The Seven Year Slip

Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ It’s been a little while since I read The Seven Year Slip, but this is one of those books that stayed with me—not just because of the romance, but because of what it made me think about within myself. Clem is grieving the loss of her aunt, who was not only her family but her role model and friend. Instead of allowing herself to feel that grief, she buries herself in her work and essentially goes through life on autopilot. She’s good at what she does, but she has stopped doing the things that once made her happy, like painting, and has lost touch with who she really is. Then comes Iwan—and the magical apartment that connects them seven years apart. Their chemistry was definitely there, but their relationship was also frustrating at times because of the seven-year difference. Still, by the end, I felt like they were meant to find each other and that everything happened exactly the way it was supposed to. The ending made all of that frustration worth it. Iwan was definitely my favorite character. ❤️ He brought so much warmth and life into Clem's world and helped crack open the walls she had built around herself. Through him, she begins to realize that life can still be beautiful and happy even after loss. She eventually allows herself to feel her emotions, fall in love, and most importantly, find herself again. The grief aspect of this story hit me especially hard. The revelation surrounding Analea's death brought up some very personal emotions for me, and the scene with Vera where Clem finally lets herself cry and truly feel was one of the moments that affected me the most. I also really loved the magical realism in this book. The apartment, the time slipping, and even little things like Birds Mother and f@$%er 😂 made the story feel so whimsical and unique. What I loved most, though, was what this book made me ask myself: Am I living to my full potential? What do I actually want to do with my life, and what makes me happy? By the end, Clem isn't just falling in love with Iwan—she's learning to fall back in love with her own life. She leaves behind the things that were keeping her stuck, quits the job that had become an escape, and starts searching for what truly makes her happy. Iwan also gets to reconnect with his own dreams, and I loved seeing how they helped each other become more fully themselves. This was definitely a slow-burn romance, but it was also emotional, heartbreaking at times, whimsical, and surprisingly eye-opening. I think the pacing worked really well for the story and its themes. I would absolutely reread this one, especially for the self-reflection, the lessons, and that little bit of magic woven throughout the story. I’d recommend this to pretty much anyone who is open to stepping outside their usual genre. 💚

I wasn’t expecting this book to hit me as hard as it did. It’s one of those rare stories that quietly sneaks up on you, makes you laugh, ache, and think about your own life all at once. I picked it up because I saw it recommended on Goodreads and other book clubs. What I really appreciated was how Ashley balances heartbreak and hope. The time-slip concept could’ve easily felt gimmicky, but it actually worked perfectly with the emotional weight of the story. The way grief, love, and timing all intertwine, it felt real. I found myself highlighting so many lines because they were so quietly profound. I loved Clementine as a character. She’s flawed and guarded but also deeply human. Her grief felt raw in a way that made me want to hug her, and seeing her open herself up again was really moving. And then there’s Iwan who is a gentle, and thoughtful character. Their connection felt so organic and beautifully slow burn. It’s not a fast-paced story. It gives you space to breathe and to feel everything alongside the characters. By the end, I was sitting there feeling emotional but also oddly hopeful. If you like stories that mix a bit of magical realism with genuine emotional depth. Pick this one up if you want an easy yet playful read. It’s tender, bittersweet, and honestly one of the most touching love stories I’ve read in a while.

I was BLOWN away by The Seven Year Slip, which was this month's book club pick. I went in a little hesitantly because I kept hearing people rave about it, but I wasn't a huge fan of The Dead Romantics. I'm happy to say that I fell in love with this novel and its characters. Clementine, a hard-working book publicist, hasn't felt the same since her aunt passed away. She moved into her aunt's apartment, which *alledgedly* was magic. She's skeptical until one day she wakes up to a handsome stranger, Iwan, in her apartment seven years in the past. It's the same man who, in the present, her team is fighting to get a book deal with. Will the person she loves in the past be able to stay in the future? Or is it seven years too late? "That was love, wasn't it? It wasn't just a quick drop- it was falling, over and over again, for your person. It was falling as they became new people. It was learning how to exist with every new breath." ***THE PLOT*** There's something so magical about falling in love, and I think Ashley Poston caught that perfectly with this book. I could feel the magic seeping through the pages, especially towards the end. In the beginning, it felt a bit clunky and slow. I was having a hard time getting into it. I thought the characters fell too fast, but who am I to criticize how people fall in love? The Dead Romantics and this novel both have themes of navigating through grief. What I loved about how it was done in this one was how subtle it was throughout. The apartment was there for Clementine when she needed it most... when she needed Iwan most. I think he really helped her find a way to come to accept the past and herself. As far as the romance goes, I loved how it went back and forth from past and present Iwan. How accepting he was. I loved the way conflict was introduced because it was so understandable and unique and not your normal miscommunication trope. It was simply waiting for the right time. It's a bit like a forbidden romance, and you've got a little bit of a one bed trope. The spice is not super explicit, but it's there. ***THE CHARACTERS*** Clementine's character development really surprised me. I didn't necessarily realize she had to go through changes herself when we were at the beginning of the novel, but she did. She's at a crossroads you don't necessarily see, and she has to choose which path she desires most. I think it pointed out something that I whole-heartedly agree with: it's okay to go after a career change that makes you happy. Iwan is a great MMC. He's poetic and full of bright-eyed hope. He's got raw passion and excitement for his craft. And he makes a great point, too: in seven years, passion might look different, but that doesn't mean it's not the same. ***FINAL THOUGHTS*** This book was a tearjerker for sure. I loved watching Iwan and Clementine's progression throughout. I loved the little cameos from The Dead Romantics. I loved the hug scene. I loved how he called her Lemon. I loved it so much. Please note: there are mentions of suicide and strong themes of grief that might note be suitable for all readers.

