This book is one I would highly recommend to those that enjoy stories that focuses on a very raw and personal emotional journey for a character (such as Our Year of Rest And Relaxation, The Bell Jar, or Convenience Store Woman). In comparison to those, I found that the structure of this book was more engaging. At times it reads like a play and other times like a formal novel and the combination of the two gives the reader the opportunity to really feel how much Norma's thoughts race through her mind.

I will admit that in the beginning of this I struggled with being in this character’s head, however I did find it interesting to read her experiences with disassociation and derealization as they were quite different from how I experience those trauma responses. Upon reflection, I realize now that the start of the story was tough for me as it greatly reminded me of how I felt during my intake session with my therapist. I am glad I stuck through to read Norma’s full journey as I found myself able to relate to her more and more as the story went on. As someone who has been in therapy for multiple years, I definitely understand the lows and highs of finally receiving the help you thought you never needed and how much you wish to not force other people along that journey with you. Towards the last third of the book I found myself rooting for Norma so that she could feel like herself again.

When I started the final chapter of this book I was initially confused (and admittedly sad that things played out like that for their relationship!) but found that I really enjoyed the change in narrative style. I felt that it rounded out the story really well, giving us some additional information on moments that Norma didn’t understand fully and helping the reader understand why the love interest fought so hard for them.

I would definitely read future works by this author. I really enjoyed the narrative styles used in this, especially with the use of short stories to fill in as moments of reflecting on Norma’s past. It was also so raw and honest that I felt like I was a fly on the wall for Norma’s therapy sessions. By the end of the story I wanted to be able to hug her and tell her that therapy is hard work, and that I’m proud of her for doing it.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

This unique novel gives a first-person point of view about what life is like with derealization disorder, depersonalization disorder, and chronic depression, along with interacting with a therapist about those psychological issues. The main character discusses her issues with the medication and side effects, althewhile living the GLBTQ+ lifestyle, and the family issues involved with that.

The story was quite relatable, especially developing or maintaining a relationship while having these psychological challenges. However, one thing left out are the financial issues – how is her therapy being paid for, and who is paying for her upkeep? Granted, her parents seem to be moderately well-off, but this is a big plot-hole that got me wondering as I was reading.

The book contains some great one-liners which I can adopt into my own life and outlook. This is a fiction book which will probably improve my life in directly identifiable ways! Thank you to the author!

The writing style was rather strange, and it took me a bit to get into it. Had the subject not been of interest to me, I might have been tempted to put it down and not finish it. Once I got into the style – of giving an account of discussions in therapy interspersed with stories – which themselves appear fictional, but might be “real life” – a distinction without a difference for derealization disorder – it became difficult for me to put down and take notes about.

Thanks to publisher and Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a very raw look at mental health and trauma written in the style of a stream of consciousness narrated during the main character's therapy sessions interspaced with short stories.

The narrative style can take a while to get into and the book is somewhat of a slow build, but is rather engrossing once you get into it.

As mentioned before, this book is a very raw look at trauma, so it might be worth for some readers to look up the content warnings. It delves into how trauma irrevocably affects the lives of survivors and there is no clear way to be rid of it, and that even knowing the cause of trauma can't always explain people's actions. All we can really do is move forward, learn to live despite of it, and choose love.

That's where the book leaves the reader, and I think it's very apt.

Overall, Please Stop Trying to Leave Me is an unflinching look at learning to cope with severe mental health issues and learning to live despite all the horrors of the modern world. If mental health narratives and books like Emily Austin's work aree something that you are interested in, I recommend picking this up.

I am grateful to NetGalley and Vintage Publishing for the opportunity to read this book. Unfortunately, I did DNF this book after many attempts. I could not get past page 60. I think the concept and the idea of having a majority of the book happen in therapy was interesting, but the way the book was structured was so frustrating to follow. I know it’s meant to feel like a stream of consciousness, but it felt too similar to my stream of consciousness and made me anxious. I hope this book meets some amazing people and gives them a journey, but this journey was not meant for me.

Ah, I've once again been lured in by a compelling title. This isn't at all what I expected, but that's mostly down to the fact that I only ever give synopses a cursory glance at most. I feel like I was expecting something weirder, and ultimately the structure and tone here are not going to be unfamiliar to readers of fiction that skirts the line between general and literary, books that are maybe trying to be one while really leaning more towards the other. Within this structure, the fragments of the narrator's life and of her fiction-within-fiction writing all carry the weight of specificity and as a result are inherently compelling, weaving dreamlike connections within her scattered, disintegrating mind. Author Alana Saab brings some beautiful prose to this story, cleverly nestling intrinsically unpolished bits of the character's fiction within the somewhat stream of consciousness framing device. As a result, the book more or less swaps between off-the-cuff word vomit and creative writing workshop story fragments, which all manages to balance out. I loved those stories within the story, of the infinite man, of childhood, of Felix -- these reminders that a world exists outside the confines of the therapist's office the narrator spends most of the book within.

