It was an interesting set up content wise, but was missing some connections on the emotional and understanding level (at least for me).

Ruby and Hart are described as this great "conquer it all" love and the according words are there, still i felt like something was lacking. Ironically when Jameson (or his body) came into the mix the connection was getting better and you could feel more sparks. Although there were some plot holes (why is Jameson soul gone but his body can be occupied by someone else? or Hart's rather rapid change of mind to let Ruby go), it was a nice read.

3 out of 5 stars

- thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc to review!

- i did dnf this book, as i didn't enjoy the characters, nor did i feel invested in their relationship or development. if a novel focuses on characters and their relationship, i have to feel invested, and i didn't feel that connection.

Hart is the cautious one, Ruby is the risk-taker. They are the perfect match! When tragedy happens and Ruby struggles - Hart is gone, and she doesn't know how to cope with this. However, Hart is given another chance to live inside the body of a bad boy classmate (Jameson) that is in a coma. The story is told from dual point of views, so it helps to understand what each character is going through. It was a good read!

I loved You've Reached Sam and when I saw that it was in the blurb, I was very excited to read this. It lived up to my expectations and I really enjoyed this book. If you need a quick read with all the emotions, please consider picking this up!

I didn't absolutely fall for this story. It was ok but I didn't connect enough with what was happening. It had a decent pace to it.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to review this book.

I sadly had to dnf this one. I was super excited because of they way it was advertised but this book is nothing like you’ve reached Sam!

I struggled a lot to even slightly care about any of the characters and this whole angel thing was so weird to me.
Personally I don‘t like this whole switching bodies thing and I wouldn’t have requested an arc if I would have known tbh.

If I did not like Always Isn't Forever as much as I had hoped to, I blame that entirely on my (advanced) age. For me personally, it could have used a little more darkness to go with its supernatural premise, adapted to the YA audience of course, but this novel remains surprisingly optimistic in the face of death, grief, and social injustice. Maybe even overly so?

There could have been so much more conflict, too, since childhood sweethearts Hart and Ruby are already established from the beginning, but I understand that Cervantes chose a more wholesome path to guide her young readers along. Some of the contemporary markers in this book definitely aren't going to age well, as any mention of current technology or teenage slang is going to at some point. I would love a more adult (not sexed up!) version of this.

Still a little bummed about the meagre ending though...

such a cute story, I really enjoyed it!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and netgalley for this review copy.

Received a digital ARC of this book via NetGalley.

Definitely lived up to the You’ve Reached Sam blurb. I love these types of stories where there’s hope that true love will overcome any obstacle with some connection to the afterlife. Bittersweet story. Read in one day.

That you Netgalley and Penguin Group for an e-arc of Always Isn’t Forever by J.C. Cervantes in exchange for an honest review
The synopsis hooked me immediately. A man who died but loved his girl so much that he came back for her? Sign me up!
When Hart dies in a boating accident, through divine intervention he was able to come back into the body of the local bad boy, Jameson.
Hart is forbidden from telling his girlfriend and forever love Ruby the truth and with each passing day he forgets more and more about his life as Hart.
And though she is still grieving the loss of Hart, Ruby is drawn to Jameson in a way she can’t quite explain.
I was so curious to see if they would get their HEA before Hart forgot who he was before the accident entirely.
I loved seeing this new phase of their relationship, how are as people (Hart as an entirely new person), and if their relationship would be as it one was.
And let me tell you, J. C. Cervantes delivered! I couldn’t put this book down, I read it any spare moment I hate.
I have no note, no critiques. Just all the love <3
5/5 stars

I enjoyed this story of loss and finding each other again. This was a sweet love story about two soul mates who are separated by death but find their way back to each other thru difficult and tricky circumstances. It was a good story and pulled on the heartstrings. I look forward to more from this author. Thank you netgally for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Great book!!!!

"Thank you so much netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advanced review copy if this book💗
"I voluntarily read and reviewed the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

This book broke my heart and I love it so much. This is a first time I'm reading this aurthor work. So looking forward reading more stuff by her. The characters where perfect in the book and the storyline was good about grief. Also a very pretty cover. Thanks for letting me review it.

I have to be honest here. I’ve outgrown the YA genre that starts in High School. The way they talk or act is just not relatable anymore.

Another point I have to make is that I did not like “You’ve reached Sam” and this reminded me of it. Sorry, but this was not for me.

Be still my heart - this book!

I absolutely ATE THIS STORY UP!
The magical elements combined with the young and loveable characters were *chefs kiss* PERFECTION!

Did I cry? Absolutely. But the author did a great job of pairing these heavier and real moments of grief with joy and fun. This really resonated with me as a reader because it demonstrated a true and non-linear depiction of what it is like to move-on after a tragedy.

Thank you so much @RazorbillBooks for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review (Release Date | 06 June 2023)

SYNOPSIS | Hart dies too young but is given a second-chance at life when an angel allows him to take the body of another young man who is about to die. Despite getting to live again, he cannot tell anyone what has happened & in less than a month he will lose all memories of who he was before.

WHAT I LIKED:
- representation of grief and learning how to let go when you didn’t get to say goodbye

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
- wanted a more bittersweet ending instead of the main conflict being conveniently solved
- Gabi's entire purpose as a character was to read tarot cards for the other characters
- a lot of 'telling' & not a lot of 'showing'
- the magical realism was just too much for me & I really struggled with the believability of it all

I enjoyed this book it gave me you’ve reached Sam vibes which I really enjoyed even though I was going through some emotions while reading it.

𝑰𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒅, 𝑰'𝒅 𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒌 𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒊𝒕𝒔 𝒅𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒉𝒔

I do not read contemporary romance a lot at all. But every once in a while, a title or book cover will catch my eye, and I have to see what it's about. This cover caught my attention, and I'm so glad I decided I needed to read it.

In the vain of You've Reached Sam by Dustin Thao, this story was beautiful, broken, and healing all at once. It's one of those books that will rip your heart apart and then put it back together piece by piece. I just loved it!

This took me a long time to read this because of how sad it was. I don't usually read sad books, especially sad YA books, but every now and then I'm in the mood for it.

I'm glad I read Always Isn't Forever because despite the consistent atmosphere of melancholy and sadness, Hart and Ruby's story is at its heart a sweet story about the pureness of first love.

Recommended if you're in the mood for something heart-breaking.

3.5

DNFed at 30% i just didn’t feel gripped by it or the characters. it had so much potential to be a tear-jerking read but for some it was lacking something.