This is the second book I've read by Paige Toone and I adored this book.
Paige Toone's books are always so emotional and heartbreaking but I love how everything always comes together in the end.
This couple has been through a lot of heartbreak and it just tears at your heartstrings.
The book flowed well. There is a little bit of miscommunication trope but it is done very well so it did not bother me at all.
4 star read!

Paige Toon is a MASTER at crafting poetic, heartbreaking stories, and this one is no different. Definitely enjoyed!

a whole lot of europe in this book. learned a lot about modern viscounts and how terrible the responsibility is to be titled. it is a generational curse. forgiveness to anthony bridgerton, i get it now. this is essentially a white European novella.

other cute stuff: she's a furniture designer turned gardener. he's into astronomy. cute picnic dates for stargazing. at one point he is grizzly house building ryan gosling in the notebook. this is the notebook but no army enlistment and british.

I feel like the dialogue really let me down on this one. Also I felt like some paragraphs were just overly repetitive. 2.5 stars.

"What If I Never Get Over You" by Paige Toon is an exploration of love lost, rediscovered, and the enduring impact of choices shaped by class and family expectations. The story opens with a whirlwind romance between Ellie and Ash during a few sun-soaked days in Lisbon. But when their plans to reunite in Spain fall apart, Ellie is left heartbroken and without answers.

Six years later, Ellie has built a quiet life as a gardener on a remote Welsh estate, only to have her world turned upside down when Ash reappears, bringing with him heartbreaking revelations. The book examines not just romantic connection, but the weight of inherited roles and the limitations placed on people by tradition and privilege.

I found the class commentary woven throughout the story especially compelling—Ash’s struggle with his aristocratic family and the expectations they place on him was the emotional anchor for me. Ellie, at times, tested my patience with her indecision and reactive nature, but as the story unfolded, I grew to understand her more deeply and appreciate her vulnerability.

While some sections of the book felt slow in pacing, the emotional payoff and the satisfying arc of the characters made the journey worthwhile. It’s a love story, yes, but also a meditation on what we owe ourselves and what we owe the people we care about.

3 stars; I absolutely loved the last Paige Toon book I read as an ARC, so I jumped on the opportunity to read this one too! I was instantly drawn into the book in the beginning, but it was just too slow of a burn for me. I found the writing very YA and too slow. It was angst filled, which screamed teenage love, not late 20s. I didn’t find it much of a love story and quickly lost interest.

What if I Never Get Over You by @paigetoonauthor

“Three days to fall in love. Six years to try to forget.”

Thank you to @netgalley Paige and @putnambooks for this ARC!

This was my first Paige Toon book and I really enjoyed her writing style. I thought this was a beautiful story with characters that felt real and messy. I was hooked really quickly so this was an easy read that kept me invested. I really was rooting for these characters through their love story of missed connections.

If you like:
🌪️Whirlwind Holiday Romance
✌️Second Chance
🚂Missed Connection
👑Class Divide
❌Forbidden Love
🔥Slow Burn
💫Fated Love

Try this one!

Ellie and Ash might simply be imaginary characters created by the talented Paige Toon for WHAT IF I NEVER GET OVER YOU, but they will forever be in my heart as fully dimensional, completely believable friends I've never met. Smart dialogue, wonderful settings, and lively plot twists made for a magical reading experience -- a delightful escape from a writer I will seek out forever more. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

3.5 stars!!
This was my first book by this author! I loved the premise and the push and pull! This is definitely insta-love and more in the YA genre. ☺️

I loved that both Ash and Ellie were true to themselves in becoming who they always wanted to be!!! I could picture the estate and gardens perfectly! Loved the relationships Ash had with the employees….they were more like close friends/family! The relationship with both of their parents was emotional at times…

The ending was perfect!! Xo

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an advanced copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I have a love-hate relationship for this one. I love the richness of the story that Paige weaves together. I hate that I become so quickly invested in the characters that I’m on the edge of my seat. I love the depth of character development and growth she brings. I hate that I lose sleep over worrying what will happen next. I love that I can’t predict which way the story will take me. I hate that I can’t predict which way the story will take me. I loved her last book, so knew I wanted to read this one. Ellie meets Ash fresh out of university while interrailling through Europe. Three days to create a bond. As expected, I felt all the emotions and gutted at times, but she always had a way of bringing things full circle. I really loved the story and definitely feel that I need to be emotionally prepared for her next one. This was a solid 4.5 ⭐️. Thank you so much to Paige Toon, the publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this e-ARC.

