Letters to the Lost

By: Brigid Kemmerer

Narrated by: Brittany Pressley, Kirby Heybourne

Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

Juliet Young always writes letters to her mother, a world-traveling photojournalist. Even after her mother's death, she leaves letters at her grave. It's the only way Juliet can cope.

Declan Murphy isn't the sort of guy you want to cross. In the midst of his court-ordered community service at the local cemetery, he's trying to escape the demons of his past.

When Declan reads a haunting letter left beside a grave, he can't resist writing back. Soon, he's opening up to a perfect stranger, and their connection is immediate. But neither Declan nor Juliet knows that they're not actually strangers. When life at school interferes with their secret life of letters, sparks will fly as Juliet and Declan discover truths that might tear them apart.

©2017 Brigid Kemmerer (P)2017 Audible, Ltd

Emotional, thoughtful, beautiful story

This is one of the best YA novels I have read in a long time. It touches on so many emotional subjects – abuse, death, alcoholism – as well as the general issues of acceptance, labeling, etc. that comes with being a teenager and trying to manage the social and political structure of high school.

I loved all four of the main characters. They each came from different familial structures and suffered the effects of losing a parent/sibling, abuse, divorce, step-parents, etc. It’s a very emotional and dramatic story. There is a lot going on, especially with the two main characters, Juliet and Declan.

On top of all the loss and grief they are experiencing, there is much judging/condemning/ostracizing going on, both at home at school. But through all the struggles, there are true friendship bonds, both long-standing and newly formed, and familial ties are (eventually) strengthened as well.

A very gripping and moving story. I had a hard time putting it down. Can’t wait to read book #2.

I listened to the audio version and narrators, Brittany Pressley and Kirby Heybourne did such a wonderful job. They narrated with drama and emphasis that really brought the story to life and made the characters very real for me.

WHAT THE FVCK! (SPOILERS)

Omg!!!!!! I heard this for 10 hours straight! I couldn’t stop listening!!!! I was skeptical about reading it (listening) but im so glad i did! I love Declan so much even though i hate that name lol but gosh i just wanted to hug him so bad i felt so bad for him and i still kinda hate his parents and Alan, Juliet’s mom too (especially her) but i loved this story so much. Juliet did indeed make me dislike her so much a lot of times that even now Im like ??? Do i like her??? Idk i guess I do cos at the end she does realize not to judge a book by it’s cover i guess? I don’t know. Rev was my absolute favorite for sure though and Frank❤️ still love Declan he just made me mad at times but overall amazing story i nearly had a heart attack at times and cried a LOT but man it was so good.

I need another chapter!

Or sequel!! My niece recommended this book. She is reading it in high school. I loved it too, even though I’m in my 40s.

An emotional punch!

This was very good. The narrators did a great job capturing the characters' voices - and the story really put me through the wringer.

One of the Best Narrations

Brittany and Kirby (huge fan of both) killed it. I couldn’t stop listening. This is one of the best narrations I’ve heard. Due to their narration, I felt every emotion. I’m now a fan of Brigid Kemmerer contemporary fiction (I bought all three books after finishing this audiobook). The raw emotion she is able to captivate in her writing is beautifully done. Please write more Brigid!

Good story, a little slow

This audiobook was a good story overall, I just felt it moved a little slow and I found it hard to believe the two main characters didn't figure out who each other was until almost the end of the book. The narration was decent, I just felt the book was a little slow to progress.

Never disappoints

Brigid Kemmerer does it again in this unique twist of fiction. From an unexpected beginning to multiple turns of storyline, she develops these characters with realism that allows us to relate to each one. I especially appreciate the author’s treatment of grief which has no defined stages and can deal with loss of both a person and an opportunity. I listen to as many of her books as possible and truly, will only be disappointed if there are no more.

Awesome

I rarely review audiobooks. However this one deserves a serious kudos. The voice actors did great, but the story was amazing that they had to work with. I was just sad when it ended.

Most Favorite Book of the Year!

I read this book in 24 hours! I couldn't put it down! She can write all the genres and she's my role model!

Fantastic!

Wow! What a great listen! This story kept me interested from start to finish. The characters are engaging and very well developed. I cared about them, felt their anguish and joy. Was frustrated by decisions they made when I knew it was the wrong one. The narration was excellent.
I was sad when the story ended, I wanted more...