The Love of My Other Life by C.J. Connolly

Josie has a bicycle accident on her birthday, she wakes up in the hospital. The handsome man by her side, holding her hand and telling her he loves her, is Rob, her husband of two years. Josie has no idea how she got here, in this new life.

This was a fun book, I thought the author did a great job of executing a complex story line. I really liked the characters. This will be a good summer read

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to speak about one of the best books I’ve read this year, The Love Of My Other Life.. I love the concept of the multiverse and this story of the two Josie’s/or one Josie from 2 different worlds. It’s like you get to experience a life where your current reality/situation is the answer to your what if’s. To me, the whole concept is brilliant and I consider it a fun romcom read with a dramatic flare. As a fan of the genre, I definitively enjoyed it and when the book ended, I felt complete. I will miss these characters. It’s so worth reading this book if you're a romcom fan! Can’t recommend it enough!

I enjoyed this a lot! Echoing other reviewers in their commenting that if you're a fan of Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid then you'll really enjoy this one. I enjoyed Josie's character a lot and seeing the roads not taken (a la Sliding Doors) was really interesting. However, the shift between Josie' narrations happens a good chunk into the book. By the time you're really invested in Josie's story, we hop to the other one and sort of start from the beginning again which felt so repetitive. I also have a few bug bears with two plot points that I feel are rather problematic when you start to pick them apart...
Really inventive with great characters - a strong author debut!

Rating: 2,5 stars. The love of my other life is C.J Connolly’s debut novel that’s releasing on June 30th. It’s a romance with a twist, the female MC accidentally ends up in a parallel universe. I found the blurb a little misleading so take it with a grain of salt. It’s way more complex than that.

At first glance I thought this was The Vow 2.0. It’s not. Josie didn’t just lose her memories from the past year, she’s convinced that she’s from another universe. The book starts of with Josie learning about the details of her life and getting to know her husband, Rob. And just as it’s start to make sense there’s another curveball.

We switch over to the other Josie and get to follow her journey. Basically the reader get to hear about the “same persons” life from two different timelines. It’s confusing and kind of repetitive, a lot of the same thing. They’re struggling mentally, feeling guilty and both of them wants their old life back.

I really like the idea but maybe it would have been better if it was written from only one Josie’s perspective. And then another book about the other one maybe. It could have been more in depth that way and I wish the final part was longer.

I don’t know if any of this makes any sense if you haven’t read it. Sorry about that. Honesty I’m a little confused to

Thank you Netgalley and Joffe Books for providing an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

4.5/5 stars

I loved this premise a lot, it reminded me of Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid, so if you loved that book, this is definitely a book you would enjoy! This was a book that I not only thoroughly enjoyed, but it made me think about the universe and the choices we make and where they lead, which is always an interesting concept to me. Also, I loved the way this book told the story and it had nice pacing. Even though it was not a considerable long book, it was absolutely perfect in length, it did not feel dragged out and I feel that it covered everything it needed to cover.

This book is about Josie who, on her 36th birthday, gets into an accident and ends up in a parallel universe, that seems absolutely perfect, apart from one thing. Should she stay in this new life or go back to her old life?

There was one thing though, that could have improved the book for me, but perhaps that is very personal. I would have liked it a little better if the way the author choose to tell the story was known a little earlier on, now it took a good 90 pages before I knew.

This book was super interesting from the very beginning. I really enjoyed Josie’s character and definitely tried to imagine how she must have felt in that situation! I went into this book blind and I’m glad that I did because it really surprised me in the best way! Definitely recommend this one.

This book kept me interested from start to finish. I’m not sure how much to say here because I went into it mostly blind. I wondered what was going to happen next when it felt like things were pretty resolved by the 1/3rd mark. And then there was a turn! It was even more engrossing after that. I do have more I could say about characters and situations but I think it’s better to go into this one knowing less so you can feel it more. Definite recommend.
Thanks to the author, Joffe Books, and NetGalley for this advance reader copy.

Those who have seen the film 'Sliding Doors' will definitely enjoy this book! Josie experiences a bike crash that turns her world upside down- literally! She wakes up in a completely different life with new love interests, jobs, and challenges. This book illustrates each choice in our life can lead us down a completely different path but eventually, we end up exactly where we are meant to be.

Brief Synopsis: On Josie’s 36-year-old birthday, she’s in a bike accident and wakes up in the hospital in a different life than what she remembers. In a lot of ways, this new reality is everything she’s ever dreamed of, but Josie feels out of place (as you would) and she starts to wonder how she can get back to her old life.

I went into this thinking it was going to be similar to Remember Me by Sophie Kinsella….a light, breezy, sort of “what happens when you wake up to a life you don’t remember” thing. This was so much more than that and I loved it!

I really loved the author’s writing style. I was hooked from the very first chapter and read it in pretty much one sitting. It’s a much more complex story than I anticipated, and the author handles everything beautifully. It’s a perfect romance read for the summer—the characters are well developed and fleshed out, it’s thought provoking and Josie is easy to connect with. I did not want this to end.

Thanks to NetGalley and Joffe Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was amazing! I was hooked from the beginning and finished in one sitting. I really enjoyed the parallel universe concept and the writer kept it fast paced. It was emotional and heartbreakingly beautiful at times. I look forward to reading more from this author in the future. This really is a must read!! 5 stars ⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe Books for this arc!

