I cannot say enough good things about this book. Friends to lovers plus second chance romance is a DREAM combo - and Jessica Joyce delivered on such a great story.

I absolutely LOVED the mental health rep in this book - it tackled everything from anxiety to depression to imposter syndrome…. SO good. Georgia and Eli’s chemistry was so believable and tangible… I knew I was going to root for them from the beginning of the book.

This book has all my favorite things: found family, second chance, an amazing cast of characters… i could go on and on. I can’t wait for readers to get ahold of this book!

this book wrecked me in the best of ways. i was not anticipating to love this as much as i did, but i think this book is one of the best second chance romances i have ever read. it was flawlessly executed; allowing us glimpses at their past while showing their present and hinting at the future.

georgia is one of the most relatable fmc’s i’ve read about in a long time. i loved her personality, her willingness to help those she loves, and i really felt for her with her tendency to be hyper independent due to her upbringing, as well as her inability to put her needs first. i felt for her so much, and i was rooting for her character development hardcore.

and eli, oh my sweet eli. this man is giving gus everett vibes, 100%. i loved him from the beginning because it was so clear to me that his feelings for georgia hadn’t really changed, despite the years. seeing his development and how dedicated he was to his peach was literally swoon worthy!

the plot was very, very reminiscent of ‘happy place’ by emily henry, which i read earlier this year and loved. i honestly might have enjoyed this one a little more 👀 jury is still out, however. both are amazing books, and this one was also unique enough to stand on its own.

i cannot wait for this to be released so that i can add a physical copy to my shelves, and i’ve immediately put this author’s first work on hold at my library because i’m so, so eager to read more from her. i can’t wait for everyone to fall in love with georgia and eli like i did <3

Lyrical, atmospheric, and relentlessly horny, Jessica Joyce’s second novel delivers everything we’ve been craving since You, With A View. Eli and Georgia’s second-chance story gently unfolds across a beautiful, cursed wedding and ends with satisfying redemption for everyone .

Jessica Joyce has done it again! I was hooked on page one and it just kept getting better. The characters were well-developed, the friendship group was so fun, and such an interesting dynamic between Georgia and Eli! I loved the mental health representation and the conversations around therapy that were so normalized. The story had a great mix of humor and deep emotions. I could empathize with Georgia’s feelings of heartbreak and felt her yearning for Eli. I loved that every character was flawed in some way or another, yet they were all deeply loved for their imperfections.

I finished this book wishing for another 200 pages! I can’t wait to see what Jessica Joyce does next!

This one took me a minute to get into, but once I did it was easy to turn the pages. What was different about this for me from other romance books, was the way it was written. Eli and Georgia met as teenagers, dated and broke up in their early twenties. Five years has now passed but the intro started with flash forwards into their life, fluidly in the paragraphs. Later in the book we got the same jumps but backwards to explain the history, all fluidly in the same paragraphs versus new chapters.

This narration forced you to THINK about the story. To feel the story more. The book did drag a bit for me and one can only take SO many disasters for a wedding. There were a few surprises at the end that warmed my heart and the smut was light but satisfying!

I recommend checking it out as an avid reader to experience the time flashes forward and backwards.

A big thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC ebook of this story! Congrats to Jessica Joyce on book 2 - Will look forward to more

4.5/5 stars

This is my second book by Jessica Joyce (this year) and I really really like her writing, character development and the way she writes chemistry between two characters.

Georgia and Eli are main characters that I just want to keep reading about. The reason they broke up in the first place makes a lot of sense and this book was very realistic and I loved that. The plot was unique with having to help plan their best friends wedding and caused major forced proximity and it was pure gold. The setting, scenes at the DJ audition and bakery was amazing and I was rooting for both characters to figure out their own insecurities and personal relationships before they made it work together. This is a book I would definitely recommend. The reason it wasn't a fill 5 stars for me was that the ending was a bit rushed and I would have liked more.

You'd like this book if you like:
-second chance romance
-humor and mishaps for planning a wedding
-friends to lovers
-strong character growth
-mental health representation from multiple characters

Thank you Berkley and Netgalley for this arc!

I can't wait to read more books by this author!

I looooooved You, With a View last summer, so my hopes were sky-high for The Ex Vows.

Y'all. The Ex Vows makes You, With a View look like the first draft of a high school English paper on narrative fiction. This book was absolute, literal perfection. The angst! The pinning! The memories! It reminded me of Happy Place, but even swoonier if you can believe it.

