While there is no denying that Tyndall possesses remarkable talent as a writer, I must admit that I found myself struggling to truly engage with the plot. I'm in my 30's, so I acknowledge I am likely not the target audience for this book. "Who I Was with Her" showcases Nita Tyndall's prowess as a talented writer as she explores grief, identity, and love through beautifully crafted prose and well-defined characters. However, for readers seeking a more tightly woven and engaging plot, the book might leave them longing..

Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I picked up this book because it reminded me of Lies My Girlfriend Told Me, but it was much more nuanced than that. I particularly appreciated how the author portrayed some of the ramifications of the grief the two main characters are living with. Ultimately, the characters grew into themselves and learned who they are without her.

It's a really unique exploration of grief and loss and what we know about people. I like that the ending was left ambiguous, but hopeful.

DNF - I wanted to love Who I Was With Her but I couldn't get past the beginning. The short chapters and time switching made it difficult for me to be absorbed in the story. Usually I'm still able to enjoy YA books despite being in my 20s, but it was clear to me that I'm just too old to enjoy this one.

I did not finish this book; I read about 25% of it. I found the protagonist's plight slogging. I couldn't see where she was going in a way that made me want to know how it turned out.

I appreciate the diverse representation of LGBTQIA+ content, but this wasn't for me.

This was a nuanced, emotional, and ultimately uplifting coming out story. Though our protagonist struggles with grief and her own identity, she finds acceptance and confidence by the end of the novel, leaving readers with hope. I can imagine this book will make a lot of teen readers feel seen and supported.

The deeply sad premise is dealt with gently and with great nuance, and Corinne is allowed to be far from perfect as she secretly deals with her grief, but is also called out when she really messes up. The treatment of Corinne's bisexuality is also carefully and lovingly done. A truly gorgeous debut YA.

I received a digital advanced copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

First, the cover is beautiful yet so sad. Truly fits the book. It's beautifully sad. The character's pain is so vivid, you truly feel it. I recommend this book.

Who I Was with Her is a lovely read in the vein of Nina LaCour. Corinne is a senior in high school, and Maggie, her girlfriend of nearly a year, has died unexpectedly. Corinne has to navigate her grief entirely in private, because she isn't out and nobody in her life knew about her girlfriend. In her pursuit of healing, she finds solace in Maggie's ex and in Maggie's dreams for their lives together, chasing after what Maggie wanted and loved. The book follows Corinne as she navigates her grief, her future, outness, and figuring out what she wants and needs rather than what others want for her.

This was a sweetly emotional book that deals with grief, alcoholism of a parent, coming out, and figuring out what to do after high school. I found Corinne's fear about coming out very real, and I loved that an asexual character is included in this story as well.

Ho, boy. Are you ready for something heavy? Like neutron star heavy? If so, then Who I Was with Her has got you. It’s gonna give you all the feels and not even apologize.

We meet Corinne at probably the worst moment of her life. Her girlfriend just died. The first girl she loved is gone, and she can’t even tell anyone, because no one knew they were dating, because Corinne’s not out as bi, and because she feels that she doesn’t deserve to mourn the ways others who openly loved Maggie are entitled to mourn.

The book moves backward and forward in time, alternating between Corinne meeting and falling for/dating Maggie and dealing (privately) with the aftermath of her death. Things get complicated when Corinne begins to catch feelings for Maggie’s ex-girlfriend, Alyssa, especially because Corinne never knew about Alyssa before Maggie’s death, and she’s got some baggage about Alyssa already knowing about her.

Being a teenager is hard, perhaps one of the hardest times of our lives, and losing the person you wanted to be with most and having no one to talk about it with, except maybe for her brother who kind of hates you and her ex-girlfriend who you’re pissed at, probably unjustly.

I enjoyed this one a lot. I like contemporary YA that digs a little deeper into how tough it is being a teenager, because everyone goes through hard things, and pretending it’s all just prom and football games completely ignores all of the other things that come with high school. Tyndall took a very heavy subject and made it approachable while still respecting both her characters and the audience. I don’t always want to read a coming out story, but when I do, I want it to be about just more than the surface, and Tyndall handled that very well, methinks.

