This was such a unique read! The premise of this story really drew me in. Just like this author's previous novel, it makes the reader think long and hard about the meaning of life, death, grief, and what the world could look like if things were slightly different. I was completely invested in the characters and how their stories would play out.

The Measure is one of my favorite books of all time. With that said, I had very high hopes for The Poppy Fields and it absolutely delivered. To read a Nikki Erlick book is the equivalent of opening a door in your mind you never knew existed. She is brilliant. Coming up with these speculative types of stories takes a certain kind of creativity, it's nuanced and Nikki does it like no other.

The Poppy Fields follow five characters all of which are interconnected in someway and have different feelings towards the treatment. The fields itself are actually a therapeutic center that people suffering from loss can go to and sleep away their grief. Generally, sleepers wake up feeling better, able to move forward with their lives. However, 20% of people wake up with a side effect that makes them lose their feelings of the love they once had for the person they were mourning.

There are many things that had caught my attention through out the read but I'm going to stick to only two topics in an attempt to NOT have this review turn into a short story.

Ellis, the creator of the fields, struggles to keep the treatment free of charge and under her care as the remaining members of the board want to expand and monetize. Books can and should talk about important things going on in our country and the rising costs of pharmaceuticals due to corporate greed is one of them. Now, I'm not sure if this is something that the author wanted to dive into but it's how I interpreted it. Ellis is passionate, undeniably brilliant and cares deeply about her patients, about doing enough. It makes me wonder how many other innovators are there that wanted to make the world a better place but are steamrolled by corporations despite their efforts to create for good.

This book comes down to one question. Would you trade the love you had for someone in exchange for peace after they're gone? The tricky part is you also lose the connection to that love. It's the centuries old question, would you rather have loved and lost or never have loved at all?

Love and loss are two sides of the same coin and what Nikki Erlick does is examine it from every angle with grace and an understanding that only comes from experiencing a great loss from an even greater love. Relationships are complicated. Feelings and people are complicated. The way one person processes grief is completely different from how another person does. What's the same? The love we carry. It's always there changing shape and form as it's needed. That's the beauty of this book, it captures love in its truest greatest capacity.

The Poppy Fields is thought provoking and emotionally stirring. It explores the human condition, its tendencies and the deep impact of love. I feel changed. Altered in someway for the better. A captivating story of growth through destruction, a reawakening. The book you will never forget.

I was a huge fan of The Measure and have been eagerly anticipating a new release from this author. The Poppy Fields take on another unique and interesting story line that I know I’ll be thinking about for months to come, similar to her previous novel. This book weaves complex characters together as various forms of grief are explored in a deeply human way.

Grief is such a complex thing, impacting all of us in unique and profound ways. I found this book really had me thinking about the nature of grief, and moving through it. If you had the opportunity to sleep through the hardest moments of your grief, would you? What about if it potentially dampened the feelings of love you had toward the person? This book would be absolutely perfect for a book club.

The book follows four strangers who find themselves together in a car headed for the Poppy Fields, a medical facility enabling those with grief to sleep through the hardest time of grief. They are all headed there for different reasons, and not only to sleep.

Thank you NetGalley, William Morrow and HarperAudio for the Advanced Review Copy.

I recently finished The Poppy Fields by Nikki Erlick, and it's a novel that lingers in the mind long after the final page. The story follows four strangers—Ava, Ray, Sasha, and Sky—each grappling with their own profound losses. They embark on a cross-country journey to a controversial treatment center in the California desert, known as the Poppy Fields, which offers patients the chance to "sleep away" their grief. The concept is both intriguing and unsettling, posing deep questions about the nature of healing and the price we're willing to pay to alleviate pain.

Erlick masterfully weaves together the narratives of these characters, revealing their secrets and motivations with sensitivity and depth. The novel delves into the complexities of grief, exploring how it shapes us and the lengths we might go to escape it. The speculative elements are grounded in emotional truth, making the story both thought-provoking and relatable. It's a poignant exploration of love, loss, and the resilience of the human spirit.

If you're interested in a novel that challenges you to reflect on the human condition and the choices we make in the face of sorrow, The Poppy Fields is a compelling read.

I thought The Measure was an incredibly unique story line and I would have to say that The Poppy Fields also has a unique concept at its core.
Not only was the plot concept unique but I really cared about all of the characters in the story. I expect this will be another successful publication for the author.

The ending was incredibly powerful, but it took so long so get into it that I really struggled to have the time to absolutely LOVE the book.

Ellis felt so robotic and I just couldn’t connect with her due to that, and it made it hard to feel fully invested in the story.

Again the ending, fantastic! Powerful message and incredibly emotional. But it just didn’t hit for me throughout.

