I’ve had this ARC for a while so I decided to pick it up recently and I finished it quite quickly. I think this is something you could pick up if you wanted a light and easy read. I don’t think this was an amazing read, but nor was it bad. And on a side note, I did not read the blurb, I dove right into the book.

I found the idea of the book super interesting, but the lack of chemistry between the characters and the ending was just not doing it for me. Also, I didn’t really see the point in having Liv’s POV in first person and Jack’s POV in third person.

When I read the first chapter, I thought Jack was a side character that she’d dump later on. It sounded like she was with Jack because they’d only been with each other, not because she actually loved him. The vibe I was getting from this chapter was that she wouldn’t be super happy with the marriage, but she wouldn’t be upset either, she’d just be comfortable, which led me to believe that she’d find another MMC who actually makes her happy. So when getting to the fourth chapter and seeing Jake’s POV, I figured I was wrong and realized that he was actually the MMC.

In the book, Liv and Jack barely interact since the majority of the book is about both of them in alternate universes and trying to find each other. Liv has been transported into a different timeline, and Jack remains in the original timeline they were in and tries to find her. Even though they lacked interactions, I felt the longing they had for each other while they were separated; Liv came to realize that she took her love for Jack for granted, and Jack would be actively trying to search for Liv. But still, I couldn’t find myself caring much for these characters (I just felt like there wasn’t much chemistry).

I really didn’t like the ending of this book. It was so abrupt and rushed. I’d like to say more but I don’t really wanna spoil the ending for those who haven’t read it yet (even though it’s kinda predictable).

Read if you like:
- Alternate universes/timelines
- Dual POV
- Fantasy (just a hint of it)
- Soulmates
- Destiny

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC. I’m not a huge fan of dual perspectives but I did enjoy this. Very lovely easy read.

Olivia has it all. A great business, and a newly renovated house and she is about to marry the guy she loved forever.

But the more the wedding approaches, the more she is filled with doubts. She never left her town and her fiance is the only boyfriend she had. She wonders if she is missing something.

A romantic anniversary picnic turns deadly when she slips on a cliff. Instead of waking up in the water, she wakes up in a hospital bed. But there is something wrong. Nobody knows her, the only person with her name died 16 years ago.

As she makes her way into a new world, she comes to terms whit the one she came from.

I like the premise of the story, it's not something I have read before, but the storyline itself fell a bit flat for me.

I judged a book by it's cover and went in blind. I was not disappointed. I had no idea what a rollercoaster I was getting into.and I so enjoyed the ride.
I love the idea of a parallel universe or multiverse. C. J. Connolly brought it all to life in the most unexpected way. A love story.
This book makes you think about how every choice you make can effect things you don't even see.

Jake and Liv were lovable and relatable. The character development was spot on.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A story of parallel universes and an opportunity to choose a new life promises an exciting premise, but for me this didn’t quite deliver what I was hoping for.

Olivia and Jake have known each other the majority of their lives, and have been in love for almost as long. Their lives so tightly intertwined that Olivia has little memory of anything that doesn’t involve him. And with their wedding quickly approaching she beings to feel the anxieties of what if life was meant to be different, what if there was someone else out there she was meant to meet, a different life she was supposed to lead. An anniversary celebration at the quarry leads to a slip and fall that lands Olivia in a hospital room in an altogether different reality - Liv must decide what she wants, who she loves, and figure out whether a different life is in fact what she wanted all along.

To start with the things I did like: as aforementioned the concept of this story is entertaining, and it kept me holding on until the end in hopes of a satisfying conclusion. The author does a decent job at painting each scene clearly, and while I didn’t feel a particular attachment to the characters I was still able to root for them - overall it was a quick and easy read.

For the dislikes;

This book does a tremendous amount of telling and not showing, with a disproportionate amount of dialogue - we see many of the scenes built through conversation which only leaves the reader removed from the emotional experience of the characters. We see that Jake is sad, but we don’t ever get the chance to feel exactly what that’s is like, we see that Olivia is confused about what she wants but the anxiety of her situation is never really felt through the character

I’m usually a fan of dual POV, but I can t help but feel it could have done better if we spent the novel with only the FMC - Jakes love for Olivia could have easily been shared through her POV, we didn’t need an entire half book about his routine with the police and investigations in the other universe. Ultimately the result left us with neither character having much of a personality by the end of the book.

I came out the other end of this one with no real understanding of what the point was. If Olivia was put into the other universe was it for her to decide if the life she had with Jake was what she really wanted? Because it felt as though the scenarios placed before her left little room for this decision to hold much magnitude. Secondary love interests introduced in opposition to her path with Jake also leave much to be desired, the relationship felt underdeveloped and the character unlikable.

And lastly, the ending was abrupt and I was left feeling a lack of closure, it could have really benefitted from an epilogue

Thank you to Joffe Books and Netgally for a copy of this ARC

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book. All opinions are 100% my own.

