I absolutely adored this book!! I even enjoyed it more that Josie Silver's first book, One Day in December. The Two Lives of Lydia Bird is a beautiful depiction of both love and raw grief, this story will make you hug your love and loved ones a little harder, laugh a little longer, and enjoy each moment to the fullest. I giggled at the wit of the characters and my heart ached at Lydia's pain.

I can't wait for this to come out and to recommend it to my regulars at the bookstore. Josie Silver does it again and I will be anxiously waiting for her next masterpiece!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 and ALL THE FEELS!!!!!!

Lydia and Freddie have been together since they were practically kids. After over a decade together, they’re now engaged and happily planning their future together. On the way to Lydia’s birthday dinner, Freddie dies tragically in a car accident. His best friend Jonah is also in the car but he comes out with nothing but a scratch on his face and a shattered heart for the loss of his best friend.

Lydia’s grief is all consuming. Unable to handle every day life, unable to eat, and unable to sleep, her family brings her to a doctor who prescribes sleeping pills. The first night Lydia takes a little pink pill, she awakes in her dream world next to Freddie. The dream is vivid - lifelike.

She soon realizes that the pills are somehow a portal to another, alternate timeline where Freddie is still alive and well. Alternating between her real life and her dream world, Lydia begins leading two lives. But the physical and emotional toll are grueling and how can she live in either world with one foot in and one foot out?

This was an extremely powerful and emotional tale of love and grief. Though it focused on the romance of Freddie and Lydia, it was not a typical meet cute love story. The depth of the characters and emotions leapt off the pages. Silver’s writing was superb, the story was wonderfully unique, and the novel really makes you think. Beautiful story of love, loss, grief, and the power to live.

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC of this book. I enjoyed Josie Silver’s first book and knew I would enjoy this one. The characters are likeable and believable. Lydia’s emotions over the death of her childhood sweetheart fiancée were raw and honest and at times heartbreaking. The way she dealt with her grief in the story was unique in that she took sleeping pills and while she slept she visited her life in another dimension in which Freddie, her fiancée is alive and well and wedding preparations are in full swing. She wonders if there is a price to pay for popping in and continuing her life with Freddie. I don’t want to spoil anything but something very predictable that happens and because of it I can only give it 4 stars. I did love this book and will recommend it to others.

I loved this book! I laughed, I cried....all the emotions. I really love the way this author writes and this is my second book of hers now that I highly recommend. This is a good story of love and loss, and what happens when you are lost and have to find your way on your own but also with the help of those who are still here. I will be looking forward to the next one (hopefully soon!).

Thank you to the publisher and author for providing me with a digital ARC of this title via Netgalley in exhange for my honest review.

I loved, loved this book. It was cute with a capital C. It was one of those books that I immediately felt attached to and didn't want to put down until it was finished. The only downside was I read it so fast and then was sad when it was over. The book begins with Lydia's fiance, a boy she's dated since high school, dying in a car wreck on the night of her birthday. Awful and depressing, but the story is honest, touching, sweet, charming, and even has a bit of whimsy to it. Lydia eventually agrees to take a sleeping pill to help as she is grieving and finds that in that medicated sleep her life is continuing as if Freddie hadn't died. It's a way to be back with him again and to continue plans towards their wedding and honeymoon so Lydia starts saving the pills for special occasions and times when she misses him most. I love that she recollects real life in the dreams and how it helps her to view reality and the dream life with Freddie. I loved joining Lydia as she tries to find herself and discover who she is without Freddie. I loved her family and workmates who supported and lifted her as they helped her return to living. Definitely a book I want to pass on to friends in hopes that they will enjoy it as much as I did.

I wasn't a fan of Silver's "One Day in December" but I knew lots of people liked it (and it was one of Reese's book picks!). I figured it was a "me problem" and decided to give her another try with this one... but still not my favorite. I'm sure others will enjoy though!

The Two Lives of Lydia Bird is a heartwarming story of healing and new beginnings. Following the loss of her high school sweetheart and beloved fiancé, Freddie, Lydia discovers she can experience life with him in a parallel universe when she takes her little pink sleeping pills. While her time spent with Freddie initially provides comfort in her sleeping world, her wakeful self soon realizes that living dual lives comes at a great cost.

I found Lydia’s journey of self-discovery incredibly thought-provoking and touching. In the face of a loss, it is human nature to remember and focus on the positive memories of our loved ones; yet, if given the opportunity to live out another life with those we’ve lost, those new experiences are bound to affect our memories, perhaps for the worse. Further, grief inevitably changes us. How can we spend time with those we’ve lost without allowing our grief to affect our interactions with them? The reader has a chance to process these complex ideas as Lydia moves through the stages of grief in a unique way.

