Nick and Wren have chaotic lives that have intersected without them knowing. Will they keep living parallel lives or will they meet and test the hands of fate?

A cute romance with a dual POV! I liked this read a lot. Loved the idea of interviewing Edie and how small their little world was. Really enjoyed Nick and Wren. Couldn’t stand Alex lol. Overall a cute fluffy feel good read!

An entertaining and fun "star-crossed lovers" styled romance that blends loveable characters with quirky "sliding doors"mishaps and some heartfelt messages about family and belonging.
I really enjoyed reading Wren and Nick's perspectives, their personalities and challenges made an interesting angle. The whole premise made me think about people who we have connections with that we never often realise and how these micro interactions can shape our futures in significant ways.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 (Honestly, I’m not just throwing stars around, but this one’s a keeper!)

📚 If “Book Lovers” had you swooning, prepare to fall head over heels for “The Near Miss.”

🏖️ This is the perfect beach read for anyone who loves a good romantic comedy. It has everything a charming summer read should have; serendipity, second chances, travel, vino, true love and a whole list of lovable characters.

👫 Captivating journey of near misses of love and death. When they FINALLY do meet the story goes further back than you ever expected.

💕 Lily Joseph strikes the perfect balance between laughter and tears (seriously I almost cried). This is a dual POV book and I loved the cross over between the characters and their side of the story.

📖 Why You Need This Book: For me any book that combines humour, destiny, love and Italy is a must read but the plot and setting isn’t the reason you should read this book. The characters in this book all come together to make it the incredible story it is. The characters really hit home for me, I loved the father daughter holiday & really made me think what it would be like to take my dad to Italy and Nick’s Grandma is a inspirational woman regardless of whether she’s fictional or not.

I thoroughly enjoyed the twists, turns and, at times, the bumps of Wren and Nick's story! Chaos follows them as they navigate their way through the latest challenges life throws at them, pushing the two ever-closer.
I spent most of the novel desperate for their paths to cross, impatiently wishing fate would hurry up and work it's magic.
The warm, friendly characters and the gorgeous settings of Northumberland and Italy made me smile, and make this the perfect book to curl up and get lost in. A unique will-they-won't they rom-com.

I look forward to seeing what Lily Joseph writes next!


Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this novel.

First book I’ve ever read of this author and I will definitely read more, I really enjoyed it. Lily clearly has a way of writing that really transports you. From the beginning of the story I could imagine the street with the glass incident and all the other locations from that point.

I like the pace of this book. It was fast pace in a sense, and energy of the writing style but it also slowed down at times when needing to linger on something.

I usually don’t get as a good of a feel for characters when I cannot read their POV but I got a great concept of who Wren really is.

I really enjoyed this play on invisible string theory. I was worried that I might be longing too much for them to properly interact but the way this was done was really enjoyable.

My only critique, and the reason for not giving the final star, as that there was a lot going on. There were a lot of additional characters to keep up with and additional storylines. This worked for me in the sense that it kept the pace fast and I kept reading but I did feel lost for short periods of times.

I read this quickly and would happily recommend it to others.

Thank you to Lily Joseph and Bookouture for allowing me to read an advance copy of this!!

Cute debut novel from Lily Joseph! Lighthearted, easy to read romance🫶🏼

Started this in a reading slump so took me a little while to get into but enjoyed it in the end.

I enjoyed her writing describing the settings in the story, I could imagine myself in Italy, Edie’s home and the bookshop which helped to immerse myself more in the story.

The premise of the story is all about fate and how the universe allows people meet when they are supposed to. I like the concept of this book and did enjoy the two main characters Wren and Nick’s story playing out and how their story comes full circle in the end. I did however feel that there were too many little incidents that did end up getting a bit repetitive towards the end.

I still do recommend giving this a read, will be looking forward to what Lily Joseph writes next.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this early copy

I was really excited for this book, but unfortunately I just didn't love it. I think the premise was unique and really cute - but I think there was just too much build-up to the actual romance part. By the time the couple meets, it's already almost halfway through the book and there was just so much that happened already; the excitement just wasn't there anymore. Then the couple meets each other and almost immediately (within a day) start hooking up. It was a little strange, and the chemistry just wasn't there. I would consider reading the final version of the book once published!

