I loved this debut by Jo Lovett. Much more than the meet-cute I expected, The First Time We Met is filled with a slew of 'what-ifs' and the journey it takes for two soulmates to finally get their timing right. I enjoyed the jumps in time, giving us just enough of a glimpse as to how Izzy and Sam first meet and the struggles they endure as their few and far between meetings give each a pang of regret they can't seem to shake.

Both Izzy and Sam are wonderful characters who put their children first and their hearts last. Izzy is a born nurturer who loves her life in London but always feels like 2nd best with those she loves. From her absent parents to her hard-working soon-to-be ex-husband, Izzy just wants to be someone's priority but is forever doubtful that could ever happen. Of course, she has the requisite bestie who prods her to forget Sam and the eternal crush she has had ever since they met that fated day 14 years before. But together with a few twists and decisions to see each other again even though Sam lives across the pond in NYC, there is no denying these two still harbor that feeling that they both let "the One" get away. Sam's own life has seen a slew of ups and downs and way too many regrets with his cautious nature oft-times leading his heart and mind astray. But he's a good man, trying his hardest to be a good father and somehow balance his demanding job with the tough task of parenting all the while loving a wonderful woman he may not be able to keep.

The story flowed well for me even when I was frustrated and almost gave up the notion that these two would find the way to each other. But I will say that despite all the stops and starts, it made the conclusion that much sweeter appreciating a firm ending and not just the usual happy for now I find with these kinds of stories.

I would not hesitate to read more from this author as her storytelling is full of the kind of emotion I crave in my books. With that being said, I happily give The First Time We Met a solid 4 stars!

Can you imagine meeting “the one” on their wedding day?

I really enjoyed reading this book! I felt as though I clicked with the characters straight away and loved being on their journey. Although all the odds were against them I was routing for them. Who knows if they will work it out eventually after every possible obstacle stands in their way... read it to find out!

This will be released on the 10th November

It surprises me when a book about relationships has little actual romance and I still love it! Don’t get me wrong they talk about romance, that’s the point of this whole book. There’s just little romance to be had on the actual story. It was good enough to stay up reading till 3 in the morning much to my husbands chagrin.

You know when you have bad timing with someone and it just keeps happening and you just know if the stars aligned you’d be perfect together? This story is exactly that! I didn’t even get annoyed when the Izzy had a poor excuse to not pursue Sam. Even now I think about this book weeks later and remember that slow burning love when I usually almost instantly forget the storyline after I pick up my next book.This one is definitely a keeper!

The First Time We Met by Jo Lovett

Do you believe in love at first sight? What about the one? This is what Izzie and Sam have to figure out after they meet each other in a busy restaurant during the breakfast rush. They both believe they have found the one, only problem is it happens to be Sam’s wedding day.

I do like this kind of love story. Engaging to see how they keep slightly missing each other as the years go by. Sometimes it is so frustrating but other times it is lovely and romantic. I loved that each of them are parents. As a parent, their relationships with their kids was relatable and I loved that side of their stories.

A quick and light read, this was exactly what I needed this week. I recommend this to anyone looking for a romantic comedy and a little light escape.

I thought I would love this book. I’ve been really enjoying chick lit and romance this year. But I just couldn’t get into it. It seemed too unrealistic. It was a quick light read, so I would recommend as a beach read. But that’s about it. No depth.

'If two people were in love, could they ever happily just be friends?'

___from the book

'What if you meet the right one at the wrong time?'

Sometimes you meet someone and just connect spectacularly, like you can be with each other happily, like you know that you can make each other happy. But the time is not right. So you have to move on with your own lives.

What if you couldn't stop thinking about each other? But what if you are really destined to be in each other's life? After a long, long time

That's 'The First Time We Met' for you. One fine day, Izzy met Sam and she knew he was The One, even though she didn't believe in love at first sight. But guess what? It was Sam's wedding day!

I really enjoyed reading this book. I liked the writing style. It's engaging and witty. I loved the Sam-Izzy connection. Their conversations are so interesting and endearing. I really enjoyed reading their emails (I love it when a novel features interesting/witty texts/emails).

The fact that they felt deeply for each other, and yet couldn't express their true feelings made the story and writing even more interesting. I really like this kind of romance. I felt for the protagonists (plus point), their emotions, their troubles, their dilemma.

The story covers the 14 years time span, and the author has handled it really well, in a crisp manner. It meanders a bit, sometimes, but doesn't get boring. The secondary characters are interesting as well, most of them are important in their own way. The kids are really nice and cool. Well, Liv, a teenager, is not really cool but that's understandable.

To be honest, it reminded me (a lot) of One Day in December (Josie Silver), but it didn't affect my reading experience.

The only thing that disappointed me a bit was the ending (the last chapter, not epilogue). It drags a bit, includes unnecessary details. It could have been more crisp and interesting, I think.

