Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Clover has a very unusual job: she is a death doula. She accompanies people through their last weeks or days of life and makes sure that they depart the earth in the most peaceful way. Over the years, she has accumulated many bits of wisdom from her clients that she tries to implement in her life. However, she missed out on the most important piece of advice... to live her own life! In the hopes of fulfilling her latest client's dying wish, Clover embarks on an adventure and uncovers love and friendship like she never has before.

The Collected Regrets of Clover was an enjoyable and thought-provoking read. It tackles a very difficult topic, that makes most of us uncomfortable or sad, in such a smart way. It dares the reader to enjoy life to the fullest and without regrets. I struggled with the pacing at times, my main issue was with the character of Clover. She was so inconsistent that I had a hard time pinning down her personality and reasoning for her actions.

Readers of Matt Haigh's The Midnight Library, and character-driven stories will enjoy this one!

I need to start by saying, I can’t believe this was a debut novel. It’s only May but I’m confident saying that this is my favourite book of the year. The Collected Regrets of Clover is a uniquely heartwarming story that’s heartbreakingly beautiful. Clover’s growth from the first page to the last was incredible to experience. I loved every single thing and every single sentence. I can’t do this book justice, it will remain a book I’ll always recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

This was actually quite a delightful book considering it centered around a "death doula" who is someone who helps a person in his or her end of days. Clover's whole journey and all those she meets along the way leave a lasting impression and touch your heart. The lessons and losses were emotional and deep, and I found myself highly invested in Clover going beyond the lessons in her notebook and learning simply to live.

4 Stars

4.5 ‘no regrets’ stars rounded up to 5
“Here’s to living a life with fewer regrets….Be cautiously reckless.”

From a young age, Clover Brooks feels a strong connection with the dying. She becomes a death doula to help those dying pass with fewer regrets. Clover keeps three notebooks on her clients’ parting words: REGRETS, ADVICE, and CONFESSIONS. While a novel about a death doula could be a downer, The Collected Regrets of Clover was hopeful, touching, charming, and wise. “The secret to a beautiful death is to live a beautiful life. Putting your heart out there. Letting it get broken. Taking chances. Making mistakes.”

Clover is a loner; inexperienced, and insecure when it comes to interactions with men and women, especially those her age. I liked that she showed growth throughout the book. The plot always moved forward. I liked that the romance I anticipated did not go in the direction I expected. (Way too many ‘romance’ novels are formulaic.)

Brammer’s writing is strong and wise. When listening to the dying, “it’s tempting to try to fix it, to cheer them up. But truth is, you’ll never find the right thing to say – because the right thing doesn’t exist. The fact that you’re there, and present, says so much more.” “Maybe we just need to appreciate that many aspects of life- and the people we love- will always be a mystery. Because without mystery there is no magic.”

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing ’the magic’, an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! This was a phenomenal novel. Although I wasn't familiar with the profession of a Death Doula, somehow Clover's career as one made sense. The ultimate lessons she learned, after spending time with Claudia and Leo, became a catalyst for change. It might have been a bit hard to believe that she was a 36 year old woman who had never been kissed and never put herself out there at all, her story arc was uplifting.

Oh my goodness I loved this book so much. The discussion around death was so respectful yet straight forward. I loved Clover's character and how she was so tender with all of her "clients". I really wish we would have gotten more of her self-discovery, but overall this was a solid read. Would recommend.

This book has been getting all the love and now I see why. This is a heartwarming story about Clover Brooks, a death doula, who is hiding out in her own life. Afraid to put herself out there because doing so makes you vulnerable. There were no big surprises or twisty plot turns but that didn’t make this any less engaging. It has strong Eleanor Oliphant and Evvie Drake vibes which is fine by me because I enjoyed those two books!

So many thought provoking lines like these:

“When someone has always been there for you, it’s easy to assume they always will be. And then, one day, they’re not.”

“The secret to a beautiful death is living a beautiful life.”

For those that haven’t read it yet, be sure not to miss it!

Thank you to NetGalley and StMartinsPress for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was good I enjoyed this book way more than I expected too it was a fun book to read over the weekend

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an e-ARC of <i>The Collected Regrets of Clover</i>, available everywhere now.

Clover is in kindergarten when she first sees death up close and personal. Between the death of her kindergarten teach and shortly after, her parents, she develops a closer relationship with the dying than the living. It's inevitable that she would end up pursuing a career centered around death. As a death doula in New York City, she is responsible for ushering people peacefully into the afterlife. While she loves what she does, her career brings her further from having a life of her own. When she meets her next client, however, all of that is about to change. Setting off on a journey of self-discovery, she'll soon see that she can have the life she's always wanted. The question is, does she have the courage to go for it?

