Love You Hate You Miss You by Elizabeth Scott

Amy’s best friend Julia is gone. She has been now for seventy-five days and Amy is still not sure how to survive. Everyday she wakes up thinking about how it is her fault that Julia is gone and there is nothing she can do to bring her back. When Amy’s shrink suggests that she keep a diary, she guffaws at the idea, but she soon finds herself writing letters to Julia. She writes about the past and the present and discusses all of her feelings throughout her letters. What she realizes though is that the past wasn’t all that perfect nor was Julia, like Amy thought she was. She also finds that there might be some great opportunities in the present as well and who knows what the future will hold? As Amy writes her letters she also starts a healing process and discovers a lot about herself that she never knew about. She also learns how to make friends again and to become her own person, which just happens to be the most important journey of all. Elizabeth Scott is a phenomenal author. I have loved each book she has written, but for me this one just wasn’t as good. Yes, it was an emotional powerhouse, but well that’s about it to be honest. The characters got on my nerves a bit and I can’t quite put my finger on it, but there was just something lacking. The plot really went into the mind of someone dealing with death, grief and finding new friends, which I found interesting. I do have to commend the author though on creating very real characters. The teens didn’t feel to old or young and I could actually picture them being real, which added to the authenticity of the story. As for the characters, I really think they were the downfall. I understand that Amy was griefstricken, but she honestly got really whiny and on my nerves. About halfway through the book I was ready for her to get over her problems and just be thankful she was alive. The parents were also annoying as they were so distant and uninvolved in their daughter’s life that it was hard to believe they couldn’t see the pain she was in. Overall I liked this book. Ms. Scott’s writing was impeccable, even though the magic it usually has wasn’t present. I did appreciate though the very thorough and realistic look at grief that was portrayed. I definitely cannot wait for more from Elizabeth Scott.