I've read this almost 24 hours ago, but my brain was too sleep deprived to write a proper review because I was just not able to put this down for the prologue to the very end. And 24 hours later, I still CANNOT stop thinking about this.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I eat, breathe and live Kennedy Ryan's books, before getting the ARC for this (thank you, Netgalley), I honestly felt like this year was incomplete because there was no KR book released (yes yes I know she released the Close-Up beginning of the year but that barely scratched the itch so it doesn't count).

I genuinely think Kennedy Ryan might just be the best author (to me) I've ever read from. The way the words in her books sound like poetry and her incomparable way of writing chemistry are just unmatched, I'm half convinced there is sorcery waved between each line, and this book is no exception.

I had high hopes going into this, and, unlike so many books where I get disappointed because of it, this did not let me down in any way but i actually did quite the opposite. This book put me through the RINGER and I loved every second of it.

Anger, frustration, longing, love. I felt it all. I wanted to strange Soledad's husband (honestly, if there is anything mediocre white men have it's the AUDACITY), I was frustrated as to Soledad and Judah's circumstances, I longed for them to be together, I loved the friendship between Soledad, Yasmeen and Hendrix, I loved the sisterhood between Soledad and her sister, I loved how just because Soledad has unconditionally supportive friendship did not mean she had to have shit relationship with her sisters — which is something that is very much rare in 99% of the books I've read — I loved the relationship between Soledad and her daughters, I love Soledad's relationship with HERSELF, I loved Judah's relationship with his sons and his ex-wife, and I absolutely adored Soledad and Judah's relationship, even-though it did frustrate me at times but it's also one of the things that made me root for them so much.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, no one, absolutely no one, does chemistry like Kennedy, where everyone writes about love, she writes about soulmates. There is not a single doubt that the moment Soledad and Judah meet, that there souls recognized each other. It's in that PAUSE moment, where everything stops, and where you don't understand what's happening and why you feel like something in you fell in place in that moment and Kennedy Ryan excels in this; she is the queen of this trope, and I have no idea how she does it without making it feel and sound cringey. There was absolutely not a single moment where I doubted Soledad and Judah are soulmates, where their chemistry was not off the fucking charts even when there were feet apart. Their relationship was absolutely everything.

I have to say though, that even-though the romance in this was a very big part, it also has another huge plot which is self-love. Soledad's self-discovery and journey into loving herself outside of her failed marriage is a big part of this, and the most inspiring part. I loved seeing her find a path that is outside of her ex and about HER and her daughters. Soledad is honestly one of the most compassionate, gentle and loving characters, she is generous with everyone, she has a thought for everyone and is always ready to help anyone who needs it, and it was time for her to treat herself the way she treated others, to put herself first.

Now onto Judah. Judah, Judah, Judah. It is impossible not to love this man. He is the absolute best father, best ex-husband and best love interest a girl could ask for. His unconditional love for his sons is one of his absolute best traits; the way he does not hesitate to put them first, his patience, his kindness and his kid heart are everything and more. I loved how his relationship with his ex-wife was not in any way venomous but the absolute opposite. This man was really the complete package!

I cannot finish this review without mentioning one of my favorite aspect of this book, which is the friendship between our three main girls. Yasmeen, Soledad and Hendrix are absolute best friend goals. The perfect trio. Their unquestioning and unwavering support for each other is the absolute best thing, and it only becomes more apparent in this book. I just absolutely adore them. Also, Hendrix is the absolute funniest and it needed to be said.

And finally, the representation. If you've ever read a Kennedy Ryan book, you know if there is one thing this woman will do with write some representation and write it well. You can always tell she does her research and it never feels like she does it as a token or for bonus points, it just feels organic, and the autism rep in this is no exception. I can't say much on it as I'm not an expert on the subject, but I genuinely could tell this was not done carelessly.

Overall, this was one of the best books I've read this year, if not the best. And absolutely feel like it made my entire reading year (which was NOT all that good).

I cannot wait for Hendrix's book, but for the love of God woman, I'm gonna need Score before that because I think my life DEPENDS on it at this point.

I went into this book unsure. Ms. Ryan’s books tend to be hit or miss for me. Sometimes they come off a little racially preachy, if that makes sense. I understand she’s a BIPOC, but people of every race read her books. I liked the storyline between Judah and Sol. Loved them together. But honestly…..I could have done without Edward and his mom, the two white characters, being the awful people and the mom only liking the one daughter because she looks white. I understand the storyline had Edward going away, fine. But is that part really necessary to put into a book?

