Well. I’m definitely sad now that I’ve finished this novel and my heart hurts in a way that only a good book can cause. I truly loved every moment of this novel and have a ton of good things to say about it and only a few things that I didn’t like so much. If you haven’t read it yet, definitely don’t read the spoilers because I basically talk about the entire ending and you’d lose all the fun in reading the novel if you did read the spoilers. 

So, first things first. The writing. Of course, as per usual, I listened to the audiobook for this novel because I hardly have time to think nowadays let alone sit down and devote my time to reading. So, listening and doing dishes and other chores wins out almost all of the time. With the writing, though, it was absolutely beautifully written. Even though I listened to it, the sentences are heart wrenching and lovely and all of the things in between. That doesn’t even account for the characters. 

Scarlett and Jameson? Wow. The chemistry and love between them was palpable and every scare and heartbreak that they went through crushed me along with them. Their romance was definitely the centerpiece of the novel. Noah and Georgia, on the other hand, didn’t really give me all of the butterflies like Jameson and Scarlett (oh, Scarlett, my Scarlett… 💕). This is probably the only negative I have to say about the book, too, because most of the time I just wanted to skip through Noah and Georgia’s chapters and go back to World War II with Scarlett and Jameson. Other than that, though, I have nothing else bad to say about this novel. It truly was a beautiful read. 

Spoilers ahead.

Now, let’s get to that ending, shall we? I legitimately can say that I was not expecting that AT ALL. My mind was pretty blown and heartbroken at the same time. I can’t imagine living my life as someone else and literally losing every person that you love. None of the Stanton’s lived to become elderly. Scarlett died. Jameson died. William died. When I tell you it felt like everyone died in this novel I’m not lying. Ava and Georgia are the only two who didn’t die in the Stanton line. Constance really lost so much and didn’t even have children of her own. What breaks my heart the most is thinking of that. It feels like she lived a shell of a life, but that’s just me. What this ending reminded me of the most, though, is the movie Atonement. Similar in style and with writers being at the forefront, I have to wonder if Rebecca Yarros got inspiration for The Things We Left Behind from that movie. I guess we’ll never know, though. 

Overall, this heartfelt novel completely won me over and I can already tell that it’ll be in my list of top ten reads for the year. I can’t say that many other books this year have made me feel the way this novel has. I would highly recommend this to any historical drama and romance lovers. 

Source: Audiobook on Libby public library

(P.S. You can read this book for free by signing up for a free trial of Audible, which gives you two free audiobooks of your choice!)