It’s the story you hold with both hands and don’t let it go. It’s the story of love and hope. Of making things right. Of maturity and life choices. And love… strong and deep and life lasting, lasting forever - everything left of it.

It’s high-pitched and pulls deep stings of your soul. It wasn’t an easy path for two loving hearts but altogether it was so worth it.
Tarah made a Wren and Ellis story so real and true with all small parts of everyday common people struggles, with grief and forgiveness, self-conscious.

Like all her previous books this one is so much more than a simple book for a great time passing. It’s the story you want to save and go back to to discover more, to feel yourself under this warm blanket of feelings. After this book you just want to keep queitly to yourself to savor its moments and cherish it.

Details:
Small coastal town (Spunes, Oregon don’t miss with Forks, Washington)
Second chance
Divorced couple
Firefighter and Baker
Roadtrip
Letters

Story trivia:
Divorced couple takes a road trip together after kicking their son to the college. And here is where I left you with guesses!))

The story is so beautifully written, I have no words strong enough! Tarah overdid herself!
Oh, and there is spice and it’s sooo hot, you won’t want to miss it!


It’s 10 stars from me! So highly recommend!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5)
Spice: 🌶️ 🌶️
Tropes: second chance romance; small town; secret identity; road trip

I’m not exaggerating when I say that I checked NetGalley once a week to see if Left of Forever had been added. It was absolutely worth the wait from the moment Ellis uttered “She’s still a Byrd” in Savor It. I went into this book with high expectations, but Tarah exceed my hopes and dreams.

Wren and Ellis fell in love early in life, and it was beautiful to see their romance begin again from a moment of serendipity and chance. Ellis was fighting a fire out of state, and Wren sent a letter and box of sweet treats not knowing it would be her ex-husband who answered.

There’s so much more I could ramble about (the cooking class, the Parent Trap-ing, oh my), but I don’t want to spoil a single moment.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for access to an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Tarah DeWitt’s best book yet and this is coming from her biggest fan. WOW this book is packed with emotions, love, humor, family, and so much more. Might be by favorite romance book is the year. She ate with this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press Griffin for the advanced copy of this complex and deep second chance romance.
The story is centered around divorce couple Wren and Ellis. The couple had their son Sam when they were just teenagers, and the difficulties of life pushed them apart. When Sam is accepted into college, Ellis convinces Wren to go on a road trip together to drop Sam off and spend time on the way home, with the possibility of either reconciling or having closure.
This is a slow-burn romance with spice and passion building as it goes.
The characters are both flawed and vulnerable. It was a unique take on a second chance romance. I feel like most similar stories either have the couples originally miss their chance or they date when they're young and are reunited after time. Wren and Ellis have deep roots and have lived around each other's lives for years divorced. It adds a layer of stress and uncertainty because they will still have to be in each other's lives no matter what.
There are raw and deeply emotional moments. The book felt very realistic with how awkward and at times frustrated they were with each other.
The romance is sweet and proves how you can change and build something new, even after living a full life together. I enjoyed the characters.
The settings of their stops on the trip were romantic, fun, and relaxing.
Ellis is a brother of Sage from the book Savor It. Left Of Forever also works as a stand-alone.
I highly recommend this book if you're looking for a deep and thoughtful love story.

It’s not a secret that I didn’t love <i>Savor It</i> as much as I thought I would when requesting it, but I had a feeling that I would love <i>Left of Forever</I> more than anything. I fell in love with Tarah DeWitt’s writing years ago with <i>Funny Feelings</I> and despite the radically different nature of this book and that, it brought back all those feelings.

This book is a gem, a treasure, and possibly my favorite romance of the year. I suppose that’s presumptuous to say in March, but this really is that good. I can’t possibly describe how GOOD the <i>longing</I> of these two characters is described or the communication Wren and Ellis find somewhere along the California coast.

Please, everyone, read this book. I recommend reading <i>Savor It</I> first, for context. While you don’t have to, it will make this one sweeter. You have time, because <i>Left of Forever</I> doesn’t come out until 5/20/25!

Thank you so so much to Tarah DeWitt and NetGalley for the eARC for an honest review. I couldn’t possibly talk this book up more than I already have and more than the advance reviews already show. This is THE book. It is it. Please read it.

Left of Forever: ★ ★ ★ ★ . 5

Tarah DeWitt

"I’ll love you for everything left of forever, in every lifetime we get."

Wren and Ellis Byrd have been divorced for five years. But when they take a road trip to move their son into college, it's so hard for all of the emotions to not come flooding back.

Tropes:
— Second chance
— Forced proximity
— Road trip

Another Tarah DeWitt banger, I fear. This boooook wow. Anyone who knows me knows that I have been waiting for this book since the second that I read Savor It. I wanted “she’s still a Byrd” ingrained on my heart and that’s how I feel about this entire book. It was such a tender, sweet and loving story about two people who never really fell out of love with one another, but are still falling in love with each other all over again and realizing that that same love was what somehow drove them apart. I just adored the level of communication that the two of them had and how well they work together and wanted to be better for/to one another. There is literally no doubt that Wren & Ellis Byrd are cut from the same fibers of the universe.