Kennedy Ryan's writing will always be masterful and she is a brilliant storyteller. I appreciate the thought and characters put behind this book but unfortunately, I found it very hard to get into this book. I found the prologue to be very info-dumpy and by the 50% mark I still did not care deeply for the characters.

This story was absolutely breathtaking. I was drawn in from the very first scene.. Kennedy Ryan is masterful at making her readers feel. Big feelings. Whether it's happy, sad, excitement, rage,...and all the feels in between. Soledad was a heroine to love and root for. She was strong, bold, beautiful, so very intelligent, humble but not prideful...she was just all around amazing. And Judah!!! Judah is what ever woman dreams of for a partner. Kind, generous, observant, handsome, responsible, patient and so much more. I absolutely loved this story. It didn't feel like a slow burn, mostly because I was burning woth anger from the first scene and then I was burning with chemistry soon after. A love story was developing right before my eyes and I could feel it. The love that Sol discovered she had for herself, for her girls and for the life that she had to recreate was enough for me. The love that came after was a beautiful bonus. This, most definitely, will go down as my favorite Kennedy Ryan release and I am so grateful I was able to get an Advance Reader Copy. I can't wait to own this is print as well as audio.

R E V I E W

“I am out with my lanterns looking for myself.”
- Emily Dickinson, personal correspondence

Man, I have forgotten what it feels like to be in a well constructed, thought out and felt out Kennedy Ryan book.

The emotions Ms. Ken (yes, nicknames because we’re friends!) cultivates and nurtures. Ugh! Friend had me at the author’s note. The care and consideration she puts forth in tackling the world of ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and its nuances and classifications can only come from someone who knows the ends and outs of that world and loves someone deeply who lives in that space. It spoke to my ASD mama heart.

If you are familiar with Before I Let Go, you are familiar with Skyland and the fabulous group of friends that is Yasmen, Hendrix and Soledad.

This Could Be Us is where we peek inside the carefully constructed life of Soledad Barnes. We learn the background of this beautiful Afro Latina and how hard she loves her family and watch her rise with the aid of her friends through an unreal experience. Her journey to love herself after years dedicated to pouring love into someone else.

It would not be a Kennedy book if she did not have you looking at your kitchen and pantry sideways with these food descriptions. Or had you looking at your significant other like “sir, do better because Judah would never.” And you know friend threw recipes in the pages…as well as some crack because I flew through this book with addictive quickness.

This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan
10-10-10 across the board
Thank you NetGalley and Kennedy for allowing me to get this ARC!

Kennedy Ryan!!! KENNEDY RYAN!!! SHE DID IT AGAIN!!!

First of all, I don’t want to publicly admit how loud I screamed when this ARC was offered. Before I Let Go was my favorite read last year, and it will stick with me forever. So will this book.
We meet Soledad at the worst moment of her life and watch her build something herself with a beautiful community of friends and family surrounding her. She put so much work into building a new life for herself and her family, and i loved her beautiful story of self-empowerment. I adored her and felt as if I was growing along with her.
Judah only wanted the best for her, for his family, and for hers. I love how much he cared for his sons and the dedication he showed to building a good life for them. His admiration and his patience made this book all the better.
At the beginning of the book, Ryan explains her personal story of raising an autistic child, and how she’s spent years being concerned about writing about autism because of her fears of getting things “wrong.” So she interviewed families and autistic people, capturing and recording their experiences. As a person with a loved one on the spectrum, I thought the way she portrayed Judah’s sons was handled with so much love and care.
I will be reflecting for a while on this book, and I can’t wait to read Hendrix’s.

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for the digital arc in exchange for my honest review.

This book didn't make me cry, but it did completely overwhelm me. Starting with Soledad, her handling of the situation despite her internal turmoil showed once again how powerful women are. Kennedy Ryan once again shown the beauty of female friendship. The way Yas and Hendrix supported Soledad financially and emotionally is beautiful to witness, as is Soledad's bond with her sisters.

Judah, Judah!! I can't identify a single imperfection in him, despite my belief that no human being is perfect!! He is a wonderful husband, parent, and friend. The way he managed his son's meltdown and how considerate he was to soledad god utter perfection!!!

This book is a reminder to those who forget how important self-love is and how strong women are.

Can't wait for Hendrix book, Spring 2025 need to come soon.

I loved this book because i felt that it wasn’t rushed by the author. I got so caught up in the story line that I wish it didn’t end. I read the book over the course of two days. There were so many angles that the author could have expanded on but I think she gave us just enough without giving too much. I loved the women characters and seeing everyone’s journey it helped to make the characters more relatable.

If you like quick reads this book is not for you.

This was a beautiful story about women empowerment and the importance of moving on being a best version of yourself.

