Wow.
Wow is the one word that comes to mind when I think about this book and my experience with it.
This is my first Joan He novel and it made me immediately order her debut and vow to read anything she ever writes. It's that good.
I went into "The Ones We're Meant to Find" with basically no expectations at all. The blurp sounded intriguing and the cover is simply gorgeous, and those are honestly the only reasons I need to want a book. And then, well, then He proceeded to blow me away.

"The Ones We're Meant to Find" is a dystopic science fiction novel that takes place on Earth in a future marked by climate change. Humanity has kept destroying our planet. While a large percentage of humanity still lives in various territories on Earth, a smaller percentage is allowed to live in eco-cities in the sky, living most of their lives in holographic form in order to save what's left of the planet. This is where Kasey, one of our two protagonists live. Cee on the other hand, the second protagonist, wakes up on a deserted island without any memory of who she is and how she came to be here. This is really all I want to say about the plot, the rest of it has to be experienced.

This is a painful novel, a deeply emotional journey that asks important questions while still offering an exciting plot full of twists and unexpected turns. It is never, not once, boring. The world building is spectacular, sucking you in from the very first page, making the world come to life. It's gut wrenching at times, especially when it really shows what humanity did to this beautiful planet. The writing is simply spectacular and the plot so well constructed that I'd genuinely call it a small literary masterpiece. The characters are intriguing, deeply complex and caused me to shed a tear or two more than once. He's choice to use different perspectives to tell the story and stylistically differentiate them as well - Cee's story is told in first person, Kasey's in third person - provides even more layers to an already layered story with layered characters. The sister relationship is incredible and still makes me emotional just thinking about it, and the romance was cute, too, and never too much of a focus of the plot.

This is a more than solid 4,5 stars for me, with my only very minor complaint being that the beginning is a little confusing, but I gladly round it up to 5 stars because it leaves a lasting impression. I won't forget this book and my time with it.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Ones We're Meant to Find boggled my mind - in a good way! I was constantly second guessing myself and the characters within this. In it, you will meet two sisters Celia and Kasey. Both had some very exciting adventures and big decisions to make.

After meeting them, my brain couldn't wrap around what kind of timelines they were in. It was pretty obvious from the start that something happened to one of them. I just didn't know what that one thing was until the big reveal moment. I did have a guess or two but was not close whatsoever.

Both were equally entertaining and intriguing to me. I also really love and adore U-ME and would secretly want one for myself. Okay, it's not a secret because I definitely want one. I also really liked how this book mentioned so many different topics and didn't really gloss over anything. Getting so much detail definitely drew me in a bit more because I just wanted to know what these two were up to and what actually went down.

It's safe to say that the ending blew my mind. It was such a good book and I'm very happy that I got the chance to read it.

This is my honest review of the ARC I received by NetGalley.

"Because it was possible to love someone without fully understanding them. Possible to love parts of them and not their whole."


What an amazing journey that was! A totally refreshing tale of love and loss wrapped in gripping writing and compelling worldbuilding! It's one of those books that clearly pave the way to great YA lit and more specifically, to fascinating eco-literature. The primary focus is on two sisters trying to find each other and not on any romance interests which makes perfect sense--not all YA books have to be about a boy meeting a girl!

I particularly enjoyed the way the sea was always there, listening to what the heroes' wanted and needed and providing the solutions. Even after the destruction of Earth by humans, the sea seemed like the only source of life (and death.) I'll pre-order this book so as to support Joan He's attempt to create this kind of exciting and multimodal storytelling--despite the heavy worldbuilding that was explained fully in bits and parts and sometimes frustrated me, I admired the author's skills in creating subtext that hooks the reader and meaningful connections between all heroes.

This is definitely a book that needs rereading to truly savor all the work the writer pulled through to deliver this gem. Because it's possible to love a book without fully understanding it. This is the magic in Joan He's new novel: it explains what's just necessary and like one of her heroines, the reader is asked to make the necessary connections and guess what happens when nothing is said.

*thank you to netgalley for a free e-arc of this book in exchange for a review*

I have a LOT of feelings about this book. Joan He has knocked it out of the park again.

Joan He is 100% an auto-buy author for me. I thought it after Descendant of the Crane. This book only reaffirms this.

The crafting of the voices of both points of view is stunning. There is never any doubt whose point of view you're reading, and the depths of the protagonists is just beautiful.

I've highlighted so many quotes in this book, because the prose is just brilliant. Some lines are just so perfectly formed I had to take a moment to fully appreciate them.

This is one of my top 5 books of the year so far, without a doubt. A beautifully written and brilliantly told story. So, so good!

