Between the Bliss and Me is an angst filled YA novel that does a good job at examining mental illness and its impact on family members. I felt the ending was a bit rushed and tied up a little too neatly for me. I think most teens will enjoy this read but for me had just a bit too much teenage angst.

What would you do if you learnt that there was a possibility of you being diagnosed with schizophrenia? Would you give up your dreams and spend the rest of your life in fear of what may happen because of the illness or would you continue smiling ahead, take risks and discover your true self?

Sydney Holmes is a young and spirited eighteen-year-old, she has a best friend named Elliot and she often sings in his band for fun. She has a great voice and is passionate towards music, like her father. She is about to attend NYU and has a whole new life ahead of her, however things do not often go as planned.

At first, her mother seems to be especially devastated by Sydney’s decision of moving to someplace far away from home. It seems that Sydney’s mother had always hoped Sydney would stay close to her during college, but she has other plans for herself. Sydney’s father had left both of them when Sydney was still young due to a drug addiction and alcoholism and what’s left of him is only a vague memory. Yet however, that doesn’t seem to be the whole story of his absence. Despite not having a father figure for the past eighteen years, Sydney keeps imagining her father being around her all the time and she would talk to him as an imaginary friend since she was young to seek guidance from him especially when she’s stressed or sad.

Apart from family problems, Sydney’s personal life also faces its challenges. Elliot has recently had a new addition to the band, a very skilled and talented young guitar player named Grayson who is about to start at Juilliard and most importantly, has a girlfriend who is said to be perfect (oh dear). Yet, Sydney finds herself very attracted to him even though he is very much off limits (*tsk tsk*).

But while she dreams of her future and occasionally Grayson (of course), life takes a dramatic turn for Sydney as she discovers a life-changing truth about her father’s true reason for leaving and her mother’s secret fear of having Sydney far away from home: her father has been dealing with schizophrenia for years. He has been living on the streets of New York City and she also learnt that there’s a possibility of her inheriting schizophrenia as well. Shocked by this revelation, Sydney seizes this only opportunity to discover more about her father and to learn what’s in store for her if she too is diagnosed with schizophrenia, an illness if serious enough can cause damage to both her and the ones closest to her.

This book is such a bittersweet story as it deals with dilemmas, mental illness, coping mechanisms of teenage angst, and family relationships. It especially has a realistic approach to mental illnesses, not just schizophrenia but also common ones like anxiety and depression. Sydney’s imaginary father works as a coping mechanism as she continuously deals with depression in which she would replace her father’s absence with her imagination of what her father would be like if he had been here with her all those years. It’s quite sad to see Sydney struggle with a father-shaped hole in her life but eventually she learned to let go if she wants to be better. Her complicated relationship with her mother is also another important part of the story. Not just her mother’s overprotectiveness becomes too much for Sydney, but the secrets that she and her grandparents kept from her are the reasons in which their relationship gradually becomes rocky as they are both stubborn people but they learn to compromise and to be better for each other.

Her relationship with Grayson is another highlight within the story, it seems to be both challenging and easy at the same time. He has a girlfriend so he’s definitely off-limits, but you also can’t ignore the chemistry between them. They get along so well as they both have a fiery passion for music, and Sydney couldn’t help but continue to fall for him. She also faces the dilemma of whether to continue being friends with Grayson given the possibility of her being diagnosed with schizophrenia, she couldn’t possibly hurt him like her father did to her mother (poor girl, she is being dumped with so many responsibilities all at once).

I enjoyed this book so much, there are moments where your heart cries for Sydney and there are times where you want to laugh out loud. Amongst all the heartbreaking moments, Sydney never gives up. She’s such a brave, passionate, and strong protagonist and she makes the decision to continue to fight for herself. Filled with hope, Between the Bliss and Me brings forth a close exploration into the world of mental illness, provoking the readers into focusing more about the people around us who have the inclination of being diagnosed with mental illnesses. The characters are all filled with life and each one of them has their own distinctive characteristics, no one is perfect but they’re trying their best to be better, for themselves if not for their loved ones.

Her mother had always been a bit overprotective, but when Sydney revealed her decision to attend NYU and live at school, she learned the truth about why her mother wanted to keep her close to home. Though Sydney had been aware of her estranged father's addictions issues, she never knew he was schizophrenic, and that she could inherit his illness.

