With that aside I have just one other criticism; all the mentally ill protagonists are female. I feel like at least 1 should have been male out of the 3. Male mental health is almost always sidelined and this book could have been a great opportunity for rep that was sadly missed. There are also a few racist comments passed by some characters in the book which, of course, might not reflect the author's own thoughts but were unsettling either way. Once again, I am not a fan of infidelity treated as a light matter, or something that "strengthens a couple's bond". Jane Rogers, author of the Booker-longlisted The Testament of Jessie Lamb‘Tightly-woven and tender,

This is the story of Sean and Catherine, and the life they lived through pictures and a tape recording of all the things Catherine wished she could have told Sean. But when Catherine's life is cut short, she has just enough time to tell Sean all the things she never said. I found the ending to be a very strong one where it guides the reader to "see" what was going to happen next. I first read Yasmin’s short story in A Change is Gonna Come and really loved it so I was really looking forward to reading her debut book. So I knew as soon as I heard about this book that I would love it and it did not disappoint!A soft, gentle read. You are let into Sean's grief process and watch how each tape shapes him and allows him to move past the crippling grief into a new journey. It is a wonderful story of a look at life through pictures, and everything that Catherine was thinking at those times, but just could say. From fun vacations, to the birth of their child, to friends they have had, to affairs both real and unreal. It is a story to show Sean that she had a good life, a loving life, and one she wished she could continue, but knows she cannot. It is a story of loosing a partner to illness, and having to survive those following months after her death, but to have that one time a week to hear her voice. To be happy, mad, angry, sad, and joyful with her. To hear her say she had a good life and that she regrets nothing. Things We Never Said is reminiscent of another book “P.S. I Love You” by Cecelia Ahern, except that it is with audio cassettes rather than letters and the couple in this book are mature adults rather than the young couple in Ahern’s book. I think I like the idea of cassettes better simply because you would get to hear the person’s voice again. This book had me sobbing by the end of the first chapter. I had never read a story where the mental health rep so completely accurate to mine and reading it felt like I had finally been seen, that someone else really understood everything that goes through my head. I have related to other characters in other books but there has never been a rep where the characters religious beliefs also influences how they feel. This book finally incorporated all aspects of my life. BBC Arts correspondent Rebecca Jones presents two thought provoking short dramas from the next generation of dramatists.

More than anything, I loved her unwavering relationship with her faith. The novel begins with her standing in prayer and really captures how peaceful the act is for many Muslims. This feeling of tranquillity juxtaposed with Mehreen’s Chaos was a particularly powerful image. I also loved the conflict she faced in justifying suicide when it goes against the teachings of Islam. What I did not understand is, why did Catherine have to tell Sean about certain things that would only make his life worse than what it is right now. Olivia appears to have the perfect life. She's from a wealthy family, she's sociable, she's kind... but that's all she lets on. Underneath the faultless costume her mother has constructed, Olivia is a victim of sexual abuse. And her abuser is moving in next week. Stránky mi ubíhaly pod rukama, měla jsem přečteno za dva dny #ctemesyoli . Jen v půlce se to zadrhlo, měla jsem pocit, že se chvíli plácáme na místě. Pak se vše ale zase dalo do pohybu a byla to (emocionální) jízda až do konce💛 .We get 3 POV in the book. It is a much needed POV. It shows even though we all go through something different, we deal with it different, the depression, anxiety, demons in our head, suicidal thoughts and everything but in a way all of it feels the same. We get different personality from 3 POV, with culture differences, different issues from depression, anxiety, sexual abuse, grief but they all share a common suicidal thoughts. This book was rlly good. The characters were all lovely, the rep was excellent and the plot was gripping. I liked the diversity of all the characters and their issues, and not just the main characters but their families too. All The Things We Never Said is another mental health awareness book that is important to be read by everyone to understand the issues and someone we can help, or to know we are not going through it alone. Things We Never Said’ consists of ‘snapshots’ which move smoothly from when Sean met Catherine in Margate, to when April was born in Wolverhampton, and then to the present time. Right from the first ‘snapshot’ I was in tears and thought the novel might be depressing but I needn’t have worried. As I continued reading I became involved in their life together, their friends and family, and the descriptions were so vivid I felt as if I knew Sean and was there with him.

