Maybe 3.25 stars. I absolutely loved Josh and Gemma Make a Baby. It was fun, it was happy, it was romantic. All with some serious heartache sprinkled in. I was so excited for the sequel. I pictured crazy antics with a new baby. Who knew, maybe even a surprise second pregnancy? What I didn’t expect was a very sad book, tearing at my heart for most of it. I also didn’t expect more Ian than Josh. Don’t get me wrong, I truly did enjoy Ian’s back story. But he did not need to be the main focus of the book. The only laughs in the book came from the times together with Gemma and Ian. And though I am willing to suspend my disbelief in fiction books, several things got to me. First of all, any partially intelligent woman would know that at seven months pregnant, if you have a severe headache and dizziness, you have to call your doctor. Second of all, The antics about Ian being the most hated man in the world were way way over the top. Third, there is no way a baby at that age would be as good as that baby was through the entire book.
The ending was sweet, and, of course, reminded me of the first book. I still think Sarah Ready is a really good author. I just did not see the reason for this particular book. And though I had no trouble finishing it and looked forward to see how it ended. I would have been happier with a happier book . I think the author owes us another book. One with Josh and Gemma, happy and funny. Maybe it can be Josh and Gemma Play Matchmaker for Ian.

This is my first read from the author and definitely wouldn't be my last! Obviously haven't read the first book of the series, but I don't have a hard times to pick what happened before and get immersed into the story. I love the writing, the story was flowing effortlessly and easy to follow. The characters has so much depth in them and despite the poor circumstances, they still have some lights in them to never give up hope which is the nice message. Also, I think the author really did a good job on depicting the situation of brain trauma injuries patient because I can't help but sympathize with Gemma, Josh, and their families who get affected.

Josh and Gemma the Second Time Around truly surprised me! I really enjoyed the first book, so I was thrilled to get my hands on the second - and it did not disappoint. I was not expecting it to take the direction it did but I think it highlighted many important realities of life and relationships, and a key takeaway for me was finding love in the little things!

Would I do it all again? Knowing that I'd end up right here, my breath gone, my life leaking away? Yes. I'd do it a thousand times again. And each time I'd make the same choices that led me here. To this place. Would I do it all again? Knowing that I'd end up right here, my breath gone, my life leaking away? Yes. I'd do it a thousand times again. And each time I'd make the same choices that led me here. To this place. 🥹

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Characters: Josh Lewenthal, Gemma Jacobs

Tropes: Brother's Best Friend, Pregnancy, Brain Injury, Love Is Gone, Forgetfulness

Review: I read the ARC for Josh and Gemma Make A Baby in roughly January last year. It's over a year later, and I'm going through Netgalley, counting my ARCs and deadlines, when I see another book by Sarah Ready. And imagine my surprise when I discovered it's the sequel to the book that made me cry for hours on end. Indeed, Josh and Gemma The Second Time Around was a sequel I didn't know I needed. I obviously want to follow through on all couples I read about, so I downloaded a copy.

The prologue alone had me sobbing, and I knew it would take me days to finish it, which it did. But every minute was worth it. Last night, when I finally reached the 50% mark of the book, I promised myself I would finish it, and I did a few chapters anyway. Finally, at about 80%, I gave up. I had been crying so much my eyes hurt, and my throat was sore. I had trouble breathing. But then, I finished the rest of it on the way to work today. And all the tears and weird looks from strangers on the subway, we're WORTH IT.

Josh and Gemma's story isn't just theirs. It's the story of Gemma's parents, Josh's parents, Ian, his parents, and most of all, a story of survivors. It's the story of Hope. It is crafted so beautifully that it stirs emotions deep inside you. Gemma is a warrior, a survivor. But somehow, even though the book isn't in his POV, the author also makes Josh's struggle known. She acknowledges his pain and the problems he faced becoming a father when the love of his life, his fiancé, lay comatose. I love the way Gemma and Josh interact with Hope. Those little moments of togetherness with their kid matter and are replacements for lost conversations, and the author makes suds to emphasize the importance of those moments.

The best part about this book is how it also solves a vast mystery. The first book left an ambiguous ending for Ian. Was he really just pure evil? Turns out, there's so much more to him than meets the eye. Most authors would exploit the opportunity of villainizing a previously mentioned antagonist and display them as pure evil, psychos even. But Sarah doesn't. She humanizes Ian. Explains his story. However cruel Ian once seemed, his life was shitty all the way. Sure, all the bad you put in the world comes back to you, but Ian's story is cruel. He was dealt a shitty hand, and my heart aches for that little boy who lost his parents. He isn't evil. In fact, he is lonely, sad, and aching. And my heart hurts for him because he deserves better. The fact that he loved - or tried to love - Gemma makes me even sadder because even though he claims he wants her to be happy, it must take a lot of sacrifices, to let her go.

This book made me cry for hours on end, and my eyes are still sore from all the tears I shed, but it was all worth it. If I had to do it all over again, I would. And I hope this nook reaches more people, especially those who feel a sense of companionship with any of these characters.

