Love, Cutter was an enjoyable read. It was very unique with Carter in a coma for a lot of the book. I liked it because it gave the other characters their moment to be truthful with themselves and with Carter. I thought it was great how Carter came out changed and wanting to do better, but still knowing that he wouldn't be perfect all the time.

While I enjoyed the relationship between Carter and Kinley, they both felt immature to me. It felt more like a YA read than anything. Michelle Jester has a very unique writing style that apparently others struggled with, but I didn't mind at all.

I do think that the ending was a little unrealistic. Very Hallmark movie-ish. That being said, it was a pleasant read that kept my attention until the end. I felt like the author did a fantastic job of handling the subjects of depression, self-harm, and suicide.

Carter is battling his own demons of depression by trying to be who his family expects him to be, regardless of how he feels. His inner darkness takes the wheel and attempts suicide. He survives, thankfully, however, spends a good portion of the book in a coma. While asleep, he witnesses his families cries of sorrow, apologies, hopes for a better future together – but only one voice out of all of them brings him out of it. Her name is Kinley. Through the coma haze, his nurse bonds with him and in return wakes Carter from his slumber.

You’d think this was a Hallmark movie by how that sounded only it’s not as easy as you’d think. Kinley is transferred before Carter wakes up and it sends him searching for him. The most important story, to me, is not the romance that springs up because of it. No, it’s Carter discovering his inner light through the darkness that Kinley merely lit just a little in order for him to grow brighter and brighter.

This is a story of love, growth, mental health awareness, and hope. The type of story you wish you’d hear become reality. If you suffer from depression or another mental illness – you are never alone. Never give up and always keep fighting.

Carter has had enough of his life and feels that he doesn't fit in and that he has no way out and if he left then everybody would be fine and get on with their lives. He commits suicide and is rushed to the hospital where he lays in a coma. Little does the outside world know that while in his coma Carter can hear. While in his coma, Carter starts to familiarise himself with the people surrounding him by their voices. One of those, in particular, is Kinley who works as a nurse in the hospital. She knows what Carter is going through as, like him, she has been there. We later have Kinley nicknamed as Cutter as that was her preferred method of pain relief. During the coma, Carter will start to learn things about his parent's lives, memories and discover what true love is. When he does wake up, the person he wants most in the world is Kinley, but of course, he only knows her name and the sound of her voice. What will happen when Carter finds Kinley? Will the love that he had for her remain when he discovers her true identity? I liked Love, Cutter as it does give you an insight into the dynamics of families, values and how they cope when tragedy strikes - do they drift apart or does it make them come closer? If you have suffered a suicide attempt or know someone who has attempted or sadly died, then as I found this book can bring up memories and trigger a mixture of emotions.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. I felt like the author handled some pretty heavy topics: suicide, prejudice, self-harm, trauma, depression, abuse. This book makes you think, what do people say when they think no one can hear them. I love that the characters had the freedom to say whatever they wanted thinking that Carter could not hear them.

I also enjoyed the connection between Carter and Kinley. I loved that he felt a connection based solely on the interactions he had with her in the hospital and not mention he had no clue what she physically looked like.

I would defiantly recommend this book!

This story had so much potential because it gave a different perspective on such a tough subject, unfortunately, the writing style over powered the story and it was hard to really "like".

This book is full of potential and I felt like the handling of the issues of attempted suicide, trauma, and self harm were handled fairly well. I liked the characters but Carter and Kinley both felt rather immature. Carter was college aged but really seemed like a high-schooler and Kinley certainly felt too immature to be nurse. I did enjoy the connection between the two characters. I especially enjoyed Carter's search for Kinley and how he was connecting with the people that were a part of stories in his search until he finally found her. This was my first Michelle Jester book but I doubt it will be my last.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

This is one of those reviews I know I will struggle to formulate into words because my thoughts and feelings to this story are so mixed. That being said I’m going to divide and conquer.
What I liked: Love, Cutter covers many important issues like suicide, depression, self harm, trauma, prejudice – the list goes on. Truly there were so many social issues addressed and I commend anyone brave enough to tackle such things. Was there potentially too many issues addressed in one story – possibly, but I think for the most part the author tied it all in together well.
I really appreciated the concept of this story. I liked the element of the different characters being able to show their true selves without having to keep up pretense or worry that Carter would hear or judge them when they were speaking to him. I thought it was especially thought provoking how you could slowly see Carters thoughts change, how he stopped looking just from his point of view but was really forced to hear those around him and take it in. I thought this was very well done.
What I didn’t like: I can’t say I was hooked on the book or that I loved how it all played out. I felt the storyline was a little predictable as certain things were revealed… but I wont say anymore on that front as I don’t want to give anything away.
I also felt like it was unrealistic in terms of how things were resolved. Sure there was the question looming over what Carters sister would ultimately do but otherwise everyone was just like “wow I’ve changed so much, I’ll never make this mistake again, lets all be perfect happy family and friends”…. That is obviously an exaggeration but my point still holds. The story starts with this poor shattered family riddled with insanely high expectations, terrible communication and critical levels of stress. Carter is overwhelmed with feelings of worthlessness, shame and feeling like everybody is better off without him. And yet all of this is magically fixed within the year. I know there was therapy and some “difficult” conversations but it just didn’t ring true to me. If only we could all work through our issues so succinctly right?
Overall this is an interesting read and I would still recommend it despite my personal feelings on certain things, I do think some of the things I didn’t like in terms of writing/plot style would be what other people preferred ie: an “easier” read smoothly reaching the HEA.
Thanks to Netgalley, Publisher and Author for ARC

So, I thought this book was YA the entire time. It seems immature for an adult read, but I didn’t deduct a star for it being (imo) classified incorrectly. I have one major complaint about the book itself and that was the Christian thing being approached as if Christians have a hard time selling books. Uh, this is abt one of the most ridiculous claims ever made. A book that brings up white privilege but wants people to think there’s not a Christian privilege as well is ridiculous. Especially when the author is a white woman and introduced young black men as being angry at white men in the same age group. I try to not hold personal beliefs against authors, but it’s hard not to when they make them pillars of their books. Also, the editing was awful! Simple things that clearly need attention and don’t get me started on sentence structure! This lady is on my Do Mot Read list right now. Maybe I’m just annoyed right now and will give her another chance bc this story did have a good message on love and enduring relationships, but her personal views disrupted the storyline for me.

"I didn't say I would never want to, I don't know that. I said I would never try to again. That's the difference. "

I am a 3 time suicide survivor and this book had so many things that made me feel not alone. A reader doesn't need to connect with every character they come across, but when they do the story can touch them deeper. I gave Carter and Kinley my compassion and they gave me hope. So appreciative to Michelle Jester for writing this and Netgalley and RopeSwing Press for an opportunity to read an ARC for review.

This was an easy read. I really liked the concept but it was too "preachy" for me. I believe in hope but this was knocking you over the head with a unrealistic cheesy storyline.