Right Where We Left Us by Jen Devon is a second chance romance, with miscommunication being another heavily featured trope. This book included a whole host of secondary characters, who admittedly were a little hard to keep track of at first, overall they did add positively to the reading experience and to the character development of Temperance and Duncan. The dual point of view was very well done and helpful in understanding who both Temperance and Duncan are, as well as why it took them so long to get it right.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Griffin, NetGalley and the author for an eARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this second chance romance book by Jen Devon. I found myself invested with the two main characters journeys and loved how life/family intertwined both Duncan and Temperance towards an inevitable collision where they were both faced with a fork in the road. The chemistry between the two is undeniable! I feel like I would have appreciated more details about the characters previous relationship/history for more context on how they ended up where they were in the beginning of this book.

Temperance & Duncan fell deeply in love when they were 18. They spent one secret, inseparable summer together and then a plethora of insanely crappy things happened that inevitably led to their breakup. In the 14ish years since, whenever they entered each other’s orbit, they were drawn together like magnets. But years of miscommunication, misunderstanding, and guilt meant they never could get it right. Now, Duncan is helping build his family’s winery, and Temperance is a pediatrician at a local clinic. When Duncan’s brother proposes to Temperance’s best friend, the couple who has tried to deny their feelings for so many years is now being forced to spend the summer together.

The chemistry between Temperance & Duncan was delectable, and the setting and side characters were positively delightful. Jen Devon’s writing is wonderfully descriptive and easy to read. I will say that the miscommunication trope usually infuriates me, and this book was no different. The mutual pining and lack of talking was difficult to take at times, but the banter, tension & sexual innuendos more than made up for it. I will also say that there are several parts of Temperance & Duncan’s backstory that I feel like I missed. I wish we had gotten a more in-depth flashback to their summer of love. I have so many questions about what happened back then. Especially surrounding the engagement ring Duncan bought for Temperance and what I assume was his first proposal. There are several hints that he proposed once before, but it was never talked about in depth. I’m not sure if it was left out intentionally, or if it was mentioned in the previous book. But I have a mighty need to know how that proposal went down.

All in all, this was a beautifully written second-chance romance. Were there moments where I wanted to grab the characters by the shoulders and shake some sense into them? Absolutely. Was I also simultaneously rooting for Temperance & Duncan’s HEA? Of course. Was the ending exactly what my soul wanted and needed? One hundred percent.

Having not read Jen Devon's first novel, Bend Toward the Sun, I had no idea what I was getting into when I started Right Where We Left Us. Minus a few burning questions, I was pleasantly surprised at how well this book worked as a standalone novel. I will definitely be picking up Bend Towards the Sun so I can spend more time at the Brady family winery.

** I received this book for free from St. Martin's Griffin, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. **

DNF @ 30% I know this isn't insta love because the characters have history, but it definitely felt that way. It was like we were just thrown into the middle of a story and for me, that made the romance feel unrealistic or almost forced. I felt like I was playing catch-up in order to become invested in their relationship. And then the family dynamic was so over-the-top cheesy. I wanted to love this one, but it just wasn't for me.

I had to sit with this one for a few days before I could determine exactly how I felt about this story. Let me begin by saying that I did enjoy this book. It started out slowly for me. The prose was beautiful, but I wanted to be pulled more into the characters' relationship, rather than into their surroundings. Although the chemistry between the two MCs was portrayed as combustible, I didn’t feel it. I normally like books with flashback chapters, but this one felt frustratingly drawn out. It was beautifully written, just a little disappointing in the romance/relationship area. 3.5⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin's Griffin for this complimentary ARC. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Right Where We Left Us by Jen Devon
3.5 ⭐️
Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for this arc!
Okay, so this was my first time reading from this author and all I can say is UNBELIEVABLE😩! I’m not a fan of third person POVs but this is an exception because the way how Jen Devon uses words is out of this world honestly. I loved seeing snippets from each member of the Brady family (patiently waiting for Malcolm and Frankie’s book😉). Our story starts with Temperance Jean Madigan (T.J.) and Duncan Brady where they’ve known each other since they were teenagers and now as adults they’re still battling their feelings for each and it’s just back and forth between them in the best way possible. Second chance romances can be predictable of course but with these two, I was on my seat waiting for them to just get together and the ending did not disappoint! Right Where We Left Us will be released on June 18,2024!

Tropes:
Second chance romance 💕
Friends to lovers
Forced proximity

This was a very beautiful book! The romance was so good and the characters were very love able. I absolutely loved the setting!

Right Where We Left Us by Jen Devon is a book that made me want to smack both main characters (in a loving way, of course) because they obviously had feelings for each other and refused to do anything tangible with them.

Temperance is a doctor and Duncan a project manager/man of all trades for the family business who have known each other most of their lives and loved each other for most of their lives. Duncan did something (no spoilers) when they were still teenagers that he can't forgive himself for or tell Temperance about, and it drove them apart.

Her sister and bff are married to/marrying his brothers, so they are around each other a lot. The story tells how everyone in the family tries to get them together, even when they are denying their feelings for each other.

