This is a hauntingly yet intimately beautiful story of Ellie, August, and Regina and the paths of their lives. When 17 year old Ellie commits suicide, she lingers around those who love her. Ellie is a writer and she tells her story in letters, notes, and journal entries. Tragic yet hopeful, this is a novel for grades 9 and above. It is one I will not soon forget. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to be an early reader in exchange for my review.

I was given an advance reader copy for an honest review, thank you NetGalley.

Wow what an incredible read. First off lots of trigger warnings about suicide and abuse. A Breath Too Late is told from the perspective of Ellie, who is lingering to watch her family right after her suicide. The prose are amazing, and it is told in a sort of epistolary novel kind of way, as a note with each chapter as a letter to her family or more abstract things like life, depression, memories. Very hard yet not hard to get through, the pain is real, and it will hurt your heart, but leave you with hope. Highly recommend but please please be careful if you are triggered by suicide or abuse.

A heartbreaking story that delves into several difficult topics. I laughed and cried throughout. A must read.

I really enjoyed this book! It made me laugh and cry throughout the entire thing. I think it will be a good resource for those teens who are or have contemplated suicide. This book will really open up their eyes and make them see what they have to lose as well as how their family members will be affected.

I LOVED this book!!! I normally do not read books about suicide but this one was not what I was expecting and I’m glad I took a chance on it.
Fortunately, there are not any gruesome details about the suicide so that’s a win for me.
It was hard to read about Ellie’s life that led up to her suicide. It’s heartbreaking to think that things like that truly happen in the real world.
This book was so well written that I could feel the pain, anguish, and fear that her mother felt and the pain that August felt. I liked the switch of then and now as Ellie starts remembering things in her life that she has forgotten and how she starts noticing things she never noticed before about her loved ones.
I highly recommend this book not just for young adults, but “mature” adults as well.

I received an electronic copy of this book from Netgalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group - Henry Holt and Co. in exchange for an honest review.

Beautifully written with cinematic detail and emotional turmoil that can only be described as elegance against adversity, Ellie's haunting story of abuse urges us to locate beauty in darkness. For anyone who has attempted to navigate the bleak, black cloud of depression, Ellie's story is a travel guide for the dark times, for finding that spark of light that could catch fire tether you to life. A poetic title hints at the fragile path of existence that can be a rallying cry to push on when a person can't shut out the pain and seeks to end their battle - it is suicide prevention presented as a song. The writing style of Rocky Callen is a windswept force all its own and the passionate prose and effervescent sparkle of imagery will make you believe that there is always hope. There is always hope. Don't find this out too late.

Yikes. For fans of dark stories of terrible things happening to women and girls, this book will fit the bill. It was so so so hard to pick this book up again and again, and I found myself skimming just to get through it. It felt very “Ellen Hopkins” level of dark to me, and I honestly cannot stomach that level of depths-wallowing. Topic should of depression and suicide and the step by step slide into a horribly abusive relationship ... so devastating, especially when real women have and will experience this.

A Breath Too Late is a heartbreaking, moving, intense, yet beautifully written novel about a young teen, Ellie Walker, who, after years of living in an abusive home situation, ends her life during her senior year of high school.

The novel begins when the spirit of Ellie relives her life as it unfolded prior to her death. Through this experience, she is able to come to an understanding of not only her thoughts and feelings, but also those of her mother and her close friend, August. She comes to regret her decision after seeing the effect her suicide has on those she loved, as well as seeing the possibilities that were open to her. Unfortunately she was unable to see them at the time because of her overwhelming feelings of despair and depression.

This book is heart wrenching and difficult to read because of the subject matter. As a result, it may not be a good choice for some readers. However, the topic of teen suicide is dealt with in a thought provoking and sensitive manner. At the end of the novel, author Rocky Callen gives very helpful resources for anyone dealing with suicidal thoughts.

Thank you to author Rocky Callen, Henry Holt and Company, and Net Galley for giving me the opportunity to read the ARC of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this arc. All thoughts are my own.

TW: physical abuse, depression, suicide

This is a hauntingly beautiful novel about what it means to take your own life and what it does to the people you leave behind.

Ellie commits suicide just days before she graduates high school, escaping her abusive father. Ellie leaves behind her mother and August, her childhood friend that she eventually reconnects with. The story is told in a poetic style in a way that makes the story such a compelling, quick read. Juxtaposing between the past and the current, this story manages to capture the heartache and the hope that Ellie had and lost. I cried no less than 10 times.

Ellie manages to escape the majority of her father’s beatings, but her mother doesn’t. She expands on why she is mad at her mother for staying and how she eventually comes to see her mother’s plan to get them out. She talks about how her and August grew together and apart and then back together.

August giving her father what he deserves and her mother making her escape really seals this book. Ellie also grows and comes to regret her choice when she gets an outside look on the situations.

The book does not advocate for suicide, but rather prevention, not a “stay because you never know who will miss you” but a “stay because you’re needed, wanted, and missable. Stay because you’re stronger than you think”.

It’s a story that I think everyone needs to read.

