This was cute! I really liked it. Definitely solid if you love Colleen Hoover's books! I can't recommend enough!

A beautifully written story that left me with tears in my eyes. Emery is just trying to live after being diagnosed with lupus, which her twin sister died from a year before. Her mother has become a shell of herself, so Emery decides to move in with her father that lives hours away. Her father's wife Cam, has a teenage son named Kaiden that is the same age as Emery. Kaiden has his own problems, he's troubled and doesn't take crap from anyone. Throughout the book, Kaiden's tough exterior starts to crumble bit by bit as he attaches himself and becomes close with Emery. A closeness between them develops into more. The book does end sadly and had me tearing up, but I loved it.

This book had a cute story but it was lacking something. There was some typos but otherwise the writing was good. The characters were decent too.

I loved this book so much! Omg all the feels! This was the first book I've read by this author but definitely won't be the last. Thank you!

A sad story. I knew before reading that the story was going to have a sad ending but I still ended up crying and being heartbroken. A well written book that I was glad that I read.

Spoilers ahead! Wow. This was a rollercoaster. I did like the book. I even liked the sad ending. I do not like the fact that Emery had sex with her stepbrother. That part is super messed up. I did not like Kaiden's character but I did like seeing his journey. I like books with chronically ill teenagers. It's weird I know but this book had a lot of emotion and some neat twists.

1/5 stars! Ok; so the premise did not warn us that the love interests are step-siblings. I'm conflicted on that because they're legally related, but not blood-related so... it's kind of a grey area. Not for me but I wouldn't quite say it required a trigger warning. But even beyond that, this book just wasn't good. The characters were shallow and the writing lacked precision.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great romance novel and I throughly enjoyed reading this book.

Such a heartbreaking beautiful story filled with emotional drama, pain, love and sadness.
This book is a perfect depiction of life. “Nothing good lasts. Cherish and appreciate those moments, good or bad, because not everyone is gifted by a lifetime.” B. Celeste’s writing is so beautifully done on such a heartbreaking subject. Her details put into Emery’s character about her I’ll see and her daily struggles are so realistic. The relationship with her mother and father is heartbreaking but I love the growth these characters experience and learning to love again. I love the friendship Kaiden and Emery shared. While it did not start great Kaiden eventually pulled back his tough guy layers and you can see a softer sweeter side. Have the tissues ready you will need it. This book is full of love, sadness, happy times and emotionally heartbreaking moments. A book that will stand the test of time and one that everyone should read. Many thanks to SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books and NetGalley for the digital review copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

“Disease is the monster in the dark. It lingers, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. It veers its ugly head and takes what it wants, when it wants. Yet there’s one disease that is worse than any kind of invisible illness in existence, and it is something the world is plagued with. Indifference.”

This book was a tough one to read. Not only because it deals with difficult subject matter (death, grief, chronic illness, parental alienation) but from a more personal note. As someone with a chronic illness (albeit not lupus level) this book spoke to me in a direct way I’m not used to. I’m not afraid to admit that I welled up a fair bit during reading this.

“The thing about chronic illness is that you never know what you’re going to feel like when you wake up every day. It’s a new battle, because the good days don’t mean that you don’t hurt. They just mean that you can tolerate the pain better.“

Emery ‘Em’ Matheson is nineteen years old. She’s a twin. She is chronically ill with lupus. Her twin, Logan (Lo) died from the same disease ten years ago. Their mother struggles through the grief of losing her daughter, and after her mum calls her Logan one too many times, Emery decides to move to live with her dad and his new wife (Cam) and stepson, Kaiden.

The relationship between Kaiden and Emery blossoms, and I found it a little uncomfortable since they ARE step-siblings. But honestly? It’s not like step-siblings who met at age 19 and 20 respectively are really going to have a particularly brother and sister relationship. I just struggled a little to get the whole stepbrother thing out of my head in their scenes.

All in all, this book was excellent. And the best thing to say about it is actually a quote from the book itself:

“Fiction is the perfect platform to talk about the things nobody wants to have conversations about in real life. When you’re reading about a character’s struggles, you find ways to relate from a distance. It doesn’t always hurt as much, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt at all.

Chronic illness is real.

Death is real.

People don’t like to read about those things because they know it could happen to them. Distance or not, you put yourself in the shoes of every character you read. Denial doesn’t make the fear go away. It expands it. Feeds it. Makes it impossible to fight.”

Accurate and heart-wrenchingly true.

A solid 4 stars.

I love this book because of the reality. I hate this book because of the reality. Eye opening, awareness, thoughtful, amazing.

Emery is so full of strength! She worries more about everyone else before herself. She is inspiring with how she deals with everything and everyone.
Kaiden is struggling. He doesn’t let anyone in, until Em.

A book with all the feels. No one controls how you view things and how you accept things except for you. Live life for you.

