I love Sophie Cousens and all of her books. Before I Do was no different. This book is more than a romance and will leave you questioning the big What Ifs in your life! The main character, Audrey, spends most of this book recounting her life and what it was like before and after she met her Fiancé. The crazy thing is that this is all taking place the day before and the day of her wedding when an old crush shows up. This book will have you laughing and crying and frantically turning the pages to find out what is happening next. Highly recommend! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Before I Do is another excellent novel from Sophie Cousens. Audrey is about to marry Josh when the man she had one great date with shows up as a plus one at her rehearsal dinner. True, Audrey had one date with this man six years ago, but she has always wondered "what if?". Cousens takes her reader back through the slow build of Audrey's relationship with Josh and recounts the exciting day Audrey and Fred spent together. Cousen's characters are relatable and interesting. Before I Do is the perfect combination as its entertaining and thought provoking.

Not your typical romance! This one is sweet, and I loved the ending. But getting there was rough at times. This one kept me interested, but didn’t really suck me in. There were just a lot of timelines happening in this book and I found it hard to follow at first.

Audrey and Josh’s wedding day is full of bad omens and wild mishaps. It seems their whole relationship started with some misunderstandings and has been a little off balance. They don’t really communicate well. Audrey’s mother has also barged in and taken over all the wedding plans, even though she’s had four or five weddings of her own. Can Josh and Audrey tune out the noise, forgive each other their peculiarities, and find a way to say I Do??

A huge Thank You to The author, The publisher and NetGalley for providing the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
Ahhh. Swoony and cute.

What would you do if you’re all set to be married to a great guy who adores you, and maybe he doesn’t set your heart on fire, but he’s kind and you do love him. But then the day before the wedding, the one that got away shows up-the one that not only sets your heart on fire but your other body parts too! What do you do?
The story goes back and forth in time between the day before the wedding when Audrey is on the verge of marrying Josh and then Fred turns up as a plus one at the rehearsal dinner and all those feels come crashing back. The chapters go back and forth with different times with the two men in her life. He rehearsal dinner gives Audrey bad omens about marrying Josh even before Fred turns up
I loved how astronomy tied into the story. It was educational but not stiff. And the supporting characters were well developed and added a lot to the story, they weren’t just fillers as they sometimes can be.
Thanks to Putnam Books and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

This is the third book I’ve read by this author and I’ve enjoyed them all. I like that her books have a sense of humor, some romance and the characters seem real and relatable. But they are not all fluff and romance, there are always some serious notes and in this one it’s a what if about the one that got away.

Thanks to NetGalley and Putnam/Penguin for this advanced copy.

This book was a great twist on the "what if?" trope of a woman getting to her wedding day only to think back on her choices and try and figure out if the right person will be waiting for her at the end of the aisle. Should Aubrey marry Josh or Fred? The boy she ignored forever only to fall for or the one who she felt fated to be with after one incredible day seven years ago? I have to say that I didn't completely see the end coming for this one, and I certainly didn't see how Cousens got us there.

I love the way the book was structured, with flashbacks detailing important moments in Aubrey's life, and current glimpses into the wedding day and Aubrey's state of mind as she sees Fred and begins to question who she is fated to be with. I appreciated that Aubrey isn't painted as just a flightly girl who can't figure it out. Cousens draws on Aubrey's complicated history with love and relationships, including how her mother goes from one marriage to another; each chapter added to the complexity of Aubrey and felt purposeful.

In the end, Aubrey is both frustrating and great (I mean, aren't we all) and I loved how the author brought this story home. The end felt "right" and nothing was out of character while still being interesting and not completely foreseen. I can't wait to read more of Cousens book.

Overall I really really enjoyed this book. I found the shifting time line to be delightful in how it was inconsistent and I wasn't sure if we would be stepping backwards or continuing the present moment chapter by chapter. I also loved the way that I was not sure which was I wanted this love triangle to go through most of the book, which was wild for me. Overall I think that it is a well written romance, with a lot of care put into the details of the book, would solidly recommend.

4.5⭐️

I really enjoyed this book! It was a quick, 1 sit read - and worked as a cute palette cleanser for me! I loved the way the boom was written as the chapters were “before i do” by years and hours and then “after i didn’t.”

There was so many instances i wanted to just scream at our MC Audrey. She was definitely acting very selfish and tunnel visioned throughout the entire wedding. & when the kids with Fred did occur i was like GIRL NO. BUT the author does a wonderful job at explaining WHY Audrey is.. well so frustrating later in the book.

