Breathtaking

There is nothing else to add to the previously written comments about this novel. It is perfect. Cara and Adam have been friends forever. Her perfect facade hides an imperfect family life. Adam kindly shares his family with Cara and they coax each other through the difficulties of high school. With each encouraging the other, Cara and Adam have the ability to reach their life goals. I appreciate having the opportunity to be an early reader. All these five-star reviews encouraged me to bump Breathless to the top of my TBR pile. Add it to Goodreads, buy it, read it, share it. Breathless is a story that must be passed to others.

I honestly do not know where to start.
I have felt all of the feelings while reading this book. It touched me in so many ways. I just couldn’t put it down.
I devoured the story of Kara and Adam and cried and laughed and felt everything in between.
This is one of those books that I think everyone should read. It should be thrust upon teenagers during their times in school.
Not only is the story hugely inspirational, it is also real in so many ways.
You can literally feel every emotion.
I will be sharing with everyone who will listen as they need to meet Kara and Adam too!

Breathtaking is the perfect name for this book, as it truly a stunningly beautiful read which takes your breath away with it's meaningful and deep plot, which pulls you in from the first page. The characters come alive, each taking you in to the world as they see it, all helping to create a mesmerising tale of friendship,love and learning who you are. It's a story that lingers with you and that you will rave about for weeks, passing it on to friends and family.

CW: Slight homophobia, fatphobia, alcohol abuse, illness, death

4 stars

**slight spoilers**

Oh my god, I did not expect to like this book as much as I did. I was expecting another story like Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon, or Five Feet Apart by Rachel Lippincott (which are both great stories, don't get me wrong.) This book was an absolute delight to read. I found that the writing, while simple, really packed a punch. I thought the poetry throughout the book was phenomenal and really added to the story.

I know that these characters will absolutely stick with me. Adam is a great friend and is a great character to get to know from his childhood into the present day. Cara, while at first, I thought her character was a know-it-all and was an “I’m not like other girls” girl, she quickly grew on me. Her growth from her childhood to her adulthood was an amazon journey to follow. The story of her parents is one that hits hard and I feel like many people can relate to it. Reid was another character I was wary about but quickly grew to love.

The one thing that I do want to mention is the dialogue. It can sometimes sound very much like an adult writing as a teenager and doesn't feel authentically teenage at times, which is a shame. An example of this is when Cara is analyzing a poem in her highschool English class. She sounded so much like an adult that I had to check the timing of when she said it. That is not to say that teenagers cannot sound profound, but the way that she said it came off as very “I am an adult who is speaking through a teenager”

Other than the dialogue, I found this book to be very good and I loved reading it. It sheds light on some very important topics like becoming an organ donor and cystic fibrosis.

I received this ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

LOVED this book! It’s a really well written YA book that tackles some intense topics- alcoholism, OCD, organ donation, death and being the ones left behind. Highly recommend it!!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an eARC of Breathtaking in exchange for an honest review.

“It is the dark
and the distance
that lets us see the stars.”

Cara Ecrivains and Adam Aether have been best friends as long as anyone can remember. They find solace in one another and balance each other out.

But when Cara’s life turns upside down, Adam is no longer there for her. She sinks into deep depression and enters a time where writing, her first love, is gone.

How will Cara ever be able to move on and learn to love again, when everything she loves most is gone?

Breathtaking tells the story of Cara Ecrivains. It was full of heartbreaks, friendships, love, and possibilities. One moment I was laughing, and the next, I was crying my eyes out. Bond had an amazing concept, and she took writing to the next level with her flawless execution.

Cara was, and always will be, one of my favorite characters. Dealing with her alcoholic father, struggling to survive with Adam drifting away, and having to take care of herself, I really felt Cara’s thoughts and emotions, from her worries and sadness to her hopes and joys. She really resonated with me, and was just so dimensional that I felt like I knew her inside and out. Cara has had so many bad things happen to her, and I really felt for her and loved watching her learn and grow.

