Harper and Ben are newlyweds when they discover his late stage cancer diagnosis and their entire world shifts. But Ben has an idea - he wants Harper to find someone new to love before he dies, and the New York Times even sends a journalist to do a story on his idea. The journalist that turns up though is a man from Harper’s past, a man she spent one incredible week with, the only other man she’d ever loved. And now Harper is left wondering what would’ve happened had she stayed with him all those years ago.

THE OTHER YEAR by Rea Frey completely devastated me at the beginning of this year so when I saw that she had a new book coming I knew I needed to read it. This one, while it didn’t hit me quite as hard, has cemented Frey as a go to author for me, one whose books I’ll eagerly await.

The love story, or love triangle, here is absolutely beautiful and breathtaking. The love that Ben and Harper have, especially as they navigate the end of this life and the end of their love story, will have you in tears. And getting to know Harper and her past with Liam was just as good. We’ve all wondered what if a time or two and the way that Frey took us through Harper’s own “what ifs” was really well done and I enjoyed getting to see what life could’ve looked like for her.

There was also an understory here of not losing who you are and remembering to go after what you want. Harper is an artist and when Ben is diagnosed she puts art on the back burner to care for him - something he absolutely doesn’t want her to do. But we also get to know more about Harper’s past and see that she let her insecurities get the best of her once before, too.

This book was fairly predictable but it didn’t matter to me because I loved the ride getting there and I loved the way it wrapped up. This is a beautiful book about a heartwrenching topic and Frey did a great job with it.

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

I’m a little backlogged with my ARC’s but working diligently to get caught up. I really liked the premise of this book! It was utterly heartbreaking at times but adding in other characters and storylines helped to lighten it some. It’s hard not to give anything away that would be a spoiler so I’ll just say if you like deep, true romance, the kind that endures the worst, you’ll enjoy this book too!

In Every Life by Rea Frey is a beautifully crafted, heartwarming story that explores the deep complexities of life, love, and the relationships that define us. The book is filled with rich, lyrical prose that draws you in, making every page feel like a reflection on the human condition.

What I loved most about this book is its ability to touch on universal themes—grief, joy, and everything in between—while grounding them in intimate, personal moments. The characters are wonderfully relatable, and their journeys feel real and poignant. Frey has a talent for writing about the messy, beautiful parts of life in a way that resonates deeply.

While the story is at times slow and contemplative, it’s a perfect read for those who enjoy deeply emotional and thought-provoking narratives. If you’re in the mood for something that will make you reflect on the many layers of life, In Every Life is a must-read.

This story was just not for me. There were aspects that I enjoyed and then there were ones I really did not. I've never read a book by Rea Frey, so I really did not know what to expect. I didn't appreciate the language, most of the relationships felt forced, and I did not love the concept of trying to find someone for your wife to love before you're gone. As I'm currently sitting with my 17 year old daughter as she's on hospice, the idea that you could even entertain that thought is preposterous to me. As a care giver, your entire world is consumed with caring for your loved one and spending every moment you can with them. At least that is my experience, so I just can't wrap my mund around this concept. I did, however enjoy the parts that were just Ben and Harper together. Their relationship was sweet and there was a lot there I could relate to. Maybe this is just bad timing considering where my life is at right now, but I just didn't enjoy this one.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

The was frustratingly slow and difficult to get through. By the time I made it to the middle of the book I was seriously questioning whether I would finish it. I was able to get back into the plot and time jumps for a period of time and long enough to push through to the end which was so frustratingly unbelievable I wish I had just stopped at 50%

“In Every Life” by Rea Frey is a love story that takes place on a dual timeline, in the present, when Harper’s beloved young husband is dying, and in the past, when Harper met the “other” love of her life. Harper’s husband Ben is determined not to die until his wife finds a second chance at happiness. To help her, he asks a journalist to write about their story, not knowing that the journalist was Harper’s first love, Liam.

This was a beautiful and inspiring story, and I think a lot of people would really love it and find it moving. Everyone deserves a second chance at love. It didn’t quite do it for me, probably because I’m not a real fan of dual timeline stories that seem to be so popular nowadays. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this novel. My opinions are my own.

Thank you to NG and Harper Muse for the chance to read early and review!
4/5
Rea is a gem of a human, so it's only natural that she writes human stories with a bit of flare. Ben is dying of cancer. The diagnosis came soon after he and Harper had gotten married - a time where they had their whole lives in front of them. But now, they are just trying to take things day by day through the pain, check reasonable things off of Ben's bucket list and celebrating the love they have here and now. Unbeknownst to Harper, Ben comes up with his final wish - He wants to find Harper a new husband before he dies. What?!

The story unfurls with someone from Harper's past showing up when she least expects it -- the plot takes us from present to past and back again with a "what if" scenario unfolding and the readers take a fun journey to a potential parallel life. While the actual plot is far-fetched, Rea has managed to make us forget all of that and just have fun with the journey. I love the location as a past NY girl and the art factor woven in. I recommend this book to those looking for an escape to see sun through the clouds.

