Mikki Daughtry

Have you ever had a book that you were so inside the story, so with the characters, so tethered to every word that was uttered, every feeling conveyed, every moment captured...that you were simply wrecked by book's end? I mean like in tears, sighing with relief or acceptance, and quite honestly needing a few moments at the very least before you could even think about wrangling your thoughts into something coherent, or ,goodness forbid, reading something else? Yeah, that's me with this show more book.

Kyle and Kimberly were a couple for as long as anyone could remember, which is especially long in today's world where some folks trade significant others like flavors of the week...but sometimes that familiarity, sometimes that constant togetherness, can make it hard for them to see themselves anymore. The bomb drop on graduation night was epic...but the fallout would last SO much longer and affect so many lives in ways no one could possible imagine. Throughout the ordeal, we get to know Kyle like never before, Kimberly more in depth, Sam beneath his jock-ish bravado, and Marley to the very core of her soul. All those connections, all those life links are going to come into play at different times throughout the story, and no matter how insignificant they may seem in the moment, their importance is a matter of sanity or downward spiraling, looking back constantly or moving forward...quite literally life or death.

I can't say enough and yet I don't want to spoil it for you. You deserve to experience it all for the first time too...untainted, uncertain, and yet fully involved. So if this sounds like a story you may like, or perhaps you enjoyed the other book, make haste to clear your calendar for a read of this remarkable release. It'll certainly remind you of the important things in life, and to treat each day like the present it is.


**ARC received for review; opinions are my own show less

This review is also featured on Behind the Pages: All This Time

Kyle and Kim have been together since middle school. To Kyle, there can be no one else but her. But on the night of their graduation, Kim decides to call it quits. After so many years together, she wants to find out who she is on her own. And as Kyle realizes he may lose the one person he planned to spend forever with, a car crashes into them ending Kim’s life. Kyle is forced to face the horrific truth that Kim is gone.

All This show more Time is a book steeped in emotion. Kyle experiences such profound grief and guilt over Kim’s death. And it doesn’t help when his splitting headaches cause flashbacks of the accident or trick him into hearing Kim’s voice. Everyone grieves in their own way, and experiencing Kyle’s emotions throughout his recovery breaks your heart. But despite everything Kyle goes through, and no matter how low he feels, there is some way or some person that instills hope in him. Even if it is just the smallest little inkling of hope.

But Kyle truly learns to live again when he meets Marley. A quiet girl who’s lost her sister and silently grieves. When a chance encounter makes Kyle and Marley cross paths at the graveyard it leads them into a new friendship. Kyle learns how to communicate his own emotions by helping Marley and it was the heartwarming balance needed for such a tragic story. Everything Kyle felt towards Marley, the confusion, the guilt, the need to move forward, felt so real. Readers will be poised on the edge waiting for Kyle to accept his new path in life and allow himself to be happy once again.

And if you enjoy books that throw twists into the plot you never see coming, All This Time should definitely be your next read. The twist completely threw me. I had to stop reading for a minute to process what happened. Then I needed to know where the story would take the characters, and how in the world all the pieces lined up.

All This Time was such a great read. There were so many different elements that kept me reading. It isn’t just a story about love and loss. It’s about moving on and realizing life can be unpredictable. Sometimes the paths we see ourselves walking aren’t the ones we end up on. And it’s ok to change what we want to do and where we want to go. I will be sure to read every book Mikki Daughtry and Rachael Lippincott write. show less

Lots of unnecessary strong language in this book, which was too bad since it made me not like the book as much. And some pretty heavy kissing. However, this book had a lot of feels and a big plot twist (WOW!) that was really captivating. There were so many emotions, and though the language was a downfall, it was a truly beautiful novel. Not as good as Five Feet Apart but still pretty nice overall.

I haven't been able to read a book so fast in a while, and this book made me hungry. I read and laughed and cried, oh, if I cried, a lot. It's a mellow love story and I enjoyed it very, very much. Thank you to the authors for all the feelings.