All That’s Left to Say by. Emery | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: All That’s Left to Say

Author: Emery Lord

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 400

Publication Date: 7/18/23

Publisher: Bloomsbury YA

Categories: Young Adult, Grief, Drug Addiction, Romance, Mystery, Contemporary

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Bloomsbury YA for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

A poignant and powerful story of a grieving girl willing to risk everything, perfect for fans of Robin Benway and Jandy Nelson.

On prom night, Hannah MacLaren sits in the headmaster’s office in her fanciest dress, soaked to the bone. She is in huge trouble after pulling the fire alarm right as the prom was about to be crowned. But Hannah had her reasons . . .

One year ago, her cousin Sophie, who was also her best friend and the person she loved most in the world, died of an overdose. Drowning in grief, Hannah became obsessed with one Who gave Sophie those pills? Who is refusing to give her family the closure they deserve?

Then she concocted a enroll at her cousin’s fancy private school with a new look and a mouthful of lies, and finally uncover the truth.

But Hannah didn’t expect all the lines to blur. She didn’t expect Sophie’s friends to be so complicated. She didn’t expect to fall for her longtime enemy. Now, she must choose to either let herself really mourn Sophie and move on, or see her search through to its explosive end–even if it means destroying herself.

Content Warning: grief, drug use

I read this book in one sitting even though I thought at times it moved slowly. It’s about a girl, Hannah, and her cousin who is like a sister to her, Sophie. Sophie dies tragically in a drug overdose and everyone is blindsided by it. Hannah’s purpose is to get to the bottom of who gave Sophie those pills but along the way she learns more about Sophie’s secrets and needing to let go of her pain and embrace life and love again.

Hannah is grieving along with her family and Sophie’s best friend, Gabi. When Gabi and Hannah team up to investigate who could have given Sophie the pills at the party they have to confront a few truths about Sophie as well. I really appreciated how the author considered all sides of the situation. Sophie’s access to the drugs, Sophie purposefully seeking out drugs, the consequences that is appropriate for the one who gave her the drugs, and some solutions a community can offer for people struggling with drug addiction. Hannah’s own father is a recovering alcoholic and he gives her some insight into addiction – some insights that Hannah had a difficult time comprehending. But I like that there was a discussion in this book about grief, secrets, drug addiction, and resources.

There is even romance in this story and it was so unsuspecting! I didn’t expect Hannah and Christian’s interactions to have so much chemistry and spark. The two of them are rivals. Debate team rivals so the arguments between them are epic and so sweet when they both cave in to the attraction between them. I love how he’s there for her because he’s gone through grief as well.

Now Hannah is a flawed character. She loves to argue, she likes things to go her way and she can be stubborn. I was bummed when she let things get so bad between her and her best friend Lincoln but I understand she was going through a rough time with Sophie’s death. She does grow as a character though.

Also the story is told in two timelines, past and present with the past just being one year ago. So there were times I had to backtrack because I lost my place on which timeline I was in – but that might be how the ebook arc is formatted.

The story was too slow to be a thriller, even when they figure out who it was that gave Sophie the pills. There wasn’t anything sinister about finding who did it, because as it’s stated, Sophie was at fault also. And the person who did it was having their own struggles. Overall it’s a tragic story, and an important one about how the opioid epidemic affects family, friends and a community.

Tropes: rivals to lovers

Why you should read it:

• a complex story about grief, love, and drug addiction – it kept me intrigued

Why you might not want to read it:

• topics about opioid use and grief

My Thoughts:

I’ve read a few Emery Lord books but I think this is her darkest one with heavy themes. But I love how she wrote the story, making the reader question all the aspects of the situation that has taken place. I love that it sheds a light on the opioid epidemic and how shame and judgment is a big part of how someone might not seek treatment. Overall, I thought it was a good read, if a little slow at parts but I still read it in one sitting.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

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