Initially, I was hesitant to pick up this novel because I was worried that it'd turn out to be too saccharine but I'm glad I did. I really enjoyed spending time with Clover and getting to know several of the side characters. The writing, especially when it came to depicting how Clover was feeling or seeing things, never felt overwrought either.

Overall a lovely story with a thoughtful message. The subject matter is relevant but the main character was inconsistent. She was well traveled and mature but unable to create connections and relationships with people.

3 Stars
One Liner: Good premise with a not-so-interesting lead character

Clover Brooks has felt a stronger connection with the dying (and death) than living people. It started in kindergarten, and as an adult, Clover chose to be a death doula. She lives in NYC, in the same apartment she shared with her grandfather since she was a six-year-old.
Clover’s job and purpose are to help the dying pass their last moments in peace and stay with them until their last breath. Her purpose is her life, and a thirty-six-year-old Clover has nothing else to do. Until the wish of a dying old woman sends her on a trip that could change her life forever.
It’s time Clover finally examines her life and decides what she wants. But this is easier said than done.
The story comes in Clover’s first-person POV.

My Thoughts:
The book has an intriguing premise and a character with a profession I haven’t read before. I like that the story has many light moments despite the heavy topic.
Thanks to many friends, I went into the book with low expectations and a good idea of what to expect. Yet, it didn’t improve my enjoyment levels (at least, I didn’t feel too annoyed, so that’s something). I did like a few quotes/ introspections.
I think the story would have worked better with a limited third-person POV than Clover’s first-person POV. She isn’t a character to like almost until the end, which makes it hard to connect with her experiences or regrets.
The chapters alter between past and present, giving glimpses into Clover’s childhood and life with her grandpa. We can see that he is her idol, and his loss makes her turn their home into a shrine of sorts with all his items intact and in their positions.
There are enough scenes to show the role of a death doula. However, the novelty of the profession is pretty much overpowered by Clover’s characterization, which, let’s say, is not the best.
I wonder if the MC traveled across different countries wearing an invisibility cloak. Even an introverted person has to interact with people when traveling, especially when it’s to learn the death rituals in other cultures. These aren’t the kind of things they share unless you ask. Thus, when Clover acts super stiff with anyone who is not dying, it feels more like she wants people to be perfect and fit into the slots she created for them rather than accept that they are all flawed humans and that not everyone we meet has to mean something to us.
The other characters are almost stereotypes, though Leo manages to shine in his limited space, and Claudia is a ray of sunshine. Sylvia is the exact opposite of Clover, and Sebastian is the average guy we see all around us.
There’s a love track towards the end, which seems unnecessary but throws light on interesting patterns. I don’t agree that the love interest is a way of Clover coming out of her shell or exploring the world. Instead, she is going back to the same pattern as her childhood. Hugo is much like Clover’s grandpa, and in a way, that’s what propelled her out of her self-imposed loneliness. So even the character development isn’t as good as it seems.
Despite the issues, the book has its moments and makes us ponder our choices, decisions, and regrets. It can be thought-provoking if we push the MC to the background and focus on the lessons found in the ‘confessions’ and ‘regrets’ notebooks.

To summarize, The Collected Regrets of Clover is a decent debut novel with interesting elements but manages to distance the reader with an irregular character arc.
Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, for the eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

I really enjoyed this book. Once I got into it, and it took a little while, I was enthralled with the story that Brammer had created.

While it was sad to be a part of Clover’s job as a death doula, it was also so heartbreaking to see and hear the stories of people who die alone. Or how they are filled with regrets of things they didn’t do or say and now they can’t because it’s too late. It really makes you think about how you could change things in your own life.

Clover’s own story was also quite sad, that she lost her parents and her grandfather and was alone in the world at 20. So that meant she had no one to help her navigate the intricacies of relationships and truly making the most of her life.

I did struggle a bit with how naive and childish Clover seemed at times, and it was hard to believe that at the age of 34 she has not built any personal relationships. But I suppose that speaks to how reclusive she was and was buried under her own grief.

This book was fantastic though, and it had me in tears a couple times from not only sadness, but joy at seeing Clover open her heart up to others.

What’s the point of giving someone a beautiful death if you can’t give yourself a beautiful life? This is the story of Clover, a death doula. I find this occupation interesting and think about the people who can do this. Clover helps people accept death, no only the dying but the family. It's too bad she can't help herself accept the death of her grandfather. She still lives in his apartment with all his belongings. Her latest patient, Claudia sends Clover on a journey to find a man from her past. Claudia's story will go into Clover's regret's journal. I enjoyed the story and found some of the characters quite fascinating.

When I read this synopsis, I wasn’t sure where this would go. I was interested.
What a beautiful transformation Clover makes. She slowly opens herself up to strangers in her groups, her new neighbor, Sebastian and then Hugo. I loved that Sebastian wasn’t the one for her. I knew it when he said he was allergic to pets. That would never work. Clover’s relationship with Claudia was spectacular. Reuniting Claudia and Hugo was a perfect ending.