I don't want to give any spoilers away, but something happens at the end of this book that is hands down one of the swooniest things I've ever read. Oh my goodness gracious it was adorable. I cannot gush about this book enough. ADD THIS TO YOUR TBR!

Full review to come closer to pub date.

a 6🌟 read for me. this was the perfect book. everything I needed and more. I binged the last 40% the other morning because I couldn’t get enough of Georgia and Eli 🥹 I honestly would have sat and read the whole book in one sitting if I would have had the time. They are a new all time favorite book couple and a new all time favorite book!! I love them I love them I love them

I cannot wait for this book to be released so I can talk about it with everyone. I’m not usually a second chance romance girlie, but this book had me hooked from the very first page.

I absolutely loved the friendship between Adam, Eli & Georgia. This alone was such a fundamental piece of why I loved this book so much.

The beautiful second chance and the real life, relatable obstacles that got in the way for Georgia and Eli made it that much easier to love them and to follow along. You’re rooting for them the whole time.

This book made me laugh, cry, and just absolutely want to be transferred to this world. All of the real like hardships & mental health representation was just perfectly written.

This was my first ever book by Jessica Joyce and it will not be my last. I also already know I will be rereading this when it releases in July. I just cannot say enough positive things about this book. I am so lucky to have had the opportunity to read it ahead of time. It was truly everything. ❤️

Jessica Joyce is my latest auto-buy author. Her characters are always so well-drawn and the plots are so nicely threaded. Here we have Georgia and Eli, exes because navigating your twenties is hard when you haven't dealt with your teen trauma and anxiety. These two get roped into helping put together their best friend's wedding at the last minute after everything has gone wrong, and wind up navigating their simmering attraction and old wounds along with it. The sexual tension is great, and the second chance romance hits all the right notes.

The Ex Vows was everything and more. I swooned I sobbed.. it was probably the best romance I’ve read in a long time. The characters were so relatable and charming and I loved the writing style. Highly recommend!

4.5 rounded up. I loved this book so very much. Reminiscent of Emily Henry's Happy Place, which I also love, but also engaging and unique in its own right.

Second chance romance can be challenging because the past breakup needs to feel justified while still giving the reader compelling reasons to root for the couple. This book toed the line perfectly for me, and it really highlighted the importance of timing, context, and self-work as factors in a successful relationship. I found Georgia and Eli's individual growth just as compelling as their journey back to each other. I've been reading a lot of dual-POV lately and it was refreshing to stick with one character in this one, it helped to fully develop Georgia with all her complexities, anxieties, and flaws. The shared history felt tangible and lived-in, making me nostalgic for a past that isn't mine.

This is my first Jessica Joyce and I very was impressed with her writing - great comedy, chemisty, banter, and some really tender dialogue. The setting was lovely, the plot was engaging, the tropes were trope-ing, the dynamics with the supporting characters were complex and funny and emotional. A lot of the themes hit close to home and they were handled with nuance and care. Just a really solid romance that checked all the boxes for me.

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group in exchange for my honest review.

OMG this book ripped me apart and put me back together. I could not express how much I adored this! Literally loved every second.

Huge thank you to netgalley for this arc! I am so beyond honored and let out the loudest gasp when I got approved!!💗💗💗

Jessica Joyce has very quickly become one of my favorite romance authors of all time. She has such a way with emotions, authenticity and banter between characters! The setting for this book was amazing. I thought the friendships were so realistic for people in their mid-to-late twenties and how it feels to change while still holding places in our hearts for the people that we love.

While I absolutely LOVED both characters, I didn’t relate to either of them on a deep level. Not because they weren’t incredibly raw, real and nuanced, but just because my personality is different. But watching their growth was incredible! The therapy and anxiety representation was so amazing and important. I am so grateful for Jessica Joyce! I will read anything this woman writes!! She is magic.

Sometimes happiness is loud and messy.

The entire story of Georgia and Eli teaming up to rescue their bestfriend's wedding and going on all those fun little adventures was seriously entertaining. But at the same time, it was kinda heartbreaking to see the lingering problems they had to deal with. The setting was absolutely charming. It did feel like the wedding was jinxed, with everything going sideways. But those funny moments really helped to lighten the atmosphere and ease the tension.

