I tried to pick up/finish this book a few times, but something about it just hasn’t been grabbing me in my reading moods of late. I don’t have any major qualms with what I have read and will leave it as a “me not you” issue for now.

What a complicated life !
Yasmen and Josiah are divorced, but are still running a restaurant business together, and co-parenting their children. Big and messy and awkward. The breakdown ( and build – up ) of their lives is written so realistically and honestly. They go through a great loss together, Yasmen has another major loss, and she becomes depressed ( little wonder) The relationship falters, they divorce, but then each realizes that they still love the other, regardless.
This story is very emotion-filled, and I love that the benefits of therapy are so positively depicted.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book

KENNEDY RYAN NEVER MISSES ! i loved this book with my whole entire soul. when i finished i had to have a physical copy. heartwarming, heart wrenching, all the hearts.

I absolutely love this book. No holds barred. Why? Because it’s so relatable and real about love, loss, grief, depression and complicated familial relationships. There’s no sugar coating at play here. The romance is intense, all encompassing, and worth the work.

Yasmen and Josiah have been divorced for three years now after several traumatic losses back to back. Meanwhile, they’re juggling co-parenting their two kids and co-managing the restaurant they own together.

Sometimes love just isn’t enough. Especially when you lose yourself. It can’t solve everything. But the magnetic attraction between these two can’t be denied though they both protest and declare they’ve moved on.

The sensual tension, the dual POV, the will-they-won’t-they of it all!! This made it a 5-⭐️ for me especially.

I will be recommending this book to people for the rest of my life! What a beautiful breath of fresh air. This story of love, grief, family, and the processing of trauma is so powerful, hopeful, and honest. A true testament to the powers of therapy and self-awareness for healing, this book is steamy and raw and vulnerable and just so good. I will carry the story of this second chance romance in my heart, as it was so unique and special. Highly recommend!

Hello

Apologies for the late notice, but I have decided not to review this title.

While I am certain it's obvious by now, I wanted to also clear this off NetGalley, so it's not showing as open for either of us.

I look forward to continuing to work with you in 2023 and beyond.

Laura

Absolutely consumed by this story. I’m a fan of Kennedy Ryan and have read all of her books but this is by far my favorite! Relatable, and heart rendering, I couldn’t put it down. A Must Read!

This was such a beautiful story, heartbreaking yet full of second chances. Yasmen and Josiah dealt with some hard life events that made them so realistic and their circumstances were written so well. Another beautiful story by Kennedy Ryan that grabbed my attention throughout.

I listened to the audiobook along with reading the ebook and the narrators were outstanding! My first listen with Wesleigh Siobhan and she was amazing! Jakobi Diem gave another outstanding performance and together they gave such an incredible listening experience.

This was raw to the Morrow of the bone was this second chance epic story about two exes are divorced and coparenting. The way Kennedy Ryan unwraps the layers and intricacies of how a both Yasmen and Josiah grew apart from not being able to keep their hands off one another to now divorced.

The amount of therapy talk, especially in the black community was chef’s kiss. I can not speak on the depression Rep in this book, but I know from many other reader and from how much research goes into each of Kennedy’s books that she did an excellent Rep. *chef’s kiss*
I love seeing Yasmen and Josiah come back together in their own time.

The characters in this book were amazing. I loved the way the story was told. I do suggest checking out trigger warnings as this book deals with some big subjects. The first but not the last by this author.

This would be a great book club book for those that are looking for a romance with a lot of other topics to have a discussion. It’s a great story but I personally wanted more flashbacks with a second chance romance. It was a bit sad and I just needed to see more of what they had, the tough stuff they went through instead of the end result.

📖 BOOK REVIEW

BOOK: Before I Let Go
AUTHOR: Kennedy Ryan
FORMAT: eBook
GENRE: Contemporary Romance
DID I CRY: Yes
RATING: 10/10

Thank you @readforeverpub @netgalley for my #gifted advanced copy of #BeforeILetGo 🫶🏼

MY THOUGHTS

A bookstagram darling that did not disappoint! I’ve seen glowing reviews for this book for so many months now & I slowly chipped away at it all winter long & found myself thinking about it whenever I wasn’t reading it — it’s a special one for sure.

