Wren and Ellis have my heart! I love a second chance at love story and this story was very relatable in a lot of ways! It was a little too spicy for me personally, but that was really the only thing I didn’t like.

Candidly speaking, tried and didn't like the author's "Savor It" (a 2 star read for me).

Knew this, "Left of Forever", was a sequel set in the same town, featuring another Byrd sibling and was wary about it. Sure, one of my now fave voices in romance "Jessica Joyce" endorsed it but have disagreed in past with other authors' endorsements.

The blurb is what drew my interest in the end. The challenge of an delivering a viable second chance romance especially one in which the characters were married, still shared ties to the same town and extended family remained a connecting bond. Can she sell it? Stirp away the hurt, the frustration, and even the anger of both characters. Replace those messy emotions with a renewed faith and love. She succeeded by allowing reasonable amounts of times to lapse from Thanksgiving (he finally indulged in one of her tasty desserts) to their road trip after Sam's graduation. She succeeded by letting their smexy times balance out with their emotional reconnection.

This ARC was provided by the publisher, St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Wren and Ellis became best friends at age 5, fell in love at age 16, got pregnant at 17, and became adults together parenting both their baby Sam, as well as Ellis’ younger siblings when his dad died. But five years ago, after growing more and more distant, no fights, no sharing of feelings, Wren asked for a divorce. Since then, they have co-parented and spent holidays together with Ellis’ family, but both are broken-hearted.

When it’s time to drop Sam off at college, Ellis talks Wren into doing a weeklong roadtrip back home. He is honest with her. He’s not over her and wants a chance to work through all the pain and secrets from the end of their marriage to see if there is any possibility that they can rebuild their lives together.

I read “Savor It” shortly after it came out last year, and while I definitely enjoyed Sage and Fisher, Wren and Ellis’ stole my attention in the background. But Tarah DeWitt doesn’t write interconnected series so I knew I was doomed to never know the details. What a happy surprise when this book was announced!

I love the “marriage in trouble” trope and while this marriage has technically been over for five years, it had all the same elements and I loved it: deep love, pining, digging through old hurts and making themselves vulnerable. It was really beautiful to watch Wren and Ellis be truly open and honest and not play games.

This book is open door with three or four spicy scenes, starting with a flashback early on in the book.

This is a wonderfully refreshing romance novel and I will happily continue to read anything Tarah DeWitt writes. I read this as an ARC via NetGalley; it releases in May so make sure to add it to your TBR.

Wow, this book was pure perfection from start to finish. I was a little iffy because Savor It did bore me from time to time BUT THIS?! Complete opposite. I couldn’t put it down, I neeeeeeded to know what was going to happen in this relationship, fully invested. I loved the longing and pining in this book, it made me squeal and curl my toes.
I cried multiple times which is a major plus whenever I find a book that makes me feel things. The ending actually had me sobbing looking like an absolute mess.
Yes yes yes a million stars, YES!!!

This was one of my most anticipated reads for 2025, and it did not disappoint. The Byrd family and the Spunes community are so vibrant, brimming with life and love. Ellis and Wren’s story was everything they deserved—redemption, love, spice, and an epic road trip. I adored this continuation of Tarah Dewitt’s Savor It. While it could stand alone, it’s even sweeter as a follow-up.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC e-read in exchange for my honest review.

I really am at a loss for words about this book. B.K. Borison was one of the first authors I read when I promised myself to get into reading again, starting with the Co-Op (I see you Deacon & LaRynn) and then pretty much ate up any and all of her other books I could find.

When Savor It came out I ate up Sage and Fisher's story (always a sucker for a single parent trope) but i remember vividly coming across that town meeting scene when Ellis reminds everyone Wren is “still a Byrd”. I knew immediately I needed their story like I needed my next breath.

Honestly, I'm torn between wanting to tell everyone every devastating detail and just keeping my mouth shut because it's so good that no amount of raving about it here will actually live up to it.