This is a fascinating, twisty feat of a novel that does not remotely end where I thought it would, particularly given the vibe of the cover. I love that this is a firmly sci-fi/cli-fi near-apocalyptic novel with an assertedly naturalistic/low-fi cover, and the dissonance that created for me, as a reader, very much suited the novel itself. The way the novel splits its time and chapters between the two sisters' experiences and points of view (one first-person, one limited-third) was a bit difficult to get into for the first couple of chapters, but after that it was actually a great plot propulsion device to keep pivoting between the two, as every ending was a form of a cliffhanger. Thematically, the way this novel dealt with technology, family, neurodivergence/neurodiversity, love, and justice/punishment were fascinating in ways that were deeper than some YA novels choose to tread. I loved it.

With two pov and two separate timelines, Joan He embarks you in a story which questions humanity, ecology and technology. My favorite part of this story is actually how the author uses the two separate timelines. At first you kind of wonder where this is going because you can't really see the link between the two of them but when it hits you and you fully understand where this is going and how it works, you'll be mindblown by it. And this is what happened to me. The moment when I hit the plot twist was the moment where I thought "wow this story is really well crafted."
The Ones We're Meant to Find is about choices and their consequences. More specifically about human choices regarding ecology -- how their action destroy Earth and even if they know that, they can't put away their selfishness to move forward and make the right choice.

Though, if I were to be completely honest, I believe you need to be fully immersed in the story to understand everything. Unfortunately it wasn't the case for me but I'm putting that on the fact that English isn't my first language and I had to read some parts of the story several times to make sure I understood everything perfectly.

Unfortunately, I couldn't really connect with the story or the characters and I couldn't make it past 20%. Maybe if I'd pushed through, I really could have liked it, but the slow beginning wasn't what I needed right now.

The Ones We're Meant to Find isn't your average sci-fi story - granted, there are sci-fi elements here and there, and definitely a dystopian feeling to it, but I found this book to be a hybrid of sorts. I was intrigued from the first page, and couldn't understand where Joan He was leading me. Blindly following the story, I couldn't stop turning the pages because I wanted to understand, I wanted my questions answered. What I knew however, what I was sure of, was the love between the two Mizuhara sisters: deep, emotional and enduring love.
This is a touching and mysterious story about sisterhood, self discovery, mixed with sci-fi and dystopia. I highly recommend you see for yourself - but I found this melange to be delightful to read !

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

The Ones We're Meant to Find is a gorgeous story about sisterhood, mystery and discovery. We have the outgoing Cee, stuck on an abandoned island and Kasey the science girl, trying to decide if she’ll save the world she struggles to understand. Both of them connected by their will to find each other.

The dialogues were amazing and I cannot recommend this book enough!

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

Trigger warnings: gore, suicide, violence, mass death

Cee awoke on an abandoned island three years ago. With no idea of how she was marooned, she only has a rickety house, an old android, and a single memory: she has a sister, and Cee needs to find her. STEM prodigy Kasey wants escape from the science and home she once trusted. The eco-city—Earth's last unpolluted place—is meant to be sanctuary for those commited to planetary protection, but it’s populated by people willing to do anything for refuge, even lie. Now, she'll have to decide if she’s ready to use science to help humanity, even though it failed the people who mattered most.

The two sisters were entirely different characters - and I did like how He had Kasey’s chapters from third person and Cee’s from first. I’ll admit to feeling some disconnect with Kasey’s chapters and that is probably because I was in Cee’s head, whereas I was a bystander in Kasey’s story. Cee’s flights from the island and the subsequent actions and feelings were interesting - probably the thing that kept me mostly engaged in the first half of the book. Kasey being more of a recluse in the world seemed to translate in the writing. I almost felt she was a step back and I couldn’t get a full and proper read on her. Despite that, I felt both sisters were interesting characters and I was interested in knowing their stories.

Reading this story, there is a very strong Black Mirror vibe. Set in the future, we see how humans are coping with the effects of climate change and the impact we’ve had on the planet. It’s an interesting take that had me engaged and interested to see how this version of the future played out, how things had become different over time, and what new technology had come to fruition. I do feel that the bombshell happened a bit too early, as there was a build up to it that perhaps could have been fleshed out more with information we see after the bombshell has hit. But, despite this, the story was certainly interesting, keeping me gripped to know what happened next. I want to know what happened after that ending too! That cliffhanger was not something I was impressed with!

Overall, The Ones We’re Meant to Find is a brilliant story of wishing to be found and carving your own path.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you again to NetGalley and Text Publishing for an advanced copy of this book. Review will be live on my blog on 03/05.