Not only did I love Cara, I also enjoyed reading about the secondary character. They felt so realistic, with complex and layered personalities, and I loved each and every one of them. I liked that they each played a role in Cara’s life, whether they broke her down or built her up.

Breathtaking held so many hidden messages within its lines. It navigates the depths of grief and the hopes of love and every little thing in between. This story teaches us to live our lives well, because it’s the only one we have, and will ever get, and that life is a gift and sharing the sorrows and joys of life is one thing that everyone should do.

This book absolutely broke me. It was everything. Breathtaking was thought-provoking, raw, and poignant. The plot was eventful and flowed along perfectly. It had an intricately woven storyline, with such dimensional characters and tremendous character growth. It’s a book I could read a million times and still not be tired of. Breathtaking truly is breathtaking.

What a fantastic book! I was so engrossed in the story that I couldn’t stop reading! I actually cried at one point.

I loved the poetry throughout the book and it really added to the story in such a beautiful way.

I felt for Cara and all she has had to go through. Adam was her constant through the good times and the bad. The boy next door.

I loved their connection. They had such a special bond and despite ups and downs that life throws at you, they make it through together.

When tragedy strikes, Cara is lost and everything she ever dreamed of is suddenly taken away.

Her journey continues as she grows older and things happen that are unexpected.

I didn’t find out until the end of the book that it was based on a true story. Wow. This is a beautiful and tragic coming of age story.

I enjoyed this book so much. I’d love to read more by this author. It was written really well and completely held my attention

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I adored this book. I found it a little slow starting but from about 30% I read it in one sitting. The character relationships were beautifully developed which made the tragedies in this book truly heartbreaking. I cannot remember the last time I cried reading a book but this one definitely got me. To find at the end, it was based on a true story made this such a poignant read. Difficult topics were dealt with in a hard-hitting but sensitive manner. Would hugely recommend this book to others.
Trigger warnings: alcoholism, neglect, death, grief, illness.

Overall rating: ★★★★★

“We all have a story - our reason to breathe. We don't get to choose how it begins, the people who enter, or the pain that comes along the way.”

Wow. I just... wow. ALL THE STARS FOR THIS ONE! First of all, I am a sobbing mess, a puddle of emotion, an emotional wreck. This book grabbed my heart in its hand and ripped it out completely only to put it back together again. Honestly, the last time I've felt this many emotions while reading a book was with John Green's The Fault in Our Stars.

The story is told from Cara's perspective and it's her that tells you this heart-wrenching story. Her character is so realistic and has such depth, I absolutely loved her. But it's not just her, even the secondary characters are realistically written and have many layers to them. I can't believe this is only a debut novel, because it must not be easy to create characters like this.

This book deals with serious issues like alcoholism, neglect and illness in such an honest way. It is so beautifully written, thought provoking and moving. Above all else, I feel like it's a story about friendship, love, resilience and rising above everything that's trying to hold you back in life. I could write a lot more about this, but I don't wanna spoil anything for anyone so I'll just leave it at that.

I'd like to thank BooksGosocial, Netgalley and of course the wonderful writer herself, Courtney Turcotte Bond, for making this amazing book available to read early in exchange for an honest review. Also, can someone please make this book into a movie because that would just be absolutely perfect, thank you very much.

And to whoever is reading this: buy it, read it, share it. This story truly is absolutely breathtaking.

“We're all dying, Cara. Every day, it gets closer and closer. That's why we have to suck all the marrow out now before it's too late.”

I didn’t have any idea as to what this book was going to entail and I really do think that’s the best way. You want to experience that raw emotion that will hit you as the story unfolds.

The book is split into three parts, the first we are introduced to Cara & Adam when they are around 8 years old as we begin the story of how these two best friends meet and communicate. Part 2 takes you on their next journey through life as they start school together and Part 3 are the years after school and beyond.

I was immediately attached to Cara and Adam. I felt like I was right there beside them on every step of their journey together and I just didn’t want to leave them. I felt everything they were going through.

It deals with a variety of very important subject matters, from grief, depression to organ donation and more. Each one portrayed perfectly by the author and will have you feeling all of the emotions too.

