Book Review for All the Men I've Loved Again by Christine Pride

 

All the Men I've Loved Again by Christine Pride

Published:  July 8, 2025 by Atria Books

Genre:  Romance, Fiction, Contemporary

Taken from Goodreads:  From Christine Pride, the beloved coauthor of the Good Morning America Book Club Pick We Are Not Like Them, comes a dazzling solo debut novel about a woman who finds herself in the impossible situation of being in love with the same two men who won her heart in her early twenties again as she nears forty.

It’s 1999, TLC’s “No Scrubs” is topping the charts, y2k is looming on everyone’s mind, and Cora Belle has arrived at college ready to change her life. She’s determined to grow out of the shy, sheltered girl who attended an all-white prep in her all-white suburb. Cora is ready to conquer her fears and find her people, her place in the world, and herself.

What she’s totally unprepared for is Lincoln, with his dark skin, charming southern drawl, and that smile. Because how can you ever prepare yourself for the rollercoaster of first love with all its glorious, bewildering contradictions? Just when Cora thinks she’s got things figured out, a series of surprises and secrets threaten to upend everything she thought she understood about love and loyalty.

In the wake of these developments and a shocking tragedy, a new man enters Cora’s life—Aaron—further complicating everything. He’s the only one who seems to get her, and the letters she writes to him when the two are separated reveal the truth of their inescapable connection. There’s only one problem—how can she fall in love with one man when her heart belongs to another?

Twenty years later, and Cora is all grown up, or mostly, and has cloaked herself in loneliness like a warm blanket. It’s the safest choice. But then an unexpected reconnection and a chance encounter puts her right back where she started. The same two men, the same agonizing decision.

Finding herself in this position—again—will test everything Cora thought she knew about fate, love, and most importantly, herself. All The Men I’ve Loved Again is a big-hearted coming-of-age story for anyone who’s thought what if about a past love and what it would be like to have a second chance.

 

My Thoughts:  The premise of this book is great.  Imagine getting a second chance at love.   A second chance at what you missed the first time.  Cora is finding that chance and taking full advantage. 

I liked learning about the 20-year-old Cora and seeing how she became a 40-year-old Cora.   The attractions and love that she felt in college are similar to what she is feeling again.   The choices she must make are not easy.   Who will she choose?  Lincoln or Aaron?

Cora is a difficult character for me.   I had a tough time connecting to her.   I wanted to like her, I wanted to be invested in her choices but I never got there.  I felt like she was shallow and not able to think on her own.   She went to her friends for every decision she had to make, unable to make the decisions herself. 

All the Men I’ve Loved Again is Christine Pride’s solo debut book.  I will give her another chance with her next book.

Thank you Atria Books for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

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Meet the Author (taken from Goodreads):  Christine Pride is a writer, editor, and longtime publishing veteran. She’s held editorial posts at many different trade imprints, including Doubleday, Broadway, Crown, Hyperion, and Simon & Schuster. As an editor, Christine has published a range of books, with a special emphasis on inspirational stories and memoirs, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. As a freelance editorial consultant, she does select editing and proposal/content development, as well as teaching and coaching, and pens a regular column—“Race Matters”—for Cup of Jo. She lives in New York City.