I had a hard time getting through this book and kept having to go back. I couldn’t connect to the main character at all which made it fall a little flat for me.

I think of the premise of this book is very interesting (a girl who calls her dead boyfriend's cell phone and finds that she is still able to talk to him via phone), but the book just didn't hit for me. I could recognize a lot of emotional components, a larger conversation about grief and moving on from grief, but I never felt emotionally connected to the story or its characters. It seems like this book should have had all of the trappings of a full-on tear-jerker, a book that breaks you in a wonderful way and has powerful messages that stick with you, but it just fell a bit flat for me. It's not a terrible book, and maybe others would be in a headspace that they would feel more connected to the story, but I just didn't.

I knew from the blurb that this book would destroy me. It is so emotional that will have everyone reading screaming and crying even after this is finished. This is not really heavy on the plot but Julie’s grieving is messy and painful and so real.
This book will stick with me forever.

I understand this book was supposed to be sad and heart-breaking but I didn't find it to be so.

I enjoyed the writing and they style the author has so I'll probably be interested in reading their books in future. But I didn't connect with Julie the way you're supposed to. I understand why Julie loves Sam, but why does Sam love Julie, she comes of as annoying. Her characterisation does a disservice to this book because it has the potential to be amazing.

That being said I can see why so many people would like this. If you look past Julie this book could be heart-breaking and an emotional tale of what it means to love someone who is no longer with you.

Overall, this was a solid 4 star for me! When I first started the book, I was in a little too much of an emotional headspace, so I put it down for a little bit. But when I picked it back up, I flew through it. The main character got on my nerves from time to time but overall, I loved the story.

I received an e-copy of this story for my honest review.
This is one of the most intensively emotional, heart-rending, and cathartic books I have ever read. We get to experience the strong love of two people, and the devastation when one is suddenly taken from the other. And then, the journey that the person still here takes to get to the point of letting their loved one go.

This was the best YA book I've read this year. I'm still thinking about how the author was able to masterfully tell this story without a boring/muddy middle. It was strong from the beginning and stayed that way till the very end. And boy did that ending make me cry.

My poor heart.

This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2021 and I was so scared of the pain this would bring. So many moments were painful and I physically winced at times, for the grief, loss and debilitating pain these characters experienced, but this was also about family, friends, growth - basically life.

I had a hard time with Julie at first. I nearly DNF’d the book because of it. But then I pushed through and I realized that it wasn’t Julie I disliked. I realized that it wasn’t even dislike. She was just an embodiment of a grieving person and I realized how easy it was to look away from people who are hurting. Julie’s pain was visible and her behavior at the beginning of the book was an echo of it.
It turns out Julie was my favourite aspect of the book. At first she kept mentioning all the things Sam did for her and I thought that he loved her more that she loved him but as the story progressed I realized that she was unreliable as a narrator and everything was filtered through her lens and that’s why it seemed that way. But she grew so beautifully. You never get over losing someone you love but the memories start hurting a little less and that’s what the story was about. I loved her staring to recognize her wrongs, embracing life and finding joy in jt after such a traumatizing event. The last chapters brought me to tears but the ending was very satisfying.

I really enjoyed the friend group and how everyone was grieving and moving on in their own way. Oliver was the star of the show and so were the others. All the little elements that included writing, music and college were really welcome and made the story what it is. It was so nice to have “lighter” moments even if grief was still on the background. That was a very realistic aspect. I loved the optimistic yet realistic on life and how it affected tbe characters’s arcs. The subtle social commentary about the racism the Asian characters went through was very much appreciated and necessary.

All in all this story delivers on its promises and I was pleasant surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I read this in a day.

I usually try to go into books blind, but I had read a little too much into the book before reading and found the reviews to be quite mixed. It was either incredibly amazing or not at all. There wasn't much in between, which was where I found myself standing. It was a good read, but just not one I'd mark as a favorite or would read explicitly again.

I will first say this was not one of my favourites, but it wasn't a terrible read either. The plot and writing were done very well but this just wasn't the story/genre for me.
I would still recommend it to others who I feel would like the romance and heartbreak with the heavy topic of grief. From the description I'm not sure what i expected but I was surprised with the content of the book and how it was easy to relate and feel for the characters. The characters were very realistic with raw and relatable emotions.
I lost interest a little past halfway just because of personal preference. So my advice would be that, if this sounds interesting to you, I would recommend giving it a chance and you might love it.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this ARC.

This was a very highly anticipated read for me, and I’m very sad to be giving it only 2.5 stars. The writing in this book is very beautiful and dreamy, there is no denying that Dustin Thao has a way with words. However, as I continued to get into the story I struggled to feel connected with the characters. I struggled to understand Julie. I tried to give her patience, as grief is different for everyone, but I truly struggled to understand her decisions. I struggled with the way the writing would flow between scenes at times, suddenly shifting to a totally different moment. I struggled with the vague explanations of how the plot worked, and at the end I wanted to cry and I just didn’t. If I had been able to connect to this story, I think it would have gutted me emotionally. However, that wasn’t the case.

I’m really glad I read this. It showed the complexities of grief and how everyone handles it differently. I enjoyed the writing, and know the author's future books will be even more refined. But I couldn’t quite connect with the MC. I found her to be pretty unlikeable and she made way too many selfish, bad decisions.

Overall, this was a good YA book about life after loss and moving on in a healthy way. Great debut.