As with her previous book, The Art of Losing, Mason's new release walloped me in my feels. Once again, she took on mental health issues, which were explored from multiple angles in an honest and thoughtful way.

This was supposed to be an exciting summer for Sydney. She had graduated, gained entry to her dream school, and was gifted a large check from her grandparents, which alleviated some of her money woes. But it turned into a summer of pain, worry, and guilt. Learning her father was mentally ill and homeless was devastating for Sydney, and choosing NYU over Rutgers caused a rift between her and her mother.

I can only imagine what a shock it would be to learn such things about a loved one, and then to have the possibility of the same thing happening to you hanging over your head would be terribly difficult. As expected, Sydney was shook. My heart went out to her as she struggled to come to terms with everything she learned, while also questioning her own mental health at times. There were some painful moments later in the story, but they felt necessary to illustrate how difficult it can be for the family of someone who is ill. It was that helplessness and hopelessness they have to deal with, when they are unable to help their loved ones.

I appreciated that Mason tempered the story with a few subplots focusing on friendship, romance, and figuring out who you are. These plot lines worked well with the main focus of the story, and there were even some great connections in there. One overlap that stuck out to me was the comparison between different mental health issues and how some are deemed "more acceptable".

The core of this story was mental illness, and Mason really delved into it and attacked the issue from multiple sides. She shined a light on the fact that a large percentage of the homeless population suffer from mental health issues, and the system is not well equipped to give them the help they need. She shared the history of the mental health care system in the US, and gave me glimpses of the many challenges the mentally ill face in the legal, prison, and health care systems. It's fantastic to see such an open discourse about mental health issues, and I welcomed it.

Overall: Honest, thoughtful, and ultimately full of hope.

I read this story in less than a day. Soho Teen surprised me by suddenly approving my request for an ARC just before the publication date. My request had been pending for months (like about three or four or so ...), and after the sudden approval (thanks Soho Teen!) I decided to read it almost immediately.

This is a fast, nice, and easy read, and it deals with heavy and important topics like schizophrenia, anxiety, alcohol and drug addiction, and anger issues. I loved Grayson, who was such a super cute and sweet guy. I really, really liked the way mental illness is portrayed in this book. But I didn’t love the story. For most of the book, I didn’t laugh, my heart didn’t thud in my throat, I hadn’t goosebumps, and I never had a lump in my throat. I just read, which was incredibly easy, so I flew through the story, but overall I didn’t feel anything. I think part of that was because I didn’t like Sidney very much.

This was a nice in between, a story that helped me ease my mind for a while. I’ll probably read other books by Lizzy Mason because her premises are definitively interesting, and therefore I’ve put her first book on my TBR. I hope it’ll make me feel more, though.

I received an ARC from Soho Teen and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I just received approval for this title not 2 weeks before the release date, so I changed my plans to read this book sooner.

This book is a good story about coping with serious mental illness in your family. While I'm not the target age group, I think the mature subject matter makes this a good book for 16+ year olds.

Sydney Holman is 18 years old and just graduated high school. She just announced she is attending NYU instead of staying home and attending Rutgers in NJ. She is interested in music and is a good singer. Her music education comes from the mix tapes / playlists from her dad Richard, who she doesn't remember since he left when she was 3. Sydney's rich paternal grandparents announce at her graduation dinner that not only are they paying for her college but give her a check for 30 large for school expenses. Syd's mom is a hardworking nurse and the two share a small apartment. They have a Gilmore Girls type relationship.

This book may be about Sydney's future, as she finds out her dad has schizophrenia and is living on the streets in the city, but it takes place the summer before she starts college. She meets a guy she crushes on Grayson. She spends time at the shore and sees how the other half live. She looks for her dad in the city. Sydney worries she might get schizophrenia like her dad.

While this was an easy to read book in terms of reading level there are difficult topics. TW for verbal abuse and mention of mental illness, addiction. I will say that Sydney was naive about certain things but that's understandable at her age. 3.5/5 stars.

This book is a pretty slow burn and at times, I felt like I didn't really want to finish it but I am glad I did. I think it highlights a lot about mental health and for that, I am greatly appreciative of the work.

Between the Bliss and Me is such a heart-wrenching, bittersweet yet beautiful story. You feel everything while reading this book and you can't help but feel for everyone involved.

