Kennedy Ryan does it again! This is an absolutly stunning book. Kennedy's writing is so flawless and this story was the second chance romance that everyone needs to add to their TBR!

Before I Go was a very realistic second chance romance story. Josiah and Jasmen are soulmates. They share a once in a lifetime love that we can only dream about. They are working hard to raise their two children and grow their business, the restaurant Grits.

Their dreams are shattered when Josiah's aunt Byrd dies followed shortly by Jasmen's devastating loss of their stillborn baby Henry. Jasmen descends into a deep depression that leaves her reeling. The once loving couple divorces.

This was such a great story tackling issues such as pregnancy loss, mental health and healing. The storytelling was slow and methodical as it showed both character's point of view. All of the characters were well drawn, and you were able to connect well with them all and become invested in their outcomes.

4.5 stars- Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for an advance copy.

Glorious, heart wrenching and full of emotions. I was absolutely immersed and gripped, and I'm devastated to have finished it'

Kennedy Ryan is such a talented storyteller and Before I Let Go sees her at the top of her game.

Wow. I have been left with a bursting heart . . . a story of love, family, unbreakable bonds, bravery, pain and hope. I will never forget the characters, what they endured and how they loved. I feel that I will be forever touched by Josiah and Yasmen. I loved this book so much!

Kennedy Ryan has delivered a masterclass in all the different ways love can both save us and destroy us- She makes your heart break and soar in equal measure. Trust me when I say that if you want to learn something about love, marriage, family - how it can hurt, how it can soar - read this book.
It is a book that cries out to be read and that sadly still carries truth.

Recommend recommend recommend. Absolutely amazing.

Quite possibly my favorite romance of the year! This story follows divorced couple Yasmen and Josiah whose marriage fell apart after the still birth of their son two years ago. The mental health and therapy rep in this book is some of the best I've ever read! Yasmen went into deep depression and struggled to cope after the loss, ultimately asking for a divorce which broke Josiah's heart.

Now these two are juggling co-parenting as well as owning and running a restaurant together. A story of second chances, healing and such incredible vulnerability and raw emotion. I truly loved how real these characters felt as individuals, as parents, and later as lovers trying to work out what the next stage of their relationship would look like.

Great on audio narrated by Wesleigh Siobhan and Jakobi Diem. I can't recommend this one enough - the hype truly is real for this incredible book. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review. The cover is absolutely STUNNING too!! Recommended for fans of Seven days in June by Tia Williams or Come away with me by Karma Brown.

Thanks to NetGalley for this eARc. This was a good read. What a story. My first Kennedy Ryan but I will look for others. The couple that I was rooting for!

𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬💭:
I’ve never read a book by Kennedy Ryan before, but I’ve heard a lot of great things about her. Thank you so much to Forever Publishing for this gifted copy. The cover is absolutely stunning and i was thrilled to receive my finished copy!

𝐁𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐛📝:
Yasmen and Josiah’s marriage was supposed to last forever, until tragedy breaks them apart. As co-parents, they still fulfill their role to their children. But they continue to have an undeniable chemistry they cannot seem to escape and they question if it’s too late for them or if they are meant to rekindle their love.

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.💫/5. I really found this story to be so realistic and raw. I couldn’t help but root for Yasmen and Josiah and was so invested in their story. Having dual POVs made it so engrossing that you could just feel for the both of them. I really liked how the author highlighted how each and every one of us processes grief differently and the representation of mental health is fantastic. I truly could not see and predict where their love story was headed, but I was really satisfied in the end. This was definitely an emotional read and there are a couple of TWs in this one. Highly recommend it if you’re looking for an emotional contemporary second chance romance.

𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚: 𝘌𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘴, 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘊𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘏𝘰𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳, 𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘴, 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘐𝘴 𝘜𝘴, 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮

Dear Kennedy Ryan,

If you’re not Kennedy Ryan, feel free to check out these words, but this is an open letter via the review route for her. Kennedy, you are a GD wordsmith, a poet, a goddess of the written word. Living in Before I Let Go has been nothing short of a painful reflection. I’ve had your book for some time, and I’ve waited on reading it because I knew it would require an internal fortitude that I haven’t had with books that reflect the real nature of love and marriage. At its core, Before I Let Go is an examination of the difficulties of marriage in the face of external traumas. To face that can be anxiety-inducing and difficult, but frankly, it’s necessary. This fiction you write under the reductive title of romance asks us to face our situations as a means to make better choices; you’re an exacting taskmaster, requiring your readers to experience their lives through the specter of your work. It’s why you’re a brilliant author, why your books are finding themselves on best-of lists. Yes, people want a release from the doldrums of life through fiction, but more importantly, they want to be seen too. And you do this brilliantly with Before I Let Go.

These are the simple, yet complex truths of your book as I see it (for whatever that’s worth).

Mental health has, until recently, been a lower-order priority in our world. People have lived with pain, stuffing down woe out of the shame of appearing weak. Men, especially, as your book suggests. Even more, men of color have borne this struggle more heartily. Before I Let Go illustrates this beautifully through Yas, Josiah, and Kassim. Josiah and Yas process their trauma in very different ways showing the spectrum of grief and depression. In a way, Josiah represents the old guard at first, a former generation that called on both men and women to eat their pain and move forward, planting deep wounds in their psyches. Each forward action was meant to undergird the character of the person. Instead, over the years, it cripples in the face of future trials. New woes push into old bruises, walls become fortresses, and vulnerability is erased, creating difficulties for relationships. We see this represented initially in Josiah.

Yas becomes the in-between. She illustrates the learning of mental health, the investigative process. She’s the sojourner of this journey, testing and failing and trying again. Through this practice, she finds progress and becomes the purveyor of understanding in handling Kassim’s experience.

And Kassim represents the now, the space where generations such as Gen Z feel more comfortable leaning into their mental health difficulties. He represents the promise of future generations asking for help and receiving it. He represents the promise of men, especially men of color, living more vulnerable lives, stating that they aren’t okay, and being comfortable with an imperfect masculinity, one that doesn’t need to fix and protect and explain trauma away.

If you leave your book, Before I Let Go, and miss all of this, if you get lost in the romance portion of this book (which is okay because, darn it, you craft love stories that transcend time and space), then we’re missing the impact that your book has the power to make on changing attitudes about mental health struggles. It’s essential that our world changes its perspectives and takes action. And this book is a manifesto of that truth.

What I love most about you is how you connect the community. In book after book, women as a community is a common theme. They edify, exhort, and entertain, which is true of Before I Let Go. Yas, Hendrix, and Soledad together are strong. They are newer friends, but emotional and mental support nonetheless. They become as essential as your main characters because they speak wisdom into their situations. One of my favorite parts comes in the latter part of the book when it’s revealed that Yas has been sleeping with Josiah. When Yas divulges her secrets, it gifts Hen and Sol the space to do so as well. It’s then that they are empowered to feel feelings and make plans for action. You remind us that the female community is necessary for uplifting women.

Even more distinct is you as a BIPOC author. Your books share the experiences of your race and culture. Since you are a masterful storyteller, you invite all readers into this space, educating and illuminating. Your voice is my favorite portion of your stories because it grants me entry on your terms. However, you connect us to a shared experience: infant loss, marriage difficulties, divorce, depression and anxiety, parenthood, etc. You graft your identity as a person of color with others’ identities seamlessly, reminding us that, while our skin might have different shades, we can see our experiences reflected in the experiences of diverse others.

As I was reading Before I Let Go, I felt the pain of Josiah and Yasmen’s broken relationship because I live in a broken relationship. Do we have different experiences, come from different cultures and racial backgrounds? Yes. Yet, am I able to understand the pain of not being understood, of different grief processes? Absolutely! You write viscerally emotive, artfully decadent romance. You feel it in your bones, your heart, your mind, and your spirit. Call me dramatic, but I leave your books altered, enlightened, and challenged. Every. Single.Time.

