Reviews with content warning for Alcohol - 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.

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laurenlolson's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful sad tense fast-paced

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

2.5

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kc_louisa's review against another edition

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emotional funny fast-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

5.0

This book is so amazing I honestly thought it would just be another romance novel and I would probably DNF but I fell in love with everything about it

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brooke_w's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced

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

3.5

Ending fell short.

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giamarie's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-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

3.5

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livist's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

3.5/5 rounded down

I had high expectations going into this. I’ve seen so many reels about how good it was, it’s been on so many lists. I knew absolutely nothing about this book beyond it was a YA. I didn’t even realize it was purely a romance until I started it.

It’s kind of slow. It starts off with a large event only to rewind to the beginning of high school more or less for the two main characters. It’s a slice of life for a long time with the main plot just being Autumn’s self realization of her feelings.

At first I didn’t mind Autumn but really she became really…whiny. Very self centered the entire book. Her depression is relatable, and I’m not sure if it’s supposed to make her more endearing or what, but that’s about it. Being in the throes of depression and not realizing it is absolutely something that happens in high school (happened to me).

I liked the writing style because it did feel earnest in the way that high schoolers thoughts are. But it kind of drags because high school does. Slice of life novels are not my thing so that’s not on the author.

It also comes off as really pro life to me and anti medication as well which I didn’t sign up for/didn’t like.

Look at how many teen pregnancies turn out fine! Abortion isn’t discussed or an option (Finn’s mom, Angie and now autumn!) depression medication is for the birds and useless when all you need is love or a baby

In that way, it doesn’t quite feel like a modern novel. I don’t think I’m going to pick up the accompanying book through Finn’s eyes.

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romyauch's review against another edition

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emotional sad fast-paced

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

3.5

it was a good book, have i read better, absolutely. i would rate this book more of a 3.5 ⭐️ than a 4. it was overall a good book but there are so many better books. it was definitely sad but i have read sadder books that make me feel more. it was quite cliché and i saw why they were going to break up from like the first couple of chapters of the book when they were dating. no hate but i have read so many better books, if the author was going for more of a sad emotional vibe it could have been pushed so much farther, it had great potential but it didn't reach to the point it could have.

the characters were super basic, girl kicked out of her popular crew, grew apart from her childhood best friend and he is now super popular. polar opposites, in love with others, will they end up together. boy goes to parties, his girlfriend drinks. known for sometimes being a rebel, doesn't listen. girl has depression, are they going to find their way back together. also the cause of her depression is not clearly stated i felt it was more like oh autumn also has depression how will her boyfriend deal with this. and don't get me started on jamie, his and sasha's characters are not well written.

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