Katz did a wonderful job with some heavy topics like grief, loss, antisemitism and racism. Her research in Black and Jewish history in America was noteworthy and I found myself very intrigued in a topic I am very uneducated in. She captured the experiences of a mixed-race Jew in America while interweaving a sweet romance.

I really disliked Jade’s character. But I think that was the point. I had second-hand anger at her selfishness and cruelty; especially towards Nia. I do think it speaks to the way everyone deals with grief and loss differently. I just had a hard time finding Jade to be a likable character.

I had a bit of trouble keeping up with the dual timelines in the beginning. I kept having to remind myself which character was which because I mistook them often. The pacing seemed a little slow in the middle (which could have been due to the large amount of historical information - that I enjoyed but it didn’t really move the plot along)

All in all, it was sobering to learn about the history, I enjoyed the slow burn romance between the character (even when one of the characters drove me mad), I appreciated the witty banter (especially whenever Jonah opened his mouth lol) and I didn’t have any unanswered questions on the final page. I gave this book a 3.75/5

I was so excited for this one, I've been wanting a new FF romance to just hit the spot, but unfortunately this was way too much of a slow burn for me. I wanted more of the relationship and less of the coming of age. I just needed and wanted more from this story, I thought it could be so much more.

I fell in love with these characters and the story was so well written. The sibling dynamic between Jonah and Jade is particularly well-written and emotional.

The writing perfectly captures the complex emotions and different relationships between the characters. I loved the road trip setting and found myself learning so much while reading. The story handles heavy themes like grief, antisemitism, and racism with sensitivity and nuance.

"Whenever You’re Ready" beautifully shows the enduring power of friendship and the courage it takes to embrace love. It's a heartfelt and thought-provoking read, ideal for anyone who appreciates stories about deep connections and whirlwind emotional road trips.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Whenever You're Ready by Rachel Runya Katz is a compelling novel that will captivate fans of character-driven queer romance and those looking for a nuanced exploration of loss and healing. While I was unable to finish reading the book due to it not aligning with my usual preferences, I found it difficult to fully immerse myself in the story.

Summary: This book was closer to three stars for me for the first 25%, in the four-star range for most of the middle and then the payoff in the last section of the book was outstanding - five stars - and I was bawling. Hence the four star rating overall and my review structure.

Background: I LOVED this author's debut, Thank You For Sharing. You can read my review to see why it worked for me: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/ab598b5d-2fb3-402e-a36a-683b60a04f07

First 25%: I really felt the strong sense of emotional connection and that feeling of missed time between the love interests. But I had trouble distinguishing the characters in the beginning. And the pacing was slow, in part because of the fissure between the love interests and because there is a big gap of information with the dual timelines. It was not always holding my attention but because I loved the author's debut, I was determined to trust the process.

Around 25-75%: Be warned: This book is a SUPER slow burn. In this part of the book, the actual road trip was really interesting. I learned a lot (and took some online research tangents to dig a bit deeper). And while I get the purpose of the dual timelines and meting out context and background, it was sometimes frustrating and I didn't love the impact on the pacing. In this section, I felt the distinction between the characters much better and I was settling in for a 3.5-3.75 star situation.

Last 75%: The payoff was excellent. The way everything comes together, especially in the last 10%, was intense and delicious and had a lot of emotional depth. Between the main relationship, each character's relationship with Jonah and each character's relationship with grief and Michal, I spent the last few chapters feeling a lot of feelings and crying. It was quite beautiful and moving and really brought up the average for me.

I think this is one of those books that would get better on a second read for me so I'll definitely be checking out the audiobook when this is published.

Some content notes that come to mind: big warning for grief (very close friend dies from a brain tumour), discussion and examination of slavery, historical racism and anti-Semitism, infidelity (not between the main characters).

