This book gave me deep-seated "hmmm" feelings. Where I was charmed and debut-talked myself out of some of the lack of tightness in the first (and I do find the writing compelling mostly so that helps), for this release I didn't allow for the same level of grace. I LOVE second-chance, but even this push and pull was...weird? And for a book that feels so grounded and organic in its setting, I found this massively frustrating.

And guys, it's dripping with sentimentality, but not always the kind I am on board with. The secondary characters wholly serve the romance and only care about love, the idea that her sister's kids are "previews"of what hers might look like bleh. It's just disjointed and a little unfocused. Rather than having that hazy magical setting it felt like it shamelessly exploited characters but dropped you right back in with the lot (I didn't pre-read)

Did I like some of it? I did? And tightened up with more interrogation for I don't ALL the characters' motivations would be helpful.

I also had misgivings about both characters as well. I enjoyed reading it but not always what I was reading. I think it's between a 2-3, but because I will give this author another chance I will say 3.

If forced proximity and second chances or just many chances is your thing this one is a good choice to read. A little bit of tension with sneaking a on/off relationship with your best friend’s brother.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC! Right Where We Left Us focuses on Temperance and Duncan, who were deeply in love in high school (and perhaps are still 14 years later) . The two continuously run into each other as they have joint friends and family. As they both try to determine what they want with life, the other keeps coming to mind.

There are a lot of characters in this book and it initially took some time to keep them (as well as the relationships to each other straight). I felt like the plot was decently cyclical, though there is good chemistry and conversations between Duncan and Temperance.

This is one of those books that is trying to set up several others books so it features lots of different characters. The biggest problem with a setup like this is that it makes it difficult to follow the storylines and get attached to characters. This book also is a very slowburn and because of that it takes a long time to want to root for the couple.

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Right Where We Left Us by Jen Devon
Right Where We Left Us
by Jen Devon (Goodreads Author)
Read
-Slow Burn
-Second Chance
-Forced Proximity
-Banter
-Small Town

"Right Where We Left Us" was a charming and engaging read. I read this book as a standalone but it is apart of an interconnected series so I would recommend checking out book one also.

I enjoyed reading Duncan and TJ's story, their characters were well-developed and I felt like both showed good character growth. Their romance definitely had the slow burn element to it, worth the wait but definitely took a little bit to get to that point.

Thank you Jen Devon, Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Heading back to the Brady family with a second chance romance love story but this time with Rowan’s best friend Temperance and Duncan Brady.

Duncan is the moody misunderstood guy in the family while TJ oozes positivity. But they both have secrets and they both dance around why they can’t be together despite obvious attraction.

Ok, here’s the thing: I loved the authors debut. I thought it was flirty and fun. But this one felt too long. I got frustrated with the miscommunication and lack of communication between them. It felt like I wanted to shake them and say, “figure it out”.
It’s angsty which is great, attraction is there, but it goes on for too long for me. The book is almost over before they even get together.

But I did like being back in the family. I’m hoping this is just a me thing! Because I totally loved the first book.

I really enjoyed Temperance and Duncan's story
I just wish we got their past POVs instead of being told what happened
Can't wait for the next couple's story... I hope it's Frankie and Malcolm!

“Second chances are for when you weren’t ready for the first”

After seeing such great reviews, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this book so that I could read it for myself and wow did it live up to all my hopes and expectations! I enjoyed it immensely! A perfect
second chance romance filled with angst and spice!!

Temperance and Duncan never seem to be able to get the timing right. They first fell in love when they were only eighteen years old but illness, family and pride gets in the way and they soon find themselves apart. Duncan knows that Temperance is meant to be his if only he can get her to see that she can count on him. After circling around each other for years, a wedding at the Brady vineyard forces Temperance and Duncan back together and they are either going to pledge their undying love for one another or end things once and for all.

I didn’t realize that this was not the first book in this series until after I started reading so I will admit that it took me a minute to figure out all the characters, but once I did I couldn’t get enough. I just loved Duncan so much. He is selfless and funny and his love for Temperance is beautiful. For her part, Temperance grew on me. She is a complex character to say the least but in the end her resilience as well as her willingness to open herself up to the possibility of love is what won me over. I will absolutely be going back to read Bend Toward the Sun!

If you like second chance, he falls first, slow burn romance then is a great pick!

I think this book would have been more enjoyable if I had read the previous book. I didn't even realize this book was second in a series. I had to really search and dig deep to find out it is the second book in a series. I was so lost with the amount of different characters and not really getting an introduction to who they were. It was hard to keep track of and become connected to the characters. This doesn't seem to work well as a stand alone novel. I would not recommend reading this before reading the first book.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

WOW! Thank you to Netgalley and Jen Devon for allowing me to read this book for an honest Review.
If you love a good slow burn, Second Chance Romance where they met and had a whirlwind romance at 18 that continued through the years as random hook ups. I was sad for the lack of flashbacks into their past as that is one of my favorite parts of second chance romance but it did not take away from the storyline at all. I enjoyed the characters and their banter. This story was more character driven than plot but again did not take away from the story. I loved that TJ was still close with Bradys family and it often had them needing to be in the same place and man oh man was it sometimes hard to experience with them. I loved the way the family meddles in their relationship! This is my first book by this author and i can promise it will not be my last!

Temperance and Duncan spent one summer falling in love and then years of hurting each other. Now, they are forced to spend some time together where old feelings come to the surface.

I loved the concept of this one and enjoyed some of it. The family feel of the Brady's was amazing. I loved how close they all were and how they pulled everyone together. The second chance romance was good, although a little too much of a slow burn. I did want them to work everything out and be happy together. However, there are a lot of characters and very early. It was almost like a large character dump and I felt like I was dumped into the middle of a story. By the end, I did like all of them, but I wish there wasn't as many.