I don't think the book fully stuck the landing, not in theory but in execution. The character's revelations come quite abruptly, and in the final pages the momentum is thrown fairly off-kilter. There's a sort of self-awareness (or self-consciousness) throughout the book that doesn't really do it any favors, and this comes to a head towards the end. Still, there's plenty of beauty and ingenuity in the journey leading up to those final moments.

This book was unique from anything else I've read this year, if not ever. It's a stream-of-consciousness style work that studies the horrors of modern life through the eyes of Norma, our main character. It examines her struggles with the modern world and mental illness through her own writings and conversations with her therapist.

While this is a very clever piece, it was difficult for me to get into. I think much like Norma I try to escape from the world's horrors, and as such typically read mostly fantasy and other works farther removed from reality. I may not have been the intended audience for this piece, but don't fault it for that. It's a brutally honest story, and one that may very well be worthwhile to those looking for less escape in their reading.

This book was really difficult for me to get into. The writing is highly stylized (I always struggle with reading books that don’t use quotation marks at all) and I was a bit confused at times about what was going on with the in-text short stories. Ultimately I think the stylistic choices worked here, because they help paint the portrait of mental illness, but at times I did find it difficult to really connect with the characters because I felt so removed from the story. I especially don’t feel like I got to learn enough about Norma’s girlfriend. Idk, I’m struggling to review this one because it’s so unlike anything else I’ve ever read! I think I would recommend it overall, especially for people who enjoy more of a slow burn and highly unreliable narrators.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

Arc exchanged for honest review.

2/5 star rating

I am dnf-ing this book for a couple of reasons. Reason number one being that I don’t have time to finish reading the book. Reason number two being I strongly disliked the amount that I was able to read of this book. I don’t like the main character whatsoever and I felt that this book was simply very dull. I had to force myself to read the amount that I did read.
No hate towards the author or the book, this is just my opinion. I’m sure that a lot of people are going to love this book, but personally I don’t..

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!

This is one of my favorite ARCs I’ve read in 2024 so far. Can’t get over the stream of
consciousness writing which I love. It reminded me of Emily Austin's writing but with more focus on therapy and disassociation. It was hilariously awkward.
Recommend if you want that weird/sad girl lit fic. Also grab if you feel awkward in therapy even though you know you need it

This felt like a fever dream at times, in the best possible way - how else can you write about the horrors and complexities of the modern world? I adore stream of consciousness writing, and thought this was a stunning execution of this. Excellent musings on mental health, social crises, queerness, trauma, and philosophy. This made me feel so seen in so many different aspects. I would definitely recommend this to fans of emily austin, even though it's a bit different from her writing style. Such a great debut novel!!!

Absoulety loved this book. It really puts into prospective the struggles that come with mental illness. As someone who struggles with a few mental illnesses, I truly felt seen through the main character and absolutely loved how the book is told through her inner thoughts. Something I usually don't see in books is that internal dialogue of the characters, so this book telling the story mostly through the main characters inner thoughts was really compelling.
The only critique I truly have about this book is that I got a little lost on the plot at times. However, the confusion was usually cleared up eventually.

I did not finish this book, I stopped at 51%. I am not the intended audience for this book, it was hard for me to follow the stories and thoughts of the narrator. She suffers from significant mental illness and it was hard for me to put the pieces of her life together for a narrative. I found the subject matter to be disturbing in several instances, the narrator is brutally honest and upfront with her life experiences.

This book is focuses on a woman and the sessions with her therapist. It is difficult to discern when the main character is dissociating in her mind or speaking with her therapist. Quotations would help in discerning spoken words. The scattered train of thoughts was hard for me to follow, there may be people who can relate to the young narrator and her mental illness.

Thank you Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor and Netgalley for an advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.

so amazing and smart i ADORED this. Like wow i can’t describe this it just must be read. And once it finds its audience it will become their favorite book ever.

thank you to Netgalley and Vintage for the ARC!

i struggle with this one.

i wanted to read it because i was told that it was both queer and focused on mental health, the degree to which i perhaps wasn't expecting.

anyone going into this should know that this book reads a little bit confusingly - no quotation marks are present and we're primarily dealing with a main character, norma, via conversations with her therapist. and the writing is, well, unhinged. it's not fun to be in norma's head most of the time, because her thoughts are constantly obsessing over how she needs to break up with her girlfriend and her writings. from what i gather (i told you, the writing is a little complicated) we are jumping from therapy sessions to memories to stories that norma has written that are basically bastardized memories from certain traumas that she has experienced.

i'm telling you now: MASSIVE TRIGGER WARNING FOR CHILD SEXUAL ASSAULT/RAPE. though not super explicit, it's there and present in one of her stories and it came out of nowhere and it upset me a lot. i was upset because immediately after in a therapy session norma says she wasn't raped as a kid which made me angry at its inclusion... for norma to ultimately reveal that her father had actually done this to her.

ultimately, i think this story lost me about 30% in when there was some weird description of a kid's nipples and a quote from donald trump. later on, normal also obsesses over joe biden. i don't know. there was also a very weird chapter where norma is in a bathtub, gets her period and starts doing pelvic exercises to get the rest of the blood out... i? i think some of this skewed on the side of weird for weird's sake instead of any logical relation to the story.