“It was electric, and the fireworks on the harbour were nothing compared to the sparks that flew between them”

Thanks to NetGalley for this arc in exchange for a review! This book was really cute and very “invisible string” by Taylor swift coded.

Plot: 3.5/5
Spice: 0.5

✨ “Nick had felt like he was written in her stars” ✨

Wren and Nick kept missing each other and also almost dying a lot. Like how did they not die lol. It was an absolute wild ride to get to their HEA. The idea of “fate” tying them into these wild circumstances was so fun though, and once they’d met, I loved seeing what these two would do to save each other too. And that they acknowledge how fate is either trying to kill them or show them how important they are to each other.

The good:
The Capri scenes were so vivid!!! Felt like I was there. The boat and the blue grotto scene will live in my mind forever. Also wren jumping off a boat twice? Wild girl.
Single dad 🥵
Wren’s relationship with her dad 🥹
I LOVE how they figure out how they’ve been tied together for so long. Cute cute cute.


The not so great:
The side characters were a honestly little annoying 🫣
Wren’s (ex) boyfriend suuuucks
Why was Nick’s dad such a dick? And his brother was so selfish??? Nick had no one looking out for him. (Enter Wren I guess)
Also why was everyone hiding so much?

Overall though very very cute, and I love that it was British so I could read it in a British accent LOL.

Would recommend if you’re into the idea of fate, wild circumstances and a happily ever after 💕

I was quite excited by the premise of the book and hoped for a cute romcom book. Unfortunately the whole book was just a big lead up to romance which felt kinda rushed at the end.
I really wish that the lead up to the romance starting would have gotten to faster, when they finally met it was 50% into the book and as lovely it was to read all of the things that connect their lives, i wanted to read this book for romance more.
same goes for some storylines, it was nice story but felt unneccessary and at the end it just took time away from the main characters. Also, how the book was set up i really expected it to be written from 1st person POV and it being switched between Wren&Nick but even though it switched between them it all was written in 3rd person which bothered me a lot.
Overall, the story was promising but the things that i noted just didnt make it to be a good fit for me

The Near Miss gave me hallmark vibes but didn’t quite hit as good as a hallmark movie.
I love a slow burn but it was just a little too slow for me. It took me several tries to get past the first couple or chapters. Felt like it was lacking something ? Maybe more romance ?
There were a handful of subplots and it felt very overwhelming at first. Overall I thought the actual storyline was good just maybe not executed well…


Thank you NetGalley / Publisher for the opportunity!

3 stars!

This book really did not click for me!
Even though I do like the premise of two people being fated to meet, this book was simply a bit too much: too many incidents and subplots, making it difficult to keep up.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this ARC, in exchange for an honest review!

Such a cutesy little romcom! The perfect book to cozy up with on a Friday night. It was definitely giving 2000s romcom vibes and I loved it. It was making me a little mad because the author dragged out the meeting of the two main characters, but it was still enjoyable. Now I just have to wait for my trip to Italy…

This was a cute and easy read for the slow burn romance lovers, although a little bit too slow for my taste. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the advanced copy! Publication date July 10, 2024.

This romance was a fun easy read which is perfect for snuggling under a blanket on the sofa with. The characters are the kind of people you’d love to have a cuppa and a chat with. It initially felt like Nick and Wren would never meet which is always a fun trope. From the minute Nick nearly kills Wren with a falling glass window, they keep causing each other strange accidents. But they were obviously just meant to be together. I enjoyed the backstory detail of both families of the characters, which lifts this story and gives you that warm happy feeling by the end. Which is all I want from reading a romance really!

