The Arc by Tory Henwood Hoen

Let’s face it.  Dating today is much different than it was in the 20th century.  The Arc explores the opportunity for meeting your soul mate in a very non-traditional way.  It’s not only entertaining but also thought-provoking.  The Arc publishes today.

From The Publisher:

35-year-old Ursula Byrne, VP of Strategic Audacity at a branding agency in Manhattan, is successful, witty, whip-smart, and single. She’s tried all the dating apps, and let’s just say: she’s underwhelmed by her options. You’d think that by now someone would have come up with something more bespoke; a way for users to be more tailored about who and what they want in a life partner–how hard could that be?
Enter The Arc: a highly secretive, super-sophisticated matchmaking service that uses a complex series of emotional, psychological and physiological assessments to architect partnerships that will go the distance. The price tag is high, the promise ambitious–a level of lifelong compatibility that would otherwise be unattainable. In other words, The Arc will find your ideal mate.
Ursula is paired with 42-year-old lawyer Rafael Banks. From moment one, this feels like the electric, lasting love they’ve each been seeking their whole adult lives. But as their relationship unfolds in unanticipated ways, the two begin to realize that true love is never a sure thing. And the arc of a relationship is never predictable…even when it’s fully optimized.

Book Review:

This was such an interesting read.  The whole concept of meeting your ideal mate by using a set of highly intimate assessments sounds far-fetched yet believable.  All through the book, it felt as though the creators of this company were going to let Ursula and Rafael know that this was all an experiment to see how far a couple would go to find their perfect match.  But they did not.

The central characters were well developed.   Both were educated and career-driven individuals who had experienced previous relationships but had never felt they had found “the one”.  Through The Arc, the two meet and fall fast for one another.  They couldn’t believe what a great job The Arc had done in pairing them together.  But no relationship is perfect and the two find challenges along the way.

The Arc company itself was well presented and futuristic.  The descriptions of the surroundings and the week-long assessments their clients go through before matching was fascinating.  It was surprising to me that neither Ursula nor Rafael questioned the need for some of these intimate assessments and simply went along with what was requested.

There is a twist to the story which I won’t get into so as not to give too much away, but this was a significant part of the story and mindset of this couple.  It was well presented and was a highlight.

Audiobook Review:

I listened to the audiobook version of The Arc which was narrated by Mary Elizabeth Kelly.  I enjoyed her performance – particularly how she portrays the Doctor at The Arc.  Her voice almost feels computer generated which portrays the clinician behind The Arc’s algorithm.  I would highly recommend this format of the book to those that enjoy audiobooks.

What I Liked:

• The futuristic feel to this matchmaking process
• The thought-provoking challenges that develop in the relationship
• The questions it leaves with how far people will go in hopes of finding their perfect match.

I Recommend This Book To:

Those readers who enjoy Women’s Fiction or Contemporary Romance.

My Rating:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Add The Arc to your Goodreads shelf

Acknowledgments:

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for the ARC of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Similar Books I’ve Reviewed:

The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren

It Had To Be You by Georgia Clark

The Dating Playbook by Farrah Rochon

Thanks for reading!  Does The Arc sound like a book you’d like to read?  Let me know in the comments.

I hope you have a wonderful day!