I can see this novel being a bit frustrating and slow at the beginning, but it’s def worth it in the end!

It’s definitely a cute, romcom type read!

Thank you Netgalley & the publisher for supplying the eARC for an honest review.

Audrey is about to get married to Josh, but when Josh's sister shows up to the rehearsal dinner with Fred, from Audrey's past, she starts doubting her and Josh's relationship. Not to mention things are going wrong left and right. Is fate trying to stop her from making a huge mistake? Or does destiny just have a really twisty sense of humor?

This book was so fun! I loved the dual timeline, and the way the story pieced together like a puzzle. At any moment I was switching between Team Fred and Team Josh. The characters were so relatable and realistic. I loved that there was a strong dysfunctional family subplot and the discussion of fate's role in life. Sophie Cousens is quickly becoming an auto-buy author for me!

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC in return for an honest review. This book releases 10/11!

A quote that seems fitting for this book is "Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened."

In all honesty I did cry when I finished this book. What can I say, I loved it. It was so well written that I honestly did not know who Audrey was going to end up with. I really liked the time jumps between the chapters, I think it created a nice flow to the story, giving the reader just what they needed at the right time. Also, Audrey's friends and family were everything in this book. Clara, Hillary and even Vivien.

Sidebar: I am in love with Josh. Plain and simple.

What I wouldn't give to read this book for the first time again.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an eARC of this book. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

4 stars! soohie cousens does it again for me!

based on other books written by cousens, i was expecting to like it but this one just became my favorite cousens book! i love an alternating timeline and this one delivered!

i was torn between both guys, both seeming so sweet and dreamy and kind. following audrey’s life was also relatable (to me) and i loved finding out all the reasons how she became who she was and why she was in the predicament she was in. i too am so interested in the “what ifs” of everything and the alternate lives we could be living.

jumping back and forth between different points in audrey’s lives had me feeling a little bit like jumping into different timelines because you got to see so many different versions of audrey in her life. it made the book interesting. the turns this book took, my heart ached! at one point, i didn’t know who i was rooting for. i was being pulled in too different directions.

also i must say that sometimes when i read books based in england, i get bored and check out a little bit but cousens always writes in ways that interest me. her heroines always seem to be going through it a little and i, as a bit of a person who is always going through it, feels for them. i just really enjoy reading her work.

this book was such a lovely tale of forgiveness and remembering your past but allowing it to help you move forward. and also, not letting too much of the “what ifs” to take over what you’ve got. i adored this one and cannot wait to purchase it myself!

thank you netgalley and the publisher for sending this one to me in return for an honest review!

Final Score - 4.5 Hilarious High Jinx Stars!

This book had me laughing, crying, a bit frustrated but in the end - I am filled with warmth. There's just something about a book that has 2nd chance at love and those never ending "what if" moments.

Audrey is my hero. Of course, she's a bit neurotic (like me) and constantly pondering Granny Parker's bad omens (Latin's and their superstitions, anyone?). Not everything is black and white. There's tons of grey in life. And you should never judge another person's relationship with yours. Everyone is deserving of love and to be loved. I just wanted to hug the hell out of her much like a good friend would, and just tell her it would all work out. How it was supposed to be.

I have to say this one is my first book by the author and it had me engaged from the start. I didn't want it end! The story was so relatable, I mean, who doesn't question every decision they've ever made or have some sort of regret after it's outcome? I know I do.

This book is a definite must read! All the emotions, having you on edge of your seat, tears of laughter? I want to do a re-read immediately!

Audrey has a lot to deal with; her father has passed away and her mother, Vivian, has fallen into marriage after marriage, leaving Audrey feeling very estranged from her parent and best friend. While Audrey has a hard time deciding what she wants to do, her love of astronomy is as constant as the North Star, and her only connection to her dad. Watching her mother fail at love and relationships over and over, Audrey is obsessed with the idea of soulmates, and 'what-ifs' when she meets Fred and their story gets interrupted. She and Josh cross paths over and over, and while he seems like he's the one, they're so different she can't seem to accept they're meant to be.

I liked Audrey, but after awhile the self-sabotage became too much. I wasn't sure I wanted her to end up with either Josh or Fred at one point. Sophie Cousens leans heavily on her writing style of missed connections in this one, so much so that by the end I wasn't sure who I was supposed to be rooting for.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a cute romance novel and it was a fun read.

Before I Do by Sophie Cousens is a moving romance that follows one woman’s journey of what happens when “the one who got away” unexpectedly turns up the night before she is set to marry another man. I loved the premise of the story and was immediately hooked as soon as I started reading because the story starts out with a bang and then takes us through the events that led up to the explosive opening scene.

