I would very much recommend this book to fans of Lucy Score. The slow-burn of this novel was done so well and reminded me a lot of a Lucy Score novel. One thing I loved about this book is that the plot ran deeper than just a romance. The characters had their own personal conflicts to resolve and I believe that contributed heavily to the entertainment factor of the novel. I also loved the setting of a wedding.

First, thank you NetGalley, Jen Devon, and St. Martin’s Press for this book. I loved every single part of it!

I read this book in about 2 days because I couldn’t put it down! The slow burn, angsty tension is everything I want from a second chance romance. I love how Jen crafted the character of Temperance and Duncan to be completely flawed but a perfect fit for each other. Their chemistry is electric and the tension just perfect! It kept building as you read but Jen gave us some satisfying moments to hold us over.

I loved the whole Brady family and the bond the brothers have. They all joke and tease but they are there for each other every step of the way. Summer in a small town community was a perfect backdrop for the story. This is a great start of summer book and it was such a great read.

Thank you again, to NetGalley and the publishers for this book, and thank you to Jen Devon for writing this story and sharing it with us. It was wonderful and I truly loved it.

While I don’t always love third person POV, Jen does it so beautifully that you honestly don’t even notice. Her writing just captures your interest from the start and really makes you feel for and care about these characters🥹

But can we talk about Duncan?!?!? He’s honestly the sweetest and I hated how much his family overlooked him😭 I love that he was finally going after what he wanted. I just wanted to squeeze the poor guy. And how he was with Temperance?🥹 just swoon!

Read if you like:
🍇second chance romance
🍾opposites attract
🍇cinnamon roll MMC
🍾forced proximity
🍇best friend’s brother & brother’s best friend
🍾the sweetest meddling family

Y’all pick this one up. You won’t be disappointed! Thank you to netgalley and the author for an early copy. All opinions are my own.

This is a good sequel to ‘Bend Toward the Sun’ (Aug 2022, 5 Stars). Jen Devon has a unique style of writing with lots of inner monologues and good moving the story forward with conversations between characters. This series is focused on three women who became best friends during college. They are all going to eventually marry brothers in the Brady family. This story slightly overlaps with the ending of the previous book which is the romance of Rowan and Harry. Temperance is a pediatrician and works with Harry. Her older sister married his brother years ago and Temperance the entire Brady family. Her first love was Duncan Brady who now runs the family construction business. They were 18 and very much in love until her parents, college and her health interfered. But because she is always around his family there is always tension between them.

Now they are thrown together helping prepare for the upcoming wedding. It is a time for second chances and understanding who they are now. It is passionate and there are insecurities to work through. I was frustrated they kept putting off conversations. His insecurity in how his family treats him I didn’t quite understand as well as her horrible family dynamics. The friend group and family are overly involved in each other's lives. And there is good natured bantering with siblings and friends. I enjoyed the first book a little more but it may be because I was sad this pair waited 14 years for a second chance. I will be on the lookout for the next romance that is already more than hinted at.

A second chance romance told by both TJ and Duncan, with their backstory told in flashbacks. These aren't opposites but they are both kinda angsty (with reason). I wasn't a fan of the first book but this second dip into the Brady family was a happier read. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. There's good dialogue but there's also - be warned- lots of characters. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

This is the first of Jen Devon’s books I have read. I really enjoyed it and would definitely recommend to others. At the beginning it was hard for me to follow all the characters as there are quite a few; however, after a few chapters I was able to tell who was friends/family with each other. If you’re looking for an easy read that will keep you wanting to read more, definitely read this book.

I adored this read. I loved the plot to this story.
Every character was so unique to this story and definitely play their part. I felt like I was a friend looking in. Will certainly read the authors other work

What To Expect
💖Second Chance Romance
💖Childhood Sweethearts
💖Likable Characters
💖Chronic Illness

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin Press Publishing for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Right Where We Left Us was a second chance romance that had a lot of heart. Unfortunately, this book doesn’t read as a standalone. Within the first two chapters we were introduced or told about 18 characters. And as someone who adores fantasy, and the more characters the merrier, I was utterly lost. So, I wrote down all of the characters and their connections to each other, yet that didn’t help. That lost feeling created a disconnect and I couldn't connect to any of the characters. I ended up stopping at 30%, right at the beginning of Part 2. I think that people who adored Devon’s previous novel, Bend Toward the Sun will enjoy this book and be happy to be back with everyone they love!

Jen Devon could do no wrong. I will read her grocery list. Bend Toward The Sun is one of my favorite books of all time, so naturally I jumped on her second book. I’m beyond thrilled say to say that Right Where We Left Us is a PHENOMENAL follow up, and I am so emotionally invested in Temperance and Duncan. Jen’s prose is devastatingly gorgeous, and she writes equally beautiful stories. I now have no choice but to go back and read her first book again.

Right Where we Left Us is a gorgeous romance made even more so by Jen Devon's beautiful writing. No one writes angst and pining the way she does. Beyond the delicious love story, the family dynamics were so well done, and it made me want to be a member of the Brady family too. Funny at times and extremely steamy at others, fans of her debut Bend Towards the Sun will not be disappointed!

- Second chance
- Small town
- Forced proximity

What to expect in Right Where We Left Us:
- A tale of how young love can transform and change over the years thanks to people growing up... and fate mixing things up. But when it's meant to be, it'll be (with a few roadblocks along the way).
- Great banter (especially if you like sarcasm and dark humour as I do).
- Different family dynamics and values, including both found and traditional families.
- Sweet and spicy romantic moments mixed with poignant, angsty ones.
- An optimistic and kind FMC and a selfless and determined MMC.

