Magical realism is my favorite genre, but it's hard to get it just right. The One Before the One did some things really well and missed the mark in other areas. I'll break down my thoughts below.

The concept was fantastic. Just prior to getting married, Liv is transported back in time to the week her first love goes missing. She tries to stop him from going hiking that day, but every time she wakes up - nothing has changed in how the past unfolded. She realizes she cannot affect any change, so her mission becomes to find out what happened.

The story was good, but I didn't love the characters. They all fell a bit flat. James' mom's issues with him felt baseless. I couldn't imagine treating two sons so vastly different.

I felt like Kit's reason for going missing would have come up in a police investigation. The necklace with the engraving & note was convoluted. Overall this was just an okay read.

Thank you to Emma Cooper & NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Is it too early to announce I've found a favorite of the year? Because I've found a favorite of the year.

What's inside:

✳️time travel
✳️multiple POVs
✳️mystery plot
✳️wholesome romance

I'll be honest, I went into this blind, except shortly glancing at the summary and seeing words 'time travel' and 'romance' together, because that's enough to have me intrigued.

The One Before The One is a story
about Liv, whose boyfriend Kit goes hiking one day and never returns. Seven years later she is about to marry his brother, James, while Kit's shadow still looms over their relationship what with James and Kit's mother cutting off communication with them, and their friends and relatives secretly wondering if one or both of them settled.

With this premise, I expected her journey back in time to be that of self-discovery, a better understanding of her relationships with to two loves of her life. And it is that at it its core, but it's also so much more!

I was pleasantly surprised by the twists and turns of this journey and the mystery that unfolds 7 years in the past. It is a solid plot that made me forego sleep and keep turning the pages. Add to it a plot twist that I didn't see coming at all, and I was looking up Emma Cooper, wondering why I've never read this author before.

The romance plot was rather refreshing as well, in that it combines two tropes—love at first sight and enemies to lovers—with a resolution that is satisfying and wholesome.

I recommend it to everyone who is looking for a well-written novel that has heartfelt romance, elements of family drama, time travel, and all of it tied up with a very intriguing mystery plot. I'll be thinking about this one for a while.

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I thought The One Before The One was incredible, it was simply, but beautifully written with twists and turns that I did not see coming, and had a light touch that prevented it from being melodramatic. It felt like an engrossing mystery novel with an interesting and important romantic element, rather than (what it was billed as) a romance novel with a mystery to be solved. I felt it was all the better for this. Despite being a romance fan, I was completely swept away by the mystery story and magical realism, and desperate to know what happened.

Liv’s relationship is quite different with each brother so the idea that she might have to choose between one of them seemed impossible to me. With Kit, it’s very free and fun and they spend a lot of time outdoors, whereas with James it’s more home-based with him cooking and tied to his boxing business. In the end, I was very happy with which brother she ended up with but both Liv and the reader are certainly put through the wringer first.

This was my first novel by Emma Cooper and I really enjoyed it so I’m looking forward to reading more, especially having discovered that she is a tutor for the excellent Jericho Writers of which I’m a member.

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC, this is my honest opinion.

I was fortunate to receive a copy of this ARC from Rachel's Random Resources.

I was very excited for this one as I love Emma's books!

This is such a cleverly plotted and written book. Time travel, but with ease. Liv is set to marry James, but what about Kit? My jaw dropped in the first chapter which was a good start, and then there were some other twists which I thought were excellently done. I was torn between who I wanted Liv to be with. Can you be sure The One is definitely The One, and what do you do if they're not?

A very thought provoking read ahead of Valentine's Day ❤️

My favourite quote:

"It was the first time I hadn't woken feeling like my skin was covered with the mosquito bites of Kit's loss."

This book turned out to be so much more than I expected it to be! I actually loved most of the characters and thought there was a little twist that had me flipping back chapters at one point. My first by this author but hopefully not the last!

Wow! What a read! Originally when I saw the title and cover of the book, I was right away drawn to it, but thought it would be a light, fluffy, heartfelt read. It turned out to be exactly that AND MORE. The book is filled with twists that you never see coming. I could not put this read down!

I absolutely loved it!

Having read The First Time I Saw You, I knew I was going to fall in love with The One Before The One.

Cooper writes wonderful, heartwarming, emotion strewn fiction. Some books really should come with a box of tissues as standard.

