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maeverose's review against another edition
4.0
TL;DR: A fun escape, with a simple but important message, even if that message comes with an assumed level of privilege.
I expected it to be a little more focused on Clover’s job, we only actually see three of her clients, most of the book is focused on her own life. But I didn’t mind. I do think the overall message - live life to it’s fullest - was pretty simple and repeated a lot, but it is an important reminder. I didn’t know death doulas were a real thing until I looked it up after discovering this book, and it was really interesting to learn about it. I think thats a really beautiful service to exist, and I might try to learn more about it now. Hugo 2.0 was a little too comically perfect, though I still liked him.
I related a little too much to Clover. On one hand, it’s nice to read stories like this where people in similar situations to me finally meet people and get to live their life, because (much like Clover) I can live vicariously through them, on the other hand, it often simplifies things in an unrealistic (privileged) way. I wish it were that easy to just force yourself to socialize and then bam you have friends but when you’re multiply disabled (especially in ways that directly affect socializing) it’s much harder. This isn’t a complaint about the book, just some thoughts that I have after reading it. I feel like, as depressing as it is, it’s important to include the fact that not everyone is able to ‘live their life to it’s fullest’, for reasons that are out of their control. It’s a privilege to be able to do that. A lot of the time you need money (for therapy if you have social anxiety, for food/drinks/events where you’d be going to socialize, to travel and try new things), free time, a job to make said money, a mode of transportation, etc. Most stories like this ignore that. As an escape it was a good book, as a piece of advice it’s unfortunately not something I can easily apply to my life, which leaves me feeling a bit :/
I related a little too much to Clover. On one hand, it’s nice to read stories like this where people in similar situations to me finally meet people and get to live their life, because (much like Clover) I can live vicariously through them, on the other hand, it often simplifies things in an unrealistic (privileged) way. I wish it were that easy to just force yourself to socialize and then bam you have friends but when you’re multiply disabled (especially in ways that directly affect socializing) it’s much harder. This isn’t a complaint about the book, just some thoughts that I have after reading it. I feel like, as depressing as it is, it’s important to include the fact that not everyone is able to ‘live their life to it’s fullest’, for reasons that are out of their control. It’s a privilege to be able to do that. A lot of the time you need money (for therapy if you have social anxiety, for food/drinks/events where you’d be going to socialize, to travel and try new things), free time, a job to make said money, a mode of transportation, etc. Most stories like this ignore that. As an escape it was a good book, as a piece of advice it’s unfortunately not something I can easily apply to my life, which leaves me feeling a bit :/
Also I found it incredibly uncomfortable that Clover spied on her neighbor’s in their homes with binoculars… Like Sylvie didn’t even seem creeped out by that. It was so weird.
Quotes:
“I liked to feel the icy breeze nibbling at my cheeks as I walked, to watch the cloud materialize then vanish with each of my breaths — confirmations that I was still here, still living.”
“It frustrated me that society was so determined to quantify grief, as if time could erase the potency of love. Or, on the other hand, how it dictated that grief for someone you knew fleetingly should be equally as fleeting.”
“An incongruous tug of war between the need for solitude and the craving for emotional connection— I didn’t want company, but I didn’t want to feel alone.”
“- the secret to a beautiful death is to live a beautiful life. Putting your heart out there. Letting it get broken. Taking chances. Making mistakes.”
Quotes:
“I liked to feel the icy breeze nibbling at my cheeks as I walked, to watch the cloud materialize then vanish with each of my breaths — confirmations that I was still here, still living.”
“It frustrated me that society was so determined to quantify grief, as if time could erase the potency of love. Or, on the other hand, how it dictated that grief for someone you knew fleetingly should be equally as fleeting.”
“An incongruous tug of war between the need for solitude and the craving for emotional connection— I didn’t want company, but I didn’t want to feel alone.”
