This is a well written emotional journey through one family’s heartbreaking loss. A wife and mother dies of cancer and she leaves tape recordings for her husband to listen to over a several month period. Kind of a P.S. I Love You scenario. But instead of encouraging the partner left behind to do tasks these tapes talk to her husband about their life together and reveal secrets and thoughts that were never spoken of outloud. Some of which aren’t what he expects. I actually got teary eyed while reading this book. The characters are believable, the situation is believable. There’s no outrageous stuff going on. Just a love story that continues beyond the grave.

With thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the book in exchange for an honest review.
A book to make you laugh and make you cry and in the end just enjoy a good romantic love story.
Highly recommended

Beautiful and heartfelt story! From the very start of this book, my heart goes out to Sean, who is in the grieving process after his wife, Catherine, died of cancer.

This is my first time reading a book written by Nick Alexander and I truly enjoyed his writing. It's delicate and emotional, without being overly done. Most of all, I loved how each chapter is uniquely started with a description of a picture, followed by Sean's thoughts and Catherine's narration of the picture, in a form of cassette recording that she made during her stays in the hospital.

THINGS WE NEVER SAID has a steady pace plot with an unexpected surprise in the middle. It's a great tale of love, marriage, and friendship. It will leave you to contemplate the life and relationship of your own.


** Thank you to Thomas & Mercer Publisher and #NetGalley for providing me this digital ARC of #ThingsWeNeverSaid**

What a delightful book. Sean is a stoic, loveable man who is quietly grieving. At times I just wanted to bundle him into a big hug. Catherine, a woman who wants to leave with a clean slate leaves him with dark and troublesome thoughts, about who she was deep down, things she had done, and all the things she wished she’d said. The writing was clear, witty and ambled along at just the right pace. The story lines merged in a way that was as comforting as a blanket, cup of tea and an open fire on a winters’ day.

This book was one of those books that leaves you with happy and sad at the same time.

Thank you NetGalley, I would happily recommend this and am looking forward to Nick Alexander’s next book.

Things We Never Said is touching, and sweet in many places without overdoing it. The protagonist, as well as the family situation is relatable, and the story unexpectedly thought provoking.

A solid and enjoyable tale. Would happily take a look at the author's other works on the back this.

This was an ARC in exchange for an honest review. With thanks to Netgalley and Amazon UK.

This book was a quick read with a good story and plot which was easy to follow. It was a nice method to use the tapes as flashbacks and it switched from past to present easily

I enjoyed the story well enough however I just didn’t enjoy it completely as I was constantly having flashbacks to p.s I love you and a few other things I’ve read and watched. Due to this I had a hard time to stay in the story line

Nick Alexander is one of my favourite authors. His books are always fantastic and this is true to form. A beautifully written story about a man who has just lost his wife to cancer.

I loved this book - such an emotional read this made me smile and laugh out loud but also made me sob in parts. I recommend keeping a box of tissues close to hand whilst reading this. A true rollercoaster of emotions. I was drawn in from the first line and feel bereft now I have finished it.

Excellent characterisation - I feel as if I really know Sean and Catherine personally.

I really wanted to take my time and savour this book but as with all of Nick's books, I couldn't put this down and I am sad to have finished it. Absolutely fantastic. So highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Things We Never Said is a fascinating, tear evoking, heartfelt story that is hard to put down as you become more and more involved in it. Widowed Sean is left a box of pictures and voice message tapes from his just deceased wife. The contents of the box chronicle their lives, both together and apart. You read the happy, the sad and the hurtful of their relationship and marriage. As you continue, you see the grief process in Sean evolve as it plays out against his wife’s memories. This is a very touching and skillfully written book.

This book resonated so deeply with me, The writing was superb, the characters so deeply developed that I knew Catherine as if she were alive and talking to us. The premise with pictures starting each recording was innovative. The layers of the dialogue, the stories, I could feel Sean's pain April's loss, Maggie's fear all of it.
These are some the highlights that I made while reading this book and they will stay with me for a long time
We turn our dead into saints
We met people and sometimes they are more important to you than you are to them
All we ever see of each other is the representation we hold inside our own minds
Happiness is an option

This is the story of Catherine and Sean, told from two PoVs: one is Catherine's, who recently died of cancer and left pictures and recordings for her husband, revealing some of her silent thoughts and feelings, the other is Sean's memories and impressions regarding this one-sided communication and how he comes to terms with his wife's death.

It's clearly not an action packed novel, the twists are somehow expected, but it's heartful and emotional. As a conclusion, it reads easy and fast and is quite enjoyable.

I really enjoyed this book - at first I did think that starting it in public was a mistake as the tears flowed, but I soon got to grips with the joy and purpose of the story. A lovely read.

I would like to thank Amazon Publishing/Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for giving me a copy of ‘Things We Never Said’ by Nick Alexander in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
Sean’s much-loved wife Catherine dies of cancer and following his return from her funeral he’s given a wrapped cardboard box by family friend Maggie. The box contains twenty-nine envelopes each with a photograph and tape that Catherine recorded on a Dictaphone machine before she died. As Sean opens them, one envelope every Sunday, he relives their life together and it feels that Catherine is still with him in spirit if not in body.
‘Things We Never Said’ consists of ‘snapshots’ which move smoothly from when Sean met Catherine in Margate, to when April was born in Wolverhampton, and then to the present time. Right from the first ‘snapshot’ I was in tears and thought the novel might be depressing but I needn’t have worried. As I continued reading I became involved in their life together, their friends and family, and the descriptions were so vivid I felt as if I knew Sean and was there with him.
This novel has been beautifully written with sensitivity and empathy. At times I was in tears and then I was laughing out loud, but I had to keep reading to find out what happened to Sean. It’s a wonderful story of love and life and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I have a mixed opinion about this one. When I read the blurb, which, by the way, is interesting, I was expecting this to be an emotional and heart-wrenching story of a dying wife. But, the story turned out to be more of a series of shocking revelations.

