This book was incredible! It is rather technical, particularly in Kasey’s chapters, and I did have to re-read certain sections but by about half way through I was fully immersed in this world and desperate to find out what was happening. This is a world where society as we know it has been destroyed by climate issues. It was so well written, so intricate and complex, and something that genuinely seems plausible for our future, which is always fun.

I was on edge throughout this book. It was genuinely unlike anything I’ve read before. The plot, the reading experience, the timelines. The attention to detail was wonderful, even the way in which Cee’s chapters are written as tallies, as if showing how many days she has been trapped on the island. It was all just very clever and original.

It was evident that there was something weird going on with the timelines. Both sisters were sharing their lives and yet it was clear they could not exist in the same timeline. So I was racing through this book waiting for the moment when everything came together and we were finally told what was going on, and I wasn’t disappointed. This book was full of twists and turns, with family and relationship drama, so many beautiful and heart-breaking moments, all whilst having the issue of climate change at the front of the reader’s mind.

I cannot recommend this book enough, particularly everyone who loves sci-fi, dystopians or thrillers should definitely read this.

Thank you NetGalley and Text Publishing for an Arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Black Mirror meets the opening scene of Lost (Jack waking up on an unknown island) in this one!

A sci-fi/cli-fi tale of two sisters, Cee and Kay, Cee wakes up with no memories and black and white vision on an island, all she knows is that she has to find her sister Kay.

Meanwhile Key knows her missing sister isn’t dead even though in the not too distant future everyone is traceable through a mental interface. Kay finds Cee’s interface and with the help of an unregistered boy unravels Cee’s memories in an effort to find her.

While this book started off slowly and I definitely enjoyed Cee’s chapters much more than Kay’s, who’s a lot colder and harder to relate too. Also the Sci-Fi elements of Kay’s chapters took a while to get used too.

In saying that, I loved this book! I loved its commentary on where the line between surviving and living is. The sister relationship was fantastic. And I loved the plot twists, seriously fantastic!

If you liked Warcross, Black Mirror, or Warcross than this is the book for you.

I’m giving this a 4.5 stars

This was such a wild ride! I really enjoyed reading this crazy sci-fi, Black Mirror, thriller, suspense, YA novel.
I'm still trying to process it in my brain, but enjoyment was had.
I loved the twists and turns, I really enjoyed the sisters and both POVs were really interesting.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.

After the conflicts with her prior publisher regarding her debut, I was glad to see Joan He was able to find another publisher for her sophomore novel, a sci-fi stand-alone, The Ones We’re Meant to Find. While somewhat stylistically different from her previous book, I enjoyed this one just as much.

The choices regarding the dual POV did take a bit to get into the flow with, as it’s told from the perspectives of the two sisters who are trying to find each other: Cee’s POV is in first person, and Kasey in third. But I think the respective choices suit each of them, as we follow Cee in a more intimate story of survival, and Kasey’s is more technical and she is more detached as a character. As a result, I did feel a bit closer to Cee than Kasey. However, I did ultimately enjoy both perspectives and what they brought to the story.

And He’s attention to detail is immaculate. There’s intricate world-building and a briskly structured plot with compelling plot twists that kept me engaged, culminating in an emotional punch.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, and am excited to see what Joan He will write next! Fans of deeply emotional, character-focused sci-fi will love this.

thank you to netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5/5 stars (rounded up to 5)!

this book, my goodness. what a beautiful masterpiece it was.

the book follows cee (celia) and kay (kasey); sisters who were tragically ripped apart after cee was lost at sea, kay has never fully believed that she was dead - but with every day that passes with no sightings or proof that cee is still alive, it is becoming more and more unlikely.

the premise of this book makes you think you know what you’re getting yourself into, but trust me, you don’t. the plot twist that ensues around the halfway mark is INSANE and i felt my jaw drop at it.

i am, admittedly, not the biggest fan of dual point of views in books, but that didn’t deter me one bit with this novel.

while the storyline is complex and intricately woven, i didn’t find it hard to follow along (with chronic illness brain fog; that’s a must for me) and i savoured every single moment that i spent reading, every word on the pages.

so; if you’re umming and ahhing about whether to pick this book up: DO IT. i can guarantee you won’t regret it.

Thank you to Roaring Brooks Publishing and NetGalley for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In the end, I had to DNF this book at the 47% mark, and I really did not want to, I hate to DNF a review book, but ‘The One’s We’re Meant to Find’ has just landed me in one hell of a reading slump and I have got to get myself out somehow.