Once again, me being behind works in your favor, because if this sounds like your cup of tea, it’s out now and available for purchase, borrowing from your local library. There’s even an audio version floating around.

A heartbreaking YA contemporary that I'll be recommending again and again at my library! As a queer reader, I'm always a little apprehensive about reading things centered on queer death & trauma, but Nita Tyndall handles the topics in a sensitive, caring way that never made it feel voyeuristic. Corinne is a relatable character who is struggling to come out as bisexual while also mourning the death of her girlfriend, when no one knew about their relationship.

Who I Was With Her has pitch-perfect writing and captures grief so accurately. Corinne's pain is palpable and the flashbacks revealing the relationship between her and Maggie added so much depth to the story. This was definitely an emotional read and I couldn't put it down. I'll be recommending it to fans of Jaye Robin Brown, Mason Deaver, and Nina LaCour.

Nita Tyndall is definitely a YA author to watch, and I'm truly looking forward to reading their next book.

This book was heartbreaking and healing. So many queer people can relate to having to hide parts of themselves, and the people that they love. What would it be like to lose one of those hidden people? This book beautifully and expertly navigates this horrific experience. Corinne, the relateable bisexual protagonist, draws you into the story and makes your heart ache. Highly recommend this read.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Who I Was with Her broke my heart in the best way a book can. This is a beautiful, gut-wrenching book about a girl grappling with grief following the death of her secret girlfriend. Corinne's story of love, loss, and finding herself is an important one, and I'm so glad to have read it.

TW: alcoholism, grief, pressure of coming out

I was lucky enough to receive an ARC to review. This story follows Corinne after the death of her girlfriend. However, no one knew about their relationship. I should start off this review by saying I LOVED this book, and this is just going to be one giant gush.

The writing was amazing! And I didn’t know until after I finished that this book was a debut novel. It reads like someone who has been writing for years. The best part, in my opinion, is the character building and relationships between our characters. Everything in the book felt so real. The relationship between Corinne and her best friend is the most realistic one I have read in a long time. It is not perfect, and they have their issues, but they are also supportive and in each other’s corner. It’s perfect in its imperfection. It honestly reminded me of my real-life best friend.

With all of that being said, this is not an easy story to read. It tackles some really tough topics, and it would take me forever to go through every single one of them. But there are also some amazing conversations in this book that really get the reader thinking about their own life and their actions. The biggest thing disused in the books is obviously grief. But the way it is handled is amazing. Everyone grieves differently, and the same person can have many forms of grief themselves. It just all feels so real, and I think everyone can see themselves in the pages somehow.

I had an absolutely amazing experience while reading. I couldn’t put the book down, and before I even finished half of it, I had already pre-ordered a finished copy. I will certainly be reading more from this author in the future, and I highly recommend this book to everyone who will listen.

Maggie and Corrine loved running and each other, but Corrine wasn’t ready to come out. Now, Maggie is gone—taken by a car accident—and Corrine is thrown into a world of grief. Told it dual timelines, we follow Corrine in the present and the past as she mourns the girl she loved, grapples with the people she left behind, and struggles to discover how she wants to live she life. I thought this story was well done and compelling—I read it all in one sitting. While I do wish Corrine had been a little more fleshed out, I loved the supporting characters and did feel a connection to Corrine. I think coming out is something that is expected of people, and I liked how this book talked about the pressure others may put on you to come out before you are ready—and that fact that you don’t ever have to come out at all. I appreciated a sapphic relationship that featured a bisexual protagonist. And I loved that there was ace rep as well. Overall, I think this was a solid debut and I look forward to more from this author. Also—one of my favorite covers of the year!

