This book of poems was a miss for me. While I did find a handful of them inspirational or introspective, I felt like I have been reading the same sentiments over and over again across social media but this time those sentiments were published in a book rather than online. I thought the artwork included was absolutely adorable, but I didn't quite see how it related to the content of the poems. But, I do appreciate how the book was broken up into different sections. Anyone could possibly pick up this book and find a poem or two that relates to their current situation, and then pick it up again at a different point in their life and find solace in a different set of poems in a different section of the book. I think this book of poems would appeal more to a younger audience than myself, high school students filled with angst and longing and struggling with who they are. I could see this book and its poems finding itself in twitter quotes and instagram posts with the likes of Rupi Kaur, but, overall, it was just not for me.

I don’t normally choose contemporary poetry to read so this was a great chance to read and explore my own love for poems and similar writing styles. Thank you @netgalley for the advanced reader copy to review.
The poetic entries in this book were sweet, heart breaking and heart-aching. The prose read more like a diary of a lost soul, or someone pining away for the one that got away, with a chance to return. I found this book to be more a collection of thoughts rather than a collection of poems. I anticipated that in the five sections of this book, the writing would be connected to each theme: aching, dreaming, loving, healing and rising. Unfortunately, all themes reverted primarily back to loss. There didn’t seems to be an exploration of the theses in reference to that loss, just thoughts and meanderings in prose format. Mid way the book has a glimmer of hope in linking back to the themes in the healing chapter where the author poses three statements: “what are you looking for”, “what do you want to be”, and “what do I do when I fail”. I longed for these sub themes to be further explored around the notion of healing during and after heartbreak, however this was followed by responses that reminded me of an inspirational quote book. True romantics of the world may swoon to this book. It was not my cup of tea, but it may be yours.

[3.5 Stars]

"I Hope You Stay" is a new poetry collection from Peppernell that deals with heartbreak, healing, self-care, and love. I've been a fan of Peppernell since I read the Pillow Thoughts series and I was very excited to get my hands on her newest work. I found the collection as a whole hopeful and sweet but some of the poems felt hollow throughout. I found her poems that seemed from personal experience shone the brightest while the others about "self-care" were trivial and the kind of thing you'll see in other poetry collections nowadays.

While this wasn't her strongest book I still enjoyed my read and as always her soft and welcoming writing style.

Book was great and heartfelt. Loved all the poems and the cover is just stunning. I think people will devour this book when it comes out and people will highly suggest it to one another.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for allowing me to read this book in exchange for a honest review.


Courtney Peppernell is a great storyteller and great poet. What i enjoy most about Peppernell's writing is her vivid imagery. "The jar shattered, and my heart fell to the floor. Now my heart is ripped and torn from all the pieces of glass" She has a great way to show emotion and describe exactly what she's feeling.

My favorite section of "I Hope You Stay" is the "You will dream" section. It is full of hope and light. It was nice to see optimism and hope in between pages of sadness and heartbreak.

Overall, this is a 4.5 (rounded to 5) star work for Peppernell. I do not believe it is her best work, however, I do believe her writing and imagery has improved vastly from her first.

Thank you to NetGalley and Andrew McMeel Publishing for allowing me to read this book in exchange for a honest review.

I read poetry every now and again and I thoroughly enjoyed I Hope You Stay. The messages throughout this were so well written and I could really picture the images the author wrote (such as how a poem described the sky spilling in sleepy colors; that’s one in particular I had stand out to me!). This was my first time reading a poetry book by Courtney and based on how much I loved I Hope You Stay and the connection I felt throughout her work, it definitely won’t be the last!

I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

This is a beautiful book of poems that were relateable and felt like they were being spoken to me in confidance and receiving advice from a dear friend.
This is a lovely book that touches your heart. Thank you for such a beautiful book of poems!

I received a free ebook copy of this book from Netgalley for an honest review.

Beautiful, moving, touching and eloquent. I Hope You Stay is personal and relatable with emotional experience. I cried, laughed and was deeply moved. Courtney Peppernell does not disappoint when it comes to poetry.

Well, I didn't enjoy this at all. This style of modern poetry has never really been my thing, even though I get the appeal, but this collection in particular felt plainly dull and unsubstantial. It has a hopeful message, focusing on the process of healing after going through a break up, but it sort of felt like reading random inspirational quotes on pinterest (and not very good ones, at that).

If there's something I love about poetry, is how it lets you experiment with words, get as creative as you want. But the author didn't really do any of that here. The wording was basic, nothing was uniquely phrased, or had any rhythm to it, and it was just... boring. It didn't evoke any emotion. I usually highlight some stuff even in poetry collections I don't enjoy very much, but that wasn't even the case here.

And, after a while, it just became repetitive, saying the exact same things with slightly different words. If you enjoy modern poetry, and mostly if you're going through a break-up right now, I'd say this could maybe work for you, but it wasn't my cup of tea at all.