I hope readers don’t miss on reading Before I Let Go because it’s a difficult subject, because it will put them through their paces, or because it will make readers uncomfortable. The beauty of your books is its promise: romances end in happy endings. After the journey of a thousand tears, the payoff for this newest book is a pot of gold filled with hope.

Kennedy Ryan knows her way around words and people’s hearts.
This is so beautiful and emotional and raw heartbreaking and heartwarming book. I had to stop and cry and take a moment for myself when I read some of the chapters. It’s just too much bug so real at the same time.
Read it and you won’t regret it

It’s been a few days since I’ve read this book but today it’s release day and I couldn’t let pass the opportunity to talk about this book.
OMGGGG it was amazing, this is my 5th Kennedy Ryan book and i can say that her books never disappoint. The topics she tackles are beautifully done and with a subtlety that is easy to process even the hard themes. This book in particularly deals with divorce, grief, depression and it does it really carefully and grounded. The events the main couple goes through is heartbreaking and it ponders the question whether love is all it takes to maintain a marriage. I still don’t know the answer but what i do know it’s that Yasmine and Josiah love each other like no other and the way this author writes their struggles and feelings is truly captivating. I couldn’t put it down once i started, the angst and tension was so well written and the built up had me screaming!!! Also the spicy 🌶 scenes DID NOT DISAPPOINT! This woman knows how to write her steamy scenes!
Overall one of the best second chance romance I’ve read (and I’ve read quite a few) and everyone should pick it up!!!

Yasmen & Josiah Wade vowed that their love will last ‘till the wheels fall off’ but tragedies put a strain in their marriage & love wasn't enough to save it.
Yasmen & Josiah are learning how to co-parent, how to run a thriving business together, how to find their OWN rhythm without the other.
But like magnets, they get drawn back to each other. One stolen kiss leads to kisses, it becomes hot, it becomes amazingly them, until wounds reopen.

This was my FIRST Kennedy Ryan book & it made me go through the MOTIONS!
This story made me HURT, made me ANGRY, made me BAWL.
As a mom, as a wife, that's still going through depression & anxiety.... the way these DARK emotions were expressed.. it was if Kennedy Ryan could see into my SOUL. This story was more than I ever thought it would be.. Thank you for making me feel seen & less alone in the real world while getting lost in the fictional world you made for us with this book. Thank you 🖤

{5 ☆} I love the fact that Kennedy Ryan just effortlessly writes five-star worthy books (I know it wasn’t “effortless,” but you know what I mean.) As soon as I read the description I knew that I was going to enjoy this book. And since second-chance romances are usually hit-or-miss, I’m so glad that this book turned out the way it did (shouldn't expect any less, it’s Kennedy Ryan for god sake).

This story is about Yasmen and Josiah, two people who believed that their love was the type that lasted forever and that would keep them together through thick and thin. They, unfortunately, ended up getting a divorce and were now learning to find a rhythm as a divorced couple with two kids and a business to run together.

Now, what I love about this book, as well as all other Kennedy Ryan books I’ve read in the past, is the fact that her characters are never surface-level. They always have more layers than we think they do and I love how her exceptional writing allows us to see the different sides of her characters as the story progresses.

Despite the fact that the two have gone through a lot, Josiah’s comment at the very beginning of the book on his love shared with Yasmen turned out to be right: “this. this must be how forever tastes. I’m sure of it.” And sit was :)

Despite the fact that I was a little skeptical when Josiah said his, “this. this must be how forever tastes. I’m sure of it,” comment at the beginning of the book, I now see that he was right. Even during that period of time that Josiah and Yasmen weren’t together, they still shared this love for one another that I find absolutely beautiful.