The story is about two sisters, Celia and Kasey, who live in a not-too-distant future where humans have destroyed the Earth almost to the point of making it inhabitable, so people have moved into futuristic cities that float above the chaos. Celia is free loving and want’s nothing to do with the futuristic eco-city that she and her sister live in and Kasey is the sister who loves being able to live in a simulation and does not want to break any more rules, that is until her sister goes missing at sea.

I cannot begin to praise this book enough for its intrigue in the beginning, from the first chapter I have been hanging on to every word that this author writes. Joan He writes such a good atmosphere and the plot of this book is interesting, what really let me down with this book are the characters.

I wondered for a long time what it was about this book that just let me put it down and not want to pick it back up and, in the end, it was Kasey. I do understand what the author was trying to do with her character but in the end all it really feels like she only exists to give exposition to Cee. On one hand, we have Cee, who is off living a Swiss Family Robinson style adventure trying to build a boat out of scrap to get off an island, down most of her memories but up one adorable robot names U-me and without the ability to see colour and then, on the other hand, we have Kasey who shows almost no emotions, making her hard to empathise with, and spends most of the book info-dumping about the state of the planet and feeling sad that she doesn’t feel sad enough.

You will not be surprised to know that I found it hard to get through Kasey’s side of the story.

If I had been about 60-70% through this then I maybe would have tried to get through to the end, but I just could not find it within me to care. While the mystery was intriguing, it was not enough for me to push through to the end of the book.

Beautifully written, with themes that have never been more relevant than right now, The Ones We're Meant to Find is a fantastic sophomore novel by Joan He.

The first half is slow. Like, really slow, and unfortunately the digital review copy I had didn't have the finalized formatting, which made the experience a little bit more difficult. I could have done with much more imagery - specifically in the bleakness of Cee's island home.

However, as soon as we hit the halfway point, I was swept up in our characters and the impossible choices they're faced with. We get a really climactic moment/discovery at about 60% and I was practically pulling at my hair like "how do we have so much book left when THIS is going on?"

I will warn potential readers: the book involves significant ecological collapse. There is massive loss of human life (due to environmental disaster and the inability of people in charge to come up with decisive and effective plans of action), the discussion of generational privilege, and the psychology of policy decisions (ie which truths are told and which probabilities are shared). It's a little hard to read in the context of being over a year into a global pandemic, but it brings up fascinating sociopolitical questions.

There will be a lot of people who hate the ending though.

DNF @12%. Hard as I tried I couldn’t go on. I couldn’t connect with the story or the characters and I was permanently confused while reading it.

Kudos for that amazing cover.

<i>The Ones We're Meant to Find</i> is an unpredictable sci-fi story with so much to dissect that I find myself still trying to piece every little detail together even after I've finished it.

With an incredibly immersive world-building, this book is told from a dual perspective. On the one hand, Cee trying to escape this island, working relentlessly towards being reunited with her sister, and, on the other hand, Kaysey, trying to come to terms with a world falling apart (both literally and figuratively) with the disappearance of her sister.

This story is the definition of unpredictable. After the halfway mark, it feels like plot twist after plot twist is thrown at us. It's the type of confusion that I love trying to figure out. Understanding how both sister's perspectives come together is so interesting and complex that you just can't put this book down and need to keep reading until you uncover all the secrets "told and untold".

I loved the conversations around freedom and how it is tied to preserving the planet (and humanity itself), so fitting in our current situation. The concept for eco-cities and the descriptions of the "natural disasters" felt so immersive. Yet, from the point of view of Kaysey, a person detached from emotions and her own humanity, together with her we could analyse everything from her scientific and "logical" perspective. There is a clear message on how greed and power are still at play even when the end of the world is imminent.

<i>"Logic ended where love began"</i>

Even though I NEEDED another 30 pages of this book, an epilogue of some sorts, I'm still really happy with how it turned out and I can confidently say I really loved this book.

<i>Thank you to Netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.</i>

The Ones We're Meant to Find was a cli-fi twisty read that was exciting but a bit confusing.

I found this book a bit hard to follow. I preferred Cee's chapters to Kay's as the world building felt a bit lacking and more like a info dump. The survival aspect was intriguing however. I wasn't fully immersed into the story as not a lot was explained making the book feel a bit confusing and lacklustre.

The twist was what kept me reading but I found it a bit underwhelming and didn't understand the point of the story dragging on after the twists. The last section was hard to get through as there wasn't anything making me read on and it felt a bit boring.

The prose was brilliant which I think was the most redeeming part of this book.

Overall this was a book that didn't quite live up to the hype and wasn't for me.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the E-arc!

*Thank you to NetGalley and Text Publishing for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own*

This is a beautiful, gutwrenching, creepy and twisty New Adult Dystopian Sci-Fi. It is told from the point of view of two sisters; one, Cee, lost on a deserted island for three years, and the other, Kasey, seeking answers about her disappearance.

