Thanks to Leslie @ Books Are the New Black for buddy reading this with me! We loved it so hard! 💜

TL;DR: There was so much that I loved about this book but it was essentially a love letter to all the things that my inner (reluctantly) hopeless romantic dreams about and loves to giggle and kick my feet over. It’s one of those “impossible romances” a la Serendipity, Sleepless in Seattle, and Notting Hill (among others) rolled into one and my heart had a swooning good time reading about Clementine and Iwan’s story. This is a book that is heavily centered on grief and being stuck in the past, and of course, it’s about healing and finding hope through finding yourself again. I think if you’ve enjoyed Poston’s other romances, you’re bound to enjoy this one too!

Clementine was an interesting character. I wouldn’t say she’s the most exciting FMC, but she’s certainly someone that I found pretty relatable. She has put herself in the backseat of her own life and it shows in how she’s perpetually stuck in the past, unable to reconcile who she was when she used to travel the world with her adventurous and thrill-seeking favourite aunt, with the straight-laced workaholic that she has forced herself to become in the present. While she used to thrive on the free-spirited energy and gregarious personality of her aunt, the loss of the person who meant the most in life led Clementine to cling desperately to rigid structures that have literally sucked any joy she has felt out of her life. While she may not want to admit it, although it’s obvious to everyone around her, she’s pretty lost and it’s because she’s never centered her own desires or followed her own path. Her journey of accepting that it’s not selfish to do and want things for yourself was a tough one filled with grief, and it got a bit cyclical at times, but I was happy with how things played out for her and with the romance between her and Iwan.

Their romance was pretty unconventional and this idea of meeting “your one” at the right place but the wrong time, is something that my serendipity loving angsty soul loves to read about, haha. While I was a bit skeptical at first about what it would mean in the present day, I was pretty happy with how Poston let their story play out. There is definitely a certain “instalove” element to their romance because of how quickly their feelings seem to develop on page, but from the beginning, there was a “rightness” to their romance that—as cheesy as it sounds—felt like the comfort of coming home. Their attraction was potent and the ‘when will they’ tension so real and I found it so satisfying to read about! That said, it would’ve been nice to see more of is Iwan in the present. I feel there was a lot more that could’ve been done to flesh out his character a bit more, and it would’ve been nice seeing them get to know each other in the now.

Other than their relationship, I also enjoyed the way Poston tied in another friendship and relationship from the past into their storyline. It was sweet and unexpected, and added another bittersweet touch to the story. I loved Clementine’s relationship with her aunt and it was clear that this aunt meant more to her than anyone. I also enjoyed Clementine’s friendships with Fiona and Drew, and although it’s not for long, I also loved seeing Iwan’s friendship with his CIA friends. They’re a fun cheeky lot! 🤭

Overall though, this was a wonderfully heartfelt, emotional and swoontastic romance that I thoroughly enjoyed and it’s a positive mark towards making Poston an auto-buy contemporary romance author for me!

Have you read The Seven Year Slip or is it on your TBR?

• Follow me on Goodreads!
• Follow me on Bluesky
• Follow me on Instagram!
• Follow me on Twitter!