Before I Let Go
Before I Let Go book cover

Before I Let Go

Paperback – November 15, 2022

by
Price
$12.31
Format
Paperback
Pages
400
Publisher
Forever
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-1538706794
Dimensions
5.65 x 1.25 x 8.25 inches
Weight
12.5 ounces

Description

“Real. Raw. Magnificent!”― Colleen Hoover, #1 New York Times bestselling author “Kennedy Ryan pours her whole soul into everything she writes, and it makes for books that are heart-searing, sensual, and life affirming. We are lucky to be living in a world where she writes.”― EMILY HENRY, #1 New York Times bestselling author “ Breathtaking, gut-wrenching, viscerally romantic. I want to curl up and live in this book.”― Talia Hibbert, New York Times bestselling author “ Before I Let Go is a masterpiece, and one of those books that you finish reading and just know you'll go back to many, many times. A beautifully honest portrayal of love in its many forms, and the most raw, poignant, and romantic journey of healing I've read in a long time. Kennedy Ryan has a fan for life.”― Ali Hazelwood, New York Times bestselling author of Love on the Brain “I am a sucker for high-stakes, once-in-a-lifetime soulmate love–and Before I Let Go hits every spot! Yasmen and Josiah’s story is emotional, raw, real, grown-up , and it perfectly crystalizes the idea that real, lasting love is an imperfect journey of patience. Forgiveness. Healing. And, of course, wildly hot, steamy sex! Kennedy Ryan has gifted us with yet another addictively delicious read.”― TIA WILLIAMS, New York Times bestselling author “A knockout.”― Publishers Weekly, starred review “A gorgeously poignant story of healing, family, and love. Kennedy Ryan is a true artist.”― Helen Hoang, New York Times bestselling author “Ryan always manages to ring her heavy stories with an aura of hope and a propulsive narrative that makes them impossible to put down. Grade: A”― Entertainment Weekly “Ryan is a fantastic storyteller and superb writer.”― NPR “A story of resilience, redemption and second chances; it’s heavy but hopeful. With meticulously detailed prose, Ryan creates characters who are deeply relatable, so compelling and lushly drawn that they feel like old friends.”― BookPage “A stunning look at the nuances of grief, healing, marriage, and love.”― Women's Health “Ryan crafts a heroine who is empowered, inspiring the men in her world to do whatever it takes to keep that connection alive.”― Ebony "BEFORE I LET GO is the kind of beautiful, heart-felt love story that stays with you. The only thing that rivals Kennedy Ryan's stunning prose is Yasmen's journey itself--raw and moving and relatable. This book is a must read!"― Lexi Ryan, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author “Kennedy Ryan has written the type of romancexa0you want to slowly savor, yet can’t help but devour. Every page is perfection." ― Farrah Rochon, USA Today Bestselling author of The Hookup Plan "Fans of Colleen Hoover will love this beautiful, unforgettable, oh-so-real second-chance romance whose characters will stay in your heart long after reading. Kennedy Ryan is a brilliant storyteller who can make you cry one moment and snort-laugh the next.”― Jill Shalvis, New York Times bestselling author "SPECTACULAR! Kennedy is doingxa0something no one else in romance is doing right now. If you love angst with the most satisfying payoff, Before I Let Go is for you."― Christina Lauren, New York Times bestselling author "Ryan is a powerhouse of a writer ."― USA Today "Kennedy Ryan writes modern romance with such emotion and beauty. Her stories are guaranteed to break your heart and then they heal it, each and every time."― Kylie Scott, New York Times bestselling author "Kennedy Ryan is one of the most talented writers writing today, and Before I Let Go is another showcase of that talent. This book is challenging, bracing, so evocative, and so REAL."― Kate Clayborn, author of Love Lettering “Kennedy Ryan crafts characters and stories that stay with you long after you’ve turned the last page. Before I Let Go is a beautifully told story full of hope, sorrow, and healing, a true testament to the power of love , family, community, and soul food. I smiled, pined along with Yasmen and Josiah, and rooted for their reunion. A great read.”― Alexandria House, bestselling author of Let Me Love You "Kennedy writes these gripping, touching, romantic, transporting books every single time."― Denise Williams, Author of How to Fail At Flirting "Devastating, thought provoking, and so hopeful, this deeply romantic second-chance love story brought out all my emotions. This book is stunningly beautiful."― Farah Heron, author of Kamila Knows Best "The queen of hard-hitting romance books."― The Culturess " Before I Let Go is pure magic. Kennedy poured herself in this raw, real, second-chance love storyxa0that will reach out and touch you to your soul. I read this story with my heart in my throat, enraptured by every word. A stunning, stellar, must read."xa0― A.L. Jackson, NYT & USA Today bestselling author “A must read for lovers of It Starts with Us by Colleen Hoover and Seven Days in June by Tia Williams.”― ZibbyMag "This novel of rediscovered love is highly recommended."xa0― Library Journal, starred review "Kennedy Ryan captures so many topics in this book from grief, loss, community, and friendship to learning how to forgive yourself, speak your truth, and ask for what you want. It’s a book where you can easily find glimpses of yourself among the pages.”― Conde Nast Traveler “Kennedy Ryan is frequently compared to bestselling author Colleen Hoover, and for good reason. She writes heart-wrenching romances that are sexy and modern.”― Men's Health A RITA® and Audie® Award winner, USA Today bestselling author Kennedy Ryan writes for women from all walks of life, empowering them and placing them firmly at the center of each story and in charge of their own destinies. Her heroes respect, cherish, and lose their minds for the women who capture their hearts. Kennedy and her writings have been featured in Chicken Soup for the Soul, USA Today, Entertainment Weekly, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, TIME, O magazine, and many others. She is a wife to her lifetime lover and mother to an extraordinary son. xa0 Find out more, at: KennedyRyanWrites.com Facebook.com/KennedyRyanAuthor Twitter: @KennedyRWrites Instagram: @KennedyRyan1