It had me laughing, crying practically every single chapter, breaking my heart, and putting it back together. B.K. Borison has, in my opinion, always been the queen of second chance romances and pining, and Left of Forever basically put all of her talent and expertise on perfect display.

I can't emphasize this enough: You need to read this book!

I’ve been so excited to finally get to read this book and it did not disappoint. Wren and Ellis are so lovely and have such a beautiful connection. They got their second chance together after realizing they are still in love but at the same time they worked through their feelings and were honest with each other. I loved every second of this book.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an arc of this book, I really appreciate it.

Bruhhhhh I’m a mess! Like literally crying in a common area with like 30 strangers around. I cried from beginning to end. That last paragraph, my god.
I love the way Tarah DeWitt writes. Her characters feel like actual people, they act and talk like real people. Seeing these two people find each other was fucking beautiful. Marriage takes work and no matter how much love there is, it is still possible to lose our way. Wren and Ellis’s love is so beautiful and them talking about what went wrong was ugh, just, I cried ok. I related so much to Wren, the part where she talks about her body and what it has done for her, fuck I cried there too.
I laughed too. I loved Silas speech, my god I cried again. Fisher and Sage, I loved Savor it so much and reading about them felt so good. Overall, ♾️ ⭐️, I’ll read Tarah’s grocery list.

When I say I sobbed.

Ellis and Wren have the most incredible second chance romance story I’ve ever read. I can’t even imagine taking on a story like this as a writer.. Tarah DeWitt tore me apart with their love and their pain, and I loved every minute of it.

Great book! The story was unique, sweet, and very funny. I loved that the MC’s were a little older, they have a college aged child and have already lived a whole life when the book starts which makes the story so much more interesting. I hope there might be more books set in Spunes, maybe one for each brother and then one for Sam and Indy!

This is Tarah’s best book, without question. I couldn’t put it down from the very first page. Her characters are so relatable and dynamic I feel like they could just walk right off the page and into my life. This book was so heartfelt with the perfect amount of humor and spice. I can’t express enough how much I loved it. The letters were especially touching, in light of the recent LA fires, it hit close to home. An absolute delight in every way. I will buy this to keep on my shelf and revisit. I wish I could read it all over again for the first time!!

I loved this book. Tarah is a beautiful storyteller and this is definitely one of my favorites. I loved these characters in Savor It so I was excited to get more of them. I hope we get some more about the Byrd family.

I was so excited to read this book when I read the premise and saw the cover… there was nothing that was going to stop me from devouring it. I loved the journey that we went on with these characters. From being unsure about how the other one was feeling after 4 years of being divorced and a wound that was struggling to heal.

I couldn’t get enough of Ellis and Wren finding each other after everything that they went through losing a baby and also losing themselves in the process. The spice was so good and well timed for everything else that was going on, it felt natural having the tension but not having them fall into bed right away.

All in all this book was amazing and nothing short of perfect in every way. Timing, tension, feelings. I can’t rate this book anything less than 5 stars

I sometimes find it hard to write a review for Tarah DeWitt’s books. How do you put into words the way every single one of her books makes you feel the entire spectrum of emotions? She has this way of story telling that, for me, makes me feel like I’m fully immersed in these fictional worlds and experiencing the same feelings that her characters are.

As soon as I read the line “She’s still a Byrd” in Savor It I’ve been chomping at the bit to get Wren & Ellis’ story (me and the rest of the book world 🤣). The connection between these two characters was so deep, built on years and years of friendship. Reading their story and hearing about what lead them to divorce in the first place felt so raw and real. I loved that even through their pain they put their son first and never made things difficult for him. Seeing Wren and Ellis rebuild their relationship and actually communicate with each other about their needs, feelings, and what went wrong between them, then finding their way back to the trust and friendship that brought them together in the first place was so beautiful.