This book had puertorican representation and as I puertorican myself I liked a lot of the topics and references that were mentioned in this book.

Even though I liked this one, the first one continues to be my favorite

One thing about Kennedy Ryan, if she writes it, consider it 5 stars. I blew through this book because I could not stand to put it down -- I devoured it in a day! The way she has with words is a gift, and I'm so glad I found her. In going through her backlog, the evolution of her writing blows me away and she has quickly become an auto-buy author for me!

With that said, the second book in the Skyland series may top Before I Let Go, mainly because of the connection I have to Soledad. Being of hispanic descent, I loved seeing the culture woven through the story and the "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned" vides, because Latinas can be quite fiery. Seeing as I am all about the drama, there were some things I would have liked to see happen with Edward in the end (I don't want to spoil anything so I will leave it a little vague), especially after Soledad rediscovered herself, but it did not bring down my overall rating.

I cannot wait to see what Queen Kennedy has in store for the rest of this series, as well as any other future works!

Didn’t love it as much as I did the first book in this series and that makes me sad. My expectations were probably too high.

Felt like Soledad’s story was handled with kid gloves. Very low stakes and her husband still got a happily ever after which felt just wrong. How does he get to just run off into the sunset with his new family after what he did. I was left feeling unsatisfied. Which probably was the point because people who commit white collar crime all to often get off with a slap on the wrist.

Soledad’s journey to self love felt superficial. Probably because she didn’t need to do any self growth. Nothing was wrong with her. She just needed to drop that dead weight - her husband.

The colorism angle from her mother in law could have been more fleshed out. So little attention was given to it it could have just been left out all together.

Judah was forgettable. The only thing I really remember about him is his love for his twins and his great relationship with his ex wife. His love for Soledad felt lukewarm and didn’t translate for me.

All in all this one just felt like fluff with very low emotional stakes and I was expecting to be more invested and I wasn’t. Felt very much like a middle book in a series.

Still looking forward to Hendrix’s book but hoping it will pull at my heart strings like the first book did.

I loved BEFORE I LET GO, so I was really sad that this book turned out to be a disappointment. The instant attraction, given the circumstances, was just a bit unbelievable for me, and despite Judah being portrayed as super caring and thoughtful, I couldn't get over how he kept insisting on pushing Soledad into a relationship even though she wasn't ready.

I also found the pro-cop through-line a bit off-putting. I get that in this case we're talking about white, privileged white-collar criminals but it was a bit cringe. And a small nitpick but I wish we weren't still italicizing and explaining non-english words in 2023; I find that books always hit harder when they're written to those communities mentioned (e.g. Black and Latine / autistic) as opposed to writing for a white, neurotypical person that needs these explanations. Like c'mon, I think we can figure out what abuela means without the italics.

I've had a hard time with romance recently so acknowledge I may be overly harsh at the moment, but there were a lot of small things that bothered me, which collectively dampened my reading experience.

Thank you to Kennedy Ryan & Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for my eARC copy!

I am not unfamiliar with Kennedy Ryan's work, and so far, I have yet to be disappointed. She pulls through every time and tugs at your heartstrings. In her yet-to-be-released work, This Could Be Us (releasing March 5th, 2024), we follow Soledad (one of Yasmen's best friends from Before I Let Go) on her journey as drastic changes uproot her life. Throughout this book, Kennedy Ryan delicately and thoughtfully portrays autism, how it is presented differently in all individuals, and society's vocabulary surrounding the topic. This story is beautifully written and handled with so much care. The dynamics between the families, friends, and community are heartwarming and loving and show how essential it is to have a community to fall back on in times of need. Mrs. Ryan's pen game is lethal when detailing the passion, angst, and slow-burn romances in her books. She always leaves you wanting more. I'll be preordering the final copy and can't wait to see what will be in store for Hendrix in book 3 (2025 release).

Soledad is a planner who has everything organized and checked twice. But life has other ideas.... She has lots of challenges with divorce, raising kids who require extra help...

I love how Kennedy Ryan deals with so many issues with such sensitivity. There are lots of angst, drama, emotions, self-discovery and love.... The love in the story is moving and very emotional. Very beautiful story...

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.

I was lucky enough to get my hands on this arc from NETGALLEY . This is easiest 5 stars I’ve ever given. This story is so perfectly written. You go through all the emotions with the characters. The diversity as well as the representation of autism was so beautiful to see in this book and it was done well. The side characters weren’t annoying either, they were entertaining and progressed & aided the story. The romance was just so well paced and it had the perfect amount of spice . I have not one complaint about this book! If I could give it 6 stars I would! Everyone needs to run to read this come March! 😭

✔️Dual POV (Judah x Soledad)
✔️Set in an upscale Atlanta suburb
✔️Contemporary romance
✔️Tropes: Second-chance romance (not with their original spouses though!)
✔️Microtrope: "Who did this to you?"

