Oh, this review is difficult…I love Sophie Cousens as an author but this novel didn’t hit the mark for me as her others have in the past.

It starts out in the prologue with something going wrong at Audrey and Josh’s wedding and immediately caught my attention. From there it follows several timelines: the wedding, Audrey and Josh’s story and a story of Audrey meeting a man named Fred at a photobooth and one serendipitous day together as we as her mothers many husbands, one of them being quite abusive.

I really enjoyed the story of Audrey and Josh meeting and falling in love it was messy (but not overly so) and silly endearing and sweet. It made me adore them as a couple.

I also really enjoyed the early story of Audrey and Fred but the end is where that story gets really murky for me.

At the end I really felt that Audrey was using trauma as an excuse for her behavior and I didn’t like that at all. I also didn’t like that there was no talk of any healthy healing of said trauma, just that the partner Audrey ends up with wanted her to tell them about it and that’s where the discussion of it ends.

Parts of this story are a lot of fun! I really liked Miranda and would totally be her friend in real life!

Overall, this was a 3.5 star read for me
⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam for the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I don't know when it turned into a thing to dow rate books just because of this chosen troupe. People have a real problem with a love triangle because it seems unrealistic but its really not and I hope people give this books a real chance because I don't mind LT and this book was good. I really liked the writing and the characters, I will say it took me awhile to feel something for the main character, Audrey, but I like this. I liked the premise of the story and the whole "what if' scenario is cool!

Mark my words. I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH!

Here are my thoughts:

I think so far this is my favorite book of the author and as a first I’m giving a book five stars even though I got irritated by the heroine at so my chapters and fully supported team Josh( not James) the sweet and caring guy she’s planning to marry!

I enjoyed the smart and witty tone of dialogues. I loved the execution between different time lines that giving us enough clues about characters’ back stories, how they meet with each other, how they evolve, how their lives could be directed into different path if they would make different choices and how their fates are sealed after so many incidents and people involved into their lives.

The plot line was strong: a soon to be bride’s questioning her decision to say “ I do” when she sees the guy she’s fell hard six years ago and disappeared without a word reappears at her wedding as her fiancée’s sister’s date.

What if they didn’t lose their contact? what if Josh- her fiancée and she are meant to be ? What if she’s making a mistake like her mother Vivian who married five times and never found her HEA? What if she made different choices at the past, would she be happier?

This book is so emotional, approaching and discussing so important things like choices we made, the fate we’re destined, finding “the one”!
I was a little pissed off Audrey because her past baggages and insecurities shadow her vision to see truth lies behind her eyes! But eventually she learned from her mistakes, I loved to see how her character evolved, becoming mature one, finding what she truly wants and being brave enough to fight for it!

Overall: absolutely must read, honestly, smartly, beautifully written novel that I absolutely recommend!

Many thanks to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam/ G. P. Putnam’s Sons for sharing this amazing digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.

This book exceeded my expectations. It was funny, sad, serious, and while I knew the general storyline, many times it felt unexpected. The timeline jumps around constantly, but Sophie Cousens uses this technique really effectively. The present takes place under the umbrella of Audrey's wedding to Josh and her existential/love crisis which the reader understands better through context given in the past timeline chapters. Yes, Audrey should have worked out much of her baggage pre-wedding, but the way she ends up working through her crisis and feelings works. The messiness of it all felt a little outrageous at times; straight out of a Hollywood rom-com, but life and love so often are messy, and this made for a very compulsive read.

Thank you G.P. Putnam's Sons Books and #NetGalley for the ARC e-book!

Sophie Cousens has done it again! Before I Do is the second-chance, what-if romance that might have been, but it ends up being so much more. I loved watching Audrey's journey through alternating chapters from the day of the wedding, and the six years prior leading up to it. I could wholeheartedly relate to her feelings of failure and restlessness, watching everyone around her settle down and get "proper" jobs, while she was still figuring life out. Cousens creating a heartwarming story with. a satisfying ending, with a couple rom-com worthy moments along the way!

Before I Do by Sophie Cousens
Rating (4/5) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Publishing Date - October 11th 2022
Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for approving me to read and review this book.

Before I Do is about Audrey and Josh preparing for their wedding. The story mainly follows Audrey’s journey leading up to her wedding. I found humor in all the disasters surrounding the wedding and couldn’t wait to see how it turned out.

Took a few chapters until I was really into the storyline! Overall I really enjoyed this book and I recommend this read to others who enjoy reading rom coms.

After reading some of the books with extremely heavy and intense topics, I needed this. It was a super quick, cute and a fun read for me. I definitely loved and enjoyed it.