The writing was fantastic. There were just enough detail to fulfill without straying from a perfect detail to dialogue ratio. The characters were so real & raw & flawed that it made the plot and love story a lot more realistic. I loved that they were older because it gave them a lot more lived experience to weave through their story. The tropes were my favvvv (second chance, workplace romance, love triangle, FWB, i mean come onnnn). The love story was so rich & powerful I couldn’t get enough of it. It was prettttty spicy but I think it added to the story nicely.

The most important part of this book for me was the mental health representation. I absolutely adored that each character in this book had such a different relationship with mental health & therapy & medication and that the author took this book to normalize therapy for everyone, especially men. The dialogue surrounding depression & loss/grief was so important and I think it was fantastically executed.

There are definitely a lot of triggering themes in this book so research beforehand or shoot me a message! I absolutely recommend this book & if it’s not on your tbr — add it immediately!

Kennedy Ryan just rocked my world with before I let go! The second chance, but *older* romance was EPIC! I don’t read much on divorced couples who get back together but this was soooo wonderful! I loved the themes of family, therapy rep, and the FOOD omg! I was drooling the whole time! Loved it.

I loved everything about #BeforeILetGo by Kennedy Ryan!❤️‍🔥 This book definitely lives up to all of the hype but it was more than that — it was REAL!! I was completely invested in the story, the characters, family dynamics, sisterhood and relatable life circumstances. I listened to the audiobook once the book was released (which is great!!) but had to purchase a physical copy because the cover is 🔥

This book was everything. I am a huge Kennedy Ryan fan (Grip has my heart!) and I expect everything I read to be emotional and heart wrenching-- this one did not disappoint. There's nothing i can say that others haven't, but wanted to say I was really impressed with the character growth in this one. I really love it when authors get mental health and therapy rep 'right' (what is right, though), and I think all the VERY sensitive issues were handled with so much care. I really loved this second chance romance, and loved getting to know the friends and family that surround Yas and Josiah-- excited for what's next in Skyland. Read this if you're looking for a LOT of angst and please take care of yourselves and check the TW.

This book was really hard for me, because its similar to my current life situation. I bawled at points. It was so emotionally charged and relatable. Its everything I feel is missing from a Colleen Hoover book. Emotional depth, accountability, relatability and heart.

I loved this book!!! This is a second chance romance between Yasmin and Josiah who are trying to pick up the pieces of their lives after tragedy and the dissolution of their marriage. It has been two years, and they still have not figured out how to move on or even how to move forward. Throughout the story, you get the chance to watch each of them grow and change and work on themselves and I think that’s the best part of the story. It shows that even the most secure relationship takes a lot of work and time, and you do have a lot of struggles along the way that proves there is no guarantee and how life will turn out. For each of these characters, they had a plan, an idea of what their life would be, and who they would be and things turned out very differently, but you can also say that it was for the better. So going into this book, not only will you get heartbreak and sadness but throughout the story, you’ll be rooting for those characters to have success, not only in the relationship, but also in bettering themselves.

4.75
This book broke me and put me back together all at once. The dynamic between Josiah and Yasmeen was raw, and it felt realistic. From the beginning, you could feel the love they have for each other. The topic of grief, loss, and rebuilding was written so well by Kennedy Ryan. I'm glad they got their HEA
Check TWs before reading💕

I started this book 3 times. the first two times i got only about halfway. the tension and yearning and grief of the loss of their relationship was so much, i felt like i couldnt handle it. parts of it scared me and made me reflect so much on my own relationship. i found myself at times reminding myself to breathe because these characters and their feelings felt so tangible. they felt like me and the people i know. this book is so special, the kind you hug when you finish

All I can say is wow after finishing this book! The way Kennedy was able to write this story felt so true to life. It was such a reflection of loss, life and love that was beautiful and messy! I loved the way the characters worked on themselves and owned their issues in therapy. This story is extremely well written but also has some great spice in it too!

This is my first book I’ve read by Kennedy Ryan and I will definitely be checking out more. I listened to this on audio and both narrators were amazing! This was a super strong 4.75 for me!

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.