I just can’t get through this. I’ve tried and tried and tried. I don’t know how much of a me thing it is but maybe this just isn’t my type of story or writing style. I try to give every book the benefit of the doubt. I’m just having to DNF this one. With all respect and appreciation for the author and publisher (I mean hello, a trigger warning at the beginning of the book?? Yes please) I just don’t think this book is for me.

I can usually connect with a character at the beginning of a novel, sometimes a bit further in. That wasn’t the case here. I didn’t like any of the characters and beyond that the writing style just wasn’t my thing and I think that’s okay. There’s a book out there for everyone, and if it interests you, TRY IT! This just wasn’t that for me.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC of this novel in return for an honest review.

Candace Granger's novel Six Goodbyes We Never Said, dives into the world of love and loss of the main characters parents. In a raw exposure of the emotional and psychological scars left in behind. As if this is not heavy enough there is the spotlight on the mental health issues each of the protagonist has been diagnosed with as they work through there struggles and challenges to rebuild a life.. The characterization demonstrates the honest of these topics in profound manner. Unfortunately, this book falls short in few other areas that make it a slow and at times a challenging read outside of the serious topics it explores. I like this book, but did not love it.

An intensely personal, introspective book about dealing with loss and mental health issues. This book is more of a character study than anything else---there isn't a whole lot of plot to speak of; instead, the book focuses on Dew's and Naima's personal journeys toward healing after loss and toward making steps to connect with the world despite mental health issues that make that very difficult. It's quite obvious that Ganger put her heart and soul (and a lot of herself) into this book. Dew and Naima are complete opposites in many ways: Dew is a marshmallow of a soul who just needs to get past some of his broken past, whereas Naima is distant and often angry (which made her a little difficult to connect to for me---but this is a personal issue I have with this type of narrator). Be prepared---Dew's and Naima's stories are heartbreaking.

***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***

This was a really hard book for me to rate because I liked it but I didn’t love it. I think this book covered a lot of important discussion points and could be relatable to many people that may connect with the characters. However, this book was a little too heavy for me personally which made it difficult for me read. Candace Ganger is an extremely talented author and I did enjoy her writing style. My reasons I didn’t enjoy the book were more personal preferences rather than the author doing something to make me not like it. I had a lot of mixed feelings while reading it.

Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin's Press for an ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Actual rating: 2.75/5

I didn't have any expectations when I started this book. I knew what it talked about, and I knew (well, more like hoped) I would enjoy this book. Obviously I saw the ratings, and I read a few reviews too, but I didn't let it shape my opinion on this book.
What I liked most about this book was how it dealt with mental health issues and the loss of a parent, going as far as putting these themes in the spotlight. I think the author did a really great job on this part, which helped develop the main characters too.

However, that was it. The main characters were great and well-developed, but it felt like the rest was neglected : there wasn't really a plot to speak of, the secondary characters felt like ghosts to me, and overall I was bored throughout my read.

I wasn't expecting the book of the century when I opened this novel, but I certainly wasn't expecting to be this disappointed either.

The amazing characters in this story were what made me love this book so much! Naima and Dew both warmed my heart and I related to them and felt for them in so many ways. One of my favorite characters was also JJ--Naima's grandmother. This book is a YA that deals with some HEAVY topics--SO MANY heavy topics--PTSD, grief, OCD, social anxiety...to name a few. There was so much going on with these characters that at times it was overwhelming (imagine how the characters felt!). I felt the book did have a bit of a slow pace at times but I still really enjoyed it.

I loved the format of the book--the voicemails from Naima's dad, her poems, and Dew's "news" headlines at the beginning of the chapters. I LOVED Dew's headlines. You root for and feel for these characters the whole book. I felt so connected to them throughout the story. The emotional and heavy at times, this book covers areas that so need to be written about and normalized.

My favorite quote from the book--the quote that made me just STOP and re-read it, and share it:

"If you want to count the time, start with now. It's all we're guaranteed. Now. Now. Now. Now. Now. Now."

THIS. BOOK. I have cried reading a lot of books. There has been pretty crying, slight weeping, full-on crying, and ugly crying. This was an ugly crying book. As soon as I read the first chapter, I knew I was in trouble. But before I get too far ahead of myself, let's talk format and characters, and then we can get into FEELINGS!

