Breathtaking. This book was absolutely breathtaking. I only have a handful of authors that come to mind who have beautiful prose, compelling characters, and solid, hard-hitting plots (my personal triple threat) and @kennedyryan1 is one of those authors. I fell in love with her storytelling after I read Long Shot back in May, and knew from that point on that I was going to have to read everything she’s ever written! Lol.

Yasmen and Josiah’s journey prior to/back to one another was devastating and gut-wrenching in every sense of the word. I physically felt my chest tighten during certain chapters because of how brutal shit got for them. My empathy for them (and their family) knew no bounds when it came to their recovery. That said, I did love the mental health and therapy rep. Due to the commentary on those topics among so much more - i.e., motherhood, d*ath/grief, self-love, etc. I genuinely think this book will lead to much-needed discussions surrounding these topics and why it shouldn’t be taboo to talk about them. 

I could go on and on about how much I loved this story (check out my recent reading vlog at 12:30 PM ET b/c I did just that 🫢) so the last thing I’ll say is that I felt seen so seen! I saw so much of myself and even bits and parts of my own family/boyfriend in The Wades’. From the tense moments all the way to the sweet, intimate ones, I loved them and was frustrated by them all the same, lol. I truly had such an emotional yet amazing experience tabbing this book.

Final Thoughts: Overall, I 100% recommend if you can handle the triggers. Kennedy Ryan’s books ALWAYS have something more and ALWAYS pack a punch. At its core, this is slice of life, but there is also a beautiful love story that is reborn even in the most darkest of times.