Wow! What a fantastic story portraying a really challenging situation and how friendship and love develops through constraints. Some real emotion in there and I had tears at some points but laughter at others. 100% must read!

Due to horrific accidents, Alfie and Alice have both ended up in hospital. Neighbours on the recovery ward, outgoing Alfie takes it upon himself to cheer up and help Alice... although he can’t see her.
Alice’s disfiguring burns have crippled her confidence, and she won’t let anyone see her. But Alfie might just be the one to change that.

I chewed through this book in one sitting. There was something about it that just made me keep reading... probably the ‘when will Alfie finally lay eyes on her?!’ suspense. While I may personally find the romance angle a little bit hard to believe, this book is sweet, and highlights both human fragility, and strength. Well worth a read.

Absolutely loved this. Great characters you really empathised with. Alice's struggle to accept the new version of her was beautifully written and Alfie's difficulties in moving forward were so well described. Great book.

I hoped that this book would be a quirky and different story. It is essentially a light-hearted and heart-warming story, but I was very disappointed in the book. The writing is pedestrian, and the characters one-dimensional, so that reading it became a bit of a chore. Not one I would recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ahh I wanted to love this so much! Everything about it hooked me from the premise to the adorable cover art and I was so excited when I got approved for the ARC. Unfortunately it was not the book for me.

The writing was great and the premise was lovely. I adored Alfie and Alice grew on me. Watching their relationship blossom was sweet but ultimately the pacing was way too slow for me. Taking place almost entirely in the one place is a tough sell and the side characters definitely helped but it just dragged too much. It struggled to hold my interest.

That said I would read something by this author again, but perhaps something a little faster paced.

This was an honest and heart-wrenching story which has left me wanting to know what happens next. Alice and Alfie have burrowed into my heart and their individual accidents and recoveries were depicted with painful accuracy. The hospital scenes and procedures were well written and the whole book was a joy to read.

This book made me laugh, it made me cry. It made me feel a kaleidoscope of emotions.
I absolutely loved it. It was such a heartfelt journey of a book.
I love the concept of Alfie and Alice falling in love without ever having seeing each other. It definitely made me think on how superficial people can be and act. How you can know someone without knowing what they look like. Appearance definitely isn’t everything.
Both Alice and Alfie go through their own struggles. They’re both coming to terms with difficult injuries that have altered their lives permanently and by chance, they happen to help each other more than they could ever realise.
I’d highly recommend reading this.

A book which takes you, with Alice Gunnersley, a high-flying business executive, on a difficult journey.
Suffering terrible burns on 40% of her body, she shuts herself down, refusing to speak, to interact, to see herself in a mirror. Shut away behind curtains round her hospital bed, she is an enigma to Alfie, an amputee in the neighbouring bed. Alfie himself is trying to come to terms with losing his closest friends in the car accident which resulted in him losing his leg and spending months battling with severe pain. Alfie though is the patient whose humour helps bond together the patients in this rehab ward. It is his tenacity and humour which lightens the novel as he banters verbally with a crusty nonagenarian patient and tries to break through Alice's passive resistance.
A star in this story is Nurse Angels - Mother Angel - who, at this time of coronavirus, exemplifies the best of NHS staff.
Alice's best friend Sarah breezes in from Australia bringing a breath of fresh air and hope.

All of these characters, both major and minor, are portrayed with a skill that makes Before I Saw You a very readable novel.

I chose this book due to the interesting premise of two strangers in a hospital recovery ward who get to know each other without actually seeing each other. Alice and Alfie strike up a relationship between them and pose the question whether you can fall in love with someone you don’t actually physically meet. With heartbreaking and heartwarming stories between them it was a pleasure to read which draws you in from the beginning.

My only issue was the ending seemed a little abrupt and maybe rushed? With the wonderful slow build up of the story throughout the book I was just a little disappointed at the end which is a real shame.

But overall the book had some wonderful moments and was thought-provoking enough to enjoy it non-the-less.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy. I just loved this book. Is beauty skin deep?? How does one see who you are without seeing you. Funny, we take sight for granted and much of our thoughts on a person is Based onwhat we see. But if we don’t see someone but get to know them through their voice only we start to conjur up an image of the person and can see into their soul. Can this lead to more than a fleeting relationship.

We must also remember that image is not only what others see but also how a person sees themselves. What if your image is shattered by something out of your control. Coping can take many forms And affects each individually.

But life must go on and it is how we deal with it

A must read both sad and profound. I was right there with the main charwcters. I highly recommend it

I was given access to this book because the publisher thought I would enjoy it....and I certainly did, I devoured it in one night, tears flowing ( happy ones, honest! ) in bed at 1am. Though an avid reader, I have found it really hard recently to concentrate on any book for any great length of time so this was.a joy to read. Engaging characters - I was rooting for them! Would definitely recommend!

Alice and Alfie meet in a hospital rehabilitation ward. Alice has suffered 40% burns and is unwilling to speak or let anybody see her and demands the curtain around her cubicle remains closed. Alfie has lost a leg in a car accident and is the life and sole of the ward. Alfie manages to gain Alice's trust and soon they form a very strong bond, but without ever seeing each other.