I liked the first but this one just wasn't for me. Josh and Gemma, who’s eight months pregnant, are finally at the altar getting ready to exchange their long-anticipated vows when their world goes sideways and all plans for their future are put on hold. Three months later, the world isn’t the only thing that’s changed. The person Gemma was and how she sees the world and everyone in it has too, and it will be the biggest test of her relationship with Josh yet to see if they can find their way through these new challenges and get back on the road to their happy ending. I was anticipating a happier, feel-good story and this was much heavier than anticipated. I didn't like the heavy focus on Ian, just felt unnecessary and didn't love revisiting such a dislikable villain.

After falling in love with Josh and Gemma the first time around, I was prepared for something entirely different. What readers get is so much more.

This chapter of Josh and Gemma is so heart achingly beautiful. It’s a token reminder to look for the little love in every day life and not just to celebrate the big and bold love. The struggles while not ones that everyone will go through hold nuggets of relatability. Sarah Ready captures the attention and empathy of readers throughout bringing tears, heartbreak, laughter, and love.

I enjoyed the first book a lot and was interested when I saw there was a sequel because Gemma and Josh were so fun to read. But I felt like this book was too much Ian and not enough Josh. I just honestly don’t think this was really needed. I’m somewhere between 2.5 and 3 stars on this but I rounded up to 3 because I was already a fan of Josh and Gemma.

Perhaps I’d rather have enjoyed a spin-off where it follows her brother finding love and we get to see Josh and Gemma and the baby weaved into the story as secondary characters. Other characters like Gemma’s friends or even Ian could be included in future stories like that.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

After reading and enjoying the first book, I was excited to read the sequel and eager to see where Josh and Gemma's story would go. The first book left off with Josh and Gemma in a good place and this book certainly took them through some twists and turns. It wasn't smooth sailing for them, but then again, what relationship is? The story was realistic in that it portrayed the rocky road couples can encounter and the real life problems that they face. But not to worry, there were also plenty of fun and humorous moments along the way that definitely put a smile on my face and warmed my heart. If you're looking for a fluff story, this is not it. On the contrary, the story is filled with much emotion and depth and gives you a real appreciation for the trials and tribulations a couple can go through and the commitment involved in making a relationship and lasting love work.
This was a story full of emotion, love , and hope. If you haven't read the first one, I would recommend you start with that first in order to fully appreciate the sequel.
Thanks to Netgalley for providing a complimentary copy. This is my voluntary and honest opinion.

I adored Josh and Gemma Make a Baby, so I was definitely looking forward to this one.
This is not a light, happy romance. After falling in love with Josh & Gemma in the first book, this was a bit of a tough/emotional read.

Josh and Gemma the Second Time Around is sort of a second chance romance, about finding your way back to the person you love. I won't go into too much detail, since it would spoil a lot of the book!

I listened to the audiobook and read the ebook as well.

I would definitely recommend reading the first book first, otherwise you won't have any connection to the characters, and I think it would be a struggle to enjoy/understand the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Swift & Lewis Publishing, LLC, for an advanced copy to review. All opinions are my own.

Interesting sequel for Josh and Gemma. This plot line was so unexpected. We left off with these two getting engaged in Josh and Gemma Make a Baby. One would assume we would be getting their happily ever after right off the bat, but that was not the case. We begin with these two preparing for their upcoming wedding. They are blissfully in love and ready to start the next chapter in their lives. Tragedy struck and Gemma ends up in a 3 month coma and wakes up not loving Josh. In fact she wakes up not feeling anything emotionally. Josh once told her love is better the second time around, these two definitely have their shot at love all over again. Love is expressed and shows up in many ways, not all days are good ones as we see with these two. I really enjoyed this book a lot, read it in a day! Looking forward to reading more by Sarah Ready.

Thank you NetGalley and Swift and Lewis Publishing, LLC for the opportunity to read this ARC.

first book wasn't that great but it had josh in it at least and he was awesome. but this is the worst prequel i've ever read in fact it's the worst BOOK. i can't even describe how much i hated this book

This book was totally not necessary. I went into it thinking it would be cute and show the struggles of being a parent and I was completely bamboozled. The story took a very weird turn and was very confusing. The author should have given Josh and Gemma a better sequel.

Thank you, Sarah Ready, W.W. Crown and Netgalley for the gifted eARC.

Everything couldn't be more perfect for Josh and Gemma. Their lives are going as planned, they're getting married, they're having a baby, and life is good. Then, one day, everything changes. Instead of the happily ever after they planned, they are now finding themselves fighting to get back the love that they once had. Plus, Ian Fortune is back in their lives and causing tension. Will Josh and Gemma find their way back to their happily ever after, or is their love gone forever?

