Liz Tomforde closes the door on the Windy City series with Rewind It Back (2025), a bittersweet, emotionally layered, and deeply satisfying second-chance romance. Following the lives and loves of a tightly knit Chicago friend group, this fifth installment is a rich culmination of stories that began in Mile High (2022), flourished through The Right Move (2023), Caught Up (2023), and Play Along (2024), and now find an echo of homecoming and healing in Hallie and Rio’s journey.
With a deft blend of childhood nostalgia, grown-up regrets, and the ache of lingering love, Rewind It Back isn’t just a romance—it’s a reckoning. A memory. A mixtape of emotion.
The Premise: Where Memory Meets Heart
Rewind It Back opens with Hallie Hart starting over. When she lands a prestigious interior design internship in Chicago, she doesn’t realize fate is about to throw her into the past. Her new neighbor? None other than her childhood best friend and first love—NHL player Rio DeLuca. The man she once dreamed a future with… until heartbreak tore them apart at nineteen.
Six years later, she’s assigned to renovate his bachelor pad into a family-ready home. Neither is ready for the swirl of emotions, the unresolved tension, or the musical memories they’ll have to unpack—one mixtape at a time.
Rio, meanwhile, is the last single man standing in his friend group. Haunted by what he lost and disillusioned by fleeting relationships, he’s stunned to discover that the girl who once held his heart—and still does—has returned. What follows is a beautifully vulnerable story of forgiveness, reconnection, and rediscovery.
Characters: Fully Realized, Flawed, and Fiercely Human
Hallie Hart
Hallie is the emotional core of this novel. She is not just a love interest—she’s a woman grappling with her past, her father’s illness, and a professional ambition she’s terrified of losing. Her evolution from a wide-eyed romantic to a self-protective adult and finally to someone open to vulnerability again is heartbreakingly well-drawn. Her yearly birthday mixtapes, her stubborn independence, and the aching softness she still reserves for Rio—all make her unforgettable.
Rio DeLuca
Rio is not your typical romance hero. Sure, he’s a professional athlete, built like a dream and beloved by fans. But underneath that bravado is a man shaped by his parents’ divorce, a past mistake that still lingers, and the loneliness of having once had—and lost—his soulmate. His emotional honesty, his steady patience, and the subtle ways he shows his love are quietly powerful.
The Ensemble
Fans of the Windy City series will be thrilled to see returning characters: Zanders and Stevie (Mile High), Ryan and Indy (The Right Move), Kai and Miller (Caught Up), Isaiah and Kennedy (Play Along). These couples don’t just make cameo appearances—they form the warm, hilarious, and protective backdrop that makes this series so beloved. The found family vibe is strong here, offering moments of humor and joy that balance the book’s emotional intensity.
Themes: Memory, Forgiveness, and the Music of Time
Rewind It Back is, at its core, a love song to memory. The mixtape metaphor isn’t just aesthetic—it’s a narrative device woven beautifully into the plot.
- Second Chances: This isn’t just a love rekindled—it’s a reflection on how time, growth, and grief change people. Tomforde doesn’t rush Hallie and Rio’s reconciliation. It’s patient, painful, and ultimately, honest.
- Grief and Family: Hallie’s strained relationship with her past, particularly her father’s illness and the solitude she felt during it, adds significant emotional weight.
- Friendship: The dynamics between the couples, the sibling bonds, and the way everyone rallies for one another—this is a love letter to friendship as much as to romance.
- Music as Memory: The recurring motif of mixtapes and songs anchoring moments in time is handled with originality and tenderness. Readers will be moved by how Rio recreates a soundtrack of their lives—ending with the song he played when he signed his contract extension with the Chicago Raptors, not Boston, for her.
Strengths: Lyrical Writing, Emotional Depth, and Seamless Continuity
Tomforde’s prose is cinematic, deeply emotional, and effortlessly romantic. She excels at:
- Writing realistic emotional arcs
- Creating dialogue that feels true and unscripted
- Balancing angst and comfort, grief and laughter
The final chapters especially shine—one poignant scene on a shared rooftop, the mixtape unfolding track by track, and a long-anticipated declaration of love feel like the literary version of a perfectly executed crescendo.
Moreover, the continuity in the series is seamless. While Rewind It Back can stand alone, the layered experiences of reading the previous books amplify its emotional resonance.
Where It Falters: Predictability and Pacing
For all its strengths, Rewind It Back does occasionally meander. There are stretches where the internal monologues slow the pacing, especially mid-book. Some scenes, though emotionally rich, feel like familiar territory for seasoned romance readers.
And yes, while second-chance tropes carry a built-in predictability, the book plays it a bit safe in its structure—Hallie and Rio’s reconnection follows a path we’ve seen before. However, what salvages this is Tomforde’s sincerity and unique character depth.
Writing Style: Warm, Reflective, and Wholly Tomforde
Liz Tomforde’s writing is best described as emotionally immersive. She captures that sweet spot between lyrical and accessible, with naturalistic dialogue and heartfelt introspection. She doesn’t rely on melodrama—instead, she builds intimacy through small gestures, shared history, and internal reckoning.
Her author’s note at the end is particularly moving, offering insight into how writing Hallie’s story helped her process her own feelings about having a sick parent. This personal layer adds an unexpected poignancy to Hallie’s arc, reminding us that sometimes fiction isn’t just storytelling—it’s healing.
Series Recap: The Windy City Tapestry
To truly appreciate Rewind It Back, a quick glance back at the Windy City series is worthwhile:
- Mile High – Zanders and Stevie navigate team dynamics and flying hearts in this slow-burn that launched the series.
- The Right Move – Ryan and Indy’s roommate-to-lovers story gave us quiet intimacy and basketball backdrops.
- Caught Up – Single dad tropes shine as Kai and Miller find joy in chaos.
- Play Along – Isaiah and Kennedy’s fake-dating-to-real-love storyline delivers steamy tension and deep vulnerability.
- Rewind It Back – Rio and Hallie’s second-chance love closes the loop with emotional catharsis.
This series has always stood out for its grounded sports romance, strong female protagonists, and unshakeable bonds. Each couple’s journey has been distinct, yet interconnected, culminating in a finale that feels like coming home.
Recommended If You Love…
- Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren
- Every Summer After by Carley Fortune
- The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams
- Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score
Fans of slow-burn second chances, mixtape metaphors, and heartfelt sports romance will find this book especially resonant.
Final Verdict:
Rewind It Back is a nostalgic, comforting finale filled with genuine warmth and beautifully flawed characters. Though the plot doesn’t break new ground, its emotional authenticity, lyrical writing, and strong character work elevate it far above your average romance.
This book isn’t just about falling in love again—it’s about choosing to stay in love, through time, distance, pain, and healing. A must-read for anyone who’s been following the Windy City crew—or for anyone who’s ever wanted to rewind a moment and feel it all over again.
