I can not say enough about this book. By far this is one of the best books I have ever read. The characters and the storyline are so relatable and I was hooked from the first page. I was so proud of Sol and the growth that she accomplished throughout the story. The love and patience that Judah showed her was just beautiful to witness. There was so much love throughout the story and it was displayed in a multitude of ways. Again I say best read really of my life! So many things to ponder on at the end.

I didn’t think it would be possible for me to love this book as much as Before I Let Go, but I was wrong! Kennedy Ryan has a way of drawing you in and making you fall in love with the characters in her books. Judah came into Sols life in the most bizarre and unfortunate way but they were immediately drawn to one another. Right person wrong time? Guess you will have to read it for yourself to see!

4.5 stars!

This book was SO much better than "Before I Let Go," the first book in this series, in my opinion. I've always loved Soledad and the bridge between the last book and this one was perfect (yet this can be read as a standalone). There were many deep, emotional moments, which can sometimes overwhelm me in romance books, but they felt natural in this one.

On top of the romance, there are strong friendship bonds between Hendrix, Yasmen, and Soledad, autism awareness done in the best way possible, and all around very mature, likable characters (minus a certain someone), all of which I really appreciated.

The only real criticism I have is that I don't like pet names like "sweetheart" or "honey." They feel very condescending to me, but I know that isn't the intention.

Thank you to Kennedy Ryan and NetGalley for receiving an ARC copy of this book!

My actual rating is 3.89 but I rounded up. 🤷🏾‍♀️

Thank you NetGalley for the digital ARC of this book!

Okay so I had a night to sleep on it and here are a few of my thoughts.

First of all I made the mistake of thinking this book would be like BFILG in the sense that the romance would be the main plot. It's NOT! The main plot is self love as opposed to the plot of BFILG which was romantic love between a woman and a man. There was a subplot of romantic love but not as strong as I anticipated which was both good and bad for me.

Kennedy Ryan writes grown woman fiction for grown women. The things that happened in this book were so real and I feel like If I read this as a teen I wouldn't get or appreciate it's themes.

The romance portion of the book gave me the ick for most of the book because of the situation surrounding it and all of the elements that complicated it. I'm still not 100% sure if I'm feeling the romance of it all but I did love Judah. He was a well written character and he showed up for Soledad beautifully.

I know little to nothing about Autism and KR really wrote about it a way that educated with such grace, and normality.

The ending was very interesting to me and I kind of feel like there's more that can come about it but I'm not sure if it will.

Hendrix and Yasmen were present throughout the book, but there is still so much I do not know about Hendrix. I am definitely committed to this series and I am looking forward to Hendrix's story. I am not anticipating hers to be a romance at all, I actually have no expectations except what was offered in the last 2 books.

Good book, just not what I expected, but still a realistic story that was deeply enjoyable and relatable.

Thank you KR 💕

Kennedy Ryan is simply that girl. She’s perfected the craft of women’s fiction with a delicious side of romance. I adore the way she focuses on the struggle of healing and finding self worth after heartbreak, and how important it is for her characters to feel truly ready as they commit to the next step of trusting someone with their heart again.

I also really love how she writes families. When she includes children, they are truly PEOPLE in her stories. Every moment where families were on the page felt true, raw, and real.

AND I appreciate the ways in which she also takes time to include the benefit of therapy.

This book is filled with loss, longing, and love. You get the drama, you get the self love and improvement, and it’s so damn sexy.

Yeah, I ate this up.

Ready for Hendrix! I know it’s gonna go crazy

When I first met Soledad in Before I Let Go, I knew she was something special and her husband was horrible. Boy, was I right.

Soledad teaches us how to love ourselves #dateyourselfchallenge while navigating motherhood. She is strong, she is beautiful, and she finally gets to unleash her power. This book is one of healing; the journey was as wonderful as the character Kennedy Ryan created.

Now, I have to talk about the Autism rep. Kennedy Ryan writes that she is a fellow Autism Mom. The characters of Aaron and Adam are as close to my son as I have found in a book. She writes them with authenticity and dignity, I am so thrilled that my son is represented in such a way.

Finally, Judah, my gosh is he the best book boyfriend ever. This book is spicer than the first. Judah is the whole package and I loved getting to know him.

I'm so thrilled this was on Netgalley as a Read Now book. Five stars and I cannot wait for book 3.

I relate to Soledad’s Stay at Home life and finding the light at the end of the tunnel from doing what you love! The love she has for her daughters were so unconditional and a mother who did everything she could to provide for her children! Love the love story between Judah and Soledad! I did find Judah tense but that’s because of his personality and who he is as a person which ultimately translates to his twins.

