Anyone who enjoys the "star-crossed lovers" trope, as well as poignant coming-of-age stories, should be adding this book to their TBR!

Grieving teenager Ruby Armenta is struggling to find her footing in the world after losing her best friend and forever person, Hart Augusto, to a boating accident; but what she doesn't know is that Hart himself has been drowning in the pain of losing her, too, and that he has been granted a second chance he is forbidden from telling her about. While Ruby is struggling to move on after the accident, Hart is struggling with his second life as Jameson, a bad boy who couldn't be any more different from who he used to be. And it gets even harder when Hart, as Ruby starts to open up to Jameson, Hart finds himself beginning to forget who he used to be before he died...

Told through short and fast-paced chapters, this story was an absolute treat from beginning to end. Something that can be really tricky to get right when writing for a young adult audience is the balance between exploring difficult topics (grief, death, loss of a loved one, the lack of closure) and providing a light-hearted enough prose. J.C. Cervantes certainly stepped up! I was deeply invested in Hart and Ruby's story, and as someone who grew up teary-eyed about Sam and Melinda (from the TV show "Ghost Whisperer"!), I found in this book an equally powerful love story. Kudos to the author for such talented characterisation, at that, since I felt for the characters and was really invested in what would happen next!!

4 stars — Poignant, romantic, and beautifully bittersweet

Always Isn’t Forever by J.C. Cervantes is a heartfelt and imaginative take on grief, first love, and the soul-deep bonds that refuse to break—even when everything else does. With a touch of magical realism and a whole lot of emotional weight, this YA romance is both tearjerker and heart-healer.

Ruby and Hart have been best friends since childhood and were destined to become more—until tragedy strikes and Hart’s life is cut short. What follows is a beautifully layered exploration of loss, as Ruby struggles to cope with the absence of the one person she thought she’d spend forever with.

But the story doesn’t stop with grief. Thanks to some unexpected divine intervention, Hart gets a second chance—just not in the way you’d expect. Now living in the body of local “bad boy” Jameson, Hart has to figure out how to reconnect with Ruby without revealing his true identity—and as the memories of his old life begin to fade, the stakes only grow more urgent.

What makes this book shine is its emotional honesty. Cervantes captures the ache of mourning someone who felt like home, while also exploring how love can evolve and endure in unexpected ways. Ruby’s journey is raw and relatable, and her cautious attraction to Jameson—who feels eerily familiar—feels both magical and grounded.

The writing is lyrical and heartfelt, and the pacing keeps you hooked, even as it deals with heavy themes like death, identity, and moving forward without letting go. There are moments that feel dreamy and romantic, and others that hit hard emotionally.

My one critique is that the setup requires some suspension of disbelief, and at times the spiritual element feels more like a plot device than a fully fleshed-out system. Some readers may want more clarity around the “rules” of Hart’s return, but if you go in willing to embrace the surreal, the payoff is absolutely worth it.

Final thoughts: Always Isn’t Forever is a moving story about soulmates, second chances, and the messy, beautiful ways love can transcend time, space, and even identity. It’s perfect for fans of If I Stay, The Lovely Bones, or anyone who believes that some connections truly never die.

Such a cute romance. I loved the characters loved their story. The chemistry was cute hot and on pointe. Cannot recommend this book enough.

I don’t think I have read a more heartbreaking book. Throughout the book it is as if the universe yells at the characters they belong together, and yes I mean both couples. It made me think that in life you can have more than one soul mate or partner. I enjoyed the book focused on love in different aspects.

The amount of tears i shed with this book. The main characters Hart and Ruby had me on an emotional rollercoaster.. They are both incredible individuals and their relationship was seriously one the cutest. The way the grief in this book was written rather well. It felt like i was gong through it myself . The book itself was suer easy to read with short chapters, fast pacing, the mystery, and we can’t forget the surprising twists that aproach sensitive topics like grief, death and therapy.

The characterizations were amazing but the plot was the interesting part. To Hart, ruby was his love his forever. He knew he had to do everything in his power to get to ruby and prove his love. Hart{s battle to reach Ruby through using Jamesons body was the roughest part because Ruby had to trust her heart completely.

The book includes spiritual elements, with an angels touch. Always Isn’t Forever was written so well that tears were shed multiple times that I recommend to keep tissues by you. Thanks you NetGalley and J.C Cervantes for letting get a copy of this book.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

This was really sweet. Perfect pallet cleanser. Fast read, loved the characters, plot was interesting, made me emotional. I really enjoyed it!

4.25/5 stars! This book is so beautiful. It reminds me of parts of Lovely Bones and You've Got Sam. Books that are well-written about loss and grief make my heart felt. Hart and Ruby are perfect for each other, but part of healing is letting go. Can Hart and Ruby find their way back to each other or should time allow Ruby move on?

Wonderfulll book that plays with your feelings and makes you question What if I was me? What would I do? Heartbreaking

I really wanted to like this book, but the overall tone was too depressing for me and I found it difficult to connect with the characters.

I regret to say this, but I couldn’t finish this book, no matter how hard I tried. I kept hoping it would get better, but I just couldn’t connect with the characters or their relationship. Even after putting in the effort to keep going, the plot didn’t grab my attention, and the slow pacing made it feel even more tedious. It might resonate with some readers, but it simply wasn't for me.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

You know those books that you hear about and you just know it'll be a book that you'd love?