Sydney Holman is graduating from high school and is ready to tackle college in New York. The problem is, she has to convince her mother who wants her to stay at home and go to school near their home. When Sydney's grandparents give her a large sum of money as a graduation gift, and out the fact she's chosen to go away from home, things between she and her Mom go downhill quickly.

Not only is Sydney dealing with her Mom and her grandparents not getting along, she's dealing with how her alcoholic and drug addicted Dad left when she was small, causing her to spiral into depression and anxiety. While spending some time away from home and at her grandparents, she runs into her crush, Grayson Armstrong, whose family is like her Dad's, very wealthy. Grayson is sweet, helpful, and a gifted musician. The only problem, he has a girlfriend.

While at her grandparents, Sydney learns that her Dad suffers from schizophrenia and he lives on the streets of NYC and has for years. It's evident her Mom has kept this information from her, which hurts her even more and then she realizes that she has a high chance of developing this illness as well. With the help of her best friend Elliott, she sets off to try to locate her Dad. Will it end in the reunion she's hoping for? Or will everything she's hoped for crash down around her? And, what will come of her feelings for Grayson?

This book is though-provoking, sad, realistic and hopeful all at the same time. It's well written and it keeps you engaged as you move through it. I'd highly recommend picking up a copy for yourself!

**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review**

Mental health, homelessness and class issues are tackled in this book, but despite that, it wasn't very angsty. I quite enjoyed it and finished it in one afternoon. We follow main character Sydney who just graduated high school and is spending a week with her wealthy grandparents after an argument with her mother. Her mom wants her to stay home for college and save money, while Sydney has gone behind her back and plans on going to New York with money from her grandparents. During her stay with her grandparents, she finds out that her drug addict father is schizophrenic and becomes worried that she found inherit the illness. She also meets a cute boy and makes a new friend, though the romance is more of a side plot while Sydney discovering herself is the main story here.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of Between the Bliss and Me in exchange for an honest review.

Between the Bliss and Me follows 18-year old Sydney after accepting a huge check from her grandparents to go to NYU against her mother's wishes. From there, Sydney grows closer to her grandparents and discovers something shocking about her absentee father: he has schizophrenia. Sydney grapples with friendship, love, her future, family, and her fears of having schizophrenia herself while trying to find her father.

While plotwise this was okay, I feel like a lot of the story is heavily centered around Sydney and her connections to other characters and I found the narrative too hollow for me to really believe in any of their relationships. There was something subtle, but important missing here that kept this from being excellent.

Honest and realiscit look at menta illness, in my opinion, but the author is trying to throw too many "mains" into the book and some were definitely more successful than others.

Sydney's discovery of her father's addiction and that he has serious mental illnesses was the best part of this book. Sydney is not always a good character and at times, I wanted to scream at her "enough! but overall, this was a great and difficult read.

<i>*ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review*</i>

4.5 stars. I've been searching for a fictional novel with mentally ill characters, that focuses on mentally ill themes that feels <i>real</i> for quite some time, with the exception of a couple of novels that I read in high school, I've had a hard time finding anything aside from memoirs that fits the bill, until this.

<i>Between the Bliss and Me</i> starts out as what is seemingly typical at-home drama between a mother and daughter. Early in the book, Sydney's paternal grandparents give her a check for $30,000 to with basically as she pleases, as well as offer to pay for her college at NYU in full. Sydney's mother is immediately upset by this, largely because she had expected Sydney to take a scholarship from another school, and didn't expect her to be moving out so soon. She is also vocal about disagreeing with the idea of Sydney taking her grandparent's money, as Sydney has been estranged from her father almost her whole life, with Sydney being under the impression that he abandoned her because of struggles with drugs and alcohol. Sydney's mother expresses worry that she will feel she owes her grandparents if she doesn't earn her own way through school. This causes a rift between the two and Sydney takes a vacation at her grandparent's beach house to get away from her mom.

Upon arriving at her grandparent's very bougie beach house, the first time ever visiting in her life, Sydney makes friends with their in home assistant, Marta, almost immediately. Marta invites Sydney to a party, where Sydney ends up drinking for the first time, coming back to her grandparent's house very loudly and having to face them in the morning. Her grandparents are visibly upset about the previous night, however not for the reasons that Sydney had assumed. This is when the news is broken to Sydney that her father has been struggling with schizophrenia for over a decade, and that she has a 10% chance of inheriting it. Her grandparents warn her that alcohol and drug use can trigger schizophrenia/psychosis, and tell her their story of trying to save her father, who is estranged from them and refuses medication.

