Second chances hit different when grief is driving the car | It comes back to you
It comes back to You
Genre & Tropes
Contemporary Romance
Rating
5/5
What's it about?
Kat has it all—career? thriving. Friends? supportive. Family? fiercely loved. Life? Curated, color-coded, and emotionally suppressed like a pro. And then BAM 💥—the universe kills her brother and tosses his best friend (aka The Man Who Shattered Her Heart and Then Vanished Like a Ghost With Commitment Issues) right back into her life.
Because obviously.
Enter Sam. Grieving. Broody. Emotionally constipated. Walking reminder of everything Kat has been avoiding like an unread therapy email. Together, they decide the healthiest way to process trauma is to stare at each other intensely, reopen old wounds, and pretend that “doing this together” won’t absolutely wreck them.
Spoiler: it does.
😵💫 THINGS THIS BOOK DID TO ME: Yell in to the void
This book thrives on mutual pining, emotional paralysis, and that classic romance trope where two adults with fully functioning brains refuse to say the one sentence that would solve everything. Every chapter is basically:
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Kat: I’m fine.
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Narrator: She was not fine.
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Sam: I’ll give her space.
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Also Sam: Exists near her with devastating intensity.
And yet—AND YET—I ate it up. Why? Because the grief feels real. Messy. Heavy. Like that dull ache you carry around pretending you’re okay while your soul is screaming into the void. The romance isn’t shiny or easy; it’s uncomfortable, tender, and painfully human. These two aren’t falling in love—they’re tripping over their trauma and landing on each other.
The emotional damage? Impeccable.
The slow burn? Agonizing.
The “what if?” energy? Off the charts.
By the time Kat reaches her crossroads—stay frozen forever or risk her heart again—I was personally yelling at the book like it owed me money. And the ending? Equal parts hopeful and emotionally threatening, like the author whispering, “Healing is possible… but I could’ve hurt you more if I wanted to.”
Is it subtle? No.
Is it emotionally manipulative? Absolutely.
Did it wreck me anyway? Unfortunately, yes.
What my Braincell Has Spoken!
Final verdict: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Read this if you enjoy grief, second chances, and being emotionally clotheslined by people who just need one good cry and a long, honest conversation. Avoid if you hate feelings, introspection, or being attacked by a romance novel at 2 a.m.
Would I recommend it? In my opinion—yes. But don’t come crying to me when Sam stares longingly out a window and you lose your last shred of emotional stability.
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