I wish I could have taken a couple of days off work and just lock myself away to binge read this book. Tori and Leah were damn near perfect and believable. Going to point out right now that the past week has been emotionally rough for me and my family so I'm guessing that put me in a sensitive mood that might influence my perception of To Be With You. That being said, I loved this book so hard.

TJ O'Shea blew me away with her debut, Beyond the Blue, so I was excited to read this one. Yeah, I know it came out at the end of last year but it got lost in my reader until recently. Perhaps it was the universe saving it for when I would appreciate it the most? But for whatever reason, I found the book again and couldn't stop reading. I skipped TV time with my wife (which she didn't mind because it mean she got control over the remote) and I pushed bedtime to the limit with trying to get just a few more pages done.

I know I've compared other authors to Susan X Meagher before because of their ability to grab me and make me believe in the characters and situations while having no trace of the author being present. Authors like Meagher who can write a long book and make me wish there were still more words coming don't happen often. But TJ O'Shea is at the top of my list right now for writing a beautifully angst, yet funny, book that has loads of character development, flawed but lovely folks, evil folks (well, one really) who may still find their way, glorious families, and just so damn much love. Oh this book.

There were some devastatingly sad portions - at least to me in my current emotional state - that literally had my chest tight and a lump in my throat. But then there were running jokes that had me laughing out loud. To Be With You covered all my bases for a second-chance romance (my favorite kind) and as soon as I was done reading it, I immediately put it in my "Reread for a Mental Hug" collection. I wish it never ended but I know I can revisit with my newest friends any time I need to.

Thank you so much to Bella Books and NetGalley for the chance to fall in love with this book.

There is no doubt in my mind that this book will stay with me for years and years. It was such a great romance with two exceptional characters.

Leah and Tori are star crossed lovers who have to go through some serious angst to get their HEA. What I liked most about this romance was the way O'Shea manages to convey the power of Tori and Leah's connection together, as even though there is a lot to go against them in having a life-long relationship, nothing can keep these two apart. It's beautifully expressed from the very first time we meet them when they reunite after 5 years apart, but grows each time we see them interact on the page. It's hard to express via a review so I definitely recommend reading it for yourself.

A great novel and I can't wait to read what's next from O'Shea.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bella Books for a copy of this novel. ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

A great read. It was beautifully written with a great tone Leah was a total baddie!! What a strong character. Hands down this was one of my favorite read. I recommend.

Thank you Bella Books and NetGalley for this ARC.

I was very impressed with T.J. O'Shea's debut, Beyond the Blue and this one is even more impressive. I don't often gravitate towards YA/NA books but this had a depth that I found compelling. I found myself completely enamored with Leah and Tori, although I also wanted to shake Tori on more than one occasion.
T.J. O'Shea has shown herself to be a very skilled writer and one whose books are auto reads for me. I look forward to what comes next from her.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this ARC.

It is always good to get an LGBTQ book with an actual story and not just full of erotica. This book follows Leah and Victoria on their journey together and as individuals. Leah is openly gay and Victoria realising that maybe she is not straight that she maybe gay too. It’s not an easy journey for her as her mum is totally homophobic and will not accept her daughter’s sexuality. It was a typical will they won’t they book. Whilst I loved the characters I felt the book went on and on. It could have easily finished much much earlier. This did annoy me and therefore only 4 stars. I would recommend this though

Second chance plot lines are one of my favorites and this did not disappoint. Warm and emotional, sweet and cleverly written, I loved this book. I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Well…. amazing, a moving, beautiful story of 2 young ladies who live very different lives. You'll laugh, cry even and be left feeling angry, but most of all you’ll be left rooting them along this journey of love and hate. The story itself starts right from the beginning in their home town whilst they are friends, but soon blossoms into something much more.

It’s a story of hope… absolutely beautiful.

5 out of 5,!