I may need to preface this by saying I’m not exactly in the target market for this book. It’s not something that would typically be my cup of tea. Even still, the book has issues that would deeply flaw any book in any genre… 1) An apartment that takes someone 7 years back in time seemingly at random is an intriguing concept, but the “time-travelling lovers” idea feels like it’s been done a few times and I’m not sure this book really does anything new with it that’s worth doing. There also may be a massive plot hole in that the “7-year slip” doesn’t seem to happen to the protagonist’s love interest from 7 years’ past. Why would she occasionally be taken 7 years into the apartment’s past, but he never is? 2) There’s a lack of believability in how quickly the two main characters get over the fact there’s a stranger suddenly in their apartment. I know some people can be pretty wild and crazy, but it’s hard to believe two strangers accepting the situation so quickly to the point where they’re sleeping in the same bed. It needs more buildup. 3) Pacing is an issue in general. The previous point is partially about pacing, but it’s not the only pacing issue. There are long stretches where nothing happens. I get that a story should slow down here and there and that there doesn’t need to be nonstop action, but when two people are chatting over a meal for pages and pages on end with aimless blimblamming, the story loses momentum. This happens multiple times, where there are pages and pages of unnecessary chitchat while the story stagnates. 4) The two characters are also just annoying and so is their little push-pull romance, but that may just be me and refer back to the disclaimer this review started with. Many of their interactions are just silly and cheesy. All in all though it’s not a bad book. Just mediocre. Despite some adverbs here and there, the craft is still miles better than some other books I’ve read. It also gets better as it goes on and the protagonist’s overall journey is one that’s easy to appreciate. It’s a decent premise (if a bit overdone) with uneven execution, but a solid emotional core in spite of its flaws.

📚𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖📚 The Seven Year Slip by: Ashley Poston 3.5⭐️ I had to sit on this one for a couple of days. Ashley Poston's books are different. They bring something unique to the table every time- no pun intended. I was a big fan of The Dead Romantics and waited a long time to read this one. I had a very real fear that I wouldn't love her writing a second time. I really liked Clementine and I loved Iwan's character. They both were trying to find the most authentic versions of themselves, but it was tricky for Clementine. She meets Iwan in the magical apartment, but he is seven years in the past. Then, low and behold, the chef-turned-author she's trying to sign is Iwan in present day. And the two versions she gets of him are vastly different, but she falls in love with both of them. Time travel, in general, is super confusing to me. I don't really believe there are other versions of us in other dimensions having different experiences. That's way too deep of a concept for me to wrap my head around. But the author kept the book really streamlined and easy to understand what was going on in different time periods. The magic only lived inside of apartment B4, so there weren't a lot of time & place changes to follow along with. I enjoyed the book and thought it was really sweet, but I don't think I loved it as much as The Dead Romantics. I loved all the revelations along the way, but I didn't get the warm fuzzies from the characters until the very end and it was really only Iwan that I felt it from. I did love seeing Clementine come to terms with what would make her happy and taking steps to achieve it. I loved chatting with friends about this one! I know the author has a new release coming out in 2024 and I will definitely read it. I love the way she writes and tells stories that are so unique to the book world. —𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐥𝐥 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝: 🕰️right person, right place, wrong time 🏨magical apartment 🧑🏼‍🍳chef x publicist 💔grief & acceptance

