The Measure is one of my all time favorites, so I had such high hopes for this one. My expectations were not met, unfortunately. I loved the Poppy Fields aspect of this story. It was such an interesting way to tackle the topic of grief and how people all react so differently to it. It also showed how healing is not linear and some need ore help than others. I struggled with keeping all of the characters straight. I wanted more development and depth. I just didn't feel for them like I had expected to. I know while it ended up being more of a miss for me, it will be a hit for so many readers. I'll be recommending it to readers that love a slow, character driven story that has lots of contemplation.

✨ Mini Book Review ✨

🌺 The Poppy Fields - Nikki Erlick 🌺
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Swipe for synopsis ➡️

After reading The Measure by Nikki Erlick I was so thrilled for the opportunity to read the e-arc of The Poppy Fields!

The premise of this book was super interesting and unlike anything I’ve ever read! The writing was beautiful and really touched on how people deal with grief and the steps they’ll take to overcome it. I enjoyed following the four strangers as they took a road trip out west, even though it also kind of felt like it was moving at a slower pace. I didn’t get super hooked on this one until about 60% in, and then I just felt like the ending felt rushed or was missing something, I’m not quite sure exactly. I still think it’s a good well written book just didn’t quite meet the mark for me!

I do think this author has a super interesting point of view when it comes to writing and writes it beautifully! I would definitely recommend if you’re looking for something very different from the norm.

The Poppy Field releases on 6/17 so be sure to add to your TBR! Thank you to @netgalley and @williammorrowbooks for the e-arc!

* BOOK REVIEW*** Book available 6/17/2025

This book was really, really good. But I can’t help but think it fell to the curse of the sophomore slump. The concept, super intriguing. The characters, realistically flawed and curious. The ending? Somewhat anticlimactic. In all fairness though, when you write an ending like the one in The Measure, goosebump inducing and picking my jaw up off the floor….you kind of set yourself for an impossible standard to meet again. I was ready for a big reveal or a major plot twist, and I never really got it. But like I said, this book was still really really good, I was just left a tad underwhelmed when the book was over. In addition, I loved the added layer of interviews of applicants and participants.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and the author for getting a free ebook copy in exchange for an honest review!



⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
#netgalley #bookreview #nikkierlick #ThePoppyFields #bookstagram

Overall this was a good book but I felt like it lacked in some areas. The story made me think about things in a new way, and I liked the message it shared.
However, there were parts of the book where I felt like they didn't explain enough. I wanted to know more about the process the doctors and patients went through at the poppy fields. While I enjoyed the book, I think more detail in the topic the book was named after (The Poppy Fields) would have made this a higher rating for me

’m not crying, you’re crying 😭 gah! I loved The Measure so when I saw The Poppy Fields I knew I had to request it! What a great thought provoking read! Grief is such a complex subject and I liked how this book presented so many different perspectives of people navigating their grief. I really enjoyed the characters and loved how all of them ended up coming together. I definitely recommend this read! Nikki Erlick has done it again!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing this ARC.

Nikki Erlick does it again. A unique and thought provoking novel that pulls the reader into the lives of the main characters from page one. You won’t be able to put it down.

“A high-concept speculative novel about heartache, hope, and human resilience, The Poppy Fields explores the path of grief and healing, a journey at once profoundly universal and unique to every person, posing the questions: How do we heal in the wake of great loss? And how far are we willing to go in order to be healed?” Through the story you see the evolution of each character as they learn to deal with their feelings of grief and finding what they truly need to be healed.

Thank you to NetGalley, HarperAudio for the advanced lister copy and William Marrow for the eARC of the book in return for an honest review.

This book was amazing. Any book that can get me to shed a tear always gets a 5 star. Great follow up to the measure. It really makes you think and ponder grief and if you really would just want to sleep it away or push through. The characters were great, love how they were all interconnected. I love a book that really makes you think about what you would do. My favorite part might be that it included the reason why "poppy.," I was thinking wizard of oz the whole time but got such a deeper meaning from it.

This is a tough one to review, and part of that is because it's so different from what I expected. The Measure had a certain level of tension to it as we waited to see what happened with each character, what decisions they made, and what the consequences of those decisions would be. But I would describe The Poppy Fields as deeply melancholy. It's more like lit-fic than anything else; I'd say the speculative aspect pales in comparison, even if it is the very foundation of the novel. I expected the road trip aspect to be much shorter, that it would culminate in some dramatic actions at the Fields. But it's a more subtle story of navigating grief. Ultimately, the ending was a little underwhelming for me. The bizarre thing about this novel is that despite all the heavy emotions, I didn't really feel like there were any actual stakes to the story, almost reminding me of a cozy fantasy novel in that sense. Does that make this a cozy lit-fic? I don't even think that's a genre but it's the closest I can come to describing this. I highly recommend, but you may want to adjust your expectations before going in.
**BIG thank you to NetGalley! I received an eARC and an advance audiobook both in exchange for an honest review.**

I alternated listening to the e audiobook and reading the egalley.

