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jennneely82's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Ok, so this book is very well-written and I really wanted to love it. The book focuses on family, friendship, grief, and AI, all very relevant and important subjects. However, the story seemed to drag on and how the author wrapped up the book bothers me. While we all grieve in our own ways, not every action can be forgiven or excused because of grief. Just a bit disheartening.
windermerepeak1's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I’m so fucking sad😭😭😭 reminds me of that black mirror episode, and the book definitely delivered in emotion
optimisticbooknerd's review against another edition
5.0
5 ⭐
I found Dante on tiktok and I absolutely love her content and one day I saw her talking about this novel and after hearing the summary I RAN to add it to my goodreads tbr and I've been wanting to read this one for what seems like forever. I finally picked it up and read it in one sitting.
I never wanna say books are perfect but this one is pretty darn close if not perfect. It explores the discussion of friendship, grief, betrayal and it was such a beautiful journey.
I want a physical copy so bad to annotate it and highlight all the beautiful passages. I rarely see anyone talking about this one but it was so incredible and it needs all the attention. I cried, I laughed, I cried some more it was devastatingly perfect and even the authors note made me cry!
I think I reccomend this for anybody who wants an emotional book with beautiful quotes, outstanding writing and amazing characters. everything about this was absolutely incredible.
I found Dante on tiktok and I absolutely love her content and one day I saw her talking about this novel and after hearing the summary I RAN to add it to my goodreads tbr and I've been wanting to read this one for what seems like forever. I finally picked it up and read it in one sitting.
I never wanna say books are perfect but this one is pretty darn close if not perfect. It explores the discussion of friendship, grief, betrayal and it was such a beautiful journey.
I want a physical copy so bad to annotate it and highlight all the beautiful passages. I rarely see anyone talking about this one but it was so incredible and it needs all the attention. I cried, I laughed, I cried some more it was devastatingly perfect and even the authors note made me cry!
I think I reccomend this for anybody who wants an emotional book with beautiful quotes, outstanding writing and amazing characters. everything about this was absolutely incredible.
villainy's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
wiebkebickel's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
bookishblondegirl's review against another edition
2.5
When Bailey's best friend, Vanessa, dies in a car accident, the circumstances surrounding her death just don't make sense to Bailey. In an attempt to find a cure for her intense grief, Bailey creates a chat bot of Vanessa using their years worth of messages. At times it feels like she really is talking to Vanessa. But then, the AI bot begins to hint that there were secrets Vanessa was keeping from Bailey; secrets that may have contributed to her death.
From glancing at the reviews, it looks like I'm in the minority for feeling underwhelmed by this. I did not dislike this, per se, but rather thought it was just okay. Keeping it vague, the premise of this intrigued me so much, and I was really looking forward to seeing it play out, particularly the AI aspect.
I was very interested in the mystery of the story, so I was pretty bummed that the answers turned out to be so simplistic and anticlimactic. In the same vein, the AI chat bot played less of a significant role than I expected, specifically in the unraveling of the plot's mystery.
I don't know, maybe this is a me issue because I think I expected something different from this. I think this is better suited for those who like realistic or contemporary fiction, which is not what I typically gravitate towards. It is a good representation of loss and grief for the target age group as well!
TLDR; expected a mystery/thriller, got a contemporary
From glancing at the reviews, it looks like I'm in the minority for feeling underwhelmed by this. I did not dislike this, per se, but rather thought it was just okay. Keeping it vague, the premise of this intrigued me so much, and I was really looking forward to seeing it play out, particularly the AI aspect.
I was very interested in the mystery of the story, so I was pretty bummed that the answers turned out to be so simplistic and anticlimactic. In the same vein, the AI chat bot played less of a significant role than I expected, specifically in the unraveling of the plot's mystery.
I don't know, maybe this is a me issue because I think I expected something different from this. I think this is better suited for those who like realistic or contemporary fiction, which is not what I typically gravitate towards. It is a good representation of loss and grief for the target age group as well!
TLDR; expected a mystery/thriller, got a contemporary
emmasdilemma's review against another edition
4.0
"Bobbing up and down in the ocean of grief. Forgetting as I break the surface, holding her memory in like a breath of air as I slip underwater."
Um ouch. The unravelling of grief and betrayal brings out primal emotions through my soul that have been neglected.
Um ouch. The unravelling of grief and betrayal brings out primal emotions through my soul that have been neglected.
purple676's review against another edition
3.0
I loved the format of this book. What I didn’t love was that it had some cliche tropes i personaly don’t like but it wasn’t a bad book, it just wasn’t my thing. Also I thought the big secret in the summary would be something else and when i found out what it actualy was i was disappointed
ameserole's review against another edition
4.0
Message Not Found made me emotional. Like a hot mess of emotions. Even though I knew it was the death was coming, it still left me in shock. I've never lost a best friend like that, and I hope I never will. So, seeing what Bailey, Mason, and everyone else Vanessa touched definitely hurt my heart. Then when the big reveal came my way, well, I was so angry.
This whole book is a journey about Bailey learning to heal from the untimely death of her best friend. It doesn't help that she is so focused on learning all her secrets. But, in some ways, I did find learning about what happened that night was helping her. It just sucks with the way that she found out certain things because it goes to show that you don't really know a person. Which can definitely hurt like a bitch.
Once the little mystery was solved, I sat back and watched how things were going to end. I was happy that secrets finally came out so that everyone could heal and move on. It did, however, suck that everyone basically knew about this huge secret before Bailey did. I think that's what hurt her the most. Shoot, it hurt me the most even if little things were leading up to it.
In the end, I'm so happy that I dove into this. It's such a short book and very easy to devour.
This whole book is a journey about Bailey learning to heal from the untimely death of her best friend. It doesn't help that she is so focused on learning all her secrets. But, in some ways, I did find learning about what happened that night was helping her. It just sucks with the way that she found out certain things because it goes to show that you don't really know a person. Which can definitely hurt like a bitch.
Once the little mystery was solved, I sat back and watched how things were going to end. I was happy that secrets finally came out so that everyone could heal and move on. It did, however, suck that everyone basically knew about this huge secret before Bailey did. I think that's what hurt her the most. Shoot, it hurt me the most even if little things were leading up to it.
In the end, I'm so happy that I dove into this. It's such a short book and very easy to devour.
smalltownbookmom's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this YA story about loss and dealing with grief. This story features two best friends and how one of them deals with the unexpected death of the other. Set in Alaska, Bailey's senior year is put in turmoil when her best friend Vanessa dies in a car accident while texting her. In an attempt to grieve, Bailey manages to make a bot version of her friend and communicate with this AI version as she tries to move on. Secrets are revealed though that throw her relationship with Vanessa into question and Bailey has to figure out how she can forgive her friend. Perfect for fans of You've reached Sam and great on audio. This is definitely a quick but heartfelt story of female friendship.