Hannah Orenstein, known for her sharp, modern takes on love and timing, released Meant to Be Mine in June 2022. It’s a contemporary romance built around a clever speculative twist, following a woman who’s grown up knowing the exact date she’ll meet her soulmate. The novel blends themes of fate, family expectations, and self‑discovery, exploring how much of our lives we choose and how much we inherit.
A Summary & Thematic Analysis
Edie Meyer has grown up with a prophecy. Her grandmother, who has correctly predicted every family member’s ‘date of meeting,’ told her she’d meet her soulmate on the 24th June 2022. Edie has built her entire romantic worldview around that date, waiting, and shaping her life around the idea that fate has already chosen for her. So when the day finally came and she meets Theo it feels like the universe is clicking into place like she was stepping into the life she was promised. But as their relationship settles in, Edie starts to feel this quiet tug between what she believes is meant to happen and what she actually wants. The certainty she’s always relied on starts to feel heavy instead of comforting. She begins questioning whether she’s in love with Theo or in love with the idea of destiny choosing for her. The book leans into that tension showing how the stories we inherit can guide us, but also trap us. At its heart, this is a self-discovery story wrapped into a warm romance novel with an emotional undercurrent related to strong familial connections.
Writing Style
Orenstein’s writing in this novel has this breezy, fast-paced atmosphere that makes the whole book feel like something you can fall into without noticing the hours go by. Often while reading this, I felt as if I had read 5 pages when I had actually read 15 - it’s just that type of book. Orenstein manages to balance the spiraling in Edie’s head with the light-hearted, funny ambiance. She’s great at getting inside a character’s head without weighing the story down, especially when she’s exploring anxiety or the pressure of expectations, and the whole thing has that rom‑com glow while still nudging at deeper questions underneath. This novel is set in a first-person perspective, which is the perfect fit for a story where a lot of it happens inside a character’s head.
What I Loved
I loved how vivid and grounded the descriptions were, without ever feeling heavy. Orenstein has this very signature way of sketching a scene with just enough details that makes it feel lived-in. You feel as if you are walking in on a life that has existed before the story you are reading, and it’s done so well. Everything feels soft and cinematic, like you’re watching the story unfold through warm lighting and slightly heightened reality. It’s descriptive enough to pull you in but still breezy enough that you never feel stuck in the scenery. The premise is honestly what hooks you before you even open the book. The idea of knowing the exact date you’ll meet your soulmate is such a fun mix of magical and stressful, and Orenstein leans into both sides of it. It’s a high‑concept in a way that feels playful rather than gimmicky, and it gives the whole story this built in tension. And last but certainly not least, the familial thread is the part that really sticks with you because it’s not just background noise - it’s the spine of the entire story. Edie’s relationship with her family, especially her grandmother, is tender, complicated, and full of that quiet love that doesn’t need to be spoken out loud. You feel the heaviness of wanting to honour the people who raised you while also trying to figure out who you are outside their expectations.
What I Didn’t Love
I found myself wanting more from the characters, especially the side characters. They’re written in a way that works for the plot, but it clashes with the ‘lived-in’ feel of the surroundings that you’re introduced to. It’s like you get flashes of who they could be, but the book never slows down long enough to let them breathe or surprise you. Edie has the most interiority, but even she sometimes feels like she’s reacting to the premise rather than growing beyond it. The combination of Bennet in politics, Edie in fashion, and Theo in music is interesting on paper, but in practice it creates this weird tonal mismatch that makes you wonder who the book is actually speaking to. Each character feels like they belong in a slightly different genre, and the story never fully blends their worlds into something cohesive. Instead of feeling dynamic, it sometimes feels scattered, like the book is juggling three vibes that don’t naturally click. Her grandmother’s death should have been a huge emotional anchor - she’s the reason the entire premise exists - but once it happens, the story moves on surprisingly fast. It’s mentioned, it’s sad, and then it’s almost like the narrative doesn’t know what to do with that grief, so it quietly sets it aside. For a book so rooted in generational influence and inherited expectations, the lack of emotional follow‑through feels like a missed opportunity. It could’ve added so much depth, but instead it fades into the background before it really lands. The final point is a very personal opinion, but Edie just wasn’t a character I connected with. She builds her entire life around the idea of marriage and kids, even choosing a career specifically because it would let her stay home with them, and that mindset just doesn’t resonate with me. Sometimes it crosses the line from “this is what she wants” into “this is what women are supposed to want,” and it makes her feel more like a product of external expectations than someone actively choosing her own path. Overall, her character didn’t work well for me.
Recommendation
This is a book for the hopeless romantics, the homebodies and the spiritualists. Romance is something that is all throughout the novel, but it is more of a journey of discovery, covering topics of fate, disconnection from religion, and identity. If you liked In Five Years by Rebecca Serle, you will enjoy this book.
Songs
Songs that I find reminiscent of the book:
Lover by Taylor Swift
Those Eyes by New West
Ceilings by Lizzy McAlpine
the 1 by Taylor Swift
(P.S. We made them links so feel free to click on them and get teleported straight into the vibes.)
