Summary
Helen Reaves is a beloved author. Her Alvin and Margo Hatter series is the most popular set of children’s books of all time. When she passes away at 40, the world mourns.
To Lottie, though, Helen Reaves is so much more than a favorite author. She’s Aunt Helen. And Lottie and her family are devastated by their loss.
Even though her aunt is dead, Helen still has something to say to Lottie. She leaves her 24 letters to be opened one at a time. When Lottie completes a letter’s challenge (do something risky, celebrate life at a party, get angry), she opens another.
Each letter pushes Lottie. The anxiety and panic attacks she experiences threaten to overwhelm her, but she still tackles each challenge out of love for her aunt. But one letter may push her too far. And what will Lottie do when the letters are finished but her grief remains?
Review
From the opening scene (which some might find horrifying, but I found funny, having had a cremains issue once myself), I was hooked. I loved the relationship between Helen and Lottie, even though we only know about it from the letters. I loved Lottie’s family. Each person is grieving in his/her own way, and they give each other space for that while still being supportive.
The glimpses into Helen’s famous series invoke hints of a Harry Potter-like popularity and also reminded me of the structure of Fangirl. They were fun interludes that eventually tie into Lottie’s story.
There’s an interesting twist to the story. I have mixed feelings about it. I saw it coming, and it changed how I felt about the whole book. It shifted where I thought things were going. It all came together in the end in a satisfying way. But it changed what I thought the story was going to be. (Some language)