Overall, an engrossing, entertaining and endearing read! Thank you so much, Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC.

The First Time We Met is an adorable romantic novel that allows the reader to wonder "what if". Sam and Izzy slowly come together in what can only be described as a long an twisty road. Perfect for the die hard romantics out there!

A light-hearted read that I needed during the pandemic! The plot of this book interested me - the idea that timing is key in any relationship but maybe people find their way back to each other in the end anyway. The First Time We Met is a lighthearted and easy to read romance which is typically not my type of romance novel, but oddly exactly what I needed during the pandemic. I wish we knew a little more about Izzie before the romance began so I knew why I was rooting for her outside of her romantic pursuits. The timeline jumps were a little confusing and unrealistic but still their "meet cutes" after so many years were sweet despite being unrealistic. I like the characters and the realistic misunderstandings that life brings on the way to finding love. If you're looking for a sweet, light-hearted romance during these dark times, this is a good place to start!

Thank you to #NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review! :)

This is a slow burning romance, spread over fifteen years, with so many wrong turns, obstacles, missed chances and misunderstandings keeping Izzy and Sam apart that at times I could have banged their heads together. Perhaps a little over-long but it got there in the end. If you believe in love at first sight, destiny, and love conquering all, this book is for you.

4 out of 5 stars - If you ask me, I'll tell you to read it.

This book was a great way to get away from the world for a little while. It's a story of missed connections, right place and wrong time.

When we first meet Izzy, she's working in a greasy spoon diner trying to make ends meet while she's pursuing her dream of being a speech therapist. She's serving breakfast one morning, when she meets "The One", Sam. The chat, they flirt, and he goes on his way. She runs after him to ask him out, only to learn that it's the morning of his wedding.

There are a few other connections between the 2 over the years, but it's never the right time for them to get together (for various reasons). Then, after years of not seeing him, Izzy gets an email asking for help with Sam's son's stutter. This reconnection is just what they both need at that point in their lives, and it's interesting to see how it all unfolds.

Thanks to Bookouture & NetGalley for this Advanced Reader's Copy.

I received this book "The First Time We Met" from NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own. Sounds like an interesting book but I didn't like the way it jumped the years. The book started off good but then a few years went by and then even more years went by. The book was an easy read. I also had a hard time with the connection of these two. Not sure how they fell madly in love in the little bit of time when they first met. I think they needed more interaction to get "that loving feeling".

This story had a wonderful premise, meeting your soul mate on the day of their wedding to someone else. I loved the female lead! She was smart and cute and so likable. She was also kind and warm.

The male lead had nothing very likable about him. The sum total of his character is busy workaholic plagued by self doubt and guilt. We get nothing more and it's a shame. He is also supposed to be American, but it's clear that the author is British because his voice is completely UN-American. His choice of words snd phrases are wholly British. An American would never speak the way he does. Even the structure of his sentences reads British.

This book takes place over the course of 15 years and I really wish it had been condensed. When the story is this spread out and when the main source of communication between the leads is fairly formal emails, it's hard to feel their emotional connection.

This book was far to slowly paced for me and lacked emotional connection.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All of the opinions are my own and this did not affect my review in any way.

I requested this book from Netgalley because I was instantly hooked by the idea of what would happen is you met The One on his wedding day?.

In The First Time We Met we follow Izzy who after meeting Sam at her work she instantly knew he was the one. Too bad Sam was getting married that day.

The beginning was hard to get through, especially because you follow one scene where they meet 14 years ago for 10 minutes and then you are expected to ship them throughout the rest of the book. However, once we got to see more interaction between the two main characters the book picks up and you end up wanting them to be together above everything.

The book includes many of the classic rom-com tropes, and I do believe you have to suspend your disbelief a little to find this realistic. However, enjoyment level wise I loved this, I was hooked and I didn’t want to stop reading until I knew Sam and Izzy would get their happily ever after.

The characters are very well developed, you get to connect with both of the main characters and understand their motivations and actions. I did want to slap some sense into them from time to time but that just proved how well written they are. They are definitely flawed characters, but very realistic.

My only complaint with this book was its length. I though some parts could be edited out and it took a very long time to get where we finally wanted to be and once we got there it was over very quickly. I agree that the time jumps made it very difficult to connect with some parts of the book. It was hard to get a hang of what was going on when the time between chapters was long.

However, one of the things I enjoyed most about this book was the humor. I laugh out laugh in so many scenes and it truly increased by reading experience. I will definitely check out other works this author publishes.

Overall, this is an enjoyable book which I recommend if you are a rom-com fan, the story will definitely keep you intrigued and on the edge of your seat. There will come a point where you just want to scream to the universe to let them be together. Such and enjoyable and highly recommend read.

