Was confusing until I got used to the premise, if you enjoyed sliding doors then this is the book for you. Was a good ready, nothing was predict and each page a new revelation.
Good book
Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Such a beautiful, heartfelt story from Emma Cooper.
Highly deserving of a 5 star rating.
Thanks for the opportunity to read & review it.

I was not ready for that epilogue.
Everything about this book is BEAUTFUL! The title, the cover, the characters, the plot!!
I don't think I'll swim out of this world any time soon. Absolutely beautiful!

Wow. I’m not sure what I expected exactly going into this book, but I definitely didn’t expect such a heartbreaking and beautiful story. I devoured this! It was full of mystery, romance, twists and turns that I was not expecting, magical realism, and time travel.
The main characters are real, flawed, relatable and lovable. Emma Cooper is a new author to me and I’m absolutely going to be exploring her other books.
Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC and opportunity to read & review!

I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley but opinions are my own. This book was a combination of romance and mystery. There is a surprise twist midway through that I admittedly didn’t see coming. I didn’t much care for Kit and really found myself favoring James. I wish there had been more about their love story/build up to their relationship in the book. This book wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t exceptional. At times I felt like it dragged on with nothing really happening within the plot and it took me longer to read it than it usually takes me to finish books. Thanks to the author; publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

Sweet, romantic, heartfelt. At the same time, this book was also heartbreaking, sad, sometimes even frustrating.

I liked the mystery, the different point of views, but the self doubt and thought patterns the main character went through were sometimes annoying.
Moreover, I just couldn’t emphasise with the other character’s motive and course of actions until it was explained more than halfway through the book.

This book was a rollercoaster of emotions. I enjoyed reading this story even though for a lot of pages nothing really happened so I had to skim through. I found myself rooting for the main character, hoping with her, weeping for her, getting mad for her. Overall, it was an interesting story, but it only starts to take off more than halfway through.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the copy. Olivia, Liv, is set to marry her fiancé James, but there is one thing about their relationship. Liv used to date James’s brother Kit, before he disappeared seven years earlier. Liv and James have both moved on, but on the morning of their wedding, Liv finds evidence that Kit may be alive. Liv ends up finding herself seven years in the past, six days before Kit disappeared. Unfortunately, I was unable to finish The One Before The One. I found myself uninterested in the storyline. I struggled to continue with the story and made it about halfway through. I didn’t realize the author was British and set her books in Britain. I have a tough time reading books set in this region due to the grammar.

This was a really good read. I enjoyed the characters and how the love story grew. This was my first Emma Cooper book and the writing style was great ! Will recommend. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this arc !

Another solid read from Netgalley! A romance with a twist and I didn’t have it figured out at all - and it was the perfect ending! I’m not going to say much because I don’t ant to give anything away, but there’s some time travel, a second-chance romance element, and a little bit of forbidden love. Really enjoyed reading this one!

🌟✨ The One Before the One by Emma Cooper ✨🌟

What if you could live the week that changed everything... all over again?

💔 Seven years ago: Liv’s boyfriend, Kit, disappeared on a hike, leaving her shattered. After years of grief and healing, she’s finally found love again and is about to marry the man who gave her a second chance.

⏳ But on her wedding morning, Liv wakes up... seven years earlier. Back in the flat she shared with Kit, just six days before he vanished, Liv is given the chance to rewrite history. She can find out why he left and maybe even stop him.

❤️ The ultimate question: If Liv can save Kit, does she want to? Can she let go of her second chance at love to change the past? Or is her heart destined to be torn between two loves forever?

✨ Why You’ll Love It:
• A time-bending romance filled with impossible choices and heartfelt moments.
• Perfect for fans of Shari Low, Paige Toon, and Beth Moran.
• A story about love, grief, and the resilience of the human heart.

💬 What would you do if you could change the past? Let’s chat in the comments!

📖 #TheOneBeforeTheOne #EmmaCooper #TimeTravelRomance #SecondChanceLove #HeartfeltReads #RomanceReads #MustReadFiction #BookLoversUnite #LoveAndLoss #BookishFeels #BoldwoodBooks

I could not put this magical realism romance down! While <i>The One Before the One</i> is definitely a romance, it also had way more mystery in it than I originally expected - some of those twists really got me too.

How do I even begin to talk about this book? The basis of the story is shock, survival, grief, love, and shock again. The characters are so real; I literally felt for them as I read. I loved this book!

Kit and his girlfriend Liv have the perfect life. They're funny, outdoorsy, and have supportive friends and family; what more can someone ask for?
Liv's world turns upside down the day Kit disappears. She and Kit's brother, James, search endlessly but no sign of him returns.
Right before her wedding, things change and Liv gets a chance to relieve her past and to see just why Kit disappeared. Can she change the future? Does she want to? The One Before the One makes you laugh, cry, and think all about your life and how one small thing can make a huge change in the world.

