<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31450669-every-time-you-go-away" style="float:left;padding-right:20px;"><img border="0" alt="Every Time You Go Away" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1483756126m/31450669.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31450669-every-time-you-go-away">Every Time You Go Away</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/537929.Beth_Harbison">Beth Harbison</a><br />
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2431990273">3 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
First, thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review. <br /><br />What I liked: I liked the book overall. Willa is a well drawn, mostly believable character. She is everything I would imagine a young widow with a child to be, act like. For the most part I thought the portrayal of her grief and moving through it was spot on....going through the motions initially as if in a temporary stupor, while trying to do the duty of life and motherhood. My favorite character, though was Jamie. He was the quintissential teenager struggling to find himself amidst the loss of his Dad and the awakenings of his adolescent sexuality. And yet he was quietly insightful and mature when he gained the courage to speak his mind. <br /><br />What I didn't like: For me, the first few chapters need a little work (IMHO); as the book improved very much so as it continued in its plot and narration. By the end of the book, however, I was all in and crying along with the main character, Willa. I know it was a book about surviving the death of a spouse and its effect on the family; however, there was a little bit too much philosophizing for me. I did like Ben's descriptions of the after life though. Nice to think about it that way. But - i did not find it quite believeable that Willa would let the beach out sit for a full three years without a visit or seemingly any check in (when the book begins she is there and we work backward...) I could see a year maybe but three years is a very long time.
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The story was not very different from other books. A woman loses her husband and soul mate, she is so mired in her grief she neglects her only child who is struggling with the same loss. She tries to come to terms with her new “normal” while wrestling with her heartbreak and depression. While getting the beach house ready for sale, the ghost of her husband appears and stops her ability to move forward.. I thought the underlying story of the teenagers moving forward to be the book’s salvation.

It's like Ghost with Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore!! I'm in love! A wonderful, weepy, romantic, love story. Definitely a tear jerker. I really enjoyed this.

This book made me incredibly sad at first. Ben, Willa's adored husband, dies suddenly at the age of 39. He dies alone, at their beach house. Willa's grief causes her to withdraw from life, even from her teenage son, who also withdraws from her.

Willa knows that she has to ready the beach house to sell; even with the special memories attached, the fact that Ben died there drives her to ready it for sale three years after Ben dies. Unexpectedly she discovers so much more at the house. Her son, reluctantly at first, comes to help her, and along with the help of her best friend, Willa rediscovers small joys in life and realizes she can move on.

This is a really well written story of love and of loss. Great beach read!

A beautifully written story abut the power of love, healing, letting go and fixing a family. Set amidst a beach house filled with memories--this story will take your heart and not let go. Thank you for allowing me to read this title prior to publication--it was a joy!

This is not the typical book that I enjoy reading. With that said, this book was wonderful. It showcased on the love that 2 people have for each other and how to move forward when tragedy happens. I was very confused by the other reviews that I read. Not sure if the author has put out a few different versions of this book with the same title. No matter. This was a good book

The ARC I read was definitely different from the final released book. Perhaps the editor thought the story needed more and perhaps that was a solid assessment. The story I read was anything but hilarious – it was filled with pervasive grief. It touched every page of the book and I was relieved that the book was only about 230 pages and finished in one sitting.

The story was not unique, a woman loses her husband and soul mate, she is so mired in her grief she neglects her only child who is struggling with the same loss. She tries to come to terms with her new “normal” while wrestling with her heartbreak and depression. The apparition of her husband at their beach house as she is preparing it for sale, augments her inability to move forward. Without this device the story would be insubstantial, with it the story is predictable. The dialog, emotions and understanding ascribed to her seventeen-year-old son is so mature that it felt as if the child was the parent. I thought the underlying story of the teenagers moving forward to be the book’s salvation.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC.

Everytime You Go Away is a reflective book about love, death and moving forward. I have read all of Beth Harbison’s novels, but this novel is a departure from her usual writing, but in a good way. Willa has not been able to move past the unexpected death of her husband, Ben. Dwelling in her own grief, she goes through the motions of raising her son, Jamie, unable to accept Ben’s death and move on.
Years later, Willa decides it’s time to return to the beach house where he died and put the house on the market. She is overwhelmed with the memories of her husband and begins seeing him around the house. But is she seeing visions, a ghost or something else?
Fearing she is going crazy, Will calls in for assistance—her son, Jamie, her best friend, Kristin, and Kristin’s daughter, Kelsey. With support, Wilma finally works through her grief and is finally able to tell her husband goodbye.
In a lesser skilled writer’s hands, this novel could be a disaster, but Beth Harbison has a strong sense of her characters and because they are believable, you believe in them. I love beach novels in general, and appreciated how Beth Harbison used her setting (Ocean City, Maryland) as an additional major character to the novel.

For someone looking for a good love story, I highly recommend this book. I'd like to thank NetGalley for providing me an advanced copy.

This not a light beach read, but rather an exploration of grief and how everyone processes it differently. I felt the characters were well-written as were the descriptions of the beach house and area. I'm not really interested in the paranormal, but I did like the story.

So the Netgalley version of this book does not match the Goodreads description. It was good though, I really liked how the adult and the teenager had their own point of view. So many books are about adults look down at teens while YA books treat adults as either the enemy or inconsequential. This one struck a lovely balance.