This book really captured the reality of how people can grow apart as they get older. It resonated with me so much, seeing the characters go through those changes and the deeper message it conveyed. It's not just about finding love, but also about navigating the shifts in friendships and the different paths we all take in life. It can be tough to come to terms with that, but the book portrayed it in such a relatable way. I loved how Georgia and Eli were depicted with such depth, and I could really connect with Georgia's need to please others and Eli's anxiety about the future. It was refreshing to read a story that feels so real and genuine.

The author did an amazing job in how she unveiled the past romance between Eli and Georgia. It was done in such a seamless way, effortlessly showcasing both the beautiful moments when their love was blossoming and the obstacles they encountered as life changed.

I also appreciated how this book delved deep into mental health and the importance of communication in a relationship. It's such an important topic, and the author handled it with care. This book totally nailed the second chance romance trope! Overall, this book was a fantastic read that I highly recommend!

Jessica Joyce has such a way with words. The Ex Vows is a second chance romance, friends to lovers to estranged "friends" to lovers story that follows Georgia and Eli as they have to work together to save their other best friend's disaster wedding, 5 years after their break-up. Their friendship and relationship felt so real, honest and messy and the backdrop was stunning. I expected this to be told in past and present chapters but I ended up really enjoying the fact that it was all in the present. This type of forced proximity worked really well for the story because it felt realistic. I also loved the nods to Taylor Swift's music, especially Paper Rings. What a beautiful way that was incorporated. If you loved You, with a View like I did, you definitely don't want miss this one! Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley.

As a self proclaimed hater of second chance romances, Jessica Joyce is making me rethink my entire life. The Ex Vows follows exes Georgia and Eli as they are reunited for their best friend's upcoming wedding. I loved Eli and Georgia and it is probably one of my favourite second chance romances I have ever read. It was emotional, devastating, romantic and has a full cast of characters you can’t help but fall in love with.

What I think Joyce does so well with this trope is grounding the plot in the present day. The reason I never liked second chance romances is because they often utilize full flashback chapters which really slow down the pace of a book and takes me right out of the current story. Joyce gives us details of what happened in the past with Georgia and Eli but it is always just enough and never takes up a significant amount of time from the current story. That is not to say this book isn’t full of angst. You feel the yearning between these two and I ate it right up! Not to mention the sexual tension is off the charts.

I am now a die-hard Jessica Joyce fan and can’t wait to read whatever she puts out!

jessica joyce cements herself as an auto-buy author for me with "the ex vows" after i was swept away by "you, with a view"! i am the first to say that second chance is not my favorite trope, but i think it's just because i hasn't read this beautiful, tender book that is bursting with heart. i adore georgia and eli. i adore adam and grace. i adore the love and fear and worry and support and trust that they feel and, through joyce's writing, made me feel. this is a book about the family you choose and how hard we try to stay with the people we love and being brave and loving people even though you've tried so hard to stop, but you just can't. joyce is a heartfelt, lyrical, hilarious, gutwrenching romance writer who crafts characters you can see yourself in. the love she has for her craft and characters pours out of this. i'm gushing and i can't stop myself! sorry! please go read this!

Okay this book was THAT GIRL!! Best romance book ever written. This is what Happy Place wanted to be. She made me cry so hard multiple times throughout the book. I think Jessica Joyce is quickly becoming a favorite!!

Oh she’s taking it!!! Ngl I sobbed which I rarely do in romance books (ok like 10% of the time) but the ending got me. I loved everything about this book. The setting in Napa, the friend group in their late 20s, mental health rep, the banter?! 🤌🏾 I was SO scared about the pacing because you could feel like everything good was happening too early. I was 50% into the book and already claiming it a 5 star but struggled to see how it could keep the momentum. But the development that happens in the back half of the book is some of the realest and healthiest I’ve ever read in a rom com. Which thank you Jessica Joyce for showing it’s possible!! Georgia and Eli have my heart.

For fans of: Happy Place & Love and Other Words

things you might love:
friends x lovers
second chance romance
found family
anxiety rep
single pov
3/5 🌶️

Plot Summary:
Georgia Woodard is the best friend and co-best woman in her friend Adam’s wedding. The only problem? Her ex and childhood best friend is the other co-best man. Georgia and Eli were perfect partners until they weren’t and even those closest to them barely know what went wrong 5 years ago in NYC. A lot of time has passed and they’re different people now. But will planning to get their shared best friend’s wedding in Napa Valley back on track be enough to bring them back together?


thank you NetGalley and Berkley Romance for the arc! The Ex Vows comes out 07/24!