Review: When I'm Gone by Emily Bleeker

When I'm Gone

by Emily Bleeker

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing

Pages: 355

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Dear Luke, First let me say—I love you…I didn’t want to leave you.…

Luke Richardson has returned home after burying Natalie, his beloved wife of sixteen years, ready to face the hard job of raising their three children alone. But there’s something he’s not prepared for—a blue envelope with his name scrawled across the front in Natalie’s handwriting, waiting for him on the floor of their suburban Michigan home.

The letter inside, written on the first day of Natalie’s cancer treatment a year ago, turns out to be the first of many. Luke is convinced they’re genuine, but who is delivering them? As his obsession with the letters grows, Luke uncovers long-buried secrets that make him question everything he knew about his wife and their family. But the revelations also point the way toward a future where love goes on—in written words, in memories, and in the promises it’s never too late to keep.


Kritters Thoughts:  Natalie has passed away and left her husband and three kids while in the prime of their family life.  As Luke has come home to a now empty home, no wife and no mother-in-law, he finds a letter in his late wife's handwriting with instructions and the promise of more letters to come.  He will live by these letters and they will create hope and heartache as he learns of secrets that his wife had in the last moments of her life that she is now sharing through letters.

I adored this book.  The ups and downs and twists and turns came at just the right moments and just as I thought the story was concluding the author sent me down a completely different path than I expected and I loved it.  

The characters were just so easy to get to know.  The author painted easy pictures of each character without overdoing on the word count.  I could picture this family and all the characters that they interacted with after this tragedy hits them.  

This is a tissue book and a don't read in public kind of book!  I am definitely going to go find and read her previous book Wreckage as soon as possible and will be excited for the announcement of whatever is coming next.


Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from TLC Book Tours.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.