I don't even know how to describe the way this book made me feel and has thus impacted my whole week- in the BEST way possible. I am really mad at myself for putting off reading this. I started it and honestly got a little disenfranchised with it- I got distracted. I jumped back in this week determined to get hooked and just wow. I felt such an array of emotions reading this book. I felt awe, happiness, giddiness, grief (so much grief) and saddness but then happiness and inspiration. Having been someone who has lost someone close to me to suicide- I could relate to EVERYTHING that Clementine was feeling. I am not really an underliner or highlighter of books, but I couldn't help myself with this one. The way that Ashley was describing grief and the aftershocks was just too on point for me. I loved everything about this book. I loved both of the main characters. I loved their journeys and how different but alike they were. I liked how they helped each other more than they could admit (at first). I liked the mystical aspect with the magical apartment. I liked the unpredictability. I liked the side characters, but as I said before I loved how this book made me FEEL. I must have told every person I saw this week how much I liked it. I would highly recommend checking out the TW as it does speak heavily of grief and loss specifically around suicide. Clementine is at a low point. Her aunt has just passed away and given her her apartment. The apartment holds soo many memories, and Clementine is having a hard time only focusing on the good ones. She can't help continuing to think about why she has the apartment. The cool thing about this apartment is that at any point, it can travel back in time by 7 years. And what do you know this happens to Clementine. She comes home one day from work, where she is about to land her dream job, to find a man in the kitchen. Not just a man but a handsome man. He is cooking and setup like he owns the place. Come to find out she has gone back in time and this man, Iwan, is her aunt's really good friends son. He is in NY to take a stab at being a chef. She decides to roll with it and has a wonderful night. She finds herself being able to open up to this stranger who knows nothing about what is going on in her life. She finds herself looking forward to tomorrow. They have another great night together and then he is gone. She finds herself sad and wishes they had more time together because she felt something towards him. A connection of sorts. Now that she is back in today's time, her company is working towards nailing down the hottest chef in town because he is coming out with a cookbook. Well it turns out this hot chef happens to be HER Iwan. Except he goes by James and when they see each other, she doesn't know how to act. So she acts like he doesn't know her. They reconnect and she finds herself noticing how different this Iwan is from the one she met 7 years ago. He is more bottled up. Less carefree. She finds herself wondering what happened to him. She wants to dig and in the process finds herself brought back to the past and then back to the present a few times. Her and Iwan have a connection- that she wants him to remember. She wants to remember. She is ready to make some big decisions in her life, and she wants him to be there with her. The question is will he want to do this after everything? Will he support her big decisions? It was really interesting to see the changes in Iwan and how life had affected him. And when he finally opened up to Lemon as he calls her, it was so beautiful. I thought it was cool that even though there was no time difference for Clementine, she truly had an awakening after meeting carefree Iwan. He made her want to do more things and be more. I can't say enough about how much I loved this book!! If you haven't read it- pick it up!! I went ahead and preordered her next release and am hoping it is just as good. The bar has been set LOL.

I love the writing in this book. It was such an amazing story. I will say up until chapter 5 I wasn’t locked in but immediately after I was invested. Clementine was someone I could connect with. She’s going through life as she feels she should and has done so for so long she’s talked herself into believing it’s what she wanted. Viewing her journey or rather her growth was a worthy ride. When I say I ATE THIS UP. Loved it. ❤️

⭐️4/5 This book started way too slow (so slow that I had to stop and wait a couple of months before picking it up again) but it was worth it. I’ve always liked The Lake House, and the fact that the concept is similar is something I hadn’t read before. The plot and the romance were so well built that I tried to look for plot holes and couldn’t find a single one. I loved how the stories intertwine, and even though there were parts that made me cry because of Clementine’s aunt, everything had its place. Iwan is everything you look for in a book boyfriend and more. One thousand percent recommended

Witty, light-hearted and relatable.

A very pleasant book. I felt like I needed to read it slowly, and absorb each chapter at my own pace, because it touches upon feeling lost and finding yourself and realizing you were always there but just grew up a little..and it resonated with me a lot in this period of my life. Definitely a recommended read.

One of the best books I've read in a long time. Months after reading it, looking for something that gives me the same warm feeling as iwan and lemon.

One of my favorite books of last year✨

“That was love, wasn’t it? It wasn’t just a quick drop—it was falling, over and over again, for your person. It was falling as they became a new person.” This is officially my favorite Ashley Poston book so far! Clementine and Iwan were absolutely perfect for each other, and I was completely obsessed with the concept of a magical apartment bringing two people together across time. Iwan from the past was so charming and innocent—exactly what a grieving Clementine didn’t know she needed—and watching her help him trust in himself was beautiful. Their last moment together in the past? It was so heartachingly beautiful it actually hurt. But what truly stood out to me, right alongside the romance, was how Ashley wrote about grief and losing someone you love to their own demons and decisions. The way she described the aftermath—the sadness, the pain, and even the anger—was so incredibly well done and felt so real. I also loved the message about how people change over time. That love isn't just about holding onto the version of someone you met years ago, but about loving every version of them as they change and evolve. I will definitely be coming back to reread this one! 💛