Altogether, the author’s writing style is somewhat cinematic in nature, which makes the scenes easy to visualize and helps the book flow. This would make an excellent film. My only critique is that I had a little trouble connecting with the characters in the beginning because the reader is immediately thrown into the action before getting to know them. That being said, by the end of the book I was rooting for them all. Fantastic work!

3.5 rounded up. Josie Silver's last book One Day in December was an unexpected delight. I don't normally go for romance type books but really enjoyed that one as a fun lighthearted romance. This one was certainly not that. I'm not sure i'd even classify this as a romance, more about love, loss, and dealing with grief.

It was an interesting take using sleeping pills to give Lydia a portal into having an alternate life with her loved one still alive. From there the story jumps back and forth between awake and sleeping and what lengths should one go to hold on or let go.

Thank you to NetGalley Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and Josie Silver for an ARC to read and review

When Lydia Bird's fiancee is killed on her 28th birthday, she's not sure how to pick up the pieces or deal with the overwhelming grief. Then she's given a chance to be with Freddie again, but at significant cost to her real life and those who love her. Heartbreaking and emotional.

I must admit that was not a book that I thoroughly enjoyed. I did feel a connection to Lydia, even though I have not experienced a loss like her. I felt the book dragged at times, and i wanted to see more of her relationships in the present move forward. Honestly, I kept waiting for it to be a dream, or what she was hurt...something other than what it was.

I appreciate the opportunity to read the advance copy, but it was not a favorite of mine.

I loved Josie Silver's "One Day in December" so I was so excited to read her next novel, "The Two Lives of Lydia Bird". This book did not disappoint! What a beautiful book about love lost and love found, about healing and dealing with grief. Lydia Bird loses the love of her life tragically, unexpectedly. We are taken on a journey of her healing process and those who help her through it. I loved this book and I am sad it is over! I cannot wait to see what the author writes next!

Just finished an ARC of the new @josiesilverauthor book which will be released March 3. The premise of this book is genius. Lydia Byrd is engaged to Freddie Hunter. They have know each other since they were teenagers. Freddie is killed one an accident leaving Lydia at loose ends. She is unable to sleep, so she is prescribed a new brand of sleeping pills. When she takes them, Freddie is still alive. In this alternate universe, Lydia and Freddie continue to live their lives, plan their wedding, but only when Lydia is actually asleep in her ‘real’ world. Sounds ideal, does it not? It does come with a price and many complications to her relationships with family and friends. That being said, the book drags a little in the middle, but I always felt compelled to keep reading so that I could find out the ending. The ending was beyond my expectations, and very well done. Thank you, Net Galley for the ARC of this book. I definitely recommend this book.

“There’s more than one happy ending for everyone.”

On Lydia’s 28th birthday her fiancé, Freddie (boyfriend since she was 14) is killed in a car accident. Their best friend Jonah survives the accident. Lydia and Jonah don’t know how to get through life without Freddie, who essentially was the glue in their lives.

Both Lydia and Jonah deal with a substantial amount of grief, which they individually deal with differently, that puts strain on their friendship.

Lydia discovers through sleeping pills that she can be with Freddie in another world where he is still alive in her sleep. Lydia has to decide if living her awake life is more important to her than her asleep life.

This book was a slow burn for me, but I felt Lydia’s and Jonah’s grief deep in my soul. Lydia had so many loved ones who tried to help her along her journey of grief.

Will Lydia choose to remain in her awake life or choose to lose herself in her asleep life where Freddie is still alive within her.

This is a beautiful story of love, loss, dealing with grief, and finding yourself after losing someone who was your world. 4 stars 🌟

Thank you @netgalley for my free ARC for
My honest review.