Overall, this was a cute slow burn, second chance romcom.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the gifted copy!

Right Where We Left Us is the second book about the Brady family - this time following Duncan Brady and TJ Madigan and their angsty relationship. This is a standalone book but very helpful to read the books in order to have backstory on all the supporting characters. Like the first book, I love the cinematic descriptions of the winery and the pure love from the welcoming Brady family. Tropes include forced proximity, second chance romance and a lot of will they/wont they. If you enjoyed the first book you will love this one as well!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

This was a great book. I connected with the characters. I felt engrossed with the plot. I would read another book by this author.

After reading Right Where We Left Us, Jen Devon is an author on my radar. This one follows the author's first book but worked for me as a stand-alone. The relationships were as important as the romance in this sweet novel. I am already looking forward to the next part of this series! Who will be the next couple?
Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with the ARC ebook I read and reviewed. All opinions are my own.

Right Where We Left Us is a nice, second chance genre, romance story, not exactly a rom-com although there is some humor in it. In some ways it felt a little unrealistic, this great sweeping powerful love, but it also made it fun. Temperance is a doctor who keeps getting in situations with her ex boyfriend due to all their friends and family being connected. There are some not very good reasons why they've stayed apart all these years despite being very hot for each other. There is a pretty high spice level in the romance!

Right Where We Left Us was an emotional, angsty, second chance romance that broke my heart before healing it.

Temperance’s sister married Duncan’s brother when they were teenagers and ever since then they have shared a complicated history.

At eighteen they began a secret relationship which ended in devastation. Every encounter since then has been fraught with tension or led to a messy hookup that leaves them feeling even more broken.

After years of painful secrets and hurt feelings, Duncan and Temperance are forced to spend the summer together in the lead up to Harry and Rowan’s wedding. They enter into a tentative truce in the hopes of surviving their time together, but it soon becomes apparent that this is their last chance to make it right or the end.

Jen Devon’s debut novel Bend Toward the Sun was my favorite read of 2022 and Right Where We Left Us was just as emotionally devastating and featured the same captivating storytelling.

P.S. I also really hope we get Malcolm and Frankie’s story next.

This second-chance romance was sweet and descriptive. I think the biggest challenge for me was that I hadn’t read the author’s first book, and while I thought this would work well as a standalone piece, I found myself having trouble keeping up with all of the characters. I kept having to flip back to figure out who was who because the supporting cast is so large. I also both appreciated the descriptive writing and at times found myself skimming to get to the point of the scene. Overall, beautifully written but maybe just not the right fit for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and SMP for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I woudl recommend if you're looking for (SPOILERS)

-m/f contemporary raomcne
-second chance
-aaangst
-found family
-hurt/sick comfort
-it's always been you

Jen Devon is just an incredible talent. Reading this I would just sit staring at her line level writing, the lusciousness of it, the angst, the feeling, she does na incredible job of just dropping you right in the scene. I don't know how you can read this books and not want to just go live at the winery if not be adopted into the Brady family. This was angsty goodness of two people who the timing wasn't right, but the yearning never let up. And maybe also a bit too stubborn to get out of their own ways.

I won't give any spoilers but the way this book left me screaming for who I assume the next couple in the series is, I cannot wait. I am a forever Jen Devon fan.

I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I absolutely loved Jen Devon's first book. We are in the same world as the characters in the 1st book, which came out a couple of years ago. I definitely needed a refresher on the Brady family. The author provides that well. You don't necessarily need to read the books in order, but it probably makes sense.

This book is a second chance romance. Temperance, or TJ, as she's known, is a pediatrician who is finishing her residency. Duncan Brady is one of the younger of the Brady kids and the general contractor at his family's business. He has aspirations of being an architect. When the two were 18, they had a secret fling. (Or not so secret to members of their families, her sister Maren married Duncan's brother Nate) they are in each other's lives by proximity of their friends and family. Something ended their fling, but as readers, we don't quite know at first what it was. There's an unstoppable attraction there that they can't fight. The feelings run deep. The book was a little slow in the beginning, and it took me until about 60% to really get into the book.

I really enjoyed most of this book and how they take care of each other. The chemistry was hot. It just felt a little slower paced than I would have liked.

4/5☆ out June 18, 2024.

Right Where We Left Us takes us back to Vesper Valley and the Brady family. Even though it can be read as a stand-alone, I will forever recommend reading Jen’s debut Bend Toward the Sun first.

When I read Bend Toward the Sun, it blew me away and I’ve been waiting for Jen’s next book ever since. When I finally got my hands on Right Where We Left Us I was torn between devouring it in one sitting and savoring it.

Jen Devon is just the absolute queen of angst and pining. You feel every emotion radiating off the page, it’s just so easy to lose yourself in the story. Here she goes gracing us with another gorgeous love story in Duncan and Temperance. Their spice and banter were *chef kiss*. It was impossible not to feel the tension and chemistry between them, they were electric.

While Temperance and Duncan rightfully took center stage in this story, I loved that we got to check back in with Harry and Rowan as well as the rest of the Brady family who’s joy and love is as contagious as ever. (I’ve said it before and I’ll say it forever, someone please tell me where to apply to join the Brady family!)

Back in 2022, Bend Toward the Sun immediately took a top spot on my favorite romance list and Right Where We Left Us has definitely joined it. (And I have no doubt that whenever we are graced with a Frankie and Malcolm book, that one will join them as well.)

Thank you SMP Romance and Netgalley for my review copy in exchange for an honest review 💜

P.S. I eat cupcakes the same way as Temperance and it is without a doubt the superior way to eat cupcakes. That’s a hill I’m prepared to die on!