If you do read this, I highly recommend reading Bend Toward the Sun first, as I can imagine people getting confused by all the interconnected characters.

I didn't know this was part of a series, although all act as their own stand alone books.

I didn't miss having the first one read, but will definitely go back and read it now. This was sweet, warm, sunshine feeling, with a bit of spice and all the banter!

Thank you St Martin's for the review copy of Right Where We Left Us. I did not realize this was part of a series, though this stands alone, and I feel I might have enjoyed this even more if I had read the first book just to have a sense of the characters. That being said, it works on its own!

A lovely second chance romance that for me really examined on/off relationships in ways I don't usually see in a romance, I felt Jen Devon made thoughtful use of the main characters' previous/somewhat ongoing relationship to shape a lovely and engaging romance, one that will ring true for romance fans looking for slightly different, and welcome, exploration of second chance romance. The richness of the settings and the Brady family in general added to the overall depth and joyful fun escape of this read.

3.5 STARS—rounded up to 4.

Jen Devon’s Bend Toward the Sun (her first novel) was one of my top reads last year. I had high hopes for this second installment that continues with the Brady brothers but it fell a bit short for me. (By the way, I strongly suggest you read the first book before starting this one.) This book follows Duncan Brady and Temperance Madigan (we are introduced to them in BTTS) and it just didn’t flow well for me. However, I did enjoy their chemistry and banter.

Temperance is a pediatrician with snobby doctor parents who care more about their foundations and galas than they do about their two daughters and grandchildren. Duncan has a wonderful family but feels like he is living in the shadow of his brothers, doing a job he is not passionate about. Temperance and Duncan dated when they were younger but have been broken up for many years. I’m not quite sure why they felt they couldn’t be together…especially because they hook up often. It was a weird dynamic and I had trouble making sense of their lack of communication. The book follows their 2nd chance romance with dual POV’s and flashbacks as both characters realize they have grown up but their love has never faded.

On the positive side, Jen Devon’s writing is sublime, poetic and beautiful. It has just the right balance of humor and emotion. I love the characters and the setting of the vineyard that the Brady family owns and is renovating. There is so much potential for more Brady brother stories and I’m down for it! Also—a shout out to Just Like Heaven by The Cure being featured in this book…one of my all time favorite songs!

“Second chances are for when you weren’t ready for the first…”

Many thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Temperance Madigan and Duncan Brady had one brief summer together when they fell hard and fast. The Brady family has always treated her with more warmth and care than her biological parents and she is entwined with them as her older sister is married to one of the brothers and now one of her best friends is marrying another. As she's spending the summer at the Brady family vineyard, she and Duncan are having a harder time avoiding each other.

I didn't realize there was a first book so, while this can be read as a stand alone, I had a very hard time keeping most of the characters straight. A family tree or listing of the characters and their relationship to the main characters would have been helpful. Perhaps I would understand more if I had read the first book, but I had a hard time truly understanding why Temperance and Duncan broke up in the first place and why they never actually got together during the past 14 years of occasional hook ups. I also don't think we got the whole story with Temperance's medical issues, their relationships with her parents, or Duncan's backstory (like, he's heralded as the outcast of his family but I didn't get that vibe from his family at all). It was a much slower pace than I normally like, especially for not getting the answers to questions I was asking.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I didn’t realize this book was related to the authors first book and I kept feeling like I was missing part of the story. I found it an enjoyable read, but I think I would have rated it higher if I had read the other book first- not exactly a standalone!

Right Where We Left Us
Jen Devon
Pub: 6/18/24
4☆

I absolutely adored Bend Toward the Sun and as soon as I saw there was going to be a “book two”… I couldn’t wait.

Blurb:
Temperance Jean Madigan and Duncan Brady have never gotten it right. After one radiant, secret summer together when they were eighteen, they’ve been on-again off-again ever since.
When a wedding at the Brady’s vineyard lands TJ there for the summer, their mutual avoidance strategies prove impossible. When forced proximity begins to chip away at their armor, buried tensions resurface, old wounds urge confrontation, and once-in-a-lifetime love demands one last chance to finally get it right.

My thoughts:
I adored it! Temperance and Duncan’s story was what second chance romance is all about! It was the perfect mix of depth, found family, and swoony (steamy) slow-burn romance. The way in which Devon describes the stunning setting in vivid detail… so perfect. I felt like I was there. And what better, romantic place to be than a vineyard! 🍷

What I enjoyed;
🍇 Second Chance Romance
🍇 Slow-Burn
🍇 Vineyard Setting
🍇 Witty Banter
🍇 BTTS Friends

Though this “can” be read as a standalone, it’s very interconnected. So for the best reading experience I would highly recommend reading Bend Toward the Sun first.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This second chance romance gave me all the feels. The pining and the angst were absolutely exquisite! Getting the brief glimpses of Duncan and Temperance's young first love coupled with all the missed chances throughout the years was was "romangst" at it's finest. Jen Devon has expertly avoided anything faintly resembling a sophomore slump with this one. I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us (and future Bradys).

Angsty romances can be so wonderful, but I think they take a deft hand to pull off. Clearly this book rubbed me the wrong way, and I think given my hesitance about her first one, she's just not an author who works for me.

When I finished Bend Towards the Sun, I immediately picked up Right Where We Left Us. I needed to know everything about Temperance and Duncan. I was so lucky to get an ARC so I didn’t have to wait long! Jen Devon writes ROMANCE. But my favorite romance is (and I have said this ad nauseam) is centered on female friendships. The friendship between these three women makes the romance so much more. I just think romance books makes so much more sense when the core of female friendship is there. That being said how much longer do we have to wait for Frankie to get her book! I see you Malcolm!

Thank you #netgalley for the ARC and exchange for an honest review.