This was such a fresh, funny, heartfelt romance—the exploration of identity, friendship, loss, and love through the story of a reconnecting roadtrip was touching, romantic, and fully-realized.

Whenever You're Ready by Rachel Runya Katz is an insightful read, though I’ll admit, the characters had me pulling my hair out at times! While I struggled with certain parts of the story, I absolutely loved watching the two female leads grow and evolve throughout the book. Their development truly made the journey worthwhile.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers Copy of Whenever You're Ready by Rachel Runya Katz!

While I may have rated this as a 3 star novel (in reality, a 3.5), I am slowly but surely becoming a Rachel Runya Katz fan. Her first novel was a delight, and this one was very enjoyable as well! I think that my main reason for knocking off a couple of stars is because I felt like the pacing was slightly off and that some things could have been described in a little bit more detail. But overall, this was such a nice read!

The characters are enjoyable, and very easy to empathize with. If you imagine yourself in their shoes, it's easy to see how things could go south so quickly in their relationships. The road trip was a fun plot line, but I think it could have been done just a little bit better. It felt like the characters had sooooo many hours in a day, that it seemed unbelievable to me that they were able to get so many things done in just a short trip.

I definitely will be picking up any of Katz's future novels, and hope to like them just as much as this one or even more!

Whenever You’re Ready by Rachel Runya Katz is an emotional, deeply layered sapphic romance that explores grief, friendship, and the risks of love. The road trip setting was a great backdrop for Nia and Jade’s journey—both literal and emotional—filled with moments of tension, longing, and reconnection. I loved the Jewish representation and the strong themes of friendship and family, which added depth to the story.

That said, I went into this expecting something a bit lighter, so the serious and trauma-filled tone caught me off guard at first. It took me a little while to adjust, but once I did, I really appreciated the emotional depth. If you’re looking for a romance with heartache, healing, and a beautifully complicated relationship, this one is worth the read!

This was a beautiful and heartfelt read. Following along with Nia and Jade as they navigate the feelings they have for each other, both known and unknown, is a beautiful story to follow. That first love is a big part of developing into who you are, and they have a journey ahead of them.

This is a "not the book, it's me" review - I really liked Rachel Runya Katz's debut, and I'm super intrigued by this premise and love Jewish rep and Jewish history. Unfortunately it hits a little close to home right now - with the inciting incident being about a friend dying of cancer, I'm struggling to get into it. Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the ARC; I'm sorry I'm not in the headspace to read it.

I'm happily in my LGBTQ+ ally era and loving every second. I cannot recommend Whenever You're Ready enough to anyone looking for a fresh take on a love story. This book will make you fall in love, break your heart, and then put it all back together again.

This novel does a great job of tackling difficult topics and representing different aspects of diversity and personhood. Katz once again represents the Jewish faith beautifully, with characters that feel real and easy to root for.

I really appreciated this book's approach to exploring friendship and the courage it takes to face the unknown. In some ways I wondered if this would be bettered marketed as a contemporary fiction because most of the time was spent on other larger themes. Either way very this is about personal growth and love happens along the way.

The slow burn was a bit too slow for me. I normally enjoy that but I wanted a a bit of a faster pace this time. I would definitely read more of the authors work.

I really enjoyed this book, and I’m starting to think that one of my new favourite subgenres might be sapphic friends to lovers on a grief-related roadtrip to discover more about their own history. Oh and also it’s a slow burn with angst. But honestly, what really drew me into this story was the element of Michal, one part of a friendship trio who passed away from cancer 3 years prior, and the exploration of the twins’ Jewish background and history in the South. The relationships are complex and it makes everything more interesting (and perhaps frustrating when you really want the mc’s to finally get together). And despite putting a heavy emphasis on the romance, it’s not the whole story, and the plot itself is woven into the romance. The reader doesn’t just watch two characters fall in love, but understands a bit of the way the whole of them fell in love. I had a fun time reading it, but there were also times that love didn’t quite describe the feeling. But in short, I highly recommend it.

This slow-burn sapphic romance has such emotional depth. It's about the bonds of friendship, the depth of grief, and the transformative power of love.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me.

A beautiful look at friendship and overcoming grief, while also finding love. The book isn’t centered solely on the romance aspect as I originally thought it would but it is so much more than that with social commentary on racism; antisemitism, the patriarchy and so much more. Touching and gripping, an unputdownable novel.

Thanks to St Martins Press and Netgalley for this advanced copy!

I slept on this book way too long, but this was such a moving story of loss, grief, friendship and love. It took me a bit to work out the relationships between everyone, but I appreciated how Katz focused on this extraordinary friendship between three women (and Jonah) and the grief of losing one of them while being in love with the other. Nia and Jade so clearly love each other but can they work through that loss and its aftermath to come together?
Katz is doing incredible work as Nia, Jade, and Jonah learn more about Jews in the Southern US, finding ways to weave in conversations around queerness, otherness, sibling issues, and grief. Nia and Jade navigating "I love you" to "no, I LOVE you" is moving and thoughtful. Katz is giving Rachel Lynn Soloman AND Beverly Jenkins in this book.

This book truly got me in my feels through exploring grief and friendship. I loved how the characters were able to reconnect and be vulnerable with each other after such an estrangement.

A meet cute that initially lured me in with the beautiful cover. This book was such a great read, Its not my typical genre but I loved it

Thank you Netgalley and smp for the free e-book. My opinions are being left voluntarily. Woww what an incredible thoughtful poignant book. I didn't know what to expect but I was blown away. I don't always love dual timeline but this was done so well. I would have loved to seen this as an audiobook as well, so hopefully that's in the works as it makes reading more accessible. I will absolutely be reading the authors next book.

4.5/5☆

this was such a good debut. it was emotional but also fun at times and overall a great sapphic read!

thank you netgalley for the arc!

A beautifully written romance that delves into the power of childhood friendships and the complicatedness of first love. The writing is reminiscent and heartfelt, and describes the emotional depth of Nia and Jade’s journey. The reader is exposed to grief, friendship, and love, making it an emotional read.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.