It is three years since the sudden loss of her husband and Willa is finally returning to the Beach House where her husband, Ben died. Willa is not only struggling with being a widow but also not being able to connect with her son, Jamie. Jamie is now a teenager and Willa is wondering I’d it is just normal teenage angst that she and Jamie are going through, but perhaps also that he has also not come to terms with his fathers death. Jamie refuses to return to the beach hose to clean it out to sell, so Willa returns alone. There are no rules for how to deal with loss, but the entry of the “ghost of Ben” does have its effect on Willa to not move on. Although the book seem to drag in some places for me, overall the conclusion finally brought Willa and Jamie to a place of acceptance of how there life would be from now on and their acceptance of it.

This book follows widow, Willa, and her son, Jamie, as they go through the grief process after her husband, Ben has unexpectedly died.

Years after his death, Willa decides to go back to the beach house they own and ready it to sell. She goes through many emotions as she relives the memories of life with Ben here.

She also knows that she has lost the close relationship she desires with her son.

I didn’t appreciate the language used in this book, nor “ghostly” paranormal references, and therefore chose not to complete the book. Due to that, I could not recommend it to others.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley for my honest review.

This book gave you all the feels! Anger, sadness, love, understanding a more. A book about a normal woman who is grieving her spouse, trying to keep it together for her son, going through the motions of a loss and trying hard to close a chapter of her life does the last 3 years. With the help of her best friend, son and her best friends daughter she is trying to get her beach house ready to sell since losing her husband in the house 3 years ago. It's her first time back and she is haunted by the ghost of her husband who is desperately trying to get her to move on with her life. A wonderful book about loss and finding your way again.

I have to say I'm confused. The blurb I read is very different than the ARC of Every Time You Go Away. I greatly enjoyed the ARC and I hope that the published story stays true to what I read. The story I read is not really what I think of as a light, fluffy beach read, but more of a soft, tender exploration of moving on and trying to find oneself after the death of a spouse.

The descriptions of the beach, the boardwalk and the house were great. I could easily picture myself walking along the beach, eating something at the boardwalk and cozying up in the beach house in the evening.

The main character in what I read was named Willa and her husband Ben did not cheat on her. There was no sister involved or hunky contractor. Ben died at 36 of a heart attack and this book is about how Willa moved on....or tried to...and finally decides to visit the beach house 3 years after Ben's death there.

Evidently she'd never been back and neighbors closed it up and left it. I would probably have let someone else do the same for me in the same situation. Nonetheless, she is back and attempting to get the house ready to sell.

I liked the characters in this book, especially the teenagers and how they grew over the summer. Ben ~ I loved Ben and was sad he died. Willa tried hard, knowing she'd mourned a long time and let things slip.

All in all I'd definitely recommend the book I read. I hope that's what is published. Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read an ARC.

I'm sorry but I could not finish this book. The first time I checked to see if I was close to the end, I only 18% into the book. I persisted and made it to 58% but I am done. There are too many characters and the main character is just unlikable.

I was surprised when I dove into this book to discover the "paranormal " element. It was heartbreaking to see both Willa and Jamie struggle with their grief and with the dynamics of their own relationship without Ben. Overall this was a story of hope and the future, but I still had a hard time connecting with it.

Thank you go Netgalley for the ARC of Every Time You Go Away. I really liked the fast paced, quick story. This is definitely the type of book to read during the summer. Pick it up and be entertained.

Although I ultimately enjoyed this book, it was definitely not the book I thought it was going to be. It looked like a light-hearted beach read, judging by the cover, but it turned out to be a little bit heavier than that -- both sensitive and sad. Really well written.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy. Willa is struggling to come to terms with the death of her husband and decides that she needs to purge some of the memories and heads to the beach house that has been closed since his death. Her son Jamie has also struggled since the death of his father. The summer becomes a time for them to heal and decide where life is going to take them.

This is a great summer read. Was a nice relaxing story to read. Most people can relate to the feelings of loss that Willa experiences. Would be perfect for those days sitting on a beach or next to the pool.

Every Time You Go Away is a sweet and sentimental story about love, loss and learning to live again following devastating heartbreak. Who hasn't wished for even one more minute with a loved one who has passed away-particularly if the loss was sudden and unexpected? That's what Willa is dealing with-her 39 year old husband Ben died three years ago, yet she still finds herself deep in grief and unable to move on. To make matters worse, Ben died at their summer beach house-the place where Willa and Ben first met and has so many special memories for them. Willa hasn't been to the beach house since Ben died, but after three years of it sitting empty she has decided to sell it. Willa and Ben's son Jamie was 14 when his dad died and he still can't bring himself to return to the beach house, so Willa has to clean it out and get it ready to sell on her own. But Willa isn't really alone...Ben is everywhere-nothing has changed since Willa was last there-even the sheets on the bed where Ben died remain untouched. Willa is filled with overwhelming sadness and dread at the huge task she faces, but help and support come in the most unexpected and fantastical way. To say much more would spoil the story-let's just say Ben "goes away" a lot. Every Time You Go Away is the dream of every person left behind, and even though it's unbelievable, it's also wonderful to imagine it could be true.