Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advance readers copy of this ebook.

I greatly enjoyed this author's first book, Thank You for Sharing, and Rachel Runya Katz kept going strong with this sophomore novel. Like TYFS it puts a lot of interesting twists on the average rom-com plot. For example, in another book, Nia's unwillingness to confess her love for Jade over years on end would just be glossed over as an extreme case of unrequited pining. But here it's justified due to Nia having anxiety. This book's twist on the trope of "reuniting at someone else's wedding" is also very sweet. I would've loved to see an epilogue of their life after getting together though, like TYFS had, but this is just a minor complaint. Learning the backstories of the friendships between Mia, Jade, Jonah, and Michal was also very interesting. Many book bloggers talk about the trope of an unseen character's death "haunting the narrative" and I think that's done very well with Michal's death. As from the first page it inspires the other three to do (or don't) act on their hidden secret lifelong goals.

On a more serious note, I also appreciated getting to learn more about the southern history tours that the main characters all went on together. Especially since I myself did not grow up in the south. The tour stories from Atlanta and tours from Charleston (and the twins' conversations in Charleston about it afterward) were especially sobering. As one tour guide character says, "I personally think it would be worse to pretend we were never on the wrong side of history, but I know that it can be hard to look at." These chapters encouraged me to seek out more about these histories in these towns as well as others all across the US. As said in the author's note, "If you found it interesting, I hope you'll consider reading more from actual historians. There may not be as many kissing scenes, but it'll be worth it anyway."

I wanted to love this book SO much, and I just could not get past about 12% on my kindle. I felt myself skimming rather than reading because I felt so disconnected from the characters, which shocked me because I was so rooting for a book about fellow Jews, and especially one which delved into the unique experiences of queer Jews of color. Not only that, but I'm also finishing a clinical psychology internship! I should have felt connected to these characters for so many reasons, but they felt like character sketches and did not come alive on the page for me. I felt I was grasping to understand the plot as it transitioned towards the trip, but the chemistry between the friends felt pushed and, perhaps because the writing style felt very stiff and clunky to me, I was skimming and probably missing parts of the plot. The style was just not for me, though I think the characters and plot would have been if I could have hung in there. I think another round of editing may do this book very well.

hmmm, this book is a hard one to rate. Overall I enjoyed it, it had a good plot and the characters were cute. There was just some scenes that felt cringe and gave me the ick. The writing was a struggle to get through, if it had another round of edits I think it would have a lot potential.

Overall still a good read.

Thank you Netgalley!

I was really excited to see this one, but unfortunately it just wasn't for me. Unfortunately, the writing style just didn't jive with me so I put it down for now.

My heart. Goodness did I love this book. Rachel Runya Katz excels in this space - the liminal space one occupies as a mixed-race Jew in America. She wrote about this experience beautifully in her debut novel Thank You For Sharing, and here she's back at it - also dipping her toe (or more appropriately, her whole foot) into grief again.

Not only is this a rumination on the lasting power of grief, as well as the complicated history of race relations between the Black and Jewish communities in America, it's also a romance. But one that transcends all tropes - it's sort of (but not) second chance romance. It's sort of (but not) friends-to-lovers. It's romance in the found family way, where two people who are just destined to get together actually do.

And unlike many contemporary romances, there is a twist to the usual third act miscommunication. Usually it's something misunderstood, often in the most basic way possible. Here, there is an incendiary moment, a secret told in anger that could disrupt everything about their burgeoning relationship, but our two FMCs move quickly past it. Instead, there's a third act break because one of our leads knows exactly what she wants and for once isn't going to let someone walk all over her boundaries.

In summary: I loved this book. It can be a little heavy at times (the premise and any trigger warnings are right there in the summary), but it's gorgeously written and a wonderful ode to lasting power of childhood female friendships. 5 stars. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I read the authors 1st book ok- for 3 stars and appreciated the writing and Jewish of Color rep. Here we have a queer romance w Jewish / Black characters. It's an ex friends to lovers romance and educational. I grew up in northeast so I didn't know a lot of the history in the South about the Jewish population, other than in segregated areas, signs that said no Blacks/Jews.

