Riley Chase, a young woman who lost her fiancé to brain cancer, is the kind of character that makes you wonder how anyone, especially Grant, could have loved her in the first place. After her loss, Riley made a series of terrible choices that led her to move into a new apartment, where she meets Jae. But grief doesn’t transform people; it only amplifies what’s already there, and for Riley, that means an unlikable, overly hostile, and hypocritical personality. Her grief doesn’t excuse her behavior; it simply sharpens her flaws, making it impossible to root for her as a leading character.

The group therapy sessions on grief in feel ham-fisted and out of place, adding little to the narrative except awkwardly shoehorned elements. Riley’s judgment of other participants, who have faced far worse hardships than her own, is particularly off-putting. Her dismissive attitude towards those who are struggling more deeply undermines the sincerity of these therapy scenes and adds to the already frustrating portrayal of her character.

Jae isn’t much better. He comes across as pushy, aggressive, and immature, like that kid on the playground who doesn’t really want a toy but doesn’t want anyone else to have it either. Instead of being upfront about his feelings, Jae resorts to juvenile antics, bullying Riley because he can’t admit that he actually likes her. His behavior doesn’t add depth to the story but instead drags it down, making their dynamic frustrating rather than compelling.

To make matters worse, the love story feels rushed at the end, with a lack of chemistry between Riley and Jae that leaves the conclusion far from fulfilling. It’s hard to believe these two could ever form a healthy relationship when they’re both toxic on their own and just as bad together. The ending doesn’t feel like a triumph of love but more like two dysfunctional people settling because they can’t do any better.

Adding to the frustration are the copious amounts of typos, lack of continuity, and glaring grammar and syntax errors that litter the book. These issues are so frequent that they pull you out of the story, making it hard to stay engaged. It’s clear that these errors should have been addressed long before the book reached readers, but instead, they distract from an already weak narrative.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

DNF [■■■□□□□□□□] 30%

Take this review with a grain of salt. My perspective is limited as I didn't delve far enough into the book to foresee its full development. However, I have read enough to know that this book isn't for me.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *. read on for a more in-depth review .* :☆ﾟ. ───

✒️ the writing
⤷ The writing comes across as very juvenile. It doesn't start this way, mind you, but the quality of writing noticeably declined as the story progressed, and I couldn't get past the lack of consistency. I struggled particularly with the portrayal of emotions later on, where instead of experiencing them alongside the characters, it often felt like it was being explained to me, weakening the impact of Riley's grief.

⤷ The strength of the narrative lies in the vivid descriptions of the character's surroundings, but the weakness lies in the poorly written dialogue, which often feels unrealistic and unnatural. The conversations come off as very thoughtless and silly, and so do the characters, which I'll get into later on.

⤷ The story is riddled with grammatical errors and missing punctuation, indicating the need for thorough editing before publication.

🎥 the plot
⤷ I dove into this because I love stories about grief and the journey characters embark on to overcome it. Initially, we get a good portrayal of Riley's grief over her deceased fiance, Grant. As she navigated through memories in their shared apartment, clinging to remnants of his presence, I became invested in her story and found myself rooting for her. The opening scene was promising, but things went downhill after that, and my enthusiasm waned as the story progressed.

⤷ I found the setup of the romance disappointing. The idea of a nice landlord who chooses his next tenant based on how handsome he is, to facilitate a romantic setup and help Riley move on feels not only unrealistic but outright cheesy. Or perhaps cringe would be the better word, considering landlords should not be meddling in tenants' personal lives or sharing their personal details with strangers, which brings me to my next concern.

💗 the romance
⤷ I had hoped that Jae and Riley would get to know each other gradually and authentically, rather than having Riley's landlord spill her life story to Jae before they even met. What struck me as even more weird was Jae's initial pushiness, the kind of behavior only handsome guys can get away with, but which could easily be seen as "harassment" from someone less conventionally attractive.

To illustrate, picture a complete stranger who just moved into your apartment being overly familiar with you, bluntly telling you, "you're lonely," and detailing your habits like how you order food delivery five days a week and rarely leave your home except to walk your dog (all this information he'd gathered from the landlord, might I add), as if it's any of his damn business. They met briefly yesterday—wouldn't that be unsettling for anyone? It certainly would be for me. But I guess some things work in fiction, but not real life. This storyline just didn't appeal to me.