Poetry plays a huge part in the story and some beautiful pieces are scattered throughout which just enhance the story. I’ve never been a huge fan of poetry so I was worried I wouldn’t enjoy it, but it didn’t detract from the story at all, in fact it made it even more beautiful!

There is also a pretty big jaw dropping moment which actually gave me chills and then I proceeded to cry yet again. This book just plays with your emotions from the very beginning.

Overall it will have your heart bursting with love and breaking all at the same time. But most importantly it will make you think hard about life and to appreciate every single day!

One final very important note is that this is based on a true story which makes it mean so much more and at the end of the book you are told about the actual people who the characters were based on. I can only thank the author for sharing this story!

If there’s one thing you do this year, make sure you read this!

4.5
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read and enjoy this book.

I loved this book, I loved watching the characters grow over many years especially Adam and Clara’s friendship. I felt all the emotions reading this and love feeling them all. I devoured this story in just over a day. The writing style was easy to understand and the chapter lengths added to my enjoyment and intrigue throughout. Although I guessed some plot points the story went in directions I could not have predicted. Overall this story was a very enjoyable experience and a great debut.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3517265102

“Even though they often played together after school, the daytime hours weren’t enough for these best friends—they needed the nighttime, too.”

I really, really have a soft spot for books with nothing more than the relationship between best friends or siblings, and this one hits the mark so hard!

The story follows Cara and the relationship with her best friend and next-door neighbor, Adam, from the time they’re eight years old up through college. It’s beyond satisfying to see the two interact; keeping childhood secrets, special moments, tears, smiles and promises between the two.

Character development was so important in this book, and again, the author nailed it. Cara has to go from being an innocent child to a teen with a bad home life. Adam struggles from being a kid that is bullied to figuring out who he wants to be. Both are constantly changing and growing through each chapter; sometimes together and sometimes separately, and it’s beautiful!

Love, tragedy, heartbreak, abuse and best-friends; I could not put this book down until it was finished.

I truly don't know where to start with this book. From the first to the very last page this book kept me mesmerized, and had me wondering what was going to happen next. This book was an emotional roller-coaster, with something unexpected happening at every twist and turn. I honestly could probably read this book a million more times and then some. I would really encourage anyone even the slightest bit interested in this book to read it. The title of this book truly sums up the whole experience of reading this book, and honestly the book itself. This book was truly breathtaking.

I was originally pulled in by the beautiful cover of this book. The pretty depiction of the lungs links perfectly with the title ‘Breathtaking’, the themes and the underlying messages of the story. Before I decided to read ‘Breathtaking’ I read the synopsis to get a better idea of what this book was about and it sounded like this would be an emotional rollercoaster. Boy, was that right!

The story dealt with various serious issues that are important to discuss and being to life. Courtney did this so well, taking care to have a level of sensitivity while keeping the realism. The realism of these issues and the impact on the characters, particularly the main character Cara, led to an emotional rollercoaster that had me smiling and laughing at some points and crying at others.

The writing only strengthened this further, making the story attention holding and pulling you further into the story with each and every development. It was really surprising that this was Courtney’s debut novel and I can only imagine how strong future works by Courtney will be if they follow a similar style of writing. I was initially unsure of how the poetry written by Adam Boyd Stevens would work within the book, particularly alongside Courtney’s writing, but it added to the story perfectly and was so, so beautifully written. It was incorporated into the story well and complimented the novel well.

While the story is told from Cara’s perspective, Cara, Adam and all the secondary characters had depth, feeling like real people with layers, true emotions and experiences. Cara and Adam had a great connection that made you thankful they had each other through life’s good and bad moments. This helped to enforce what I felt were the underlying messages of despite life’s setbacks, resilience, believing in yourself and surrounding yourself with positive influences will get you far.

This story has really resonated with me and is one that I keep thinking of since finishing it. This hasn’t happened to me in quite a while, which shows just how captivating this story is and the lasting impression it has. It would make a great movie adaptation if the story was followed closely. I will be recommending Breathtaking to anyone I can and I am looking forward to reading more works by both Courtney and Adam.

