Single Helen feels her clock ticking to find love. She meets Brody on a dating app and has one date. To Helen, it was the date to end all dates and she awaits another one. But the dating service goes down and loses all her contacts. She does not have any contact information or even his last name. Her idealized date launches her on a search to find him. Her memory of Brody parallels her Granny G’s memory of a one time only date who she never saw again. In the meantime, she meets Ish and her memory of Brody blinds her to Ish’s interest. Helen has a lot to learn about life and true love, reality and dreams.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Haley Quinn's The Last First Date is is a light-hearted read about a single woman, Helen Pines, as she searches for the man she had the perfect last first date with. After the dating app she met Brody on crashes and loses their data, Helen goes on a search for him while learning a bit more about herself and her "ideal man" in the process.

It is difficult to review this book without giving too much away, but what can be said is that it is decently entertaining and has good elements of a good group of friends and family and some romance as well. I would say the main focus of the story is Helen's search for what she really wants in life as opposed to what she has told herself she wants. Helen seems to end up in a different and better place than we met her at in the beginning, but it almost feels as if we didn't get there with her. Like some things just fell into place and weren't earned emotionally. Hard to say, but that could be because this is meant to be more of a light read and not a heavy, emotional journey. There is also definitely a lot going on in the story plot wise, a bit too much at times as some of it doesn't feel entirely necessary, but it all works in the end.

Overall, it was a good book, but I probably wouldn't read it again. I recommend this book to fans of Lindsey Kelk or Sophie Kinsella and romance.

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

This story was not my favorite but still cute. I felt like the lead character was very immature and I was frustrated with a lot of her choices and thoughts. Its really hard to get into a story when you don’t like the main character. I would give this book a 2.5 rounded up to a 3.

Things I liked:
Helen, Elle, and Sophie’s friendship
Helen’s relationship with her family
The scenery/location of the book
The text threads
The ending!!! Made reading the story worth it

Things I didn’t like:
Helen’s self deprecation… I wanted to just give her a hug Brody. Brody. Brody. 😡
Choppy writing style

Rating: 3.5 stars
There were a few things that I liked about this book and a few that I did not. I thought that this story was cute, following Helen’s journey trying to find a man that she felt a connection with from a dating app. I found it a bit hard to get into it but I pushed through the beginning and generally enjoyed the read. I thought that it was represented well that sometimes the perfect image that we create of a person in our heads is not reality, and Helen found that out the hard the way. There is one quote as well that really stuck out to me that I think that enraptures the importance of being sufficient and happy on your own before finding a partner:
“Everything she’d done whilst she was alone felt necessary to bring her to the place and time when she wasn’t”.

I did however find myself wondering if a 30 year old woman would really be obsessing and chasing after a man she does not even truly know and behaving in such a way I found to be a bit immature. While I did enjoy seeing her find love in the end, I wish that it were sometimes represented that a man and a woman can be just friends without the expectation of there being a romantic element.
Overall, I did enjoy this book and loved the author’s writing style.

I'm sorry to give such a low rating, this really wasn't my cup of tea and I must admit I began skimming at 50% through.

The Last First Date follows Helen who's just entered her 30's. She's single and her ex-boyfriend is just engaged, and she's beginning to feel that time is running out. Persuaded by her Grandmother to start an online-dating profile she quickly finds the perfect man and goes on her 'last first date'.

But then disaster strikes, and her dating app glitches, losing her all of her contacts. Without any other way of contacting him, she embarks on a journey, determined to find him. But begins to doubt that one date can really lead to true love.

This is a cute concept and I loved the setting of Cornwall and some of the phone conversations Helen had with her friends were fun (we all need a support system like that).

Honestly, the book lost my interest when Brody was introduced. The idea that you feel like you've met the one and then promptly have no way of contacting him should be gut-wrenching for the reader, but I felt no chemistry between Helen and Brody. If there had been a spark, and dynamic, a bit of spice, I would have been desperate to read on and find out if they find each other again. But I didn't care.