🧸 the characters
⤷ Jae's actions struck me as strange in the beginning—he seemed so intent on helping Riley despite being a stranger. I wonder if there's a plot twist ahead that might justify his insistence on getting close to her, but I haven't read far enough to know. Just two days after they meet, he tells her, "I know you've been burned before, okay? But I won't do that to you," trying to persuade Riley to let him teach her how to date. It all felt too familiar—like, chill bro, you've barely spoken to her for a total of five minutes.

⤷ As for Riley, I understand grief can be unpredictable, hitting hard one moment and fading the next. However, I found it hard to grasp her character. She spends a night in tears after downloading a dating app, feeling like she just "fucked another man" (her words, not mine) and was betraying her deceased fiancé, only to spend the next morning ogling at Jae's tattooed arms and "nice ass." When Jae steps away briefly to cook, she muses, "I haven't seen him in awhile. I miss his presence." Girl, I get it's been three years since you got laid, but he's just in the kitchen—and it's been a few days since you met.

⤷ That said, it felt very insta-lust. It lacked the expected buildup that would have made it more meaningful had she found herself falling for him gradually—if that love or attraction slowly crept up on her despite her grief, taking her by surprise. The internal conflict—the guilt of moving on—and the eventual acceptance as she learns to let it go and let love in, could have been a beautiful narrative arc. Unfortunately, her fixation on his good looks and her excessive swearing grated on me.

⤷ The landlord. Yes, yes, some of you might find him endearing. But as an adult fiction, I expected more realistic characterization, not characters who feel more like caricatures.


"So, you picked out a new tenant just for me?"

"Give him a chance. He takes lots of girls on dates. Could you be next?


I find the dialogue in this book often comes across as silly and unnatural, not just in this instance but in many conversations throughout. To keep this review concise, I'll leave it at that.

-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈
bottom line: juvenile writing, unrealistic characterization, unnatural dialogue. i have more qualms, but I don't want to turn anyone away from giving this a shot. it didn't work for me, but it doesn't mean others won't enjoy it. if the premise is interesting to you, don't let this review deter you from reading this book. you might find yourself enjoying it.

-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈
Thanks to Cate Summers, Xpresso Book Tours, and Netgalley for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I really liked this book. The grief depicted in this book felt very raw and real. Riley's struggle with grief and letting go of the past was portrayed really beautifully.
"'How did you move on?'
'I didn't move on. I just moved forward.'"
I loved reading about Riley navigating through her guilt of trying to go on with her life while still wanting to hang on to what she lost. Her progress in her grief felt relatable and freeing.

I really liked Jae's patience with Riley and him understanding that she's still grieving. His love and feelings expressed through his cooking really highlighted his connection with cooking and how he felt attached to his family through it. They worked well together. They fit together like puzzle pieces.

I liked the author's writting style. It was easy to digest and went by quickly but was still beautiful.

I did want to like this. The book starts off so well. And then you're hit with inconsistent writing quality, inconsistent characters(!), and inconsistent pacing. Nothing made me want to continue reading, not even curiosity.

I couldn't get past all the awkward/ hostile and unrealistic dialogue. see:

"So, you picked out a new tenant just for me?"
"Give him a chance. He takes lots of girls on dates. Could you be next?

That's not something you tell to someone (especially your tenant) who has lost their fiancé! It doesn't matter that it's been three years - another thing I felt was odd - Riley could live on donations for three whole years in NYC?

Jae's entrance felt out of place too. For a story about managing grief, it would've made more sense for the characters to tell each other about their loss. Instead, Jae already knows about Riley losing her fiancé because the landlord told him everything 😭 what?

"I know you've been burned before, okay? But I won't do that to you"

burned??? man what are you talking about? Her fiancé died! that's not 'burned', she's grieving!

There's about a month before this releases so it's probably impossible. Still, I hope it goes through another round of editing - to fix the grammatical errors, improve Jae's character (he's way too pushy), remove inconsistencies, and improve the plot.