Thank you to NetGalley, Courtney Turcotte Bond and BooksGoSocial for the ARC in exchange for my fair and honest review.

A sincere thank you to the publisher, author and Netgalley for providing me with an ebook copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is not my usual genre,  however I wanted to take the opportunity to read something from outside my norm. And I am glad I did!! Thank you for  opening up my mind to something totally different. Characters were so well developed that I felt as though I knew them. I love when a book draws you into the story and it feels like you are living it with them.

Well, I don't know what I expected when I got an ARC of this book. It sounded really interesting and I'm in the medical profession so I was curious.

But I did not expect to be so utterly destroyed and heartbroken by this book (in the best way ever)!
This book was a roller coaster. A lot of times writing doesn't quite dig at my emotions the way a movie with sounds, visual settings, good acting, and real tears (I'm a sympathetic crier y'all) will. That was NOT the case with the writing in this book. It has been a long time since I've read a book that so deeply touched my emotions. I cried MULTIPLE times.

From beginning to end, I absolutely adored reading this book and connecting with the characters. It has a bit of a slow start but it picks up and takes you on the wildest roller coaster of emotions. The use of poetry in this book is so impactful, and that's coming from someone who knows nothing about poetry. I have never been able to appreciate poetry as much as I did while reading this.

I connected with these characters so much and my heart was broken, patched up and broken again. It shattered when I read the ending and learned that the author wrote this based on real-life people.

It did take me a while to read but that's only because I had some other galleys and buddy reads that I was working on and I'm in grad school so I got super busy. But I could have read this in a day if I had the time.

Overall, I loved this book. I am emotionally exhausted and heartbroken but I loved every minute of it. Such a good read!

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for providing a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I would give this book one hundred stars if I could. We follow Cara at different periods of her life: age eight, the high school years, college, and beyond. We also get glimpses of her life with an alcoholic father and an OCD mother. Bond writes these strong family dynamics flawlessly.

Adam is Cara’s constant. He is there for her through the good and bad. The two friends even make a pact to marry if they are both still single at age twenty-six and a half. Will he be able to help her move forward when Cara’s world shatters?

There was so much foreshadowing in this book, and it certainly made me excited to turn the pages and see how Cara’s story might end. Also, Cara jams out to Dave Matthews Band in the car, so you know I felt a connection to her. I ordered a print copy and might just read it again once it arrives. I can’t wait to pass this one along to my best friend!

It is just beautiful. I don't know what else to say the first book that has made me cry in a long time. I absolutely loved the first 2 parts I just wish we could have spent more time in part 3 and expand on that work a little. Despite that minor criticism I am giving it 5 stars it's just so lovely. It's the coming of age story about finding family and finding love. This is such a jumbled review but I stayed up way to late to finish this considering I have to be in class for 8 hours tomorrow.

I was given a copy from Netgalley in exchange for review.

Wonderful story wonderfully written took me a while to get into it but once i did i loved it.

It helped me lose myself for a few hours

This book is heart breaking and as the title suggests breath taking. Everyone thinks that Cara’s life is perfect. Her parents are loving, house is perfect and she does well in school but that isn’t true. Adam, her next door neighbour knows the truth. Cara escapes by writing and reading her stories to her best friend.

When everything seems to be going to plan and she finally tells Adam how she feels her life crumbles beneath her. How will life ever be the same and will she ever be able to write again.

Going to college she meets someone who teaches her that she should use her writing to explain how she feels, how she loves and to tell hers and Adams story. As she finally begins to love and heal, Cara finds out something that changes her world completely again. As she is finally ready to move forward tragedy strikes again in a world that is already so fragile.

This book was read in one sitting. I couldn’t put it down. The heart-breaking ending and to find out that it’s based on real people just broke my heart even more. It was amazing to read and it felt like I was living every moment. I cried big fat tears and cheered in places that I didn’t expect. For people who like John Green and Jennifer Niven this is a book that will have you turning the pages so fast.