In Every Life by Rea Frey
What a moving story! Get your tissues and prepare for a waterfall of tears! This is such a beautiful story of love and dreams.
My favorite quote,” …there’s never a perfect time to follow your dreams.”
In Chattanooga, TN, you find Harper and Ben living a comfortable life. She is a teacher and he is a musician. Early on, they find themselves faced with a diagnosis that will forever change their lives.
A decade ago, Harper found love and a possible art career in NewYork, but she ran. Now, holding on to every shred of hope, she thinks about her past when she is presented with Ben’s last wish. He wants her to find new love before he passes.
This book will have your heart soaring and breaking in the same chapter, but it is a very beautifully written love story.

I also listened to the audiobook. It had excellent narration, the characters were well distinguished and the voice was clear and pleasant. The voice of the characters enhanced the experience of the book. Excellent job!

Overall the book was excellent and left you wanting more. 4/5⭐️s.

A very complicated love triangle, deadly cancer and time travel make up this romantic fiction by Rea Frey. There is a lot going on in this and at first I thought it was straightforward and I was a little bored. But soon it took an unexpected turn that made it much more interesting. The story is clever, albeit not the most original, as many other authors have also used this storyline. Still, a solid, thought-provoking read that will make readers appreciate each new day. I will recommend this to library patrons. For fans of Elizabeth Berg and Katherine Center.

I do not think I was the target audience for this book. I also found that it was pretty slow to progress.

A moving story...
The first-person narrative of the main character, Harper, is on point. Harper and Ben are on their honeymoon when Ben experiences the first symptoms of cancer. Their new life together has barely begun and Harper takes us through the painful experiences while seeing her husband waste away. Ben is a famous award winning composer.
A New York Times reporter (Liam) is coming to write Ben's story, but Harper hates the idea. But when Harper opens the door to greet him, she is shocked to see it's a former lover of hers and possibly "the one who got away."
Ms. Frey puts the reader into Harper's head and we feel her every emotion. The mystical realism included in this story lays out what could have been with Harper and Liam and one wonders the outcome. Highly recommended!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5)

In Every Life is a heart-wrenching romance with a dash of magical realism that completely captivated me. Harper, Ben, & Liam are entangled in a love story like no other, but which couple will you find yourself rooting for? Can there even be a true happily ever after when life throws in the unpredictability of a cancer diagnosis?

Every prediction I had was shattered & I found myself rooting for both relationships, torn between what was & what could be. 💔💖

The author’s use of alternating timelines, weaving together Harper’s past & present, kept me on edge. With twists around every corner, this story had me glued to the pages! Frey’s writing style was both immersive & emotional, making this a standout read. I’ll definitely be adding more of her books to my shelf! Highly recommend to anyone who loves romance with a touch of magic. ✨💫

Many thanks to #NetGalley, #InEveryLife, Harper Muse & Rea Frey for the ARC. My opinions are my own & freely expressed. 🙏

#BookReview #RomanceBooks #MagicalRealism #ReaFrey #HarperMuse #ReadingCommunity #BookLovers #Bookstagrammer #BooksAndCoffee #AmReading #BookRec #TBR #NetGalleyReviewer #RomanceReaders

Loved it!! (Well all but one part of it.) I started reading this not knowing the premise of the book, which I do for many books of authors I love. So I was a bit shocked about how soon Harper was going from wife to widow. The part that really got me was Ben's insistence that Haprper needs to find a new love before he dies. Honestly, it's such a jerk move. Ben's idea that Harper needs a man to make her happy is so wrong. Instead of putting your precious time together to find a new mate, spend it together. The whole thing reminded me of a Golden Girls episode, where a woman tried to set her husband up with Sophia. Of course it didn't end well.

So you definitely need to suspend belief with how Harper keeps changing the trajectory of her life. I do enjoy magical realism, but I didn't love it with Harper. I really wanted Harper to go back to her original life with Ben nd for her to make the changes that she wanted. She ended up in the life she always wanted but didn't remember/know how she got there. It was like everything was handed to her because of the spells/magic. Harper lacked motivation and she always ran away from anything that was hard. She liked to make excuses. Harper and Liam only knew each other for a week. They acted like they were in a huge love affair that went on for months or years. They hardly knew each other. Why hide it from Ben? I would definitely be friends with Wren and Jenna. The main reason are their cats Pickles and Gremlin. ( I also have a Gremlin, but she has fur.)

Definitely recommend the book. My review sounds like I didn't enjoy the book, but I really did. The story is emotional. It's hard to imagine having to go through such a tragedy. Getting married and finding out your husband has cancer in a a very short amount of time. I loved the story, writing style and characters. Look forward to reading more books by the author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Harper Muse through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC to read and review. Unfortunately, I DNF at 50%.

The premise of the book sounded fascinating- I love books that make me think, "What would I do in that situation?" However, upon reading it, the plot was just too hard for me to believe and as a result I felt detached and uninvested in the story. I had a hard time connecting with Ben's eagerness for Harper to find another partner while he was still alive and seeking treatment. I also found Harper and Liam's "love" story to be a little farfetched. Ultimately, it was a little more cheesy and centered on romance than I anticipated. I don't particularly love those aspects in a book- but readers who do may really enjoy this one! It's definitely not a bad book, I just wasn't the right reader for it.