The formatting of this book was absolutely brilliant. I've said it 1000 times but I'll say it again: I love a uniquely formatted book. It makes reading so much more interesting. This book was formatted in a few different ways. First, it was split between Naima's and Dew's point of view and their voice were both so unique that it was a joy going on this journey with both of them.

But that's not all. Naima's portions always started with a voicemail and Dew's portion were made to look like he was telling the story through his voice recorder. If there is any book that is begging to be turned into an audiobook, this one is. To be able to hear Naima's dad's voice and then her own...oh god, where are the tissues??

Ok, on to characters! Where do I even start? I don't know if I've ever read a character as closed off as Naima. Maybe that's why I connected to her so much. I've been in that closed off state before and I get the protection she's trying to put around herself because she just can't deal with everything. Her world imploded when her father died and every OCD tendency she had before needed to increase so nothing else bad would happen.

But the writing doesn't let that define her. She may have OCD and so much anxiety she can barely breathe sometimes, but she's also soooooo strong and fierce. You don't grow up with grandparents like that (omg they are delightful) and not be a bit of a badass.

And Dew. The sweetness! He is the epitome of a cinnamon roll. He is so lovable. But while that is part of his personality, that is also part of how he protects himself. Where Naima uses her anger to keep people away, Dew wants to be friends with everyone and wants to please. And oh boy, do I relate to that as well lol.

He uses his voice recorder to get out his feeling and express himself in a way that's just for him. But his recorder soon becomes a security blanket that he needs to let go of in order to move forward. And guess who helps him with that? A girl named Naima.

I love how these two become friends. They are so different, but also have quite a few similarities. At first, I thought Dew was trying too hard and not taking Naima at her word. She said she didn't want to be friends. That should have been the end of it. But that is part of Dew's anxiety and his compulsion.

He's been imagining meeting her since the day her father told him about her (oh yeah, you know Naima's deceased father?? Dew has met him!). Now that she's here, he feels like he knows her. It takes him awhile to realize he doesn't, but by that time, both Naima and Dew have grown and are ready to be friends. I don't know if it would have been a healthy friendship if they'd been friends right off the bat.

And let's talk about Faith! Faith is up there as one of my favorite characters in the book. She is Dew's adoptive sister and still trying to understand that these people who adopted her aren't going to send her back. She is temperamental, been through quite a lot (she's been in the foster system), and just wants to be loved and accepted. She may be young, but she's already a badass. The girl is already wrestling, wearing whatever she wants, and not letting anyone tell her its wrong.

But she's also allowed to be a young girl too. There's a scene at her first wrestling match where she comes dresses as a professional wrestler and all the other kids are just dressed like kids. She has a moment of insecurity (I have never wanted to hug a fictional child more) but Dew sees her and goes over. He ends up giving her a pep talk and that brings back her confidence. It's a moment I won't forget because I have been Faith. I have felt unsure and insecure, but my brother is much older than me so he wasn't there for pep talks or confidence boosts while I was in school. And it was just so good to see (and yes, of course I cried!).

Time for feelings! This book made me feel so many things and even though I read it a couple of weeks ago, I've still been thinking certain scenes (mainly the one by the water which I will not spoil!).

The day after I finished reading, I started noticing how I was changing my behavior so I wouldn't stand out or be noticed, and that needed to stop immediately. So I've been giving myself more of a break and allowing myself to be me and not what I think others want or like or need.

I haven't been through any of the things Naima or Dew or even Faith have been through. My parents are still here and I don't have OCD. I do have a pretty whopping case of anxiety that's controlled through medication and therapy. Maybe that's why I connect with this book and these characters so much? I get why Naima needs to count and why Dew needs his recorder. I've clung to routines, hoodies, tissues, bracelets, stuffed animals, and probably lots of other things I can't remember. Seeing them all let go and live and make mistakes and apologize...I needed that more than I expected.

Before I began reading, I didn't expect to add this to the list of books that changed me, but it has and it's on the list. If you couldn't tell by now, I'm giving Six Goodbyes We Never Said by Candace Ganger 5 out of 5 stars. Be ready for this book when you read it because it will blow you away.

Six Goodbyes We Never Said comes out September 24, 2019.

Thank you to Wednesday Books for the free eARC in exchange for my honest review on this blog tour.