Rating: 4.5/5⭐️⁣
Rationale: This book was beautifully written, captured a heartfelt and imaginative story, and has solidified Josie Silver as a must-buy author for me. Just note: this is not a light-hearted romance.⁣
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𝗪𝐡𝐨 𝐈’𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐭𝐨: Someone looking to explore a very different type of love story, centered around grief and keeping a loved one’s memory alive.⁣
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𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐝: The depth of this story, and Josie Silver’s versatility as an author.⁣
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Our protagonist Lydia is living between two worlds: reality, where her fiancé Freddy has tragically died in a car crash; and an “alternate universe” that presents itself to her when she uses prescribed sleeping pills, where Freddy is alive and the couple continue to live their lives as if the crash never happened. ⁣
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At first, Lydia would much rather spend her time in the dream world. Freddy was her high school sweetheart, she has never known life without him, and she is suffering. But at what cost does her reality suffer while she is away in this imaginary place? And to what extent does she come to resent the imagined version of Freddy over time?⁣
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Is Lydia stalling her grieving process while obsessively daydreaming about what she and Freddy are doing in this other place? When someone dies, they also cease to create more memories. Not just the good ones, but the mundane shit. We idealize the time that we spent with them, maybe even deify their existence. But after spending enough time in this new world, once she gets past the initial thrill of having him back, Lydia argues with Freddie. She gets annoyed by some of his habits. She is reminded of the everyday things that we cease to harp on once that person is gone and we are solely focused on missing them as a whole.⁣
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I’ve seen critiques about how Lydia becomes selfish in her waking life or that she is given too many passes when she undervalues and therefore jeopardizes her relationships with the people who were built her back up after the tragedy of Freddie’s death. To that I say: grief does not have a timeline. I truly appreciated Silver’s less-than rosy approach to Lydia’s grieving process: the “acting out”, the character’s lack of concern for those around her. It felt real.⁣
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This book was one that I highly suggest you sit with. Process the meaning behind the dichotomy of both of Lydia's lives. This book depicts how much the grief process can get stalled if you choose to live in the past and hope for the impossible. It reminds us that there are many definitions of happiness and fulfillment. Just because Option A is no longer on the table, doesn’t mean that you can’t make the most out of Option B (shoutout to Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant for that reference).⁣
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𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞: That I went into this thinking it was going to be a contemporary romance. YES there are central themes of relationships and love, but buyer be warned: this book is much more contemplative & sad than light & feel-good.

Lydia Byrd has an amazing life. Great job, great apartment, and an amazing fiancee Freddie. While waiting for Freddie to pick her up for her birthday dinner there is a tragic accident and he is killed. She now has to figure out a life without him and still see his best friend Jonah who survived the accident. Then she finds a way to still see Freddie even though he's gone. I loved Josie Silver's One Day in December. I felt like this book was a little sadder for me, than that book. Overall this was an amazing story and I loved the book. I cannot wait to read more by Josie Silver.

Lydia Bird had what most people would consider a near perfect life. A fiancee she has known since childhood who she adores, Freddie, a shared best friend, also since childhood, Jonah, and to top it off, today is her birthday. A tragic accident takes the life of Freddie and leaves Lydia in the clutch of immense and powerful grief. Unable to find her way through, Lydia's friends and family, led by her sister step in to help. Lydia is prescribed a trial medication, one that will allow her to sleep deeply and dream as well. The dreams, Lydia finds, are much more lucid then the imagined and allow her to start living her life once more, the life she should be living, with Freddie. However this new pathway into her old life comes at a cost. Her time spent awake becomes a trial, something she must rush to in order to get to the sleeping hours where the true magic happens. It's not until Lydia begins to open her eyes to those around her when she truly realizes what all she must give up in order to keep Freddie.
I was blown away by Josie Silver's first novel, One Day in December, however her newest novel had me hooked as well. This was a beautifully written exploration of heartbreak and grief. Perfectly paced and timed over the course of 18 months, Lydia goes through a multitude of emotions that pulls at your heartstrings, even those of us who have never experienced grief of this magnitude. The characters were expertly crafted and draw you into the story. The love and support Lydia experiences during this difficult time in her life were breathtaking. The ending, which I must say I was nervous about, given the topic was satisfying. I urge fans of Josie Silver's first novel, and those who have never experienced the absolute delight of her stories to read this newest offering. I promise you will not be disappointed.

A wonderful book! Josie Silver doesn't disappoint! Heartbreaking and hopeful. Four stars. I will recommend it to our patrons.

"One Day in December" was my introduction to Josie Silver, and she delivers again with this sad, sweet and witty book.

I thought the second half of this was rather strong, and I give an extra half star for that. The ending, while a bit cliched, did involve a lot of self-love and improvement that I appreciated.

The first half, however, felt like a combination of Cecelia Ahern's P.S. I LOVE YOU and Taylor Jenkins Reid's ONE TRUES LOVES and it just felt rather self-indulgent. I loved Josie Silver's previous book and I'm definitely not disappointed in this, bu I felt like she could have done better and this plot point was just so very gimmicky.

I really loved the author’s last book One Day In December so was super excited for this one, but unfortunately, I’m going to set it aside at this point. I got to about 25% and am just not connecting with the characters and have zero idea where this plot is headed. Will update review if I revisit down the road.

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