I enjoyed the book, but would have like it more if they'd not been so hard headed. Reading this was an enjoyable way to spend a cold winter's day.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. All opinions are my own.

At eighteen, Temperance and Duncan had a summer together full of love. Temperance came from a rich family of doctors and her parents expected her to become a doctor. Duncan was a handyman with his sights on architecture but when Temperance got sick, their dreams of being together ended. They reunited on occasion but could never see each other as a couple. This book is wonderful. Full of love, community, family, persistence and patience. I loved how Duncan could do for others but never felt he was worthy of Temperance. His love for her and the time they had together off and on was all he thought he could have. The strength of family was an important part of this book as the brothers and their wives supported each other and were close. The setting of the small community and the vineyard with its lake, fields, barn, and greenhouse was done so well I could imagine being right there with them. Great love story and wonderful characters.

—Thank you so much to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the chance to review an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.


I loove second chance romances. So i wasn’t surprise to fell in love with this. Such a great couple with an amazing bond and chemistry.

I will always be such a fan of Jen Devon's writing! I was so happy to go back to the Brady family and their lovely vineyard. Jen writes such a lush and evocative setting and I am always a sucker for a second-chance romance with an edge to it that felt like enemies-to-lovers vibes at times. Temperance and Duncan are fire together!

Right Where Left Us’ by Jen Devon is a 4 stars out of 5 read.

I’m a very simple person - I see “for readers of Carley Fortune” and I immediately click that ‘Request’ button.

First thing I have to say is that the miscommunication trope rules this book (heads up for readers who don’t particularly enjoy the trope) and as someone with a guilty pleasure for the trope I was eating it all up. I loved the use of the second chance trope - it really highlighted Temperance (she goes by the nickname TJ) and Duncan’s chemistry and the angst was delicious. There’s a lot of push-and-pull but not in an annoying way but actually in a rather in a fun way. Even the secondary characters were great and I’ll certainly be there if Devon decides to write more about them.

This book is entertaining and I’d recommend it to anyone who’s looking for an easy, one-sitting type of read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-ARC.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Beautifully and poetically written, this is a heartbreaking and heart melting book about second chance love, bravery and courage.

The cast of characters were wonderful but hard to keep track of at first, but filled the book perfectly. Dual POV worked seamlessly.

I loved it and can't wait to read more from Jen Devon.

I came sprinting for this story after finishing Bend Toward the Sun. I was so relieved to have another story in what I am deeming, “The Cloud Tide” world. I was thrilled with Duncan and TJ’s love story. And as a result…I now have a massive book hangover.

I love how through out Right Where We Left Us, Jen Devon, leans into romantic tropes…sometimes she fully gives into them and other times, completely flips them on their head and even has the characters calling them out.

The tension in this one is THICK but when it gets cut, whoa baby, buckle up.

We’ll bringing in both Bend Toward The Sun and Right Where We Left Us this spring!

I can’t wait to read more in this world from Jen Devon. I will be patient!

Thanks to St Martin’s and NetGalleg for the ARC!

DNF. I really struggled with the author's writing style. The pacing didn't feel natural and the descriptions felt long and unnecessary at points. I also thought the chemistry between Temperance and Duncan was lacking. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the ARC.

This was my first from the author although this is the second in the series. It was a solid second chance romance and I will happily read anything involving the Brady brothers. There were a lot of characters introduced in the beginning and it was hard keeping them all straight. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy!

I enjoyed this read. The miscommunication, or lack of communication, of the main characters had me a bit frustrated but it all wrapped up nicely and was a well written book!

I absolutely love everything about “Right Where We Left Us.” Duncan and Temperance are a complicated couple who made me question their relationship and whether they even still had a chance. I desperately wanted them to be together but had they been apart too long for them to ever get back the connection they had as teenagers? Were they just too different and focused on their careers to revisit that magical time in their lives?

Temperance had memories of Duncan to last a lifetime but she felt that there were more memories to make if they both just opened their hearts to the possibility of love. They needed to ignore family drama and their past mistakes so they could concentrate on how to live and love right now. Gathering at the Vineyard for a Brady family wedding was a blessing and a curse for both of them. Duncan had never stopped thinking about Temperance and being this close to her was tempting and confusing at the same time. Temperance had too much on her plate right now to deal with a summer romance, but would it really be all that bad?

Ms. Devon’s writing is visually appealing, poetically romantic and heart wrenchingly emotional. I felt the need to read the book again so as not to miss a tender gaze, a sexy wink or a heartfelt tear. The beauty of the vineyard wrapped its magic around everyone as they celebrated, laughed and made plans for the future. This sounds like paradise to me; where dreams come true and all days end in a happily ever after.

Overall, I enjoyed this book! It was a quick read for me. Throughout, I was a little unsure of the stakes and history between TJ and Duncan, but I loved the relationships with side characters — I’m a sucker for big families who adore each other — and the dual perspective.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for this ARC!

I loved premise of this book, and while it was fluffy and cute - the plot and characters did fall a bit flat for me.

I felt like I never really got a feel of the history between TJ and Duncan, and honestly so much of their past (and even currently) could he been solved with some communication.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book!
All thoughts and opinions are my own.