I am a little bit ashamed that it took me this long before I picked this one up. Because there is no reason at all why I didn’t dive into it immediately.
 
This story was beautiful. Emotional and not light at all, but beautiful. From the first page you step on an emotional rollercoaster and it is impossible to get off until you finish it (and you wish to do so in one sitting). The story of Emery is one you won’t forget very soon. Especially the ending, which was absolutely perfect!
 
However, I did detest Kaiden in the beginning. Of course, throughout the book you’ll learn his secrets and motives, but he is still an ass. I don’t think I can fully forgive him for the way he treated Emery in the beginning. No ignorance or past makes up for that.
 
I think that also is the reason why I wasn’t as emotional as I should have thought? Besides, lately I am not crier at all anymore (unfortunately), but this book didn’t do it for me. Yes, it is emotional and there a some very heavy themes the author digs into (very well so), but it was absolutely not the most heartbreaking book I have ever read.

The way the author writes about the disease and the way Emery lives and suffers with it, is absolutely one of the best parts of the book. Especially when you read the note of the author at the end. But besides that, this one was really well written, it was realistic and a wonderful story to dive in and to forget the world for some hours. I would recommend this one, especially if you’re looking for an emotional rollercoaster.
 
Please, read the TW before you dive into this one!

i want to say thank you to b. celeste. i have an autoimmune disease myself and felt as though i was looking in a mirror when reading this book. while i don’t have lupus, my autoimmune disease plays a huge impact on my life and i found myself relating to emery with her pain and her difficulty with her illness.

emery was such a strong and inspirational character and she truly lived each day to the best of her abilities. while the romance was sweet in this novel, i wasn’t too keen on it being done with her stepbrother… i mean i know they’re not related but i just didn’t enjoy it because of that. don’t get me wrong, kaiden was great but i’m not keen on step-sibling intimacy.

i sobbed so much with the ending. it was so heartbreaking and gut wrenching that i could hardly see the words on my ipad while reading.

i cannot recommend this book enough. it’s about time we had more representation of invisible and chronic illnesses in modern day literature and especially ones that are accurate. if you have a friend who suffers from a chronic illness, then i recommend that you read this book to gain an understanding of what they are going through in life because, believe me, it is so hard.

thank you b. celeste. i feel seen with this book and will be grabbing a physical copy as soon as i can

UNDERNEATH THE SYCAMORE TREE is a heart wrenching love story of Emery and Kaiden, just when they are about the age to start their lives. Despite being sick with an autoimmune disease and so weak and fragile at times, what Emery goes through doesn't weaken her but in a way strengthens her and her spirit. Even when I hated Kaiden, I still loved him. The title couldn't be more perfect for this book.

What an incredibly powerful ending, which I had not predicted, that leaves you feeling raw and emotional.

Thank you to Bloom Books and NetGalley for the digital copy.

So raw, real and emotional, this story was amazing, sad and wonderful. It truly shows you life is unexpected and we never really know how strong we are or what we can take until something happens. This book was beautifully written and I absolutely recommend you read this.

This was unlike anything I remember reading before. A main character pov with a chronic Illness, who lost her twin sister to the same chronic illness. A girl who just wants to be accepted for who she is and loved by her family, but can’t escape the passing of her twin sister because she’s living that sisters past now while battling her illness.

This book will sit with me for a while but I wasn’t a fan of Em falling for her step brother. It was very courageous of the author to base this story off her own chronic Illness.

I had heard of this book previously but because of the level of hype was assuming it wouldn't live up to it (I like to be different).

Wrong - this book exceeded every expectation I had. Such a sweet sweet love story and so many tears - I've found my new tearjerker for when you just need to cry.

Seriously loved it - downloaded more of her books and can't wait to jump in.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the advanced release of this book for my honest review. I enjoyed this book, so much that I thought about it and couldn't wait to get back to it. This is a coming of age story in the context of chronic illness. I felt the heartache of the characters as they each carried the weight of grief and its lasting effects. This is not a light read and may be triggering for some readers.

This book broke my heart into tiny little pieces and then glued them back together at the end. You can't help but root for a happy ending for the main characters. The writing style of B. Celeste is incredible and thoughtfully written. Thank you for the ARC!

This isn’t a book full of sunshine and roses it’s raw and heartbreaking. Emery is living with chronic pain and an incurable disease that will eventually take her life she just doesn’t know when. After moving in with her father and his new family, Emery gains things she never thought she would. She gains the chance to repair her relationship with her father, an opportunity to understand her mother better, and a best friend in an unlikely person- her new stepbrother. Kaiden carries around his own heartbreak and with the help of Emery he heals and has a better understanding for the uncertain future.

If you are looking for a book that packs a gut punch and invokes all the feels then pick up Underneath the Sycamore Tree and prepare to have your heartbreak a few times.


Thank you @authorbceleste @read_bloom and @netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.