Warning: Always read a Tammy Robinson book with a huge box of tissues close at hand. Beautifully written, heart breaking sad, this stunning story about love, loss and life.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

Absolutely outstanding tear- jerker.

Ava is given a terminal diagnosis. Her wish is to get married, but she doesn't have a groom. Set in New Zealand the backdrop to the story is almost as beautiful as the book.

Be prepared and stock up on tissues. Yes, this is a sad story about cancer. But it's also uplifting and will make you think about and be grateful for the small things.

This was a heartbreakingly sad story but one that was written so well by the author. It deals with a very difficult subject and had me in tears.

I found this book heartbreakingly depressing and distressing to read. It is a very sensitive topic but I feel it didn't offer any hope or light and it left me feeling incredibly sad.

Really enjoyable read. Good characters and a Good story. Well worth a read. Think others will enjoy.

Transcript of conversation

DH: why are you crying?
Me: it’s the book
DH: why are you reading it if it makes you cry?
Me: I didn’t know it was going to make me cry when I started it*
DH: I just don’t get it!^


*disclaimer, I did. Tammy Robinson has that way with words that gets you so emotionally attached that you feel you’re there with the characters.
^ a non-reader (the newspaper doesn’t count)

What a book! I found the beginning a little tricky but that was after a dark psychological thriller so could well have been the book hangover. Once PoY hit its stride I was already tearful, wiping away silent tears on the tube ... but towards the end of the book it was much more emotional with racking sobs!

A heartfelt story of Ava, her battle, her friendships and her determination to celebrate her life. A beautiful read, emotional, sad yet uplifting too.

5 tear-soaked stars 🌟 🌟🌟🌟🌟from me
(😭😭😭😭😭 and 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰 too)

Tammy Robinson shot an arrow into my heart with this tear jerker story of Ava, who essentially teaches us how to live whilst she's dying.

"Some things we can't control, but there is so much we can. Choose to be happy. Choose to be grateful"

I have read this author’s previous work and enjoy her style of writing. This story did not disappoint.

Whilst dealing with a tragic story which could have been depressing, Tammy Robinson wrote it in a positive way and it made me feel quite uplifted and that life is for living.

I highly recommend this book.

'I watch the stars fade out as the sky lightens, from black to inky denim to baby blue, the horizon hazy with the colors of a new dawn. And I smile, and I breathe, and I give thanks that I have made it through another night and been gifted with one more day. Because it is a gift. I know that now.'

Photos of You is not a story about death; it’s a story about life, and a reminder to live your best one.

I really became close to the characters and am not ashamed to say I cried. It is a beautifully written emotional story that will make you hug your family and friends closer.

This book will stay with me for along time.

Heart tugging story about a young woman facing a terminal cancer diagnosis and her tale to the end. Heartbreaking but beautifully written. Highly recommend

A reminder to live life whilst you can
An incredibly moving book. A poignant reminder that life is for living until that is no longer an option. Don't sit back and wait for things to happen. Seize the moment. I absolutely adored this book. I love this author's style. I now have more places in NZ on my bucket list!

I absolutely loved the Photos of You, just when you don't think your heart can break anymore Tammy goes and breaks your heart again with this stunning read.

I find Tammy's books to be beautifully written and emotionally charged so you know at some point she will reduce you to tears streaming down your face and this book broke my heart.

A stunning story of love and loss and how even on the darkest days you never know what is round the corner

'Some things we can't control, but there is so much we can. Choose to be happy. Choose to be grateful, for both life and the small moments it consists of. Choose kindness, and love over hate. Always choose love.'

28 year old Ava is living every woman's nightmare. The cancer she successfully fought off before is back, and now it's terminal. Determined not to waste her precious time weeping, she decides instead to live while she can, for as long as she can. And top of her to-do list? A wedding. Specifically, her wedding. Groom not required... Although when a viral magazine article brings photographer James into her life, will it all change?

I feel like I have to start by saying that, as a rule, I avoid books about cancer, especially terminal cases. A family member had cancer last year, and though she recovered, I still have so much anxiety about it that its better for me to avoid the subject matter altogether. I broke my own rule though, when I saw how many reviews compared this novel to Me Before You by Jojo Moyes - it's one of my all time favourites, so I knew I had to give this a go. Unfortunately, I think this is a comparison that was not particularly favourable for Photos of You.

I'll start with the positives. I loved the family dynamics including in this novel, and also the friendships. All of Ava's relationships prior to James (more on that later) felt very realistic, and well constructed. I particularly loved the quiet moments between Ava and her father, and the more extravagant ones with her mother.

