Reviews with content warning for Miscarriage - If He Had Been with Me

This one took a while to get through, largely because I knew how it was going to end. A little before the middle, I felt a stagnancy in the novel and just had to set it down and come back to it. But I am so, so glad that I decided to finish it. Autumn is an interesting narrator, honest and inquisitive yet clueless. I like her, but I don’t actually feel that we get to know her that well.

There is so much talk of her mothers depression and The Mothers friendship, but for topics that come up so frequently, I don’t feel as though they are given the depth that they deserve.

A lot more could be said, but I pulled an all-nighter to finish this book, so it’s at least that good. I did become frustrated with the irony (hypocrisy) at the end- Autumn was cheated on, and that is unacceptable, but Finn is cheating on Sylvie, and that is mostly OK.

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mary_do_12's review against another edition

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emotional sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

let me be honest, i read through four years of autumns life and i couldn’t have been more unaffected. it felt like in those four years, nothing at all happened.

but i was ready to sort of accept all that, when i was hit in the face with BOOM
CHEATING TROPE
(sort of)
BOOM
ACCIDENTAL PREGNANY
(two people! that are in high school!! from their first time!!!)
and i lost it.
you lost me.

the reader knowing the end from the start was supposed to be mysterious and cool, probably, but it didn’t feel like it.
where was the tension?
where was whatever was supposed to make this book interesting?

also, autumns suicide attempt was very uncomfortable for me, and that‘s simply because the whole book had a way of being shallow, and throwing something that serious in there right at the end felt very odd and almost romanticized.

could not conform to this book very much.

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brooklyndays's review against another edition

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challenging emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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jimothyj's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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shaleen64's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

A slow burn romance that most readers will be able to relate to; loving someone but missing your opportunity to be with them.

The book centres on Autumn and Finn through their schooling years, which gives a YA genre feel, but without the writing style to match.

The book will have you laughing, longing and crying. It’s worth the read if you enjoy a romance.

*Spoiler*
I do feel the ending was rushed and had we of had more time getting to know Autumn and Finn within a romantic relationship together the ending would have had a greater emotional pull.

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aimeerose13's review against another edition

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emotional sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Okay OUCH! This book was so painful and yet so beautiful, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look at a red sports car the same way again, the writing is beautiful and the end is so tragic but I wouldn’t have it any other way, instant five star and a book I could read time and time again and never get bored

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flubbs's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

this book had me staring at the wall. great book overall but the ending was poo and that stupid tiara will be the death of me

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