Tried to down load this title but it would never down load. I will try to read this on some other site. It did sound like a good story so I will leave 4 stars and update it later if that changes

I wish I would have known prior that this was a YA read. I typically do not care for YA at this point in my reading journey. I felt that the character growth fell flat and gave me no real reason to be rooting for them. This was a let down for me but I will read other books by this author that do not fall into the YA category

I was really excited for this, but I really struggled to get into it and unfortunately it just was not for me.

What if I Never Get Over You was an entertaining read but overall, I felt as it was missing depth in the story. They hardly spent any time together before the time jump and yet they fell so madly in love. I wish they would have focused more on the before so that I could have fallen in love with them as well. This also felt a bit too much like young teenage lust for my personal liking.

WHAT IF I NEVER GET OVER YOU
BY: PAIGE TOON

First of all I would like to extend my most sincere apologies to both Paige Toon, and especially to the Publisher PENGUIN GROUP Putnam--G P Putnam's Sons for this review re-submission, since I don't know what happened to my original submission which I'm positive I sent before this romance novel was published. It was by random, and pure serendipity that I was going through my last months reviews that I was shocked to find this somehow was missing my original review. Honestly, this was my first novel by this author, so I don't know overall, if I would try another novel by her, since the characters Ellie and Ash are slightly younger than my children. One thing, I'm always telling them that from my own youth I learned to take it slow when getting involved in a romantic relationship. Of course, you can be attracted to first impressions, but for the kind of connection that Ellie and Ash make is instant, which they didn't have much choice since they spent three days together in Lisbon, Portugal, which was my first red flag, since I chose this not knowing that they were so young. I wanted something light which this was, but it felt too much like the two main characters acted younger than twenty-one. I thought it was more like a Young Adult genre, which coincidentally, I'm a reader who can't be categorized, but due to my age of being married over thirty-years with grown children, who seem more grown up with less communication issues than these sweet female, and male main characters have. I avoid Young Adult, and most romance based novels, which isn't to say there's anything wrong with them, it's just my personal taste. In fact, I know that there's a huge demand for them, and I find it harder to find the types of books I'm looking for. I love to read since it gives me the chance to never stop learning something new. I take full responsibility for sounding like there weren't enjoyable features with this, because it was lovely after all. With every new author I take a chance on, of course there are always features that have positive things to admire. This was something that I've found that I found the author to be talented, just that I am the wrong demographic at this point in my life. It was enjoyable reading about the settings, and I would consider 3.5 stars rounded up to four is that even though this isn't my automatic go to genre, I found I liked it's features that had all likable characters.

This was sweet and I empathized with the literally missed opportunity for Ellie, and Ash plan to meet after their instant love, which I can't say it isn't possible, since there's always an exception, but they definitely don't meet in Madrid as planned. They had hoped to spend a week together in Madrid and I'll just avoid spoilers by saying that it doesn't happen. First Ellie arrives late, and Ash doesn't show even though she stayed longer in hopes that he will arrive since they enjoyed their three days that had it been me I wouldn't have lingered long if that was me at twenty-one. Then again, I think it was too much too soon regarding the main protagonists, by which the two of them spending three days when they had initially met, regardless of whether they were traveling when they felt their instant romance. Ash as it turned out had a legitimate reason why he couldn't have possibly kept his plan to meet Ellie in Madrid, which you will find out if you're intrigued to learn why by buying this book.

I always think that no matter how attracted you are to someone you just met that it takes at least a year to really get to know someone. Even if the chemistry is there my ideas still apply, that too much too soon, takes away from the mystery of getting to know someone. I think maybe once or twice a week in the beginning is from my experience, a good way of developing something that burns itself out, no matter how great it feels. That's what I tried to tell my kids, and I hope that I don't suddenly find myself single. That is how I would proceed now if I met someone who I was interested in getting to know romantically, since that was how I was when I was Ellie's age, and Ash's age. I'm not saying that played a factor in why Ash didn't show up, but this trope has been done so many times before. I happen to know that Ellie wouldn't have been in her predicament, and I remember feeling this ended up being a cute, and heartwarming story that just felt much too young other than adult fiction, this is a more Young Adult feel, which that's not for me. Since I love literary fiction, and historical fiction, with many other genres depending on what it's about these main characters were likable, and I found side aspects more than the main romance which I will say there is a second meeting. Let me just say that there's nothing negative about Young Adult which this felt like it, and I know it's popular but at this stage in my life I'm looking for more mature content.

