This book took me by surprise – it is a beautiful story about how our lives are shaped by the choices we make. It is a book about finding meaning in life and in death.
Clover a Death Doula guides her clients through the last days of their lives, helping them to take stock in the life they led.
This is a great read! I would highly recommend this debut novel.

The Collected Regrets of Clover has a unique voice, a life-affirming message, and a cute story.
Clover is a thirty-something death doula who works with a dying patient named Claudia. Clover supports Claudia through her dying, while Claudia teaches Clover about living life.

Though this is Brummer’s fiction debut, it’s no surprise to discover that she works as a professional journalist; her skill as a wordsmith is evident.

Unfortunately, The Collected Regrets of Clover fell short for me in two pretty big areas. First: the naivete of Clover. Clover, a thirty-something woman who has travelled the world, demonstrates tremendous interpersonal and intrapersonal awareness. As such, her moments of romantic naivete are so over-the-top that her innocent moments are completely unbelievable. Second: Claudia’s timeline. Claudia’s remaining time is counted down with the precision of a Michelina’s microwave dinner. As my nursing friend once explained to me, “Doctors cannot accurately determine a patient’s remaining time, because illness ebbs and flows at a static rate; doctors usually offer a ballpark timeline to help families emotionally and practically prepare for the inevitable.” Also, the fact that Claudia is completely lucid right up until her demise feels ripped from a bad 1980’s soap opera.

In the end, I might read Brammer’s sophomore novel (assuming there is one), but I probably won’t be jumping out of the gate to read it.

A very sloooooooooow burn. This novel follows the life of a woman who is a death doula, easy and kind about the death of others, but who hasn’t quite finished grieving the early loss of her parents and the more recent death of her grandfather, who raised her.

This book was absolutely remarkable and one my favorite reads/listens this year. The way grief and hope are handled is very beautiful. The narrator does a great Job voicing Clover and captivated throughout the entire story.

My only issue was how long the pauses were between chapters. First few times, I felt like my AirPods had died or something.

But honestly, this was an amazing listen will be recommending this to my grief group and anyone with a beating heart!

I absolutely adored this book! It was unique, meaningful and full of hope. Clover is a Death Doula, so obviously this book deals with lots of grief and loss. However, this book is so beautiful and we learn a great lesson from all of the different people she encounters in her job. I thought the story was so interesting, and I could not stop reading it. I loved all of Clover's little quirks, and I was happy that she finally took some chances for herself. This book is full of life lessons, hard circumstances, grief, love, hope and lots of quirky lovable characters.

I read this as an audiobook and I loved it! I actually really enjoyed the narrator's tone/infection and thought she was a perfect match to the clover in my head 😁 I definitely recommend this one.

I chose to DNF this title at 30% without prejudice. I do not think it is a bad book. The writing is good. The characters are good too. This book is just not a good fit for me at this time. I may return to it someday, but I was just not enjoying it. I don't think my lack of enjoyment has anything to do with the story or the writing. It was just too quiet of a story and not a good fit for me. This is entirely my own fault. I am still learning to choose titles that fit my reading tastes and although I have gotten a lot better, I still get it wrong sometimes.

A heartwarming story of Clover, a death doula, who helps prepare and usher people out of their life giving everything to the care of others so that they are not alone at their end. She keeps her books of last words, regrets, and advice so that her clients are not forgotten. But, Clover in her personal life is alone and she is failing to live her own life.

With a beautiful cast of characters, living, dead, and dying, they help Clover discover who she is and that she is not alone.

Themes: 🎧🪦❤️👯‍♀️👨‍👩‍👧‍👦👵🧓👴✒️📜

My feelings: 🙂😊😢😌

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@bookofthemonth
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The premise of this one had me hooked but it did not keep me hooked while reading. I just could not connect to Clover and you really need to connect to her to love this book. Clover’s life experience is very extreme. did enjoy it at times, but it was a bit slow to progress as well. This was a tandem read because I had the audio ARC from NetGalley and chose it as my BOTM pick for May since there were so many incredible reviews on Goodreads and beyond. I really loved the narrator of the audiobook. Thank you to NetGalley for the audio ARC!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an advanced copy of The Collected Regrets of Cl0ver by Mikki Brammer. This book is about Clover, a death doula who, over the course of the book, learns to take chances and live life to the fullest. Childhood trauma had made that hard for Clover to do. It was really satisfying to see her overcome those experiences and start living the life she wanted.