Helen's voice also irked me. She didn't really have a personality and she seemed a lot younger than she actually was.

This just wasn't the romance for me, because there isn't enough romance.

This book was kinda hard to get into in the beginning but I do relate to her a lot ! Being 30 and still having to date. And after being in a serious relationship. I didn’t like how she constantly puts herself down I’ve read books by HQ ! And I’m never disappointed. Thank you for this arc

The Last First Date was a lighthearted, fun read that I enjoyed very much. I had never read anything from Hayley Quinn, but will look for books by her now. The book centers around 31 year old Helen Pines, whose last boyfriend broke up with her a year ago, and is now engaged. Helen thought he was the one even though none of her friends and family ever thought so.

On a trip home to visit her parents and her nan, Helen signs up for an online dating app. Her Nan G, quite the character, has convinced her that she needs to do this. Helen meets Brody in the app and agrees to meet him for lunch the next day. They have a wonderful first date and he says he'll be in touch to plan their second date. In Brody's profile on the dating app he said he was looking for his last first date.

Helen is confused as she never hears back from Brody. It turns out the dating app crashed and all contacts and info was lost. The app started up again, but nothing was left from before the crash. Helen and Brody had never swapped contact info as they communicated through the app. Now Helen had no way to contact Brody and vice versa. Helen fantasizes about Brody and their date and truly believes he is the one. She is convinced she must find him and with help from her friends sets out to do just that.

This book has a lot of scenes that will make you laugh out loud as the search for Brody goes on and it also has some poignant moments about love, dating, and who the right one is for each of us. I can't say much more without giving the story away, but do yourself a favor and get this book as soon as it's available!

I would like to thank NetGalley and HarperCollins for the advanced copy of the book.

A+ title for sure, that’s what drew me in from the start! This book follows Helen on her journey of finding the man she lost after her perfect first date and more poignantly, finding herself. There was so much character growth throughout this book and it never felt forced. The timing of getting with her perfect person wasn’t rushed and that made the ending even better. By the time she was with him, she appreciated him more than she would have before. I loved this one, I’d read again for sure. Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really struggled to get into this book. It was mostly due to the writing style, and not the characters or actual plot of the story. To me, it felt very jumpy. The inner monologues were somewhat exhausting to read through, and I felt very disconnected from the main character throughout the entire novel. I liked how light hearted this book was, and think the concept has a lot of potential, just the writing falls flat at times.

This was a quick, light read. Although fairly predictable with a familiar plot, the book was an entertaining read. Recommended for fans of modern British romance novels.

☕️BOOK REVIEW☕️

The Last First Date by Hayley Quinn
Release Date: May 20, 2022

⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

🥐🥐🥐🥐🥐🥐🥐🥐🥐🥐🥐🥐🥐

Meet Helen Pines, a 31 year old looking for her last first date. After her ex boyfriend gets engaged, Helen is determined to find her happy ending. Enter online dating. Also enter Brody, her gorgeous first match, and hopefully her last first date.

After hitting it off immediately, an error on the app wipes all traces of Brody and their date are wiped from existence.

Join the fun as Hellen and her friends try to track down Brody and get in some shenanigans a long the way and see if Helen truly did have her last first date.

✨Thank you to @netgalley for the opportunity to read this before it is published!✨

This book was super cute. I enjoyed reading it and I really enjoyed watching Helen’s evolution from insecure ex girlfriend to having some serious Main Character Energy. However, I wish we could have had just a little more time with the development of the love interests in the book. Some times it just seemed a little rushed. But, if you like a sweet quick romance to give your brain a break, this one is worth a read. Check it out later this month!


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Helen goes on a great first date with Brody, who she connected with on an app. She thinks he could be the ONE. Later, all of the data on the app is deleted and she has no way to contact him. She tries everything she can do to track him down. Along the way, she meets Ish, who becomes a really good friend and seems to really care about her. When she finally tracks down Brody, will he still be the one?

