dive into a heartfelt book about grief. When Bree Boyd dies of leukemia, she leaves behind her bucket list and has asked her sister Jodie to finish what she had started but never got the chance to finish. This book was well written and dives deep into the depths of grief, sisterhood, and growth. Jodie embarks on a journey to fulfill her sisters last wish and help save her family from the substantial medical debt left behind. We follow Jodie as she finally learns to live again.

When Bree Boyd, an influencer, gets sick with leukemia her whole family including her sister Jodie devote their lives to taking care of Bree. Unfortunately Bree succumbs to the disease and leaves her family in terrible debt. Unbeknownst to them, Bree has a plan to help them with the overwhelming debt.

Bree has a few items left on her bucket list that she knows she will not complete. She uses her connections as an influencer to set get sponsors. Jodie will complete Bree’s bucket list for all the world to see and the sponsors will take care of the debt.

While this was an interesting premise, I did the book a little longer than it needed to have been. One of the main relationships I found completely unnecessary and in my opinion took away from the main storyline. There was also quite a bit of non communication between characters to create tension and I’m not a fan of that.

The synopsis of this book appealed to me. I always love the idea of a good bucket list. However, the whole "influencer" story line came off a little to kitchy for me.

Someone Else’s Bucket List was an emotional delight. I’m surprised I haven’t seen this cover around more on Bookstagram and booktok. Despite the heavy content and somewhat implausible situation, it was enjoyable, however not a forever favorite for me. This book isn’t necessarily the easiest read but I enjoyed the emotional depth it provided. There are multiple likable and charming characters that I believe would make great main characters in spin offs.

Someone Else's Bucket List was such a uniquely written story. I really enjoyed my experience with this one! Jodie's sister Bree, an Instagram influencer, has died. As the family is reeling with this tragedy, a series of secret Instagram posts have been revealed. Bree has tasked Jodie with completing the rest of her own bucket list. Some of them seem pretty simple....but then you get to "Fall in Love." Jodie has the entire world behind her as she works to try and complete these goals for her sister. I don't want to say anything that will ruin the story for you. But this is absolutely a story that you should read!

The most heartbreaking story about life and love and never taking a single moment for granted. We never know when our time on this earth will be up so make sure your loved ones know what they mean to you. I have never cried so much while reading a book. Although it is fiction it's also could unbelievably be a true story for so many people out in the world. Cancer effects so many people life's and this book is about family.

This was overall an uplifting and nice read, but it often times felt very heavy and the story didn't feel like it flowed all that well for me. Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for the ARC.

Thank you to the NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of Someone Else's Bucket List by Amy T. Matthews in exchange for my honest review and opinion. This book was so touching as everyone goes through the stages of grief differently and this one will give you all the feels. Do yourself a favor and have tissues near by as you will for sure be shedding major tears!

Bree Boyd is an adventurous, hugely successful Instagram influencer with more than a million followers. She has a younger sister, Jodie, who is her opposite. When Bree is diagnosed with leukemia, her family does everything they can to save her, including a bone marrow transplant. Unfortunately, it doesn't work and the Boyd family not only has to deal with grief, but they are burdened with a huge debt. A year later, a post is released on Bree's instagram feed, announcing that she had a bucket list that she wants her sister to complete for her. She has a sponsor and if she completes it, they will pay off the family's debt as well as the helping out some of the patients she was hospitalized with. Jodie feels she has no choice, but she is not eager to complete some of the items. Jodie has no idea what is in store for her, and how this will bring about major changes in her life.

I have a bucket list, although mine is nothing like Bree's was. I liked Jodie, but she is a shy and anxious twenty-something, who is struggling to find direction in her own life. She works hard, trying to help her parents pay off the medical debt, and is a loving sister who spent lots of time with Bree in the hospital and gave her bone marrow to try and save her. As she participated in the bucket list activities, I saw her grow, begin to stand up for herself, and open up to others. I loved that she was hearing her sister's voice guiding voice to keep her going. I also loved Bree's best friend who was also there for Jodie and actually became friends with someone she used to see as just the little sister. Although I normally don't like books dealing with social media and influencers, this was different. Bree used her influence to help others, first with her illness, and now helping both her sister and others dealing with a financial burden. This was a fun story with themes of family, friendship, finding your place, personal growth, and dealing with grief. So, What's on your Bucket List?