Features & Highlights

  • “Real, raw, magnificent
  • —
  • Before I Let Go
  • is the beautiful angst I love to read.”
  • —
  • Colleen Hoover, #1
  • New York Times
  • bestselling author
  • A Good Morning America Book Buzz Pick!
  • 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’s 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?
  • Award-winning and bestselling "powerhouse" author Kennedy Ryan is at her absolute best in this compelling, scorching novel about hope and healing, and what it truly means to love for a lifetime (
  • USA Today).
  • Book of the Month Club
  • selection NPR Best Books of 2022
  • Entertainment Weekly
  • Best Romances of 2022
  • Washington Post
  • 10 Best Romances of the Year
  • Women's Health
  • Best Books of the Year
  • Publishers Weekly
  • Best Romance Books of 2022

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
60%
(2.2K)
★★★★
25%
(920)
★★★
15%
(552)
★★
7%
(258)
★
-7%
(-258)

Most Helpful Reviews

✓ Verified Purchase

Didn't Give What Everyone Said It Gave!!!

**SOME SPOILERS**

I was afraid of this. Before I Let Go has gotten nothing but glowing reviews so, I’m a little bummed that I didn’t enjoy this book as much as everyone else did. But, this doesn’t surprise me. If I’m keepin’ it a buck, I didn’t think I’d like it. I’m not a fan of black authors who write interracial romance. I just don’t think they can give us the black experience black readers expect and I definitely did NOT get that with this book. But, I can appreciate the heartbreak Yasmen and Josiah went through. To lose a parental figure and your baby back to back then, to turn around and lose the love of your life is beyond devastating. But, the love is still there and these two manage to find their way back to one another. The author’s exploration of mental health was done very well. I thought she did a phenomenal job of showing us all sides of divorce, grief, depression, and trauma. However, if I’m being honest, I didn’t like these characters. I thought Yasmen was extremely selfish. She acted like she was the only one who lost Aunt Byrd and Henry, and she was the only one who was allowed to grieve. Josiah was soft and had absolutely no BDE. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book where the black male lead didn’t exude BDE. Ladies, y’all know how we are about these male characters. They show up, snatch our souls, and we’re ready to pull up and fight each other if somebody claims our man. But, I didn’t get that from Josiah. There was no confidence, charisma, or swagger about him. There was nothing forceful about his character so, needless to say, I’m not pullin’ up on nobody behind Josiah. Y’all can have him. I thought there would be way more drama with Vashti and Mark. I just knew they were going to start all kinds of ish to keep Yasmen and Josiah apart but, their characters were kind of lackluster. Honestly, she could’ve omitted them from the storyline all together. If you blinked, you missed Mark. And, we won’t even discuss the lack of character description for Yasmen, Josiah, and Deja but, how detailed the descriptions were for Soledad, Lupe, and Mark. That’s a discussion for another day. To say I was disappointed in this book would be an understatement. I had so many issues with it. First and foremost, it’s NOT a black romance. They slapped a black woman on the cover, gave the characters “urban” like names, and horribly disguised it as black romance. The lack of blackness was problematic as well. Kennedy Ryan had the perfect opportunity to write a book strictly for us and she failed epically. You have a couple that lives in Georgia. One of the blackest states in the US. Yasmen and Josiah live in a city that’s Atlanta-ish so, why is it they couldn’t have a black gay couple as their neighbors?!!! Why couldn’t the restaurant they bought be black owned?!!! Why couldn’t both of Yasmen’s best friends be black?!!! Why was her love interest a blonde haired blue eyed man named Mark instead of a black man with dreads named Malik?!!! I’ll tell you why. Kennedy Ryan’s target readers are white women so, she made this book just black enough to satisfy black readers and make her white readers comfortable. Too much blackness may have started an uprising and, well, she and her publisher can't have that. Don't wanna upset the masses. Listen, if you’re not willing to give black readers the black romance we deserve without worrying about how your core white readers will feel then, stay on the interracial romance side of the fence. We’re good over here. Before I Let Go did not give what y’all said it gave. While it was a decent enough read, I just wasn't wowed with it like everyone else. Thank God for Wesleigh and Jakobi because, had I not listened to the audiobook, I probably would’ve DNFd it. I think it’s safe to say I won't be reading the other books in this series.
32 people found this helpful
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Beautiful, emotional, intense, and sexy