Ellis. Wow. What an incredible character. I feel like he may come off as grumpy to some people, but honestly, he is the caretaker of his family and everybody around him and the way that he feels like he needs to internalize all of his feelings and keep everything to himself so that he can keep holding everybody else up is so relatable. He’s just… such an amazing man. He’s GOOD. That’s what he is. He’s a really good man.

And Wren, oh my goodness. She is such a real and raw embodiment of feminine love and the perfect complement to Ellis. While he is holding up everybody else around him, she is holding him up with a quiet, steadfast love from a heart that beats FOR HIM. She loves him SO much and it’s just so heartwarming to read how she feels about him!!

Left of Forever made me wanna find a husband, marry him, divorce him and then five years later, fall back in love with him. It really has me yearning for heartache just so I can heal.

I love love love the Byrds and love stories by Tarah DeWitt!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 ♾️

arc book review!

left of forever by tarah dewitt

📖 release day: may 20th

back in spunes, oregon—but just for a visit—and let me tell you, wren & ellis byrd had me in a chokehold. the second-chance tension? the longing? the unresolved everything? CHEF’S. KISS. 👌🏼

tarah dewitt knows exactly how to write pining that hurts so good, and these two delivered. the past still lingers, old wounds are fresh, and watching them navigate that pull between history and hope was devastatingly perfect.

i laughed. i swooned. i screamed at my kindle. 10/10, no notes. if you love second-chance romance done right, you need this book in your life.

tropes:
•second chance
•marriage reconciliation
•childhood friends to lovers
•road trip
•slow burn

huge thank you to netgalley & st. martin's press for the arc! 💛

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 | 🌶️.5

I am a sucker for a second-chance / marriage on the rocks romance, and Tarah's books are always a good time. But I struggled with this one.

Maybe because we don't get to experience Ellis and Wren when they're *going through it* but there was something about them coming back to each other essentially fully healed that just felt like skipping over the tough parts. There was vulnerability and sweetness and it was truly swoony but there was something about their reconnection that didn't quite hit it for me.

I do really enjoy Tarah's books, and this still had all the good stuff I want in a romance.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for honest review.

This book was so much more than just a romcom. It was emotional, vulnerable, loving, funny, sweet, and sexy all at once. It was everything I ever wanted in an emotional, character driven second chance romance. The build-up was perfect, and I'll never forget that moment they finally came back together. Everything was perfect.

The dual POV told the story in just the right way. I fell in love with the Byrds and this has made me want to read Savor It right away

Left of Forever picks up where we left off in small town Spunes and continues Tarah DeWitt’s signature deeply emotional, angsty writing style. I enjoyed the second chance romance retelling of Ellis and Wren, with flashbacks through their past stages of friendship, love, parenthood, infertility, emotional detachment, and eventual divorce. The pace was slower than in her previous books, and I found myself skimming through many of the long winded inner monologues. Overall a recommended cozy read.

I don’t cry at romance books. I don’t. I squeal and kick my heart, and maybe sometimes there’s a hand-over-mouth moment, but crying?

Not until this book. Happy tears. I think it’s safe to say that I connected with Wren and Ellis; second-chance romance is deeply personal to me and Tarah DeWitt just perfectly captured the emotion of it.

I picked up this book as an escape from heavier themes — and it is! It’s sweet and funny and sexy, but the emotions are the part I didn’t expect. The longing, the hope, the pain — all done so well.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the ARC. Admitting that a book made me teary is a thing I did all on my own.

perfect follow up to land us back in Spunes. I wanted Ellis & Wren’s story ever since the town hall meeting in Savor It when he was like “she’s still a Byrd” and man is she. The way they learned to find the love they had never truly lost and piece it back together was inspiring. I also loved getting to see bits and pieces of the rest of the Byrd family and am hoping we get Michah & Silas’ love stories next!

Okay the CABIN SCENE?! I will never look at peppers the same way again. Talk about the Scoville Scale…Anyways, I am usually pretty firmly against second-chance romance, but I was rooting for Elis and Wren the second I read their small blurb of story in Savor It and then when he said she will always be a Byrd??? like it’s just unfair that I will never have a hot man stand up for me in a small town hall meeting. Ugh and the PONIES. The letter writing was enough on its own, but I was in the exact same boat as Wren with those horses. And just like those two sticking together after terrible happenings, I’m soooo happy W and E finally found a way back together, as I would have started a petition if they didn’t have their own HEA story. (Sorry Tarah, you’re magical) Also, not like this would have affected the review, but the coverrrr is everything! The perfect vibes for them. I just can’t not give this a 5 star review!

