Review: If Tomorrow Never Comes by Lisa Chalmers

[mellysw]

“If Tomorrow Never Comes” by Lisa Chalmers is one of the most brutal books I have ever read. It is absolute hell on its reader, assuming its reader is a sensitive emotional sap like myself. It isn’t that long, about 350 kindle pages. Normally I can read through a book like that in one day. Two days max. This book took me four. Not because it is a bad book, or a boring book. But because it was such an emotionally painful read I could only read it at night when everyone else was in bed and wouldn’t worry about my loud heaving snot-flying sobs.

This is a story of love beyond “death do us part”. A story of a love so strong and bonds of kinship so tight that death cannot sever them.

Josh Collins dies. He is dead for most of the story. But Josh refuses to let go of the pregnant girlfriend he loves, and she in turn refuses to let him go. Josh is forced into the torturous position of observer to the gut-wrenching heartache resulting from his death, a heartache so complete that it endangers the lives of the living. His girlfriend Avery struggles to adjust to this world without her soul-mate, but fails miserably. Together yet apart they fret over the growing baby and watch increasingly worried relatives orbit around their despair. Their friends and family fight to save Avery and the baby while Josh fights Heaven itself to get back to her.

While Avery has her circle of friends and family fighting to support her, Josh is left with only a heavenly stranger named Gabriel who struggles to follow the mandates of heaven while offering support and sympathy to the increasingly frantic Josh.

Don’t read this book without a healthy amount of tissues nearby. Once past page 3 I never read a single page without tears flowing. This book is beautifully written, its characters well-thought out and presented in such a way they are utterly and completely real. I highly recommend this book, but I can promise you I will never ever read it again. It scraped my heart raw. I actually started crying while writing this review, that is how utterly brutal this story is. You have been warned!

[rssllue]

I think I will pass. The "It scraped my heart raw" sentiment is something that I would rather not experience reading a book if at all possible. But very good review! and I hope your heart is healing up well too!

[sahmoun2778]

I enjoyed your review but don't think I could handle that much drama right now.

[mellysw]

I definitely understand. It is a good book, but a painful read, no question.