3/5⭐️
2.5/5🌶️

The ex vows had many things I liked but also many things that did not work for me. I'm going to keep it short and sweet with my options :)

Things that worked:
- I enjoyed the wedding setting
- I liked the representation for people who move states/country and miss their family and friends
- I liked the writing style

Things that didn't work:
- The relationship was very bland
- I didn't feel like their was a big moment when they got back together
- The resolution for their 'second chance' was too rushed and not well concluded
- He did not grovel enough for the problems he caused when they broke up

<3

TROPES/GENRES:
- Second Chance
- Forced Proximity
- Mental Health Rep
- Found Family
- Single-POV

Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

3.5 stars. I absolutely loved You With A View and devoured it. However, I was a little disappointed with this book. It follows the story of a group of friends, two of which had a relationship and a really messy breakup. When they have to help their best friend organise their wedding they are thrown together. Old, and new, feelings rise and they find themselves thinking what-ifs, and rekindling what they once had. Unfortunately, I found the book really slow. Also, the amount of bad luck that happens regarding the wedding seemed extremely unrealistic and I found myself hating things going wrong. I was saddened to not enjoy this as much as her debut.

If you love romance books then make this book on your radar because this second chance was executed to perfection. My first read by Jessica Joyce and it certainly won’t be the last as I love her now.


What I cherished most about Eli and Georgia's storyEas how Eli and Georgia was so raw and real. Jessica made it easy for me to imagine these characters as the writing was so vivid. This book provided excellent representation on a variety of topics, including therapy, anxiety, mental health, people-pleasing, and navigating friendships in your twenties. I could therefore identify with Eli and Georgia.

I felt every emotion while reading this book and following the development between Eli and Georgia.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House, Uk for a copy of this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Exes reuniting for their best friend’s wedding? Teaming up to save the day? What more could you want from a rom com?

The Ex Vows is a beautifully written, funny and moving story about Georgia and Eli, two people who went from friends to lovers to exes, who are thrown back together again.

Of course, the chemistry is ✨off the charts✨ as they work to salvage a multitude of pre-wedding disasters, whilst trying to put aside their own history and lingering feelings.

This is such an amazing summer read and I fully expect to see it in everyone’s 2024 favourites. The characters are so likeable, the relationship is so raw and believable, and the 🌶️ is *chef’s kiss*

Can’t recommend this one enough!

Stunning book with fully fleshed out characters. I absolutely adored the depth that she was given and all her fears and worries felt so relatable. This book is pretty similar to Happy Place but there are less characters so the whole friendship group thing feels less overwhelming.

i’ve been seeing books by jessica joyce all over my insta and tiktok, and boy oh boy do i understand the hype! not only is her writing so beautiful, it has a way of reeling you into the magical gorgeous world she’s created within the book and making you fall in love with the characters and their lives. i adored everything about the book, the pining and the chemistry and the romance and just ahhhh. i’m definitely going to get a physical copy as well

THIS BOOK WAS SO GOOD!

Everyone who has spoken with me in the last year knows that Happy Place is one of my favorite books EVER, and since I read that last year I have been looking for books with the same vibes.. This book was the first one that gave me the same feeling that Happy Place gave me and I loved every single second of it!

Jessica Joyce has quickly become one of my favorite romance authors and I'm so excited to get a physical copy of this and read everything else she will come out with!

Really enjoyed this. The characters are loveable and multidimensional. The emotions are a whirlwind and it explores important issues, especially around mental health. My first read by this author but I will definitely be going back for more!

