An intimate and raw depiction of loss. This is perfect for teens, especially those learning to deal with grief because unfortunately, this does happen.

Losing your first love at such a young age is devastating. This book encapsulates that really well--this coming from a widow.

This book made me SOB. I ended up listening to the audiobook and was crying my eyes out on my drive home. This one hurts. But I loved it.

A great premise, and lives up to the promise. This young adult novel follows Julie dealing with her grief after Sam dies. She skips his funeral, but before she really has a chance to start dealing with the repercussions of his untimely departure, the phone rings and Sam appears to be on the other end. Through this clever setup, Thao explores what it really means to live, to live, and to try to let go. It also serves as a clever vehicle to explore teenage mental health.

A really moving book. More for a younger audience but still really enjoyed this the depiction of grief i thought was handled extremely well and definitely made me tear up.

A tender exploration of grief and love, You've Reached Sam is a YA contemporary novel for everyone who enjoys their books kind of crushing their heart!

As a lover of stories about death and grief (and a professional ugly crier), You've Reached Sam was almost the perfect book for me! The way Dustin Thao handles the grief and growth in this book is so wonderfully tender and nuanced and, to me, captured the complexities of loss very well. However, some of the narration felt a little repetitive which took away from the emotional impact it had on me and I found myself not being as emotionally invested as I had hoped I would be.

Overall, if you've heard about this book and think "hey, I want to see if it'll make me sob at 2am!", definitely give this one a shot.

Wow! What a book! I had put it off for a while. I'm so glad I finally picked it up.

It was raw and emotional. What I loved most about this book was I felt for Julie. I ugly cried for days after reading this. But I loved watching Julie's growth.

I give this book all the stars!

Thank you NetGalley for my free copy!

Honestly, I had HUGE hopes for this one. Like I remember loving the premise when Dustin Thao pitched the idea and it got so popular.

The book didn’t live up to my hype. The writing is nice, and I even like the characters but they didn’t pull me in. I was expecting to see a love story off the charts that will fight against the death (that was my idea of this book) but it wasn’t that. I like Sam and Julie, but I didn’t feel much for their love. This book was more about Julie’s arc.

Also, the whole “you called me and I picked up” part was a bit repetitive for me. I just expected an explanation about it.

I did enjoy this, but it wasn't as emotional as I was expecting it to be. The grief in this book is done beautifully, but it did become underwhelming about half way through because it felt repetitive. Julie takes a good while to move on even though there were multiple points where it felt like she should have. Overall, an enjoyable book. Would definitely read more from this author.

3.5 rounded up. I really enjoyed the concept of this book, and the discussion of grief, which is often taboo. However, there were moments where the story lagged due to repetitive narration. Yes, grief can be like that but it wasn't the grief and more the teen drama that kept coming up.

This was unfortunately too hard for me to read. However, from what I did read, I can tell how carefully the subject of grief was handled and written, which is exactly what made it so hard to read.

You've Reached Sam is a romance book with fantasy elements, giving a second chance to high school lovers Sam and Julie who was separated by death due to a car accident. Julie was dealing with grief and survivor's guilt when she found a unique connection to Sam — she could call him through her phone.

I picked up this book because I saw this book has made a lot of people cry. I don't usually cry in books, and unfortunately, this one didn't do the job, too. I did, however, feel the grief and guilt eating Julie and Sam — including the sadness everyone around them felt, too.

The book definitely had the potential for 5 stars, but there's something about the main character that prevented me for loving her that much.

You've Reached Sam will tug on your heartstrings, especially if you've experienced losing someone dear to you. It discussed dealing with grief and moving on perfectly — how to honor those we've lost and carry them in our hearts forever.

A beautiful book about loss and grief that had me bawling through the pages and for weeks after. I get the success and hype. It’s one to remember and be read by all!

This novel transcends the boundaries of a typical young adult book, and offers readers a deeply moving narrative that delves into the complexities of grief and the transformative nature of human relationships.

A beautiful and heartbreaking story of love and loss, this novel will go down in the tearjerker hall of fame alongside books like The Fault in Our Stars.

This book was a lot! I expected all the heavy feelings to make me feel a lot of things really deep down and yet, it was just okay. I couldn't imagine having your entire life through upside down when you're in high school and just getting ready to start the life you had planned for yourself. The loss of the person you're got such deep feelings for is never easy but when you're handling so many emotions at such a young age, it's even harder.

This book made me sad, but it was not really my cup of tea. It was a very easy read, but I wasn’t the biggest fan of the main character and the magical realism. Normally, I like magical realism. I just didn’t expect it in this book. I still enjoyed it! 3 stars

Das Buch ist ein unheimlicher Pageturner. Ich habe es regelrecht verschlungen. Es ist eine Achterbahn der Gefühle in dem einen Moment unfassbar schön und im nächsten einfach unfassbar traurig. Wirklich ein gelungenes Werk.

This book really pulled at my heart strings.
The book opens on an already emotional note and immediately you know the main theme of this book is grief and how you deal with it.
It also really surprised me.
It was really easy to read even though the subject matter wasn’t. It felt very realistic in the characters reactions and I also really liked how open they were to listening to each other.
This is a story you go into knowing there probably won’t be the happy ending, where everything works out in the end.
It’s more about trying to deal with life and it’s unpredictable nature and for that I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for giving me a free eARC of this book to read in exchange for my review!

i am a mess I AM A HUGE MESS. i love when books make me feel so much and when i know just by turning that last page that the book left a mark on me and it won't go for a long long time.