I was really excited for concept of this book, but the execution fell flat for me. I thought this book was going to be an amazing romance to coming of age novel, but it was very much a stream of consciousness book. It was a very short read, and I flew through it because not much was happening. There are so many moving parts and separate elements, and you would expect some of them to connect at some point, but they don't connect at all. The main character was really difficult to empathize with. Her actions are not explained or given much though. For a book about working through grief, I feel like the book follows her life but doesn't truly explore her life. I was interested in how the phone would be the source of connection for the main couple. The phone connection was extremely cheesy! The reason for the phone connection was never explained, so this was yet another plot point that never got fleshed out. Overall, I'm just really disappointed with this book.

Stunning, touching, and heartbreaking. There was no way I couldn't love it! Most of the characters were stunningly done, and very engaging. Some parts were a bit boring, but the ending tied everything together very well. The author did an amazing job of making you feel how the character was feeling, and it was stunning from start to finish. The main character seemed a bit unlikable, and though I liked her at first, I slowly began to dislike her more and more as the story went on. I felt sympathetic to her at first because grieving is different for everyone, and losing someone you love is very hard, but when the flashbacks were first beginning to show up in the book, and she was acting the same, even when Sam was still alive, I began to dislike her more. Overall, I think this book was a 4/5 out of 5 stars.

Let me start off by saying thank you to Netgalley for letting me review this!

I honestly don’t know what to say. Throughout this book there were times when I was interested and times when I wasn’t. But I still thought this book was pretty good especially the end. The characters were okay, they weren’t that memorable except of course Sam. It literally hurt every time I read about him and Julie. The ending honestly saved the book for me, it was so sad. Overall, though this is a beautiful story and I hope that whoever else reads this likes it more than I did. 3/5 stars :)

First off, the cover is so gorgeous and that was initially what got me interested in this book. Grief and loss and coping with that loss are important topics and I think this really hit the nail on the head with that. I won't lie, I did cry at least an entire ocean while reading this. There are lighter moments but the the book overall does have a heavier feel to it. It is definitely worth the ride though. I really enjoyed the characters and can see this becoming a movie.
*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review this title!*

This book captivated me with all my emotions. It was heart wrenching at times to feel what th characters were going through and you really feel for them.

When I picked You've Reached Sam I was ready to be emotionally wracked. Just reading the premise I expected to be at least touched with the story, if not literally crying (because I don't do that often).
Instead, most of the time, this book made me feel... confused.

It had original part: the phone calls between late boyfriend and alive girlfriend, and I do appreciate it's uniqueness, but if I am being completely honest, after a while I just didn't see the point.
I blame the execution for that part. The idea was good.

I also blame the main character who seriously lacked manners and empathy.

I also didn't understand how she, and people around her, acted as if everyone should move on so quickly. She getting rid of all of her stuff, her mother advising her and people in school in general. One would say it's been 6 months since Sam's accident, not a week.

The book was written in first person, following Julie's POV.
The author's voice was good and I believe with time it will improve with time.

In my opinion this was a solid ya book with magical elements that made it unique, and it was good for entertainment purpose.

Reading this book was an experience, it got too sad for me to handle at times, and sometimes it was equally heartwarming. it reminded me of P.S I Love You a lot and I loved the characters. the book starts with past and present two changing time periods alternatively but I like how the author has dealt with it and it fits with the theme of the book. How every person deals with their grief and loss is portrayed well in the book.

A really sweet, sentimental story that is dampened by an unlikable main character.

I honestly wanted to cut Julie some slack in the beginning. Grieving is an incredibly personal process and everyone handles it differently, so I was willing to tolerate a lot of her anger. But then I realised she's just as selfish and rude in the flashbacks. So it's not her grief and sorrow that's making her lash out and treat everyone like crap, that's just who she is and it makes for a very frustrating and unenjoyable book.

Which is such a shame because I think the story, at it's heart, is a really good one and one I think will resonate with any reader who has ever struggled with letting someone go and moving on. The last chapter and epilogue are really quite touching, it's just that I know I would have felt more emotionally if I had cared about Julie. But I didn't. And Sam deserved better, quite honestly.

But overall, still a decent debut and I'm interested in seeing what DT comes up with next!

This book is so emotional, and I loved every word of it. Sam is Julie’s boyfriend who passes away their senior year of high school. I hate giving away spoilers in reviews, but let’s just say this is the story of not only Julie healing, but Sam’s family and other friends. So incredibly well written.

Billed as a cross between Gayle Forman’s, “If I Stay” and director Makoto Shinkai’s animated masterpiece, “Your Name,” Dustin Thao’s debut, “You’ve Reached Sam” grabbed my attention immediately, both from the synopsis and the gorgeous anime-style cover so I was thrilled to receive an e-ARC copy of the book from Wednesday Books/St. Martin’s Press, through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

“You’ve Reached Sam” follows our main character Julie, who is grieving the loss of her boyfriend Sam who died in a car accident. One day, she places a call to Sam’s phone, and something unexpected happens: he picks up.

