Books that make me think about the Wandavision quote; "What is grief if not love persisting"
Riley Chase will give readers whiplash in a way that emulates how utterly destroying loss can be. She desperately wants to move on,allow herself to exist again but grief over her fiancé's sudden death holds her hostage. Every step forward comes with two back and the reality of what the modern dating scene has become doesn't help. But Jae, the confident, kind, incredibly inconvenient new occupant of her apartment, the home Grant designed, is incredibly magnetic. Riley grapples with the sudden return of her desire, one moment she's staring at his bicep and the next. she's disgusted with herself for being unfaithful to Grant. The stream of consciousness writing allows you to really feel the war happening within Riley to move forward with her life, and if you let yourself be pulled along you will find that Summers has managed to write a story that will make you feel so human it's unreal.

I was excited to read this romance as it has a plot that is not often explored and one of my favorites: love after loss.

I liked the journey the MC was on and having it from her POV was interesting. At times it was like reading her stream of consciousness, which proved to share a lot. This book is raw and honest. I felt my own sense of grief at points, imagining how I would cope with the same things.

There were some issues that kept me from getting invested fully. The dialogue is choppy and hostile. I’m not sure if it was an issue of the humor not coming through or what. Also, because I read an ARC, there were so many inconsistencies that hopefully are cleaned up in the final. Those inconsistencies pulled me from the story too many times.

I also thought the characters as a couple needed more development and conflict. Everything seemed to be resolved through telling the other person not to feel that way. It just felt too simple for the complexities of the topic. It also bugged me that the love interest basically swoops in to rescue the MC, that was a disappointing arc to the story.

Overall this is a fast read and it was sweet. I’m not sure I would recommend as there are stronger books in the genre.

“Take All The Time You Need” by Cate Summers follows Riley, a painter in New York City’s West Village, as she continues to cope with the loss of her fiancé, Grant, three years after his death. An unexpected increase in rent forces her to leave the apartment they once shared, which her therapist suggests could serve as an opportunity for a fresh start. When Riley answers a proposal to paint a mural at The Red Kettle, a new restaurant owned by the strikingly handsome chef Jae Cho—who has coincidentally moved into her old apartment—things start to change. As Riley and Jae work together to prepare the restaurant for its grand opening, Jae discovers Riley’s well-meaning but ultimately failed attempts at creating a dating app profile. Unable to watch his new neighbour struggle in her love life—or risk her being kidnapped by a serial killer before finishing his mural—Jae offers to help her with dating, including practice dates, in exchange for her painting the mural for free. Riley begins to question what it really means to "move on" from her late fiancé and the home she treasured for so long, all while trying to resist falling for her neighbour.

The writing started strong but gradually lost its impact, and the emotional depth diminished as the story progressed. I appreciated Riley’s journey as she dealt with her grief after losing her fiancé, but the writing fell short. The emotional connection simply wasn’t present for me. I frequently felt detached from the characters’ feelings; instead of experiencing their emotions firsthand, it seemed like they were being described rather than felt, which left me unaffected. I usually love books that evoke strong feelings, so I was a bit disappointed with this one. Additionally, the romance leaned heavily into the insta-love trope, which isn’t something I typically enjoy. Given that Riley was navigating her grief, a more gradual, slow-burn buildup with Jae would have added more meaning to their connection. I felt that this book had a lot of potential that ultimately went unfulfilled.

I’m giving this book a 3 star rating as i feel like the writing started out strong but then teetered off when more dialogue was involved. I was very intrigued with the trope of forced proximity and i feel as though it was executed well enough. overall i enjoyed this read about Riley, a grieving fiancé. It was moving to follow along with her story in her process of mourning her finances death and her struggle to move on. Her character is relatable. Riley and Jae’s romance was fast moving and adds to the romance.

Firstly thank you to NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Ok this went downhill so fast.. I got to 25% and I had to DNF.. the writing is extremely juvenile and is not focused at all on Riley’s journey or her grieving.. it’s actually kind of wired.. and Jae is so fucken pushy he’s pissing me off.. this whole story is just not for me.. I thought it was gonna focus more on grief and it hasn’t really been.. plus jaes an asshole I don’t like him.

I liked the premise of TAKE ALL THE TIME YOU NEED as fellow neighbor Jae helps Riley work through her grief and open herself back up to love, and I thought it was a sweet and quick read. It was a little too much of a fast-burner for my liking as I like the tension and chemistry built up more and heightened, but I can see others, especially young adults enjoying the story.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

This book has a great premise but the execution didn’t work for me unfortunately. I didn’t sense chemistry between the characters and both main characters were lacking some complexity.

I was hooked on Cate's smooth storytelling right away. I loved the dialogue between the MFC and the people in her life. The story was interesting and I definitely want more to read from Summers! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️.5 (4.5/5)
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Triggers:
off-page death (pre-plot)
grief
death of a partner (pre-plot)
anxiety
family trauma

Favorites:
nosey landlord who you can't help but love
Taming of the strew fake dating meets forced proximity
food = love language
artist finding herself again
de-stigmatizes grief and trauma groups
non-white main characters (mmc and friends)
mmc who isn't 100% straight <--I loved that this wasn't a major plot point--it just was! 👏 👏
Thank you Cate Summers for an early release ARC of this book.
I finished this book on my kindle in like 4 hours. I loved it! I loved all of the characters and I loved that the fmc's grief was so hard to read because it felt so real. I believed every second of it and found myself wondering about the author's well-being. LOL

If you need to a good reason make yourself cry, read this book and you will SOB! SOB! 😭
The writing was really easy to follow and a breath of fresh air. I can see this book on the shelves of indie bookstores EASILY! I loved how fast-paced the slow burn was...I mean, you'll get it when you read it. Just trust me.

I can't wait to read more from this author's future books!

This was a cute quick read! I loved that it was set in NYC as that felt like a character in the book itself. I also appreciated the character growth for Riley as she worked through her grieving process. Jae was also very sweet throughout the whole journey.

This book has so many great twists you won't expect. It keeps you on your toes and you really get to know the characters. The storyline is amazing and I think it went just as it should. I really enjoyed the read and can't wait to see it on the market for others to enjoy!