I was so excited to read this one because I loved The Measure. Sadly, I found this one disappointing. The story failed to hook me in, and I couldn't really connect with any of the characters.

As for the audiobook particularly, I felt the narrator was a bit monotone which made it hard to stay focused on the story.

Because I so enjoyed The Measure, I would try this author again despite this experience.

I enjoyed this book, but not as much as Erlick's other works. It was an interesting concept, and I enjoyed hearing everyone's back story about why they were traveling to The Poppy Fields. The book brings up interesting questions about loss, grief and what makes a life meaningful.

As someone who unabashedly loved The Measure, Nikki Erlick's debut novel, I raced to request an ARC of The Poppy Fields. Once again, Erlick uses a sci-fi concept (this time, the idea of putting people in temporary sleep mode to heal grief) in order to tell a story about people's humanity, what it means to grieve, and the challenges of moving forward, while linking her characters together in unexpected ways.

The Poppy Fields was not as much of a gut punch emotionally as The Measure was, in large part because the sci-fi aspect 1) has a clear explanation, and 2) sleeping for a month to process grief is not as emotionally fraught as finding out how long everyone will live. Understandably, the scope of this story narrows considerably, alternating between the creator of the sleep cure, and three people thrown together Planes Trains and Automobiles-style, travelling to the sleep center. The novel is at its best when circling between Ray, Ava, and Sasha, as they get to know each other and discover why each of them are making this pilgrimage.

The only negative to this book is that I'm not sure Ellis is fully fleshed out as a character, and I would have liked to get a little more time with her, especially due to some reveals later on. That being said, if you enjoy Erlick's style of using high-concept plots to develop characters emotionally, this one should resonate with you.

5⭐️
I honestly didn’t have any notes on this book. It was perfectly written and was so deeply moving. The author explored grief from nearly every lens imaginable and made something so dark seem so beautiful. To love is to grieve, and grieving for someone means that you loved them deeply, and that I guess, is actually quite a good thing.
After reading the ARC, I am preordering this book for my personal collection and will be making all of my loved ones read it, so I obviously HIGHLY recommend this book!

THEMES
The author did an incredible job of weaving themes and symbolism into the book.
My personal favorite was the weather symbolism as it related to different types of grief. For example, the tornado symbolized sudden, unexpected forms of grief that the characters experienced. There were other types of weather that I don’t want to spoil, but anything from storms to clear skies were noted through the book to reference different types of grieving and it was deeply symbolic and really well done.
Again, this notion of love and grief being two sides of the same coin was noted throughout the book as people weighed the option of using the Poppy Fields. It made me question if I would consider using it if this was something that existed, and surprisingly arguments were made for both sides, leaving the reader to come up with their own conclusion which I loved.
The inclusion of other participants interviews for the Fields was really smart on the authors part. It added so much more dimension to the story and brought in more perspectives on grief as a whole.

THE WORLD
The concept of the Poppy Fields is so creative and very different from many other science fiction novels. It was more literary fiction than sci-fi to me, which I typically prefer. I was fascinated by the concept though and thought it was very well done.
Despite being set in the real world, the world building was really well done because the sci-fi elements were the main focus. The process was described in depth and I didn’t have any questions about it so the author addressed any confusion or doubts the reader would have about this type of procedure. It made it feel like something feasible that could actually be developed in the future because of the description of the process. The author even added research on the benefits of sleep and added to the “credibility” of the sci-fi elements!
The author did beautifully describe the American continent as the characters traveled to the Fields and had descriptive imagery, which also contributed to the world. I thought it was done perfectly and had just the right level of detail.

THE CHARACTERS
Now THIS is where the story really thrived to me (as if it didn’t thrive in the other parts?) because I LOVED the character development. The plot was beautifully centered around these characters and despite having five main characters and not that many pages, each one received the exact right amount of attention and was deeply developed with a rich backstory. I found each character moving and relatable and was so glad that each one was brought to the Fields for a different reason. Ava, Ray, Sasha, Sky, Ellis (and how could I forget PJ?) had such different stories and unique personalities and I found each of them to be integral parts to the story nonetheless. The authors ability to portray such human emotions on paper was unreal and absolutely amazing. I loved this book so much.

QUOTES

"Grief is an individual journey. Everyone navigates it differently.”

