A MILLION STARS. I'm so glad I got this on Netgalley when it went up for 24 hrs conveniently the DAY AFTER I finished Savor It??? Serendipitous. Everything about this is unforgettable. It's devastating and earnest and heartwarming and had me BLUSHIN from the spice. I think anyone would love this book, but it hits especially hard for us married women who might be familiar with handling difficult periods in a relationship and the beauty (and spice) that comes with finding each other again. I was *sobbing* in the bathtub over the last 20% of the book. If you love hard, honest, real conversations without all the dumb miscommunication this book is FOR YOU! If you like ice cream on dicks, this is for YOU! if you like second chance romance on steroids, this book is FOR YOU!!! if you love sexy firefighters who, like Mr. Darcy, are willing to put in the work to make themselves better to prove they love you, THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU. What are you doing still reading this review? Put EVERY Tarah DeWitt novel on your TBR immediately.

Wren and Ellis Byrd are no strangers to adversity, or each other. As they round out the "end" of their co-parenting and sending their son off to college, feelings of uncertainty about their past divorce and future relationship arise. As Wren and Ellis embark on a trip to celebrate getting their son to college and maybe investigate their lingering feelings for each other, what could possibly go wrong (or right)?

This book is full of delicious tension, vulnerable conversations, and so. much. yearning. Readers are given a deeply intimate look into both character's perspectives that allows for a huge emotional impact while reading. Fans of Tarah's other books will be happy with cameos from other books, and the town of Spunes will have new readers falling in love with its unique setting and cast of characters.

Set on a road trip home after dropping their son Sam off for college, Wren and Ellis Byrd get a second chance at forever. After having Sam as teens and marrying young, they have now been divorced for five years. Early in the novel we get "before" time about six months before the trip to see where they are at and how neither has fully "moved on". Most of the novel covers their trip as they make their way along the California coast towards their small town of Spunes, Oregon. Ellis and Wren open up on what went wrong in their marriage and fall back in love with each other.

This book has a such a grip on me. Reading about Wren and Ellis felt like a balm to my soul. I have been eagerly waiting since seeing this couple in Savor This. Seeing the Byrds choosing each other after all life had thrown at them was such a rewarding experience. Now I cannot wait to read this amazing love story again!

Some of what I loved:
🌲 Second Chance / Divorced Couple
🌲 Oregon coast small town
🌲 THE YEARNING
🌲 "Dear Stranger"
🌲 Baked goods
🌲 Meddling family members
🌲 Road trip
🌲 “New Moon” album, “Roslyn” specifically
🌲 Firefighter x Baker
🌲 Hope, hope, hope
🌲 Therapy
🌲 Infertility
🌲 Camoes from other Tarah DeWitt novels
🌲 Couple in their thirties who have lived through LIFE
🌲 All the modes of communication - letters, journals, emails, texts
🌲 Forever!

Some of my favorite quotes:

"I want her sad music playing in our house and her shit all over the bathroom counter. I want the chance to be lazy with her on a day off. I want our boring life back."

"His DNA altered mine, and our souls shaped themselves for each other."

"After all, what is bravery if not hope in action?"

5 / 5 stars - already one of my favorite books of 2025

Open door / spicy

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for this eARC!

Second chance romances are never my favourites for a multitude of reasons - some being personal, but also I'm not one for alternating timelines and it definitely takes me out of the story so I was wary going into this book because of that. But to my surprise we don't get that and I absolutely adored the way Tarah DeWitt made you still feel that connection and history between the main characters without having to keep switching timelines - more of this please! This is a romance that pulls on your heart strings and makes you feel all the emotions, especially with the struggles you can have within a marriage. It was very raw and tender, but also had a lot of angst and pining and the way Tarah DeWitt was able to seamlessly weave all the emotions together in a way that works is very commendable.