Whenever You're Ready by Rachel Runya Katz
challenging, emotional, reflective, sad, slow-paced
Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Whenever You're Ready has a great storyline and hits hard with the intersectionality of race, ethnicity, and gender, adding in the grieving process of a loved one. All while providing the reader with a sapphic friend-to-lover situation. I read somewhere that the author likes to describe her stories as rom-traum-com and I feel like this is quite an accurate description. This one was a tough one to read for me. The writing style felt a bit chaotic at times. I'm not sure if it was meant to be third person point of view but it got confusing with the switching back of forth between the characters and lost whose pov I was supposed to be following. I finally gave up trying to figure it out and just went with the story. But I feel I lost some connection to the characters. My favorite character was the one who died, the parts that included her were the best. Whenever You're Ready is a slow burn, perfect for those that like their romance complex and with layers.

My honest review of a digital copy offered by the publisher and netgalley.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I enjoyed this book and think you will to.

his novel is a sapphic romance that tackles multiple social issues. The conflict, romance, and friendship between Jade and Nia was written very well and was a pleasure to read about. The way the author covered the subject of grief was very accurate and made the novel very emotional. Overall, this novel was an amazing read.

Thank you St. Martin’s Publishing Group for providing me with an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I was interested in this book when I saw that it was centered around a road trip across the South and that the roadtrippers would visit significant Jewish historical sights. But it was more than that. It is a story about healing, letting go, and discovering that the one you were meant to be with is right in front of you the whole time. I loved it. The author explored Nia and Jade's relationship (friendship to lovers). She also explored Nia and Jade's friendship with Michal (the letters made me cry). And then there was Jade and Jonah's (Jade's brother and Michal's boyfriend during her last cancer battle) very strained relationship. Add in some very interesting stops and a carsick dog, and I found this book delightful.

Oh my gosh, When You're Ready was an absolutely amazing story of grief, friendship and love with well written and complex queer characters, and a slow burn romance that felt real and relatable.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalleyfor this eARC.


Whenever You’re Ready is a beautiful and emotional love story. It dives into many topics such as grief, religion, discrimination, and friendship.

I loved the road trip setting, it was unique and fun. I also enjoyed the rich Jewish history along with wonderful representation. I’ve been looking for a sapphic romance for awhile too.

I took off a star for the confusion of the timelines and characters at times and a bit of a slow start.

Overall I would recommend!

Took me a little bit to get into this book (at least partly to do with my own schedule and not the book). I found some of it confusing due to the two timelines and some of the information withheld until near the end but.... all those annoying caveats aside, this book is really interesting, though provoking, and very well-written.

Highly recommend

WHENEVER YOU’RE READY by Rachel Runya Katz is a beautiful story about grief, love, and friendship

What I admired about this book was how much the author empathized the importance of friendship can have on a person that I feel sometimes gets forgotten in today’s society. The support that friendship can bring someone to help them to get through the day. The friendship scenes of Jade, Nia, and Jonah were so sweet and tender

There was so much depth and complexity to the characters that made them feel so real and human. They were amazing.

I also loved the important topics discussed in this book, they were so thought provoking such as gender, masculinity, racism, and therapy and the impact it can have on a person

The romance in this book was done incredibly, it felt real, raw, and relatable. The connection between the characters felt organic and never forced. You could feel the emotions they had for each other. I loved that we got to see the flashback scenes during the times they were separated from each other as well as the pain they felt from the separation. They brought each other so much joy, support and comfort. It was beautiful to see.

Overall, this was a beautiful story

This book dives deep into the complexities of friendship and challenges how society often undervalues it compared to romantic relationships. It's refreshingly queer and emphasizes the importance of creating meaningful spaces for oneself. Rachel Runya Katz skillfully navigates themes of grief, race, and romance, offering a unique take that breaks away from typical tropes. Unlike many romances, the story avoids clichés and instead explores genuine emotional conflicts that drive the characters forward.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC.

Whenever you're ready is such a bittersweet, beautiful, and at times funny sapphic romance. The story follows two women who are inseperable since losing their best friend to cancer. The story is a heartwarming friends-to-lovers slow burn that also richly dives into Jewish culture and history in the south. The book manages to handle heavy topics like grief, antisemitism, racism and hatred while still weaving a hopeful lovestory.