norma is never properly diagnosed, but she's clearly going through a severe mental health crisis. i don't really know how representative this story was of an actual mental health crisis, but i can't help but feel like the portrayal was kiddish for a person of norma's age and also kind of romanticized in a way. norma experiences what she calls "oblivion" where she imagines all life from the planet has been snuffed out and she's in a black, alone place, which i guess i'd refer to as disassociation. that felt real, but the tangents and rants and saying "i want to break up with my girlfriend" every five seconds felt... i don't know. it was a hard perspective to read.

i do thing that the writing was technically immaculate and there's some good one-liners in this - i even liked the style of how norma would harp on certain facts or tell a story through these tiny, bite-sized vignettes, but the story for me and the sheer confusion of what was going on most times just didn't work for me. i don't think any reader should go into this expecting a likable character or a character that makes any amount of sense - you'll be disappointed - but if that's your bag, then this is probably the book for you.

2.5/5. I wanted to love this book so badly, but I just didn’t. As a queer female who has experienced depression and anxiety and is a mental health professional, I thought this book was perfectly up my alley. Unfortunately, I felt the book kept derailing from the main topics at hand making it confusing to read. I LOVED the concept and think that it had so much potential, but every time the story derailed, I was frustrated because I wanted the story to keep going. I also found it hard to root for the main character at times because she was not handling any of this the way someone her age would. Again, I know this character is going through a severe mental health crisis, but she is so resistant to help and change that it is confusing to why she is seeking treatment. Of course there are plenty of people who are scared of therapy and treatment and resistant to it at first, but their want for getting better overpowers all of that. I did not see this with this character at all. It also drove me crazy that the dialogue was not in quotation marks, but maybe that is me just being picky. This book took too long to find the light at the end of the tunnel and I found it hard to keep reading, but I think with some adjustments and focus on the main story, this book could be amazing.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Please Stop Trying to Leave Me is, at its core, a story about learning how to live and love through trauma. Norma is the unreliable narrator, who is telling the story through therapy sessions and her novel that she can’t finish. She has a rap sheet of psychological diagnoses and is trying to learn how to overcome them.
I had a hard time reading this and I would definitely recommend looking at content warnings before reading. The main character goes through a myriad of trials that are not easy to read about, nor should they be.
There were times when the writing was very lyrical and poetic and then there were other chapters that I struggled to get through. From my perspective, trauma makes memories and the way you view your life skewed and the author does a great job portraying that.
My favorite story within the novel was Fertile Ashes. The way metaphor is used throughout the book but specifically in this part, is really beautiful and touching.
I was happily surprised by the ending and I think the way it was wrapped up was very well done.
My take away from the book is that even when you feel broken or that your past will only dictate your future, you are still worthy and capable of love. Love should not be conditional or divisive. Love is lunch with friends who ease the burden of anxiety. Love is coming home to find your one in your favorite shirt and being happy to see how good it looks one them. Love is the release from oblivion.

I think this book is just not for me. The writing style makes it hard for me to take in anything that I was reading. It feels like a bunch of random thoughts put together as a book, and maybe that’s the point but I didn’t want to keep reading.

Thank you NetGalley and Vintage Anchor Books for an advanced digital copy of Please Stop Trying to Leave Me.

Twenty-seven-year-old Norma suffered a nervous breakdown and is stuck in what she calls, “Oblivion.” Something she has experienced since she was a young girl. But Oblivion isn’t what brings Norma to a new therapist - She needs to write again, The Last Story to complete her manuscript. Should she listen to the supposed signs telling her to break up with her girlfriend? Will that help her finish her writing?

The line between fiction and reality becomes blurred, along with mental illness and state of mind while exploring the past. These pages bounce between Norma’s manuscript and therapy sessions, both of which are beautifully crafted. I love slow-burn, character-driven novels where you feel like you’re inside the mind of the narrator - And this reads like a lyrical stream of consciousness. Her unraveling became my unraveling, and I began to carry her trauma in my heart. The ending to this story is what truly got me.

I was thoroughly impressed with this debut novel as it encompassed a wide scope of topics and emotions. Family, love, relationships, mental health, trauma, societal issues and more that will take you on a rollercoaster ride of laughter, tears, and heartache. It was messy and realistic in a number of ways. You could tell that the author has a background in psychology AND is a very gifted writer.

I was fortunate enough to receive an ARC of Please Stop Trying to Leave Me through NetGalley. I was captivated by the first 100 pages, the writing felt sharp, as in able to cut, and held the promise of a truly unique reading experience. Unfortunately, that initial spark didn't quite translate into the rest of the book for me.
The author's attempt to push boundaries and play with form was admirable, but in execution, the messiness became a drag and ultimately fell short.
Despite this, I can't deny the initial brilliance of the book's opening. The author's talent for wordplay and their willingness to take risks are commendable. However, for me, the experimentation didn't quite land, leaving the story feeling unbalanced and ultimately unsatisfying.

a very messy book with a messy main character about mental illness. definitely relatable (not sure if that's a good thing), and saab created a beautiful story.