Thanks so much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for allowing me read and review this book.

really loved. this book Reading this was like watching Sleepless in Seattle a comfortable read that leaves you feeling good. I didn't want to leave these characters and would have loved the story to continue on!!

The most beautiful book! This story kept me on my toes in a will They or Won’t they?
This would make the most perfect movie. Highly recommend.

I feel bad giving it one star, but... it was so boring. I picked it up hoping to really enjoy it, so it is really sad that I did not like this.

The timeline and the pacing were so random and poorly developed. The thing I dislike about characters that reconnect after years is exactly the lack of dive we have in each of these characters, so it ends up feeling so forced, if not done right. Both Izzy and Sam were supposed to be in love after meeting for five minutes? That made absolutely no sense.

I couldn't really tell what their personalities were like apart, what really frustated me. I didn't connect with any of them. A positive point though was that I enjoyed the family dinamics, I guess?

To sum it up, the writing wasn't so good. But I can understand it, it is a debut novel afterall. So I will encourage people to pick up maybe this author's next novels.

PS: it reminded me a lot of One Day in December and all of the part I hated about the book Love, Rosie

One look and Izzy knew she found her Hearts desire, but Sam was getting married that day!
Years later he comes back into your life, but your married and pregnant!
What if you could be together, but an ocean separates you and other issues arise!

The author takes Sam & Izzy on a journey of life and choices that real people deal with everyday and the characters become real to you. You laugh with them and cry with them. The author does a remarkable job at keeping the storyline fresh and interesting so that you want to turn the pages!

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a great read!

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley and these are my willingly given thoughts and opinions.

I received an ARC of this book via Bookouture and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Description

What if you met The One on his wedding day?

Izzy doesn’t believe in love at first sight, but when Sam walks into the cafe where she works one winter’s morning, she knows without a doubt that he’s the one. Too bad Sam’s getting married. Today.

Nearly a year later, Izzy still can’t stop thinking about Sam, the one that got away, but she knows it’s time to move on: he’s a married man and probably wouldn’t recognise her if he passed her on the street.

But Sam has never forgotten Izzy, the funny, gorgeous woman who asked him out on his wedding day. If the timing had only been better, he knows they could have had something wonderful.

When Izzy and Sam’s paths finally cross again, everything has changed. But with the Atlantic Ocean and decades of baggage between them, they are about to find out whether some obstacles are too big for even true love to overcome.

My Thoughts

Based off the description, I conjured up books like Where Rainbows End (which I loved!) and other decade-spanning slow burner romances. This First Time We Met is just another one of these books, except with a slight twist. The two central characters, Izzy and Sam, meet on Sam’s wedding day.

I’m not necessarily a believer in love at first sight but I do love reading about it and I did enjoy the sweet, fluffy romance unfolding page by page. I liked that Izzy and Sam’s meeting isn’t spectacular, or over the top, it just happens.

The fact that this truly was a chase appealed to me greatly. It wasn’t one of those romances that just happened, it took effort and distance and I really felt like Lovett was writing about a real couple as opposed to characters.

There were a few things I wasn’t so keen on where this book was concerned. Obviously the characters endure distance, so it’s not a case of them seeing each other physically for a large number of chapters, but I just think the choice of them emailing each other just fell flat for me – I had to remind myself sometimes that they fancied each other, and weren’t just best mates!

Another thing I wasn’t that keen on was the time jump. I know it made it more realistic, and it shows it’s a slow burn romance, but it meant I lost track a lot. Plus, there were bits of the plot I think Lovett brushed over that I would’ve liked her to explore more.

Saying that, The First Day We Met was an easy, fluffy read that I think would be perfect for the colder, darker nights we’ve been subjected to.

Thank you Bookouture for a chance to read an eARC of The First Time We Met by Jo Lovett!

This slow burn romance was oh so good!!

Izzy doesn't believe in love at first sight. That is until Sam walks into the cafe where she works and there is an instant connection. Did she just meet the love of her life? The only problem is Sam is getting married... today!

As time passes Izzy still cannot get Sam out of her mind and he will forever be the one that go away. But little does she know that Sam has never forgotten about her either. And when their paths finally cross again, the world shifts. It has been decades since they first met in the cafe though and with both of them having baggage of their own, does love even stand a chance?

Izzy and Sam are such loveable main characters and you find yourself rooting for them from the instant they meet!! This story truly felt like a fairytale set in modern time. If you are a fan of slow burn romances with cute characters and a few British accents, this one is for you!!

This book hits the shelves on 11/10!

What happens when you meet someone new and have such an instant connection that you know they are the one for you, but the timing is not right? Do you wait for them or move on and live your life accepting life with “the runner up”? This is the dilemma faced by Izzy and Sam. I enjoyed this love story and pulled for the two of them to find their ways back to each other.