4.5 stars. Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to receive an advanced e-copy in exchange for a review.
Content warning for grief!
This book follows Riley who is dealing with the loss of her fiancée. She moves out of her old apartment only to find another man is moving in the exact same day. They get off on the wrong foot but when she agrees to paint a mural at the man (Jae)’s restaurant they form a deep connection and a great friendship. She eventually decides she’s ready to love again after losing her fiancée to brain cancer so she installs a dating app. She’s so out of practice Jae offers to take her on practice dates. She accepts. The only problem is the undeniable spark between them. On one particular date Jae gets very jealous and admits he doesn’t want to see Riley going on dates with anyone but him. Their love is gentle, slow and has healing elements. Watch as Riley learns it’s okay to remember the fast and still move forward.
Thank you Netgalley

First off, thank you NetGalley for this arc!

Going into this I had a GOOD feeling about it (I love crying), and I most definitely had a couple tears. I love the relationship that Riley and Jae grew together. It shows that through facing your grief, you can let people in to help you through it, and maybe that’s actually what you need. In this book I felt the growth that Riley achieved, and it was just so heartwarming to see her transform into her happy self.

Loved this so much & would recommend to anyone going through grief, especially ones that have a harder time facing it.

This book is an emotional story about a woman finding love in the midst of grief. Riley has spent three years hiding from life while working through grief over the passing of her fiancé. But when she has to move out of the apartment they shared, she struggles to move on.

Enter Jae, the new tenant. When he hires Riley to paint a mural in his new restaurant, the two end up getting more than just a mural or a paycheck.

In this emotional romance, you get to go along with these two as Riley learns that moving forward and moving on aren’t the same while Jae supports her. A touching mix of love, grief, and connection, this book will have you feeling deeply for both of the characters.

I rated this 3 stars because while I thought it was cute, I found both characters to be relatively one dimensional and slightly annoying. I also didn’t like that the landlord “hand picked” Jae for Riley. It seemed like a gross overstep in any landlord tenant relationship and so creepy to me. Riley stating that she had basically stopped living was extremely sad to me and I loved seeing her come back from that when interacting with Jae. Jae, at times, seemed so arrogant and pushy and not at all what Riley needed. But I guess that’s the beauty of a story.

I like how the grief of a romantic partner is explored. Riley and Jae are good characters, but a little bit one-dimensional. It felt like all they would talk about was her grief and painting as well as his cooking and mother. I also didn’t feel a spark between the two of them. The pacing felt off to me. It was pretty fast, yet it felt slow at the same time because many scenes were repetitive. Spice was added to the book near the end and it didn’t match the tone of the book in my opinion.

This review won't be posted.

I rate this a 2.5.

I like the idea of a book about love after loss. The first half was enjoyable but I feel like the second half was rushed. I wish there were stronger secondary characters- I think this would have added some depth to the story. Even just the FMC having a friend or family member. I did also find it inconsistent at times. One minute she is wrestling her feelings then all of a sudden she’s having phone sex.

It has a good premise and good bones and I think it could have been a great book if more time was spent flushing out details and adding additional characters.

It was still a quick and easy read.

The biggest takeaway from this book for me was how well the characters communicated- as someone who despise the miscommunication trope, how refreshing to have two characters voice their emotions, validate eachothers feelings and create a safe space for one another.

I liked Riley and Jake. Neither of them were particularly standout MC's but they weren't unlikeable. I liked their easy dynamic and the light hearted humour between them.

I do think the relationship is quite rushed considering the circumstances of their meeting and with the off-page past being such a central storyline. The moment of jealousy from Jae in the bar seems to come out of nowhere and it feels quite forced. But they did work as a couple and it wasn't so poorly handled that it wasn't an enjoyable read.

Overall, it's an easily digestible, quick read. I didn't love it, I didn't hate it. Take it or leave it, kids 🤷🏽‍♀️

A great little story about second chances and managing grief. I really loved exploring Jae and Riley’s story and I thought the way the author portrayed navigating grief was wonderful.

PROS:
- Both characters are incredibly likable. Jae and Riley are both flawed but normal people. In a world of romance novels where the characters are a little above and beyond, it was awesome to read a story that felt like these two could be your own friends.

- The way the stages of grief were shown felt so realistic. As someone who also has lost important young people in my 20s, it felt so real and comforting.

- The story itself is honestly so cute! This is such a realistic story and I really enjoyed the ride!


CONS:
- The book was SUCH a slow burn (loved it) but they fell in love very fast afterwards. Wish it was a little longer to make sense with the satisfying slow burn.


