When a book gets a lot of hype online, I’m always afraid to pick it up. I tend to have high expectations and that was also the case with Before I Let Go. Believe me when I say this book lived up to all of them and then some.

Today I want to tell you more about this book and my thoughts. Please be aware that this book deals with a lot of heavier and darker subjects that you may want to look up before reading.

Their love was supposed to last forever. But when life delivered blow after devastating blow, Yasmen and Josiah Wade found that love alone couldn’t solve or save everything.

It couldn’t save their marriage.

Yasmen wasn’t prepared for how her life fell apart, but she is finally starting to find joy again. She and Josiah have found a new rhythm, co-parenting their two kids and running a thriving business together. Yet like magnets, they’re always drawn back to each other, and now they’re beginning to wonder if they’re truly ready to let go of everything they once had.

Soon, one stolen kiss leads to another…and then more. It’s hot. It’s illicit. It’s all good—until old wounds reopen. Is it too late for them to find forever? Or could they even be better, the second time around?

Review

“I’ve fallen in love with the warrior woman who walked through fire, the one who came through stronger, reshaped by sorrow, reformed by grief, reborn in joy.”

Most romances we read has a couple who meets, gets together, something goes wrong, but then they find a way and get their happily ever after. Before I Let Go is a different kind of second chance romance. What happens when you have the perfect love and life deals you a bad hand of cards, and that love doesn’t work the way you thought it would?

Yasmen and Josiah were a power couple and thought there love with get through anything. That didn’t happen and now they’ve both gone their separate ways (well as much as possible when owning a restaurant and having kids together). There’s still a pull there and feelings, but how do you move on?

Kennedy Ryan wrote such a raw and emotional book. She didn’t sugarcoat anything and I really appreciated that. A lot of stories make it seem like trauma and grief just disappear, but Before I Let Go shows us the hard side that love isn’t always capable of fixing. Another aspect I loved was that this couple were able to co-parent their kids and make it work without changing their children’s lives too much. They talked about each other respectfully and just wanted what was best.

The dual POV helped a lot in this POV, because I loved reading how Yasmen and Josiah felt about everything and slowly learning about everything that had happened to them. Add some amazing side characters and I got the full picture. Love can be messy, but can be worth it. It was interesting seeing both of them clearly still love each other. Except opening up again didn’t seem like something either of them could handle. Until they started talking about the past, but also admitting there were still feelings. Before I Let Go made me laugh, cry, be angry, but also very happy seeing this couple find their way back to each other.

On top of this second chance romance I loved how positive the author was about therapy and taking care of your mental health. At times it’s still so much of a taboo or people are afraid to say they need it. All in all, this was an amazing book and I’m glad I decided to pick it up!

Before I Let Go was my first Kennedy Ryan book, but it definitely won’t be the last. This author has a way with words and I need more. At least I have books to get through before we get the next book in the Skyland series. Have you read anything by this author? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.