*Triggers: Suicide and physical abuse
This book really caught me off guard. When a book deals with suicide one is under the impression that it may tug at your heartstrings. With All the Bright Places we met Finch at the top of the bell tower (different than the movie) so we were somewhat prepared, but the author did a great jo making us fall in love with him first. In Thirteen Reasons Why, we met Hannah and in chapter two or three we lost her and the book focused on the events that lead up to her suicide.
A Breath Too Late is different in that Ellie has already committed suicide and the novel is “letters” written to her mother and August, her father and depression. I thought I was mentally prepared for this book “knowing how it ends” but I was WRONG! It still kicked me in the gut.
Ellie and her mother have a great bond. They are carefree until one day they see a “Cadillac” in the drive and Ellie’s life changes FOREVER. Her mother had run away when she was pregnant to protect Ellie. She knew she couldn’t run again and tried to protect Ellie the only way she knew how: to take the brunt of the anger and abuse and would lock Ellie’s door from the inside. We only learn of the ways the mother tried through flashback. Ellie’s eyes are opened to a bigger picture as she remembers these life-changing events in her life.
Though life is rough at home, she has August. August has been Ellie’s best friend since kindergarten. They have a secret clearing and barn bridge they use as their escape from reality. Ellie tells stories and August draws they. They vow to be Best Friends for Life!
August calls Ellie Boney, a nickname he’s used for years. One day a middle school classmate uses it as an insult, and the cherry on top is that August doesn’t defend her. Ellie sees this as betrayal, yet another person who has let her down and puts her walls back up and boards the doors and windows.
August doesn’t really reenter her life until senior year. He encourages her to follow her dreams not knowing her father is ready to set her dreams on fire, literally.
Read to find out what breaks this rekindled friendship, is the straw that breaks the camels back, and learn how her mother learns to fly!

I wasn’t sure I was going to finish this book. I had to put it down and walk away for awhile. It is heavy, constantly heavy. It felt like there was absolutely no light at the end of the tunnel. I finally picked it back up and finished it, which I’m kind of glad I did, mainly because I hate leaving looks unfinished, but wow. I don’t feel like I was the intended audience; I know as an adult without suicidal thoughts that I’m really not the intended audience, but I don’t often feel that way with YA books. I could see how someone struggling with suicide or abuse could use this book to see that things don’t get better just because they’re no longer here. So I didn’t hate it for that reason, but I also didn’t understand the rave reviews it has so far on Goodreads. I appreciated the help section at the end for students needing to reach out.

This is such a beautiful, heartbreaking book. After Ellie commits suicide, she has to reconcile her memories and regret in order to let go and move on. Witnessing the devastation she left behind and reliving memories of what led her to such total despair helps her see that she had so much to live for and that depression and abuse kept her from seeing the hope that was really there. The author's preface really sets the context and makes it clear that this is not a glorification of suicide, but a plea for those who are hurting to stay. I sobbed at the end of this book because Ellie felt so real to me.

A Breath Too Late by Rocky Callen is perfect for fans of 13 Reasons Why. Ellie is a high school senior who at one point lived a sweet life with her mom and had the perfect best friend. When her father comes back into her life, he brings pain and abuse, first on her mom, then on her. Ellie’s best friend is the boy with eyes you can trip and fall into. He’s been there by her side since kindergarten. But as the awkward teen years hit, so does her father. Ellie is ashamed of the physical and emotional bruises and pushes her only friend out of her life. The book starts after she takes her own life and lets her explore her memories leading up to her death as well as the events that happen after. Sometimes we are in a dark place and simply cannot see the light that is in front of us. Normally, I would say that I didn’t care for the ending of a book where a teen takes her own life, but the resolution of this book is perfectly satisfying although I wish she would have held on. #netgalley #abreathtoolate #RockyCallen Publish date: April 28, 2020

Whew, this one was intense. Somehow, though, I think the message is uplifting to those who are truly struggling with thoughts of suicide. I wasn’t a fan of the style and how it was written at first - it’s very unique - but it grew on me, and now I can’t imagine it being told any other way.

This book was both devastating and beautiful. I finished it in an afternoon. The subject matter is timely and will hopefully carry the message for teens to reach out for help when things get too big.

This book is about teen suicide. The fear with this type of books is that...will it trigger someone else to take their own life? And why? This book is different from, Girl in Pieces, All he Bright Places and Girl Interrupted in that the perspective is after Ellie has taken her life. The author gives very little insight into the method of her suicide.

Now Seventeen year old Ellie is gone but not entirely. She is stuck. Stuck in memories, stuck in depression, and stuck in the aftermath of a world where she no longer lives and is forced to watch the people around her process their grief. Ellie experiences the debilitating sadness her mother is enduring as well as the pain and sorrow of her childhood best friend and now boyfriend, August.

It is heart wrenching and not pretty. Ellie sees first hand how she has devastated those who love her most and she realizes too late that she cannot undo her suicide and restore her life. Suicide is a FINAL act in what is your life. And the ones you leave behind are left to pick up the pieces.

Author, Rocky Callen writes eloquently and beautifully using language that I felt mesmerizing.

This is a tough read, and will haunt you, but it is a novel that is going to get attention.

The cover is beautiful.

This is a beautiful and power book, just a bit too heavy for my current head space. I am confident that some of my students will devour it because of the subject matter and the writing style. Well written and very different from many of the books I have read on the topic, I enjoyed the idea of the story that was being told in this way, it just was a struggle emotionally for me to get through. Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange or my honest opinion.

A book about suicide that I can finally get behind! Most do not address what the suicide victim might think afterwards, which of course they can't in real life. But this author addresses the repercussions of her decision but also looks at the reasons behind it. Very thought provoking and a great discussion starter for teenagers and anyone else suffering from depression and abuse.

Devastating, yet stunning , raw, beautiful, deeply moving. Whatever I write here will not do the book justice. Seventeen year old Ellie has killed herself and shortly after finds herself at her home, with some memories missing. As she puts memories together, we realise that suicide is a permanent decision. There is always hope even though life may seem hopeless at that one moment. So beautifully written!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Narrator is telling the story after she has committed suicide. It is a very dark and depressing tale of a young woman in an abusive home and her final act to get out of it.

I could not finish the book. It is one of those highly emotional YA problem novels. I did not find the epistolary format to be effective in telling the story (chapters are address to her mother, friend, and sometimes to just 'words). I did not find it to be as touching as other YA books about suicide.

Whoever compared this to I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson is truly misguided.