“Isn't that what everybody wants, in the end? Just to feel a little less lonely?”

“Here, in this room, was grief. But grief was love in its second shape.”

I’ve been reading lots of books with themes of grief and was really excited about this one when I saw it was coming out. The Measure was one of my top reads last year. Unfortunately this book didn’t hit the same for me. I struggled with the pacing quite a bit and felt there wasn’t too much going on which was sad when this premise had so much potential. I truly expected a lot more from the actual science and the “sleeping” at the Fields and for more shocking things to happen or for more characters to connect. When they were all introduced I was sure there was going to be more that intertwined between them, but there wasn’t. I also felt adding in Sky into the mix felt kind of random? I know I’m also probably comparing to The Measure which was executed SO well and really made you think and feel for the characters. That one is just going to be hard to beat. I did find this one to be more character driven than plot driven too and when that’s the case I really need to connect with the characters on a deeper level and unfortunately I didn’t. I was hoping with the themes of grief it would make it easier for me to connect, but I didn’t at all. I think this book will be loved by a lot of people, just isn’t my favorite.

The Poppy Fields has to be one of the most unique books I have read in quite some time!! This one felt like a whole mix of genres. We get bits of sci-fi, fantasy, and mystery, a touch of romance, a twist or two...and one common theme tying it all together: grief.

I am a big fan of The Measure & was so excited to get my hands on this one! The two books are so different so I can't compare the two, but I will say I was expecting the ending to pack a bigger punch. There are so many different stories being told along the way that I did get confused a couple of times. But at the same time I loved each time the different character's paths crossed and new layers were revealed. Our main characters, and their journeys through grief, deeply wove themselves into my heart along the way. That last chapter definitely left wanting more!

•Multiple POV
•Large cast of characters
•Thought provoking
•Speculative fiction
•Character driven

Thank you to William Morrow & NetGalley for granting my wish of an ARC in exchange for my honest review. Publishing June 17th.
4 stars.

I was a little bit worried to see if Erlick would be able to follow up her smash hit The Measure- but my worry was for nothing. Erlich penned another thought-provoking, beautifully-set novel, with a cast of characters that I adored. ADD THIS TO YOUR TBR ASAP.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an audio ALC AND an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a story about grief, loss, love, friendship, and the journey that goes along with it. I enjoyed the characters and the found family they created as they spent time together traveling. Each characters story was unique and interesting and they all brought a different perspective to the idea of The Poppy Fields. The sci-fi aspect was well done and was believable. Overall, a great read that kept me interested

A huge thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for sending me an ARC of The Poppy Fields by Nikki Erlick! The Measure is among my list of favorites so I was tickled pink to receive this one early.

The main theme of this beautiful novel is grief and how all of us experience it at some point in our lives. The Poppy Fields offers a different approach to traditional therapy and treatment. Sequestered in remote California, patients can sleep away the worst of their grief with the promise that when they wake life will be more manageable.

Erlick is such a beautiful, contemplative writer and does a wonderful job of allowing the reader to experience different perspectives. This one had a bit of everything: love, loss, joy, and sadness. But it also had hope that life is still beautiful even in the midst of unbearable grief.

I really enjoyed every minute of this one and Erlick firmly cemented herself as an auto buy author for me from here on out. If you're a fan of The Measure you won't be disappointed with The Poppy Fields. I definitely recommend picking both up.

4⭐️

Publication Date: June 17, 2025

Thanks to Harper I got to read this one. I’m a huge fan of Nikki Erlick and will read anything she writes. I liked this one. Definitely was thought provoking.

Another thought provoking novel by Nikki Erlick that inspires readers to reflect grief, forgiveness, and found family. This novel is told from multiple POV, which I felt truly brought this powerful novel to life.

When your life has been upended by loss/grief, would you choice to sleep through your pain to wake up renewed? Would you still select healing if it came with a controversial risk factor? Four strangers come together on their journey to the poppy fields but each is drawn to this location for a different reason.

I absolutely could not put this audiobook down, I found the plot captivating and the characters relatable and well developed. The pace of this novel is slow but I felt it enabled the reader to reflect on their own journey and choices.

Thank you William Morrow for the advanced copy!

Actually 2.5 stars. It makes me so sad to say this, but this book just wasn’t it for me. The Measure was my favorite read of last year so I was thrilled when I got the ARC to review. I loved the premise of the book and couldn’t wait to dive in. I kept waiting for the book to pick up, for them to get to the Poppy Fields. I guess I wanted to know more about how that worked. And then the book just ended so abruptly once they actually arrived there with really no conclusion at all. I know I’m in the minority here, so I’d say still give it a try if you loved The Measure. Thanks NetGalley and the pub for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.