REVIEW: Before I Do - Sophie Cousens

Genre: Romance | Romantic Comedy | Contemporary Fiction

Release Date: Expected 29th September 2022

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Audrey is getting married to the perfect man. Josh is trustworthy, dependable, stable. They live together peacefully, share everything, and he's a complete gentleman. But at their rehearsal dinner, her future sister-in-law turns up with a man who leaves Audrey floored.

Fred was the guy. The big question mark, the one that might have been, the one that got away. She met him years ago, spent one amazing day with, felt fireworks and sparks like nothing else, but then never saw him again. But those sparks start to fly again and she can't help but wonder why she doesn't feel like this with her future husband. She tries to shake it off, but when the wedding itself starts to hit chaos and roadbumps, Audrey can't help but wonder if this is a sign that before she says I Do, she needs to really think about what or who she wants.

Now, I love a good love triangle, but usually I find myself either knowing or heavily hoping that one couple will make it at the end, but the wonderful thing about this story is that I really wasn't sure what Audrey was going to do or what I wanted for her until I was running out of pages and she told me what she truly wanted. I was left just as disoriented and torn as Audrey and it made this whole journey something undeniably special. As a reader, we get to know Audrey intimately, and very quickly find her familiar and friendly in a way you can't help but relate and connect with her.

Aside from the copious amounts of romance and hilarity, Cousens always manages to bring something multi-faceted and complex to even the most simple or cutest of tales, as we see a woman trying not only to figure out who she wants, but what she wants from her life and exploring all the other relationships in her life that have changed her along the way.

This story jumps around, somewhat erratically, from timeline to timeline, showing different snapshots from their lives and filling in little missing pieces of a bigger complicated picture - but despite the slightly chaotic manner of storytelling, it is very much controlled chaos and very easy to follow.

Full of heart, humour and happiness - this book might break your heart but it will definitely fill it with joy in the way only Sophie Cousens can.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

I was gifted an advanced reviewers copy of this title in return for an honest review.

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