4.5 stars
This book along with Queen Move are my favorite books by Kennedy Ryan. Both books tackled subjects really relevant to me and felt them deeply. Flawed characters who are such good people. How can one not root for them to win?

One of the things my parents told me is that tragedy or trauma can break a marriage. It is important to know how your partner deals with stress or if they have had a significant loss. This story was so poignant because marriages are tough enough but when Yasmen and Josiah Wade hit a rough patch, they were unable to weather the storm together. What I loved about this book was that it showed that married couples could grow as individuals and maybe repair the relationship they had. There was never a question about love because Josiah and Yasmin never wavered about their love for each other, but it was just obscured by the other pains they were feeling about a lot of things. Communication broke down and so did their marriage.

The author wrote this story in such a way that it was relatable, emotional and by the end, inspirational. With consistent work in the mental health area, brokenness may be healed. The issue of children actually helped Yasmin and Josiah, though their daughter was driving me up the wall. I did love how they managed to co-parent in relative harmony and the restaurant was like another child of theirs. There was sufficient roots for this tree to be securely grounded, so once the relationship was pruned and cared for, the tree once again had life.

Bravo to Kennedy Ryan for another heartfelt second chance romance.