“- the secret to a beautiful death is to live a beautiful life. Putting your heart out there. Letting it get broken. Taking chances. Making mistakes.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Death of parent, Grief, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Bullying, Medical content, Excrement, and Stalking
Minor: Alcoholism, Child death, Fatphobia, Miscarriage, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship
Alzheimers mentionvj_thompson's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-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
4.25
A thought provoking book that asks two questions. “Are you currently doing what makes you happy,” and, “What is it that you most regret?”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Abandonment, Bullying, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Cancer, Infidelity, Medical content, and Terminal illness
Minor: Alcoholism and Sexism
kitausu's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
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
4.25
Really enjoyed this one! At times I found Clover to be a bit unlikeable but by the end I was really rooting for him. Definitely an emotional read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Abandonment, and Bullying
zombiezami's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Medical content, Death of parent, Terminal illness, and Grief
Moderate: Cancer, Alcoholism, Sexism, Misogyny, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, and Infidelity
Minor: Bullying, Miscarriage, and Sexual content
orizenda's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I appreciate that Clover isn’t a perfect character. I really wanted her to end up with Sylvie but I knew that wouldn’t happen. Overall, a beautiful, enjoyable story about learning how to live life through death.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Alcohol, Death, and Death of parent
bandysbooks's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The Collected Regrets Of Clover was a book that I was hearing a lot of buzz about coming into May 2023. I saw lots of predictions that it would be featured by Book of The Month (which it was) and generally a lot of good feedback. I'm here to add to the chorus.
This book centers around Clover, a socially isolated woman who works as a Death Doula. As someone who is chronically stoic around death, I found Clover to be a refreshing character. She isn't overly emotional or full of flat platitudes about the next chapter in life. Instead, she is a real person focused on providing real comfort to people as they live out their last days. I also really found myself relating to her in a social sense. While I am not quite as isolated as she is in the start of the book, the segments of this book relating to her childhood and not understanding why people don't like her really hit home in a deep way. I'm sure most people relate to those moments to some degree as we all experience rejection in life.
As someone who is not at all a romance reader, I was a bit nervous when this book started to verge into the romance territory, especially the love at first sight trope. There was no need to worry though, as the romance was tastefully done and only a minor part of a much larger picture.
The main portion of the plot revolves around wish resolution for a dying client and while I did at times find myself a bit worried that it would delve into cliches, the book thankfully avoided most major tropes. Clover isn't magical and able to fix every wound. She doesn't snap her fingers and cause a dysfunctional family to start behaving in a more functional way. She just provides comfort and safety for the people who allow her to and I really liked that.
All in all, if you like contemporary fiction with a very relatable character, a sprinkle of romance and a lot of meaning, I think you'll enjoy this book.
The audiobook narration was well done. I found the narrator's voice to fit the story she was telling. She read very smoothly and was easy to understand.
* Thank you to Netgalley, Mikki Brammer, and St. Martin's Press for the Audio-ARC of this book. This in no way affects the objectivity of my review.
This book centers around Clover, a socially isolated woman who works as a Death Doula. As someone who is chronically stoic around death, I found Clover to be a refreshing character. She isn't overly emotional or full of flat platitudes about the next chapter in life. Instead, she is a real person focused on providing real comfort to people as they live out their last days. I also really found myself relating to her in a social sense. While I am not quite as isolated as she is in the start of the book, the segments of this book relating to her childhood and not understanding why people don't like her really hit home in a deep way. I'm sure most people relate to those moments to some degree as we all experience rejection in life.
As someone who is not at all a romance reader, I was a bit nervous when this book started to verge into the romance territory, especially the love at first sight trope. There was no need to worry though, as the romance was tastefully done and only a minor part of a much larger picture.
The main portion of the plot revolves around wish resolution for a dying client and while I did at times find myself a bit worried that it would delve into cliches, the book thankfully avoided most major tropes. Clover isn't magical and able to fix every wound. She doesn't snap her fingers and cause a dysfunctional family to start behaving in a more functional way. She just provides comfort and safety for the people who allow her to and I really liked that.
All in all, if you like contemporary fiction with a very relatable character, a sprinkle of romance and a lot of meaning, I think you'll enjoy this book.
The audiobook narration was well done. I found the narrator's voice to fit the story she was telling. She read very smoothly and was easy to understand.
* Thank you to Netgalley, Mikki Brammer, and St. Martin's Press for the Audio-ARC of this book. This in no way affects the objectivity of my review.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Bullying, Death, Death of parent, and Grief
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