This was such a beautiful and sweet read! I adored You've Reached Sam so I immediately wanted to read the companion novel You've Found Oliver. The way that the book handles Oliver's struggle with grief is so relatable and realistic. I adored Oliver and Ben, the yearning was perfectly executed.

Thank you to Penguin Teen for the digital reader’s copy!

Review: 3.75 stars

I read the prequel You’ve Reached Sam and found that one to be an okay read. I decided to give this sequel a chance.

Oliver, Sam’s best friend is still mourning the loss of his best friend, Sam to a point that he would occasionally text his deceased best friend's phone number. One day, he accidentally calls the number and someone picks up…Ben and little by little, they slowly fall in love.

This book explores the themes of grief, friendship, finding love with a hint of magical realism thrown in. Oliver is lost without his best friend, Sam. Everyone, including Julie, Sam’s past girlfriend, is moving onwards while he is still stuck. His recent relationship ended in a sour note with a cheating boyfriend and he is struggling with his loneliness. Enter Ben, the other person on the other side who has been reading his texts. What follows is a sweet and slow romance. I do enjoy how their relationship unfolds - Ben is so sweet and caring towards Oliver and respects Oliver’s position in life. Their relationship is genuine and heartful with a hint of astronomy and music thrown in.

I find the time travel magical realism unexpected and it felt that it could do without but the direction didn’t surprise me given that this is Dustin Thao. This made the ending somewhat open ended.

I find that the story flows well making it a quick and easy read. My only nitpick which I also find with the first book is the lack of emotional depth it has. I find this a miss since I find myself reading in passing glance with a lack of emotion invested in the characters. Hence, the review…

Thank you Penguin Teen Canada fo the eARC.

Such a beautiful story this had made me tear up a lot

It’s written so well with a fast moving plot with relatable characters and characters that felt real

I LOVED this!! I haven’t read You’ve Reached Sam but I’m thinking maybe I need to! I loved these characters. I didn’t see the plot going in the direction it did so it threw me for a moment and there were times I wished it wasn’t an alternate timeline but it was probably only the once where I was imagining how their story would have played out if it hadn’t gone in that direction. I very much enjoyed this though!! I read it in 2 days, which is fast for me! I will definitely check out more books by this author!!

Reading Journal Details
Book: You've Found Oliver by Dustin Thao
Format Read: Kindle eBook (~288 pages long)
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5)

My Quick Take Review
A beautifully written, slow burning romance filed with heart, healing, and emotional depth. You've Found Oliver really pulls at your heartstrings, even if the final twists may feel a little predictable.

Some Key Features
🏳️‍🌈 LGBT representation
📱 Texting
🔭 Telescope
🥐 Bakery
🔥 Slow burn romance

My Full Review
You've Found Oliver is my first run in with author Dustin Thao and I found it to be such an absolute lovely read... Tender, heartfelt, and beautifully written. I couldn't put it down, finishing it way faster than I expected, drawn in by the raw emotions, the slow burn romance, and Thao's eloquent, addictive prose.

What really resonated with me was how Sam's presence remained meaningful throughout the book, never forgotten or pushed aside. The grief, the healing, the honest conversations, everything felt incredibly thoughtful and authentic. And the chemistry between Ben and Oliver? Exquisite! Their playful banter, the gradual way they care for one another, and the emotional vulnerability between them made their relationship truly shine.

It's worth noting that this is the second book in the You've Reached Sam series, but I can attest that it is perfectly readable as a standalone. I haven't read the first book, yet I felt completely immersed. Will I go back and read the first book? Absolutely.

The big twist caught me off guard and spiked my anxiety in all the right ways, but I'll admit that after that big reveal, the remainder of the story felt somewhat predictable. That said, it didn't take away from the heartfelt sweetness or emotional impact!

And can we please take a moment to appreciate that gorgeous cover? It deserves a standing ovation! It's hands down my favorite book cover of all the books I've read this year.

All in all, if you're looking for a touching, character-driven romance that thoughtfully explores grief, healing, and love with care, You've Found Oliver is definitely worth picking up.

Thank you Penguin Young Readers Group, Dutton Books for Young Readers, Dustin Thao, and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader's copy (ARC) of this deeply sentimental romance in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are solely my own.

Honestly a heartwarming story, but the writing was hard to follow. I give it 3 stars. Story between Oliver and Sam and how they were always friends and then Oliver doesn't want to give up continually messages his friends Sam's number. Somehow in the end after a tragedy there's hope.