The Ones We’re Meant to Find by Joan He has left me wordless, but I’m going to try to tell you what I know.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Two sisters, separated by the ocean between them.
The Ones We’re Meant to Find is the kind of book you read at least twice. You finish the book first, mostly all in one go if you’re anything like me and can’t put it down. You sit down and take a deep breath and then text your friend, torn between telling them to read it and telling them everything about it. You pour over the pages connecting all of the dots that led you to the final chapters.
You think about Celia, who had to survive an island with no memory, only trying to get back to her sister.
And Kasey, who had to survive the politically charged dystopia her sister could never quite fit into.
You think you’ve found one of the most interesting stories you’ve ever read. You could be right.

There is nothing I can say about this book except to read it. Devour it. Revel in shipwreck meets sci-fi tale of two sisters just trying to shrink the ocean between them.

The Ones We’re Meant to Find is being published on May 4th.

*I would like to thank NetGalley, Roaring Brook, and Joan He for access to the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of The Ones We're Meant to Find in exchange for an honest review.

This is such a mind twisting sci-fi. I love how you never quite know what's going on as a reader until the final twist. I don't want to say a lot because I don't want to spoil but I will say that while I was absolutely obsessed with Cee's POV and it definitely made the read worth it, Kacey's was a little lackluster in comparison. While I do like that her perspective was included and think it was interictal to the story, I don't think it needed to be given as much page time as it was.

Other than that, this was a wonderful sci-fi.

I need a little time to process this and write a proper review but overall I loved this book. The world building was incredibly well done, and I'm not surprised about that given the previous books that I've read by this author. I feel gutted after finishing this book and it is definitely one of my favorites of this year. The choice to make one of the sister's (Cee) perspectives done in first person, while the second sister's (Kasey) is done in second person is something that takes a little bit to get used to. It also makes it a little harder to understand her, which is something also due to her personality. I definitely felt as though I related to and sympathized more with Cee while reading this book. I adored this book and the plot twists definitely kept me on edge the entire time that I was reading this book.

Unfortunately, I did not enjoy this one. I kept being confused whenever something alien to me was introduced and not explained since page 1 (U-Me, Hubert, SILVERTONGUE, Meridian, etc.) and I felt I was stuck onward - trying to *get* what it was first before going back to the story. The characters weren't likable to me either and, while their ways of talking and *feeling* was perfect to always know who was talking, they felt like opposite extremes that I did not enjoy, sadly. Though again, this is just how I felt, maybe I wasn't in the right mind to read it and may try re-reading it in the future-

Human race has succeeded in destroying the planet so now the life happens in eco cities and you participate in reality or online.. Wow, what an incredible premise.

We follow our main characters - 2 sisters - separated in time and space and both of them are trying to find the other one. What lead to disappearance of one? Why can't the other one remember most of her past or see in color? There are so many exciting turns in the story that will keep you up late reading it.

One of the better stories about the end of the world as we know it. Throw in sibling relationships, androids, life you live while actually being stationed in a pod..

The Ones We're Meant to Find is a beautifully lush story about two sisters set in a futuristic world that quickly becomes uninhabitable for the human race. This book is a sophisticated Sci-Fi with twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat. The environmental aspect of this story is hauntingly familiar and made me wonder where humanity will end up in a couple decades.
The author manages to captivate the reader with her writing style and complex characters.
Thanks to Netgalley and Text publishing for sending me an early review copy of The Ones we're meant to Find!

Some secrets were best left at sea, between sisters.

This above all else is a story of two sisters fighting to find their way back to each other, while also trying to rediscover themselves. There's mystery, there's budding romance and there's hurt and comfort.

I loved every moment of reading this, with the uncertainty and hopelessness that was woven throughout, even as the girls were so determined to not give up.

I would recommend this for fans of the sci-fi/dystopian genre, for fans of girls saving themselves, and above all for fans of unreliable narrators because the layers that this book had kept you fed on the crumbs of information you get at every step of the way.

I really enjoyed this book but I'm not sure how much I understood it - I felt like it was building up to something and it didn't really get there. But it was well written and engaging, after the first 10-20% (which took me a while to get through).

I went into this book completely blind and I found it such an interesting book to read. It took a number of turns throughout which I was not expecting. It was such a beautifully written story. The ending matched the vibe of the book incredibly. This isn't the type of book I read but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

What a unique and well crafted story. Easy to glide right in to, although it does take a minute to get your bearings. Because this world is not like ours so it will take a few page to get the lay of the land. However, it is easy and I loved learning about it all

Two sisters - Celia and Kasey. They've been separated and are, each, looking for each other. I loved learning the life on the island. I loved the breadcrumb clues I painstakingly looked for and I loved what I found. Kasey was heartbreaking but also interesting. Her story is more prominent and I appreciated the details of her life and her world.

There are so many layers to this story, so many reasons to love it. Sisters, family, life purpose, the breaking down of the planet, pollution and death. So many themes that were touched on and explored and had such interesting and new settings. This one was so good. I loved it!

<i>A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.</i>