The death of a significant other can destroy a person. But what if you could continue communication? Would you give up living your life to have one last conversation? You've Reached Sam explores the devastating consequences of grief and what holding onto the past does to someone's future. The book was heartbreaking and at times hard to read. The emotion is deep and profound, not shying away from the darker side of grief. What I would have wanted more of was the connection between the two main characters. I didn't really get a sense of their bond and the flashbacks were too shallow to really get a gage.

I was really hoping I’d love this and read it as quickly as everyone else is loving and reading it. Unfortunately, I could quickly tell that this was definitely not the case. Straight from the beginning I didn’t like the writing style. It’s too awkward and Julie uses too many uncontracted sentences (it is on the table instead of it’s on the table).

In my opinion, if you do not contract, you tend to be more formal and uncontracted sentences are more often seen in fantasy novels and less so in young adult novels. I tend to sometimes not contract my sentences, but that’s because I tend to write a bit more formal at times. So therefore, even though I use uncontracted sentences and often did when I was younger, most teenagers do not. It felt weird reading them.

I wanted to be sad and feel the same way Julie did but I couldn’t get past the writing style and feel the same way as everyone else. The transitions from flashbacks to normal was also not written well, in my opinion.

This book broke my heart and smashed it into a billion pieces.

The writing was beautiful in a way that made me ache for the characters who both felt so real and tangible. Their emotions leap off the pages and they were intense and heartbreaking in the best way possible.

I wanted a lot from this book and it completely surpassed my expectations. This was a super strong debut and I'm excited to read more from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a very emotional journey. I loved the characters and it was heartbreaking. There are trigger warnings that the reader should be aware of: death of loved one, depiction of grief, car accident. A solid YA book. 3.5 stars

This book broke me! It's been a while since I had read a book that emotionally wrecked me. Cannot recommend this book enough!

This was a book I requested from Netgalley for two reasons:

1) THE COVER. I mean come on. That is the most beautiful cover I have ever seen. The contrast between the two characters and the sketches of the main characters are absolutely STUNNING.

2) The Synopsis. I was really intrigued about the concept of being able to talk to someone on the phone after they die. I knew going into this one that it would be packed with grief and heartbreak.

Even though I requested this a while ago, I knew it would be a book that I would have to mentally prepare myself to read. Apparently, yesterday was the day I felt best equipped!

What I Liked
- This was a fast read. It only took me about two hours to read the book from start to finish. I should have been doing homework after work (dang grad school!) but I choose to ignore that responsibility and read this book in one sitting instead!
- The main character Julie was extremely relatable for me. It reminded me of my high school relationship and a lot of the feelings she felt I understood.
- Julie's arc was also satisfying. I felt the book came to a solid conclusion that made sense.
- Julie's friends were a fun aspect to the book (although I do wish we could've gotten more of them)

What I Disliked
- Unlikeable side characters are WAY too one-dimensional. I mean, these people were Sam's friends and they were given ZERO redeemable qualities. It made me wonder why on earth Sam was friends with them in the first place. Made me view Sam as less of a person sadly.
- The story takes place too quickly after his death. I think one week was a little too soon. One month might have made the timing seem more accurate. Julie went through five stages of grief in what felt like two days.
- Sam was also one-dimensional. I understand he's dead, so it's all from Julie's point of view, but I still felt like he was lacking something.

Overall Thoughts
While this was not a five-star read for me, I still enjoyed You've Reached Sam. It was relatable, heart-crushing, but also satisfying. I think with more development of side characters I would have enjoyed this more, but I also understand how that could take away from the story (I just really love my side characters) Sam was also too underdeveloped for me to care about Sam and Julie's relationship--I think also his friends' ability to never be kind tainted my view of Sam too. Take away those two things though and you have a powerful story about a girl navigating grief. If you are looking for a story like that, this is definitely the book for you.

I decided to request my copy of You've Reached Sam because 1, I'm certainly a sucker for pretty covers! 2, I always try to read books that are a little bit out of my usual genres. As for YA and romances, I definitely have a strange relationship with them: I do not hate them, but I rarely get really impressed by this kind of stories.

As soon as I started this book, I was pretty sure that it was going to be a real romantic, melodramatic one; but contrary to all expectations, I did not find it that insufferable. What I liked most was certainly the author's ability with words and his talent in creating empathy in the reader. The plot was not action-packed, there are not many things happening aside Sam dying, which is the very central concept of this book, so it all focuses on Julie's emotions and memories of her relationship with him. This is exactly what helps the reader feeling empathy for the protagonist, her abundant share of sweet moments and anecdotes about this young man that we actually get to know just through her thoughts.
I didnt' really like Julie as a protagonist, I think it was probably the thing I hated most about the book. I didn't like how dependent she felt towards Sam, how she hasn't been defined as an indipendent person but most as a reflection of Sam's presence. I mean, who was Julie before meeting Sam? What did she like to do apart what she did along with him? Moreover, I couldn't stand her egoism when it came to see also other people's grief: she was always soo focused on her own pain that she forgot that Sam's memory belonged to so many people.
On the other hand, I loved the image of Sam, his sweetness and compassion, his contagious positivity. I really enjoyed also the presence of all the secondary characters that are part of this story, who the protagonist probably didn't deserve to have near.

“I have Sam back. I don’t want to let him go.” Man oh man. The emotion in this book is well done. I could feel the tension as Julie struggles with letting go and holding on. Well done.