I absolutely loved You’ve Reached Sam and was so excited for a companion novel focusing on Oliver. I thought this was such a beautiful story. While it didn’t emotionally devastate me like Sam did (THANK GOD), I was still so invested in this story and these characters. I very much loved Oliver and Julie’s friendship. That was so lovely to see. I really related to Oliver with not really knowing what to do with his life or in college while everyone else seems to have it all figured out. And of course, BEN. Oliver and Ben were incredible together. Excellent chemistry and I loved how they supported and pushed each other to be better. And THAT EPILOGUE. Ugh, my heart! I would love another Sam-verse novel so much to see these characters again and how they grow.

Thank you to Penguin Teen for the digital reader’s copy!

Thanks to netgalley and penguin teen books for the ARC!

The idea behind this book was really interesting and, in some ways, it felt like a bit of a second chance romance. Oliver and Ben had a really natural chemistry and their relationship was nice to follow as it grew. The writing style was a little bit choppy and the ending happened a bit quickly for my taste.

This is another book in the world of “You’ve Reached Sam” with Oliver and Julia. It has the same feel as Dustin’s other books, with odd timey-wimey events and strange occurrences, plus plenty of gay longing and a cute ending.

I enjoyed this novel. Thanks to NetGalley and Booktrovert for an ARC.

I Am Speechless
Oliver's journey was a lot to take in, especially the traveling through time and the ending. However, his journey with Ben shows that healing and second chances are possible. A beautiful read overall.

SO thankful to @netgalley for this arc copy and @thedustinthao for writing another outstanding novel 🥰

“Are those memories not woven into the walls themselves?” Memory. Love. Loss. Future.Past. All things Oliver has had time to consider since the death of his best friend Sam. To cope, Oliver has been sending texts to Sam’s phone. Then one day, he receives a reply. Ben is everything Oliver could want in a person- so why do their meet ups feel so strange sometimes? What is going on that makes Oliver feel like he’s split between two places? In my opinion this book is a shining example of magical realism and a tribute to the resilience of our young people in the fade of tragedy. I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of this story and hope you do too.

A huge thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Young Readers Group | Dutton Books for Young Readers and author Dustin Thao for providing me with the eARC of “You’ve found Oliver”, in exchange for my honest review!
Publication date: September 30th, 2025
Reviewed on Goodreads: June 30th, 2025

5 stars!
Let me start off by saying that I have yet to read the first part to this series, “You’ve Reached Sam”. However, it didn’t affect by ability to read and understand this story! There is a short recap on book one at the beginning, so I was able to get the backstory.

In this story we meet Oliver. A college boy who is grieving the death of his best friend Sam, who died one year ago. Oliver frequently sends texts to Sam’s old phone number as a way to comfort himself.
Ben is also a college student and is the new owner of Sam’s old phone number, who has been on the receiving end of Oliver’s texts.
The two boys start texting and meeting up, and soon find themselves falling for each other. The problem? The universe may be trying to separate them, or perhaps bring them together even if they shouldn’t be.

- MM Romance
- Young adult Romance
- Magic/philosophical themes
- Grief/trauma

This was such a nice read!
I was not expecting the plot of this story at all.
I thought I was just going into a cute little romance, which I did get, but it also gave so much more.
I love the philosophy and magic vibes, and I think a lot of other readers will too.
Oliver and Ben are so great together, and I was actually on the edge of my seat at the end of the book, waiting to find out what would happen to them.
I may have been prepared to start SOBBING if it didn’t go well.
I was terrified.

This was so good I will absolutely be going back to read the “You’ve Reached Sam” now!

Thanks for the arc! I’ve loved all books in this series and they’re all so tragic and heart wrenching. This one was the same but in the best way. Ben and Oliver were so cute, I loved the M M dynamic and the fact that it wasn’t a cookie cutter of the first book. I loved it and can’t wait to have a physical copy

Well Dustin Thao has done it again!! Not many books have made me cry and he is 3 for 3

You’ve found Oliver is a tale of coming out the other side of loss. It a hard but it does get easier with time. The relationships that Oliver has or creates is peaceful.

Do t want to say more, but I would recommend this book and Dustin’s other books as well.

Thank you to @netgalley for giving me a chance to read this book that I have been patiently waiting for.

Man oh man. I was a bit worried about this one. I heard it was a tear jerker, but I didn’t expect to cry four times in the first chapter. Luckily, the heart wrenching parts were less potent after that, and I was able to finish the book with mostly dry eyes.

