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

I went into this book with pretty high expectations, and I was slightly disappointed. I still enjoyed it, and it was a good book, it just wasn’t an AMAZING book.

I would have liked the author to have gone into more detail, as I felt like I didn’t get to know the characters enough. There were also parts that were skipped over that really should have gone into more detail (eg:

Finn’s death/accident

)

Speaking of Finn’s death, I felt that chapter 1 kind of ruined the ending a little bit. I was happy they finally got together, but I knew he was going to die soon, so I didn’t get too attached, and therefore it wasn’t as gut wrenching as it should have been.

The suicide attempt really shocked me, but it does make sense since she had made a big deal about it with Jamie.

I want to get to know these characters on a deeper level, but I don’t feel like I got the opportunity to do that.

Content Warnings

csergilo's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

5.0

Content Warnings

zaesbookshelf's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional medium-paced

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

3.5

- I understand why I saw this on a lot of “read this if you wanna feel emotions” tiktok recs, though I didn’t get quite attached enough to it to actually cry
- I called the ending 15% into it and found it pretty predictable in general
- I enjoyed the way of storytelling
- the actions/thoughts/dialogue felt very on par with high school aged people, but there was a thing or two that could be argued as teenagers thinking they’re invincible but really just felt like a super convenient plot device (

I’m sorry - you just watched one of your closest friends get pregnant after having unprotected sex their first time and then you have unprotected sex your first time?? Silly.

)
- narration is a bit slow - I usually listen on a 1.25 speed, but spent most of this book on 1.5 or 1.75
- cliffhanger / unresolved ending
-overall, it was an easy book but I wasn’t in love with it.

Content Warnings

brittinyh3711's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

The writing style wasn't particularly my favorite but I still couldn't stop reading. Cried a little at the very end. It's a very emotional ride

Content Warnings

ashley_books_cats_judo's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Diverse cast of characters? No

4.0

I can understand the hype behind this one. I really enjoyed it as a standalone. Im not sure if I want to read the 2nd book because this one really felt like it wrapped up where it needed to.

Content Warnings

5everafter's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

The book was an easy read; the chapters were short & straight to the point. I felt hopeful for the main characters & found myself really rooting for them. I enjoyed it (:

Content Warnings

More...