I loved this book. Family, sisterhood, and discovery were just some of the elements. The plot was interesting and I found it to be well written.
Many thanks to Kensington and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

While the whole influencer life and online drama felt in bad taste, the idea was interesting and the main character stayed true to herself. I was ready for her to break down and yell about how fucked up the whole thing was. Because I might have. This was a painful read that ended beautifully.

Do you have a bucket list? I have an informal one of places I’d like to visit, but I have never written it down.

Jodie Boyd is stunned when she learns that her older sister, Bree is dying from cancer. Bree has always been larger than life, traveling around the world, doing all of the things on her bucket list as an influencer. When Bree passes away, still in her twenties, her family is heart broken and also deeply in debt from her doctor bills. It is discovered that Bree made a deal before her death that will erase the family debt if Jodie finishes the items on Bree’s bucket list and documents them on social media. Jodie is soon out of her comfort zone out in the world on social media trying to finish the items. Will she find what she wants from life and maybe true love on the way?

I enjoyed this very unique story. While it was a love story, it was also a coming-of-age story for a twenty something young adult. What exactly does Jodie want in life and what exactly is holding her back? It seems that her sister Bree knew her better than she knew herself and was helping her from beyond the grave. I enjoyed every step of Jodie’s journey.

I enjoyed the thought of getting Instagram messages from someone that you loved and lost throughout the year after their death. It reminded me of P.S. I Love You, but Bree’s love is for her family and not a romantic partner. This book was an honest look at the ups and downs of grief. Grief that Jodie feels, her entire family feels, and that her friend Kelly Wong feels at the loss of his father. Grief is different for everyone.

Favorite Quotes:
“And when the moon rose over the snowdrifts it wouldn’t be rusty orange. It would be golden yellow. The color of hope fulfilled.”

“Grief was like weather: It had it’s seasons and moods, and it could always take a turn for the worse.”

“But knowing and understanding were two very different things.”

Book Source: Review Copy from NetGalley and Kensington Publishing. Thank-you! Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I had a couple of false starts with this book. In the beginning, we encounter a previously vivacious and adventurous woman having treatment for cancer. It seemed like a stark way to begin a narrative (I must mention that at this point, I had forgotten what the blurb was about when I first requested to read this book, a habit I like to continue in order to keep my reading interesting), and I was unsure if I was in the mood for something that serious. Then, the next stage makes an appearance with Jodie having to fulfil her sister's bucket list. At this point, I felt it was a little unfair to want to force someone out of their comfort zone in such a manner, especially when they would be grieving. Once again, I was gauging whether I liked the characters in the narrative or not. I know that the pieces were short, but I tend to have swift reactions to books, which may or may not change over the course of the rest of the book.
In this case, it did! All the discomfort I felt for the turns the plot was taking slowly but surely fell away as all the events started to take shape. We got more of a complete picture of everything that happened earlier and the rut that Jodie herself is stuck in, both due to her sister's illness and apart from that.
Jodie is an interesting protagonist, one who has always taken a back seat but harbours no resentment towards her more 'popular' sister. The dynamics were heartwarming, and I shed copious tears for some sections of it. I ended up binging the entire second half of the book. I think my favourite part was the tiny flashback we got, which cleared up a couple of things.
I recommend this to fans of family fiction who do not mind the focus being on grief and how families as a whole are impacted by it (especially since it is handled positively, although it might be triggering to some).
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

After the death of her sister, Jodie is struggling to find her footing. Bree was a popular influencer who never got to complete her bucket list. When a video appears at Thanksgiving challenging Jodie to complete the bucket list in exchange for paying off Bree’s (and other’s) medical debt, Jodie has no choice but to finish someone else’s bucket list. (See what I did there?)

In a strange twist of events, Amy T. Matthews is also Amy Berry, so after reading The McBrides of Montana books, I had to read this. I wanted to love it, but I just didn’t connect with Jodie. I know it was part of her journey, but I needed her to speak up sooner.

