So much to say about All That’s Left to Say. The novel, written by Emery Lord, follows protagonist Hannah MacLaren after her cousin and best friend Sophie dies from an overdose. Hannah’s world is completely shattered, as she deals with this loss and the mystery surrounding it. The Sophie she knew wouldn’t have used drugs, wouldn’t have kept such a huge secret from her. Yet that’s the truth she’s left with. Her grief is big and all-consuming, the only thing driving her forward being her determination to find out who gave Sophie the pills that ended her life.
Emery Lord splits Hannah’s journey into two timelines: the junior year following Sophie’s death, where she and Sophie’s other best friend Gabi team up and search for answers together, and senior year, where Hannah is now undercover at Sophie’s prestigious high school. Though somewhat jarring, it’s truly fascinating jumping from one version of Hannah to another. In her junior year, she is freshly broken and needing to lean on Gabi. Their friendship is surprisingly powerful and visceral — my heart would clench any time they clung to each other in their shared pain. So when it shifts to Hannah in her senior year, when she and Gabi are no longer close, it’s effectively compelling.
Similarly, Hannah’s hostile relationship with her rival and “former” crush Christian shifts to something else — something more — in these two years, and it’s definitely one of my favorite developments in the book. Their dynamic in the beginning is just so fun and quippy (it’s like they can’t help but be smartasses around each other). But there’s always this ~tension~ between them, and Emery Lord does an excellent job of making you feel all the history and emotions. Once Christian gets more involved in Hannah’s mission, and inevitably her life, Hannah starts to feel more conflicted. Hell, I felt conflicted.
Once she gets further into the school and its students and who Sophie really was, it of course gets all the more complicated. I think it’s such a great exploration of grief, of needing answers and needing someone or something to blame, and all the frustration and sadness that comes with that. I mean, this mission becomes Hannah’s only purpose. And you root for her to figure things out and get justice, but you also worry that she’s in too deep, that she’s losing herself. Thank goodness for the people in her life, who she naturally pushes away and who refuse to be pushed. I can’t praise Emery enough for tackling such a tough subject and handling it beautifully.
My one issue with the book is, as much as I enjoyed it, the pacing. We go through the two years pretty quickly, which was great for keeping me engaged, but I do wish there had been more breathing room. I especially wish Hannah got to spend more time with her classmates/suspects, so that the ending hit juuuust a bit harder. That said, the ending still hit hard. All the pain, heartache, with the occasional moments of happiness — with Gabi, with Christian, with a song, with a memory — built up and came together in a satisfying way.
**Much thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All That’s Left to Say will be released on July 18.
Rating: ★★★★☆
Sara Bechtol 