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You've Reached Sam by Dustin Thao Book Review
Title: You've Reached Sam
Author: Dustin Thao
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Release Date: November 2, 2021
Pages: 304
Seventeen-year-old Julie has her future all planned out—move out of her small town with her boyfriend Sam, attend college in the city, spend a summer in Japan. But then Sam dies. And everything changes.
Heartbroken, Julie skips his funeral, throws out his things, and tries everything to forget him and the tragic way he died. But a message Sam left behind in her yearbook forces back memories. Desperate to hear his voice one more time, Julie calls Sam’s cellphone just to listen to his voicemail.
And Sam picks up the phone.
In a miraculous turn of events, Julie’s been given a second chance at goodbye. The connection is temporary. But hearing Sam’s voice makes her fall for him all over again, and with each call it becomes harder to let him go. However, keeping her otherworldly calls with Sam a secret isn’t easy, especially when Julie witnesses the suffering Sam’s family is going through. Unable to stand by the sidelines and watch their shared loved ones in pain, Julie is torn between spilling the truth about her calls with Sam and risking their connection and losing him forever.
**Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for sending me an Advanced Reader's Copy in exchange for an honest review!**
When high school senior Julie's boyfriend, Sam, dies in an accident, it feels like her world is shattered apart. To deal with the grief, she throws everything that reminds her of Sam and tries to forget everything. But everywhere she goes, a constant reminder of Sam remains.
Reading these back again, I wish I wasn't so angry at him. I wish I picked up the phone. Maybe then everything would be different.
In an attempt to reach Sam one last time, Julie calls his phone. To her surprise, he picks up. She now gets a second chance to say goodbye but their connection starts to diminish. How will Julie deal with her special connection with him?
"I miss you more. I miss you infinity."
Star Rating: ★★★★☆ (4)
I thought that it was creative to switch between the past and present. This helped show the reader a deeper connection between Julie and Sam.
One takeaway I have was that the characters fell a little flat to me. However, the emotion was very real, and it touched me.
Overall, You've Reached Sam was an emotional debut novel that I would recommend reading. It broke my heart but at the same time, I wished Julie to find happiness. Looking forward to other books by the author!
About the Author
Dustin Thao is a Vietnamese American writer based in New York City. He graduated from Amherst College with a B.A. in Political Science, and is currently in a PhD program at Northwestern University where he studies critical media literacy. He writes contemporary fiction, and his debut novel You’ve Reached Sam is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestseller.
Dustin Thao is a Vietnamese American writer based in New York City. He graduated from Amherst College with a B.A. in Political Science, and is currently in a PhD program at Northwestern University where he studies critical media literacy. He writes contemporary fiction, and his debut novel You’ve Reached Sam is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestseller.
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