There are so many important topics in this story that I'm going to skip over talking about the side characters or the cute romance, and even the friends sharing beds, because holy crap y'all, this book discusses not just the experiences of the mentally ill, but the rights involved around forcefully medicating someone, as well as the ethics of that, the mass rates of incarceration faced by the mentally ill, the deinstitutionalization under Reagan, and more. This is all done so well because it's told through the narrative of Sydney, who is struggling to understand how it is illegal to force her father to take medication, but it's not illegal to let him suffer and starve/drink himself to death in the streets. The importance of mentally ill people having their own autonomy is discussed when Sydney's mom admits she chose to respect Sydney's father's wishes, even though they hurt her, and they might be the wrong ones. Sydney's therapist also suggests this. Because Sydney's father is not seen as a danger to himself or others, nothing can be done to force him to get help he doesn't want.

This book grapples with a lot of ethical dilemmas that many people do not think about until they are in the situation, and it is driven home with Sydney knowing the risk is there for her to develop schizophrenia, and therefore puts herself in her father's shoes and thinks about what she would want. I loved the discussions of the ethics of forced treatment for mentally ill/psychotic people, as many of us <i>are</i> medicated against our will, especially when involuntarily institutionalized. Whether this is a good or bad thing is a divisive topic, and differs on a person-to-person basis. Some mentally ill folks, like myself, are very grateful for their medication and feel that the side effects are worth the benefits, others don't want to accept medication and maybe won't ever.

The vast majority of people with schizophrenia and other mental illnesses are more likely to be victims of violence than perpetrators, as Sydney discovers in her research. The ultimate question this book brings to the table is: if someone is psychotic and only a danger to themselves (albeit not in a suicidal way), is it ethical to force them into treatment? Or do mentally ill people deserve to be able to make choices about their bodies in the same way as everyone else?

Sydney Holman is about to leave for college. She’s starting to make some choices for herself, met a boy, and sings part-time in band. All signs are pointing toward a fantastic final summer in New Jersey.

She also has grown up knowing very little about her father. This is the summer that she finally learns the truth and it changes everything she knows about herself and her family.

This may be a little spoiler-y... be warned. I really appreciated how the author handled the discussion of mental illness. I like how she contrasted the mother (who had been dealing with the ramifications of her husband’s schizophrenia for 18 years), the grandparents’ (who tried to help by throwing money and resources to “fix” the problem), with Sydney (with her naïveté that she could get her father to get better). The addition of the lawyer was a great way to give information to the reader about the history of the mental health system in America without sounding like a lecture.

Overall, a great book for teens and adults alike. A lghthearted love story with a powerful message about mental health.

Many thanks to Soho Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

As an NYU alum, I knew I had to read this. The book follows Sydney Holman as she starts college at NYU. As her story goes along, we learn that her family has been hiding the fact that her father is not only an addict, but also been battling schizophrenia. This revelation leads Sydney through several events, including trying to find her father and learning about the implications of his mental illness and how it could affect her own future. I think the depictions and themes of mental illness were done really well by Mason. I didn’t love the romance and found some parts of the story to be a little cliché, but it is a teen read after all. 3.5 stars.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of Between the Bliss and Me.
As soon as this book was announced, I was interested. After reading Masons first novel I was waiting for an announcement for her next story, and this didn’t disappoint!
This story is able to fit so much into one 300 page book. It covers not only friendship and a budding romance, but rocky family relationships and mental health.
Sydney has always wondered about her father. He left when she was young, too young to have any solid memories of him, causing her to build her version of him in her head. But when she finds out her father didn’t just leave, that he left after a long struggle with schizophrenia and substance abuse, this not only changes what Sydney knew about him, but also causes her to wonder what this could mean for her future.
I really appreciate how this story covers anxiety, and the struggle to make the choice of “do I do what I want and hurt someone I love, or do I do what others think will be best knowing I won’t be happy”.
The main character Sydney is so easy to relate to. She’s figuring herself out, who she is as a person and who she wants to be, while working through her own mental health journey and the bomb she gets dropped on her about who her father really was and who he is now.
Between the Bliss and Me is a great story that covers hard topics, while also having many sweet moments showing friendship, romance, and family relationships. Definitely recommend for anyone who enjoyed Masons first novel, or is looking for a bittersweet journey of finding yourself out.