“Depression is a liar.”

This book right here!! Before I Let Go, is in my top 5 books for this year. Kennedy Ryan has always been a brilliant writer but Before I Let Go, is truly her best work to date. This story was brilliant, captivating, and it beautifully depicted the complexity of marriage, love, loss,
and mental health.

“People talk about the stages of grief, but there is a stage of depression—at least for me—where you go from feeling pain so acutely you can’t bear it, to feeling nothing at all. A blessed numbness after debilitating sadness. It’s like laying a thin film of steel over your emotions.”

Josiah and Yasmin were once college sweethearts but are now divorced. After a tragic loss, their once loving and stable marriage has devolved into hurt, anger, and sadness. Two years later both are trying to navigate their new normal. Yasmin has grown and is healing with the help of therapy and Josiah is trying to grow and move on as well. Despite being divorced they still have to coparent and manage their family owned restaurant.

“Our traumas, the things that injure us in this life, even over time, are not always behind us.”

These two had an amazing palpable chemistry. They loved strong and they loved hard but grief and depression lead to Yasmin asking for a divorce. Seeing and reading their heartbreak on these pages, I felt as if I was going through it myself. You couldn’t help but want them together, but you knew that if they ever made their way back to one another it would not be an easy journey.

Their love was grand and beautiful and Kennedy did a fantastic job telling their story and making you understand and feel the love they once had. This story was beautiful and after reading it, I wanted to start it all over again. I cried, I cussed, and it made me want to work on my own mental health.

I loved already the characters, their friends, and family and I can wait to see more from the other characters from the Skyland series.
29 people found this helpful
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2.5 Stars

Thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy and the finished copy.

This book, while well written, fell flat for me. Yasmen annoyed me immensely and I didn’t root for anyone in this except for the recipes. All of the right elements were there but I couldn’t connect with them.

This book originally was marketed as second chance romance, it is not and I wish publishers would stop doing this. There are barely any romantic elements or a romantic subplot. This is women’s fiction, full stop. Yasmen’s grief and depression and her working through those are the heart of the story. Her relationship with her children and therapy had more spotlight than anything to do with Josiah.

And Josiah was as interesting as watching paint dry. Lackluster and milquetoast. Minimal character development and overall a waste of time.

This book could have focused solely on Yasmen and retooled to her coming out of the fog of her grief and worked much better.
20 people found this helpful
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Grief, Mental Health, and Second Chances All Written With Grace

+🛑SPOILERS🛑
⭐️: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

ONE OF MY TOP READS OF 2022!

I read this book as a buddy read and started the book on Saturday night. It's Monday afternoon and I finished it!

