A review by sollyreads
Before I Let Go, by Kennedy Ryan

emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Maybe I’m new to the second chance romance trope, or maybe this story was unbelievable. I’ll start with the setting of Atlanta, a city I personally I love for it rich history as well as becoming a growing black metropolis. We meet our main characters as a divorced couple maintaining an amicable business and co-parenting relationship, but our immediately reminded that the sparks between them will always fly. My favorite part of this novel was not just in the romance between the two leading characters, but in the development of Josiah. I found myself sharing so many of his moments and flaws and his breakthroughs were so beautifully written that the caused me to realize things about myself as well. Ryan handles trauma and healing and learning to love again so
delicately in this book, however there are important trigger warnings to take in mind before taking on this book. I loved the story and wouldn’t mind reading about what happens next to our main characters. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy

Moderate: Child death

Minor: Death of parent and Suicidal thoughts

Spoiler

The protagonists deal with a lot of grief in the novel including the still birth of their child, the death of a parent, the death of a loved one, and suicidal thoughts. I felt the author took care to handle these topics delicately and also work through with the characters how they managed this grief.