Six years later Ellie has finally found her niche and who does she find there but Ash. Read this if you want to see how Ellie and Ash proceed with whether or not they get together again which I think if I go any further it would spoil it. I'll entice you that it's in the least place where you'd expect them to reconnect regarding these two main characters meet by chance, which you'll enjoy it more discovering for yourself the journey of how or if they have another chance, A lot can change in six years, and there is a sweetness that is found that this author infuses into the whole community which has been very accepting of making Ellie happy and welcome. It goes to show how surprising, and random life can be, since Ellie, and Ash weren't expecting it, so this was a trope that I've also feel has been done many times, but even though this was predictable, I still rooted for them. She's working in gardening which is something she chose, and is happy with the community who were likable and welcoming on a 500 year old estate in Wales. I wish I could say this was less predictable, so it might not be for you, but my honest opinion is that I couldn't rate it above 3,5 Stars Rounded up to four, since my children are around these main characters ages, and they seem more grown up to me than this cute and heartfelt story's two main characters appeared, but that's my opinion. One thing I know is that while heartwarming, and likable people is sometimes just the thing we need after my usual in depth, character studies I gravitate towards, but this author is talented, and since reading this I've discussed it, and have a recommendation from several people that I will try at some point by this same Author, who is prolific, and since who wouldn't like a second chance at something which you believed had so much potential? What if?

Publication Date: April 15, 2025! AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE FOR ANYONE WHOM EVER WISHED THEY COULD HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY AT A SECOND CHANCE ROMANCE, OR ASKED WHAT IF?

Thank you to Net Galley, Paige Toon, and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam--G P Putnam's Sons for generously providing me with my ARC, in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own, as always.

#WhatifINeverGetOverYou #PaigeToon #PenguinGroupPutnamGPPutnamsSons #NetGalley

Paige Toon writes the most emotional romance books.
Her characters are always developed so well. The writing has a way of making you feel all their feelings for yourself. It takes you on an emotional roller coaster for sure. I loved how Ash & Ellie explored societal pressures and how they grew and evolved through them. This was an example of insta love that I could get past because they grow together so much throughout the book. Their love felt real and raw and I couldn't stop turning the pages. Definitely pick this one up if you need an angst filled love story.

• What to expect...
second chance
right person, wrong time travel & adventure gardening star gazing
ACOTAR references

Read-Alikes
Seven Summers
Meet Me at the Lake
Say You Still Love Me

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. To Start, I did not love the FMC. This was my first book by this author. I just couldn't get into it.

I was excited to read What If I Never Get Over You because I really enjoyed a previous Paige Toon title and wanted to try more of her work. While there were parts of this story I enjoyed, overall it fell a little flat for me.

I loved that the beginning was set in Lisbon. We traveled there last year, and the descriptions made me so nostalgic for our trip. Toon really captures the beauty and atmosphere of the city, and the early connection between Ellie and Ash felt believable and emotional.

However, as the story went on, I found the miscommunication between the characters frustrating. I usually enjoy second-chance romances, but in this case, it felt like so much could have been avoided if they had been more honest with each other. That took away some of the emotional impact for me.

While I appreciated the setting and Ellie's journey of growth, this book did not quite live up to my expectations. I would still try more from Paige Toon in the future because I know how moving her writing can be, but this one was just an average read for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my gifted copy.

This was an epic love story that followed the two main characters to there most formative adult years. Toon does well with heavy themes and this book definitely illustrates that, Reading about Ash and Ellie's story through years was equal parts heartbreaking and hopeful. The themes of grief were so well done and nuanced and they really gave the story its teeth. Reading about Elliie's struggles with trust and standing up for herself was heartbreaking but I am glad we got to witness her growth. Both characters had a lot to overcome but their love endured.
I was happy that they both dealt with their issues in a healthy way.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

Ellie is solo traveling in Europe where she meets Ash doing the same thing. After a few days together they are falling for each other.
Ellie has to go home but promises she will meet him in two weeks. She moves heaven and earth to meet him but he never shows.
Fast forward years and Ellie gets the job of her dreams working at a prestigious estate. She then finds out it's Ash's parents home. They are everything Ellie despises rich, entitled and snobby. Ash is also promised to another woman.
So many emotions throughout this book! A rich plot, well developed characters and the whole thing was riveting.
This is my third Paige Toon book and l've loved them all!