This book follows Olivia, who gets sent to an alternative universe following a fall. In this alternate universe, Olivia died aged 12 and the life that she knows doesn’t exist. Meanwhile, her fiancé Jake, is stuck in the real universe, where Olivia has vanished.

I was hoping that this book would explore Olivia’s life if she made different choices, the midnight library style, but instead of taking her chance at starting over, Olivia spent the whole time pining after Jake. I believe the blurb to be a little misleading in this respect as it states ‘now Liv has the chance to do all the things she never did’. The title also doesn’t really reflect what the book is about, as there is no other ‘love’ that liv ‘could have had’ like it makes you believe.

I did enjoy the story though and the magical realism elements to it. The book was easy to read and the dual POV of Olivia and jake in the separate universes broke the story up perfectly.

Olivia, and somewhat Jake too, had no personality outside of being in a relationship with the other and were a bit dry as characters.

Overall, this was a decent read and I recommend it to anyone after an easy book.

I love a good parallel universe plotline, and this book explored the concept of love across a multi-verse so well. I loved how it explored themes of the impact one person can make in the world, what would change or would stay the same based on 1 thing happening, and the existence of fate.

The writing was heart-wrenching and emotional. Told in dual POV, both Liv’s and Jake’s perspectives tugged at my heartstrings. This was almost a 5 star read, just the ending left me wanting a little more resolution. Other than that, I thoroughly enjoyed this and would highly recommend picking it up if you enjoy parallel universe stories!

The Love I Could Have Had is the perfect book for anyone who has ever believed in destiny and soulmates — or ever wondered what life would be like if they had made a different choice. I feel in love with this story line for these exact reasons and I am not sure I will ever forget it either.

From the outset you feel the way that Liv does and you understand why she's having doubts as it approaches her wedding day and when she finds herself in an alternative universe where her life isn't the way it should be, all you want is for her to make it back to where she belongs.

I loved that it was told from Jacob's perspective as well as Olivia's as you could see just how much love there was in their relationship and want nothing more than for them to find their way back to each other.

The only reason this isn't a five star for me is because I didn't get that five star feeling but this will be a book I recommend to all my romance lovers!

Let me begin by saying that "The Love I Could Have Had" by C.J. Connolly is an absolute masterpiece that left me utterly speechless. From the very first page to the final sentence, everything about this book was absolutely perfect—the pacing, the relatable characters, and the raw emotions that made the entire reading experience truly worthwhile.

Liv and Jake have been best friends since they were twelve, fell in love at fourteen, and got engaged in their twenties. However, Liv has always harbored a lingering doubt about whether they might be missing out on other experiences in life by only being with each other. What if there's someone better for Jake? Or someone better suited for her? Then, one fateful day, Liv wakes up in a hospital bed to discover a life where the same people surround her, yet none of them know the adult version of Liv.

"The Love I Could Have Had" takes readers on a breathtaking rollercoaster ride of emotions, weaving an intriguing plot that explores the concept of parallel universes branching out from our present choices. As someone who has always been fascinated by the idea of parallel universes and the multiverse, Connolly expertly delves into this concept, creating heartwarming stories about characters that readers will undoubtedly fall in love with.

This novel effortlessly tugs at all the right heartstrings, eliciting a range of emotions throughout its chapters. I found myself feeling deeply sorry for Liv, Jake, and even Adam, as their intertwined lives unfolded in the most unexpected ways.

I must commend Connolly for the incredible job she has done with "The Love I Could Have Had." This book not only captivated me, but it also inspired me to seek out her other work, "The Love of My Other Life”. I have no doubt that this book will be equally as remarkable.

Bravo, C.J. Connolly, for delivering an extraordinary reading experience with "The Love I Could Have Had”. Your talent as a writer shines through every page, and I cannot wait to explore more of your captivating storytelling. Well done!

2.5 Stars. The Love I Could Have Had was promising with it's originality but after the first few chapters, it derailed. The idea of an alternative reality/Multi-verse was so intriguing that I couldn't wait to read it. The theme itself could still work for C.J Connolly for future books but this story was lukewarm at best.

Olivia and Jake are childhood sweethearts who've only been together with each other. On the anniversary of their engagement, Olivia is feeling uneasy at the thought they've never really "lived" and though Jake is content and promising he's happy, she goes off on a walk to work through her emotions. Falling off the edge of a cliff, similar to when she was younger, Olivia wakes up in alternative reality universe.

I don't want to give away too much but my main frustration with this book was that the synopsis and story don't match up and I was left so dissatisfied with the ending. "So now Liv has a chance to do all the things she never did. But maybe she doesn't want to." In what way does Olivia have a chance to do anything when the world she wakes up in, she has literally nothing? Her story is spent trying to convince people of her identity. She doesn't spend that time on feeling out another relationship, traveling, etc., that she hints about in the beginning. I was expecting more of a contrast with the alternative reality storyline, especially since Olivia knew she wasn't in the world she's from but there's nothing. Not a come to moment or changing her anxieties she had, before going back to her world. There's absolutely no growth. We know she loves Jake but that's about it.