Once again Tarah delivered an amazingly heartfelt story that put the reader through so many emotions, but ended with joy for the characters. Thank you so much Tarah for the opportunity to read this book early. I loved every word. <3

This was such a heartwarming second chance story. I most appreciated the emotional depth of the characters. I loved being inside the heads of both Wren and Ellis. Tarah captured in words what it’s like to love someone your whole life. “One day, when we’re very old and gray, one of us will open our eyes to a day that the other won’t, but we’ll smile knowing how full life has been, knowing how we spent forever, everything left of it, together,” was my favorite quote even if if was the last sentences of the story! Thank you for letting me read this book early!

Left of Forever is the second chance love story I didn’t know I needed…
Ellis and Wren Byrd have a long history! They share friends/family and a son, Sam who is off to college. Ellis convinces Wren that after setting Sam up at college they should drive back to Spunes, Oregon together to see if they can give their relationship another chance.
Left of Forever might hold the key to my heart… this book made me feel so much and had me sobbing like a teenage girl.. every MMC should be like Ellis Byrd. He’s so caring and loves so deeply!

I’ve never even been married. So why have I been crying over this?!

Tarah Dewitt never fails to tug at my heart strings. Whether is remembering what it feels like to fall in love with Funny Feelings or realizing that life and love are messy and imperfect - I’ll never skip out on one of her books.

“My chest is an empty, barren cavern without her. My heart took shape around hers, too, and it will never go back.”

Ellis and Wren were in each other’s orbit for basically their whole lives. And the way they pined after one another…GAHHH. Even more delicious? The way they openly loved and communicated for their second chance. I feel like I missed out on falling in love with my childhood best friend.

There’s something about the way Tarah DeWitt writes that is so uniquely beautiful. Her stories usually don’t go in the direction you expect them to. I once heard her say something to the effect of how when she writes, she likes to let tropes happen organically, and it’s evident in her books.

This second-chance romance between Wren and Ellis is unlike any one I’ve read before, in structure, storytelling, or the path that the characters take. Sometimes second-chance romances make me nervous because they can come with a lot of pain and drama, but this one was quiet and authentic in a way that I’ve come to feel is Tarah’s signature.

Additional thoughts: As a California girl, it’s always a pleasure to revisit beloved NorCal coastal spots through these characters’ eyes. Also, kudos to Tarah for once again making a case for men going to therapy!

This can absolutely be read as a standalone, but I think it’s best enjoyed after reading its equally wonderful predecessor “Savor It” first.

Thank you to St. Martin’s and NetGalley for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest opinions!

🥹 I love Ellis and Wren.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025 and I am so so happy I got to read it early!!

I felt the first 40% of the book felt slow and also like nothing really happened. Once we got on the road things picked up and I fell in love with them trying. I also think this book did a good job at the explosive final fight/last chance scene. While not really a fight, it felt like the right amount of pain, love, and fear was expressed in their words and inner dialogue. It was a satisfying scene and ending 🧡

Cannot wait to have the physical copy in my hands.

I am pretty sure this book changed my life. I am a mess 😭

I am a sucker for a marriage in crisis (or in this case divorced couple) book. It's so real and raw and had me so unbelievably emotional. The way Ellis was yearning for Wren had me in my feels!! And the character growth, ughhh.. spectacular!

This was so incredibly beautiful from start to finish. The little moments during the road trip were legit everything & I will forever be thinking about this heartwarming second chance between Wren & Ellis.

Marriages are never perfect and sometimes the struggles can be heavy at times. This book just hit specifically hard for me as a married woman. It truly made me reflect and had me so emotional thinking about the love my husband and I share for one another. It is truly a beautiful story and I highly recommend it!! (read Savor It first if you can)

Quotes:
"She's kissing me. I'm home."

"The alchemy of our bodies and the way my skin still remembers his is a part of that. He said it himself before: he's altered my very DNA."

What to expect:
-Divorced Couple
-Childhood Lovers
-Small Town
-Second Chance
-Road Trip
-Child (off to college)