I love books with concepts like these and I thought the author offered a fresh take. It does have a fairly predictable plot and the ending seemed super rush, but it's a solid book for anyone else whoever wondered, "what if...?"

💭Let me start by saying I really enjoyed CJ’s writing. I couldn’t put this down. From the very first page I was hooked, much like the other book I’ve read by the same author, The Love of My Other Life. Both are written very well, and are incredibly gripping.

💭Again, like The Love of My Other Life, the concept of this was super interesting and I do think it was done well up until the end. I really enjoyed the little crossovers from each reality like the boy with the face paint at the fireworks and Hayley working in the same place. It was super clever and you had to pay attention to notice them.

💭The reason I didn’t rate this higher was because the ending was so obvious and brief. I guessed that outcome super early on so wasn’t surprised, but I was surprised there was no follow up as to what happened after. Hearing Liv tell everyone about where she’d been/what had happened would have been fab!

I usually love books with a Groundhog's Day-esque feeling where the MC gets to relive their life somehow and try again. I thought the premise of THE LOVE I COULD HAVE HAD was neat, with the FMC disappearing from one life and reappearing in a different life. I would have been happy following that storyline and seeing if she was stuck there or ended up back in the OG storyline. But I was not too fond of the fact that it flipped back to chapters in the OG storyline like she was a missing person. It lessened the effect of her learning from the new storyline, and, tbh, I didn't like it. I ended up DNFing at about 30% because it wasn't an enjoyable read.

Thanks, Joffe Books and Netgalley, for the arc!

Content warnings so far: child death

"The Love I Could Have Had" by C.J. Connolly is a captivating and thought-provoking romance novel that will keep readers engrossed until the very end. Olivia's seemingly perfect life takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious accident erases her memories and leaves her questioning everything she thought she knew.

Connolly's storytelling prowess shines as Olivia grapples with the realisation that she has the opportunity to rewrite her life's story. The novel expertly explores themes of destiny, love, and the power of choice, as Olivia navigates her newfound freedom and the chance to pursue the paths she never dared to tread before.

What makes "The Love I Could Have Had" truly stand out is its emotional depth and authenticity. Connolly masterfully delves into Olivia's inner turmoil, capturing the complexities of her relationships and the profound impact of her choices on those around her. Readers will find themselves fully invested in Olivia's journey of self-discovery and rooting for her to find happiness and fulfilment.

Whether you believe in destiny or the power of second chances, "The Love I Could Have Had" offers a compelling exploration of love, loss, and the enduring quest for happiness. Prepare to be swept away by this unforgettable tale of love, fate, and the choices that shape our lives.

Unfortunately not for me this one! DNF 15%
I’m not a fantasy/sci-fi sort of person and the sliding doors wasn’t hitting right for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of The Love I Could Have Had by C.J. Connolly in exchange for my honest review and opinion. Great writing style by the author and had me fully engaged then the book took a turn that went into sort of a fantasy mode and I sort of lost interest at that point. I finished it and it was cute but probably not my favorite read of 2023.

Good book with a great cast of characters in the pages. I really enjoyed the whole story and would defiantly say add this one to your to be read pile.

Such a fun trope that was done sooo well! I loved this book. I was completely consumed and couldn't put it down!

I enjoyed this one but I really loved The Love Of My Other Lide much much more. This one was sweet but seemed to end too abruptly and was very predictable.

What if you could do all the things you never did . . .

I was really hoping to like this book, but it was hard for me to get into what was going on with it. Some of the characters "hatefulness" was a little too much for me to take. I can understand how they would be weary of someone coming back after so long, but you feel the pain that Olivia is going through.

I think that this is not a genre for me.

Thank you Netgalley. I loved the premise of this book but it fell flat for me. I couldn't quite connect with the characters or the story itself. It felt like something was missing and I struggled to finish.

As much as I loved the concept of this one, in reality I was confused throughout and it didn't always make sense and then the ending was abrupt and felt unfinished.

This is a book that had tons of potential but in my opinion feel short in the end. I am sure there are many readers out there who may enjoy this though and I would read from this author again in the future.

Do you ever wonder what might have happened "if"? Who hasn't? In this particular case, Olivia Grainger, the protagonist loves her fiance, Jake Johnson, totally but cannot help wondering if there are other options. Then a freak accident just a few months before the wedding transports her to a parallel universe where she died at 12 years old because Jake had not quite been able to save her. In this universe, Jake is engaged to someone else! Naturally, Olivia's family is skeptical regarding her identity and motives. She does meet a perfectly nice person who would make a fine partner, but can she let go of her other life? Or can she somehow find her way back to the life she had?

I usually love books with alternative narratives but this one was a little disappointing. Liv is wondering if she's making the right decision with her life. Marrying the first man she's dated, never traveling out of her small town... When she slips and falls she wakes in the hospital but everything is changed. She's not engaged and no one knows who she is. Liv spends the novel trying to convince her family she's their daughter.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC. A multiverse romance not for me. I just didn’t connect with the story or characters. Then ending was also boring.

While reading this multiverse story has been fun and interesting the plot didn't work out for me. Maybe the book just wasn't made for me but I didn't get to connect with Olivia and her doubts. The characters felt flat and the end kind of rushed.

Kind of like 'Sliding doors movie' in a book. It makes you think about how we get trapped in a certain kind of life and gets you to wonder what could happen if you had a clean slate to start all over and do things differently. Kind of scary but a clever idea and premise for a book. An interesting read.

I love these sorts of stories and this didn’t disappoint at all. Enjoyable tale, kept me reading and gripped. Thank you for the advanced read.

A lovely easy read about life, love, loss and what makes us who we are. The paths we take can so easily be changed by a single encounter or a mysterious time shift in this case. Very heartwarming and full of happy endings.

this was a sweet summer book, but it fell rather flat for me in the end. the main plot is about 28-year-old olivia, who's about to marry her childhood sweetheart she's been dating since she was 14. she's getting cold feet and wonders what else life has to offer. not that she doesn't love jake (which is something that bothered me because she says he's the love of her life, so why would she want to be with anyone else when she's already found him?), but she has never left her small town or been with anyone else. i do understand her feelings about this fear of missing out on better things, but when you have a great life like hers and an amazing fiancé like jake, it's a bit hard for the reader to sympathize with her feeling sorry for herself. instead of having a conversation with jake about how she feels, which would be the logical course of action, she keeps acting like everything is fine. then one day, she falls from a cliff and ends up in a parallel universe where she died when she was 12 and never dated jake. that's the part that drew me to the story in the first place. while it was an interesting turn of event and a clever plot idea, it didn't really delivered as well as i was hoping. she spends most of her time in this alternate universe wishing she was back in her world and missing jake. i guess distance does make the heart grow fonder and maybe that was the main message of this book. i felt like the author spent too long on olivia trying to convince her family and everyone around her that she was who she was and not enough exploring this new reality. she's been wondering about leading a different life for months, and now that she has the opportunity, she doesn't really do anything with it, which seemed like a wasted opportunity. the chapters from jake's pov were good, but i felt bad for how worried he was about olivia disappearing when she didn't seem to care in the same way. while the end was nice, it was quite abrupt and left me wanting more. it didn't answer a lot of the questions i had. overall, it was a well-written book that was easy to read and it had a good original plot, but i had a hard time relating with the main character and felt like the parallel universe idea wasn't developed or used nearly enough. there was also a definite lack of romance for a romance book.