💭 ⓂⓎ ⓉⒽⓄⓊⒼⒽⓉⓈ
This was definitely a highly anticipated read for me. The Measure by Nikki Erlick is one of my all-time favorites, a book I constantly think about. Just like in The Measure, the writing in The Poppy Fields was incredibly thought-provoking. It really made me reflect on the human experience and showed how the right choice for one person isn’t always the right choice for someone else. It took me a little while to get into this book as it had a slower start, and it took some time to connect with the characters, but that connection eventually came, and the payoff was so worth it. One unique element I loved was the mixed media format with news articles, interviews, and podcast transcripts woven into the story. I also really enjoyed the friendships that formed, the exploration of grief in its rawest form, and the hopeful message the story delivered. If you were a fan of The Measure, you won’t want to miss this one.

📚 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎:
💡Exploration of human resilience
💔Complexities of grief
🚖Road trips
🫶🏼Found friendships
❤️‍🩹Hope after loss
☯️Moral dilemmas
💭Thought provoking
📝Multi- format storytelling

🛌𝕄𝕐 ℝ𝔸𝕋𝕀ℕ𝔾🛌
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

💕Q U O T E: “𝐿𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝒸𝒽𝒶𝓃𝑔𝑒𝓈 𝓊𝓈. 𝐼𝓉 𝓈𝓉𝓇𝑒𝓃𝑔𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓃𝓈 𝓊𝓈, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒹𝑒𝓃𝓉𝓈 𝓊𝓈, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓁𝒾𝒻𝓉𝓈 𝓊𝓈, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝑔𝓊𝒾𝒹𝑒𝓈 𝓊𝓈. 𝐼𝒻 𝓌𝑒 𝓈𝓁𝑒𝑒𝓅, 𝒾𝒻 𝓌𝑒 𝓈𝓊𝒻𝒻𝑒𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝒾𝒹𝑒 𝑒𝒻𝒻𝑒𝒸𝓉, 𝒾𝒻 𝓌𝑒'𝓇𝑒 𝓃𝑜 𝓁𝑜𝓃𝑔𝑒𝓇 𝓈𝒽𝒶𝓅𝑒𝒹 𝒷𝓎 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓅𝑒𝑜𝓅𝓁𝑒 𝓌𝑒 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒... 𝓌𝒽𝑜 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓌𝑒?”

🙏 Thank you William Morrow, and Nikki Erlick for this eARC in exchange for my honest thoughts. 💕

The premise of this book is intriguing. The Poppy Fields, a place where you are able to sleep away your grief and heartache. Waking up without the crippling pain of loss and missing someone you love, or in some rare cases, no memory of the love you felt. The cast of characters is diverse, differing greatly in personality and background, yet they share a common thread, The Poppy Fields. The main characters are intricately entwined by this place for various reasons, but it would give too much away to describe each character or their reasons. In short, this book is so filled with unexpected twists, connection and surprises that to even write about the characters might give up the plot. I will say, there is a firefighter, an occupational therapist, a children’s book illustrator and her adorable dog, the creator of The Poppy Fields and a young girl, just out of high school and setting out on her first of many adventures. I enjoyed the book, it kept me interested and eager to read. Some of the stories are heartbreaking and could be triggering for those who have suffered great loss. There are some places where the story seems to unnecessarily ramble, and I found myself skimming to get back to the meat of it. All in all, I recommend this book. It is a unique, original read with well developed characters. Thank you Net Galley for the ARC of this book.

If you could sleep away your grief, would you? What if there was a 25% possibility of removing all emotions - positive and negative - related to your lost loved one?

I loved the idea of this! Nikki Erlick is great at coming up with really thought provoking concepts and bringing them to life wonderfully. Like The Measure, we’re following multiple POVs as well as hearing from applicants to the titular Poppy Fields. The applicant transcripts were probably my favorite parts of this book. I did find myself not as interested in some of the characters, but overall felt this was a well written enjoyable novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for access to this advanced copy. All opinions are my own

At the start of this book, I had very mixed feelings about it. There were many parts where I thought this book in some form was going to be about people using some form of drug overdose as a solution to their own grief. I was able to push myself to read only 20 chapters of this book before ultimately becoming bored of it. It feels like a very long winded story. The last 40 chapters I will admit to pretty much skimming through it. That is where I kind of figured out that this book is kind of a showcase of how people handle grief differently. Because of the amount of grief in this book, I feel it may also not have been the right time to read the book. I also wish the author had written whose POV it was for each chapter. When the story changed within the chapter to the story of a different character, it was very confusing.

🌺🌺 ARC REVIEW 🌺🌺
Title: The Poppy Fields
Author: Nikki Erlick
Genre: Speculative Fiction
Topics: Grief, healing, and human resilience
Publication Date: 6/17/25
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Format: Advanced Release Copy (ARC)
Thank you to @NetGalley, HarperCollins Publishing, and Nikki Erlick for my first ARC in exchange for an honest review. As a psychologist, I couldn’t have chosen a more fitting book.

The Poppy Fields is a fast, easy read that started off a bit slowly but quickly drew me in by the second half. The novel offers a compelling perspective on grief and the impact it may—or may not—have on people's lives. The characters were relatable, and I especially appreciated that the story was told through each of their points

This speculative fiction novel centers around grief, healing, and emotional resilience. It follows four strangers—brought together by chance in Kansas—as they journey together to The Poppy Fields to find Ellis, the center’s enigmatic founder. The center is an experimental treatment facility offering a controversial therapy for grief. Clients enter a prolonged sleep (medically supervised) to bypass the pain of grief and awaken healed. However 1 in 4 people will have the significant side effect of "emotional moderation." This side effect goes beyond the "desired healing" erasing the clients feelings, leaving them with a sense of numbness or detachment toward the person they have lost.