I really enjoyed Oliver and Ben’s story. The astronomy and philosophy parts were a bit over my head, but I tried to just enjoy the story without trying to understand them. I’m glad Oliver was able to shift his perspective on life so he could live happily, and I was thrilled with the ending. While the book felt a little short, it was still a cute, sweet read.

I don't know what Dustin puts in his books but I am here for it. Always touching and thought provoking.

YOU’VE REACHED OLIVER is a heartfelt, lump-in-your-throat kind of coming of story that shows what it looks like to find yourself even in the midst of grief and unexplainable things. Oliver is still mourning the loss of his best friend, Sam, but he’s also trying to figure out what the rest of his life holds. Sam has to decide what the future could look like for him, something he hasn’t really dared to dream about during the tumult of his life so far.

There were quite a few times that Oliver felt like a part of me and some of the things I’ve felt my whole life, and others when he was a unique character that I just wanted to see happy. As a pisces, my heart probably won’t stop feeling a little sore for a while.

Dustin Thao delivers another heart-wrenching story that straddles the delicate line between grief and healing. You've Found Oliver is tender, haunting, and emotionally intelligent, following a protagonist who grapples with the past in ways that feel both surreal and painfully real. Thao’s prose is gentle yet potent, and fans of You've Reached Sam will appreciate the emotional continuity, even as this novel explores new thematic ground. While the pacing felt a bit slow at times, the emotional payoff is worth it. Thao continues to shine in writing stories that linger in your chest long after the final page.

I greatly enjoyed this book, and to be honest, more than “You’ve reached Sam.” In this story, we see how Oliver, a character from the first book, handles his grief after losing Sam. He has been texting Sam’s number to cope with his loss, only to one day accidentally dial the number and someone answers it. The boy that answers is Ben, and Oliver quickly takes to him as they explore friendship, and potentially even more. It was interesting to see how grief coping and self-exploration are explored. For me, this book plays into the questions we usually ask ourselves such as “what would happen if I could go back in time?” “What if I had made a different decision?” “Where should I go from here”

To be honest, I guessed the plot of the book very early on, so I was screaming at Oliver to hurry up. However, I didn’t think that Ben would actually be someone real and that at the end of the book, Oliver and Ben meet in the same timeline. It was never really explained how Oliver came up with the Ben character. Initially, I thought Ben was another person who had passed away.


ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The biggest thing I can say to start this review is: Thank God I didn’t sob the entire book like I did for You’ve Reached Sam.

You’ve Found Oliver feels like such a natural progression to You’ve Reached Sam. Oliver was by far one of my favorite characters in Julie’s book, and he always felt like he had more to tell. From a main character standpoint, I do prefer him so much more than Julie. Julie was often very selfish and sort of had main character syndrome, but Oliver still feels like the lovable side character while being the main character.

As always, Dustin Thao is phenomenal at describing the different sides of grief. Oliver's loss and morning and grief are very different from Julie’s, yet still just as important. Dustin Thao just writes a story really beautifully, and makes me feel emotionally connected by the first line.

Plot-wise. It did something I really didn’t expect. I was wondering if Oliver’s story was going to be much more… realistic compared to Julie’s, and I thought that was going to be odd from a cohesive standpoint. So I’m happy they were both still speculative in their own way. But on that note, after the twist happened, I spent the next… 75% of the book oscillating between swooning over how cute Ben and Oliver were and how anxiety ridden because I had basically guessed the ending by about chapter 5. I wouldn’t say this is necessarily a bad thing; I still devoured this book in less than 24 hours, but it did mean my stomach was nauseated for most of the book.

From a pure romance perspective, Oliver and Ben were very precious. I like Oliver and Ben being able to learn from one another and grow as individuals. Plus, they were just so nerdy, and it was adorable. It was also nice to see the comparison and differences between Ben and Sam. It’s nice to know that Sam isn’t forgotten and he’s always going to be a part of Oliver’s life. That death doesn’t just wipe people away. I did feel like Oliver and Sam’s story was left awkwardly unfinished, but that’s maybe the point… Julie got closure, Oliver didn’t.

I have seen from other ARC reviews that there’s no need to read You’ve Reached Sam to read this one, and I guess I get it. Nothing in Oliver spoils Sam, but the parallels between the two and the overall complete story are truly unmatched. So, like I don’t at all see why you wouldn’t want those things, and to experience both Julie and Oliver in relation to Sam.

I am not going to spoil anything—maybe I’ll come back later when the book is out—but this has one of my favorite tropes of all TIME. An underrated one too. So UGH yay!

Also, I understand the cover now. Very smart, Dustin Thao and his team. Very smart. (Also, that cover is GORGEOUS)