The Stories We Cannot Tell is an honest and poignant read. Two women - Rachel and Katie have to make decisions regarding their pregnancies.

Their stories are different; Rachel has always struggled to conceive and Katie gets pregnant accidentally. They initially cross paths at the doctor's office where Katie works and later meet at a support group, instantly striking up a friendship.

Leslie Rasmussen has brilliantly captured the emotions of both the main characters and has handled themes such as loss, grief and fear of the unknown with sensitivity.

I don't have children, but I love learning and reading about what I don't know. The interaction between women of two different religions is beautiful and shows that we are all the same and can all get along.

I enjoyed the characters overall but I had issues with the story. The author really emphasized the character's religions but it also did not seem to play into the Jewish woman's decision. I wish if she was going to make that an element she would have put more detail into it. I also didn't like that she baited a Down Syndrome diagnosis and of course it turned out that the baby did not have it. Just left me with an icky feeling. The connection with the other woman and her mother also felt super obvious once we found out she was adopted.

5 ⭐️
Wowza, this was such a well-written book with so much respect towards a difficult topic. I loved the characters, the two stories it followed, and the sheer vulnerability and emotion it showed. I absolutely recommend this book and think it not only tells a great story, but also is thought-provoking in the way it makes you consider your own values and what you would do in such a difficult situation. I will be checking out this author’s other books after loving this one. Amazing book! 💜

Thank you to the author, the publishers, and NetGalley for allowing me to read this ahead of its publication date.

This book was beautifully written but extremely hard to read for me. I have also suffered fertility issues and 2 miscarriages. The topic was very close to home and i was emotional from the very beginning. Its a beautiful book and i know many others will love it regardless of how they connect with the 2 women. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this.

I received an advance reader copy of this book and it was very emotional throughout. As someone who doesn’t yet have children but wants them I could relate to both Rachel and Katie. I found this to be a good read, informative as well.

This was a hard book to read, not because it is bad written or the story didn’t make sense, it was because it is based on the biggest fear a woman has when she is thinking about having a baby or when one is actually expecting (I know because I have two).

Our two main characters face very different lives, one is married and wishing to have a baby and fill her nest and the other, well she meet the person she thought it was the right one and things didn’t go how she dreamed off, and you know what, it is easy to connect to both of these women even more because when things don’t go well, love is the first thing that comes out…

We live in a society where when things are broken it is easier to throw out than to fix things, even relationships, and I really think, even with this book being hard to read, it is worth to dive into it, and get to know this characters and the hardships of choices and how that matter in their own lives, of course I will not given spoilers, and wont really comment the situations of the book or how it ends, that is something that is meant for your personal ride, I can only tell that it worth the trip, Katie and Rachel will feel very real and I will just advice you, grab a box of tissues, you’ll need it…

Thank you NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the free ARC and this is my honest opinion.

Thanks so much NetGalley and BooksGoSocial.

Rachel is a 30 year old married Jewish woman. She wants a baby. Katie is. 32, single, and Catholic. She does not want a baby. Both women find themselves pregnant. They both learn that something is wrong and attend the same group.

I wish I could describe just how talented Rasmussen is to craft a story about grief, loss, heartbreak, and hope. The characters are so wonderfully written and you really hold them in your heart as their journeys unfold with difficult and impossible choices ahead.

A thirty-year-old married Jewish woman who’s wanted a baby for a long time. A thirty-two-year-old single, Catholic woman who has been trying to find a man who’ll stick around.
Both the women tell their own stories as they both become pregnant. Both pregnancies take a wrong turn.
They meet in a support group and help one another make difficult decisions.
Will their relationship continue afterwards?

The Stories We Cannot Tell follows two women as they try to make difficult decisions regarding their pregnancy. While one struggled with infertility and one got pregnant accidentally, both are in similar situations concerning the future of their pregnancy. As a psychologist specializing in infertility and maternal mental health, I appreciated the perspectives of the characters and the emotional journey they went through. The author did not try to encompass all thoughts and emotions that people in these situations might experience but rather stayed true to the characters and told their story. While I felt the ending was a bit forced, I thought it was a fairly accurate portrayal of infertility, grief, and pregnancy.

Challenging read. So elegantly written, with characters so vibrant and relatable that they almost become your friends in the process. It's hard not to grieve along with Rachel and Katie when their pregnancies might not turn out to be the source of bliss other women generally experience.

I must admit that, if it had not been for the ARC, it would have taken me much longer to finish this book. I would have taken more time to build up courage between chapters. I wanted to look away from what Rachel and Katie were going through, to pretend that it could only happen to people I don't know, to avoid even asking myself "What would I do?" in their place... I teared up more than once.

But, I take my newfound "friend" role seriously (not to mention the role of NetGalley reviewer...), I shouldn't to be able to take breaks from their reality if they couldn't. It wouldn't be fair. I kept going and it ended up being an amazingly quick, heartwarming read.

While the title refers to stories about pregnancy, motherhood and family, to me, the main theme of this book is friendship. The instant connection between the two protagonists is precious and wonderfully portrayed. Their relationship is built on mutual respect, honesty and just sincere support and love. The love-at-first-sight/instalove trope is all well and good, but friendship-at-first-sight should be just as prevalent. I hope to come across it more often in books.

There was also an unexpected twist that fit right into the story and a happy ending that I rooted for with all my being. The song mentioned at the end is "Bless the Broken Road" by Rascal Flatts, but my mind kept playing "I won't let you go" as the underlying soundtrack for Rachel and Katie.

Special thanks to BooksGoSocial and to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. And my utter admiration for Leslie A. Rasmussen, I bought After Happily Ever After as soon as I finished reading The Stories We Cannot Tell and I can't wait to read it.

i didn’t know what to expect with this book but wow i enjoyed it!
a book filled with friendships, family sadness and warmth
it’s also shows the strength to f a woman and how important it is not to shut out the people you love.
covers some heartbreaking subjects but with such warmth and empathy
a great read

I always enjoy books about women and their desire to have babies. The struggles are close to my heart. I liked the way that this author crafted a book around this subject matter and dedicated it to all women that have faced difficult scenarios. The writing was good and it was easy to get through the story. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Five stars.