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for providing an ARC of this book.

This is the second book I've read by Rachel Runya Katz. It also has Jewish main characters, but this time we get more Jewish history courtesy of the author's own travels.

Read this book if you like any/all of the following:
* well-developed non-white characters
* slow-burn romance
* queer main characters
* one-bed trope
* learning about religious history
* yelling at fictional characters because things would be fine if they just communicated

I definitely want to read the published version of this book. It was a little disjointed in the beginning as I tried to understand the relationship between all of the main characters (Nia, Jade, Jonah, and Michal) and the sequence of events from their past leading to the present. However, it was worth the read for me.

I love this book so much. I love it in a way where I saved it for myself and savored it bit by bit as I read. It's just absolutely breathtakingly gorgeous, and the way that it deals with grief feels necessary and real to me at a time in my life when I needed it. Nia and Jade, and her twin brother Jonah, are mourning the loss of their friend, Michal, who died much too young, while going on a Jewish history roadtrip their dead friend insisted on. Everything about this book is beautiful and heart-wrenching self discovery: the history of Judaism, including its intersection with the horrors of American slavery, the rediscovery of family and community on both a large level with a trip to significant synagogues and on a smaller level with the interaction between Jade and Jonah, who sort of grapple with different types of grief: Michal was Jade's best friend from childhood, but had been dating Jonah for a little under a year, and their family prioritizes his grief, thinking it is greater, which drives a rift between the twins. But the main event here is the tension between Nia and Jade, part of the friendship trio, who have obviously been in love with each other, something Nia knows, something Michal knew, and something Jade is not quite ready to know at the beginning. Their slow burn rediscovery of each other is epic, though, and I burn for it, honestly. There are so many beautiful and tender bits to this book, but I guess I'm too thirsty because I cannot get the line "I wish I'd brought my strap" out of my head; that MOMENT was just absolute sweet fire. Thank you so much Rachel Runya Katz, Macmillan, and netgalley for an eARC of this in exchange for my honest review.

Wowwwweeeee…….

I am SO fond of this book. Big, big fan here!!!!
It made me cry, over and over, and completely turned me inside out.
Whenever You’re Ready is a beautiful book filled with grief, laughter, intersectional Southern Jewish history lessons, architecture, communication and miscommunication, real flawed humanity and their repair (the apologies are 10/10 PERFECT). It shows the immense loss of a best friend, emphasizes deep platonic love, and demonstrates the very human things we do when grieving (both pre-emptively and after loss). I love Nia and Jade and Jonah - all such great characters with depth and flaws and tenderness. The author speaks of gender, masculinity, multiracial life and history, anti-Black racism, and antisemitism in a top-tier way.
The tension is an out-of-this-world slow-burn; and the spice is delicious! I looooove Jade and Nia’s love and story. Looking for hot multiracial stemme lesbian potter/bisexual therapist vibes?? Read Whenever You’re Ready: a love letter to friendship and therapy.
/ARC - THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!! What a gift!!!!

3.5 ⭐️ rounded up. As the three old friends embark on a journey of Jewish American history, they find it hard to deal with not only the hard facts of history, but their personal relationships and grievances. Jade and Jonah have a strained relationship. Jade and Nia have complicated feelings. But Michal knows this trip is exactly what they need.

It took me awhile to really get into this but once I did, I had to grab the tissues. Grief will always be a tough topic and Katz did an amazing job at showcasing how everyone handles it differently and in their own time.

I loved all the characters even down to the dog, Luna. The story is told from Jade and Nia’s POV which was confusing at first because of the formatting but once I got past that I really enjoyed their friends-to-lovers romance. The romance did seem more background to everything else, but I didn’t mind it too much because the story and the character development was good.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Publishing Group for this ARC!

wow this had me feeling all of the emotions! this was so beautifully written and was filled with lovely romantic moments and amazingly crafted characters that learn and grow throughout the story! I loved this!