in this one - LOVED the Bibi name bit throughout the story! - but I did wish that as Esther’s friends Bibi & Louise would’ve called her out on some of the questionable decisions she made.

While Esther did make questionable decisions and did at some points feel immature, she also felt really relatable. She felt so real to the point I forgot I was reading fiction. Her flaws, mistakes, quirks, and characteristics just felt like a real person’s would and made her growth throughout the story more impactful.

The ending was satisfying and actually sort of unexpected, but definitely in a good way!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Having just finished reading Seven Exes by Lucy Vine, I can say that it was a fun book to read. Unfortunately, it is not a romance. This is a woman’s fiction novel. There's nothing wrong with that, but calling it a romance would be misleading.

Esther, the protagonist, is on a mission to reconnect with all of her exes in order to find out if any of them were meant to be "the one." The book alternates between Esther's past relationships and her present self. Throughout the book, I kept wondering who she would ultimately end up with, and I found the variety of past relationships both entertaining and authentic.

The characters in this book that I appreciated the most were Esther's friends. There was a lot of depth to each of them, and their conversations were hilarious. The book made me laugh out loud several times. Additionally, the book discusses some deeper themes, such as figuring out your life as you age out of your 20s, and how our pasts can influence our present. Though as an ignorant American, I really did not understand any of the pop-culture references or celebrity name drops. I found myself googling more references than if it had been a historical romance.

I think it is also important to mention that it took me a bit to get into this book. Despite the clever banter and well-written dialogue, something about the author's style was just jarring, and it took me until about the last third of the book to get used to it. Positively, there is LGBTQ+ representation, which is always a plus for me.

Anyone who enjoys a good story with great banter, especially within a close group of friends, ought to give it a try. There was a very British flavor to the book, which added to its charm. Although it had some predictable moments, the characters and story were well-developed, and the pacing was perfect. With plenty of heart, it was a refreshing commentary on modern love and dating.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC of this book!

If you’re looking for a romance book with top-quality banter - especially between a close group of friends, and with a British flavor (sorry, flavor*) - look no further than this one.

Nearly thirty and disheartened about still being single, Esther decides to reconnect with her seven exes to figure out which one - if any - should have been The One. The book alternates between past scenes from Esther’s relationships and her current self getting in touch with each other again.

I just loved this book. The variety of past relationships, and the way each one responded to Esther’s attempts to reconnect, were entertaining but believable. I kept guessing about who (if anyone) she would ultimately end up with - refreshing in a genre where the love interest more often than not tends to be telegraphed early in the story. And Esther’s friends! I loved loved loved their conversations, and I also love that they were pretty well-fleshed-out characters in their own rights.

Highly recommend this read for anyone who wants to be reminded that we all grow in and out of relationships, who is struggling with aging out of their 20s and figuring out their lives, and/or anyone who just wants some incredible British banter.

I am so excited to be writing my first ARC review for NetGallery! Thank you to HarperCollins for giving me early access to this book. I do wish I had more pleasant things to say, but I am nothing if not honest.

I love rom com books because they’re whimsical, fun, and typically there’s some sort of development that resolves the primary struggles (loneliness, sadness, etc). Unfortunately, the main character of this book, Esther, is absolutely insufferable from beginning to end. She starts as a huge narcissist, self-absorbed and shallow, and when the book ends, nothing has really changed, except she finally managed (somehow?) to get the happy ending she so desperately longed for. The craziest part is that she treated her friends horribly throughout the entire book and still got a weird, rushed, sloppy version of a happy ending. I also really hate the whole plot line of revisiting exes, especially if the relationship didn’t end amicably. One guy she literally cheated on then dumped, like I’m SURE he don’t want to see your face again girlie!!

In terms of other subpar plot points, I 100% predicted Bibi and Alex would end up together - anyone with eyes can see that. What I don’t get is how it really contributed to the plot? Esther did eventually come around and apologize to them for being a total self-absorbed ass, but she didn’t improve as a character really or change her annoying ass ways. Also, the rushed, sloppy Me Too references could have been left out of the book. They didn’t really serve a purpose because they weren’t well written, it was essentially the author just wanting to throw a #girlpower in there for funsies.

I absolutely could not get over how insufferable “protagonist” Esther was, and for that reason I have to rate this book low. Some parts were mildly funny, but largely overshadowed by Esther’s domineering personality and unending complaints.

This was a sweet read! Esther reminds me of Bridget Jones from Bridget Jones' Diary, a lovable mess. Thank you NetGalley & the publisher for the ARC, in exchange for an honest review.

As someone who ADORES "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World", I loved the basic premise of the seven exes in here. Seven Exes is a romantic comedy novel by Lucy Vine that was first published in 2022. The book follows the story of Esther, a 30-something woman who is invited to her ex-boyfriend's wedding. As she reflects on her past relationships, Esther realizes that she has never really been in love. She decides to track down her exes in order to figure out what went wrong and if she is capable of true love.

The characters are all very one-dimensional. Esther is the typical "quirky" protagonist, and her exes are all either jerks or perfect gentlemen. There is no real depth to any of the characters, and I found it difficult to care about any of them. The writing is also arguably bland. There is nothing particularly special about Vine's prose, and the dialogue is often stilted and unnatural. The book is also quite short, and it feels like Vine rushed through the ending in order to wrap things up quickly.

I really loved the premise for this book, the seven ex types are totally relatable. (I literally have all of them.) So of course when I saw this I jumped at the chance to read about Esther going through each of these exes to figure out what went wrong.

Starting out, I wanted to love this read and I did end up finishing it after almost a week but it just wasn't for me. I felt like it was a little long winded and Esther was falling in love with every ex all over again from the start. I couldn't stand Alistar, the love interest she spent the most time with throughout the book. He was immature and quick to over react but I did enjoy the twist ending and who she ends up with and her journey throughout her exes but there was just too much extra for me to really fall in love with the story.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for this arc. I was excited about the premise of this book as it caught my eye and seemed like something I would really enjoy. The thought of analyzing past relationships to find if one was truly “the one that got away” is intriguing to me. Unfortunately, the book (and main character) were at times a bit cringeworthy to me. I think I was expecting something a bit different and was somewhat disappointed in the end. With that being said it I would still recommend to others to give it a read.

Ahhh I really liked this one a lot! It started off a little slow, but once it picked up I was completely hooked! I definitely recommend!

Out of seven exes could one of them be your one special person, only time will tell.

Ester is almost 30 years old and is wondering if one of her seven exes could of been the one of her dreams.
After reading an old dating article/column from a magazine, she decides to get in contact with seven of her exes.

In my opinion this book reminds me a lot like Exes and O's by Amy Lea and by that I mean a Rom-com movie vibes which I like a whole lot.

Have you ever thought that one of your exes could be the "one that got away?" Ester is fast approaching thirty and while her career is on track and she has amazing friends, she's missing someone special to share it all with. She finds a magazine article that states there are seven archetypes a woman will date before finding Mr. Right. Ester hasn't found him, but she realizes that her dating history lines up with: The First Love, The Work Mistake, The Overlap, The Friend with Benefits, The Missed Chance, The Bastard, and The Serious One. So she embarks on a journey to find her exes and see if maybe one of them was "The One" and she missed it the first time. Madness, mayhem, laughter, and tears ensue as she sends out social media messages and does some light stalking to get her second chances. This book has a fantastic premise, some hilarious storylines, and starts off great, but about two thirds of the way through the pacing feels off and Ester starts to become not so likable. The story is predictable, which can be comforting, but the story fell flat and didn't ever recover. The ending wrapped everything up neatly for you, but overall I wanted this book to be much better than it was.