I loved the the title character was a death doula. I thought that was such an interesting angle to explore, especially from someone who experienced tragedies in their life. I loved Claudia. I found Clover a little relatable as I’m extremely introverted, closed off and a book lover. That’s where my fondness for Clover ends. Even though I related to her, I didn’t find her to be a likable character. Sebastian is also kind of irritating. It was a really slow listen for me and found myself not caring too much about these characters.

Thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan audio and st martins press.

Oh, friends. I absolutely loved, loved, LOVED this book. If I had a physical copy of The Collected Regrets of Clover by Mikki Brammer, I definitely would have hugged it after finishing. No doubt about it, Clover Brooks has a spot on my list of very favorite characters. I adored her. She’s a bit of a loner, reserved, a little quirky, and has a very unique profession. She’s a death doula who cares for others at the end of their lives in whatever form they need. Sounds interesting, right? Perhaps a tad morbid too, but just you wait…You will fall in love with Clover too.

READ THIS IF YOU ENJOY:

- Slow-moving, emotional, and feel-good reads
- In-depth character studies
- Low-key, quiet, and introverted characters
- Themes of loss, grief, and healing
- New York City setting
- Unexpected friendships

I was not expecting to love this one as much as I did, so it really was the highlight of my week. I’m not gonna lie, I was a little skeptical as it obviously deals with some heavy subject matter. But in some miraculous way, the author made it tender, thoughtful, and heart-warming. If you enjoyed books like Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine, A Man Called Ove, or The Bookish Life of Nina Hill, I think you’ll adore this one as well. The Collected Regrets of Clover is out now, and I highly recommend it! I’ll leave you with one of my favorite quotes from the book:

“𝙂𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙛 𝙞𝙨 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚.”

Read this book. Trust me! 5/5 stars!

Clover is a death doula: helping the dying come to terms, helping them with any closure, be with them as they need, and recording their last words. By nature, she's happy being solitary with her books and rom-coms. Then she's suddenly finding herself with a neighbor who refuses not to be a friend, a guy who she can't decide whether he's being friendly or aiming for a relationship, and a client whose love story challenges her.

This book really felt like an evolution with Clover rather than watching her go through her paces. It was beautiful and callous in the way death is discussed in the honest way people tend to go about it. I feel like the book closed well and that I could read a next book about how the ending continued. This wasn't the book I thought it was going to be and was also so much better.

#arc
#netgalley
#thecollectedregretsofclover

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

Ever since her kindergarten teacher died in front of her class, Clover Brooks has always felt closer to the dying than the living. She lost her parents at a young age and was raised by her grandfather, who eventually died alone while she was away traveling. These experiences led her to become a death doula, someone who helps the dying through their last days and hours. Clover spends so much of her time with the dying that she isn’t really living and spends her free time holed up in her apartment spying on neighbors and watching (and rewatching) her favorite scenes from romance movies. When Clover meets Claudia, a terminally-ill, feisty, old woman, Claudia’s stories of love and regret force Clover to look at her own life with a fresh perspective.

I adored this book and hope that so many other people do too! It’s character-driven and slower-paced, but so well-written that I can’t believe it’s her debut! It’s being compared to The Midnight Library, but I didn’t really like that one so if you didn’t either, don’t let that keep you away from reading about Clover. I think I found more similarities to The Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot! For a book about death and regrets, I found it so hopeful and encouraging and can’t wait for more people to read it. Thank you to the publishers for my advanced copies! The narrator did an amazing job with the audio! This is one I’ll be highly recommending for a while!

I have such mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I liked the story, the idea behind the beauty of death. We always focus on the sad, depressing and dark side, but it is just as easy to focus on the beauty and the life lived (not just lost!) But, the main character Clover just bothered me. I never connected with her. I honestly found her kind of annoying and whiny. She was so focused on those dying and giving them an easier end and closure to their life, yet she had no life. Overall, I enjoyed the book - I listened to it and read parts of it. I would recommend doing both :)

Clover, Clover, Clover...
What can I say that will truly portray the beautiful significance of Mikki Brammer's debut novel about grief, death, love, friendship & so much more.