Alas, I struggled with the formatting and numerous times when the chapter is in a character's point of view but a sentence or two will be talked in third person randomly; which was so distracting. Overall, there was potential but I struggled with finishing this book. I felt like the synopsis was false advertising and I was super sad it wasn't the story I was excited for. I hope with future books from C.J Connolly they match up because her ideas are incredible and I would love to read more. Thank you for the free ARC from Joffe Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A perfect beach or pool read. Quick and easy to read, I read this in less than a day. Yes, I had figured out what was going to happen quite quickly, but it was still a fun, easy read.

This read was so good. Not what I was expecting going into it but I really enjoyed it. The title is slightly misleading. I had a assumed Olivia’s other “love” she could of had would of been a completely different storyline one in which she isn’t thrust into another almost similar life. That being said this book is still going into my top reads of 2023 for sure despite that.

The story was very well written and was not too unbelievable as other multi-universe stories can be.

My heart broke for Olivia at how alone she must of felt not fitting into the other world. I am glad the story ended on a happier note. Although I do wish we got more from the story like what happens next… as a reader I don’t like being left to make up my own version of what happened I need the Author to give me the answers.

I really enjoyed reading The Love I Could Have Had and would recommend it to others. It is a story that will leave you thinking about it and all the possibilities out there in life after the last page.

Sweeping, heart-wrenching. I love this trope and it was well executed. I had to pull out the tissues a few times but it was worth it. Sometimes I struggled with the idea of the second timeline and was more invested in the one with Jake, but I thought it was a bold attempt at trying something different which I appreciate in novels.

Enjoyable and quirky read. Having never read anything like this before I was a little unsure if I was going to like the dual universe thing going on but found it very interesting. The main characters Olivia and Jake ( in original time) seem so in love that I was rooting for them to reconnect., especially for Jake who is genuinely heartbroken by the loss of ‘his ‘ Olivia . I wouldn’t normally read this kind of thing but it definitely held my attention. Well worth the read.

🧐 my thoughts:
This book was definitely not what I thought it was going to be. It sounded promising with the multiverse romance aspect, so I was very excited, but I did not enjoy this one as much as I thought I was going to.

👌🏻what i liked:
I enjoyed the writing style that CJ Connolly used. It was easy to read. I’m also a sucker for dual points of view, so I really enjoyed that as well.

🙃 what i didn’t like:
I felt like parts of the book really drug on, and could have been shortened down a bit. Olivia also could’ve been a little more exciting as a character. I found her to be very bland and not exciting.

🥰 special thanks
Thank you to NetGalley, CJ Connolly, and Joffe Books for granting me this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

he can win me any day of the week. I was hooked and loved it from start to finish. Must read it and you will understand and be hooked.

While I liked the premises of the book and overall I thought it was an interesting read. I did struggle with this book. The jumping timeline was confusing. I did finish the book and my final thoughts ... it's an okay read.

Book Releases July 11, 2023

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe Books for the E-ARC.

All thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.

Liv and Jake have been together since they were kids. Now, as their wedding quickly approaches, Liv feels herself having doubts. When she accidentally falls off a cliff, she ends up in a world where she died at the same cliff when she was 12. In a world where she and Jake never got together, is there still hope for them?

I was back and forth with this book a lot.
What I liked:
The concept: It's cool! I like alternate reality or time warping books. It's always interesting to see how the characters will act in the different worlds.

The push back: Not everything was roses for Liv. It's outlandish to think that those who loved you will just open their arms for you, and that isn't what happens here. Even her parents are skeptical.

What I wasn't too keen on:

Too much time: While I did like that there was pushback, too much of the book is spent with Liv trying to fit herself into her old life. I would even be hard pressed to call this a romance because of this. Plus, the Jake in the world she falls into is seriously with someones else.

The other Jake: the book is told in sections where you get to see the Jake from the world Liv is from actually looking for her. I felt like this slowed the story down and I wasn't invested. It read almost like a thriller in those chapters, but it wasn't needed. Honestly, I would have liked it more if it was all in her head and she didn't actually travel different worlds. But having Jake's chapters forced that.

All in all, this was an interesting read, but not for me. However, I think there will be an audience especially if you like books that twist reality.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for the gifted copy. My reviews are always honest.

I got lost and confused in Olivia's multi-verse and ultimately dnf, I wanted to like this but the switching didn't make sense to me. I liked Jake was sympathetic to everyone, but it just didn't make sense to me. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I'll be the odd one out.

Ultimately this was a good book but there was lots of jumping around throughout the timeline which I found a little difficult to follow. Once I put the book down for the night it was a little difficult to get back into next time I picked it up. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for a review.