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    When I'm Gone: A Novel
    When I'm Gone: A Novel
    When I'm Gone: A Novel
    Audiobook9 hours

    When I'm Gone: A Novel

    Written by Emily Bleeker

    Narrated by Dan John Miller

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    An Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestseller.

    Dear Luke,
    First let me say—I love you…I didn’t want to leave you…

    Luke Richardson has returned home after burying Natalie, his beloved wife of sixteen years, ready to face the hard job of raising their three children alone. But there’s something he’s not prepared for—a blue envelope with his name scrawled across the front in Natalie’s handwriting, waiting for him on the floor of their suburban Michigan home.

    The letter inside, written on the first day of Natalie’s cancer treatment a year ago, turns out to be the first of many. Luke is convinced they’re genuine, but who is delivering them? As his obsession with the letters grows, Luke uncovers long-buried secrets that make him question everything he knew about his wife and their family. But the revelations also point the way toward a future where love goes on—in written words, in memories, and in the promises it’s never too late to keep.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateMar 15, 2016
    ISBN9781511359450
    When I'm Gone: A Novel
    Author

    Emily Bleeker

    Emily Bleeker is a former educator who learned to love writing while teaching a writers’ workshop. After surviving a battle with a rare form of cancer, she finally found the courage to share her stories, starting with her debut novel, Wreckage, and followed by When I’m Gone (a Wall Street Journal bestseller), Working Fire, and The Waiting Room. Emily currently lives with her family in suburban Chicago. Connect with her or request a Skype visit with your book club at www.emilybleeker.com.

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    Reviews for When I'm Gone

    4/5

    167 ratings12 reviews

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    • 5/5
      This is my 2nd book by this author. I really appreciate the uniqueness of the stories. It kept my adhd brain completely engaged.
    • 5/5
      WOW this is one of the best books I’ve read lots of twists.
      It’s a must read book if you like twists you don’t see coming!!!!
      Amazing!!!!!!!
    • 5/5
      I started reading When I'm Gone by Emily Bleeker at 10:30 PM, I finished it at 1:17 AM. (I know, I'm a fast reader). The thing is, I don't think it it mattered if I was a fast reader or not. I would've still read through this book without stopping, because there's no point in stopping. Once you start, you don't realize you're reading a book. You're reading letters. You're reading about the life of someone past and someone trying to find solace in life without. When my eyes did get a bit droopy, I thought about stopping and head to bed, and then I looked down and I was already on page 290. I turned the book to its side, so I can see how much I have left. Less than a quarter of an inch. Now, being the book-nerd I am, I rubbed my eyes and kept going, because I didn't want to stop in the first place.Enough about my reading habits. Back to When I'm Gone. This book reminded of PS I Love You when I first read the synopsis. Letters from your dead spouse. However instead of it about helping you start anew, Natalie's blue enveloped notebook paged letters are about what she can't say or what she didn't have enough time to say. Sometimes secrets are the hardest thing to let go, especially when those secrets have changed your life.A beautiful story, of a happy marriage that started as first loves, with distance and struggles in between. With three beautiful children, Luke needs to move on after Natalie's death. Yet, it was too hard, until little blue envelopes started showing up through his mail slot. Natalie spent the last year of her life writing these notes for Luke, to encourage, but also to share what she's been too afraid to share before. The truth as to why certain events played out the way they did. I was intrigued, but mostly, I wanted to be there with Luke and find the courage to move on, and when things gets complicated, I wanted to know why.I enjoyed this book and I highly recommend this, for the book lover in you, for the desire to find out what didn't seem as it is or should be, and in the end, like this book, even without answers, there's a new start, a new tomorrow. Since I highly recommend this book, I would like to remind my readers that there's a giveaway to win a copy, and trust me, this is one pretty book, inside and out.This review first appeared on Just Commonly Blog.NOTE: I received a complimentary copy of this book through TLC Book Tours for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own. For my review policy, please see my Disclosure page.
    • 4/5
      I was in the mood for a good cry when I picked up this book, but what sounded like another Tear-Jerker was surprisingly much more. When Luke is left to raise his children alone after the untimely death of his wife he is totally lost without her. Suddenly letters begin to mysteriously appear written by his wife before her death, but who is sending them? Her best friend claims no knowledge of them but she is keeping secrets too. Luke begins to suspect his wife had secrets from him and what he uncovers is not at all what I was expecting. There are lots of twists and turns in this well told tale.