We follow Clover, who is a death doula (not me googling if people really do this IRL....- FYI: they do, and down the rabbit hole I went for an hour in the middle of writing this review). She assists in end-of-life tasks, even as simple as holding ones' hand while they pass.

Over the years, she has collected many things from those she has helped: their stories, wisdom, regrets, & life experiences. All while helping others grieve for their losses, she is grieving a loss of her own- her grandfather. All it takes is one client to help Clover realize that in order for her to have a fulfilling life with minimal regrets, she must open herself up to others.
Powerful and poignant, Mikki breaks open the societal stigma to keep 'hush hush' surrounding the taboo subject of death- making this such a heartfelt and relatable read for anyone.
The narration was wonderful and created an immersive experience.

What a beautiful, beautiful book. Clover is a 36 year old death doula, living in NY. She is a loner by nature but deeply understand people and spends her working days sitting with people as they die and offering them comfort as she collects their confessions, advice, and regrets.

Clover first watched someone die in kindergarten, as her teacher died in front of her class. A year later, her parents died in an accident, sending Clover to live with her grandfather. Through the novel Clover comes to term with her grandfather's death, and her life.

The narrator did an amazing job embracing Clover's calm voice.

Clover is a death doula which is just as it sounds, a person to be present as someone is leaving this world. She is also an introvert and an overthinker.. These qualities, as well as having lost her only family recently, contribute to what I would call a "walking" depression.. She is very good at her job, which really goes along with her personality.

in meeting a man named Sebastian and being introd uced to his dying grandmother Claudia, things begin tot change. A new adventure for Clover begins; one that will irreversibly change her life. I enjoyed reading about Clover's life and it;s twists and turns. Be aware, however, and this seems obvious but this story contains a lot of death and discussions of death. It mau, however, make you feel more comfortable about the topic if it is not a major trigger. Overall, I don't "'regret"' reading The Collected Regrets of Clover. It was a lovely journey of a fascinating character..

"It wasn't just the regrets of the dying people I was trying to resolve- it was my own"

Orphaned at a young age and always a bit quirkier than those around her, Clover Brooks now works as a death doula in New York City. Losing those closest to her and knowing they died alone, Clover now spends her days and nights bringing solace and companionship to those in their final moments. For years she has kept journals detailing her career's experiences. The dying's last words, advice, final moments and moods, and most important of all--their regrets. Determined to not let their life's regrets be in vain, Clover tries to work their regrets into her life. A means to right a wrong. In doing so she begins to find regrets of her own. Whether fully intentional or not, she has devoted her entire life to giving others a beautiful death and in turn has denied herself of a beautiful life in the process. Clover is single, never had a serious relationship, or even a kiss, in her almost 40 years, and her closest companions are her pets and 87 year old neighbor, Leo. While visiting one of the cities various death cafes, Clover has a chance meeting that leads her to a client who will help her not only reflect upon her past, but will ultimately change the course of her future.

Happenstance. Serendipity. Fate. Call it what you will, but life has a way of giving you just what you need exactly when you need it. This story is written so beautifully & is not only a story death, but one of life! The Collected Regrets of Clover definitely has moments of sadness and despair, but it is ultimately a story of hope. I went into this book blindly, not sure what to expect. Several times while reading I got Evelyn Hugo vibes and was pleasantly surprised at every turn of the page. Five stars!

Jennifer Pickens brought Clover to life and made this book even better than I could've imagined.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for a ARC with my promise of an honest review. Publishing May 9 2023

I absolutely loved this exploration of death and grief. With an often rather taboo subject, I appreciated the direct yet tender way the author navigated the discussion.

Beautifully written. Beautifully contemplative. Clover is a death doula. A job I did not know existed, but now feels very necessary. In your final moments, will you have any regrets? Will you be surrounded by love? This book gives us a glimpse of Clover’s world as she helps those in need and learns to grapple with her own life. A wonderful book about coming into your own at an age when most have it figured out and established.

I didn’t fully connect with Clover through the book, but I appreciated her personality and her position in life. Overall, there are many quotable lines and it left me thinking.

Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and author Mikki Brammer for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.