With this being the first book that I have read by this author it was bittersweet. I think that the author did a great job of dealing with mental illness.

Sydney tries to convince her mom that she wants to go to collage at NYU and is upset that she is getting the financial aid from her in laws. Her father left when she was a kid oddly enough when her depression gets bad, she talks to her dad as if he’s an imaginary friend. While she’s in NY she gets a bit of a shock that changed the story and kept me even more interested than I was already.
After she finds out some captivating info she needs to go and see for herself and be able to cope with everything.

To see her on her emotional journey I felt like I was there right along with her.

3 stars

There are some good intentions here, but I had serious struggles with this novel as a whole.

Sydney is 18, and she is ready to leave the nest for NYU on her grandparents' dime. Sounds good, right? Well, she hasn't bothered to tell her mother that she will not be living at home or going to school where planned OR that her grandparents are footing the bill. When her mom finds out about all of this, information overload kicks in to high gear.

In a very short period of time, Sydney learns some unexpected truths about her father that not only impact her as his child but also as an autonomous being. This whole story line centers on mental health, and as a person who has seen some examples of what's discussed here close up, there seems to be a lot of oversimplifying and lacking development where needed. I do think that Sydney's mental health journey has the bones of a good telling, but it's too surface level, and her father's is...weirdly didactic at times.

What shocked me about this book is how so much of it could be moving and well executed and then this bizarro romance with more problems than I can count shows up and distracts everyone - characters and readers alike - from more meaningful life events. The last line of this novel infuriated me, and if I had been reading on something other than my Kindle, I might have thrown it.

So this book, for me, is filled with highs and lows. I'd have loved to read a more focused study of this character and leave the music, terrible cousin, and especially the lackluster romance at the door.

Just having graduated high school, Sydney has made so many pros and cons lists for every decision she's ever made, the only logical option is to go to NYU for a business degree. The only problem is, she hasn't told her mom that she's going to the Big Apple instead of staying at home and going to Rutgers. When the truth comes out after her grandparents supply Sydney with the money to be able to afford housing, food, supplies, and more, Sydney and her mother are fighting like they never have before.

Leaving to get space and spend time with her grandparents at their beach home, Sydney starts to forge new friendships, including falling for the one guy that's off limits, the totally-hot-and-totally-taken Grayson. It's not all fun and drinking at beach parties, though, as Sydney's grandparents decide to tell her the truth about her absent father and how his schizophrenia diagnosis can affect her.

Sydney now has choices to make in regards to how she'll live her life. Is her imaginary friend of a father just that, or a schizophrenic hallucination? Is it worth bringing it up to a doctor to learn the truth? Can she risk falling in love and hurting someone? Is it still safe to go to NYU and be away from her mother who can watch over her?

Lizzy Mason wrote a beautiful and heartwarming book about growth and mental health, which is something that so many people need to find right now. Her writing was so connectable at times, I felt butterflies along with Sydney as her hands shook trying to type exciting text messages. Feeling the excitement also means feeling her fears and struggles throughout the book, growing that connection with her and the other characters.

The plot was a bit predictable at times, but that doesn't make this book any less enjoyable and it doesn't take away from the impact of a book that shows the realities of living with mental illness in the United States. This is a book that I highly recommend, as it can help people understand that they have options, that there is always support, and that they do not have to take mental health on alone.

Excellent book about Sydney getting ready for college, developing a crush on an unavailable boy in a friend’s band, and discovering a family secret about mental illness. Sydney feels confusion and some anger when she finds out a secret about her absent father. As she examines her family’s role that kept her from finding out her dad has schizophrenia, she begins to wonder did she inherit this mental illness. As Sydney searches for answers, she finds that mental illness can take many forms and she learns to live her own life.The unavailable boy becomes available, but Sydney is not sure she wants to burden him with her unknown future.

Thank you for the ARC! This was a perfect way to write about the important, scary subject of mental illness in an age-appropriate way for teen readers. Recommend 4.5 stars!

I loved this book so much! it was a fun read. I love the fact that it talks about mental illness and about how serious it can be and how some people lose that battle and just giving to the disses even if there is medication to help. overall it was an awesome read
Thank you