Book Review | Love Letters to the Dead | Ava Dellaira

Title: Love Letters to the Dead
Author: Ava Dellaira (web | twitter)
Genre: Contemporary YA, epistolary
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Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Release date: April 1, 2014
Source: ARC from the publisher via NetGalley (Thanks, FSG!)

It begins as an assignment for English class: Write a letter to a dead person. Laurel chooses Kurt Cobain because her sister, May, loved him. And he died young, just like May did. Soon, Laurel has a notebook full of letters to people like Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, Amelia Earhart, Heath Ledger, and more; though she never gives a single one of them to her teacher. She writes about starting high school, navigating new friendships, falling in love for the first time, learning to live with her splintering family. And, finally, about the abuse she suffered while May was supposed to be looking out for her. Only then, once Laurel has written down the truth about what happened to herself, can she truly begin to accept what happened to May. And only when Laurel has begun to see her sister as the person she was; lovely and amazing and deeply flawed; can she begin to discover her own path.

Debut author goodness! Guys I love debut authors. Sometimes they are hit or miss, but there’s nothing quite like picking up a book solely on the recommendation of the story. Not having any preconceived notions about their writing and whether or not it’s going to be my cup of tea. These things, plus the idea of someone writing letters to Kurt Cobain, whose death I remember clearly even if I never loved Nirvana, piqued my interest HARD when I first heard about Ava Dellaira’s LOVE LETTERS TO THE DEAD. Add to that the bonus of a sister relationship and the promise of first love? There was a lot to recommend this one, and it lived up to my expectations pretty awesomely.

LOVE LETTERS TO THE DEAD is the story of Laurel, a young, quiet girl whose family is dealing with the death of her older sister, May. They aren’t doing so hot with it. Her mother left and is living in California and her father is retreating into himself. Laurel spends half of her time living with her Aunt Amy who’s a little bit obsessed with Jesus. Laurel has recently switched schools to avoid anyone asking her about May, but the downside is that she has no friends. The entire book is an English assignment Laurel gets from one of her new teachers–write a letter to a dead person. She chooses Kurt Cobain because he was May’s favorite musician, and we see her moving forward in the aftermath of May’s death through Laurel’s letters to him and other famous dead people. She makes friends, falls in love with a boy, and faces her own guilt about what happened the night May died. Lots of FEELINGS.

Right away, I was struck by the structure of Ava Dellaira’s book. I can’t recall reading very many epistolary novels before LOVE LETTERS TO THE DEAD. I can’t say that I would normally enjoy them. I can see the appeal of the idea–having a character dealing with lots of emotional troubles writing letters to people who can never read them is freeing–but I regularly have issues with books when I feel like time passes in fits and starts; it ruins the pace for me. But even though large-ish chunks of time passed between Laurel’s letters, it rarely bothered me because I was so caught up in the emotions of Laurel and her family and friends. So that’s one for the “win” column, Ava Dellaira!

LOVE LETTERS TO THE DEAD really makes its mark with Laurel, though. She is struggling, friends. She can’t seem to muster up the energy for much, it seems. She’s bearing the weight of a lot of guilt over May and her family and she’s battling some real resentment towards her mother. The only chance that we would get to know her is through her letters to Kurt and Judy Garland and Janis Joplin and Amelia Earhart, and she is a complex, wounded girl. Between the very real feelings of a sad girl and the wonderful writing of Ava Dellaira, Laurel’s letters made me cry a few times. Laurel is just having a hard time with basically everything. I can’t lie: It’s a downer. But what makes LOVE LETTERS TO THE DEAD great is that it doesn’t stay that way.

But these letters show us more than Laurel overcoming her own grief and the tragedies in her life. They show a young girl who saw only the good in her sister and not the troubles underneath. They show friendships blossoming between three girls, two of whom are trying to come to grips with their feelings for one another. They show a girl struggling with her growing feelings of love for a boy who keeps his own secrets but makes her feel loved and…well, he just makes her feel things. And they show a family trying to make sense of the tragedy that’s befallen them. It’s all very emotional, and Ava Dellaira imbues everything with bittersweetness. There were some particularly difficult passages to read, and May was an incredibly sad character. Seeing her through Laurel’s eyes was devastating and troubling, and that made her death that much sadder.

I was a big fan of LOVE LETTERS TO THE DEAD. I thought the writing was beyond lovely–I was highlighting passages in my kindle all over the place–the characters were well-drawn and complex, and the emotions were at a fever pitch from beginning to end. Debuts don’t get much better than this, although I’d definitely say that it’s a book you probably have to be in the mood for. Sometimes the sadness and grief is something I can only handle at certain times. I’m very glad this was one of those times for me.

Check out some other reviews of Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira!

Brittany @ The Book Addict’s Guide: “All said and done, I easily see the appeal and glory of LOVE LETTERS TO THE DEAD but I just had a hard time connecting with it.”