ARC, 386 pages
Release Date: February 10, 2015Published by: HarperTeenStand-aloneSource: ATWATFor fans of: Grief, Depression, Death, Contemporary, YAThere’s death all around us.We just don’t pay attention.
Until we do.
The last time Lex was happy, it was before. When she had a family that was whole. A boyfriend she loved. Friends who didn’t look at her like she might break down at any moment.Now she’s just the girl whose brother killed himself. And it feels like that’s all she’ll ever be.
As Lex starts to put her life back together, she tries to block out what happened the night Tyler died. But there’s a secret she hasn’t told anyone-a text Tyler sent, that could have changed everything.Lex’s brother is gone. But Lex is about to discover that a ghost doesn’t have to be real to keep you from moving on.
From New York Times bestselling author Cynthia Hand, The Last Time We Say Goodbye is a gorgeous and heart-wrenching story of love, loss, and letting go.
*MY THOUGHTS*
touching book that I am glad I was able to read during the holidays. It made me
so much happier. I started saying “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Holidays” to
everyone, because honestly, you never know how you can make someone else’s day.
“‘People move on with their lives. Even if we can’t.“
pg 101
brother killed himself, but Lex acts as if she’s fine. One day she realizes she
needs to stop hiding from her feelings and finally see what contributed to his
sadness. Most of all she needs to find one more way to make sure he knows she
loves him.
“‘Time passes. That’s the rule. No matter what happens, no matter how much it might feel like everything in your life has frozen around one particular moment, time marches on.“
pg 177
Unearthly series, so I knew the writing style in this would be absolutely
amazing. And it exceeded my expectations. The emotion was raw and so real that
I could feel it myself. I felt as if the sadness did bog down did make the
story a little heavy, but with grief like that the heaviness was to be
expected. This is why it felt so real. There wasn’t much comedic relief because
she was hurting and trying to avoid people. It felt like something a real
person would have went through.
“‘There’s death all around us. Everywhere we look. 1.8 people kill themselves every second. We just don’t pay attention. Until we do.“
pg 278
part about this book was the characters. Mostly Lex, but also her mother. Lex
so hurt about her brother that she even tried not to acknowledge how she was
feeling. Her mother fell into a depression that it seemed she couldn’t handle. Things
just seemed to keep spiraling out of control for them, but still she didn’t let
anything stop her. I was so happy when things started getting better, that when
the next bad thing came up, it broke me a little bit more.
“‘This is going to sound trite, I suppose, but you never know when it;s going to be the last time. That you kiss. That ou say goodbye.“
pg 286
another bad thing happened, I was beginning to develop a theory. I was so happy
that things did not turn out that way. Because I would not have been able to
handle this book if it were true. But then again, it would have answered some
questions for me. Like why did that happen? What was his reasoning? I know this
was Ty’s story, but I have so many questions now. Maybe we should get another
book from that POV???? (wishful thinking)
“‘It’s such a cliche, the whole ‘time heals all wounds’ thing, but it’s true. Cliches are cliches for a reason, I guess.“
pg 324
such a sad, touching book that I am glad I was able to read during the holidays.
It will make you think about having your family all around you. So please, hug
every member of your family and remember, “it’s the little things.”
