Thank you Read Forever for providing me with an ARC for an honest review.

This book starts a year after some event has occurred that leaves a family fractured that has begun to move forward. Yasmin and Josiah are co-parenting having had two kids together and running a successful restaurant together when things begin to change and Josiah starts dating Vashti.

As I started reading the book I became more and more committed to the characters and wanting to know what happened to this family. It becomes clear that the family has suffered a lot of changes and grief in the past few years. I am given enough of a sense what it might be but as a reader I want to know more and understand their story.

This book really grabbed my attention and curiosity and I wanted to keep reading it until I knew everything. It is a sad story about loss, healing and resilience. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to a friend.

Wow. I adored this book. Smart, funny, and spicy? Sign me up. I'll definitely be reading more by this author. Such a well done look at a marriage and family.

Stop what you’re doing and read this book! So emotional, raw, and relatable. I can’t get over how many emotions this book makes me feel. I relate to it so much more in my 30s then if I were to read this in my early 20s. Because you just experienced so much life you get why this story was the way it was.

I'm not big on second chance romance and i was unaware of the stillborn plotpoint with this one and i wasnt prepared for it. i loved the writing the story just didnt work for me.

This. Book.

My god. I honestly went in blind. I didn’t know what I was really getting into other than I had heard Kennedy Ryan writes some steamy stuff. So when k quick read the synopsis and saw the ARC on @netgalley I figured why not?!? I. WAS. NOT. DISAPPOINTED.

Josiah and Yasmen have such deep love for each other. But when tragedy after tragedy happen they drift. Eventually Yasmen tells Josiah she wants a divorce and our book picks up a bit after that. This books is gut-wrenchingly raw. It is authentic and real. It is a love story that shows sorrow, joy, growth, and forgiveness. This book will live within me for many years to come.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5- overall rating
🔥🔥- spice rating
❤️‍🩹💔- will break your heart and put it back together

Thank you @netgalley and @kennedyryan1 for the e-book arc. I loved it so much I bought the physical copy to have!

This book gave me ALL the emotions! Kennedy Ryan is a standout romance author and I hope she gets more and more recognized. The divorce subject matter hit home for me and I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time.

Kennedy Ryan did it again and it was absolutely an amazing read.

Kennedy Ryan always writes emotional romances and this one was no different. This was an all encompassing book with romance, growth and emotion.

LOVED this romance. It's hard to incorporate mental health themes into a romance, but this is how it's done.

Before I Let Go was raw and real, it was romantic, it was filled with laughter and fun that balanced out the darker subplots. A really great second-chance-at-love romance and I am a new fan of the author, as I've never tried one of her books until now.

Highly recommend!

I have waited so long for this book. The moment the cover was revealed, I immediately preordered and I WILL NEVER STOP RECOMMENDING IT. NEVER YOU HEAR ME? I loved it. That doesn't feel like a strong enough word but I did. I'm BLOWN away.

It's been a while since I've read a book that put my in my feels early in the book and left me there until I reached the end but I should have known Kennedy Ryan would be the one to do it.

I know this book has been called a black romance and while the romance is definitely there, it's more than that to me. It's a story about grief + depression and the many ways those things can erode at the strongest of bonds.

Yasmeen has my heart because on very subconscious level, she felt like me. The way her depression is conveyed throughout the book made my throat seize and my eyes water because I've had many moments where I felt how she felt throughout this book. It kind of got to me at moments because in order to write about it about accurately as she did, this is something Kennedy would have had to gone through herself. I deeply appreciate Kennedy for sharing those parts of herself and I think that's what makes her the amazing writer she is.

amazing! amazing! amazing! Talk about a try romance; a story of real life. The steam level was high but so well written. I just loved this book.

Wow, this book. I think that’s all I can say about it because it completely swept me away, broke my heart, and still made me cry happy tears. I have read other books by Kennedy Ryan before and she truly knows how to punch you in the gut with her words (in the best way). Do check the content warnings for this one, as it deals with some very intense topics but I think they need to be normalized! Men in therapy, love after child loss, forgiveness, moving on. It’s so so so so so good.

Ugh, the writing! I can’t get over it. I could gush about Before I Let Go for the rest of time but this is the kind of book I want to shove under literary snobs’ noses. “Just” Romance? You think this is “Just Romance”? This is a masterpiece of the human condition.

What I Liked:

A Couple with Children at the Center—We so rarely have books where children are added to the stakes of the story. I think it grounded the story so deeply in reality because as much as the main characters wanted to throw caution to the wind, they had a whole family to think about. I loved how intense the use “second chance romance” was in this book.

The Writing—Kennedy Ryan’s writing is impeccable. She crafts a world that is so rich and real, while still sweeping you away in their romance.

The Feelings it Provoked—This book made me FEEL. I actually had to put it down when I first read it because I wasn’t in the place to read it. But once I felt like I could handle it, I could not put it down and that is the best feeling.

What Didn’t Work:

Nothing, I absolutely loved this book. Kennedy Ryan is so underrated and more people need to read her books!