Jodie Boyd is a shy with no real direction while her older sister, Bree, is a glamourous globe trotter.

But when Bree dies from Leukaemia, leaving her family with a crippling medical debt, Jodie is forced to step into the light.

Bree has left her Instagram account with its million followers to Jodie, along with the items left on her bucket list. For every item Jodie ticks off, some of the Boyd's debt will be paid off by Bree's sponsors.

Now Jodie just has to be brave enough to go on Broadway and replica the orgasm scene from when Harry met Sally - and somehow fulfil Bree's last wish, to fall in love.

This was an excellent book. The author's decision to let the reader get to know Bree made a huge difference to the emotional impact of the book, and the journey through the bucket list was entertaining.

I wondered if a story about Instagram and influencing would be more cringeworthy than cute, but the way this novel is written, the focus is very much on the characters not the gram.

This is a story than can make you both laugh and cry

This book begins with the illness and eventual death of Bree, an influencer and social media star and the Bucket List that she passes on to her sister, Jodie to complete (WHY wasn't the book called My Sister's Bucket List? that would have been more accurate... I thought that a stranger was going to do the list based on the title). The book is filled with grief, humor, love, friendship and family. It also portrays issues dealing with medical debt (don't all citizens deserve health care?), the costs of celebrity and also social media audiences/commentary, capitalism vs respecting humanity and immensely wealthy vs average/poverty. Jodie is stuck in ALL areas of her life--her education, her career, her social life and Bree's list pushes her to not only complete what her sister could not, but to move beyond the grief to find a better future for herself and her family. This is a heartwarming book that encourages all of us to live our lives with love, laughter and hope.

Jodie Boyd’s sister Bree was an adventurous instagram influencer who had a lot of followers. When she passes away Jodie and her family are devastated and overwhelmed with medical debt. Bree has recorded a challenge for Jodie to complete her bucket list and a corporate sponsor will pay off the medical debt. Jodie reluctantly accepts the challenge and in the process her sisters bucket list will bring her out of her shell and teach her to live and enjoy life!



Thanks to Amy T. Matthews and Kensington Books for the book!

Drowning in debt after helping her sister with a bone marrow transplant Jody is now left trying to fulfill her sisters bucket list. Jody’s sister was an social media influencer that asked for help on her bucket list knowing her sister would not have the funds to complete it all. Throughout the story Jody grew frustrated by having everyone tell her how to check things off the bucket list and how to do them. She kept doing it for the money and when she was done with the list, she started living for herself.

When you think of a book that begins with a young woman dying from cancer and leaving her family with a mountain of medical bills the last thing you would think it that is is a joyful story, yet that's just what this is. When Bree passes away without finishing the last few items on her bucket list, she arranges to have all of her medical expenses paid if her sister Jodie completes the list while it all is posted to Bree's Instagram account. The transformation of Jodie from fearful to fearless is a joy to experience and the gift that Bree leaves her with is a true expression of her love for her sister. I loved it.

Someone Else's Bucket List by Amy T. Matthews
This is about grief but also about accepting grief and learning to navigate through it. This follows the journey of a sibling, who lost her sister to cancer. And just when she thought, the grief was overwhelming and on top of that medical bills were gonna crush their family, a bucket list miracle happens. No spoilers. You can guess this from the title and the blurb itself. Now coming to the story, it's a mixture of sadness and hope, as it should be. The book doesn't just try to be hopelessly optimistic, it tries to show you the reality and then make you learn how to hope in that situation. Not only just the way a person grieves but it also shows the medical bill reality, the worldly things one has to deal with on top of the grief. I think it was done very well to show all aspects of this grieving process and its aftermath and reality. I think the way it catches up to the hope part and intertwined it with the grief part, it was done well. The characters were someone you'd grow to care about. Maybe it'll take a little time for the actual bucket list plot to kick in, but worry not the previous part is equally important as to why the plot needed to be worked out that way. This book is grounded into reality but also reminds you that even in reality it isn't all about loss, it's about living, it's about memories, it's about cherishing moments. So overall, it was a nice engaging read, that will break your heart and mend it too.