I read the book across two sittings, any more would have been disrespectful. It wasn't a book I could leave half read, the story was too good, plus I needed to know the who, wheres and whys, and needed to know them immediately!

Cooper's characters were so easy to become emotionally invested in and I loved the whole time travel thing, suspending disbelief and going with the flow.

A highly enjoyable and engaging read.

🌟🌟🌟🌟✨

Wow. This book was such a surprise in the best way possible! I went in expecting a sweet, nostalgic romance, but what I got was a thrilling blend of mystery, magical realism, and even a touch of sci-fi. And honestly? I loved it.

Seven years ago, Olivia lost Kit - the love of her life - when he went on a hike and never came back. Grief brought her closer to his brother, James, and over the years, they fell in love. Now, on the morning of her wedding to James, Olivia receives a note that suggests Kit might still be alive- and that James may have known all along. Before she can even process it, she’s thrown back in time, a week before Kit’s disappearance, with a second chance to uncover the truth.

Told through multiple POVs, this book keeps you guessing at every turn. The "now vs. before" timeline shift was so well done, making the unraveling mystery even more addictive. And let’s talk about Olivia-- FINALLY, an MC who *asks the right questions* and makes smart choices! No frustratingly dumb decisions here, just a woman determined to get to the truth.

And the ending? Sooooo satisfying. No spoilers, but let’s just say everything wraps up in a way that feels both right and earned- even if I had feelings about where certain characters ended up. But that’s the beauty of this story: it’s about love, loss, and the bittersweet journey of moving forward.

If this isn’t already on your radar, it should be!!!

Big thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the e-ARC - this one’s going to stay with me for a long time.

#TheOneBeforetheOne #NetGalley

Great story - both heartwarming and heart wrenching at the same time. Unique and surprising, "The One Before the One" captivated me from start to finish.
This was my first book by Emma Cooper, but it certainly won't be the last.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

This was more than I expected! So good...

Liv's boyfriend Kit disappeared 7 years ago, and now she is marrying his brother James. On their wedding day, Liv finds a necklace hinting that Kit is in fact alive and that James knows...and then she is transported to the past, days before he goes on that fateful hike.

Right from the start of the book I was drawn in. You can see how far Liv has gone from a state of grief to fully living again. James and Liv felt authentic in their love story. Ava was a rockstar best friend! You could see the emotional support both James and Ava had given Liv to bring her to this point.

Now Liv is transported to the past and has a chance to figure out what happened to Kit (and perhaps save him.) There is such a tangle of emotions, balancing her past love of Kit and her current love for James. James in the past was not a fan of Liv. What would happen to their relationship in the future if they didn't have the bond of loss in the past?

The unraveling of the backstory, family history, and mystery kept me invested. And the twist!

I have to say, I loathed the way James mother treated him (and Liv). I wish we had more of James on the page but was happy how things turned. out. While this book could be labeled technically as a "love triangle" there really wasn't a true love triangle, Liv made her choice perfectly clear!

4 stars

This book was a pleasant surprise. Fans of Rebecca Searle's book In Five Years will appreciate the similarities between the two stories.

Some aspects of this book were predictable, however the story unfolded in a reasonable way. The premise of this book was incredibly captivating—a complex tale of love, betrayal, forgiveness, and the pursuit of happiness.

Well worth a read.

I really wished to love the book, I came across on netgalley and thought yes a sad but heart warming book. Didn’t know it will have some time travel/time slip vibe and unfortunately it’s not my favourite. Don’t mind too much of back and forth between present and past but that special trope it’s not I prefer because I never read a book where it was well done. And again same thing happens it’s dragging and we missed the connection between the time slip/time travel. And no explanation was given about why she could go back to change the events. And the romance between James and liv felt off maybe because we get a lot of they are in love but no back story for it, the poor James feels more like a second character than the actual MMC

This is a wonderful twisty read. On Olivia’s wedding day, something weird happens and she ends up seven years in the past. Seven years ago her boyfriend disappeared one day while on a hike and was eventually declared dead. Now she gets a chance to see if she can figure out what happened and determine what she wants to happen if she can get back to her wedding day.

I want to be upfront—I DNF’d this book at 50%. While the premise initially intrigued me, the execution fell flat. The pacing was extremely slow, and though there were revelations along the way, they weren’t compelling enough to keep me engaged.