This was so good!!! Hands down the best second chance romance I’ve ever read. I’m not typically a fan of that trope but it was so well done in this book.

The characters were amazing and the plot and pacing equally as good. It made sense why they broke up initially and the storyline leading to their reconciliation was done perfectly. They each made changes and worked hard to get back to each other and it made the story so much more impactful.

Please please please make this a full series and give us a Silas and a Micah book!! Kirby and Micah was teased at the end but I am holding out for Kirby and Silas…

Left of Forever is Tarah Dewitt's best novel so far. Ellis and Wren's journey will have you laughing and crying at the same time. Love seeing an older couple in a romance book, especially one that has to put in work to come together. Tarah's storytelling is realistic yet still swoony and hopeful like a good romance should be. LOF is fast paced and plot driven but also has great character development between the leads. Can't wait for the next trip to Spunes.

A MUST READ!

I ended up loving this book way more than I expected! I’m usually pretty picky about second chance romances because I need to feel like the characters have truly grown and that this time around, things will be different. Tarah absolutely nailed that. Ellis and Wren are perfect for each other. Both of them have grown so much, and Ellis is determined to get things right this time, showing Wren just how much he’s changed. I really enjoyed how bits and pieces of their love story were revealed throughout the book.

Second chance romance ✅
Childhood friends to lovers to strangers back to lovers ✅
Found family ✅
Heartwarming ✅
Perfect ending ✅
Fast pace ✅

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review

Ellis—stubborn, hard-headed, but an unlikely teddy bear. Wren—hard on herself, underappreciated, yet a hopeless romantic.

These two characters navigate so much life together, only to part ways… and wonder if love might still find its way back to them. They had to navigate the loss of their relationship while still maintaining friendships with each other’s families, a delicate balance of moving forward while remaining deeply intertwined. Through it all, they co-parented for the sake of their son, trying to keep their distance, yet constantly pulled back into each other’s orbit.

But love is unpredictable. No matter how hard they tried to move on, old feelings lingered, memories refused to fade, and the invisible thread connecting them never quite snapped. Their families—determined, meddlesome, and full of love—weren’t willing to let them give up so easily. And with a little Parent Trap-level scheming, hearts began to soften, walls began to crumble, and the possibility of a second chance didn’t seem so far-fetched after all.

This story is filled with sweet, raw, and deeply realistic moments. You can truly feel the push and pull of learning to trust again after loss, of rebuilding something that once felt shattered. And in the end, love, in all its messy, complicated, and beautiful ways, finds a way.

EMOTIONAL, beautiful, second chance, tear jerker, funny, heartfelt, did I say emotional?!?! I don’t think I’ve cried this hard during a book in a long time, happy and sad tears! Tarah Dewitt has become an auto-buy/auto-read author for me and she can absolutely do no wrong! This was another easy 5 star book!

I knew I would rate this a 5⭐️ after reading the author's letter/intro. The way Tarah talked about marriage,life, and choices hit so hard, I knew this would be a great read. 20% into it and I knew it would be one of my favorites this year and all time. I had no doubt because Tarah Dewitt is one of my auto buy authors. She writes the most beautiful and heartwarming love stories and Left of Forever was not an exception.

This book is about Wren and Ellis. We met them previously on Savor It. They had a baby and then got married when they were really young. They eventually divorced and the story starts about 5 years since then. I so love how the past was incorporated in the story. It didnt feel clunky. It was gracefully weaved into the current timeline and what's happening at the moment. I love the journal entries and how it kickstarted what should have been Wren's closure but ended up opening up her heart as she look back at the good and bad times between her and Ellis. I love the aspect of the pen pal and letters as well. This book is about second chances and using that chance well. In the book, on Ellis POV, he would always say, he wants to do it right. And right he did! Their roadtrip and adventures are some of the best moments in the book. This book is also about family you're born into and found family. Love the Bryd siblings. I just love their relationship and their banter. The spice in the book were also spicin' 🔥 but it didnt take away from the story. It was an accessory that made it more fun.

Definitely one of my favorite reads of all time. The amount of highlights I did on this book is just crazy. So many great lines and moments. I preordered the paperback version and will definitely reread it once its here. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this early. Amazing book! 🙌

♾️⭐️

I was late to the game when it came to finding Tarah’s books, but man does she not miss. I immediately fell in love with her writing and she quickly became an auto-buy author for me. Savor It was *chef’s kiss* but I think I speak for us all when I say that she had me at “she’s still a Byrd.”
I am an absolute sucker for a second chance romance, so I have been waiting, very impatiently, for Left of Forever. I’m happy to say that it not only lived up to my expectations, but it far surpassed them. Ellis and Wren were perfect. And their love story broke my heart and put it back together all at once.

Love love love Tarah’s writing and will continue to read any and everything she writes.