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A review by happyeverabigail
This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
INCREDIBLE. So Before I Let Go turned my world upside down and some of the hints to this book had me in anxious anticipation for Soledad’s story. Not to be dramatic but I needed it more than any 2024 release. To be clear This Could Be Us is definitely a standalone, actually in some ways more of a standalone than Before I Let Go was. Both are absolutely worth reading and are independent plots and characterizations.
The way Soledad as a rock solid mom was written is so unrepresented in media. She never wavers for and to her children. Yes, she has weaknesses and also more intensely in this book she is made weak by forces out of her control. But she always comes back and her moments of triumph had me in tears several times. I was always rooting for her and just fyi it never got *too* dark in that it was hard to read, it was in a hopeful and inspiring way. This is absolutely a love letter to stay at home moms and I loved her comebacks for the times her ex tried to belittle her.
Okay, our MMC. I loved the little sprinkle of grumpy/sunshine in this. He’s standoffish but Soledad gets to see the sweetest sides to him. I just loved his relationship with his ex-wife and I liked that this book had more than just Soledad’s example for exes. Judah is an amazing dad and the single dad angle really worked for this book. I’m not usually a fan of kids in romances (never affects my ratings it’s just one of those things for me) but even though this book is full of kids between the two of them Soledad’s journey and their romance is the central plot. Judah’s kids are really awesome too.
The autism rep in this is personal to the author and I can just share that it is so varied and nuanced and wonderful. I loved have dual POV to see life through Judah and the times he related to his twin sons. It made my heart so happy. Aaron and Adam are their own people and do not exist solely to show that other characters are capable of empathy- my biggest pet peeve that disabled particularly children characters get used for, that does NOT happen in this. Their characterization is full and beautiful.
Thank you so much to Forever for the galley, this was amazing.
The way Soledad as a rock solid mom was written is so unrepresented in media. She never wavers for and to her children. Yes, she has weaknesses and also more intensely in this book she is made weak by forces out of her control. But she always comes back and her moments of triumph had me in tears several times. I was always rooting for her and just fyi it never got *too* dark in that it was hard to read, it was in a hopeful and inspiring way. This is absolutely a love letter to stay at home moms and I loved her comebacks for the times her ex tried to belittle her.
Okay, our MMC. I loved the little sprinkle of grumpy/sunshine in this. He’s standoffish but Soledad gets to see the sweetest sides to him. I just loved his relationship with his ex-wife and I liked that this book had more than just Soledad’s example for exes. Judah is an amazing dad and the single dad angle really worked for this book. I’m not usually a fan of kids in romances (never affects my ratings it’s just one of those things for me) but even though this book is full of kids between the two of them Soledad’s journey and their romance is the central plot. Judah’s kids are really awesome too.
The autism rep in this is personal to the author and I can just share that it is so varied and nuanced and wonderful. I loved have dual POV to see life through Judah and the times he related to his twin sons. It made my heart so happy. Aaron and Adam are their own people and do not exist solely to show that other characters are capable of empathy- my biggest pet peeve that disabled particularly children characters get used for, that does NOT happen in this. Their characterization is full and beautiful.
Thank you so much to Forever for the galley, this was amazing.