Georgia and Eli have been assigned the role of best woman and man at their mutual best friend Adam's wedding. It won't be easy to fulfill their respective roles when these two former lovers must work together to avoid further disasters on their best friend's perfect day. Along the way, past wounds and hidden feelings will come to the fore. Although deep down they know that if they give themselves a second chance, it's possible it won't last long for various reasons. Which makes Georgia question whether it's time to break the rules she's followed throughout her life and start something new.
I genuinely enjoyed the book quite a bit, and I think second chance romances are becoming my favorites. Anyway, I liked this couple so much. The plot was simple and yet well-written. I think the author gets better every time she puts out a book. This is a story with a kaleidoscope of emotions, and the way Jessica wrote it was beautifully real. I literally cried many times reading it.
This book was engaging in every way with its heartfelt love story. Georgia and Eli's relationship shows how being in a relationship can be complicated, messy, needy, but at the same time passionate, trustworthy and embracing. The chemistry and banter between them was undeniable even apart, that connection was still there. Through those emotional dialogues and heated stares, you could tell how much they still mattered to each other. Notably, I'm glad they gave themselves a second chance after being sure that what they really wanted.
The personal journey of both main characters was powerfully intricate and relatable. I could truly resonate with both of them. Their struggles were well-portrayed and not overdone. I loved that this book isn't only focus on the romantic side but also on the self-discovery and personal growth of the characters. They aren't perfect and yet, that made me love them more.
The found family in this book was splendidly lifelike; the group dynamic was down-to-earth indeed. I loved that touch of truth in how those types of friendships change throughout life, but that we always find time for those we care about and spend quality time with them. The last three chapters + epilogue wrecked me. Jessica nailed it; she gave us a powerful and angsty love confession and really emotional moments.
I loved one particular message that this book leaves us with; how the feeling and shape of home go hand in hand with love, and how it can vary in each one of us. Overall, it is a book that I highly recommend, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC

Thank you so much NetGalley for this arc!!

As someone who devoured you with a view finding out I received this arc was a dream! Firstly this book was absolutely gorgeous and it felt like a love letter to second chance romance. This for me gave me the same sentiment as Happy Place. You often don’t connect with characters so heavily in standalone romances but the found family and the healthy journeys they all set off on alongside needed conversations and the love story girls can dream of, this was perfect from start to finish for me.

Their love story for me and why it started and ended before reuniting made so much sense to me and there’s nothing worse than a second chance romance where you feel like you could’ve solved it all for them but with these characters, you were just so swept up in them and their story that you let it breathe. You let them figure it out. And it was GORGEOUS.

Reading this on my hols listening to Lizzys new album was a dream. Thank you so much for this masterpiece Jessica x

After reading you with a view, I knew I'd love this book, and I was right.

I expected the 2nd chance at love trope, but I didn't quite expect this story and the emotions that it involved. I found some aspects regarding mental health written about extremely well and carefully. The two main characters were with so much love and you could feel the love both in friendship and relationships throughout the book

This book and these characters gutted me! An incredible story of found family, love, second chances and coming home. I absolutely devoured this story and will certainly return to it time and time again. Jessica did a brilliant job and is quickly becoming a go to author for me!

Sometimes I find that second chance romances are slow and drawn out that I can appreciate them but don't love them. The Ex Vows I feel like was a slightly faster paced second chance than I'm used to so I absolutely devoured this book. I thought it did a really good job at explaining the present dynamic between Georgia and Eli as well as giving you the backstory on their friendship-turned-original relationship. I think the representation of both Georgia and Eli's childhood traumas was captured well and helped to highlight their growth throughout the book but also in the years they were broken up. They're also so totally relatable to so many people. Also the side characters in this had me laughing frequently. Adam and his cursed wedding were great.

I honestly don’t even know where to begin, this book has my whole heart. It was so freaking beautiful.

I cried, laughed, cried again, smiled endlessly and I am now sat wondering what I’ll read next because I’m at a loss.

Jessica writes the most gorgeously realistic characters, the depth to them and the raw honesty of their own struggles is so well done.

This wasn’t your typical second chance romance, it was so much more. I loved Eli and Georgia’s story, their growth was so wonderful. It all felt so full circle and came together so perfectly.

Jessica is an autobuy author for me now, she just always writes exactly what I need and want to read.

❀ second chance romance
❀ found family
❀ mental health representation
❀ forced proximity
❀ single pov

Thank you so much to Random House, Jessica Joyce and NetGalley for the eARC in return for an honest review.

I don't think I have ever read such a perfect second chance romance book in my life. This book took me by surprise and I have no words to explain how much I loved it. The seond chance romance, the way Eli and Georgia found each other again in the chaos and messiness of the cursed wedding preparation.

The writing is just so beautiful and exquisite. Jessica delved deeper into Eli and Georgia's pasts to write their present personalities and it's apparent how much it affects their life choices and the decisions they made 5 years ago and the decisions they have to make now in present. The chemistry was palpable and Eli and Georgia has the sparks we so badly want in real life. The romance. So beautiful. Just mesmerising, swoon-worthy and painful enough to love me every second of it.

Jessica beautifully crafted a story of heartbreaks and reckoning and the side characters and the friendships in this book is as beautiful as the everything else in this book.