I would definitely recommend this book to people who love a small town, second chance emotional read and even if you don't, I'd suggest giving it a go! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this heart wrenching tale of a second chance romance. When I read Savor It, I just knew I’d love to hear about Wren and Ellis’s story. Beautifully written about how two people who love each other go through hard times and lose their way. Shows that strong love can make their way back but it takes work. This one made me cry at times and probably my favorite read of @authortarahdewitt thus far.

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the ARC and definitely recommend. This one is out May 20th.

Second chance romance will always hit for me. The angst, and working through whatever drove the couple apart in the first place, but also pair that with a roadtrip?! Oh and the letters?! Perfection. Left of Forever was a masterclass in YEARNING!

Truly, this balanced humor with big feelings so well. There were so many fun little moments, but also deeply emotional conversations, too. I just love Wren and Ellis and this book so much.

This was so emotionally intense and beautiful! I expected a cute contemporary romance but Tarah DeWitt said hold my beer. Holy moly was this amazing! Read it please. Everyone should read it asap!

I wish I had the eloquence to truly express how beautiful this book is and how deeply it resonated with me. This story broke my heart and put it back together in ways I didn’t think were possible. When I say this book is perfect, I mean it. It’s a masterpiece, it is incredible to watch two people navigate their past to find their future together. Wren and Ellis have known each other since childhood. They’ve shared a lifetime together—friends, young lovers, parents, spouses, and eventually, divorced. As Wren says, “I grew up with my great love, so I think maybe my heart took shape around his.”

I still haven’t emotionally recovered from this book. I don’t think I’ve ever cried this much during a book. It wasn’t just from the sadness and yearning, it was from the intense emotions that came from Wren & Ellis. I felt their pain, their struggle, and, most profoundly, their love—the way they crave and missed each other, body and soul.

I laughed through tears as they reconnected and found themselves again in this beautiful and messy world. Watching them find their way back together, through their pain and past, made me feel so intensely it made my chest hurt. This is raw, it’s real, it’s everything. Even though they tried to move on, you can see that they left so much of themselves with each other when they separated. As the author’s note emphasizes, this is a story about hope—that even when life chips away at you, you can still find your way back home.

As someone with a young child in a committed relationship, this book destroyed me. It tapped into some of my greatest fears but also reminded me of so much. The small things we let slip away, the beauty of sharing life and parenthood together. It also brought to light the fear of losing yourself (and your relationship) in the process, the ways in which you can become secondary in your own life.

I could go on and on about how this book changed me. I think about Wren and Ellis every day, and I still tear up reading my highlights. I’m honored to have read this book early. Thank you, SMP Romance and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book. Left of Forever is a book that you finish, but it stays with you. You’ll want (YEARN) to return to it as well. Thank you, Tarah, for creating this beautiful story and sharing a piece of yourself with us.

There’s been a few times in life I wish I had more than 5 stars to give, and at least three of them were with Tarah Dewitt’s books. Left of Forever was another perfect love story about imperfect people, and I’ll never get over Ellis and Wren’s story.

📕 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Left of Forever by Tarah Dewitt

📙 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀: Spunes character series (TBD on the official name!). Book 2.

📗 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀: E-book ARC on Kindle.

📘 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗲: Contemporary romance

📔 𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀: Second chance, angst fest, roadtrip, one bed.

📖 𝗦𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗽𝘀𝗶𝘀: Wren and Ellis have spent the last four years reeling from their divorce. But with their son off to college, Ellis asks for one final week together - getaway on their way home from dropping him off - to see if they can work it out, or find the ultimate closure.

🌟 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: I’d hate to say this is my favorite book from Tarah Dewitt’s, but it’s definitely up there.

There’s just something about the way she writes - it’s like she’s in my heart and writing down all of the romantic stuff I want to see. A man who is a complete simp? He’s so down bad he can’t function without loving his (ex)wife? When you know the ending but still get nervous they won’t pull it together because the tension is pulled so tight? Yeah, that’s all my jam.

Left of Forever is one of the top second-chance romances I’ve read. There’s something so devastating about losing your soul mate, and reading the dual POV of how both Wren and Ellis felt… whew.