This book had me gripped. throughout I found it so powerful I found myself crying when Adam died. It was written with such love and description that I lost myself every time I settled down to read it!

“The nightly ritual of reading stories through the window started when they were five. Even though they often played together after school, the daytime hours weren’t enough for these best friends—they needed the nighttime, too.”

Cara and Adam are next door neighbours, they have been the best of friends since anyone can remember, all of their best memories include each other. Cara doesn’t have the best home life, her father is an alcoholic and her mother would rather spend all day obsessively scrubbing the house clean than spend any time with her daughter. When things get too much or the arguments get too loud, Cara reads her stories to Adam through their facing bedroom windows.

Breathtaking is a beautiful coming of age story that follows the best friends through their childhood as they grow up and move through school together. We see them each branching out to follow their own dreams- Cara wanting to be a writer and editor of the school newspaper, Adam wanting to play football and make it on the varsity team- just when they’re finally getting what they wanted, tragedy strikes and changes everything.

I had such a hard time rating this book. It was very well written, I loved the characters and I adored the first two thirds of the book. In fact it actually made me cry, which is a rarity with books. Unfortunately the last third of the story really let it down. I didn’t like Reid at all or Cara and Reid together and it was too poetry heavy for me (I skipped most of them). In the end I decided the book more than deserved the 4 stars just for the parts I loved.

Thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review

When the book matches the title, because it was just breathtaking! Thankyou Netgalley and thankyou Courtney for this amazing heart wrenchingly beautiful book. Its rare that a book can make me cry. But this one had me in tears at the end, I loved it so much.
Cara and Adam grow up next door to each other, for Cara everything seems perfect from the outside but her fathers alcoholism is taking its toll. For Adam he has a loving family, and no matter where their school years take them, they'll always have the window. Life takes them in different directions but the connection is never broken and their love for each other is consistent and unbreakable. They've been friends for as long as they can remember, until one day Adam can't be there for her anymore, and Cara had to learn to navigate a world without Adam in it. I predicted some aspects of the book but when told right, and when told as beautifully as this story even the predictable parts really do hit some feelings. I am so glad I got to read this. Absolutely amazing debut novel from Courtney that I have already recommended to several people.

Very emotional book and was very interesting to read. Thank you to that NetGalley for letting me read this book .

It is way too late for me to be writing this review but I couldn’t help myself since I stayed up to finish it and has spent the last 2 hours crying.

I’ll have to be honest and say that there were some dragging moments (especially beginning was not to interesting that I almost wanted to give up but I wanted to leave a review and hope for the best)

It was at my 50% mark when I started to get really interested, Cara and Adam’s relationship starting out in HS really was an emotional roller coaster! I was sad to see that Adam starting distancing himself and would get triggers from Cara really begging for his attention. Especially when they were in the woods.
I was hoping for a great ending I kept wondering why it was so early and Adam finally asked Cara to homecoming 😭 I could’ve sworn he was going to ask her to marry him.
I guess I also didn’t expect him passing away. My eyes will be swollen tomorrow because of that.
I loved that Reid was introduced😭. I was longing so much for Adam and Cara to fall in love and for it to be taken away I was happy she got it somehow.

If I’d have to explain the vibes I got was HS romance and 7lbs. I’m glad I got threw this book because not sure how long has it been that a book has made me cry this much, I honestly felt like I was watching the movie.

....
Thank you Courtney Turcotte Bond, BooksGoSocial, and Netgalley for the ARC.

An amazing debut!

It was such an emotional read! I struggled at some point due to the topics and issues which is brought up within the book but WOW! It was breathtaking.

I wasn't sure what to expect when i started reading this book. It was a slow start then i fell head over heels for Adam and Cara. I haven't ugly cried to a book in a really long time.and this book got me TWICE!!! I didn't know it was inspired by true events...it was a great read!

THOROUGHLY ENJOYED this amazing book! I enjoyed the romance and it reminded me a lot of midnight sun, great for lovers of five feet apart ect.

This is a beautifully written coming of age story, full of emotion and characters that you completely fall in love with. An engaging and powerful read dealing with some sensitive topics.