- Some things took me out of the story a little. You can’t buy and renovate an apartment but also rent? Phone sex when you live a floor apart and you JUST declared you liked each other? Sometimes the dialogue felt a little British and formal too. Also not sure why Jae went from being super cinnamon roll-y and then in bed using “good girl” in a place it didn’t belong and generally being kind of aggressive. Just did not fit his personality. Did it ruin the book for me? No, but it definitely took me out of the story for a bit.

- The fake dating premise really didn’t need to be there. This could have been a great meet cute story where they became friends and he set her up with his friends but made himself jealous with it. The fake dating angle felt really forced. Didn’t ruin it for me at all but definitely was a little weird.


Honestly though, so often I read ARCs of romance novels and they just try to do a trope checklist or tell a story that is far fetched or whatever. This one was SO cute, the premise was more original than most, and the characters were refreshingly normal and likable. I would definitely read more from this author in the future!!

Sweet, sweet story. I love the plot. It wasn’t a new trope but the first few pages caught me. Then I lost interest in the writing but continued to like the story and wanted to see how it played out. I was rooting for Jae and Riley but I had a hard time with the writing. It felt disjointed. Jae was at one point kind and gentle and sweet and then in the love scenes was using the word “cunt”. It just didn’t fit and that is due to the writing. Dirty talk is fine if written well but I just couldn’t believe it in this case and it felt forced. This is hard to because I just didn’t like the writing or the flow but i liked the trope and the idea of it all

The books starts off so well. But as I continued to read, it became harder to not see the lack of realistic of the situation. The insta-love was hard to believe and given the dialogue, it wasn’t believable. I found myself hard to connect to the story.

"Take All the Time You Need" by Cate Summers is a touching and introspective romance that delves into themes of healing and personal growth. The story follows a protagonist who, while navigating the complexities of love and life, learns to embrace the journey of self-discovery and healing. Summers’ writing is both lyrical and empathetic, capturing the nuances of the characters’ emotional experiences. The novel’s blend of romance and introspection makes it a compelling read for those who appreciate stories that explore the deeper aspects of relationships and personal transformation.

2.5 ⭐️

First of all, thank you author and NetGalley for the ARC!

This book really piqued my interest because of its trope—love after grief. It's unusual for me to read a romance book like this.

The book started off amazing, but it all went downhill due to inconsistencies in the story. I hoped the author would focus more on the love itself rather than sexual attraction, so the concept of love after grief would be more emphasized and appreciated. It’s just odd that the FMC suddenly remembers her dead ex-fiancé after describing how attractive another man is or after having phone sex—which, btw, made me cringe and laugh at the same time 😆. I understand that including smuts is common now, but I wish it had been toned down a bit. I even skipped some parts where J and R were sexualizing each other.

Again, this book had a lot of potential but ended up feeling like another wattpad-style story. I’m giving it 2.5 stars cuz there are parts that are really good. This book is really promising and contains scenes that will hook you. I’m not sure if it's possible, but I hope the author will rewrite it to have a more mature plot (while still maintaining the cozy vibes) and fix the grammatical and typographical errors.

It's refreshing to come across a romance story that highlights death of a loved one, and Riley is very prickly in the first few chapters- and I love how she was vulnerable in her moments alone, and the author sharing this as well, made her more real. Well, Jae comes off as a tease, and from the first meeting it seems he knew more about Riley, having that upper hand kind of created this imbalance I guess- and I cannot say much about the chemistry between them, it's there and for the story maybe just fine to get us to the end.
It's a great light witty read.
Thanks Netgalley for the eARC.

This book was very enjoyable! The story was very well written. And the romance was so cute! I would highly recommend!

I thought this book had good bones: the idea of love after loss isn't something that's discussed in the contemporary romance genre all that often, and I thought Riley's inner dialogue broached the subject in a really vulnerable and honest way. I struggled to feel connected to the romantic aspects; the way that Jae and Riley interacted made it seem like Jae somehow knew a lot more about Riley, or that they had a relationship beyond living in the same apartment. The chemistry between the characters was more "telling me" than "showing me". I enjoyed it but I'm not sure I would recommend it.

I loved this book! I found the storyline very unique, but something about it didn't quite reach 5 stars. I definitely recommend it to everyone who loves a good romance story!