I loved this book! So glad that I decided to read this yesterday. I devoured it in less than 24 hours.

It's a mystery, it's a love story and a coming of age novel all I'm one.

I have no idea why but I just lovethe premise of time travel, put that in a book and I'm all in!

We are all in luck since this book is available very soon, January 31st.

Thanks to NetGallery and the publisher for this ARC.

This is a great book and my first time reading something by this author. I found myself wanting to keep reading because I needed to know what happened. There were a few twists I didn’t see coming and I loved them. I found myself loving each character, having sympathy for them, feeling frustrated, all the emotions. I will recommend this book to others.

Liv is ready to marry the love of her life, James. To make things a bit more complicated, she's marrying the brother of her missing ex boyfriend. Liv was with Kit before and he vanished and was assumed dead seven years earlier but on her wedding day it appears that he might not actually be gone. Did she 'settle' for his brother or is James really the one she was meant to be with? This is an easy read and enjoyable.

3 Stars
One Liner: Got potential but ends up lukewarm

Seven years ago, Liv’s boyfriend, Kit, disappeared on a hike. With help from dear ones, she moved on in her life. On the morning of her wedding with James (Kit’s brother), Liv steps out of the doorway and goes back in time - to six days before Kit disappeared.
Liv is reliving those same six days again. She needs to get it right to save Kit. Can Liv save Kit? And if she does, whom will she choose?
The story comes from Liv and another character’s first-person POVs.

My Thoughts:
So this has a sort of time-slip/ time travel/Groundhog Day (without multiple loops) story where the FMC travels to the past to relive six days before an event that changes her future forever.
I grabbed the book despite my dislike for love triangles as I was curious to see how the time travel part was handled. There wasn’t any explanation given but I wasn’t confused when the shift happened.
The writing is quite descriptive and lyrical. While this gave us some lovely quotes, it also took up a lot of space. Some scenes stretched while others ended quickly, so essentially, we have uneven pacing.
Liv was decent and I liked her enough. Seeing the shift in her was interesting. James should have had more space. TBH, it doesn’t make much sense that we don’t get more than a couple scenes with Liv and James but are told many times about their love. Compared to this, Kit and Liv have so many scenes!
However, my major issue with the book is the excessive limelight on Kit. Kit this, Kit that, oh gosh! I mean okay, he was put on a pedestal, but everyone and we get hints about his flaws but all those should have been used in the plot at some point. Why raise so many questions but not deal with any of them when there’s a chance for it? The same with the mother’s actions. No one even questions it after the truth is out. No comeuppance?
As much as I appreciate the intent of not taking sides, I need details sorted properly. Don’t raise those questions if you don’t want to address them. Simple as that!
Moreover, even the epilogue takes the focus away from the central plot. This is supposed to be Liv’s story. Her past and present and how she navigates through the muddle when she gets a second chance.
Ava was actually a great character. It’s a pity that she doesn’t have more meaningful conversations with Liv and help her look at things from another perspective.
There isn’t much romance as such but it is there. Since I already picked my choice, I wasn’t interested in what we got. At least, I’m glad that there is one grand gesture (feels like a consolation prize but I’ll take it).

To summarize, The One Before the One has a great premise and raises many vital points only to brush them off. With just one more chapter, all of it could have been sorted and the book would have had a more balanced and stronger ending.
Thank you, NetGalley and Boldwood Books, for eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.
#NetGalley #TheOneBeforeTheOne

This story follows Liv who finds out on her wedding day that her missing boyfriend is actually still alive. I went into this pretty blind, but was expecting a romance. It was an interesting genre - a mix of romance, mystery and magical realism. There were many twists I did not see coming and was so invested in wanting to know what happened next. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Emma Cooper’s The One Before the One is a beautifully crafted story about love, loss, and the choices that shape our lives. Liv, on what should be the happiest day of her life, wakes up seven years in the past, just days before her ex-boyfriend Kit mysteriously disappeared. Given this rare second chance, Liv must decide whether to try and save Kit, knowing it could change the life she has built in the present.

This novel is both heartwarming and thought-provoking, blending humour and emotion in a way that keeps you hooked. Liv’s journey is a poignant reminder of the power of love, the weight of regret, and the courage it takes to face the past. It’s a perfect read for anyone who has ever wondered, "What if?"

I loved this book! I could not put it down and read it in one sitting!! It was so good! I thought the romance was paired well with the mystery element; they blended nicely and neither one ever overpowered the other. The character development was incredible, you could feel for Liv, James and Kit at all the right times. Simply beautiful all the way through!

Riveting from start to finish, I couldn't put this book down. Emma Cooper has managed to captivate her audience from the very first page and the hits just keep on coming. Thought-provoking, powerful, and a beautiful love story at it's core, we are taken on an adventure where you question everything you think you know and the story you have been told. A wonderful read that can teach us a lot about the choices we make and the boundaries we push for love. 10/10 would recommend!