Thank you NetGalley

🤩 Many thanks to Grand Central Publishing, NetGalley, and Kennedy Ryan for this advanced copy of the book!
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How interesting! I started the 2023 year reading a book from Kennedy Ryan, and now I'm here almost at the end of the year reading another book from her. I find her writing thorough, cohesive, and engaging throughout. I'm a huge fan of Kennedy’s characters, who are black and brown girls (representation matters), and the storylines that are realistic and educational. I say educational because life gems are dropped throughout this book. The central theme that I took away was that disappointment in life shouldn't cause us to walk around with a hardened heart. We should embrace the challenge of disappointment and use that as a catalyst to move on with hope. Sol and Judah did just that despite all the disappointments they experienced in their individual lives before coming together. What a great message, especially heading into a new year!

I was a little late the Ms. Ryan's writing, but I recently caught up with Before I Let Go which I loved and so I was excited to devour the next book in the Skyland series.

This book is terrific. The characters are so terrific that you love spending time with them and are rotting for them so much. I love how the stories don't shy away from life's challenges but how they are handled with love and grace. I was also struck by how much of the book(s) center around parenting and being there for your family and kids. These people have real, grown up problems and not silly cable romance movie problems (which I do love, but these books elevate their stories with authenticity.

I also appreciated learning more about autism and the joys and challenges of parenting children with those issues.

And also, it's a very sexy book. Can't wait for the next in the series!

5 star book and I don't give out many 5 stars! This book hooks you from the beginning and even when you get to the end you want to keep holding on! It is so well written with believable characters and dialogue. It is refreshing to have main characters in romance novels who are nearing or in their forties and watch them navigate the challenges! This book is a masterpiece on the themes of rebuilding and resiliency. It illustrates how no matter what you experience you can overcome and find happiness again. It also shows you how happily ever after can look different for some people and may not be as you expect. The author does a fantastic job of illustrating and addressing topics such as autism and healthy co-parenting after divorce. Also, as is the case for the other book in this series, the friendships are genuine and hilarious! You should read Before I Let Go before you read this one but it's not mandatory! I can't wait to reread this book and experience the audiobook when it becomes available.

Thank you Net Galley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this phenomenal book!

I was so excited to discover the ARC for This Could Be Us on NetGalley, especially after my 10-star review of the first book in the series, Before I Let Go. I love Kennedy Ryan and was ready to see how she went deeper into Soledad’s character.

I enjoyed following Soledad's journey, but I found myself (selfishly) wanting more in the relationship between her and Judah. In Before I Let Go, the constant tension and dynamics between Yasmen, Josiah, and other external characters (side eye: Vashti) kept the plot jumping. In This Could Be Us, the focus shifted to Soledad's self-discovery at a different pace. The story started to drag a bit when there were very interesting things happening that I would’ve liked to get into (Edward’s release, the kid’s journey to REALLY accepting Judah, etc.) Also, this book had a lot of pop culture references that felt a little cringe and unrealistic at times — but it was still enjoyable

Although this one may not be my favorite in the series, it was a great story, and a lot of gems were dropped about womanhood and choosing yourself! I’m excited to read Hendrix's book in 2025!

This story is amazing. I promise you will not wnt to put it down. The characters will feel like family when you finish the book. You will want to laugh cry and hug them all. The book will give you all the feels. Don't pass us this beautiful journey of Soledad.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/182762109-this-could-be-us" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="This Could Be Us (Skyland, #2)" src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1699034863l/182762109._SX98_.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/182762109-this-could-be-us">This Could Be Us</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7429243.Kennedy_Ryan">Kennedy Ryan</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6070486301">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
This story is amazing. I promise you will not wnt to put it down. The characters will feel like family when you finish the book. You will want to laugh cry and hug them all. The book will give you all the feels. Don't pass us this beautiful journey of Soledad.
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/7858208-suzanne">View all my reviews</a>

Ryan does it again! Given me another book boyfriend. I absolutely enjoyed every part of this messy love story. My favorite part about it was it showcased an unlikely leading man who was on the spectrum. It was so apparent that Ryan did her research to write such a rich character. Judas personality and actions were very well developed.
The plot was full of exciting stakes. The writing was so realistic and conversations flowed smoothly. I finished it in a few days, I just couldn’t leave it alone. I love how it’s a series where we got a glance of a past couple . Looking forward to the next installment!

i don’t even know where to begin with this book. i’m absolutely speechless. this book was amazing, incredible, emotional, and so so heartwarming. I love everything about this book and i wanted more!!

Judah and Soledad both my have entire heart. they way he was being so patience towards her and how he cares about her being warms my heart. and the way she started to prioritize yourself and be strong for her kids is absolutely incredible. god, i just want to live in this book. Also, the amount of mental rep is this book is phenomenal. i ate this up!!

forever recommend!! i will read anything Kennedy Ryan writes. because wow, this was beautiful.