      I received an advance copy for review
    • 2/5
      Overused model of dead wife sending letters posthumously to her widower.
      Conveniently placed personalities and conflicts, up to the very last page. The whole story is event-driven and the characters seemed like marionettes in a children's show, stereotypical to the extreme with sudden behavior patterns that come completely out of the blue.
      Heavy-handed foreshadowing.

      Some of the events are so far-fetched they got me rolling my eyes several times. Two pages from the end I knew that conveniently Jessie's problem will be solved not by any of the protagonist but by a side character who was portrayed as a total ass-hole during the whole book. I will possibly read some other book by Emily Bleeker but if the plotting is similar I will end up having to pass on her writing forever.

      I always admire people who come up with books and write great stories. For me, however, the fear of writing a shallow story like this one stops me from ever putting a pen to paper (or keyboard to file).
    • 2/5
      2.5. Some really good plot twists here, but overall pedestrian writing with rather predictable one-dimensional characters. Luke Richardson's wife Natalie has died from cancer and what the reader gets is the aftermath: him struggling with his 3 kids: Will, 14; May, 9 and Clayton, 3. That certainly induces sympathy...but he has Natalie's trusty best friend Annie (who happens to have a failing marriage -- see what's coming?) to help him pick up the pieces. The neat thing about this book is that we come to know Natalie through letters that are actively being sent to Luke post-mortem, all in robin's egg blue envelopes. Who is sending them? That's where this book can't decide if it's a mystery or a tear-jerker. Each letter recounts memories, or gives Luke detailed instructions (make the kids pancakes, which he is predictably inept at; hire Jessie, a young college girl to help watch the kids, go out on a date -- complete with women who contact Luke to that end, but he opts for his son's guidance counselor). The letters also hint at a secret which hurts Luke more than helps him in the grieving process. A lot of it has to do with the mysterious Dr. Neal and an envelope from an adoption agency, and later a scrapbook detailing a local news story. Luke bumbles through his days (that's the pedestrian part) while trying to deal with his past (alcoholic father who beat him -- he and Natalie grew up as next door neighbors until he went into foster care at age 14. They re-united in college and lived the dream until cancer) and keep it together for his kids' future. That's a lot to pack into one story and it feels plodding at times and soap opera-ish at others, with quite a few implausibilities. Good zone out book built on a solid concept.
    • 5/5
      Great story. Emotional and heart-wrenching, but also heart-warming and satisfying. Luke is shocked to receive letters from Natalie after her death. Turns out she started writing them on the first day of her cancer treatment a year ago and has a lot to tell him and more than one secret to share. It’s a roller-coaster of emotions for Luke. At first he doesn’t believe the letters are real, and then he wonders who can be mailing them to him. And when he starts learning things Natalie kept hidden he starts to question their entire history together. The story moves along at a fast pace with complex, well-developed characters and an engaging plot. A lot of surprises and a unique premise. Totally recommend.
    • 4/5
      This is one of those that needs the half-star rating option. Still, my review of the audiobook version:I actually found the narrative here quite good. Not quite to the level of being completely enraptured, but it definitely maintained my interest, and the narrator seems to be the perfect fit for telling the story. I was definitely engaged from beginning to end, and had no trouble making it all the way through and finishing the book. While there can be parts that drag a bit, they are so short that the story soon sets itself straight and pulls one back into the course of events again. In addition, the narrative voice contains just the right amount of power and emotion to carry the story through and draw you in, while still remaining smooth enough so as to allow listening to the book to be a relaxing experience. In short, this is a good choice if you're into the genre and think the description sounds interesting. Plus, it's on Kindle Unlimited (or, at least it is at the time I'm writing this review), making it even more tempting.
    • 4/5
      This is the story of Luke, whose wife Nancy recently died from cancer. He now has to bring up their two children alone. Then he receives a letter from his dead wife. At first, she talks about her treatment and how she hates the cancer. He cherishes her letters with the same love he felt for her. And as his life continues, so do the letters. She offers his suggestions so that he won’t be overwhelmed by life without her. He also wonders who is sending these letters. Eventually, he finds out Nancy had a secret that outs him into a tailspin. There are twists and surprises (but I guessed one before the reveal). Still enjoyed the story as it is a tearjerker and I too wanted to know where the letters were coming from. Mysterious? Yes, but this a story of grief, love, moving on and relationships.
    • 3/5
      Natalie dies from cancer, leaving her grief stricken family behind. On the day of the funeral a letter arrives - from Natalie, the first of many. The story was OK, albeit a tad cheesy - fine if you enjoy tearjerkers. Pity about the ending. I did quite like the book, but wasn't as gripped as I should have been by it. I would read other books by this author.