I Hope You Stay by Courtney Peppernell is my first experience of this poet's work, and I came away wondering how I have never found my way to it and, indeed her, before. This is a thought-provoking collection that I very quickly devoured. Contained within are the universal themes of heartbreak and loss, yet the overall feelings that resonate throughout are of hope and resilience. I will look forward to reading more of Ms Peppernell's work in the future.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I had hoped to find within 'I Hope You Stay' a beautiful collection of heart-warming poetry. While there's no doubt that the poetry was meaningful and hopeful, I don't know that I particularly enjoyed it. Taking into consideration the reams of poetry collections out there, this one falls flat for me. Many of the 'poems' -- single sentences, a lot of the time -- are repetitions of the last, or a selection of words that you'd find put together on a Tumblr post. 'I Hope You Stay' had potential, but it missed the mark for me.

I  received a free digital copy of this book from Netgalley for an honest review.

I've read several of this authors poetry collections and this one definitely did not disappoint. Courtney has a way of digging out emotions and long lost memories that you had forgotten.

A solid thee stars for me. The message of this poetry collection is very hopeful. It's guiding you through a break up and reminds you that it's okay to be in pain, hopeless but also that eventually you will heal and find new love.

There were some poems that really spoke to me and were powerful but also plenty which didn't touch me. That's okay though, it doesn't mean they were bad I just didn't have a connection with them. I definitely enjoyed most of them though and I will definitely check out previous works of this author because my interests are peaked.

"I Hope You Stay" poetry collection is a reminder of the strength and hope that is found after going through heartache and pain. Courtney Peppernell's poems are universal alongside being completely personal. There are five sections, with poems ranging from free verse to short form. This poetry collection covers many topics from heartbreak, to dreaming of and finding a new love, to healing the heart to eventually finding peace.
I was so excited seeing her newest collection for I fell in love with her other series, "Pillow Thoughts" late last year, 2019. The artwork she displays on the cover and her sections, are simple but its so profound to me. I could continue to study the artwork re-reading her poems and knowing her words will perspectively change the design from my original thoughts. She is becoming one of my favorite modern poets.

"What are you looking for
Listen to others and yourself. When you listen
to the way you act from others, you often find
yourself becoming more self-aware. When
you listen to yourself, you learn how to set
boundaries for other people

What do you want to be
Do you like loud parties or small, intimate
dinners; do you think about choices and
consequences; are you there for others or only
yourself? The hardest critic is yourself,
but self-reflections is good for the soul

What do I do when I fail
You get back up. You will fail at many things
in your life, sometimes over and over again.
But the point is to continue forward; no matter
how big or small the failure, you are always
learning, always renewing."

To be honest, this is not my favorite book by Courtney Peppernell. BUT, I really liked the first half of it. It was intimate and very nice to read. As a whole, I enjoyed most of it, even though i think i would have prefered something a little less "spilled thoughts" and more "poetry-like" (if that makes sense). I liked that the book was separated in sections, and really liked the otter illustrations.

2.5 stars

It was okay, there were some poems I liked but overall it was very basic.
I think that if you're going through heartbreak this poetry collection will connect more with you.
The book has 5 parts, you will ache, you will dream, you will love, you will heal and you will rise. I think the topics discussed were nicely done and there was good advice in the poems it just wasn't my cup of tea.

Hello my new favorite read! What a great read to start 2020 with, I simply LOVE LOVE LOVE this!

If I can describe this group of poems in one word it would be a "Friend", those poems were so kind, empowering and above all they were genuine and honest, after all she started the poems with "You Will Ache".

I really liked how Peppernell sectioned her poems into:
You will ache
You will dream
You will love
You will heal
You will rise

This is bad, bad poetry. I read only a handful and had to give up. This reads like middle school confessionals.

I suppose in today's meme-obsessed society this collection would pass as "poetry," but I can tell you I was expecting something altogether different when I requested and began this title. I did truly appreciate Peppernell's messaging about heartache, new love, and healing, but the execution was an overall disappointment .

This collection did not offer new perspective on the themes. It did not evoke emotion. It did not attempt to play with form, or word choice, or rhythm. The occasional brilliant line was generally surrounded by rote verse. Some poems did not even read on a coherent theme.

I don't doubt there is an audience for this work - young girls experiencing their first loves and heartbreaks that need a balm for their emotions, for example, but as an adult reader, this collection lacked insight and maturity.

Perfect for fans of Alicia Cook and Arch Hades.
A lovely poetry collection that explores themes of love, relationships, heartbreak and self confidence among others.

There are some fanatstic lines that I want to share with everyone so I'll definitely be buying a physical copy for my library.

Some of the poems felt overly long even though they aren't - I think it is the formatting that felt them harder to follow as they were just in one large paragraph.
I loved about 80% of the poems where every word was fantastic. Some of the others were just nice put not as perfect.

I'll certainly be checking out this poet's previous collections.