“What we carry is each other and our family … and that is everything.”
- What We Carry by Kalyn Fogarty

Ohhh this beautiful novel is so sad. TW: infertility and miscarriage.

Congratulations to Kalyn Fogarty for publishing the novel she wanted to read (but couldn't find) when she had a miscarriage in 2017. This story is autobiographical and relatable to people who has experienced a miscarriage or love someone who has.

The premise: Cassidy has consistently checked off achievements in her life: education at a prestigious university, happy marriage with Owen, and a fulfilling career as an equine veterinarian. However, achieving the goal of motherhood brings heartache and grief as she and Owen struggle with infertility and then suffer a miscarriage 20 weeks into her pregnancy.

Readers experience these events through Cassidy and Owen as well as Cassidy's sister and her self-centered mother. The last chapter is lovely, and thankfully the novel ends on a hopeful note.

The full-cast narration by Kathe Mazur, Xe Sands, and Holter Graham was well done with great emotion. The voice of Cassidy's mother was spot-on to reflect the character's annoying personality.

Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the review copy.

This was a important read, but a very depressing book. Cassidy and her husband want to have a baby. When they have a late-term miscarriage her life begins to fall apart as she cannot focus on anything else. Everything becomes centered around the miscarriage. There is so much guilt throughout that I almost didn’t finish because it was so depressing. It was well written but the whole situation was very heavy-hearted and you have to be in the right mood to read this one. It was an emotional roller-coaster with grief at the forefront. This book is not for everyone.

This is a good, though not easy listen. Cassidy and Owen are a happy couple. They both love their work, have a beautiful home and all that a young couple in love could want. Except for the one thing they wants the most, a baby of their own. They become pregnant and then 20 weeks into the pregnancy suffer a devastating miscarriage. The loss (though so much more common than anyone acknowledges or talks about to help couples know they’re not alone) is devastating and rather than bringing them closer as a couple isolates them emotionally from each other. Anger, depression, frustration all bubbling up with no healthy outlet. Will they make it? And what happens when they become pregnant again while still reeling from their loss? Their journey is real, emotional, heartfelt, painful, and thought provoking. The narration was great and added to wonderful experience.

What We Carry follows Cassidy as she deals with a late-term miscarriage. It is told mainly though her POV, but also includes the point of views of her husband, Owen, mother, June, and sister, Claire.

Typically I enjoy books told through multiple POVs, but I didn't quite get the need for it here. If anything, it was distracting. Neither Claire nor June's POVs added anything to the storyline.

While emotional and seemingly realistic, I kept looking for meaning in things, but found none. (Like the POVs of June and Claire.) It made the story more of a miss for me.

I listened to the audiobook. Each POV has a different narrator- which I always appreciate. Overall, I felt the audiobook moved slowly and sped it up. All of the narrators did a good job in terms of clarity and articulation. I always enjoy Xe Sands when she narrates (she reads Claire's POV in this book). Kitty Hendrix narrates June. I was annoyed whenever June's chapters came around, but it was more my dislike of the character than the narrator.

I received a copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

After a struggle to conceive, Cassidy and Owen experience the tragedy of a miscarriage at 20 weeks. The trauma of the situation impacts their lives and relationships deeply.

Cassidy struggles to grieve and share that grief with Owen. Her anger over the unfairness of the loss, fear of forgetting her lost child and her own tense relationship with him mom all tangle together.

Can she and Owen find their way through? Will they heal? What happens when they unexpectedly find themselves pregnant only months after their loss?

This book delves in to the depths of pregnancy loss. There are a myriad of emotions explored throughout the story. I can see this resonating with those who've experienced a miscarriage.

The narrators were pleasant to listen.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this book by K Fogerty. The characters were easy to relate to and their complex relationships were not unlike some of my own.
The topic of the book is pregnancy and miscarriages. Along with the fierce desire to become pregnant and the fears of complications. Although a heavy topic I found the book entertaining and humorous. And at the same time insightful and thought provoking.
The relationships were complex ones with ma y nuances and history. The author provided a thought provoking look at family, friendships, mother- daughter dynamics, marriage and passions.
I loved this book!

A realistic fiction about pregnancy and miscarriage. Something none of us wants to talk about. This was also about the layers of our life like marriage, family, grief and joy. This was an audiobook for me and it was narrated by Käthe Mazur, Xe Sands; Holter Graham; Kitty Hendrix. They were awesome and I highly recommend listening to this.
I come from a long line of stubborn women and this really hit home for me. Mom and daughter relationships can be complicated and my heart broke for them. Owen, the husband was so precious during her grief that I think all of us could learn a thing or two from him. This is sad but there is an HEA if you’re wondering.
The novel explores the complicated situations when trying to move past this grief. Saying the wrong things is probably a given. How can this go better? Can it go better? Or are we shackled to the enviable fall out of painful and strained relationships. What have I learned from this? You ask? That it’s awful whenever it happens and I simply need to be sensitive with my words and love everyone where there at in their grief.
Thanks Dreamscape Media via Netgalley.

Kalyn Fogarty tackles the topic of miscarriage—an experience which is too common, and yet not talked about enough. She takes on a journey with Cassidy Morgan, who is reeling after losing her child at twenty-weeks pregnant.

The story is told through alternating points of view from Cassidy, her husband Owen, her sister Claire, and their mother, which the author uses deftly to present a clever and thoughtful study on the destructive impact of grief.