This book is about a girl, Corinne, who finds out her (secret) girl friend has died and proceeds to make every single situation and thought from then on about herself. I mean this is the most selfish narrator I have read from in a looong time. I was honestly shocked at the beginning that she wasn't grieving? She was just worried that somehow this poor girl dying meant everyone at school was going to find out she was bisexual. She had no actual concerns about THE ACTUAL DEATH or the family or thinking like "what were her last thought / was she scared / this is unfair" like typical grieving, the love of my life just DIED type of thoughts. If my significant other died I would not just be going to school and lunch and talking to people like "hmm does anyone think I'm gay today??" It was infuriating. It wasn't until literally the very last last last tiny part of the book that someone said she was selfish and she was like "oh yeah I am" and then that was it. I wanted so much more from this story and just didn't get it at all.

I got an ARC of this book.

I am always down to read a YA contemporary book about queer teens. Especially when the characters are bi and the bi rep is pretty decent to great. So I was excited about this.

Honestly, my biggest complaint about this book is that it is almost the exact same idea as Hold Still and written in a really similar format. So I was constantly comparing the two. The characters in this one were a bit more relatable and there was a bit more to this story. So I was still very happy. It just felt really difficult at the beginning to connect when the story just felt like I had already read it.

The characters are complex. The issues are complex. There was a lot going on. There was no rest for Corrine to handle her stuff. She was dealing with a divorce, an alcoholic parent, the death of her girlfriend, her own issues, and the issues of coming out. The best part of this book, well one of, was the fact that Corrine didn’t get to magically solve all her problems. Some of her problems got worse and some were resolved. It felt so real to see that not everything was better by the end. It was so fascinating to see how relationships changed and morphed as Corrine came to terms with things. How other characters that felt so background could drastically change the scope of the book with complex thinking. It was well thought out and I am impressed.

Another best part of the book was that the main character was bi. Her dead love interest is bi. There is some biphobia that is not addressed, but the fact that it was not addressed was addressed. The MC learned that there is sexism and racism that she has been complicit in because she wanted to blend in and not stand out. Her best friend calls her out on this. There is a scene later where the MC has the choice of standing up for what is right or hiding. It showed real progress. It was a tense scene and I could feel my skin crawling like it does when I am forced into situations where it all comes down to me speaking out. The same best friend that calls out the MC had laughed at a biphobic joke, but realizes what she did was wrong without an overly emotional call out. It was something more organic. I really liked that there were multiple bi teens. I loved that there was a lesbian that stood out as queer and she didn’t have an issue with bisexuality. I loved that there was an ace character.

So the ace rep was fantastic. There was a character that was in a loving relationship. She loved kissing and cuddling. She comes out to her boyfriend and there are big talks that happen off page, but she is respected. It is a “hey, I’m ace. I’m not sure about sex” and the boyfriend goes “well, I love you”. I LOVED THIS. Give me more ace characters that are in loving relationships that are supported, that like kissing, that may still try sex one day. Give me aces with a future who are not upset about being ace. Give me aces who demand respect and get it. Give me aces of all colors and sizes. Give me pretty aces. Give me aces that aren’t seen as teases or wrong. I LOVED THIS SO MUCH. This isn’t even a huge plot, but I latched on so quickly.

The ending was really weak though. The last chapter felt sort of thrown on and too resolution focused to fit the rest of the story. It was too open ended and in a different tone than the rest of the book.

Overall, this was a wonderful YA that had messy feelings, characters that are lost but starting to maybe find their way, and just wholesome queerness. I am a fan.

When high school senior Corinne finds out her girlfriend Maggie has died in a car accident she can’t show her intense grief because nobody knows they were lovers.

The novel switches between the months before Maggie’s death and the days after, contrasting the thrill of new love with the trauma of its untimely end, while assuredly building a picture of Corinne as the young woman striving to be perfect but who never shows who she really is.

Even as she yearns to talk to someone about what she had with Maggie, Corinne remains deeply closeted unable to face the reaction she believes she’ll get from her North Carolina small town community. The author shows that with her self-imposed silence, Corinne feels disconnected from her family and friends, only finding solace in cross-country running, the sport that she and Maggie shared.

But by talking with her best friend and with Maggie’s ex-girlfriend Corinne gradually resolves to allow herself to be and to show who she really is and live her life for herself. Main characters are white with some brown-skinned secondary characters. Teens who are searching for the “word that fits” them will relate to Corrine’s ultimately redemptive inner journey.