ARC Book Review: Start at the End by Emma Grey

Rating: ★★★.5
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 400 pages
Author: Emma Grey
Publisher: Zibby Publishing
Release Date: April 7th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

This powerful sliding-doors novel asks the Are our futures already determined? Or are we able to change fate? A searingly emotional novel about love, loss, grief, and hope from the author of The Last Love Note and Pictures of You.

Thank you Zibby Books for the gifted copy.

WELL THIS WAS A SURPRISE.

I’ve enjoyed Emma Grey’s previous two books so I didn’t even bother with reading the summary before diving into this one and let me tell y’all…don’t read it. Go in blind because it is a journey my friend. Did the whole journey work for me? No, but I had no troubles WANTING to listen to this book needing to know how the stories were going to wrap up.

I did think it was an interesting concept and idea to execute (the author’s note does a great job elaborating on this and helped more of the story make sense for me). The sliding doors moment was confusing but once I got a better handle on what was happening I was shocked. I liked seeing the flawed and realistic nature of going through a terrible thing and the fallout and echoes it leaves on each person.

I’m not sure I *liked* everything that happened or the way certain situations went. And that’s okay, it made me think and ponder a lot and I always like when a book creates that kind of thought process for me. It’s fairly fast paced and the audiobook was wonderfully narrated.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary romance
  • Language: mild
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: moderate
  • Content warnings: loss of a partner, self harm, grief, alcoholism

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