You've Reached Sam by Dustin Thao || Book Review

Hi Everyone!

I read this book back when I was on hiatus, and never got around to reviewing it, so I thought I would do so today. This is the third post in my "Week Of Posting", so I hope you enjoy it! 

This book especially blew up on BookTok and in the online book community and after hearing so much about it I just had to read it! 

Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Julie has her future all planned out—move out of her small town with her boyfriend Sam, attend college in the city, spend a summer in Japan. But then Sam dies. And everything changes.

Heartbroken, Julie skips his funeral, throws out his things, and tries everything to forget him and the tragic way he died. But a message Sam left behind in her yearbook forces back memories. Desperate to hear his voice one more time, Julie calls Sam’s cellphone just to listen to his voicemail.

And Sam picks up the phone.

In a miraculous turn of events, Julie’s been given a second chance at goodbye. The connection is temporary. But hearing Sam’s voice makes her fall for him all over again, and with each call it becomes harder to let him go. However, keeping her otherworldly calls with Sam a secret isn’t easy, especially when Julie witnesses the suffering Sam’s family is going through. Unable to stand by the sidelines and watch their shared loved ones in pain, Julie is torn between spilling the truth about her calls with Sam and risking their connection and losing him forever.

At the time I finished the book, I wrote: 

"This was a beautiful, very moving read with a realistic portrayal of grief. I like how it leaves some questions unanswered and I believe it it totally worth the hype. I cried, I smiled and I felt all the emotions I wanted to. This book really made me feel and I'm so glad I got around to reading it."

And I just can't recommend this enough. It's heart-breaking but told so beautifully and also just has such a "vibe". It gives you this feeling that I can't describe! I was talking to another blogger (I would link them but I can't remember who it was) and they said that they totally understood what I meant so it's not just me! Trust me on this. This book gives off a very specific feeling!

The plot is quite slow and thinking about it now, not much actually happens. But that feels like such a realistic portrayal of grief and how your concept of time changes and also leaves space for you to appreciate the writing and the depth of the characters. I love how you just don't question the supernatural elements and writing this review now, all I want to do is go back and read the entire book again. This book will make you cry and feel so many emotions that you didn't even think were possible to be felt through words on a page.

The whole concept behind this book is so ingenious too. I am completely obsessed with the idea of calling someone who is no longer with you and them picking up. Then exploring places together and just feeling the grief. I love the way that you don't really know why or how this is happening or if it is at all and UGH this book is SO GOOD. 

This is so hyped up on BookTok and I totally understand why!

Around The Blogosphere: 

- Miss Known reviews You've Reached Sam - click here!

- Read And Review It shares some thoughts - click here!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this post. This is a truly compelling read, so I hope some of you will pick it up! Thank you so much for all of your support! 

Have you read this book? Do you want to? What do you think of the idea of this book? Any thoughts on books that make you feel a certain way?

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on my reviews by clicking here! Your support is very much appreciated :)

p.s. casual magic of the day:

(If you are new here and have no idea what I'm on about, click here to find out more)

I went on a run with my mum and sister. I am not a big runner at all and it's not something I usually enjoy at all, but it felt really good and there was a beautiful morning light too!