A funny, heart renching and beautiful love story. Absolutely loved it.

This is a Jojo Moyes type of feel-good story but I found it to be boring, predictable and unoriginal. I did not warm to any of the characters and the hospital ward setting did not run true. I gave up half way through and read the end which was again typical of this type of book.

"Our scars are simply the mark of our stories. They show we've lived our life, and most of all that we have survived it. Don't hide your story away in the shadows."

This is the story of Alice who is recovering from severe burns and Alfie who is recovering from a leg amputation. With a curtain between them they never actually see each other but that doesn't stop a friendship forming, one that will change both of their lives.

I loved this book, it was like a warm hug. My favour part were the snippy, sarcastic interactions but I also adored all the secondary characters like Nurse Angles, Mr P and Alice's Best friend Sarah. I liked the slow build of getting to know Alice and Alfie, their histories and how they were working through the current trauma. I have read a few reviews that said they were disappointed with the ending but I thought it was just like any romance film and was happy with it.

This is definitely one for fans of The Flat Share and Me Before You.

Thank you to Transworld publishers and Netgalley for my gifted e-copy in exchange for review.

Before I Saw You is follows Alice and Alfie who have both been involved in horrific accidents and meet in hospital, although not face to face! The book had me gripped from the first few pages in a way that hasn’t happened to me with a book for a very long time. I just could not put it down. It is such a well written book and you are pulled in emotionally and are willing them to jump the hurdles they face to have the happy ending they deserve. Even the ending was perfect- it is honestly such a wonderful book, the best I’ve read in a while. I’ll be recommending to everyone and looking out for more by Emily Houghton!!

Before I Saw You by Emily Houghton a deep and darker five-star read than you think it is. I honestly went into this thinking it was a bit of a romcom set in hospital, little did I know what it actually was. But I loved it, it was so much better than I thought it would be, it is dark and challenging in places, but there is hope, warmth and strength. I am crying as I write this review as some of the moments in the story were so powerful that I was openly sobbing on the train at one point and didn’t even care. Alfie and Alice will grip you as they face the new life they have in front of them, you will be dragged along as they come to terms with one moment changing lives, pulled to the darkest depths and then lifted by each other. They aren’t the only amazing characters in this story there are some others that will pull you in and fill the story. If you are looking for something light and breezy this isn’t for you, but if you are looking for encapsulating, gripping, something to sink into and forget the world then pick this one up right now. Emily Houghton I can only imagine what you will come up with next, as this is one of the best debuts I have read in a long time.

This book is a humorous, romantic and heartbreakingly beautiful story of two strangers who help each other to mend their shattered identities, after devastating accidents which brought them together. The story is told from the perspectives of the main characters Alfie and Alice. The multiple points of view provides a deeper insight into the thoughts and feelings of both characters who are trying to learn how to accept who they are now.

At first I didn’t really like Alice because I found her to be spoilt, rude and extremely shallow. But as the story progressed my feelings for Alice changed. I started to understand that the way she acted came from a place that only a burn victim could understand. My favourite part of this book is Alfie because of his charming personality and infectious humour. The way he interacts with the other patients on the ward was very funny and entertaining.


I really enjoyed this book and I would definitely recommend it.

I received an advanced copy for free, and this is my honest opinion.

What a fabulous story! I loved the characters and the developing and unfurling of the prickly, resentful lead. The relationships between the patients on the wars were warm and humorous. And the central relationship shows beautifully how the core of us is what matters. An uplifting, funny and all round wonderful read!

Romance is not a genre I particularly like but I was attracted to the unusual nature of this story. Alice and Alfie are both in hospital. Alice has been in the fire and has 40% burns. Traumatised she refuses to speak and hides behind the curtains in her cubicle. Alfie has also been an accident and has lost his leg. He is a a lovely character who does his best to cheer everyone up. This is the story of how Alfie helps Alice and how patients can help each other.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters are great and the difficulties of being in hospital are very well described. I am currently incapacitated with two broken arms (I'm dictating this review) so really related to the situation of the characters. Thanks to net galley and the publisher for the ARC.

I have just looked through previous reviews which all gave the basics of the story so I won’t outline the storyline. I will tell you that this book is a treat! There admittedly are some things to nitpick about like mixed gender wards - but this is a novel not a true story!
I loved the characters on the ward, all of whom were very different but who all looked out for each other. There was a lot of humour in the awful situation, led by Alfie, who, although very traumatised by his accident on the inside, created a camaraderie between them all, even grumpy old Mr Peterson couldn’t fight Alfie’s good humoured banter.
Alfie and Alice’s injuries were horrific, and how they dealt with them was so well written, and believable.
Other reviewers have thought the ending was rushed, I thought it was perfect, and adding to it would have diminished all that went before.
I really enjoyed this book, and was sorry to leave all the characters behind. I will definitely be searching for more books by Emily Houghton.