Book of the Week Review

Romance · Second Chance · Part of a Series

How My Rating Scale Works

I rate every book using my Coat System.

Base Coat = the story. Plot, characters, writing, pacing, and the foundation everything sits on. I score it out of 5.

Top Coat = the heat. Steam, tension, and those spicy scenes that make you set the book down for a second. These are also scored out of 5.

Both scores together tell you exactly what you’re walking into

Okay, so I picked this one up because it’s been on people’s must-read lists since it dropped, and I wasn’t about to keep scrolling past it. Plus, a Black author! Easy, yes, from me. I went in without reading a single review on purpose. I just wanted to experience it completely fresh and see what all the noise was about.

And honestly? The noise makes sense.

First Impressions

The book opens with a prologue from Josiah’s point of view, just a small glimpse into how it all began, and then chapter one comes in from Yasmen’s side and does NOT ease you in gently. There is a lot coming at you fast. I literally said “whew” out loud. But that’s actually exactly what I liked about it. No long drawn-out setup, no hand-holding. Kennedy Ryan just trusts you to keep up, and I respect that energy completely.

What It’s Actually About

Josiah and Yasmen are divorced. They share kids. They share a business. So they literally cannot avoid each other, which also means they cannot avoid all the history sitting between them. And at the center of that history is grief. Real, heavy, life-altering grief that quietly changed both of them in ways they’re still working through.

It’s being sold as a second-chance romance, and yes, technically that’s true, but just know going in that you’re going to feel some things before you get to the good parts.

The Reading Experience 

This is a slow burn, and I want to be upfront about that. But it’s the kind of slow burn where you’re not bored, you’re just waiting. Hoping. Low-key rooting for them to work it out even before the story gives you permission to. Kennedy Ryan is intentional about everything. Each chapter adds a layer, each piece of the past connects to the present, and nothing feels thrown in just to fill space. I was excited to come back to it every single time I put it down

The Real Talk 

What worked: The grief storyline is handled really well. It doesn’t feel like a plot device; it feels like the actual reason two people who loved each other fell apart. That’s what made everything land so hard. The pacing in those early chapters especially kept me completely locked in from the start.

What didn’t work for me: The secondary characters never really grabbed me. I kept waiting for someone in that supporting cast to stand out, and it just didn’t happen. I wanted a little more from the people around Josiah and Yasmen.

The Rating

Story 💅🏽💅🏽💅🏽💅🏽

Heat 💅🏽💅🏽💅🏽💅🏽

4 out of 5 base coats for story · 4 out of 5 top coats for heat

A strong, emotionally satisfying romance that met my expectations and then quietly exceeded them.

Bottom Line 

Read it!

This one is for anyone who wants their romance to carry real emotional weight. If you need the feelings to hit before the heat gets there, this is absolutely your book. If you’re looking for something light with no emotional labor, save this one for when you’re ready to feel something.

I finished it feeling hopeful and, honestly, a little tender. And I’m already on the second book in the series, so that should tell you everything you need to know.

Thanks for being in the Nook. The full audio review can be listened to on Apple or Spotify Podcasts, with the same thoughts, just a little less edited.