Returning to the comparison to Jojo Moyes - yes, it did share the same inspirational, seize the day, live an extraordinary life message that Me Before You is known for. Ava is definitely trying to be positive in the face of an awful situation, and I did come away very much feeling the need to adjust my own mindset in light of this. Unfortunately, for me, the constant inclusion of phrases encouraging everyone to be positive became a bit grating, and started to feel very much like scrolling through one of those instagram accounts - you know the ones, full of inspirational messages to live your life by. I felt like I was having all of this incredible wisdom thrown in my face, which for me could have been toned down a bit.

Perhaps my biggest issue for me was James and Ava. I really didn't like the relationship element of this book. I don't know why, it just felt very forced to me. The chemistry just wasn't there, and it felt like Robinson wanted Ava to have a relationship, and that was the best way to shoehorn one it. It just wasn't believable to me - not that it would happen, as I know it does, but more that they would happen. They had no chemistry, there was no real build up, it all felt very forced and flat to me.

Now, this is not to say I hated the book. It was nice enough, and I finished it. I just wasn't amazed by it. I think for me, it really suffered from being compared to Me Before You - there's not really any similarities at all, and so I went into it expecting a lovely story, and ended up with one that I found quite depressing at times, and flat for the rest of the time.

I do accept I'm in the minority here though, so don't let me sway you too much!

Disclaimer: I was provided with a copy of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This has not influenced this review, and all opinions are honest and my own.

How can a book about a young lady having terminal cancer be beautifully written?
The story line, the characters and the descriptions of the landscape were so believable..
After Ava's diagnosis, she decides that only thing she's ever wanted to do as a child is to get married. With the help of her close friends and family she sets about the task. There is one slight hiccup to her plans; she doesn't have a groom!
A national magazine follows her story and her wish starts to come true. They arrange a photo shoot for her and James enters her life.
An emotional and powerful read that had me hooked from start to finish!

Heart-wrenching and beautiful, I loved this book and appreciated the reminder of the value of time, life and love. Is it sad? Yes. Is it also uplifting? YES! Its a reminder to live life to the full and the prose is written in such a way the reader is not left feeling depressed but, in many ways, grateful. Its an immersive, addictive, read so be ready- and be ready too for a roller coaster of emotions, especially if the role of carer or patient is close to your heart already. I highly recommend this book.

I've read some of Tammy's other books and each time I am struck by the simplicity of the storytelling. There's no fancy plots with ridiculous twists and turns. Just elegant real life, heartfelt and honest characters going about their lives. Tammy write in such a way that I end up so emotionally invested in the characters that I simply can't put it down. It creates a compelling need in me to know what happens to each of them. I feel invested in their lives, like I am truly part of it, willing them to succeed and this book is no different.
For me this book truly encapsulates love in all it's forms. Love of life. Love of family and friends. Infinite love on so many levels. I can relate to the desire and the emotions of Ava and the way she feels because I have those feelings towards my husband, even after 20+ years together. We have sat and talked over the years about what would happen if one of us was terminally ill or if one of us died suddenly, of family members and friends. This book really strikes it home for me about the mortality and beauty of the lives we get to lead. There is something magical in the way Tammy creates a world that is so real that I long to be part of it and an incredible book hangover form the roller-coaster of emotions. Another 5 star read, for a captivating and beautiful tale.

Ava is 28 and has been diagnosed with cancer for the second time. This time it’s terminal. Her dying wish is to be a bride. She doesn’t have a groom but she wants the experience and for it to her her goodbye to her family and friends. The wedding plans are handled by her best friends and her parents who are trying to deal with their own emotions.

The wedding has caught the attention of a major women’s magazine who cover the build up to the big day. As part of this Ava meets James, the photographer...

This is probably one of the best books I’ve read. Emotional from the start. I often had to stop to wipe my eyes. Beautifully written and I can’t recommend highly enough

A heart wringing story of a twenty eight year old woman who has cancer, how she deals with it and how her friends and family react. Ava wants to get married before she dies. One problem no groom. All this may change. Be prepared to cry buckets, this story is heart warming but also so sad.

4.5 stars
A beautiful story about life, opportunities and illness.
Some may say it’s a similar story with Nicholas Sparks one, but I’ll say that it’s just life, a very contemporary life that many times we take for granted and forget that the people around us are caring more inside than they are probably showing.
A heartbreaking story when I had to stop reading at times, but a must read nevertheless.