Because there's never enough time to say goodbye...

Sylvia knows that time is running out and with a husband and two children to leave behind, she begins to write her husband Paul, a handbook for when she's gone - details of what to do with their two children, pointers on how to raise them, what they eat, how he should act and also everything she should have told him before it’s too late.

Sylvia wasn’t the perfect mother, far from it, but we see a side to her that I wasn’t expecting and that is her secret, one she has saved right for the very last few pages and it is one that might just change everything - though I won’t spoil it!

Undoubtedly an issue that will have touched most of us and as sad a read as it is, I found it quite uplifting in parts too!

Thank you to Netgalley and Orion for this advanced reader's copy in return for my honest review. Such a beautifully written heartfelt book. Going by the premise of this book, it should be a sad read, however it was strangely uplifting. Stunning.

Thank you so much Rebecca Ley and Orion Books for the privilege of reading and reviewing For When I'm Gone. This book is utterly unputdownable, and will no doubt bring you to tears. This is the story of Sylvia, a young mother married to a vet happily enjoying her life when she receives a diagnoses of breast cancer. Knowing she will soon die she finds ways to say goodbye to her loved ones. Sylvia takes you one the story of her life, as she battles through the disease. A heart wrenching, funny and poignant read that will stay with you for a long time.

First of all, this book deals with breast cancer and the death of a wife and mother so is not exactly an easy read. The title refers to Sylvia, the main character, writing a manual for her husband to prepare him to bring up their children after her death. It's a tearjerker but also strangely uplifting and to say I enjoyed it seems like the wrong word considering the subject matter. However, Sylvia is not a perfect wife and mother but is all too human and that makes her all the more relatable. This novel also shows how people can be upbeat and resilient in the face of the awful tragedy of a terminal diagnosis. Not easy, especially for someone going through a similar situation but definitely a worthwhile read.

For When I’m Gone is a beautiful book. It reminded me quite a bit of Cecelia Ahern’s PS I Love You. It’s full of emotion and quite hard hitting at times. The writing was good and flowed easily. Have the tissues ready. This book will make you cry but in a good way as you realise what there is left to live when a person’s life is taken too early and all they’re concerned about is taking care of those they’re leaving behind.

Often stories about premature death can be a bit paint-by-numbers, but what I liked about this novel is that it wasn't like that at all. Sylvia (who meets her more straightforward husband, a vet, when she brings in her pug named 'Ted'- get it)? is a complex woman long before her breast cancer diagnosis, and that doesn't change after it. She has an eating disorder that troubles her all her life with a few exceptions for her pregnancies, sometimes behaves in vain and self-centred ways that most people would be able to recognise in themselves, and deals with a family trauma not by becoming a saintly mum, but by smoking fags and drinking a lot of terrible pub Chardonnay (we've all been there)! Sylvia is not always likeable and there is a suggestion that she may have contributed to the main trauma that changed her future relationships with her other family members (and definitely contributed to another lesser rift involving her husband and sister) but in both cases, it doesn't actually make you like her less that she's done some things that are potentially destructive to others. I couldn't put this down and felt as though Sylvia was a real person - to the extent that I also found myself missing her! Five stars.

Thank you for the Arc copy of this book.
It was a touching and well written story of a lady dying from terminal breast cancer. She writes a very candid diary and the author seems to capture very sensitively the thoughts and feelings that the characters are going through.
I hope I would be able to be so brave if I was in the same position.
Very moving and an easily read book.

For When I’m Gone is a heartbreaking but uplifting and inspiring read.

Sylvia is a mother, wife, daughter, sister and friend to those around her, she has also been diagnosed with cancer. The story tells of Sylvia’s life which unfolds in the pages of the manual she has written for husband Paul. The manual is to help Paul to navigate life with their children once she is no longer there.

Throughout the book you discover Sylvia’s flaws but also her struggle to fight against these to lead a perfect life but also to be the best wife and mother, a very much relatable character.

The subject of the book is one that many people will resonate with on some level, most of us have been touched my cancer is some way. What this story does is depict it well, you feel the grief that both Sylvia is facing for her own life and that of her family’s. It is not all heartbreak though, what this story does is show the strength and resilience that can be found in such difficult times.

I highly recommend that you pick up this book.

This was an extremely emotional drama that really made me think. Impressive character development along with a fascinating storyline make this book a success.

An inspiring read that chronicles sylvias life changing breast cancer diagnosis and subsequent death, a mother, wife, daughter,sister whose life is cut short due to this awful disease.How can you come to terms with such a thing? How do you prepare your loved ones for when you leave them, Sylvia writes a manual for her husband Paul to help guide him through single parenthood to Jude and Megan highlighting all aspects of their life and the humdrum domesticity of family life,and in doing so it helps Sylvia come to terms with several issues and reveals a secret to Paul.
A heartbreaking yet inspiring read that will resonate with anyone who has lost a relative due to breast cancer and had their life cut short, this book is definetly not all doom and gloom and illustrates well the amazing resilience and positivity that can be found in the most difficult times!
Thank you net galley for this early read.