    • 4/5
      When you die, all of your memories, and dreams for the future--for yourself and for those you love--go with you. Unless, that is, you write some of these things out, intending them to be read after your death. People who have done this are occasionally featured in the human interest segment of the news and we viewers think how poignant and heartbreaking but wonderful it is for the family to have these things in their loved ones' voices and handwriting after they are gone. But what if it isn't just memories and dreams in the letters left behind but also secrets, including one so large that it can only be told after one person's death? In Emily Bleeker's newest novel, When I'm Gone, there is such a secret, one slowly revealed through the letters that keep trickling in for the duration of this heartfelt and difficult tale.Luke Richardson was married to the love of his life. He's known his wife Natalie since they were children and she was there for him during the worst day of his life. Losing her to cancer has gutted him and he has no idea how to go on and be the parent that their three children need. But he's all they have left and with the help of Natalie's best friend, Annie, and the young college student, Jessie, who Natalie wanted him to hire as a part time nanny/babysitter for the kids, he has a small network of people to help him get through. When he finds a blue envelope, addressed to him, in his wife's handwriting on the day he returns from her funeral, he feels as if he's got a piece of her back.As the letters keep coming at random intervals, Luke holds them tight to his heart. They tell him things he knew and things he never knew. They relive the Richardsons' relationship and marriage, give him hints on how to help their children in their grief, and remind him to keep living and moving forward even when he doesn't feel ready. But they also start to raise questions in his mind about what he thought he knew and the Natalie he was sure shared everything with him. He is driven to revisit painful times and memories, to wonder who the people Natalie mentions so frequently are, and what secret she hints at is, revealing it so slowly and cautiously. As Luke grapples with his feelings over the uncertainty the letters inject into his memories of their life and love, Natalie's best friend Annie, who has been a rock for Luke, is also struggling. Luke's concern for her brings terrible memories of his childhood flooding back, memories of the terror and abuse he and his mother suffered at his father's hand. And finally, in his grief Luke and Natalie's oldest son Will finds a box of his mom's stuff with an envelope from a home for unwed teenagers postmarked around his birth and draws his own conclusions about what the missing letter must say, sending Luke on a mission to uncover the truth, for Will and for himself.Using letters from Natalie allows her character to be fully fleshed out in her own voice rather than just as a reflection from those who love and miss her. This gives a depth to Luke and Natalie's marriage that might otherwise be missing and helps the reader understand why Luke feels so hurt and surprised when he discovers that he might not have known his wife as well as he thought. The conceit of the letters also gives the reader an understanding of the sorrow, anger, acceptance, regret, and the other ten billion emotions that run through a person living with terminal cancer and not just the grief and devastation of those left behind. Bleeker portrays her characters' emotions beautifully, weaving the horrible and the sublime, the mundane and the extraordinary together very well. The novel touches on so many bigger concepts: love, friendship, abuse, terminal illness, family, hope, and healing. Natalie's secret is eventually revealed and while some readers might question why she kept it so long, especially with such a loving husband, especially when telling could have alleviated suffering, it is ultimately a surprising and satisfying one. The end comes a bit quickly for all of the emotion leading up to it. This is a story that will break your heart but one that will also leave you with the feeling that life can and does go on, even happily sometimes. A fast read about the safety net of people who hold your heart, loving, moving on, and embracing forgiveness, this is a book that celebrates life, no matter how messy or short, and readers coming to it for the first time will have a hard time not reading it all in one big gulp.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book and it was not what I expected. Honestly, I thought it was going to be similar to PS I Love you by Cecelia Ahern, with Luke receiving letters from his dead wife and fulfilling her requests. It became so much more. The book starts out with the family returning from the funeral of Natalie, a beloved wife and mother of three. Luke gets help from Annie, Natalie's best friend. Along the way Annie becomes a best friend to Luke and he learns all is not well in her household. Then there is Jessie, a girl Natalie met at college, who she wants Luke to hire to help with the children. There are so many twists and turns. Not only does Luke have to deal with the death of his wife and learn to raise his children as a single dad, he has a horrible mother-in-law, a past that causes him much pain, a mysterious Dr. Neal to find and he needs to discover the secret that Natalie was hiding. I enjoyed the author's writing style and can't wait to read more of her books.