If you’re someone who’s interested in reading a truly emotional book surrounding topics such as loss, grief, but also love, I recommend you read this book. This book will have you bouncing from emotion to emotion, but if I’m being honest, it’s worth it. If you chose to read this book make sure to check out the TWs just in case the book just so happens to hold topics you don’t feel comfortable reading about.

With that being said, HAPPY RELEASE DAY!! And I hope to see all these amazing characters again in the future.

Loved this story. Kennedy Ryan, once again, has captured my heart with her writing and captivating story telling. I was immersed in this story from chapter one. Her writing is like a beautiful symphony. The flow and pace follow such an easy cadence that you can’t stop reading until the very last word. I devoured this story. I wept, smiled, and hoped with this story. It’s one of the best books I’ve read this year.

I loved this second chance romance SO MUCH. The character growth was fantastic. There were parts that ripped my heart out (the divorce scene - UGH) - but there was a lot of hope and love. THIS WAS GREAT.

“𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲, 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐧𝐲𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐬.”
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𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐: ★★★★★
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happy release day to this beautiful story! i’ve never met a kennedy ryan book i didn’t adore with all my heart and this one was no exception. josiah and yasmen’s story is as beautiful as it is tragic, and watching then pick up the fragments of their shattered life, and piece them together into something both new and old, was nothing short of poignant. 💛

- angsty second chance romance
- divorced couple/single parents
- one bed!!! (👀❤️‍🔥)
- mental health/therapy rep

yasmen and josiah wade had the kind of love that was supposed to last forever. until a devastating loss fractures their story, lethal blows splitting them in half until they decide to let one another go. now, yasmen has found her feet again, and has adapted to the rhythm of her new life as a co-parent and co-restaurant owner with josiah. but that rhythm is constantly interrupted by forbidden thoughts, illicit desires, and unresolved dreams that see them gravitating towards each other again. and they begin to wonder if they’re truly ready to let go of what they had.

kennedy ryan’s magic never fails to amaze me. the poignancy of her romances, the depth and intimacy she writes with, the mental health rep she tackles, and more, are all wrapped up in a beautifully painful read. she’s such a gifted artist, and this book is the latest and greatest testament to that fact. i loved everything about this book. the writing was evocative and beautiful as always, the spice immaculate, and hard topics nuanced and laced with compassion, but the characters were simply fantastic. yasmen and josiah, their kids, and even their friends, had such gravity and complexity, they felt indescribably real, making this story all the more emotional. if you’re in the market for a beautiful yet hard-hitting romance, please don’t hesitate to pick this one up! i think the above quote summarizes this book so perfectly. 💛

I haven’t cried this much reading a book in such a long time. This was such a heartbreaking journey but also so hopeful. From the start I didn’t want to put this down. It’s been some time since I’ve read a book by Kennedy Ryan but this story reminded why I love her writing so much. I felt every single thing that these characters felt and was immediately connected to the whole family.

This may be the best book I have read this year. It's both heartbreaking and soul restoring as you read the journey of Yasmen and Josiah. They are two years post-divorce and trying to find their way through co-owning a restaurant, co-parenting their two children, and overcoming devastating loss. I love a marriage-in-trouble romance and a second chance romance and this is both combined in a real and raw way. There are honest and open discussions around depression and therapy. I have never read an account of both in such a genuine way. It was very hard to read and yet also I felt so seen in some ways. I love the ways Ryan included these parts of the loss and recovery process for the family. The writing is superb. Within the first chapter, you somehow feel for these characters so deeply despite having just met them. I wanted both to find their peace and cheered them on as they found their way back together. Their connection is absolute fire. I loved every moment these two were on the same page. I would recommend this to absolutely anyway, but there are definite content warnings that are included by the author herself in the beginning of the novel. Before I Let Go is a solid 5 star read that I will be sure to revisit in the future.

This book is a top favorite of the year for me. When I saw some of my favorite bookstagrammers rave about it, I knew it was going to be good. It exceeded my expectations. I felt fully immersed and kept thinking about this couple when I wasn't reading. Still thinking about them a week later.

