It's not often we get to follow characters beyond their happily ever afters. Sure, we may get a glimpse through other books in the same series, but what really happens, especially when the happily part seems to vanish in the blink of an eye?

Josh and Gemma Lewenthal look like a couple who has it all. They're head over heels for each other, they love their jobs and have a fantastic apartment in the city. They're expecting their first baby in six weeks, and they’re driving upstate to Gemma's parents' home for their charming, intimate backyard wedding. But then the bottom falls out.

Josh tries to manage his career, flying between New York and Los Angeles, while parenting their baby, Hope, and being there for Gemma. And Gemma? Gemma is lost. No one knows if she'll come back to them or what her condition will be if she returns. These are the things that test the mettle of love. Does it keep the promise of forever? Can it still survive when the one you promised to love turns out to be someone different?

With a quirky, loving family and a major supporting role from the infamous Ian Fortune, we get plenty of wit, humor and comic relief through this second part of Josh and Gemma‘s story. But the more somber, harrowing, unvarnished parts of their story are the ones that will grip your heart and dash your soul. They’ll make you think and open your eyes as you watch Josh and Gemma navigate challenges you never imagined possible.

As we go on this journey with them, we see that love is a big, wonderful, happy feeling, yes, but it's so much more. It's the choice and fortitude and unwavering determination to stick when life gets too hard and challenges get too big. It's also the joy and delight and reverence of the simple things, the seemingly insignificant moments, and the smallest blessings.

Even in fiction, a writer's best work is always when they dig deep within, acknowledge their vulnerabilities and them pour them into their work, and Ready has bared her soul to us. This is a profound, special read. One that will touch you deeply and, I hope, make you even more grateful for the things in life we all too often take for granted.

Our language is too deficient to express how truly extraordinary this one is. Easily one of my all-time favorite reads and one I'll return to again and again, I encourage you to grab this one ASAP and start reading. You’ll laugh, you'll cry, you’ll feel everything in between, and your romantic heart will be changed this second time around.

Although I didn’t love the first book, I still wanted to see where Josh and Gemma’s story went next.

However, I should have probably just left well enough alone. This one didn’t work for me at all. The writing was very choppy

A sweet romance. I enjoyed reading this!
The characters were relatable. I didnt realise it was the 2nd one in a duo but i was able to enjoy it none the less. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity!

I love love loved Josh and Gemma Make a Baby.

This one went in a different direction. I was expecting a story of how they were coping with parenthood and what I got was something entirely different. It wasn’t bad. It was just, different. It very much felt like a soap opera.

Overall 3.5/5 stars.

3.5 Stars

The first installment in this duet was a book I stumbled upon earlier this year and mostly enjoyed. I was surprised to see Sarah announce there would be a sequel coming in the new year since the conclusion to the first book felt sufficient enough. Now, having read this addition, I won't say it was entirely necessary but can appreciate the important topic the author wished to highlight with Gemma's storyline.

Instead of all the time that was spent on redeeming Ian's character, I wish more focus had been paid to Josh and Gemma rediscovering their love. Some of the pacing felt abrupt because some of the development I longed for was missing, but it was a pleasant enough book overall.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sarah Ready and Swift & Lewis Publishing for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

💕💖 A love story yanks you into what happens after the happily ever after 💖💕


‼️Please note the spoiler tag ➿ read at your own risk ‼️

An amazing sequel for Josh and Gemma’s journey through life … I totally love that author Sarah Ready is willing and able to bring topics into her stories that others may shy away from. In book one Josh and Gemma Make a Baby Ready brings the topic of infertility and the struggles of conceiving with medical assistance. Now in this story … (view spoiler) … pay very close attention while reading this book as I have learned this author is masterful with inferences, foreshadowing, plot twists, and symbolism.

I am always impressed when I find a new-2-me author who is able to keep me totally engaged and interested in the plot that I end up reading the book straight through…Ready kept me that way through books one and two of this saga! The stories are told via Gemma’s perspective with some excellent dialogue between the MCs which gives us a peak into Josh’s mind. I would absolutely love a story of Josh & Gemma via alternating POV, maybe a book 3 *small hint* 😉

While reading the Josh & Gemma stories I found that Ready’s writing style really allowed me to connect with the MCs. I could easily visualize the world, feel the variety of emotions, and even connect aspects of the story with some of my own. I also want to mention that although these stories have serious topic matters they are still contemporary romance at its best! The sensuality, passion, and anticipation is palpable between Josh & Gemma 🔥 One of my favorite scenes involves Josh and his demonstration of love with two simple things - skin & ink pen - let’s just say there are definite stars seen!