After loving the first Josh & Gemma book, I was really excited to read this one. Unfortunately, the second just wasn't as good as the first. I was hoping for a sweet follow-up story to the first novel, but that's not what this was. It didn't even feel like I was reading a romance novel. I felt like I was reading a women's fiction/family drama novel. There really wasn't very much interaction between Josh and Gemma in this story at all. Gemma had more meaningful interactions with Ian than she did with Josh. I would recommend reading Josh & Gemma Make A Baby before reading this novel so you have the needed background on the characters and story. However, if you are looking for just a fun, light-hearted rom-com stick with just the first book and skip the second.

Josh and Gemma the Second Time Around was definitely not what I was expecting, but in a good way. I loved Josh and Gemma Make a Baby and was very excited to read this sequel. Great twist, right at the beginning. I really enjoyed learning more about Ian Fortune and his personal growth. HEA, of course, because YAY!

Thank you to Sarah Ready, Swift & Lewis Publishing, LLC, and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 rounding up.
There were parts of this book I loved more than the first, but then it started to lull a bit around the 40% mark. Not at all like the first book and I really liked that about this!

The first book left us on such a cliffhanger that I needed to know what happened next with Gemma and Josh! I did not expect this. Again, Sarah Ready touched on the struggles we women face when trying to get pregnant, being pregnant and child birth. Showing Gemma experience preeclampsia and then eclampsia and ultimately end up in a comma because of it was something I'd never seen before in a book and I appreciated how it was portrayed for those who may not be familiar with the condition. Ready really had me wondering what the heck had happened when Gemma woke up to see Ian in her room and not Josh and her baby. I did not expect half of what happened next in the book, especially the part that connected Josh and Ian, which I gotta admit felt a little far fetched at first. I appreciate Ready showing the story of Gemma's struggle to feel and how she managed to get back to that as well as the story of Ian's mother and how she suffered a traumatic brain injury. It explained a lot about why Ian was the way he was and showed that he wasn't all bad.
I loved how Josh and Gemma ended up reconnecting and that they finally got their "ever after, together, sometimes happy, sometimes not, but always together. In love."

Thank you Sarah Ready for the words you wrote in the acknowledgements section <3

"If you're struggling - it's okay. If you make mistakes - it's okay. If you don't know if you're going to get through it - you will. It's okay. You are strong and more resilient than you ever thought possible." This was the 4th Sarah Ready book I'd read (in less than 2 weeks :P) and I love that she always touches on the hard things in life; the struggles, the sad stories and how each and every character was able to make it past all of that and find happiness.

Thankyou to Netgalley, the publisher and Sarah Ready for allowing me to read this ARC.
I did not realise that this book was a sequel and i have not read the first one.
I didnt mind this book and will read more from this author in the future.
Will go and find the first book in this series and watch it.
Thankyou.
3/5 stars

I would not call this a Romance book. I think it fits much better under the Contemporary category because even though there is a romantic plot, the story is more about what happens in life when certain substances hit the fan.

Overall, I liked the story and had fun meeting Josh and Gemma once again. Josh is the sweetest. Loved the slow burn. Did I need more of Ian? Not really.

One thing driving me nuts was them misunderstanding each other all the time and making wrong assumptions based on what they saw. I felt like this book was one error on their part after another.

I feel that for this book to make a bit more sense I should have definitely read the first book. I did not realise this was a sequel and so felt a bit confused going into it. For that reason the book was a bit harder to understand going into it but I did learn the vague plot slowly through reading the book.
I did find this book really cute but I feel that it would have been better with if I had read the first one.
Josh and Emma were really cute but there was a lack of chemistry I felt.
It was however a really easy and cute read.

I just need to preface this by saying that Josh Lewenthal still has my heart.

I have a lot of emotions after reading this book. This book just elicited…a lot from me.
Josh and Gemma Make a Baby was one of my favorite books of last year if not of all time, so I was so excited for the sequel…and then I read the synopsis. Let’s just say that I avoided this book like the plague because I didn’t want it to ruin the magic of the first book if it ruined their love story. I’ll start off by saying that this book definitely didn’t ruin the first book for me, but I also think that it didn’t need to exist.

I actually really liked the main drama of the book. I already felt so connected to the characters that watching them go through that made me feel more than I’ve felt while reading a book for so long that it made me love it and read it so fast. If this book would have just been Josh and Gemma rediscovering their love, I would have adored it.

One problem…WHY WAS THIS BOOK MORE ABOUT IAN FORTUNE THAN JOSH OR GEMMA?! I bet if I counted the amount of pages that Josh is on and Ian is on, they would be about the same, if Ian’s not on more. And I just don’t get why! I liked him getting redeemed and the idea that everyone deserves redemption, especially factoring in his backstory, but why not just give him a separate book for that? Like give him a love story to his own, don’t have him encroach on Josh and Gemma’s!

This book definitely gets props for making me scream out loud at it! I also like that while I think most of Gemma’s choices were really stupid, it reflected somebody that had gone through the trauma she had.
This book is getting this rating simply for the first 15% and the last 15%, aka, the parts of the book that Josh is actually a part of! If I hadn’t already been extremely attached to him because of the first book, I don’t think this book would have received this rating.