The grief of losing a close friend was hard for me personally and relatable. However the romance was really slow. I usually don't mind current media such as emails and texts in the writing. I think it detracted from the plot movement. When I get distracted, it was too easy to put the book down. I wish the authors point of view was more representative as a Jewish author inclusive of Jews in Israel. Unfortunately, there were some issues I have I can't let go.

I liked the story, but the book itself was so embarrassingly poorly written that it had me cringing at least once every three pages.

It icked me out that the author was SO adamant about comparing characters' skin colors to food since that's usually pretty racist (the author is a woman of color, though, so maybe it's not as big a deal as if a white person was doing it).

All the notes app, Google Docs, and iMessage conversations throughout were fairly obnoxious; there were snippets and scenes that I could 100% recognize as references to popular queer photos and memes on the internet (MASSIVE side eye at the ridiculous eyeliner scene, as well as the "the girlies are fighting" note in the road trip Google Doc at the beginning); and the first time I saw an emoji, I wanted to throw my ereader across the room. I did get a few giggles, though probably not in places the author wanted me to laugh.

The formatting was also not great in the eBook on the NetGalley app and the font size changed drastically from section to section, which was a bit distracting.

Overall, this was not an enjoyable read for me, but I want to try not to be a big ol' hater about it, and I know reviews matter, so I'm giving it three stars instead of what I want to give it.

WHENEVER YOU'RE READY is such a beautifully poignant and tender story about love, grief and friendship with such emotional depth and rawness to the story and characters that you feel it on every level. Three years after the falling out of Jade and Nia's friendship and the passing of their friend Michal, Jade and Nia, along with Jade's brother Jonah, embark on a road trip in honor of Michal. Jade and Nia's are forced to talk about what happened in their past, the complicated feelings that have always been there but are now being stirred up in the present, and what that means for their future, if there even is one. But they've already lost Michal, are Jade and Nia willing to admit what they're feeling at the risk of also losing each other?

I appreciated getting to learn as much as I did about multicultural and Jewish history in the South. I really loved how big a part Jonah plays and how woven Michal is throughout the entire story. I also admired how messy, real, relatable, and grounded the characters are that allowed me to be fully immersed in Jade and Nia's world the entire time reading. And I am also thankful for the reminder that one must give themselves the chance to be happy in their life... It felt like a true honor to read this book and to witness Jade and Nia's love and their story. I already can't wait to read whatever the author decides to grants us with next!

Many thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Three years after their friend Michal's death and the end of their Intense friendship, Nia gets a letter Michal wrote before she died, asking her and Jade to do a road trip they had originally planned to do together.

As a side note I liked that the author didn't just jump into the trip. Both because yes you would need to prepare, plus getting to know the characters.

Poor Jonah feels like a afterthought. Poor dude.

Along with the road trip we get flashbacks to the three girls meeting, up to Michal's diagnosis and Jade and Nia's breakup.

Now Jade and Nia are trying to figure out what they are to each other now....

Very good read. I liked Nia and Jade, as well as learning about Michal in flashbacks. And yes, Jonah gets some character bits, and even plays a role in the third act breakup.

This book! Finally, I can share my thoughts on it. It's a poignant, humorous, and beautiful sapphic romance. It navigates through the journey from friendship to something undefined, then to lovers, with a poignant pause in between, marked by unspoken grief and loss. Even just writing this review brings tears to my eyes; that's how emotionally powerful it is. The narrative beautifully captures the depth and significance of friendship, challenging societal norms that often overlook its importance. Unlike typical romance novels, this story prioritizes and celebrates the complexities of friendship, particularly within queer experiences. And at its core, it delves into a road trip through Jewish history, confronting the impact of white supremacy on our present and the significance of creating meaningful spaces within it.

This book has a cover as beautiful as its story. It deals with grief, healing from it and learning to live with it. It also follows the characters as they learn more of their Jewish heritage, and that mixed with the story–they way Rachel wrote, is beautiful. The love story? Ugh, gorgeous. Although I would've liked a little more of their romance on page. But I devoured it all in one and enjoyed it immensely.