“It’s not an endgame.” I push away from the wall and step close, carefully lift the curls around her hairline away from her face. “It’s a begin game.”

“I’ve come to realize that a woman who wants more and realizes she deserves it is a dangerous thing.”

“When you do think about this relationship, don’t compare it to anything else, to anyone else. Draw a picture in your mind of what a future could look like and really believe this could be us.”

“This Could Be Us” is the Kennedy Ryan’s follow-up to “Before I Let You Go,” which was a 5-star read for me. Needless to say, my expectations were HIGH. I love a romance featuring grown-ups with real lives. This is a perfect series if you’re fed up with the virgin ingénues in every other romance.

Soledad is increasingly frustrated with her loveless marriage and distant husband. At her husband’s corporate Christmas party, she is captivated by a handsome stranger. The man turns out to be Judah Cross, a forensic accountant the company recently hired. Judah is hot on the trail of Soledad’s husband and helps the FBI arrest him for embezzling $6 million. You can’t love a man that put your husband behind bars. Can you? CAN YOU?

Judah is a father to twin autistic boys. Kennedy Ryan has a personal commitment to getting their stories right. In her other books, the author’s signature in-depth research is nearly invisible. In this book, the effort shows just a bit more. There is A LOT of detail about autism in this story to provide fair and accurate representation, but it’s just a touch heavy handed. There’s also a C-plot storyline about a neighborhood mom with cancer that’s needlessly draining to the novel’s energy and optimism.

When Judah and Soledad are on the page together, this story sizzles. They are both impossibly good parents going through some really hard times while secretly falling in love.

Content warnings: Ex-husband is a CHEATER and THIEF!

ARC copy acquired through Net Galley with approval from Forever (Grand Central Publishing).

Kennedy Ryan did not disappoint with Soledad’s story , i devoured this book and couldn’t put it down.
The hero was swoon worthy ( hello are we surprised ? … Also where can i get me one of those 🤤🤤)
This book had humor , self love awakening moments , friendship moments , and a good storyline
What can i say more ….. i can’t wait for HENDRIX’S BOOK
10/10 recommend

WHEW!!!

This 👏 book 👏 was 👏 every 👏 thing 👏 !!! Well written, with just the right amount of angst! Soledad and Judah are amazing parents, but most importantly amazing people who deserve the good in life.

Mrs. Ryan wrote her heart out in these pages. The peek inside the life of a parent with a differently able child was so insight and it taught me a lot about a situation I’ve never had to experience. Thank you for that.

I will be reading this book again, soon. And I can’t wait for the book release so I can buy a copy!

Great job!!

I would like to say that *again* Kennedy Ryan wrote one of my comfort books (no one is surprised). She is an exceptional writer and her romance books always amaze me, but what is truly awesome is the way she gives this space to tell a story about women. Soledad's journey, as well as Yamen's, was always the main focus and I really appreciate that her "re"-self-discovery was kind of the real romance here. I could see so many women I know in Soledad, women who are constantly let down by the men in their families and left alone with their children and their homes. It's very hard to read something this personal actually, but Kennedy is always respectful in the way she writes and I thank her for that.

Another thing I liked about this book, which is also somewhat reflected in the previous one, is the families' dynamic. This is not the typical story where the man's ex is crazy or still in love with him, instead they have a good friendship and they support each other with their boys. And of course, I loved when they welcomed Soledad and her family in theirs. But I would've liked to see more of Sol's daughters and Judah. The ending felt a bit rushed for me because they didn't even talked once, and I get that it was mostly between the girls and their mother, but in my personal opinion, if Judah had spoken to them about his intentions towards Sol it would've felt more natural in a way.

4,5☆

First THANK YOU to Read Forever Pub and Kennedy Ryan for the e-arc,

I know three things for certain is 1) Ms Kennedy knows how to write a romance book that’s gonna have you crying and smiling 2) I will be picking up all about love by bell hooks and 3) I’m manifesting a man like Judah Cross!

This is a beautiful story about healing and finding love again and most importantly loving yourself. I laughed and cried and at the end of Soledads story I was just so happy that she came into her own and finally found peace and man than truly loves her. This book is immaculate and it had me reevaluating my self, my love life and that’s the best part about a Kennedy Ryan book. Her stories will have you reflecting and looking within yourself.