That was this book for me.

From the second I heard about this book on Instagram, I knew instantly that I NEEDED it and that it would most likely be my next big obsession. When I got approved of an ARC on NetGalley I almost lost my mind.

From the first pages, I was already in love with both Hart and Ruby and I loved reading from both their perspectives and Lourdes. I devoured this book, loved all the characters and cried a lot at the heartbreaking plot line of a lost love being given a second chance to fall in love again. I knew from the blurb this would be gut-wrenching and sad but the book also had hopeful undertones and elements that I enjoyed too. I was surprised by the supernatural elements in the book and liked the touches that added to the overall story.

All in all, I adored this book and I can imagine myself doing a re-read at some point. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting a book in the same sort of vein as You've Reached Sam.

So I sobbed pretty much the entire time I was reading this book.
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Always Isn't Forever follows childhood sweethearts Hart and Ruby in the aftermath of Hart dying in a drowning accident. Cervantes does such a good job at giving the reader a strong feel of Hart and Ruby's relationship in so few pages so when their sudden and seemingly permanent separation happens, it's really sad. Hart gets a second chance of sorts thanks to divine intervention via angel on probation Lourdes, who puts his soul into the body of Jameson, who of course Ruby thinks is an a-hole, and he can't tell Ruby what happened.
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Hart's plan to win Ruby back is complicated by the fact that Ruby is still mourning Hart and is struggling to "move on". Cervantes always writes about grief so well, and it really shone here. Though intellectually Ruby knows that she needs to not let it rule her life and relationships, she fights the idea of "letting go", even as she finds herself drawn to Hart/Jameson. Hart struggles to integrate himself into a life and body so different from his own, and finds himself needing to work to get Ruby to stop seeing Jameson as the a-hole he once was. Jameson's backstory also infiltrates Hart's mind, and he learns that Jameson was secretly carrying some major crosses. The book also features some commentary from Lourdes, who has a lot of opinions about humans and love, which adds a bit of levity into this honestly crushing tale.
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This book was sad but also I loved it.

I really enjoyed this book. The author did a great job at covering sensitive topics like grief and loss. It was more than I expected as I have only read the authors middle grade series so I wasn’t sure what to expect but I was pleasantly surprised.

My heart needed a little time to process, but here is my long awaited review!

This book had such amazing characters. They were so lovable, from the first chapter I was already rooting for them and their relationship. It was sad at times, but had a beautiful message to tell.

The plot was interesting, but sometimes lagging. Due to the short chapters though, it was very easy to read and the mystery surrounding Hart and him slowly losing his memory made you want to keep reading.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher, Razorbill, for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book was a brilliant YA read and had me sobbing.
I admire fhe plot line, i think it could have easily been done badly because it's so complex, but it was done well.
I can see this book being popular in school libraries and maybe used for some studying too.

This novel beautifully explores themes of love, loss, and the complexities of moving on.

Cervantes has a gift for creating relatable characters that tug at your heartstrings. the premise of the story and the emotional writing interested me right away. I loved the way the narrative delves into the nuances of relationships and the impact they leave behind.

The writing is poignant and lyrical, capturing both the joy and pain of love in such a heartfelt way. I found myself highlighting so many beautiful passages that resonated with me.

While I really enjoyed the story, I felt that the pacing could have been a bit smoother in some parts, where I found myself skimming pages or having to reread a passage.

This was alright but not really for me. Overall I kind of just slugged through it to finish it. The concept was interesting though!

Oof! Sometimes you just need a book that’s going to rip your heart out then glue it back together. This book did just that! Be aware that if you are a book crier this one will have you crying tears of heartbreak, joy, and sadness.

We start with Hart and Ruby a couple of high school kids who went from friends to lovers and love and know each other and the deepest levels. We are introduced to them a few days before “the end” and you know something is coming you just don’t know from where or for who. We get to see the love and joy that Ruby and Hart have together and then you’re hit with it. What you know has been coming for a few chapters.

Hart takes on an extra shift on the boat he and Ruby work on and despite Ruby’s pleas to not go he ends up going anyway. Through a series of events Hart ends up overboard saving the owners child at the expense of his own life.

Then we jump five months ahead. Ruby is a shell of herself. Her friends have drifted away and she can’t bring herself to find joy in anything she did before. Especially when every memory has a piece of Hart in it. Unbeknownst to her a hitch in the universe is about to turn her world upside down and she has to decide if she will allow herself to move forward and on or allow herself to be pulled under by the grief.

This is such a great story filled with so much love, not just romantic love but family and friendship through the toughest of times. It’s about letting go and learning to find a way forward even if it breaks your heart. It’s also about never giving up and that true love can even make the universe bend to its will.

Ruby and Hart have loved each other since they were children. But in a bid to make more money for their sailboat, Hart dies in a tragic accident. But due to divine intervention Hart gets a second chance in the body of bad boy Jameson. Now Hart has little time to find his way back to Ruby.

Younger me as a teen would honestly have frothed this book about soul mates who met as children! And I think many people will LOVE this book. But unfortunately for me I think I was the wrong age for this youthful soulmates story and found it too young for my preferred taste. If you love YA and soulmates you’ll love this!

Thank you sooo much for the arc, NetGalley. This book is going to break my heart ❤️ and I can't wait to read it heheheheh💓💓💓💓💓