The Near Miss ARC by Lily Joseph — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Tropes 🌷
— slow burn
— found family
— invisible string

“It’s strange. We keep trying to kill each other. But I’ve never felt so safe.” — Wren

This was such a feel-good rom-com book! The plot hooked me, and the story itself was such a roller coaster ride, full of mishaps, accidents, and near-death experiences for Wren and Nick. 🌸

It was also hilarious and exhilarating reading ‘Near Miss.’ I was laughing out loud and giggling every time they missed meeting each other. The slow burn and angst this book has brought to me were so good. 🌷✨

I really enjoyed reading this so much, and I can’t wait for people to get the same feels when it’s finally released on July 10, 2024. 💗✨

Such a refreshing debut novel from @lilyjosephwriter 🫶🏻 I can’t wait to read more of her books. 💗💗💗

Thank you so much for this ARC, @bookouture and @netgalley 🫶🏻✨

#TheNearMiss

I love slow-burn romances, but this one was too slow for my taste. The chemistry between the main female character (fmc) and main male character (mmc) was lacking, possibly because they only met halfway through the story. I think if they had met earlier, their relationship could have been more developed.

The constant near misses with accidents became repetitive and tiresome, making me wish the book would progress into a proper romance sooner.

The secondary characters were fantastic and actually outshined the main couple for me. I found myself more interested in Libby and her story, wanting to see more of her life.

The multitude of characters, incidents, and subplots made the plot feel overly complex. Despite the intriguing idea of Wren and Nick's destined connection, the execution felt disjointed, struggling to blend their stories together smoothly. I almost gave up on finishing the book due to its scattered focus. I couldn't make it past chapter 4 sadly because the back and forth from the main characters was quite confusing at times annd I felt lost in the story. Overall, I would rate it 2 stars.

I want to express my gratitude to NetGalley for providing me with this (ARC).

Thank you to Bookouture, NetGalley and Sophie Ranald for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“i feel like you’re my lighthouse.”

nick and wren keep missing each other. it takes broken windows, a near car crash and a trip to italy for fate to throw them together. misfortune follows misfortune and when they finally meet, is it cupid’s arrow or plain old love at first sight?

i thought this was a cute debut. i do think that disaster after disaster got a little much and i would’ve preferred for their relationship to actually undergo some kind of development instead of having them finally meet and it being instant connection. i liked wren and nick as individual characters and one of my favourite parts of the novel was nick’s relationship with ruby. the familial dynamics presented in this were interesting, but overall my main critique is that 80% of the book was buildup and i felt like we didn’t really see much of them together as a couple so i struggled to see them as a collective unit.

The Near Miss - 3 ★

The Near Miss is exactly the shake-up I was looking for in my reading. Wren and Alex near misses are clever and believable and I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see if *this* near miss would be the one that finally brought them together.

We first meet Wren as she almost walks into a sheet of glass as it falls from where handyman, Nick is repairing windows at Wren's friend Lola's bookstore. The thing stopping the near accident is a text from Wren's boyfriend, Alex asking her to pick up milk. Wren is shaken but moves on. What follows is a series of mishaps caused by the actions of both Nick and Wren in which each comes within a hair of danger but also one step closer to a different and perhaps, better life.

When Wren, a journalist by trade, starts profiling a beloved community member, Edie Macmillan, she starts to unravel some secrets in her own life that she never knew were present and as Nick is trying to rebuild his own life and with each near miss, the two get closer and closer to finally meeting. When a chance (and near death) encounter brings Wren and Nick together, their lives are more entwined then they could have imagined.

To me, the hallmark of a really good book is if I want to spend time with the characters and I certainly did with the characters in this book. Wren is a loving, supportive friend and daughter. Nick is a doting single dad while also being there for his brother, his grandmother, and his own mother. The supporting cast is one you can't help but root for, Edie, Lola, Travis, Alan, even Wren's boss and colleagues at the newspaper are people whose company you'd like to keep.

Pick up The Near MIss for all your poolside, beachside, lakeside reading! If you miss it, you'll be sad (puns intended):

I like the idea of this book but the author missed on some things for me. Yes, they had near misses of meeting hence the title however I would have liked more interaction for the connection of the characters. They meet too late in the book for me. Enjoyed how they met and after that it was a cute story but took a while. Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this for my honest feedback.

This was a lot. Too many subplots, characters and things happening. The idea was there but execution fell short.