Audrey and Fred meet in the most unexpected and adorable of ways, and after their initial meet cute, they end up spending a truly magical day together. They make plans to go on a real date, but then Fred doesn’t show. Audrey, convinced that she and Fred were destined to be together, is devastated. She moves on with her life though, meeting Josh, who is a sweetheart, and six years later, Audrey finds herself about to be married. A series of bad omens start to plague Audrey right before the wedding, including dead bats in the church and of course Fred suddenly appearing at the rehearsal dinner. These omens really start to create doubt in Audrey’s mind as to who she is meant to spend the rest of her life with.

Using a dual timeline approach, Before I Do takes us through Audrey’s past, starting with when she and Fred meet, moving on to when she and Josh connect, and then of course, to the present day where the wedding events are unfolding and the pressure is on Audrey to decide what to do. I really loved how Cousens used the dual timeline here since we got to know Audrey, Fred, and Josh really well and got to see how each of those relationships developed. I also loved that the way the characters are developed, both Fred and Josh come across as very likeable so it’s not easy to choose one to root for, especially once we learn why Fred was a no show for their date. It’s easy to see why Audrey is so muddled about what to do. She really does love Josh, but what if Fred really was her soulmate and this is destiny’s way of giving her a second chance?

Cousens also does a wonderful job exploring the troubled relationship between Audrey and her mom and the impact it has had on her own approach to other relationships. I loved the added depth this angle added to Audrey’s story since it shed so much light on her own motivations and thought processes when it came to relationships and made me that much more invested in her journey.

I don’t want to give away what Audrey chooses to do, so I’m going to stop now, but I highly recommend Before I Do to anyone who enjoys a multi-layered and unpredictable romance with a cast of well-developed, unforgettable characters that will tug at your heartstrings.

Super cute love story. I'm a sucker for a love story that is set in the UK for that alone had me wanting to read this story. I love how the story unfolded by have the present day time line and the past time line switching from chapter to chapter. I was so easy to follow along and see what Audrey was going thru and watching the character develop. I would say this was a clean or closed door romance book and I didn't find myself missing any of the steam or sexy times at all. I felt that the author told Audrey and Josh perfectly and we got to see how Audrey grow. I would definitely recommend this book .

I just reviewed Before I Do by Sophie Cousens. #BeforeIDo #NetGalley

Thanks to NetGalley and J.P. Putnam’s Sons for my ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be published October 11, 2022.

This is my second book by this author and I enjoyed it. It was an easy rom-com that explores the questions of who is your soulmate and what if?

I enjoyed how the story unfolded, starting 6 years before the wedding and taking us 50 years past. It jumps around but it wasn’t confusing.

The day before Audrey is supposed to marry Josh, Audrey finds herself with a case of cold feet. Josh is great but they are complete opposites, so is he really the one for her? When Josh‘s sister shows up to the rehearsal dinner with Fred, Audrey’s “one who got away” she can’t help but ask herself if that’s a sign. This, along with a series of unfortunate events, could be the universe trying to tell her that she’s making a mistake?

This book was so unexpected but in the best possible way. After reading the blurb I thought I knew what the plot would be but I was so wrong. And I freaking loved it!! It started off a bit slow for me but once I got into it, I was so invested! It wasn’t just a romance, it was a story of growth and overcoming traumas. It was heartfelt and beautifully written!

This story is told in alternating timelines and I thought that was executed so well. The glimpses into the past were really purposeful and impactive. They really have us insight into Audrey. I just wanted to shake her at times but from these flashbacks, we learn so much about her. Overall, she was likable, witty and relatable! I enjoyed her character and was really rooting for her. The side characters were likable but I hated her mom Vivian. She seemed quite toxic and definitely impacted Audrey in a negative way. It’s taking a lot of self restraint to not talk about the males in this story because my opinions will definitely reveal who she chooses and I don’t want to do that to you 😂

The premise of this book lead me to believe it was going to be so good. It could’ve been so good.

It just wasn’t.

The storyline fell so flat for me. I had to push myself to finish. I couldn’t stand the main character, Audrey, or the reasons she gave for getting cold feet. The only reason I kept reading was to root for Josh, the husband to be. Even Fred, the other guy, was a very flat character. Absolutely nothing about him jumped off the pages.

The redeeming part of this book was the mother, Viviene’s, storyline. I found it more enjoyable than the main plot.

Thank you for the ARC! I love being able to share my honest reviews.