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If the title is of any indication of how this review will be, then buckle yourself in and get a lot of tissues ready, because I’m going to cry buckets and maybe you will too. You’ve Reached Sam is an amazing tale, and I’m so happy I had the chance to read it and also review it.
Synopsis:
“Seventeen-year-old Julie Clarke 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 belongings, and tries everything to forget him. But a message Sam left behind in her yearbook forces memories to return. Desperate to hear him one more time, Julie calls Sam’s cell phone just to listen to his voice mail recording. And Sam picks up the phone.
The connection is temporary. But hearing Sam’s voice makes Julie fall for him all over again and with each call, it becomes harder to let him go.
What would you do if you had a second chance at goodbye?”
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Thoughts
Starting off, the emotion behind the loss of Sam is strong. It’s something that happens right away, and the author does an amazing job of building up your bond as a reader with a character you know isn’t alive. The chapters with Julie’s memories involving Sam really did a great job of painting a picture of their relationship and how Sam was as a person.
The progression of the calls between Julie and Sam, and learning of their love through memories and their discussions hits every heart chord there is. By the end, I had to remind myself that he wasn’t alive. That he hadn’t been alive the entire book, and that he was, in fact, deceased.
The amount of tears I cried during was plenty, and I haven’t had a book do that to me in years. I didn’t want it to end but I equally wanted to see what happened. This is a spoiler free review so I’m limited on what I want to say. You’ve Reached Sam has quickly become one of my favorites for its well written story and the lesson on why letting go is important.
Score:
5/5
If you haven’t read this, then do yourself a favor and get a copy. It’s worth every penny and every second. I cannot recommend this enough. It’s easily found itself in my top book pile with the likes of (paid link) Tell Me Three Things and (paid link) Every Last Word.
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