It starts simply enough, but oh how it builds! With every chapter, more mysteries begin to come to light and slowly the past catches up with the present, unwraveling all sorts of choices and consequences for this futuristic world.

The characters were well developed, and defintiely drive this narrative. Both sisters have their own particular personalities, and the side characters all add their own elements to the plot and feel of the book. At any one point, I couldn't tell you what was going to happen next. The world was full of so many possibilities, and with the constant tension and unveiling of information, I was always on the lookout for possible outcomes, but was rarely correct in my guesses. I could never assume anything, and it was glorious.

I found it hard to get my head around the world at first, and would have appreciated a bit more in terms of explanation of futuristic elements or vocabulary. However, I can also see how this wouldn't fit with He's writing style, which was quite poetic in nature and wonderfully emotional.

Global Warming plays a huge part in this novel, which was a fantastic point by the author, and I can see this being used in book clubs to spur conversation around this issue.

Trigger warnings/Content warnings for this novel include: Familial death, grief, restraint against will, swearing, and non-graphical sex scenes

I would recommend this book to ages 16+, if you are in the mood for something different to most YA/NA. This is heavily speculative fiction, but such a page turning ride!

I think this book was a massive case of it’s not you, it’s me. I really couldn’t connect to this story and ended up DNF-ing at 45%. I ended up having too many problems with this book and just wasn’t looking forward to picking it up.

I’m not sure if it’s just because I don’t typically read sci-fi, but the world building in this book just didn’t make any sense to me. I found myself trying to keep up with the world and I realised about 30% of the way through that I barely ever had any idea what was going on, where it was happening, or why.

Both Cee and Kacey felt like the classic YA cliché of ‘opposite sisters’ and I couldn’t buy into that. Kacey’s character was constantly mentioned to be cold and logical and unfeeling and that seemed to be her only character traits, so I couldn’t connect to her chapters on any level. I think if this story had only followed Cee, I might have seen it through to the end.

The budding romance between Cee and the boy on the island felt very rushed and, like everything else in this story, confusing. I think the concept of this book was fantastic, but the execution left much to be desired.

In this ya science fiction mystery, we are following along with two perspectives: Cee, in full surviver mode on an island & Kasey, trying to find out what happened when her sister Celia vanished from their floating eco-city three months ago. As Kasey's investigation keeps twisting in new directions, Earth's environment continues to deteriorate. A megaquake kills hundreds of millions, and a solution might live in Kasey's mind if she can only convince the world to follow.

In the beginning, the parameters of this mystery seem straightforward even if the solution is not: how did Cee get to the island and why? But these foundational questions grow in number and complexity as the story builds: when timelines don't match up, when partial explanations edge out others, when conflicting information seems to take up the same space. I was on the edge of my seat for this one.

This dystopian novel also begs several bigger questions about our future as a species and that of our planet: what is feasible to save us? And what is allowable? It also asks that well-worn but still elusive question of science fiction: what is it to be human? While most elements of the story wrap up right at the end, prepare for things to be a bit open-ended. To be fair, with questions like these on the table, I think that's inevitable.

I really connected with this book on an intellectual level. It had my mind buzzing in junior detective mode, looking at characters distrustfully and trying to gauge the ethics of various actions. Where it didn't land with me was on the emotional front. Something would happen that I felt ought to trigger an emotional response, and I just wasn't there, personally. I suspect the swift pace that served the action of the story kept me from forming stronger attachments. However, I think there are several triggers that are worth mentioning for others in case your experiences might heighten the impact: (literal) loss of a sibling, parent death, suicide, and natural disasters to name some of the major ones.

An intriguing and chilling tale with an open ending that left me guessing long after the final page. I spent a lot of this novel trying to work out the twists and how everything would fit together and it still ended up surprising me. Suffused with melancholy, this is a curious book and a story that will stay with me for some time.

Arc kindly given by Netgalley

Unfortunately, this was a DNF read at 23%. I was having a difficult time connecting with the story. I was confused between the two POVs and I found myself dreading the POV switch between the sister that's missing and the one who is looking for her. I feel like this book could've been improved with a proper “plot hook” since I didn't feel like there was a huge mystery behind Sam's disappearance.

he Ones We’re Meant To Find reads like a timeless novel. It has a thematic purpuse and it doesn’t shy away from it. At all. The atmosphere that it creates is amazing. The writing style encompasses this perfectly. It alternates between first and third person depending on which perspective we’re following: Celia, lost at sea stranded in an island or Kasey, in a floating eco-city, dealing with her missing sister’s mystery on top of impending ecological doom.

