Review: If He Had Been With Me - Laura Nowlin

Review: If He Had Been With Me - Laura Nowlin - April 2013

This one had been sitting on my bookshelf and I had heard mixed reviews, but figured last week in my effort to continue to clear my bookshelves, I would pick it up and read it. As I was reading the book, I could see why readers gave it mixed reviews and wondered whether those who hadn't rated it that high, were a bit older and felt that it was too clean for them As for me being in my nearly late 30's, I have read quite a few books with this theme and it gave me the same feels as I had when I read The Fault In Our Stars. That feeling of I was a little too old for this book, as it was something I had read over and over again. But then if I was 14-16 years old and only just discovering this theme and reading it for the first time, it would have packed more of a punch. Compared to a lot of teen reads, though this book does contain sex, romance, mental health, divorce, and death - it was mostly closed door which gives If He Had Been With Me - a clean YA vibe. The other thing that surprised me with this book as even though it is a chunky read, I read it quite quickly as I couldn't put it down as the story did suck me in. You are all probably wondering now what the story was about - right? The book starts with a car accident and one of those passengers was Finn. The book then jumps back to the beginning of time when Finn and Autumn first met as babies, then inseparable friends, and then as high school starts - they start going their separate ways within their cliques.  The pair have always loved one another, but the timing was never right. Until they were in their final year of high school and Finn had one thing to do before he could be with Autumn which was break-up with his current girlfriend Sylvie - who was in the car with him when it crashed. What would have happened if Finn had stayed that night with Autumn? What if he hadn't decided to talk to Sylvie until the next day? If He Had Been With Me is a love story cut short before it even began, it is a story that reminds us that life can be fleeting- so if you love someone - act on it now as you may never get the chance.  I am now curious to read Book #2 which is told by a minor character in this book - Jack who was Finn's best friend.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3VmyPBj