To say this book is amazing, sad, beautiful, loving, and more is an understandment. First of all I love the name Josiah and Yasmen! I just had to throw that out there 🤣. Second when the book first started I am glad it started with Yasmen being happy with herself and loving who she is. It was a journey still for her and I enjoyed the aspect of therapy and how it has helped her. She was a great mother, business women, and lover who just lost her way. I liked that she told Josiah she never stopped loving him, but she needed to learn to love herself. I've heard so many people say that and I didn't know what it meant until recently. It's the truth, though I didn't agree divorce was the right decision, something Yasmen admitted. She needed the separation and I just wish her and Josiah would have been able to communicate that without having to divorce.

Kennedy Ryan has a way of writing men that you fall in love with.

Josiah has literally stolen my ❤️!

He was everything you want in a man. A great father, loving, sweet, and supportive. One thing I loved the most about him is taking accountability. Yes, Yasmen asked for the divorce, however, he was being emotionally resistant and never truly showed emotion for the lose of his aunt and son. That affected Yasmen who didn't have support and felt alone. Even denying going to therapy which in the long run he found to help him and his family. The scene when he was speaking to his therapist and finally let his tears go was beautiful to see.

Society has set into men they have to be strong and withhold there emotions, but in reality you are setting them up to suffer silently which leads to worse circumstances mentally.

I relate to this book on the spectrum of therapy. I was resistant at first because I thought people would label me crazy and more. But, after going it had helped me so much. I now have methods of breathing to calm myself down and turn to positivity at my darkest times.

Before I Let Go is about second chances and finding love again that has never went away. Also, anxiety and depression which millions of people suffer from on the daily. Not to mention Si and Yas kids were a true telling of the story as well and I liked the way Kennedy explained ways divorce can affect children especially ones who are older. Deja I understand her anger with her mother and I was proud to see them make up at the end. Even Yasmen holding herself accountable and talking to her daughter. The son Seem is a son I would dream to have!

However, this book is a solid ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ for me and I recommend everyone read this book. It respectfully explores the topic of grief, mental health, and more. Also, shows therapy in the positive light that it is!

Read this book because you will not regret it. I look forward to the next book in the series!
17 people found this helpful
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Mature adult second chance romance with incredible therapy rep and character growth

I’m no stranger to Kennedy Ryan (having read The Kingmaker duet), and her latest romance is another example of how well she builds a relationship. This slow burn, second-chance romance between divorced co-parents and co-owners of a restaurant was heart-wrenching, raw, and beautiful. I was hooked on Josiah and Yasmen’s story from The Beginning.💋

This book has some heavy themes surrounding loss, grief, and depression (TWs are addressed at the beginning of the book). But it’s also a story of love, growth, joy, healing and recovery with therapy and mental health as major themes of the story.

Yasmen and Josiah were mature and complex characters. There were times in the present when there could have been a lot more drama, but the maturity with which they handled certain situations was a pleasant surprise, and the communication between them was really good, for the most part, which I always appreciate.

What I found really unique was Josiah’s character arc. When we meet Yasmen in the present, she’s already gone through a great deal of healing. So, instead, we get to see Josiah’s journey—and I loved that and him. 🫶

Kennedy also did a good job of depicting what Josiah and Yasmen each brought to their relationship romantically, professionally, and as parents. They were truly partners in every way which helped add some depth to their connection which was very physical. And while there wasn’t a lot of steam—when there was it was 😮‍💨—it was more in how they spoke about the physical draw they had to each other that provided great tension.

I also have to give a shoutout to Yasmen and Josiah’s kids and the role they played in the story; they had a purpose and were multi-dimensional.

✨| Oтнer Hιɢнlιɢнтѕ:

- Flashbacks for context
- Strong female friends who had their own stories
- Tight family bonds
- Therapy sessions + destigmatizing therapy for kids/teens
- Recipes at the end of the book for dishes featured in the story
- The cover!! 😍

Trope(ѕ): Second-Chance Romance / Soul Mates / It’s Always Been You / Forced Proximity
Sтeαм Rαтιɴɢ: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
10 people found this helpful
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Surface level

This second chance romance is getting nothing but glowing reviews, so I’m bummed that I can’t give it more than three stars.
There are some things that it does very very well. I really appreciate that this is a book featuring a couple that are, I’m guessing, around 40 (their age is never given), and have lived life and tragedy and joy and so many other things that a 20 year-old doesn’t know. I also love how positive a message it gives about seeking help for mental health. That it’s OK to go to therapy, that it’s OK to take medication, that it’s healthy. Big points for this.