Personally, I think the chapters that followed Kasey needed something else. I’m not sure what it was, but in juxtaposition with the chapters that followed Cee, let’s say it needed more “oomf“. Still, both timelines compliment each other very well.

Therefore, the story as a whole was thrilling. It’s done very well. It’s smart and intense when it needs to, and at other times it’s subtle and steady. Everything falls together three quarters into the book. Once the story is spun in its head, the pieces of the puzzle start making the best of sense. Characters from each side validate the motivations from people from the other perspective.

However, it’s worth mentioning that the reader has to push through the first half of the book. It might feel stranged from the reader at first, and it won’t click completely until the twists later on in the story. Nevertheless, I also think that it’s a book worth re-reading. That way, that first half might be even more enlightening and hit the book’s purpose with more strength.

All in all, it’s an excellent book. I’d definitely recommend it. Plus, now I’m really interested in Joan He’s works in general.

(the review will go up on the blog on the 27th)

“No one enters the world by choice. If we’re lucky, we can chose how we leave.”

The One’s We’re Meant to Find is an extraordinary tale about connection to the ones you love and to yourself. Set in an indeterminate future, we follow two sisters, Kasey and Celia, as they try to survive in a world that’s no longer serving its purpose. As Joan He has us flipping from one perspective to the other, chapter by chapter, we’re led down a rabbit hole of science fiction and mystery. Celia went missing three months ago and Kasey needs to find out what happened to her. Celia has been living on a “deserted” island for the past three years, well her, her boat Hubert and her helper bot U-me, with no memory of how she got there but now she’s finally ready to go searching the ocean for her sister.

This unique story has so many unexpected twists and turns - it’s exhilarating. Not only do we flip back and forth between the girls, but we also get this juxtaposition between sci-fi and isolating dystopia. Even though each sister is working their way through their own missions, they have a much deeper connection then they even realise. It was truly a pleasure to read a book that navigates the struggle of exploring sibling connection whilst also trying to figure out who you are without the other. I feel like science fiction should always make you think and reflect on the present day, Joan He has done a wonderful job at this by introducing us to technology that whilst advanced, isn’t too far from anything we’ve got today - it was nice to explore the lengths of that technology whilst also exploring what life is like without it.

I really liked the story and it’s setting, but I have to say at times it was jarring. I found myself lost in what was happening with Kay’s story - whether that was from too much futurism or lack of description and explanation I’m not sure, but I did struggle. I think it would require a reread for me to really understand everything that was going on and catch every thread of connection. Perhaps there was too much going on? Too many twists and connections which just made it a little hard to understand.

However, I do overall think this is a great story that melds a mix of genres together. It had me thinking about Black Mirror, Rory Power’s Wilder Girls and even Jeff Vandemer’s Annihilation at times; and if those things interest you, then I highly suggested you pick this one up when you can.

Thank you Net Galley and Text Publishing for gifting me an e-arc of this book.

4/5 stars.
I absolutely loved this one. It was super unique and captured my attention the entire time. I loved the idea behind the eco cities and looking at how our impact on the earth affects us not just now but for our future generations.

I have already pre ordered a finished copy of this book and told everyone I know to buy it.
I've also made sure we have plenty on order at the store and it will have a staff recommends sticker on it!

What I thought was a simple story about two sisters trying to find each other after being separated is actually so much more than that. I am blown away.

The Ones We're Meant to Find is a climate/science fiction novel set some indeterminate time in the future, and follows two sisters: the first, Cee, washed up on an island three years ago, with few memories of her past and an inability to see in colour. Here she has lived, gathering materials and biding her time until she can get back to the sister she remembers. Kasey, who lives in an eco-city high above the climate-ravaged earth, lost her sister. Like, actually lost her. Security cameras watched Celia take a boat into the ocean three months ago, and she hasn't been seen or heard from since. Kasey is on a mission to find out what happened.

I don't know what I was expecting from this story, but it far and away exceeded those expectations. I can't go into much detail, because anything beyond the basic synopsis is a massive spoiler, but just know that this book had me guessing and second-guessing all the way through. It's wonderfully written - Joan He knows what she is doing, and the shift in writing style between the two stories was masterfully done. From the dreamy, disconnected, floaty quality of Cee's chapters to the solid, clear writing in Kasey's, He has crafted a truly immersive experience.

It's a thinker, too. What is moral and immoral, and how does that change when lives are at stake? What lengths would we go to to save the earth? What lengths to save humanity? Are the sins of our forebearers ours to carry?

The Ones We're Meant to Find is brilliant. Highly, highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Text Publishing for providing me with this ARC.