And listen, I dare you to read the last 10% of this book and tell me it’s not the most swoony thing you’ve ever laid eyes on.

Tarah Dewitt will continue to be a one-click author for me. This time, she’s going to be a multi-click… because I’m going to reread this, then buy the paperback so I can leave it under my pillow and have sweet, romantic dreams.

𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 5/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

𝗦𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹: 3/5 🌶🌶🌶

𝑰 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏 𝑨𝑹𝑪 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒊𝒏 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘.

♾️ ⭐️

I was lucky enough to receive this ARC and devoured this book in less than a day. From reading Savor It I had been so excited for a Wren and Ellis story. Maybe I personally related to it because I also married young and had some similar struggles. The complicated feelings and responsibilities they faced were so real and refreshing to find in a romance book. I’ve never read a second chance like this! I laughed and cried a lot but I see this being in my comfort book rotation 🥰

This was perfection. I don't normally read second chance romance but I could not resist Tarah's beautiful writing. This was so well written and well done. It was one of the best second chance romances I have ever read. I highly recommend this and Tarah DeWitt as an author.

Second chance romances are my favorite and Left of Forever was my most anticipated read of 2025. I was beyond ecstatic to be approved for the arc. I loved Ellis’s character and what he was willing to do to get his wife back. Wren on the other hand took me more than half the book to warm up to. I just didn’t care for her POV. I wanted to shake her! Regardless, I still really adored this romance and would definitely read more from Tarah DeWitt in the future!

The first thing I have to mention is that the cover of this book is absolutely stunning — it's a true work of art.

The story itself is cozy, heartwarming, and deeply emotional. While I'm usually not a fan of second-chance romances, this one hit all the right places. Ellis and Wren's relationship was built on love, but it faced immense strain after a traumatic experience related to pregnancy. Their lack of communication, combined with their fear of hurting each other, led to their separation, but the love never faded.

After 5 years of separation (they still did co-parenting) Ellis decides he wants his wife back no matter the cost — it made my heart ache in the best possible way when i was reading his POV and his words about Wren. He suggests a short trip for the two of them to reconnect, work through their issues, and see if they could have a future together again.


I found myself captivated by Ellis and Wren. Their journey was both heartbreaking and fun, and it felt so cozy.
It's an incredible love, the way Ellis loves Wren is just every girl's dream. Their letters and vows absolutely brought me to tears — the depth of their connection is unparalleled.

The Byrd family is hilarious. Silas and Micah!! I need their books, asap. I can only imagine the stories that could come from their characters.

Another huge plus: the setting of Oregon. The small town atmosphere, paired with the Oregon’s nature - chefs kiss.

This book was a beautiful journey of love, loss, and redemption. Highly recommend for anyone looking for a heartwarming, emotional read.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Tarah DeWitt for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was beautiful - beyond that, it was transformative. An easy five stars. I devoured it within 48 hours, and it has sat with me since.

Left of Forever, the story of Ellis and Wren Byrd, describes the difficulties of young love as it changes and becomes familiar, through years of parenthood, and to the feeling when it falls apart. Reminiscent of Hannah Bonam Young's Out of the Woods, this book is truly a testament to how much hard work goes into loving someone, but what a privilege it is to create a lasting dynamic where two people choose each other again and again. Unlike Out of the Woods, this book added the dynamic of having a teenage son going off to college, which added another dynamic layer that played a huge role in the relationship shift between Ellis and Wren from a failed marriage to a story of redemption, forgiveness, and moving forward together.

I loved Ellis and Wren in Savor It, and I was thrilled this was the next book in the series. It was wonderful to read them as more flushed out characters, and reading about them peeling themselves raw - their pure vulnerability - as they work to come back together was so heartfelt. The subsequent books with any Byrd siblings are going to be well worth the wait.

Tropes include: Second chance romance, road trip, small town, marriage in crisis, found family, single parents

"We have whatever's left of forever, you and me."