I was initially drawn to this book on NetGalley because of the beautiful cover, and then the second I began reading and listening, I became hooked on the premise. Immediately after Harper and Ben are married, he gets diagnosed with cancer that quickly progresses to stage four within a year. Harper learns from Ben that he wants her to meet someone to be with before he passes away, and he wants to help her find that person. Oh, and he's having a journalist do a profile story on Ben and Harper and their life together. Things become even more complicated when the journalist is Leo, the man Harper spent one perfect week in New York with forever ago.

I really enjoyed how the book portrayed the complexities of caring for someone with cancer and how it emphasized the idea that there isn't only one person for everyone. I did feel more chemistry in Harper's relationship with Leo than I did in her marriage with Ben. I also thought the book was going in a very different direction than it ended up in, but I did enjoy the journey. I dual-read and listened on Kindle and audiobook. The narrator, Jennifer Jill Araya, did a great job!

The book felt like it was moving very slowly for the first half, but then the last 40% just flew by, although that also could have been just because of how quickly I was reading. The miscommunications were a lot throughout the book, and I'm not sure why Harper felt like she had to keep her past relationship with Leo a secret from Ben. I've seen other critiques on the book regarding the inconsistencies with Ben's diagnosis, which is fair, but cancer is also so fickle and can show up differently for different people.

Read if you liked One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Read or The Good Part by Sophie Cousens.

This wasn't your normal romance. Right off the bat, you find out that Harper's husband, Ben has cancer. So, you know what you're going into. It's a brutal and tear ridden story but it's full of so much hope and some beautiful moments.

Harper and Ben are newlyweds - - literally newly wed when he gets his cancer diagnosis. Their world is turned upside down and everything they had planned is suddenly out the window. But there is more to this story than the sadness. There is hope, triumph and determination. There is a little mysticism. And there is some drama when Harper's first love shows up.

I often enjoy a good tearjerker and I definitely got it with this one. But I also got a really good story and I highly recommend it. I thought it was a creative plot and it doesn't necessarily go the way you expect it to.

AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: This audio was well done with solid narration. I enjoyed listening to this and went between the book and audio as I was reading the story. 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley for early copies of both the audiobook and ebook.

In a word….EXCEPTIONAL.

I needed to gather my thoughts and write my review after I got some sleep. Got some sleep came back to write more. Then I was like what more can I say without spoilers!?! I had tears welling in my eyes while reading this and I’m so not that person. Anyway, I got some sleep and here’s what I thought…

I think the characters were very relatable. I saw a lot of myself in Harper’s character.

The characters were well defined and likable. This isn’t one of those books where you need to dislike anyone. How rare is that!?!

The pacing of this one was perfect. Prose perfection.

I am not the type of person who reads a lot of magical realism because I legit just don’t like it. HOWEVER, for this book I apparently made an exception because this one was so good from start to finish and I just loved it so much.

There is a scene towards the end (with a box) that really surprised me. The final scene, while open ended, suited the storyline perfectly. Perfect way to conclude this tug of war of hearts.

I’ll admit, I’m one tough customer BUT this is one of my fav books of the year for sure. I highly recommend it and hope to read more of Rea’s work in the future.

This author hardly disappoints, this story was really good. It has do many romantic cute moments but also huge struggles. But the author mixed it all so good that ends up being a warm story. Highly recommend it!!

This is an emotional story that will appeal to many readers. The premise was unique, and I liked the way the idea of "what if" was fleshed out. The ending was perfection!
I personally didn't enjoy the aspect dealing with tarot cards and manifestation candles. It felt less like magical realism and more like witchcrafts/sorcery.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Harper's new husband, Ben, was shockingly diagnosed with terminal cancer a few weeks after their wedding, now before he passes away he has schemed to find Harper someone new to love. His story catches the eye of New York journalist, Liam, who comes to town to interview Ben about this crazy plan. Harper is stunned to see Liam, a man she spent one whirlwind week with and never forgot. She always wondered what her life would be like if she'd never left New York. Is this the universe's way of setting her life back on the track she once imagined? What if she had stayed in New York? What if she had stayed with Liam? What if Ben was cancer free? What then?

*Possible spoilers*

I am really struggling to review this book. I have been a huge fan of Rea Frey for a while now with her imaginative characters and plots that have stayed with me for years. I am not sure where this one will fall in that spectrum. It took me a while to get through the book as I just wasn't connecting with the characters enough to stay focused and keep reading. Ultimately, I don't think I liked any of them. They were all a bit selfish and immature. I liked the plotline in concept of a long lost love and what could have been, the "what ifs" in life. Where I disconnect is with Harper's actions as she waffled between her feelings for Liam and Ben in every phase of the story. I have never been a fan of the sci-fi/time travel and this did nothing to rectify it. Admittedly, I missed it in the genre description when I requested the book. But the idea that Harper can decide which alternative reality she will stay in to get most of what she wants just doesn't sit with me. At its core this story is an emotionally charged deep romance but it's not my favorite from this amazing author.