"Is it okay to say that Rachel Runya Katz's characters are always so hot to me? The slow burn tension between Jade and Nia was off the charts." - Alicia Thompson, USA Today bestselling author of Love in the Time of Serial Killers After reconnecting on a road trip, two friends must decide if love is the ultimate risk worth taking in this funny, emotional sapphic romance. Nia and Jade had been inseparable ever since their best friend, Michal, introduced them at her tenth birthday party. But now it’s been three years since Michal died of cancer― since the brutal fight Nia and Jade had in the weeks after― and they're barely on speaking terms. Until Nia reads a letter Michal wrote for her 29th birthday, asking her and Jade to go on the southern Jewish history road trip they'd planned before she died. To add to the complications, Michal's then-boyfriend and Jade's twin brother, Jonah, joins the trip. Despite the years apart and Jade and Jonah’s strained relationship, any awkwardness quickly disappears as it becomes clear how much Nia and Jade have missed each other. Unfortunately, old issues soon arise. Nia has been in love with Jade since they were teenagers, and Jade has been so committed to their friendship that she never let herself consider something more. As the stops pass, tensions mount, running high until Nia and Jade are forced to confront what happened three years ago, their feelings for one another, and even their respective relationships with Jonah. Rachel Runya Katz’s Whenever You’re Ready is about family, friendship, and the kind of first love that could last a lifetime―if only you are willing to take a chance. "Poignant, tender, and swoony, Whenever You're Ready is an instant favorite from an auto-buy author." - Alison Cochrun, Lambda award-winning author of Kiss Her Once for Me and Here We Go Again Reader's Digest Best Books of 2024! Autostraddle Best Queer Books of 2024! LGBTQ Reads, "Happy Black History Month 2025" Them, "The 7 Spiciest Queer Romance Books You Can Read on the Bus" The Nerd Daily, "Seven Romance Books That Celebrate Jewish Joy" New York Public Library, "NYPL's Best New Romance Books" The Washington Post, "Seven Romance Novels to Heat Up Your Summer" Reader’s Digest, "I Read 400 Books This Year, and These Are the 15 Best Books of 2024" Kveller, "16 Jewish Romances You’ll Want to Read If You Loved Netflix’s ‘Nobody Wants This’" The Seattle Times, "Celebrate Pride Month with These 6 Sapphic Romance Books" Autostraddle, "72 Most Anticipated Queer Books Coming Out Fall 2024" Pink News, "23 Awesome-Sounding Lesbian Romance Books Still to Come Before the End of 2024" Praise for Whenever You're Ready : "This slow-burn childhood-friends-to-lovers romance novel that grapples with history is a compelling pick for fans of the genre." - Library Journal "Reminiscent of the works of Casey McQuiston and Becky Albertalli, this will resonate with fans of character-driven queer romance and anyone seeking a nuanced portrayal of loss and healing." - Publishers Weekly "An emotional romance buttressed by strong themes of history, trauma, loss, and identity." - Kirkus "... an emotional grab bag that’s effortlessly authentic and human, featuring fully realized characters making mistakes and traveling through their recent and cultural histories. Romance has provided a ton of incredible swoon-and-sob stories, and Whenever You’re Ready is certainly one of the best books of 2024 in every regard." - Reader's Digest, Best Books of 2024 "Katz is the queen of the rom-com-traum, and this Southern sapphic road trip novel about grief, Jewish history and Black identity will make you laugh, cry, and swoon x100." - Alison Cochrun via People Magazine "So, brace yourself for a lengthy slow burn. Don’t worry, though, the journey to a happy ending is sweet, with more than a little heat (including a scene that somehow makes sunscreen applications seem unbearably sexy)." - The Washington Post "Rachel Runya Katz has done the seemingly impossible with this book: she's written a contemplation on grief, an ode to childhood friendships, a summer road-trip adventure, and a slow-burn sapphic romance all in one. It was an honor to join Jade, Nia, and Jonah on their journey through the history of Jews of color in the South and through their personal history with each other. I fell in love with the beautifully grounded characters, the celebration of queer and Jewish joy, and the oh-so-satisfying romance. Poignant, tender, and swoony, Whenever You're Ready is an instant favorite from an auto-buy author." - Alison Cochrun, Lambda award-winning author of Kiss Her Once for Me and Here We Go Again "This book is sexitragic at its finest hour. Reader, you aren't ready, nor could you ever possibly be ready, for this level of exquisitely painful, precisely witty, perfectly calibrated hornysadness. Whenever You're Ready will lovingly rip your heart out
