It's all about the thrill: With or Without You by Caroline Leavitt

Paperback Release Date: June 29, 2021

About The Book:

New York Times bestselling author Caroline Leavitt writes novels that expertly explore the struggles and conflicts that people face in their search for happiness. For the characters in With or Without You, it seems at first that such happiness can come only at someone else’s expense. Stella is a nurse who has long suppressed her own needs and desires to nurture the dreams of her partner, Simon, the bass player for a rock band that has started to lose its edge. But when Stella gets unexpectedly ill and falls into a coma just as Simon is preparing to fly with his band to Los Angeles for a gig that could revive his career, Simon must learn the meaning of sacrifice, while Stella’s best friend, Libby, a doctor who treats Stella, must also make a difficult choice as the coma wears on.

When Stella at last awakes from her two-month sleep, she emerges into a striking new reality where Simon and Libby have formed an intense bond, and where she discovers that she has acquired a startling artistic talent of her own: the ability to draw portraits of people in which she captures their innermost feelings and desires. Stella’s whole identity, but also her role in her relationships, has been scrambled, and she has the chance to form a new life, one she hadn’t even realized she wanted.

A story of love, loyalty, loss, and resilience, With or Without You is a page-turner that asks the question, What do we owe the other people in our lives, and when does the cost become too great?

My Thoughts

This book! Oh my heart!❤️It gave me all the feels. I went in thinking..well this sounds pretty good…umm the blurb doesn’t do it justice. I absolutely loved it !! ❤️

I connected with Stella immediately… She’s a nurse… 👩‍⚕️so she’s my people! Like so many people, Stella hits her 40s and starts to question her choices… then she makes her biggest mistake… and ends up in a coma.

Her experience while in a coma was absolutely fascinating to me! I’ve always wondered what level of awareness the patient has during that time…🤔

I finished up the book marveled at all the changes the coma brought on…to not only Stella but those around her. Her new found desire and talent to paint blew me away. 🎨

As I got ready to close the book… I always try to learn a little bit about the author. Upon finding out she had been in a coma herself… I was rendered speechless. It made the book even that more special. The story of regret, change, finding the things that bring you pure joy in your life… I can’t recommend this book enough. ❤️

Thank you to Suzy Approved Tours, Caroline Leavitt and Algonquin Books for my gifted copy. 🥰

About The Author:

Caroline Leavitt is the award-winning author of twelve novels, including the New York Times bestsellers Pictures of You and Is This Tomorrow. Her essays and stories have been included in New York magazine, Psychology Today, More, Parenting, Redbook, and Salon. She’s a book critic for People, the Boston Globe, and the San Francisco Chronicle, and she teaches writing online at Stanford and UCLA. www.carolineleavitt.com

Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carolineleavitt/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/carolineleavitt

Twitter: @leavittnovelist