But here’s where it lost me. I’m not really sure what the bond is between these two other than physical. The book is told in dual perspective, and every single time one of them sees the other there are comments about how hot they are, and about her cheekbones and his shoulders and her eyes and he’s a thirst trap and damn look at her ass and his this and her that and so on and so on. It goes on for the entire book. And it just seems so shallow. Don’t get me wrong, physical attraction is absolutely important. But where’s the heart, where’s the soul? It just seemed like this endless litany about how hot they are and how great the sex is. Is that the only reason they’re together, because it sure seems like it.
9 people found this helpful
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I want to start my review by saying I’m not a fan of romance novels. I gave this novel a chance because it was recommended to me by a lot of friends.

I have a love/hate relationship with the novel. I hate it because it kind of was the stereotypical romance novel, which made it extremely predictable. However, I loved the novel because of the way the author touches of mental health and the importance of going to therapy.

I loved the two main characters in the novel, however I wished the author touched more on why Yasmen and Josiah fell in love, outside of their physical attraction for one another. It seemed like the two of them really only had a physical attraction and nothing more for each other which kind of bothered me. I just wish we had more memories of the two of them falling in love with each other, instead of just sex flashbacks.

After reading this novel I definitely want to check out more romance novels because I did enjoy the storyline. I also will buy more books by Kennedy Ryan because I loved her writing in this novel.
5 people found this helpful
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Before I Let Go..

Read this as part of my book club and it was a cute read but starts out very slow and drawn out. It’s over 400 pages and it felt as if the characters were just repeating themselves. The end is actually better once you get to chapter 25-30 it starts to get pretty interesting and steamy. Overall it’s a cute love redemption story but I was happy to be finished with it.
4 people found this helpful
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Not for me

I haven't read this author before and hadn't thought about the genre, when this was on a recommended reading list. I guess I'm not into romance novels, or whatever this is. The story is good enough and she writes well, but I could not stand one more paragraph of how well defined he looks with his shirt on, or how her curves knock it out of the park. Halfway through the book, I just skipped over these parts. They were just redundant and boring. And her friendships just seemed pretty superficial. I'm clearly in the minority, but this just wasn't for me.
3 people found this helpful
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An all time favorite read! A beautiful, emotional story!

Before I Let Go was my most anticipated read for the last half of the year, so when I saw the ARC was available I couldn’t even grab it fast enough. Like everything that Kennedy writes, this was beautiful, heart-aching, poignant, emotional, romantic, and just a real journey between Yasmen and Josiah. This is easily my favorite read of 2022, not only one of my top reads from Kennedy Ryan, but a favorite romance of all time for me.

Yasmen and Josiah are divorced, they’ve been co-parenting their two children: Deja (13) and Kassim (10), running their successful soul fusion restaurant Grits together, and just taking each day as it comes. Yasmen is very active in her children’s activities, sports, and school events as well as a very active member in their community putting together local business events. Josiah and Yasmen fell in love and loved hard and beautifully, but multiple tragedies hit their family and lead to their divorce. Now they run their restaurant, he lives just 2 streets over, and their kids see both parents every day. They both have hurt one another in the past but still have so much love for one another. Like magnets, Yasmen and Josiah are always pulled back to one another and now they’re both starting to wonder if it’s really too late to let everything go for good.

“Who wants to walk in the park? I think that man would run wild with you.”

Their story is raw and real, you know absolutely that Yasmen and Josiah are inevitable and will work their way back to one another. The weight of their past cannot keep these two apart. The way their children play a part in the story, her friends, their restaurant, an overnight trip together (with only 1 bed!) to scout a new restaurant location, their family Great Dane Otis, the family time, the food, the fountain scene (I gasped!), and omg just all the love. The way this man worships her, her body, her scars…it’s just so beautiful! Their children, their restaurant, their lives together, the legacy they’re creating. I just can’t get enough. This book does deal with heavy topics and emotions and I really liked seeing how much therapy played a role in their story. This was just a knock out of a story and one I cannot wait to own a physical copy of, Kennedy Ryan is on a whole other level of romance writing.

Thank you to the publisher (Forever) for an e-ARC via NetGalley. All thoughts in this review are my own.
3 people found this helpful

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