I also found there was more telling than showing, which made it difficult to fully connect with the story.

Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

I don't know if it was just me and I read this book wrong but boy did it turn into a completely different book when I figured out the way the chapters were working and with what characters. I started the book believing one thing, based on the storyline but then realized it was a different storyline. This changed everything. If this is how it was supposed to go, brilliant! If it wasn't then I should have paid more attention to names, etc in the first few chapters. I truly believe that the direction the narrative leads you down is correct though. I have never seen this done in a book before and it was so cool. I felt like I was experiencing the book, not just reading it. Well done Emma! 

Seven years ago, Liv lost her husband Kit when he went out on a hiking trip and never returned. Over the years, she has found her way back with the help of friends and family and, over time, was able to find love again. On the day of her wedding, she is mysteriously transported back 7 years to the week before Kit disappeared. She has one chance to live this week over again and differently to try and change the outcome of the future. Can she help Kit and if so, how will it change her future? Who will she choose?

Wow what a wonderful and perfect contemporary romance novel with a timeslip twist, which I couldn’t stop reading from the first pages. Liv is about to marry James, a man who helped to mend her heart after her first love Kit went for a hike and never returned, seven years ago. But on the morning of her wedding day, something strange happens and Liv finds herself transported into her younger self in the past, a few days before Kit disappears. Liv wonders if she can find out why Kit disappeared and whether she can change the past to stop him from leaving, but if she does would that mean her future would be with Kit, or would she still be with James?

This is such a brilliant and interesting novel from the first pages. The first chapter introduces us to Liv, who narrates, as she explains her situation: about to marry James, the man she loves. From the start we’re also introduced to Liv’s history and how her first love, the man she always thought of as the love of her life, Kit, disappeared one day after going for a hike. While Kit’s body was never found he was presumed dead, and Liv spent years painfully rebuilding her life without him. I love how this story shows the love between Liv and James and how good Liv’s life seems now despite all that happened in her past, however something strange and dark soon happens on the morning of the wedding and Liv finds herself questioning the past as she seems to time travel back into her younger self.

I always love stories with a time travelling twist and this one is really good with Liv seemingly trapped in the past as she relives the few days before Kit’s disappearance. Her time in the past is interesting as she starts to discover clues to what happened, and struggles with her deep feelings for Kit, as well as James. The chapters following Liv are interesting, with titles like ‘six days before he left me’ when they are set in the past, but they soon start to alternate with chapters from a different perspective ‘one day after I left her’, etc. If the main story wasn’t exciting enough, this new perspective and twist just made it even more compelling!

The story continues to reveal more secrets and surprises and it keeps you guessing throughout as to what happened with Kit before he disappeared. I love how this book had me hooked throughout, engrossed in what was happening and I ended up staying up very late unable to put it down, finishing it all in one day! As the tale moves on, closer to the end many more revelations appear. I love what Liv learns about herself and Kit and what happens as we find out more about James in the story too, and what happens with him later. The last chapters are so brilliant, they end the story so well and that epilogue just makes you smile so much when you read the very ending. In fact this story was so good I just couldn’t stop smiling at the end of reading it and have been gushing about it to family and friends since.

The book has a few uses of the s and f swear words as well as mentions of obviously grief and but nothing really upsetting, and in fact there are some more light-hearted moments that make you laugh during the story too. Overall this is a wonderful, interesting and perfect contemporary romance with a bit of mystery and an interesting time travelling twist. While the story will keep you gripped and make you feel a little emotional while reading, it’s got the most wonderful build up and ending that’ll make you feel so good after reading it. A perfect book for anyone interested in reading this.

This book had me feeling so many emotions, it had very poignant moments, overall this was such a great read.

Liv is set to marry James, the morning of her wedding she finds a necklace that engraved by his brother Kit for her. But Kit went missing seven years ago and broke Liv's heart. Now is he alive? When Liv goes to leave the hotel room she is transported back 7 years when she was still with Kit before he disappeared, will she find out the reason he left and will it change the future. A brilliant read.

This was such a great story and took me through every possible emotion whilst reading. I feel like it broke my heart and put it back together again.
I can't wait to read more from Emma Cooper

Highly recommend

What a great book! I absolutely loved how cute and heart wrenching this one was! I was totally engrossed from beginning to end and would definitely read from this author again, So, so, so good!