💫FAVORITE QUOTES💫
“I think life would be boring if it were only happily ever after. I don’t need a happily ever after.”
Me either…but… “What do you need?”
He kicks the door shut, crosses the teak floor, and drops me onto the cushy bed. I sink into the thick down comforter and watch as he pulls off his shirt, revealing the heart that I inked on his chest last night. He considers my question, eyes thoughtful, then he smiles at me.
“How about…and they lived ever after, together, sometimes happy, sometimes not, but always together. In love.”
I grin up at him. “That’s a little wordier than ‘they lived happily ever after.’”
He steps out of his linen pants, kicks them aside.
“That’s okay,” he says, “because this next part doesn’t require any words.”✨
***
✨“I don’t think there’s such a thing as meant to be.”
He lifts a shoulder in a shrug, and Hope reaches up and tugs on his ear. He smiles.
“You don’t?”
He shakes his head.
“No. Saying something is meant to be is taking the easy way out. Because when things go wrong, you can say it wasn’t meant to be after all. It’s so you can stop trying and not feel guilty. That’s what my mom did.”
He so rarely mentions his mom that I lean toward him. I know she left Josh and his dad, but I don’t know much more. Josh doesn’t talk about her. He wrinkles his brow, then seems to shut the door on that topic.
He unconsciously pats Hopes back and says, “Everyone can say it’s meant to be when things are good. Being in a relationship is easy when there’s plenty of money, or everyone’s healthy, or everybody has a job. But when somebody gets sick, or you go broke, or someone’s in trouble, that’s when you know whether your relationship is built on sand, or something stronger.”
He steps away and reaches up into the cupboard, pulling out a bottle. I watch the muscles in his back as he stretches to reach the jar of formula. He has a strong back.
He turns around and quirks an eyebrow at me. “There’s no meant to be,” he says. “You either stick with it or you don’t.”
I look around the mess of the kitchen.
“What if sticking with it catches the whole thing on fire?”
He gives me a slow smile. “I like playing with fire.”✨

Overall I highly recommend the Josh & Gemma books, I think you will fall in love with these two just like I did!


Captivating, gripping, and full of unexpected twists and turns, this love story yanks you into what happens after the happily ever after.

5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 5 Flames 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 | 2023 Top Book Contender 🏆🏆

📚Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author/publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, comments, and interpretations of the story are my own and bias free. I did not receive any money in exchange for this review. Thank you to the publisher for allowing me the opportunity to review. Reviews are cross-posted to social media, goodreads, and blog. 🦄

A nice little read.
I like being back in Josh and Gemma’s world again. There was a twist I was NOT expecting at all! I was like woah

And I liked the emotional journey that went through the book. All in all an enjoyable one.

After absolutely loving Josh and Gemma Make a Baby, I was very excited to be granted access to the ARC of Josh and Gemma the Second Time Around. The second installment in Josh and Gemma's story, while enjoyable and entertaining, was IMHO not as funny and I had to get over significant disbelief at one point to continue reading.

The book starts with Gemma about 8 months pregnant, and the couple preparing for their wedding. When disaster strikes and their future is in jeopardy, Josh and Gemma face challenges to their storybook ever-after that seem insurmountable.

I enjoyed the re-introduction of Ian Fortune, and getting to know a bit of his backstory--is he really as self-centered and just plain awful as he seems? His character added a much-needed element to the story. (spoiler alert) I struggled with Gemma's recovery, as it seemed to be unrealistically quick and easy. Ian and his antics at the rehab facility allowed me to move beyond this and continue to enjoy the story.

Thank you to Netgalley and Swift & Lewis Publishing LLC for the ARC audiobook of Josh and Gemma the Second Time Around. The opinions in this review are my own.

Wow! What an amazing book!!
Would love to read more from the author.
Thankyou netgalley for the Arc!

Everything is planned. Your big day is approaching, your happily ever after is nearing, and you are about to be married to the love of your life. What could go wrong?
Well for starters :
1: a traumatic brain injury
2: 3 months in a coma
3: waking up feeling nothing toward your fiance
4: Ian Fortune your ex-boyfriend and boss is back in your life.
Gemma and Josh's lives are about to get complicated however, will they find their way back to each other? Did love die?
Well, you have to read to find out😉
I enjoyed the book. There were many surprises regarding the 3 characters( Josh-Gemma-Ian). We get to learn more about Josh and Ian's past and understand how Ian became who he is nowadays. Josh's unconditional love for Gemma was beautiful and touching he excelled at showing us that he is the one for Gemma as a lover, husband, and dad. As for Gemma, well she went through a lot but it was also eye-opening for her too.
In a nutshell, it was a good read and I'm glad that I've read it.