The story starts with Sean and April returning from Catherine’s funeral service. Maggie is waiting at the door. She tries to console Sean but all he wants is a little time to himself. As the story proceeds, Maggie makes her appearances, initially, as a nosy neighbor who pokes her nose into everything. Later on, when Maggie’s friendship with the Patricks is revealed, I was a little bit convinced of her ‘interference’.



Maggie leaves Sean with a box. As he opens the box, he finds a set of envelopes. He opens the one that is marked “1”. He finds out about Catherine’s “Reveal It All”. Each envelope contains a photograph and a cassette. She asks him to open one every week. When Sean discusses this with Maggie, she says that Catherine is not around to check up on him so why not open it all at once. However, Sean decides to follow Catherine’s rules and opens one envelope every week. Maggie tries to convince Sean by saying that Catherine is no more and whatever she chooses to ‘reveal’ in the tapes doesn’t matter anymore. How I wish Sean had paid heed to her advice!

Sean is happy seeing the pictures of their wedding and their trips. But then, when he hears about Catherine assuming that he and Maggie were having an affair, how he wishes that Catherine had confronted him about this when she was alive so that he could tell her that he was a very faithful husband. And Catherine’s one-time affair breaks his heart. He skips opening an envelope the next week. He just cannot take it that his wife has cheated on him. These moments were heart-wrenching and how I wished that Catherine did not mention it. But then, in the beginning, she did say that there are few tapes which might give Sean a shock of his life. So, pretty expected I suppose? And the whole point of the tapes was to tell Sean a few things (about Catherine) that he didn’t know.

Apart from these, the story was pretty good. I liked the concept of snapshot+ cassette. Things We Never Said is the story of Catherine’s life captured on camera and tapes. It is also an emotional journey for Sean – there are moments of happiness, and then, there are moments where I wish he could somehow go back in time and unhear the tapes.



What I did not understand is, why did Catherine have to tell Sean about certain things that would only make his life worse than what it is right now.



I really felt bad for Sean, although he’s just a fictional character, he now knows that his wife was unfaithful, even if it was just for once. He now has to live knowing that his mother was cruel to his wife. He has to live with the fact that his wife suspected him of cheating on her. And there’s nothing he can do now, for, his wife is dead.

Not a bad story, just a bit formulaic and predictable. Pulls on the heart strings for sure. It’s an easy to read book, one that’s satisfying enough.

I would like to thank both NetGalley and Amazon Publishing uk for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Things we never said by Nick Alexander’ in exchange for my honest unbiased review.

Thoughtful,rich, heartbreaking, heartfelt, joy and sadness.. This book will take you through every emotion that you have.
It’s based on couple Catherine and Sean ,who are married. Catherine receives devastating news that she has cancer. So as a parting gift she makes up some tape recordings of things that they have never said to each other.
As with any tape that’s left to listen too there are a few surprises for Sean.

Really took to this book. Get the tissues ready.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. This is a nice easy read, its a little sad in places but also warm in others. What a lovely idea.

If you take PS I Love You + 13 Reasons Why - self harm + a hint of The Notebook and a dash of One Day, you will get Things We Never Said.

This is a tearjerker.

Catherine is dying and makes a series of tapes of her husband to listen to after she's gone. Highlights key points of their relationship, both good and bad shake up Sean's world after Catherine is gone. This is a romantic book about fate and the kind of love that last beyond space and time.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This book was heartfelt, moving, and truly sad in all the right ways. The author told a beautiful story through the words and mind of Catherine. The emotion that I felt from this novel was real, and I am so thankful I was able to read this before publication date! Will be recommending to my friends in my local book club, as this would make a great discussion and I know they would love it too.

This was a beautiful story - well written and easy to read - I have read many of this authors books in the past so was happy to see he had a new one coming out. I wasn't disappointed. The story of Sean and Caroline is told through tapes she has left him after she passes away from Cancer, which I thought was a unique angle, and did work well. Though I don't know if anyone would actually go into so much detail on such tapes (or letters which has been done before) but I guess it had to be written that way so that we can understand as much as possible of Sean and Carolines history.
They seem like any ordinary couple in their 50's, except Caroline got sick and left Sean and their adult daughter to cope with the grief. Then he finds 29 tapes where his late wife talks about various parts of their love and marriage, from when they met as teenagers to when they had their daughter, moved on with careers, seen parents die, and friends come and go. I wanted to hear what Caroline had to say in each tape so was desperate to read on. She gives out some pretty shocking secrets, and Sean has to deal with them alone, which leaves him struggling with many emotions. It is definately one of those books that makes you think. If they had spoken about their thoughts, fears and feelings instead of keeping them inside, things may have been different. Sean is right to feel angry, but he is lost without his wife, and is still keeping her alive by listening to the tapes. The story draws a nice conclusion and leaves you feeling like things worked out, but still sad that such things happen. A truly memorable book.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book. I look forward to more by this author in future!