I really loved this one! After the first one, I was expecting a similar level of heaviness (iykyk), but this one had just enough real life that I felt for them while still keeping it light enough that my delicate heart could deal with it. I thought the premise was so intriguing and while I would have liked to see more pining, I really loved both of them separately and together. (I also just found out that Kennedy Ryan is coming to my library this summer for their Book Festival and I CANNOT explain just how excited I am!!)

Kennedy Ryan does it every time. She convinces this "I don't read romance" reader into a ROMANCE READER.

Soledad's story was beautiful, painful and real. Her relationship with Judah was deep and, may I say, sexy. Ryan writes men with such depth, beauty and vulnerability. I loved every facet of their complicated pairing.

I especially love a love story for a mom. I love when a mom gets to be a woman again, when she can reclaim her identity as a mon and ...

This Could Be Us paints a picture of life after it’s been turned upside down. Soledad Barnes, a queen of planning and keeping it all together, finds herself picking up the pieces when her life shatters due to betrayal. But there’s no time for sulking; she’s busy being a superhero mom to her daughters.

What’s refreshing about this read is the lack of unnecessary drama. Sol & Judah, the forbidden love interest, are mature characters who makes sensible choices. Their slow-burn romance is heartwarming, but readers might wish there were more moments of them just dating and getting to know each other.

Kennedy Ryan does it again! This was so good. So relatable. Love yourself before you pour into someone else!

Soledad's story hits home for those of us who won't settle and who have learned to love ourselves. It's so wonderful to show a complicated family in a real and raw way - many parts that I could personally relate to: divorced parents, a parent in prison, and navigating relationships throughout. Kennedy did a great job depicting true feelings of many people in various circumstances.

So good! I love the heroines that Kennedy Ryan writes, but even more than that, in this book, she truly takes it up a notch with the autism spectrum disorder rep. Give me all the mature MCs and the perfectly imperfect love stories.

I loved this story! Kennedy Ryan is such a gifted writer. I adored Soledad's journey overcoming her ex (total a$$), the support of her friends and then the new love interest of Judah- I honestly also loved the relationship that Judah and his ex had- we so often only hear about horrible divorces and terrible relationships juggling the kids so this was a breathe of fresh air. I also enjoyed the plotline that included Judah's twin boys Adam and Aaron, and their journey on the autism spectrum. The chemistry between Judah and Soledad was hot and I really just loved how respectful he was of her feelings and her past hurt. All around a perfect read for me. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved this book and Kennedy Ryan will always be a romance author whose work I reach for. What I particularly love about her stories is how layered her characters are and how much time she spends ensuring that she creates circumstances that feel real and well intentioned. In this story, there are two autistic characters, and I appreciated the level of detail that was put into capturing what parenting autistic children looks like.

Kennedy Ryan's love interests are also always top tier. This man had me swooning and kicking my feet. I love that she writes men who are mature, great communicators and just men who generally edify the female main character in some way.

She also does a phenomenal job of writing great female friendships across all of her stand-alone novels and series. Yes, this was about the main couple and their romance, but I was also enamoured by the women in the story and how much of a support system they were for each other in crisis. It is very refreshing to read about women who got other women in their friend groups -- and time and time again, Kennedy Ryan ensures that she captures this in her stories.

This book was a breath of fresh air and I would recommend it to everyone!

This book. Woof. Take my heart and rip it out. I am obsessed with everything about it and how amazing these characters develop. This book is such a journey and a perfect continuation of this series and Kennedy's writing. I laughed, I cried, I died a little inside. I absolutely recommend this one.

Soledad Barnes has her life all planned out. But none of her best laid plans can save her when catastrophe strikes, and the life she built with the man who was supposed to be her forever, goes up in a fire of betrayal and disillusion. But there is no time to pout or sulk, or even grieve the life she lost. She's too busy keeping a roof over her daughters' heads and food on the table. And in the process of saving them all, Soledad rediscovers herself. But then an unlikely man enters the picture—the forbidden one, the one she shouldn't want but can't seem to resist. She's lost it all before and refuses to repeat her mistakes. Can she trust him? Can she trust herself?

Thank you so much to @netgalley for this ARC! I loved Kennedy Ryans’s Before I Let Go so much, but unfortunately this book was a miss for me and I seem to be among the very small few that did not like this. Soledad and Judah in and of themselves were solid characters and I really appreciate the autism awareness and visibility in this book. All of the kids were all great characters as well, but especially Adam and Aaron. My problem with this book is that it took FOREVER for the plot to go anywhere, and the final destination was disappointing. I felt like the novel was full of incredibly slow moments that never really built up to anything exciting—plot-wise, character development-wise, and romance-wise. The dialogue wasn’t anything to write home about and after a while I just got really tired of Judah and Soledad pining for each other but not doing anything about it. There were a lot of side plots going on that didn’t have much to do with their relationship and for me that really detracted from their chemistry. Also Inez the moody teenager seemed to get over her reservations about her mother’s new boyfriend very quickly without any explanation and that bothered me. Overall this just wasn’t for me.