The Ex Vows is a beautiful and realistic story about two broken people who are on their way to mend their hearts again. They are on reckoning while also trying to save their bestfriend's wedding. It's only a matter of time will they or won't they. Soon they will give in to the temptations of each other and will find each other again. And when I say it's my favourite book of 2024 you all have to read this when this comes out in july 2024. Highly recommended this book if you want something heart-felt but also a little bit realistic and wholesome.

The Ex Vows is the second romance novel by Jessica Joyce. It is told entirely from Georgia’s first person pov. It follows Georgia and her ex Eli as they are both planning their best friend Adam’s wedding. Georgia and Eli have a tricky past and the feelings between them haven’t disappeared. It’s difficult for them to help Adam whilst fighting their returning feelings for each other.

This is an example of a second chance romance book that just didn’t hit for me. There was no chemistry between Georgia and Eli. I never believed these two would actually work and I just didn’t care about the wedding planning. It felt a bit silly to me and it’s not something I’ll think about again.

Thank you Netgalley for my advance copy!

I don’t normally go for an exes-to-lovers story, since I find they go too heavy on the miscommunication trope, buttt I thought Jessica Joyce nailed not only the story, but also the dynamic between Georgia and Eli — I really believed in both of their characters, how they got to where they are when we meet them, and their relationship. This was so cute — an excellent summer rom com!

»The Ex Vows« was one of these books that made me emotional right from the start. It's a second chance romance and the characters are hurting so much through out the book because they still love each other and I was just 100% emotionally invested.
This book was giving »Happy Place« by Emily Henry while still being very much its own thing, which I loved (because I adored Happy Place). The characters and friend group have a similar dynamic but it also discusses lots of other things and the whole plot is different, so. The vibes are the same but please don't think it's a rip off of Happy Place because it's not.
I always find it hard to talk about romance books I loved because I don't want to spoil anything but of gosh there were so many tender moments in this book but also funny ones. It was a whole emotional rollercoaster. And Jessica Joyce is just really good at writing at making me feel something, which not every author is able to. I also really liked her debut »You, With A View« and this Christmas novella but »The Ex Vows« is definitely my favorite of her books so far. I just have a soft spot for characters who always were in love with each other but don't know how to make it work until they do. Georgia and Eli had fantastic characters arcs and I loved reading about their relationship and the whole friend group was amazing too and it was just a really great book. Highly recommend if you like to cry while reading a romance.

I was very excited to read The Ex Vows and saved it to read on my honeymoon. I loved the relationship between Eli, Adam and Georgia and the insight we got into that friendship over the years. There are some really loveable characters in this story which are written really well. I also loved the descriptions of the different places, particularly Blue Yonder.

I found "the curse" surrounding the wedding a little farfetched and that put me off picking up the book as often as I would have liked, however, the premise of the wedding was a great in incorporating close proximity into the storyline.

I got a little frustrated that the characters put off having an open conversation for so long. I feel like 5 years since the breakup seemed too long, and that maybe 1 or 2 years would have been more realistic.
There were some really lovely moments in the story such as the paper rings and the friendship between Adam, Eli and Georgia that I really enjoyed. It also looked at some deeper topics like anxiety and work stress which I felt were dealt with really well. Overall, an enjoyable read.

I read You, With a View last year and fell in love with the way Jessica writes both locations and people. She writes in a rich and vivid way that makes characters feel real, warm and living and as alive as you or I, and whose love story you really root for. The Ex Vows excited me greatly and it didn’t not disappoint. Following the story of Eli and Georgia, we learn that the pair had been together previously and felt compelled to pretend like everything was okay between the two of them for the sake of their friendship with shared childhood friend Adam. As Adam prepares to marry his soulmate Grace, things suddenly aren’t going to plan and the best people at the wedding - Eli and Georgia - find themselves being in the throes together. The pair must work together to ensure everything is ready for Adam and Grace’s big day but along the way they uncover some truths about their relationship together both in the past and present day. And oh boy, is this a WILD ride. I loved the chaos that ensued. Georgia and Eli’s relationship felt real and messy and authentic, and showed two people coming back together after a difficult period and growing as a couple by making improvements to their selves first and foremost. I rooted for them and their love, and hoped that all the carnage or the wedding curse (including a cabin being out of action, so there’s only one bed 👀) would lead them back to one another for a second chance at love together. Reading this book was like a balm for the soul and it’s very well paced and structured too.

Thank you Transworld for the copy!