3.5 stars

Review

*Trigger warnings for suicide, mental health issues, strong language*

"I watch the back of him.  He's so alone.  A star falling from the sky without a single planet to catch him.  I start to wonder if it might not be so bad to fall right along with him."
I'll start off with saying that Six Goodbyes isn't an easy read - it's complex, hard hitting and thought provoking, and at times difficult to swallow.  This YA contemporary keeps an even pace throughout, with mostly alternating pov's from the mc's Naima and Dew.  Both have suffered unthinkable loses, and you would think that this would pull them together, but when Naima is involved, nothing goes quite to Dew's plan...It definitely isn't a love story kind of book, so you're in the wrong book if that's what you're looking for. 

I much preferred Dew as a character, though I felt that the focus was definitely more on Naima.  I found her quite a hard character to like, I did eventually warm to her, but it did take me a while.  I wanted to pick Dew up and put him in my pocket to keep him safe, in the words of Big Foot, he is a mini-muffin and must be protected at all costs, I loved how quirky he was.

I absolutely loved some of the side characters too - Violet, Big Foot and Faith especially - they really cracked me up and added some much needed humour into the book.

I did feel that the book explored Naima's grief, GAD, OCD and PTSD well, and you could really tell that the author knows her stuff, and really looked into these issues.

I will say is that I found the book quite difficult to differentiate between Naima and Dew's pov's at times; possibly just due to the eARC being an uncorrected proof; so I'll definitely try to keep an eye out for a physical copy when it's released as I'd like to see if it makes more sense on paper as opposed to on screen.

Thanks to Sarah at St Martin's Press for arranging for me to be a part of this blog tour, and providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really heartbreaking (yet also heartwarming) story of two teens Naima and Dew, suffering from different disorders/anxiety issues, while learning to deal with some heavy grief/loss. The story felt very raw and honest and it was very interesting to see the world from the perspective of 2 teenagers who are very different from myself. I thought the author did a great job of representing a lot of different social issues that teens face today, as well as helping to bring awareness and help remove the stigma that often times comes with mental illness. Thank you to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC.

This book was not for me. I loved the representation of characters with mental illness written by an own voices author. However, that is where my liking stopped. I struggled to follow the story and stay connected with the characters. I chose to not finish this book because of the disconnect I felt towards the characters. I do hope that this book finds itself in the hands of readers that need it.

Unfortunately I did not finish this book because I found it very dull. I only gave it one star because it was not possible to give zero.

How to choose between 4 and 5 stars? I'll say 4 1/2, but round up. There are so many emotions about this book. It started off rough for me- just getting used to the format and then figuring out which character was which, but once I did, I felt truly invested in the characters. There are so many aspects of this story that are hard, but beautiful at the same time. Being a military spouse, the deployment and FLOAT aspect of the book really hit close to home. The little tics, PTSD and OCD things felt purely authentic and I believed the characters 100%. We can attribute a lot of that to author- who in the forward confesses that she leaned on personal experience for much of this book. I would recommend reading that forward before and after the book. I felt I got to know the author through that as well as the book. Ultimately, this is a book about survival, finding out who we really are, and forgiveness (outward and inward). Truly a beautiful book.

Warning- some strong language, mental health, and suicide is mentioned. Probably not for those who trigger easily.

The writing style was a little different in this book and it took me a little longer to get invested and connect with the characters. There were a couple of dry parts that I wanted to just rush through, but overall there were a lot of good, touching moments throughout the book. I’d recommend Six Goodbyes We Never Said to those that are wanting an emotional read and something that delves into some deeper topics such as anxiety, depression and ptsd.


Thank you to the publisher for reaching out to me for the chance to read an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this free ebook in exchange for an honest review!

