4/5
TRIGGER WARNING: abusive relationships, homophobia and rape
Laurel, a teenage girl, is assigned on her English class to write a letter to someone dead. She decides to write it to Kurt Cobain, who was admired by her sister (May), who had recently passed away. After writing the first one, which she doesn't turn in, she continues to keep on writing them to various dead personas such as Amy Winehouse or Amelia Earhart, talking about her current life, the process of grieving for her sister, making new friends at the new school, etc.
One of the most ambigious opinions i have regarding this book is the writing style and the characters.
Firstly, the writing style. Poetic language was often used, but sometimes it felt like it didn't fit in the context. The book is written by a teenager and it didn't make sense to me the big quantity of poetic metaphors she used.
There's also mixed feelings regarding the characters. My favourites were the secondary ones, specially Hannah and Natalie. I think their backstory and friendship was perfect and was splendidly developed. Everything they did made perfect sense (basing it off of how the author described them) and none seemed illogical; which is the difference between the main and secondary characters. I often found myself questioning some of Laurel's decisions, they didn't look like something she would do and it caused me to lose immersion in the story.
One of the biggest surprises about the book was the intrigue. I wasn't expecting it to have any, I just thought it was going to narrate the process of grief of a teenage girl, but when May's cause of death is often omitted you begin to wonder and can't help but start guessing.
Finally, one of the things I disliked the most and what made it a four-star book was the way things resolved. We are presented with some problems which cause the main character pain throughout the book and when she finally confronts them, it felt short compared to the amount of attention they were given in the first place.
In conclusion, I would recommend this book to anyone who loves heart-wrenching contemporaries (beware of the trigger warnings) and would like to see good LGBTQ+ representation.
(English isn't my first language so if there's any mistake please let me know)

This is a story i got very frustrated with reading. Not because it is basically a private diary set out in letter form but cause there is so much more that could have brought the greatness of this story out so much more. There was so many emotions that could have been drawn out not just the depressing side of it all. There where moments in this book that I was like, that was just so F#$%ing perfect. That exactly how someone would feel and it would go but there were other parts that could have been drawn out of more. It is still a good read either way.

BOOK COVER: 4.5
FAVE CHARACTER: I didn't overally have a fav in this story.
RATING: Ma15+ most def there is just so much content in this that is only for older readers
OVERALL: Frustrated mostly cause there is aspects that could have improved on the story so much.
WOULD I READ MORE FROM THIS AUTHOR: ummmm I'm not overally sure I would there is a possibility I would at this stage but maybe not to.
RECOMMEND: I probably personally wouldn't recommend this book to anyone I know but there is a possibility I will later on in life meet someone I could recommend it to.

The plot was predictable, the romance unconvincing and the writing voice far too childishly simple, but the characters were, to me, fairly likable.

The author thanks Stephen Chbosky in her acknowledgements for being her mentor. This book was written in the same voice as The Perks Of Being A Wallflower, but where I felt it worked for the main character in that book because Charlie, despite being bright, seemed a little emotionally underdeveloped, the same did not apply to Laurel in this book.

I don't know what else there is to say. This book was basically The Perks Of Being A Wallflower and I'm pretty sure that as a result of reading it, I'm probably going to end up getting plot points and characters between the two mixed up in my head.

Spoiler

Despite not crying throughout the entire book, the epilogue finally broke me.

Afterthoughts:

Spoiler

- Why did we see no repercussions for Evan's attempted rape of Laurel? Bleh. And why did no one attempt to track down and deal justice to that creep Billy? If he molested a 13 year old once, there's nothing to stop him from doing it again.
- It was so ridiculously obvious that Sky was kicked out of school for beating up Paul because he fancied May. Kind of a super creepy side-plot though. Also, since when was Sky a boy's name?
- Glad that Natalie and Hannah finally got it together in the end.
- Tristan and Kristen's side-plot was kind of dull and pointless and I kept horribly anticipating that Tristan was going to hit on Laurel or something in order to mess up his relationship before it even had a chance to fall apart from distance. Thankfully, that didn't happen.