Character Authenticity: 5/5 Spice Rating: 3/5 Overall Rating: 5/5

Content Warnings:

divorce, still birth, miscarriage, child death, grief, depression, suicidal thoughts, car accident

This book is LIFE. No, not the cliche'. I mean REAL life !
I received an ARC, but I had to get the finished paperback AND the audio. I was expecting a lot, since Ms Ryan is one of my favorite authors ever.
Wow, did she deliver. I didn't get any spoilers, but kind of knew what to expect.
Yasmen and Josiah have been divorced when the story begins. I was about 2 or 3 chapters in and already loved these two. There is so much to why they broke up and I will tell you there's a lot-- oh the feelings! I love the fighting for the marriage/relationship trope. I was not tempted to complain, why didn't you fight harder to stay together? There are reasons and they are understandable. Ms Ryan reveals them as necessary -as I read/listened
All of the supporting characters are terrific and necessary. I love Yasmen's mother Carole.; Yasmen and Josiah's kids: Kassim 10 y/o son is so smart and very likable. He does have some great scenes with his parents and sister Deja. Deja is 13 turning 14 y/o. She's a challenge to her mom. I was so empathetic to Yasmen, but Deja is full of teen angst and has blame to lay on her mom. Yasmen has 2 great girl friends. I hope that they get a story (hint hint)
There's some beautiful romantic moments, beautiful writing. I read and listened to the audio. The narrators are perfectly cast.
The story's ending was not so easily wrapped up. This was a beautiful story. I will definitely be rereading/listening to this again and again. The epilogue is very sweet and I loved it so much!
This is MY FAVORITE book of 2022. 5 stars

I loved the beautiful story of Josiah and Yasmen! Their story follows what happens when happily ever after ends. Sometimes pain is stronger than love and pain manifests differently in all people which makes marriage even harder when there is too much heartache and not enough communication.
The characters in this book are written extremely realistic and their story is very well-conceived and written flawlessly. Their love, fights and feelings are so real I feel like I went through everything with them. I cannot stop thinking about them, their family and friends leaving me looking forward to the next installment in the Skyland series!
This book is a fabulous 5 stars! It is full of emotion and realistic moments. I highly recommend this book!
I am extremely grateful to Forever Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read a digital copy of this wonderful book in exchange for a honest review.

"Real, raw and magnificent?!" Sign me up!! I received a copy of #BeforeILetGo last. month, started it right away, and then could not put it down!
⁣
This is my kind of second chance romance read, and if it isn't on your list yet, you need to add it ASAP!! Author Kennedy Ryan nailed this one.

The characters were nuanced, the "real life" details were spot on, and Ryan somehow made this one completely engrossing (and spicy!) while also hitting the nail on the head with challenges long time relationships can face. And how stunning is this cover?! One of my favorites from 2022 for sure.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for my gifted review copies.

A family centered novel in the romance genre following a woman who grieves the loss of her 3rd child while navigating her recently ended marriage along with raising 2 children with residual emotions. Set in Atlanta, the main characters own a restaurant inspired by family recipes and home cooking - so be prepared to find yourself hungry and craving food that sticks to the ribs. Still, the grief is the pervasive thread and it is handled with care and authenticity. Well done.

Even though it started off strong, this book just wasn't for me. I couldn't relate to the characters at all. The daugther in this book made me want to DNF it so badly but I didn't.

This book along with Queen Move are my favorite books by Kennedy Ryan. Both books tackled subjects really relevant to me and felt them deeply. Flawed characters who are such good people. How can one not root for them to win?

One of the things my parents told me is that tragedy or trauma can break a marriage. It is important to know how your partner deals with stress or if they have had a significant loss. This story was so poignant because marriages are tough enough but when Yasmen and Josiah Wade hit a rough patch, they were unable to weather the storm together. What I loved about this book was that it showed that married couples could grow as individuals and maybe repair the relationship they had. There was never a question about love because Josiah and Yasmin never wavered about their love for each other, but it was just obscured by the other pains they were feeling about a lot of things. Communication broke down and so did their marriage.

The author wrote this story in such a way that it was relatable, emotional and by the end, inspirational. With consistent work in the mental health area, brokenness may be healed. The issue of children actually helped Yasmin and Josiah, though their daughter was driving me up the wall. I did love how they managed to co-parent in relative harmony and the restaurant was like another child of theirs. There was sufficient roots for this tree to be securely grounded, so once the relationship was pruned and cared for, the tree once again had life.

Bravo to Kennedy Ryan for another heartfelt second chance romance.

Before I Let Go was my first book by Kennedy Ryan and it won’t be my last.

Their love was supposed to last forever. But when life delivered blow after devastating blow, Yasmen and Josiah Wade found that love alone couldn’t solve or save everything. It couldn’t save their marriage. After the divorce they love their lives in tandem until one stolen kiss leads to another…and then more. It's hot. It's illicit. It's all good—until old wounds reopen. Is it too late for them to find forever? Or could they even be better, the second time around?

Oh y’all this book had me going through all the emotions: grief, sadness, hope, love. My heart broke for both Yasmen and Josiah. The things they experienced shattered their relationship but they are each other’s great love. This book is raw, real and Magnificent just as COHO says on the cover. It reminds me of Seven Days In June which is also amazing. Highly recommend this honest look at what actual relationships are.

I’m hopping on the “this book is great and you should read it” train. I heard nothing but rave reviews before reading this book. I went in expecting to be amazed and I was not disappointed! Yasmen and Josiah are divorced and coparenting two kids. They’ve experienced many losses of loved ones and are finding ways to cope and handle their grief. In the process they find their way back to each other. Y’all this book had me crying at work. I was wiping away tears with a napkin 😂😭. I switched to the audiobook at work. Jakobi and Wesleigh do an amazing job narrating.

I loved that this book tackled the topic of Black people and mental health. Especially black men. I grew up being told by family and in church that “You don’t need therapy.Jesus will fix it”. When I told people I was going to study psychology in college, some were so disappointed. This stigma needs to be talked about more and I loved that it was included in the book.