I am so happy to see more books with mental health rep. I cried so much that I couldn’t finish this one but the parts I read would great.

hank you to @wednesdaybooks and @netgalley for the ARC and #blogtour opportunity.
🎈
“If we don’t find a way to cope with the grief, it’ll strip of us living, ourselves.” 🎈
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Naima and Dew have both lost their parents. Naima’s father lost his life during his sixth tour in the Marines, while Dew lost both his parents in a tragic car accident. This story is one of immense grief, learning to survive and letting go. 🎈
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Naima is left to live with her step-mother (who she doesn’t get along with); thus she moves to be with her grandparents. She is angry at the world and doesn’t find much of a purpose for living. Dew lives next door, living with his new foster parents and sister. While he is also dealing with grief, he is making lemonade with the lemons he has! Their grief is made even more complex as they each deal with their own mental health issues: clinical depression and anxiety. Thus, when Naima moves in next door, Dew is excited to get to know her and hopes they can find common ground in their shared experience and save each other in the process. 🎈
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I loved the two characters; they were polar opposites. Naima is at times downright nasty and unlikeable, while Dew is just the sweetest person in existence. He took Naima’s harsh criticism with a smile every time. The characters and their grief was extremely well developed and it was interesting to see their vastly different coping mechanisms and outlooks. 🎈
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This book touches on so many issues, from grief, mental illness, fostering/caregiving struggles with emotional and poignant writing by Candace Ganger. It’s YA with hard hitting topics that I think can be enjoyed by anyone. 🎈

I need to start by saying this is a new to me author, and I was completely blown away by everything this book had to offer. After reading the synopsis I knew this would be a book I was goin to love as long as I felt the representation of mental health illnesses lived up to my expectations. To say it did would be an understatement. The whole book is written with the utmost respect and I appreciated every aspect of it.

Naima was one of those characters that grew on me, at first I was just not into her and her attitude problems. The outbursts and every time she snapped were very relatable and real to me. I fell in love with Drew immediately, he is one of my all time favorite character’s and I will have a place in my heart for him always. Drew’s panics attacks were represented in a way that made me feel like I was living through one myself. They were so realistic to the ones I suffer from I felt someone was in my head retelling exactly how I felt.

This book was everything I wanted and more. I can’t wait to read other books by Candace. This is definitely going to be one of my all time favorite authors, and is already on my auto-buy list. The feelings of loss, panic, and anxiety were just all too real. I can’t explain the feelings of respect I have for this author.

Six Goodbyes We Never Said is a very enjoyable and heartwarming read.
It tells a unique story, in a unique way. What’s offered aren’t characters that are easy to like, or even to digest, but they’re diverse, vividly placed on the page and so intriguing that I had to finish the book.
I loved the writing in the book. It didn’t have the typical flow, but it helped capture the disorders the characters have. The pacing was really good too, I tend to rush to get things done, but this book slowed me and my thoughts down a whole lot, and the pace of the plot had a lot to do with that. Each character had a voice of their own, which seems to be difficult to pull off, but the dual POV was executed masterfully in this one.
It was just a great read. I recommend it.

It took me a minute to sort out these wonderfully intricate characters after I did I fell in love with all of them. The combination of anger and hurt from Naima broke my heart throughout most of the book. Then Dew would heal it a bit. He was going through his own grieve but he dipped his in sunshine.

Six Goodbyes We Never Said is a smart, heartbreaking story of love, loss, friendship, and finding their way through loss.

I really felt drawn to this book due to the subject of mental illness. I struggle with anxiety and have since I was a young teen.

There were so many unique and touching moments in this book that I definitely recommend giving this book a try. I loved how the author had a personal note in the beginning of the book which automatically grabbed me right away. I feel so touched when the authors give us a glimpse of their lives and what gravitated Ganger to write this novel.

Ganger does a nice portrayal of her characters Naima and Dew struggling with their own challenges of loss, anxiety, and grief. I think this was definitely one of the author's strengths showing her readers what it's like to suffer from mental illness. Naima and Drew built a strong foundation with one another built on strengthening one another up due to the struggles both of them have endured.

What I struggled with a tad bit was the writing style. I felt it was a tad choppy and my interest flowed in and out. I think overall, this was a wonderful story on the struggles of anxiety and grief.

3.5 stars!

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Wednesday books for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Publication date: 9/24/19
Published to GR: 9/15/19

I will echo what a lot of other reviews say. The author did an extensive amount of research for this book to accurately portray their POV. I appreciate that in a writer. I too did not feel a deep connection with the characters themselves like I do in most books. I believe there is a large enough audience in search of and in need of a book exactly like this that will appreciate it for the intended purpose. I gave it 3 stars because I believe this is an important book for several people out there. Thank you #NetGalley for this arc!