Comparing this and The Perks Of Being A Wallflower:

Spoiler

The gay best friend(s) - Natalie & Hannah vs. Patrick.
Dead best friend - May (sister) vs. Michael.
Book written in format of supposedly writing to someone - Lauren to various dead celebrities vs. Charlie to an unnamed person.
Unconvincing romance - Sky vs. Sam.
Both protagonists were molested - Laurel by her sister's boyfriend's friend, Charlie by his aunt. Both didn't reveal this information until around 75% of the way through the book.
Both protagonists were introduced to alcohol and drugs through making new friends at high school. Both don't really smoke or drink of their own accord, only when other people let them or make them through peer pressure.
Both protagonists became friends with seniors in their schools (Tristan and Kristen in this book, Sam and Patrick in The Perks), despite being a lot younger - Laurel is 14, Charlie is 15 and their friends are 17/18.

4

Tengo sentimientos encontrados con este libro.
Primero, amo que se nombre artistas, canciones, películas, etc. Siento que hace que el libro sea más único, y que cada vez que escuches esa canción o veas en esa película te acuerdes de este libro.

Segundo, me encanta como cuenta un poco de la vida de cada famoso al cual Laurel les hace una carta, siento que eso hace que aprendas un poco más de ellos y te conectes más con su vida, su historia y sus problemas.

Tercero, los personajes son excelentes, están muy bien retratados, incluso los personajes secundarios.

Realmente me llegó mucho este libro, no se si es porque me sentí reflejada con el personajes de Laurel, que cada cosa que ella pensaba, decía o sentía; era algo con lo cual me sentía identificada.
Me conecté mucho con su personaje, había momentos en los que sentía que ella era yo.

Conclusión: lo ame, considero que es un libro que vale la pena y que, ojalá, todos pudieran leerlo

it was slow all throughout the book, the main character was pretty pathetic, and un-relatable and I just really did not like how it all resolved at the end. it was too perfect

Thank you Bloomsbury India for sending me a copy of this book for review.

In Love Letters to the Dead, Ava Dellaira chronicles the heart-wrenching process that Laurel goes through, trying to cope with the loss of her elder sister, May. After May's death, Laurel begins to blame herself, as her parents go their own way. Dealing with loss of identity and social withdrawal, Laurel finds solace in writing letters to dead artists. She gains inspiration from their life and works, and is able to express all that she is holding in. But sooner or later, she must open up to her friends, even at the risk of losing them, so as to not lose her own sense of self.

I love epistolary novels. This one is in the form of letters that Laurel writes to deceased people, talking about her day and how everything and everyone around her has changed after May's death. The tone of the book is melancholic and yet there is a fierceness in it because of Laurel's resolve to keep her sister alive within herself. Some of the themes that are predominant in this book are loss, abuse and love. The author's writing style is like ripples in the water. It prods the stillness in Laurel's life while smoothening out the tangles in others'. Nature has been used quite often to symbolize Laurel's emotions leading to vivid imageries that I rather liked. Another thing I enjoyed reading were the snippets of poetry that were incorporated into the story.

Some cliches that could have been done away with were the high school social hierarchy, the negativity towards LGBTQ+, the brooding silent hero etc. The characters are seemingly very realistic and not overdone. Tristan's character is so exceptionally outlined and is my favorite of them all. He uplifted Laurel and even though, mostly he is shown to be this goofy-musician type person, he is wise and agreeable. Laurel's younger persona broke me, largely because of how pure and wholehearted her love for her sister is. Even though her family is not always in the best form, she and May were each other's anchor. It is upsetting how her family falls apart, and she is almost stranded on an island of suffering by herself. But it also shows in her growth arc, how she manages to pull herself out of that phase. I just wish her Mum and Dad had been more involved. They were very passive characters. This novel melts your heart into a gooey marshmallow. It is humbling and grounding. Do pick it up and know that, after all the blubbering, like Laurel, you'll be in a better place too.