Cara is disabled from an accident that she believes she caused. She believes she "k**led" her dad. You can imagine how the burden of this and the disability itself might affect a person. The author wrote her point of view so well. I could feel the anger in her. I'm not disabled nor have I ever been so I can't say how realistic this in real life but I could imagine it very realistically so kudos to the author. This is a great read and a reminder to say the things that need to be said while you can and enjoy life now because the future is promised to no one. On one of Catherine's tapes, she tells Sean "...like the Buddhists apparently say, there is no future and there is no past. They're both just things that happen in your mind. In reality, there is only ever the present moment." This debut novel is an absolute triumph in voice and style - each of the 3 POV characters are so fully realized, you will feel like you've known them your entire life and will not want to let them go.

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Each chapter starts with a description of the photograph -- Snapshot #1, Snapshot #2, etc. They were well-described, although I found myself wishing that we could actually see them. In some cases, we get Sean's reaction to the photo before we "hear" Catherine's narration, and in some cases, the narration comes first. This is how we learn Sean and Catherine's whole story and how we learn the things that Catherine never spoke about. Some of the things will make you love her more, and some of them will make you really despise the way she chose to reveal her secrets. At one point in the book (you'll know when), I was thinking that I really hated that the story went there, that some things are better left unsaid. But by the end, I could appreciate that this was Catherine's grieving process, that she didn't want to leave anything unsaid even if she wasn't there to face the music, and it was her way of helping Sean through his grief by reminding him of their love story. When he finishes going through all of the envelopes, it's been nearly eight months since Catherine's death, and we have watched him go through all the stages of grief and start the road to acceptance and healing and confirming his belief in destiny. There is something about this author's writing style that just feels so comfortable to me. It also helps that he does tell a good tale too. Oh and he writes some of the best characters that are really easy for me to connect with emotionally. I really enjoyed reading a book where the main characters are around the same age as me because although I have never been married, there were a lot of things that I could relate to having lived over five decades.

Mehrín. Cara. Olivia. Všechny tři mají tajemství. Všechny tři jsou tak bezradné a cítí se tak samy, že nevidí jiné východisko. If you struggle with those triggers, please, please, please, please, PLEASE. Consider if you really But when they realise suicide isn't the only option- it isn't the right option, the course of their lives begin to change. But what can you do if you've already signed your life away? Oh my days, I devoured this book in just a few sittings. It tugged at my emotions, all of them, happy and sad. I followed Sean as he found things out and how some of these revelations spilled over into his present day life. At the same time, Maggie and April, oblivious to what Sean was doing, were also trying to come to terms with their loss. Yes, of course some of the things that happened in the book were a little predictable but there was definitely enough along the way to keep my interest completely, making it very hard to put down. And don’t even get me started on how many times you did it. I can count those on two fingers.’ He joins finger and thumb to form a zero.

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These three girls have their own issues with their family. Mehreen with her anxiety and depression and she named it as “chaos”. Cara is blaming herself for her father’s death while Olivia is suffering from the things that happened to her when she was fifteen. They talked to each other about their issues. But none of them are brave enough to speak up about how they feel to their family. All the things they never said are just eating them out. This book is about three girls who are dealing with depression and anxiety. Life seems too much for them. Especially Mehreen. She’s the main focus in this book, I suppose. Ok, the characters are chefs kiss! I loved each and every one of them, and their bravery and courage just made me feel more attached to each of them. It's an interesting concept and all three girls personalities were so different and yet worked well as they grew together. It's also super diverse. Mehreen, arguably the main character of the three, is a British Muslim with anxiety and depression. There's also a wheelchair user and a survivor of sexual assault. it's all about the power of friendship between them, about love and grief and healing, and it really shows just how much strength it takes to fight with yourself every day and keep going. But as disconcerting as the tapes turn out to be, Sean prays that they will ultimately confirm the one thing he never dared question. Does destiny exist? And were his and Catherine’s love and life together always meant to be?