This book was a beautifully written story of grief, loss, and moving on. Right from the first page, you’re made aware of the fact that this book will break your heart. Julie’s struggles to accept the loss of Sam, and her attempts to hold onto him once they have that fateful phone conversation will resonate with anyone who has experienced loss. And despite knowing that the book will only end in heartbreak, as a reader, you’ll find it hard to look away from the page, until it’s beautifully bittersweet and ultimately life-affirming ending.

If you enjoyed, “History Is All You Left Me” by Adam Silvera or “Goodbye Days” by Jeff Zentner, then “You’ve Reached Sam” is definitely a book you’ll want to read! It’s a very solid debut from author Dustin Thao.

The book is scheduled for publication on November 9, 2021 from Wednesday Books/St. Martin’s Press.

My thanks, as always, to Wednesday Books/St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read it early!

This was so sad. You know where things are headed and despite that it’s still so sad by the end. This book is a really interesting look at how people deal with the death of a loved one. It was painful seeing how much Julie struggled and how badly she wanted to hold on to Sam. I did enjoy the parts with all her friends, and when she got closer to Oliver and her moments with Mika. And the epilogue was the perfect conclusion

*3,5 stars.
First of all, I want to thank for the ARC provided by the publisher in exchange of an honest review! 💜

Alexa, play The one thay got away by Katy Perry. I knew I would cry a lot with this book, and honestly my room is full of tissues right now.
Grief is one of the most peculiar feelings, a lot of people don't know how to deal with it and for a 17 years old teenage girl it couldn't be so much different, it's even harder.
Julie is one of the most human characters I've ever seen. I mean, when you have your whole life planned and in a couple hours your plans are wrecked and the love of your life dies, of course you’re not expected to be fine. She passes through the anger, the sadness and the loss with so many raw feelings that I got myself ugly-crying 70% of the story.
This book talks a lot of how we have our whole lifes planned and how we focus so much on the future that sometimes we forgot to live the present, to be happy and tell the ones we love how they are important to us. And it talks about grief too, about true grief. About how we keep with our lives even if everything goes wrong, and especially when you have to go on without someone you love.
I finished the book with a few questions about their relashionship and about the plot, but the writing is really poetic, beautiful and it's a quick reading if you want something to cry. Enjoyed it so much! 💓

This story is one that I knew would be heartbreaking from the beginning. But it’s also a kind of cathartic read. It’s a story that really explores grief and how people deal with it in such a varying amount of ways.

Thank you to Wednesday Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

You've Reached Sam follows Julie after her boyfriend, Sam, a Japanese-American high school senior, dies in a car crash. They'd had all these plans for their futures, and with him gone, Julie doesn't know how to move on.

Until she calls his phone and he picks up.

This was so utterly sweet and heartbreaking. My goodness if you need a good, long cry is this the book from you. Right out of page 1, You've Reached Sam hits you in the feels.

For a debut, this is just so beautifully written. There aren't enough YA books that talk about grief, and this one does it so well. It's touching, seeing Julie learn to navigate life while also trying to learn how to say goodbye.

It's a hard book to read, but harder still to put down. Do yourself a favor and preorder it!

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for this eArc in exchange for an honest review.

I’m currently sobbing writing this…thanks for hurting me.

When I say I was terrified to read this book, I meant it. I knew it would hurt so much, and I don’t know why I do this to myself. It hurt my heart to its core, but it was so good. I never know how to process books about grief because I always feel them so deeply, and this was no exception. Julie trying to learn how to let go of Sam and move on without allowing herself to process her grief but then getting a second chance to say goodbye? Like what? It was so much in the best way and my heart may never recover. I’m going to go cry again.

DNF. I really liked the premise but the writing did not work for me at all. It wouldn't be fair to the book if I finished reading and gave it a low rating.

I was excited to read this based on the premise. I expected it to be sad but it's actually somewhat sadder than I thought. It took me awhile to get into the book--I did not warm to the narrator for quite awhile. The detached style of writing was somewhat difficult for me too but it works for the main character, who has detached herself from her old life and the people in it and is somewhat numb from grief. So it works for the character and the setting it just took a bit to get used to it.
I liked the side characters, expecially Mika, Sam's cousin.

it wasn't quite what I expected but it was an interesting book

Wow... I am obsessed! The writing was relatable, thoughtful, and just beautiful. I loved all the characters and their development throughout the story. The shift in energy and emotions while reading were great. I swear I felt all the raw, heartbreaking emotions as our main character Julie was feeling them. I laughed and cried, like ugly cried, and it was amazing! Read this book if you want to be emotionally destroyed in the best possible way! Yes, yes, yes 1000× YES! Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

A beautiful YA novel that touches on issues and feelings of grief, loss, and coping. This is decidedly a YA novel and the characters act, think, and speak like teens so I feel like it will resonate more with readers currently in that age group. Overall a good read, but I would recommend it to YA lovers particularly.