Josh and Gemma are finally engaged while pregnant with their first baby. Well, after a whole lot of drama and banter (read prequel). But on their wedding day, things take an unexpected turn, neither of them realizing that their lives will never be the same again.

I didn't realize how much I was missing Josh and Gemma Make a Baby to this book until I grabbed this, though I was really not expecting a sequel. Honestly this book was very much different from the previous one. While the prequel feel is more of a breezy novel with banter and fun this has a serious twist here it is wonderful to reunite with our favourite characters.

Saying anything at all about this book is a potential spoiler, so all I'll say is go get yourself a copy of this book and the prequel, if you haven't read it yet.

Thank you so much Sarah Ready and NetGalley for letting me listen to an ALC in exchange of my honest review.

This was my fault for not realizing this was a sequel. I enjoyed this, but combined with it being a sequel to a book I hadn't read, and the pregnancy trope, I didn't know what I was signing up for. I thought the banter between our two main characters was hilarious, and I did enjoy the romance, but unfortunately I was just confused. That is completely my fault. If I had more context, I'd definitely enjoy this much more.

This was a cute follow up book. It had me laughing and crying. I was not expecting the twist in the book. Hope we continue to follow these characters.

After reading Josh and Gemma’s first book, I was really intrigued to see they were getting another after knowing how their first ended, This book focuses on their wedding planning, end of pregnancy, delivery, and everything that comes after. It’s a more serious and raw book than what I was expecting,

After experiencing a sudden health issue during her wedding ceremony, Gemma and her fiancé Josh have their whole lives turned upside down. They have to navigate their new normal both together and individually. Gemma has been affected severely and constantly feels lost in her new situation,

I think this book was well written and focused on important, real life issues when it comes to the “happily ever after.” My biggest issue with the book is the presence of Ian Fortune, Gemma’s old boss that messed with both her and Josh. It felt like he was discussed more than Josh and even though we learned more about why he is the way he is, it still felt unnecessary. I can see why he was added to the story, but he was a constant presence and Josh’s storyline was way more important.

Overall, I liked the book and seeing how the couple dealt with tough issues. Their feelings were realistic and raw, but showed how much they mean to each other. Although there was miscommunication, distance, other people, and various other things that added to their stress, they tried hard to come out the other side. These various outside factors just felt a little too focused on and unnecessary at times for me.

This was a highly anticipated sequel for me. I love going to revisit the characters, and I loved hearing this new part of the story. While it was a little sad of times, the whole book filled me with hope and reflection, for where I would see the characters go in the future, and I hope that there will be another installment of these books.

I have been waiting for this book since I’d found out there would be A sequel. I loved josh and Gemma make a baby, but this book is just pure gold. I didn’t mean to but I read it in one go because you just can’t put it down. This is a true love story. A story of what love truly is and how to love anew.

If I could I would give it 10 stars.

Thanks to Netgally for the ARC.

Thank you, Swift & Lewis Publishing, for the advance reading copy.

I feel partly it’s my fault for not having read the first book before I picked up this one. I realised it later on that this book is a sequel to Josh and Emma Make a Baby.

But I still feel that such sequels can be read as a standalone as well. I feel the writing just didn’t click with me. I find the first half a bit dragging and I feel the characters aren’t that interesting. Their chemistry just didn’t work. Yes, maybe I should have read the first book.

What did not work for me:

The characters aren’t convincing enough. Their problems are meant to be the main part of the plot here. However, I didn’t feel the gravity of any of their relationship issues. Things went too fast in the second half. I feel we have issues to resolve.

Just didn’t work for me.

Some notes about this book: Fantastic read. Interesting plot. Wonderful characters, somewhat innovative and intriguing. Definitely worth my time.

Complete transparency I didn't know this was a sequel whenever I started reading it. So when reading I felt like i was missing part of the story, which I now know was the case. I am looking forward to going back and reading the Josh and Gemma have a baby and enjoying that story as well.

I loved Gemma and Josh as a couple just trying to figure out love and life after a traumatic life altering health condition. I love the message behind the story that love changes and evolves.

I give this a 4 star rating. Thanks to the author and Netgalley for an advanced copy!

Thank you to Swift & Lewis Publishing and Netgalley for an ARC of this book!!!

when I heard Sarah would take an alternative path with this sequence I didn't think it was this much!
WOW what a crazy ride, this story had me freaking out, confused, angry and in love. I loved the reference behind the whole story this is one thing Sarah masters at, great reference and beautiful message <3
even though there was a lot of drama involved (whinch I don't think was really necessary) I survived it and it was worth it.