After the gut-wrenching cliffhanger in If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin, I couldn’t wait to dive into the sequel, If Only I Had Told Her, which shifts to Finn, Jack and more of Autumn’s  perspective. I’ve always had this stereotype that sequels tend to be worse than the original, but this book proved me wrong. From the first page, I was completely amazed, seeing the world through Finn’s eyes. Each chapter pulled me in strong emotions: shock and sadness, as the perspectives of these three characters blew me away with strong sentiments and emotions they withheld. 

In the previous book, Jamie and Autumn had made a promise never to die for each other, but about fifty pages later, Autumn attempts suicide to be with Finny, but  ends up in the hospital, where she’s asked to take a pregnancy test—which leaves readers in a cliffhanger.

 The sequel starts off with Finn  reflecting on his lifelong  bond with Autumn—the years of friendship, and unwavering love he feels for her,  yet also grappling with how he would tell his partner, Sylvie, that their relationship isn’t going to work out. Finn, in the hopes of being honest and courageous expresses his mutual love for Autumn, and promises her that he will be back home after breaking the news to Sylvie. Confident in his feelings and emotions, he drives to Sylvie’s place to break the news. However, he is equally  enthusiastic to embark on a new chapter of his life with a person he truly loved. But an accident sweeps him into a tragedy, turning the best day of his life into the worst.

Following Finn’s death,  Jack, Finn’s best friend, is consumed  into grief, reflecting on the memories he had with Finn, the  odd and struggling to accept the reality his partner in crime will never come home to him, not share a room with him in college, and spend their lives together. As it’s time to go off to college, Jack feels he needs to gain some momentum, and face the rough realities of adulthood before him. 

Autumn dwindling in deep emotions of losing her soulmate and the arrival of a special someone on the way,  decides to take a break before starting college to take care of their unborn child, and their mental health.With the support of the mothers, Autumn’s journey to self growth and recovery is delicate. But with the love surrounded by her, she knows that she has a piece of Finn wherever she goes.
I am not the type of person to get emotional over books, but especially reading Jack’s point of view made me drown in multiple perspectives and deep emotions. If you really enjoyed If He Had Been With Me, If Only I had Told Her will not fail to disappoint you. Happy Reading!