I should have known this book was going to be MESSY. I feel like that is Kennedy Ryan's MO. And I truly gobbled up every second of it. Every time I had to put this down, I kept thinking about the next time I could get to it. Truly an iconic book.

I don’t know what in the past made me doubt Kennedy Ryan’s writing but I’d like to think I’ve learned my lesson. It was so easy to get lost in This Could Be Us. The story started off strong and interesting. It was refreshing to read about 40+ year olds getting their chance at a happily ever after. It did start to drag a bit about halfway through. I think all of the will they won’t they lasted longer than I hoped. There were some nice lessons to pull away from this story and that’ll ensure it stays with the readers far after they’ve finished reading.

Wheeew chile…this book packed all the emotional punches!
In Before I let you go, Soledad, Yasmin, and Hendrix’s friendship seemed relatively new, but, here, in This Could Be Us, you get to witness their bond grow and strengthen. It’s beautiful to see Soledad’s friends stand in the gap for her the way you would imagine true friends would.
Soledad’s strength and resolve when she discovers certain uncomfortable truths is heroic. Having to navigate from the familiar to the unknown, and claiming the life that she deserves for herself and her daughter was a rewarding experience.

Soledad and Judah’s chemistry is off the charts hot in this one. Judah can get it any time..day, night, dusk, or dawn..any.time….because who can resist a handsome, dedicated, single father, with an honest, and unassuming nature, who is totally devoted to his family??? Watching Soledad try was purely entertaining, lol.

There are few authors who can correctly paint the picture of families who have loved ones on the autism spectrum and really allow their readers to view it from many different dynamics and stages; adolescence and adulthood. But, Kennedy Ryan guided us through it perfectly and you can’t help but root for, and fall in love with Judah’s whole family unit.
She manages to finds a way to teach us golden lessons in all her books and “This Could Be Us” was no exception.

For the life of me I could not put this book down! I had just read "Before I Let Go" for a book discussion and found out that the author was coming out with a second book. I loved that we got to see Soledad put her life back together again after what happened as well as make a name for herself doing everything she loves to do. I also love the relationship with Judah and his ex Tremaine, they definitely are a good example of healthy co parenting. Especially with having two sons with special needs. The chemistry between Soledad and Judah is unmatched and the slow burn kept me wanting to read more and more, that man knew what he wanted and was willing to wait for her in order to get it. I can't wait to buy my physical copy!

Wow Kennedy Ryan did it again. I couldn't put this down the minute I started it. I think I felt every emotion from anger to sadness while reading it. Soledad is a bad ass and Judah was a thoughtful and loving man.

I cannot wait to read Hendrix's story next!

Thank you read forever pub and Netgalley for the ARC!

This could be us was a greatly anticipated release after reading Ryan’s Before I let go. I know that this hasn’t even been released yet BUT HENDRIX’S BOOK WHEN????

Soledad Charles , like all of Kennedy’s heroines is compassionate , resilient and fully developed . We got glimpses of her character in the previous novel and this was a beautiful continuation of how we know her .

Sol’s journey of introspection : with herself , her past relationship ,her mother’s death and how all that influenced her was so cathartic and moving to witness.

The strengths of this could be us lie on its themes : grief , adapting ,life after betrayal and infidelity , the importance of having a strong support system , being compassionate to others amidst turmoil in your own life.

The secondary characters (naturally excluding Edward and Amber) were so loveable yet distinct ; Soledad’s friends and sisters, Judah’s relationship with his ex-wife. I loved how Ryan approached writing an amicably divorced couple who are great friends.

The first half of the novel is incredibly captivating and frustrating with how we saw Sol’s life as she knew it collapse in front of her eyes. The way my jaw was dropping???? My eye TWITCHING??? Soledad is WAYYYY better than me is all that I can say.

The second part unarguably takes on a different tone from the former , which didn’t bother me as much as it did other reviewers but I will say that my interest did dwindle at some parts especially in terms of the progression of Judah and Soledad’s relationship.

I 100% believe that they belong together and compliment each other well ,but the progression of their relationship, whilst being a long time in the making , didn’t feel as developed as other aspects of the novel. I hate to say it but I wasn't sold that they were in love by the love confession , them being sexually and emotionally compatible ? yes but I didn't feel like they really knew each other by that point . I personally thought it was underdeveloped because we know so much of them separately , but i wanted more of them together .It was just a little disappointing because liked both of them and saw the potential of how much MORE we could have gotten.

Overall , this was such an emotional , funny and frustrating read