I received this book for free from Netgalley. That did not influence this review.

The Collected Regrets of Clover by Mikki Brammer is a heartwarming new release, a contemporary novel about navigating death and grief, and about living life to the fullest.

Clover is a death doula.

This is a relatively new profession/concept for the twenty-first century U.S.A., which tends to treat discussions of mortality as a taboo. Death doulas are trained to bypass the taboos to help shepherd the dying through the process.

Clover is particularly well suited to the task. Her own parents died in an accident when she was just six. However, Clover’s relationship with them was not close. In fact, they died when they were out of the country on one of their many jaunts taken without her. She was brought up by her grandfather, who became her best friend. In fact, aside from an elderly neighbor, he was her only friend. He died thirteen years prior to the period covered in the story – and she was not at his side when he passed, a source of unending guilt.

A combination of extreme introversion and an off-putting profession has left Clover always feeling like an outsider. At 36 years old, the closest contact she has with other humans is with her dying clients.

Clover has a lot of emotional baggage. And yet, her empathy for the dying is extraordinary. If you’ve ever wondered what to say to someone at the end of their life, or to their grieving loved ones, this novel serves almost as a guidebook. It isn’t that she always says the right thing, but that she has vowed never to look away from someone’s pain. She is there for them. She doesn’t want anyone to have to die alone.

And maybe not go through life alone either.

This summary makes this book sound depressing. But it absolutely is not. It’s quite beautiful and life affirming. Recommended!

Perhaps I wasn’t in the right frame of mind for this story, I had to make myself finish and admit to some skimming. Having a family member in the long term care industry I’ve been exposed to death as far back as my memory serves. I was employed in nursing facilities the majority of my career. Clover’s upbringing, family and life experience was totally opposite from anything in my own background. It was hard to relate with her or understand how she could be a death doula. It was equally difficult to reconcile Clover dealing with death when she had minimal people skills. She’s emotionally ill equipped for adult relationships. How could she possibly relate to life experiences being so devoid of love?
One of her clients, Claudia, was my favorite character and a well developed piece of the story. Her life, wit, love and regrets brought the story clarity and meaning. The latter section of the book redeemed Clover’s inadequacies. The story is about death but was not a tearjerker and I appreciated the direction of the plot.
An advance reader copy of “The Collected Regrets of Clover” by Mikki Brammer, published by St. Martin’s Press, was provided by NetGalley. These are all my own personal, honest thoughts and opinions provided without compensation.

Mikki Brammer, where have you been hiding? The Collected Regrets of Clover is the first book I've ever read about a death doula. Partially because I think it's a relatively new thing and partially because books about death are hard for me. But this is a book about life that just happens to center on a character who works with death for a living. I'm not one for highlighting quotes but I definitely highlighted some things in this one. It was such a beautiful story and I teared up a time or two. I've got my eye on you Mikki Brammer.

This debut was really good and I highly recommend it. Many thanks to St. Martin's Press for a gifted e-copy.

A beautiful book about love, loss, living life to the fullest, opening your heart and mind and being open to discovery. Clover is a young woman who has been impacted by death since she was 5 yrs old. It has become her whole world as she has lost every person she has loved and loved her back. She now lives her life as a death doula and keeps herself distant from relationships, except with her clients until one truly changes her life for the better. This is an emotional, thought provoking, interesting, mind opening book. You can’t help, but want all the best for Clover. Its wonderful watching her open her heart and come back to the living.

“But the secret to a beautiful death is to live a beautiful life. Putting your heart out there. Letting it get broken. Taking chances. Making mistakes.”

I had a doula with my first son and it was such a great birthing experience. Besides the support and comfort she offered me to have the natural childbirth I wanted, she gave me a beautiful story afterwards that detailed out many of the small things I had forgotten or hasn’t noticed.

Clover does that same type of thing, but for the other end of life. Sometimes she collects the regrets of the dying. Sometime she captures the beautiful sentiments to share with the families. It’s definitely not a profession I’ve ever heard or thought of, but can certainly appreciate.

I felt for Clover the whole story. She had a lot of character growth as she went from almost a recluse to putting herself out there for a chance to find love. I really enjoyed watching that growth.

Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25

Read if you like:
Character driven stories
Introverted characters
Looking at death in a new light

This was a lovely book and easy to read. For a hot second there I thought it was going to be a romance book with how it was written but it wasn’t.

I was able to sink into Clovers story immediately and feel invested in her journey. The book is written at a good pace that didn’t feel too rushed but also didn’t drag on to the point of boredom.

I think my only complaint was for a section of the book I found every characters (including Clover) to be extremely annoying. The only characters to relieve me from this annoyance were the elderly people in Clovers life. Luckily at the end we swung back around to liking most of the characters and enjoying the story again! Excited to see what else this author writes.