I liked "Just Haven't Met You Yet" by this author and I enjoyed this one even more, though admittedly Aubrey wasn't my favorite character (but she does redeem herself in the end).

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

*Thank you to Putnam Books via NetGalley for the ARC*

Ok, this was really cute. 🥰 I had a couple of back to back heavy books I had just read so this one dropped into my lap at the exact right moment. Not to say it didn’t touch on painful topics either (cw: sexual assault) but it gave off so many feel good vibes it’s hard not to be charmed. So let’s just say, the timing was impeccable.

Very much like the premise of this book, actually! 😉 Before I Do centers on Audrey on her wedding day and the events leading right up to it, dating several years back…back before she met her groom, Josh, and even further back, when she fell in love with a complete stranger, Fred, and lost him until he shows up at her wedding 6 years later. Audrey can’t shake the feeling that Fred came back into her life for a purpose. Her faith in the stars aligning with her belief that this was fate intervening. A story unfolds told in multiple timelines where we get not one but two love stories (maybe even more if you count the lovable side characters) but there can only be one happy ending that’s inevitable for Audrey.

For those who are fans of second chance romances, lost love, light groveling, and a penchant for the youthful exuberances of 20-somethings, Before I Do is a lovely read. It deals with the classic “what ifs” that might plague someone who hasn’t quite figured out what they’re meant to be doing or who they’re meant to be with. (Side note: too bad “Meant to Be” was already a taken title because it’s soooo fitting here, but alas that’s another book I just finished and loved).

4.5/5 stars because there were some parts that were bogged down and others that were almost too silly, even for me, but still a charming book nonetheless! Publishes in Oct. ‘22!

I didn't have a lot of expectations going into this book. I read another of Sophie Cousens' books last Christmas and while I liked it well enough, it didn't blow my mind. It didn't stay with me. But I enjoy wedding books and I'm still in a little slump, so I thought something light and airy would snap me out of it.

This book reminds me a lot of <i>the Rehearsals</i> by Annette Christie, wherein a bride and groom who don't have the best communication skills are hit by cosmic misfortune on the eve of the wedding, both in the form of everything going wrong at once and a lover from the bride's past making a sudden reappearance. I do feel like <i>the Rehearsals</i> did this prompt better, but I like what <i>Before I Do</i> says more. I like the realization that you don't have to have your life in order to be worthy of love, that being your best version actually comes with being loved because of the confidence you gain.

Josh is kind of a bore of a love interest, but he's also a bit like a golden retriever. For me the side characters made this book, specifically Clara and Hillary. The alternating timelines wasn't as distracting as I thought it'd be -- actually, while it felt a little disjointed in a couple spots, those past scenes did a good job of highlighting the current day ones.

In the end, this book is good, but it's not one I'm going to keep coming back to.

Took about 45% before I really cared about Audrey
First love triangle book i've read in ages so I wasn’t that invested and i'm not sure its a romance trope I like!
I was so stressed out about it taking place at a wedding. I think its just a trope I can’t handle. It's so expensive and someone will get hurt!!!!
Once it gets more into who Audrey is, I was much more invested and she ends up being interesting and so relatable to me- I also feel like I have no clue what I'm doing and dropped out of college twice…
I did really like Audrey's character development and she does end up being more likable but it took so long to explain anything about her.
After finishing, I enjoyed this book overall and loved the ending. It was a little bit slow and boring at times. The romance almost felt like the sub-plot; there was more focus on Audrey’s relationship with her mother and Audrey’s character growth.

Just Haven't Met,was one of my favorite reads of 2021! So getting the chance to read a new Cousens book was beyond exciting for me.

This was such a fun, enjoyable, light, sweet, novel!
I devoured it one day! That's how wonderfully written and fantastic this book was!

It is heartwarming, funny and original. I love how Cousens incorporates strong friendships in her stories. I also love that she adds a lot of depth and texture. It's not just a fly away contemporary romance, it's a solid read with a lot of heart and full bodied characters.
Audrey was such a relatable character for me and I loved the relationships Sophie builds between her characters
The characters are brilliant and bring to life real emotions and situations. I felt each sentiment and pain as if it were my own. 
The setting is absolutely stunning.
And the writing once again blew me away!
The dialogue, descriptions, and humor settled right into my heart and soul and I couldn't have asked for a more perfect story.
I can say so much about this beautiful book! Highly recommend!

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

G.P. Putnam's Sons,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my platforms, blog, B&N and Waterstone closer to pub date.