The novel feels loosely inspired by The Wizard of Oz. The parallels are hard to ignore: Kansas, a tornado, four strangers (plus a dog), a journey, poppy fields leading to sleep, a mysterious founder (the “wizard” figure), and a deeper message about inner transformation and healing.

Emotional Impact:
Grief is a deeply personal experience, and there’s no single “right” way to navigate it. Yet, life is too short and uncertain to let meaningful relationships slip away—whether with God, family, spouses , friends, or even strangers who may be in our lives for reasons beyond our understanding. If you’re mourning the loss of a relationship due to misunderstandings, hurt feelings, differing opinions, conflicts over money, addictions or other challenges, consider taking the first step toward healing. Reconnection is possible. Don’t wait—seize the moment.

I truly loved this book and will remember its concept and characters for years to come. Thank you, Nikki Erlick, for such a powerful read. I only had the e-book, but I’m excited to see the printed version because the cover looks stunning. I haven’t yet read her first book, The Measure, but I’ve already added it to my Kindle.

Favorite Quote of Book:
"There is only one reason anyone would sleep at the Poppy Fields. Love. Love makes people do wild things, things they can't understand, things they might have sworn they would never, ever do. So, were they ever to lose that love, I imagine they might do just about anything. But here's the thing: they haven't lost that love. They've lost the physical, the visible, the tangible layer of love, but not the love itself. The love itself endures. The love itself is baked into our memories. ....... But the love itself is fragile, and it's put at risk by the sleep."

I loved The Measure, but this one wasn't for me. I found it rather boring and the plot felt a bit flat. I consistently was waiting for something to happen and nothing did.

Nikki Erlick's sophomore novel falls into an exploration of grief, family, friendships, and love. Her first novel, The Measure, was one of my favorite reads in 2024, so I had been eagerly awaiting this book. Spoilers below.

Ellis Jones has created an experimental treatment in which mourners sleep for one to two months in order to find emotional healing after loss. The treatment is free. The problem? 25% of people wake up with a sort of indifference toward the person they once grieved so painfully.

As someone who has experienced great loss multiple times in my life, I can say with certainty that I would not sleep away four to eight weeks of my life rather than grieve again. Do I want to ever feel that sort of loss? Absolutely not. However, I can't bear the thought of no longer feeling the deep love I have for those I have lost.

This book was written a little differently than The Measure, but I still appreciated the intertwining character arcs that Erlick is excellent at crafting.

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. Opinions expressed are my own. This book will be published on 06/17/2025.

Another beautifully written Nikki Erlick book! There is just something about her voice and writing style that I cannot get enough of.
The story was complex and intriguing, I finished this in just over a day- I truly could not put it down.
Like most stories with multiple POVs, it got a bit confusing at times keeping track of all of the characters, but all of their stories came together nicely in the end.

Speculative fiction about an experimental treatment center where people who have suffered a loss can go to “sleep away” their grief. The book follows four people headed there for various reasons as well as the woman behind the project. It covers a lot of big, philosophical topics in an easy to digest format. I like what it had to say, less so the way it was said if that makes sense?

I first heard about this book through one of my favorite "booktubers" on youtube, as someone whose default is to read (but mostly sleep) my life away because I like to pretend that everything is fine because I refuse to acknowledge my unresolved grief, hearing this booktuber explain this book really piqued my interest because it's literally exactly what i do, Haha. I probably shouldn't be laughing about that, but I'll discuss it with my therapist (who I will be talking to about this book because everyone needs to read it).

This book has such a unique and beautiful and sad premise and one that also reminded me of dorothy & co falling asleep in the flower field in A Wizard of Oz. It made this book feel a bit "lighter" which I liked (I am sure this is unique to me as I do any and everything possible to avoid my feelings), but I have a feeling that others will recall this similarity as well.

I had never heard of this author until this book, but they are already an auto-buy author for me now because this book was not only a 5 star, but even as I am sitting here writing this review, I'm going over everything in the book and I want to do a re=read already.

What a special book that I can see drawing people in with its odd but intriguing premise that feels like hope before you even read the first line.

I am super excited to see what comes after this book. In the mean time, I'll be re-reading this and annotating it because I deserve a little more grace and understanding about my grief-just like the characters in this book.

Absolute 5/5 read.

This was such a good read. It was full of emotion and great writing! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I don’t know what to feel about this book. I’ll settle for 2.5 stars. It was ok for me. I just was not able to connect to any of the characters. The book about grief should have to make me feel something. Anything. This didn’t make me feel anything. It was quite predictable as well.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance reader copy of this book

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the ARC.

I love the concept… there is a medical facility in the middle of Arizona where one can go sleep away the grief but execution was not my favorite. I never really connected to any of the characters.