In this story, we follow Josie who gets into an accident and slips into a parallel universe. A universe in which she is married to a hot rich caring guy but someone she loves is dead. A universe in which her other self seems to be still grieving that person and trying to rebuild her relationship with her husband. A universe in which she is herself but slightly different.

Told from the perspective of Josie, a 36-year-old woman, we travel with her through space and time to New York City which has her name written all over it. We see why her other self fell in love with her husband and how her life might have turned out if one thing had been different—the butterfly effect in its glory.

To be honest, I did not connect with any of the characters, not even Josie. I felt like the writing relied too much on the dialogue and not enough on the feelings, and descriptions. Characters did not stand out to me and even pissed me off from time to time.

I also found the themes discussed not fleshed out and flat. Some dialogue too made me feel iffy (that could be just me, but I did not think someone saying she's an "invalid" was appropriate as this term is disrespectful or asking if her cursing was caused by Tourette's which Josie doesn't seem to have, it's never been mentioned before or after this point).

3/5, I do like the concept however I did not really enjoy the execution.

Thank you Netgalley and Joffe Books for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Wow wow wow!!! The description of this story was so intriguing to me and I was hooked before I had even started reading. I could not put this book down, I read almost all of it in one sitting!

When Josie wakes up in hospital after a bike accident, she finds herself in a world she has no memory of, including a man claiming to be her husband that she cannot remember.

Without giving too much away, you get to see Josie try to adapt to her new life whilst also mourning the loss of her old life. The story was so complex and completely sucked me into Josie’s world. I felt like I was going through everything with her and was praying everything worked out for the best for her. I absolutely loved the ending (no spoilers here) and the way this entire book was written was absolute perfection.

This book is available to buy on the 30th of June and I will be recommending this to absolutely everyone, it was just so good!!

I really enjoyed this book. It was interesting and thought-provoking. I really liked the concept, although it was a little hard to keep track of at times. But all in all, it was a great read, and I had a hard time putting it down. I am looking forward to future books by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed reading this book that has some heavier moments. Parallel universes is a concept not often written about and I think it was executed fairly well

Josie switches places with a version of her self from an alternate reality. In this new alternate reality, both women find things that they had longed for. One version has a husband , a great career and lifestyle. The other gets to spend time with a deceased brother , and enjoy a carefree single lifestyle. However the grass is not always greener, and the women need to decide if they want to revert to their original reality.
It’s an enjoyable read. It’s fast paced and keeps you interested

This is Josie’s story of being in two realities. On the night of her birthday she crashes her bike. She wakes up in another reality while her other self wakes up her reality. In one reality she is married and her brother is dead. In the other reality she’s single and her brother is alive. They are envious of each others reality. Each Josie keeps a journal in case they get back to their own realities. Both do things in their new reality that they feel guilty for. Each comes up with a plan to recreate the crash that switched them.

This book is extremely well written and thought provoking. I thought about it long after I finished the story. I hope to see more books from this author. A marvelous debut novel.

Josie gets into a bike accident on her birthday and wakes up in another life. What does she do? How does she move forward?

This book was so intriguing and I loved the concept of it. Being told in the style of “her” and “me” was extremely effective for storytelling and we got to watch the story unfold simultaneously. The romance was sweet.

This was a page turner for me and I struggled to put the book down. I wanted to know what happened with Josie in each timeline. I loved her growth and how she thought the same in both universes. I loved Rob. I even liked Peter. The family dynamics were so interesting.

When they switch back, I thought Other Josie’s anger toward Rob was really ridiculous, considering she did something similar with Peter.

I loved the epilogue though, and how Josie found Rob again.

Thank you NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"Okay, boots, let's see if you were made for walkin'."

I don't know if this quote was pun intended or not, but it left the biggest impression on me and motivated me to keep reading, just because I love pop culture references.

The whole novel was great. I loved the fact that mystery was kept throughout the whole story, which kept me interested. It reminded me a bit of Dr. Strange, so if any Marvel fans are reading this, you're definitely going to find something for yourself.

What repelled me from giving the whole 5 stars was that at one point the story seemed finished, and I was kind of happy with the outcome, but a plot twist came and it left me a little bewildered. Maybe that plot twist could've came earlier. Anyway if it was possible, I would've given 4,5 stars, because as I mentioned, the quote still kept me interested.

Overall, the book lived up to it's expectations as "THE MUST-READ ROMANCE NOVEL OF SUMMER 2022".

When I read the blurb I thought I knew where the book was going to be about. I was so wrong.

I remember a movie with Gwyneth Paltrow called 'Sliding doors' about split decisions that change your life and how this plays out.
This story about Josie is about a bike-accident she has that somehow puts her in a parallel life. She has a different house, career and an amazing husband. But what about the other Josie? And is this life what she wants?

Both Josies struggle and prosper in their new lives. Both lives have ups and downs. It tugged at my heartstrings. The decisions they are faced with, the sadness but also happiness.

What an amazing read. I loved the ending! I highly recommend.

I couldn’t put this down- I was rooting for everyone. The pacing was great, well-written characters, and a really intriguing story. I would love to read more from this author.