There was just something about this read that had me engaged throughout. I wanted to know if and when Victoria and Leah were going to reconnect. Leah Vasquez, financially challenged family, mechanic, intelligent, with a love of family and Victoria. Victoria Lockwood, wealthy family, unable to make her own decisions about her life, in love with Leah. The opposites attract was very appealing to me. Leah's family wanted her to be happy and Victoria's family wanted her to work at the family business and marry well. Though there was much drama especially from Victoria's family, I appreciated how the author navigated those waters. Wonderful love story that had me cheering and smiling.

To be with you by TJ O Shea was a beautiful novel with a beautiful message. The premise and characters of the story are familiar and one that we are used to - upper rich side and underprivileged lower side of town. Certain scenes were refreshing while certain scenes were cliched.

I loved Leah and Tori. The chemistry and the connect seeped out of the pages and into our hearts. The family dynamics was beautifully explained and there were several aspects that I personally could relate to. I did feel that the novel was a bit long. Overall a beautiful novel.

Thankyou Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a way to start my 2023 reads. This book had it all: laughs, nostalgia, happy and sad tears, and so much love. It’s a story that will be sticking with me for a while. I kept dreading seeing it getting closer to the end and would’ve happily read more chapters into the future. Highly recommend this second chance romance!

To Be With You by T.J. O’Shea Is a beautiful, angst-ridden tale of what could be a modern version of a Julia and Juliet, star-crossed lovers romance. At least that’s what it looks like on the surface.

Leah Vasquez and Victoria Lockwood should never fall in love. They are too different. Leah is from a Hispanic American family that lives on the poor side of town. She is a bright student, but a loner who works two part-time jobs to save for university and her ticket out of town. Victoria lives in a mansion with an extremely domineering mother and a somewhat absent father. She runs with the “right” crowd at school and has her future completely planned out for her. These two should definitely not fall in love, but they do, with a passion that is glorious even as they try to keep it secret. They have one summer before everything crashes and burns. Now five years later Victoria is coming back to town with her fiancé to visit her family, and the first person she meets is the one she least expected to see…Leah. The meeting is unsettling in many ways, not the least of which is the sudden rush of feelings that both women thought were dead.

It took me a couple of chapters to really get into this book, but suddenly, the story grabbed my heart, wrung it out like a dishrag a few times, and refused to return it until way after I finished reading. These characters are so real you can’t help falling for them even with their quirks and shortcomings. The author showed the two ladies’ depth of feelings for each other amazingly well, both the teenage “first love” as well as the more mature emotions later. The secondary characters as well as the setting, enhanced the storyline and created the perfect background for this narrative.

I’m in love with this novel, and if you enjoy angsty romantic tales, you’re going to fall for it too.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bella Books for an honest review.

Last year was a very hard year for me in terms of reading or just generally enjoying it. I went from reading more than 200 books a year to only reading 30 last year. Maybe it was school, maybe it was life or maybe it just wasn’t a great year for books.

I can’t say much for that time in my life but I will say, this book was a great start to my literary year and I can only pray every other book I read this year is as good.

One of the books I read last year that I did actually enjoy was TJ O’Shea’s debut, Beyond the Blue. It was actually another one of her books that wiggled it’s way into my very small list of good reads from last year. I mostly had one criticism for this book and that had to do with the writing which I thought was a bit stiff and often had the impression that O’Shea was holding back and keeping it safe.

She didn’t for this one. I said that I can only see her going up from here, she has and I’m so excited to see more development from her.

Nevertheless I bid my enjoyment of that book and said I was undeniably excited for anything else this author would bring out, boy do I not regret saying that.

There are very few books that I think would make good movies, ‘To be With You’ just quickly sneaked itself into that group.

The book itself follows a very cliche plot, two people on the wrong side of the tracks fall in love, something tears them apart then years later there’s an angst filled emotional reawakening when one of them comes homes.

I think one of my biggest criticisms of a lot of books in the lesbian romance genre last year had to do with authors using cliches and failing to make it their own.

O’Shea does not have that problem. She took this cliche and made it her b****.

I don’t usually like stories with flashbacks but damn did I love this.