This was a masterpiece of a book 😭 the writing, the emotions, the nuances were all just PERFECT. I loved the pacing, I could read it comfortably without feeling anxious, and that's saying a lot given the themes that this book deals with.
I recommend this book so hard if you read contemporary romance, or just, contemporary fiction.

Ryan is skilled at female dialogue and the world-building of female friendships that showcase the community we all want to live in. The romance was a very slow build, but it is understandable as to why. The care taken to show what it is like living with and raising children with autism was admirable.

Kennedy Ryan has once again written an absolutely breathtaking novel that is all about love. This novel touches on self love, romance, love after divorce/painful loss, and caring for children during love and love lost.

Soledad Barnes is a take charge, woman in control. Control of business, people, essentially everything. Maybe everything but her romantic relationship because it ends in a very painful manner. But in true Soledad fashion she spends the time caring for her children, learning to love herself and focusing on her future alone.

Her focus is challenged when she meets a wonderful man. A man that could change everything for her.

This Could Be Us is a remarkable romance novel. It is well written with impeccable characters, setting and storyline. The characters will have you rooting for them and they are realistic in their reactions. The story is different from most romance novels and is absolutely brilliant. This will be a top 10 book of the year!

I absolutely adored this book. Soledad deserves the world and she got with Judah. I can't wait to read the next Skyland novel!

Did I just become a Kennedya Ryan fan? Because I absolutely loved this!!! This was so much more than a love story. It was a self love love story and it was absolutely beautiful. Soledad went through the unimaginable and her strength and resiliency was a beautiful thing witness. She was inspiring. She handled the situation with such grace. And Jude....this man is top tier. You will not find anyone better than him. First off...how him and his wife parted amicably and the way they've handled life after divorce is HOW IT SHOULD BE DONE!!!! But secondly, how he supported his wife so she could look after herself and her career and not have to sacrifice anything to be a mom...hats off you to you Jude! Seeing him as a dad was so refreshing, how hands on he was and how much he cared. His patience with Soledad knew no bounds and his need to make sure her and her family were good after what her husband did just reinforced why he's top tier.

Such a wonderful continuation of this series!! ♥️ I love the neurodivergent character exploration, the navigation of grief and loss, and I’m obsessed with Sol’s character development. She takes real care in finding herself and making providing for her family a top priority. Her brain, her heart, her ideas and her work are so important to our MMC and that makes me so happy! I loved this story and can’t wait to read Hen’s next!!

This book is a great read. It has three dimensional characters, an interesting hero/heroine, and the main obstacle that the characters have to overcome is unique to recent romances that are out. My biggest loves are the MC and her relationship with her mother, sisters, and friends. I enjoyed getting to know her by exploring her world and the many ways it’s changing. I loved that the hero or male MC is neurodiverse, and we as readers get to watch him be a parent, a former partner, and a bad ass at work.

I would say this is a slow burn, which isn’t my go to romance recipe. The way the story evolves withstands the “will they” or “won’t they” questions. I would’ve also like to see more of the characters support system. At times they are very tangential. The sisters - for me - would make a great spinoff trilogy.

Overall, I definitely recommend this read or listen! Kennedy is one of my favorite authors because of how she takes time to explore her characters as living people. I would recommend reading the first in the series Before I Let Go, though this is certainly a standalone book on its own. Looking forward to the next character’s story!

Kennedy Ryan has an incredible talent of writing books with strong, real, raw, brilliant women filled with emotion that just screams through the pages and bleeds into your soul.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this before publication.

I am forever grateful!!!

The romance in this book was amazing, but the true beauty of this book was autism representation. I absolutely scored how Adam and Aaron were written. As a teacher it was beautiful to see these boys shine in their own ways. I loved how unique they were. I also loved how often Judah admitted to some of the same tendencies as his boys. I loved how he ran with them, how he sacrificed so much for them, and how he coparented them.

I loved Sol too. Her tenacity was impressive. I found myself cheering for her and even though she had some understandably emotional reactions in the book she was one of the most level headed moms ever. I loved her sacrifices for her kids too. But I also respected the things that she did for herself to heal. Very impressive.

I really appreciated the timeline of the romance in this book. I loved that it wasn't rushed into. I loved that Judah and Sol found happiness without sacrificing their relationships with their kids.

I highly recommend this book but do appreciate the author's warning that there is past mention of death of a parent to cancer. I didn't lose my mom to cancer but it was a prolonged illness so I appreciated the warning.

I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley. This is my honest review

One of my most anticipated reads of the year, This Could Be Us absolutely blew me away (but then again, it's Kennedy Ryan, so of course it did). While I technically can't say I loved it quiiiite as much as I loved Before I Let Go (I wasn't expecting it to; BILG is one of my all-time favorites), TCBU is 100% a must-read, and once again Ryan proves her prowess as one of the most gifted romance writers in the game. Her stories pack emotional punch, and feel so real in a way most other stories of the genre do not. She very clearly pulled lots from her real life to write this book, and you can tell. There is heart and soul in these pages. Ryan writes with such elegant prose, such fully realized characters. I was glued to the page from beginning to end.