The Unfinished Journals of Elizabeth D by Nichole Bernier
I am participating in a read along hosted by Bree @1 Girl 2 Many Books & sponsored by Australia’s own Allen & Unwin.
This week we have read 136 pages of the book (approx 1/3). Most of my below comments will be **spoilers GALORE** so watch out but I just want to say that I am truly enjoying this read.
**spoilers from this point**
I’m not going to summarise the story as, if you are reading this, it means you are reading the book along with us 
so I’m just going to dive straight in.
What astounded me most about this book is the slow reading. I don’t mean it in a bad way at all. I just found myself reading in such a slow and relaxing pace – that’s so not me! I have to admit that my usual reads are made for fast reading (like a thriller / some fantasy) so I actually really felt the need to read this slowly. I tried to read it slightly faster but my brain (as weird as this sounds) just won’t allow it. Whatever Nichole Bernier did, she’s a genius! This story was made to be read in relaxing environment; ideally rugged up on the sofa with a hot drink in your hands. This image is sooo vivid in my mind but unfortunately, I do most of my reading on the commute to work but… it helps in winding down the day for me.
I do have a confession to make though. Despite the fact that this book was not a thriller, I just didn’t like the tension between Kate & Chris – actually, I was dreading the ending, that… *clears throat* um, I took a peek at the end. *GASP*, I don’t normally do this!! But I just had to… I didn’t read much of the ending (maybe a paragraph or two – real quick) but it’s enough to settle my nerves so I can continue the read in a better frame of mind. The angst just wasn’t good for my working day ;p I just want to clarify that I don’t do this on a regular basis (I think I can count these instances in one hand)
I haven’t kept any sort of journals since my early teen years. I remembered finding those journals in my early 20s (due to moving houses) and shredding them *grimaced*. The contents just weren’t pretty – do you remember your early teen years? Yeah… I don’t supposed you’d like to remember that much either! I also figured that I don’t really want people to know my inner feelings / thoughts – if I wanted them to, I would’ve told them. Besides, with all these social media out there, how much of a secret could you have? Apparently, a lot… as we are discovering through this book.
I am very interested as to where this Kate’s & Elizabeth’s journeys will take me. Kate may not be the easiest person to like at this moment but as with all these type of books, I am waiting for her moment of growth. That moment of epiphany and decision to be the better person – I can’t wait 
What touches me most about this book (aside from dealing with grief) is the relationship between parent & child (all of them, individually). They each have something special with their child/ren and that’s really sweet.