This book really makes you take a look at first impressions. Brody was way too perfect during that first date. Nobody is that perfect. Ish just strikes me as awkward but sweet and someone who would have made the date fun and comfortable. I love how Ish was there for her the whole time even though she just couldn't see it. Quinn took this couple and allowed them to develop naturally and Helen got there in time. She needed closure with Brody.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

The concept of this book was very good and intriguing but the execution of it wasn’t the best. It could do with a little tweaking here and there but other than that this book wasn’t that bad.

I was instantly attracted by the unique title and plot of the story. Author Hayley Quinn's debut book is a light-hearted, fun rom-com with elements like female friendships, self-love and eventual self-realization.

There were some parts of inner dialogue where I zoned out and disconnected but the overall story was interesting enough for me.
The best part of the story for me were these three characters and their equation with Helen - Helen's Nanny G, Her bestfriend Elle and Ish. I would definitely love to read a story based on Elle🔥

Thank you NetGalley for the digital review copy in exchange for my honest feedback.

I was drawn by this cover and excited to dive in. In practice, though, I struggled with the writing style, as the story or chemistry felt forced and unrealistic. Despite a few attempts I did not finish the book. Thank you for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I am not sure how to feel about this one. For about 80% of the book, Helen was pining for someone and suddenly when there’s about 10% it’s someone else. A bit unusual but anyways.

The book felt like it went from one point to another without actually unfolding the plot and whatnot. I feel like the end was super rushed and it did not give readers enough time to actually process the entire thing. The first 75% of the book was a drag for nothing. The book had some great potential. I feel like if the ratio wasn’t 80-10 and more like 50-40 or something similar it could’ve been great. We wanted to see a relationship actually blossom.

Overall, it was okay, but I expected a bit more of Helen and Guy #2

I don’t even know where to start with this review. The plot was mildly interesting but the execution was awful.

Helen is a 30 year old who is trying to start dating. Her ex recently got engaged and she obsessively views their social media and engagement photos and compares herself. She meets a guy named Brody on a dating app and they really “hit it off” on their first date.

**By hit it off I mean she makes every decision based on how she thinks he’ll react. **

She then looses contact with Brody because the dating site crashes and she goes on a frenzy trying to find him again. She goes to parties, winds up stalking his friend’s social media, then follows him to a music festival. At the music festival when he SHOCKINGLY offers her drugs, she realizes he may not be the one for her.

She goes on one more date with him but ultimately realizes her friend Ish (who she met over the course of her man hunt for Brody) may be a better fit for her.

It’s so disheartening to read about a main character who’s entire life choices revolve around a man’s opinion. I get that she meets Ish and he likes her for herself, but honestly it’s just because she was so obsessed with Brody when they met. I can’t tell you one fact about Helen or her preferences other than that she bakes. And I honestly couldn’t even tell you if she enjoys baking. It’s not fun or interesting to read about a female main character whose life revolves around their relationship status. Her obsession with her ex and Brody were painful to read about.

I love romance books but this was just awful. Wouldn’t recommend.

A cute story that, while I felt could have had better pacing and through-line, I did enjoy! A fun light read.

This was a cute love story, but for me personally it was hard to follow and had quite a few scenes that I felt weren't necessary to the plot line. The main character is on a hunt for love, or at least a legit relationship and while I understand in real life it is a confusing time and things don't always line up, for a book I felt confused often. I think I also didn't like that the main character continued to pursue men who were red flags and she immediately got attached without knowing them. If you're someone who enjoys books that are set in London, and are romance novels I would still recommend trying this book! Just because it wasn't my favorite, doesn't mean it won't be yours. I'd try other books by this author for comparison and because I'm always willing to try new authors.

I haven't read many ARCs, so I don't have much reference - but this book still seems to be in the very early edit stages. The format made the book tough to read, but I can usually get through it with a strong plot and character personalities which isn't the case for this novel. It was tough trying to read and I personally couldn't finish it.

I'm hoping this still has a few revisions to go and would love to read it.