Yasmen and Josiah divorced two years prior, after a heartbreaking tragedy that changed their lives forever. This book follows their journey. Of owning a business together, co-parenting two kids, and realizing there might still be something between them.

This book was so powerful; encompassing themes of grief, healing and discovery. Their struggles felt raw and real, with a focus on mental health. I wanted them to reconcile so badly, hoping they would find their way back to each other. The angsty scenes gave me butterflies. What I felt was beyond chemistry between them. It was clear they were soulmates.

I was so glad this book was written in dual POV. It was important to get both perspectives as Yasmen and Josiah realize mistakes they made in the past and also what they could do to work on themselves individually. Every storyline felt necessary. From the relationship with their kids to the scenes where they tried to move on and see other people.

I will never forget this couple and highly recommend you read this one!

Thank you to Forever Publishing and NetGalley for an advance readers copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I even chose this as my Book of the Month because I knew I was going to love this story. And I did. All the stars!

I don't think I have ever read a story that is more real, raw and relatable than this story. This is a second chance romance between Yasmen and Josiah Wade. They have been divorced for almost two years, but they are two people who still love each other so much. They have gone through some difficult losses which led to depression for Yasmen. She didn't know how to be married anymore when it was a struggle to take care of herself. It's a beautiful love story about how loss can affect you, but that time can bring you back together and heal you.

I love how this story is in the present dealing with their issues in the past. The opening scene is in the past, but most of it is in the present. No jumping back and forth in the timeline. I loved seeing Josiah and Yasmen putting their lives back together.

I am hoping for more in this world as it is labeled as Skyland #1. Yasmen's friends, Hendrix and Soledad, deserve stories of their own.

Don't miss out on this story! I'll be thinking of it for a long time.

4.5 Stars

This is one of those reviews that is so difficult to write -I know all the things I want to say, but I can't really find the right words to describe it. Did I love it? Absolutely! Did it emotionally wreck me? Yup. Do I recommend it? OMG Yes! There are so many more amazing things I would love to say about this book, but I don't think any will do it justice.

Before I Let Go is a beautiful second-chance romance, but Kennedy Ryan doesn't sugarcoat it or pull out puppies and rainbows. It's raw and emotional, but beautiful and hopeful at the same time. The writing is phenomenal, and I definitely can't recommend it enough! However, if you are a person with a lot of triggers, please read the content warning before reading this story.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre/trope: fiction, romance, marriage in trouble
CW: depression, parental deaths, stillbirth, divorce

“𝙶𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚏 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚐𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚍. 𝙸𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚔 𝚘𝚏 𝚋𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚊𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚛𝚒𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚘𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚊 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚕𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕𝚜 𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚝𝚢. 𝙰 𝚐𝚊𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚑𝚘𝚕𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚗 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚎𝚡𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚕𝚔𝚜 𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚙𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚒𝚝’𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎.”

This is one of the most poignant books I’ve read all year. The writing eloquently and honestly captures grief that resonates with anyone going through it - myself included - regardless of how the trauma was inflicted.

The story pivots between now in Yasmen and Josiah’s post-divorce life, and the before. The early days of their romance, and the painful time in their lives that led to their marriage failing. Two years later, they reflect on the past with newfound perspective which comes with time, distance, and the hard work of therapy and introspection. They’re trying to move on while still tethered to each other by their kids, work and history. There’s still so much love between them, and physical attraction which manifests in urgently sensual and spicy moments. They’re soulmates fighting their way back to each other and their family unit.

Kennedy Ryan’s an incredible writer who’s no stranger to writing the difficult stuff. I felt like she helped me through my own loss as she took me on this gritty, soul-bearing journey. Sharing in Yasmin and Josiah’s grief and hopes was healing and cathartic. My heart was broken and comforted. And thankfully, there is a happily ever after. Readers, be gentle with yourself if you’re feeling vulnerable.

Thanks @netgalley & @readforeverpub for my ARC. This is my honest review. Book releases 11/15.
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