Leah and Victoria are two lovable, flawed and hilarious characters. Their conversations flowed easily and their chemistry exciting. I loved the way the author represented Leah’s Mexican side, and while I don’t often enjoy stories that deal with repression, she did such a great job at portraying the harsh reality of what it was and is like for individuals living under a homophobic parent without making it some stressful traumatic encounter to read about.

The side characters made just as much an impact and while I don’t see this book getting a sequel, Riley getting a happily ever after would be something I’d look forward to.

Now the book does have flaws, there are definitely plots I would’ve loved to have been done differently. Like Ben for example, I didn’t necessarily like how long it took Tori to break it off. When they did, it was prompted by a very surprising encounter between her younger brother and her mother. Which leaves me with the question, would she have broken it off if that encounter didn’t happen?

Nevertheless I still enjoyed the book leaving my rating as a 4.5!


My review is long enough I think, nothing I can say now hasn’t been said in other reviews so if it isn’t clear already- I highly recommend this book and again, cannot wait for her next.


I’m a sucker for romcoms I’m sorry!

ARC from Netgalley and the publishers in exchanged for an honest review!

5 star
Wonderful story of young romance, struggles with coming out, second chances and deciding whats most important in your life and for your future.
This is a very warm and emotional story and Im sure most readers will relate to many of the events...good and bad.
The story grabbed me from the first page and I immediately wanted to know more. You will not be disappointed.

“To Be with You” is TJ O’Shea’s sophomore romance novel. It’s a second-chance romance that quickly moved into the top 10 of my 2022 favorites.

Leah Vasquez and Victoria (Tori) Lockwood are high school seniors when they begin a fairly short but intense romance. The meet up again 5 years later when Tori comes home, unfortunately she’s not alone. Her fiancé, Ben has come home with her.

So, this is one of those long romance novels that I absolutely love because you really get to sink your teeth into it and get to know the characters. As a character driven fan, I’m here for it. This is told from the beginning of their romance to when it all comes crashing down. There’s a time jump about half through to when Tori comes back into Leah’s life.

I just adored this book. It’s so well written and I loved the characters. There’s quite a bit of angst and drama but there was also some humor so it wasn’t too heavy. I personally enjoyed the ongoing joke about no one in Tori’s life being able to remember her fiancé’s name. My only complaint was that the main characters are only 22 for their second-chance and I wish they’d been a little older. It didn’t hurt my enjoyment and I was sold on their forever romance by the end of the book.

This is my second 5-star review for TJ O’Shea so I think it’s safe to say she’s moved onto my auto-buy list. I highly recommend this is if you’re a second-chance romance fan.

I received an ARC from Bella Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is about having the courage to fight for love. It is a beautiful theme and in all fairness, it wasn't poorly written. In fact, based on the other reviews, it's probably safe to say everyone enjoyed this a lot. But I just couldn't bring myself to like one of the characters no matter how much I tried and in my opinion, she tried too little, too late.

This is a second chance romance set in the years 2000 and 2005. In 2000, the characters were in the same high school but weren't friends. That is until a chance meeting outside school brought them together. Tori and Leah found that they clicked rather well together and whatever friendship they found themselves suddenly having, quickly escalated into romance. But after spending a summer together, they broke up badly before college.

The main obstacle between them was that they were not only in different social circles but also in different social classes which made it difficult for them to hang out even platonically. This is especially true for Tori who is the rich, popular, white girl. I fully understand that I have to read this in the context of a young person living in the year 2000 where fewer people dare to call out elitism, racism and homophobism compared to today but it doesn't mean I have to like it and I felt bad for Leah.

The characters meet again 5 years later and this time, Tori has a fiancé in tow. I felt more annoyed this time because Tori wouldn't leave Leah alone and that was selfish because there was no character development on her part in the 5 years, meaning the situation between them doesn't change. And I didn't want to root for them because by this time I thought someone else made a far better choice of partner for Leah and I wanted Leah to fall for her instead.