Oh, how I love a good second chance! This book was everything to me. I definitely enjoyed Left of forever more than Savor it, but if I need to be completely honest, I had no doubts: I've been dying to know Ellis and Wren's story since book one, and Tarah did NOT disappoint me.

This book was so sweet and funny and I loved it from the very beginning (I have a big soft spot for letters inserted in books, sorry not sorry!). Seeing Ellis and Wren cautiously reconnect, afraid of ruining everything a second time and losing each other forever, was priceless and warmed my heart. I also loved the little vacation they went on together, although, I have to admit that I loved Spunes even more: I'm a sucker for all the small town vibes!

Sage and Fisher as secondary characters made me giggle and tear up more than once (especially at the end... iykyk!) and I adored Silas and Micah. Is it too early to kindly ask for their books too? I don't know if they're planned, but I'm really hoping I will be able to read their story someday. And why not, Sam and Indy's as well!

5 ⭐

This book had me kicking, crying, and laughing—and staying up way too late because I just couldn’t put it down. Tarah DeWitt masterfully captures the complexities of love, loss, and second chances in this beautifully written romance.

Told in dual POV, Left of Forever follows Wren and Ellis as they navigate the butterflies (and heartbreak) of dating your ex-husband. The story dives into the realities of infertility, the toll it takes on a relationship—the unspoken struggles, the emotional weight, and the devastating feeling of having no control over your own body.

Left of Forever doesn’t shy away from the messy, raw truths of marriage and rekindled love, making this book feel incredibly authentic and deeply moving.

One of my favourite aspects of the novel was the way Wren and Ellis communicated through letters and Wren’s journal. There was something so intimate and aching about the way their words carried emotions they couldn’t always say out loud. It added an extra layer of depth to their connection, making their love story feel even more powerful.

If you love second-chance romance, emotional depth, and writing that will leave you wrecked in the best way, Left of Forever is a must-read. I absolutely adored it!

Been dying to read this story ever since I saw the MCs in book 1, Savor It, and damn this hit and exceeded all my expectations 😭 the angst and the pining and the slow-burn were so cathartic to read. I loved the communication between them, the vulnerable talks and the banter between was so well done!

... So, can we hope for a Silas book and a Micah book, or ..??

-- ty to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy!

ellis and wren single-handedly reviving my belief in soulmates. from friends-to-lovers-to-divorcees-to-sad exes-to-lovers. the epitome of "you are my person. if not you, then no one else. if this is life is not for us, then i'll wait until the next" energy.

my ship tag for them is "if you're a byrd, i'm a byrd." ellis, the awkward cinnamon roll mmc, burdened by the weight of growing up to soon but an Authentic wife-man through and through. wren, the funniest fmc, deserves the world really and her beau is gonna give it to her. i adored them and their journey of communicating and taking another chance on each other. they are each other's greatest love - the chemistry, the longing, the banter, and the comfort proved it so well.

i love that there was no dual timeline and the author utilized letters and brief flashbacks for context. it was a fresh way of connecting to the present but letting the reader spend time with who wren and ellis are right now. i've filed this under romances i love.

i'll never see ice cream the same way again - i didn't even know you could do that. all this time we thought potatoes were the most versatile of foods, but ice cream was right there who would have thought!

thank you so much St.Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review an eARC!

I've been waiting for this book since we first met Ellis and Wren in Savor It. Tarah DeWitt takes you on their journey without telling the whole story through flashbacks. You get to fall in love with them while they remember why they fell in love with each other in the first place, and rediscover each other. Sometimes small town series can get bogged down with trying to revisit all the characters you've met before, so I like the way this story doesn't all take place in Spunes (while giving you just enough of the town to keep it charming). Adored this one from start to finish!

✨ARC Review✨
I am normally not the biggest fan of a second-chance romance, but this story just completely turned my opinion around. I felt every emotion while I read Wren and Ellis’s story. I love Tarah’s writing style, and I truly think this is her best work yet. She handles some heavier themes so graciously too. Also loved seeing characters from her other books pop up too. Thanks so much to Tarah, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the ARC!
4.5⭐️