This was a great book with characters I became totally invested in. I read through this one in the 2 days because it was so good. I loved Audrey’s point of view and getting to know her story. This book was was extremely well written, the pacing was perfect, and the characters were relatable. I hadn’t read a book by Sophie Cousens before, so finding a new author is always a plus. This book was a total delight-I highly recommended. 💗

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin|Putman for the ARC.

I have loved the Sophie Cousens books I have read in the past. I wasn't as crazy about this new release but still enjoyed it! I was a little frustrated constantly jumping between different time zones, characters, and plot lines. But I really liked the premise of all that can happen leading up to your wedding day, a complicated relationship between a mother and daughter, and was rooting for Audrey!

This book touched my heart with its wit, relatable characters, hopeful story and innovative writing. I devoured this novel for the story but because I was emotionally invested in audrey’s story and quest for love. It was a delightful read and I didn’t want it to end. You will laugh, smile, and cry while reading.

I’ve loved everything Sophie Cousens has written and this is my favorite.

This book was such a different experience than the cover led me to believe, but that doesn’t detract from how much I ADORED it. Obviously, any book starting with a Pride & Prejudice quote, and then peppering references to the genre’s classics throughout, is already 1 full star ahead of a book that doesn’t include those. Plus, I couldn’t put it down. I didn’t know how it would end—at times, I didn’t even know what I wanted in the finale! And I loved the cast of characters and how real they made this absolutely ridiculous plot feel. Perhaps most importantly, Sophie Cousens brilliantly took us through Audrey’s confusion and gave us an incredible arc of her growth.

FYI This is coming from someone who didn’t love Just Haven’t Met You Yet.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this book. I love alternating timelines and I loved the build up in the story. I think Audrey's character was very emotionally compelling and I felt for her. I was quite invested in her decision and who she would choose. It was a sweet story. Though I do have to say I expected a completely different outcome!

If you loved Taylor Jenkins Reid's "The Love of My Life" you have to read "Before I Do". Cousens delivers again with this romantic novel with plenty of depth.

"Love changes us, there's a metamorphosis. Everyone I've loved has changed the shape of my heart."

Before I Do is written in the first-person narrative from the perspective of Audrey. It's Audrey's wedding date and she's about to say "I Do" to her fiancé, Josh. Except everything that could go wrong does and the icing on the cake? The man Audrey believes to be her soulmate and "the one that got away" walks in as a guest's plus-one. And he remembers her just as well as she remembers him.

Thoughts: BRB while I tell everyone I know to add this to their TBR. This was so much better than This Time Next Year and Just Haven't Met You Yet! Like, no contest. And I really enjoyed both of those books. My hopes for this one was that it was more romance and less comedy and mission accomplished. It was just so relatable and certainly had me reflecting on my past love decisions. I love how the chapters jumped around between past and present, I feel Cousens delivered the right amount of information at exactly the right time. The side characters were all hilarious and added great insight and commentary on Audrey's dilemma. There were some heavy themes, and they were all well handles. So what's great about this? Not only do you get to see one love story, you get two: The One that Got Away (immediate connection, memorable meet-cute, similar interests) and The One (slow burn, opposites attract). I'm so happy the direction the book took because I had some strong thoughts about who I thought the right love interest was. And that epilogue was EVERYTHING. Seriously amazing. I love when authors conclude a book that way. Well done, Cousens! Highly recommend if your a fan of alternating timelines, family drama, and wedding plots.

My only gripe would be Cousen's decision to write 'Me-hi-co" instead of Mexico during what I can only describe as an attempt at humor. She could've just described that the character pronounced it funny instead of explicitly writing it that way, I really didn't find it humorous at all. As a Mexican, I actually found it quite insulting to my culture. Not sure if I'm being overdramatic about this but it didn't sit well will me. Glad I pushed through since overall I loved the book, but during that particular scene I was tempted to DNF. Just something to think about if there are any further edits to the book.

This is, without a doubt, my favorite Sophie Cousens book yet! It was an interesting plot...what if the one you thought might be your soulmate suddenly reappeared the night before your wedding? I went into this book assuming there would be a clear "winner" for Audrey's heart, but it was not so simple. I was impressed that Sophie was able to make the reader sympathetic to all the characters. The ending was perfect!

I was impressed at how emotionally-packed this novel was. Audrey's challenges stemmed from trauma in her past and it was lovely reading her growth throughout the novel. Her relationship with her mom was so sweet. I was not much of a Vivian fan at first, but I definitely warmed up to her. To balance out the emotions was a whole love of humor! I laughed out loud multiple times. It was a well balanced novel that brought me a lot of joy and made me appreciate love in a whole new way.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.