I get what the author was trying to do and like I said my issue was that I just found it hard to like one of the characters. But I get that it's a personal preference and if the plot is something that intrigues you, I'd say definitely give this a try.

TJ O’Shea‘s to be with you is one of the best book I have read in 2022. The story, set in the early 2000s, took me by surprise and I could not put it down. A second chance friend to lover romance between two star crossed lovers, Leah and Tori. The two have known each other for years, but during one faithful night, everything changes. What starts off as friendship quickly blooms into something more. Due to the pressure of the outside world, their romance gets thorn apart but when they meet again, they know there is no one else out there for either of them.

I haven’t felt this moved by a book in a long time, the differences between the MCs make them fit together perfectly, the chemistry is off the charts and the character growth is just amazing.

I am quite sad that it’s over and my only wish is that the epilogue was longer. I will truly miss Leah and Tori, do yourself a favour, carve out a few hours and read this wonderful book.

** ARC generously provided by the publisher on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review **

Victoria Lockwood comes for the ‘right side of the tracks’, while Leah lives on the ‘wrong side of the tracks’. While Leah has had a crush since she was thirteen. By that age Leah already knew she was a lesbian, Tori didn’t have a clue.
That all changed when on their prom night Leah was busy delivering pizza driving her old car, hoping to make some more money she wants for her education. Since she has won a full scholarship to MIT she still had personal expenses. Now she comes along Tori walking in the rain, crying because her boyfriend turned out to be a bigger jerk than she thought.
When Tori got into Leah’s car she didn’t know how her life would change. First of all Leah had a rough reputation and she was from the wrong side of the track, or at least that’s what her mother told her. With her mother also being a homophobe and beyond hard on Tori, for any and every little infraction.
When Tori’s mother finds out about the girl's friendship she threatens to make Leah’s life miserable. She would do anything to keep Tori and Leah apart. So off both girls leave for college they both know what they had would never go any further. Now both young women are in the same town again.
All in all a great read with characters and a great story line. Very, very enjoyable read.
ARC via NetGalley/ Bella Books

I actually read this book only a few days after listening to O’Shea’s debut book “Beyond the Blue” and it doesn’t happen very often that I rate two books with 5 stars in a row, but these books are really great and O’Shea is now added to my automatic reading list.

Second chance stories often involve many flashbacks, which is not something I always like. This book, however, is basically split in two separate stories starting with the then followed by the now and it totally worked for me. I’m not going to say too much about the story, but it has all the feels, happiness, angst, anger and sadness, it’s all there. The now is actually only five years later when they are 22, so they are still young, but to me they generally felt somewhat older (some occurrences excepted). I often have trouble believing in a HEA when the MCs are still very young, but O’Shea makes it believable. This book shows a clash of worlds, poor versus rich, but also family strength and love, and the ugliness of misguided love or pretenses.

What I like about O’Shea’s books is that they do not adhere to the stereotypical thinking that is often seen in books. In both books there is a more femme and a more of center masculine main characters, but they are not stereotypical butch-femme characters, and I liked discovering their own different characters traits.

In summary, this is a wonderful YA/NA book, it’s well written with characters that you feel like you really get to know and like. Highly recommended!

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a sucker for second chance romances and this book hit all the right feels for me. TJ O'Shea wrote with such skill that I couldn't put this book down. I read it in one sitting. I usually don't do this, but I had to know how it all played out. Go get this book.

Thank you to Bella Books and NetGalley for providing an eARC for a honest review.

There are books that pull you in from the start. This is one of those books. Just reading the first chapter had me completely invested in Leah and Tori's story.

The book has 2 timelines for our MC's and the author perfectly puts these in sync. The present story makes you wonder if these two really are meant to be together or if it would be better if they let each other go.

The heart of the story is the pure feelings the MC's have for one another. Love isn't easy especially when life throws you one curveball after another. Seeing them navigate their love and different lives makes this a very rich story and I just could not put the book down.

An ARC was provided via Netgalley in return of an honest review.