A heartbreaking and beautiful book. This book is a slow burn and it keeps you interested throughout
A good book

Raw, real, funny, full of emotion. I throughly enjoyed this book. Thank you to both NetGalley and the publishers for gifting me this book

I will admit that I had no previous knowledge of the author before starting his book. I usually love a memoir but really struggled with this one. I didn't realise it was going to be so much soul searching and reflection, whereas I usually like a little more action. I thought there would be more talk about his mother (these were the parts I enjoyed) and their travels. Sadly not for me.

I didn't know much about Rhik Samadder before reading this book but had heard so much about it I had to give it a go. It was so interesting, honest and funny, and devastatingly sad at some points. For any fans of a memoir I'd completely recommend.

I Never Said I Loved You by Rhik Samadder is an honest, raw, funny, heartfelt, brave, touching and painful memoir.

This was my first book by this author, and I enjoyed it. Such an honest read, I like that in a book.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

A very honest and sometimes brutal account of Rhik's life experience.

Definitely recommended for all that enjoy biographies. Its a brilliant read.

Thank you Netgalley

I Never Said I Loved You is a beautifully written memoir. The author has a genuine talent for telling his story and drawing you in.  

I appreciated the honesty of the author - how nothing was sugar-coated and we got to see the truth. I got a little bored in the middle and felt myself dragging myself through it, but the fantastic beginning helped me through and I’m so glad I got to read the ending. Heart-wrenching - brilliant memoir.

This was a fantastic portrayal of depression as well as the father-son relationship and grief in general. There were parts of it that resonated hugely with me. I struggled a little bit with the lack of structure which made it difficult to follow at times.

I have been keen to read Rhik Samadder's memoir for a while so was very grateful for this copy from NetGalley and the publisher.

This is a very raw and painful memoir filled with honesty and humour. Samadder writes about childhood sexual abuse, living with mental health issues and relationships with his parents and women.

This is a beautifully written memoir and I love Samadder's humour. I found the sections of the book where he writes about his relationship with his father extremely emotional and I was moved to tears.

However, I also found it to be a challenging read, it did not flow well for me and although I have suffered with mental health issues myself it was not a book that spoke to me. Despite this, I feel that I am in the minority and as this is a very personal reading experience I would recommend a read of this memoir.

What a beautiful, harrowing, funny and powerful memoir - this made me feel ALL the feelings. Detailing Samadder’s battle with depression, this memoir covers everything from sexual abuse to career struggles.
Whilst Samadder says quite early on in the book that he realised he wasn’t clever at University, I would have to beg to differ - this is such a beautifully written, clever and insightful memoir full of wit and wisdom far beyond his years. I can’t imagine anyone reading this and not relating to Samadder in some way, and that is the power of this book - knowing we’re not alone. He writes;
‘When I cast my mind over the possible benefits of depression, this ability to empathise, to connect to another human being when they are most in need of it, shines out from the rest.’
Whilst this is in no way a self-help book, there is some wonderful advice near the end, but mostly, a feeling of hope that I will take away with me.

I Never Said I Loved You is a really powerful read, from a perspective that I feel like I've not seen in memoir before. The brutal honesty of Samadder's depression, sexual abuse and self harm is really challenging to sit through, and yet vitally important. It's refreshing to see a man speak about body issues and depression and I hope in this way that it opens the door for that subject to become easier to speak about between men.

Although important, I found this book to be quite a difficult read. The subjects felt really heavy and at times it was graphic. This, paired with quite a lot of heavy metaphor meant that at times I felt like I was wading through mud to connect with what I was reading and I felt distressed and a little frustrated.

However, I feel as though as a whole this book will really resonate with certain audiences and open conversations that are vitally important right now. I also commend the author for being brave enough to tell his story so openly.

"Everything you did showed you wanted me to live free too and I never had time to say thank you, and I never said I loved you."

I Never Said I Loved You is the debut memoir from writer, actor and broadcaster Rhik Samadder. On a backpacking trip with his mother for his 30th birthday, Rhik decides to finally sit down and talk to his mother about everything he's been feeling.

Beautifully written and absolutely heartbreaking, I Never Said I Loved You is a memoir about depression and how to understand your past to come to terms with it. The book deals with everything from abuse, suicide, self-harm, death, sex and work (a serious side note, I think that this book should probably come with trigger warnings) - that said, I Never Said I Loved you is an honest look at what living with depression is like, and how to ask for help. It had me nearly crying my eyes out.

Rare that books can be funny and heartbreaking all in one go. Love the way that Rhik writes and especially looked forward to the letter at the end of every chapter. I also just really appreciated his honesty throughout around mental illness, introversion and relationships.

A world spinning emotional head rush epic novel!!
What a novel to come out at a time of change. This book really touched on so many issues that are so important to me Family, love, race and mental health. A fabulous read and one I will always remember.

Woah.

I went into this not really knowing what it was about but this got to me straight away.

This is powerful and brutally honest that I was overwhelmed (mostly in a good way). Numerous topics are discussed such as abuse, anxiety and loneliness.

I would say this contains one of the most accurate discussions of mental health issues I have ever read.

The author has been through so much in his life that you feel your heart breaking for him on more than one occasion but this really shows the strong character that he is.

This does tackle some really serious topics so it may triggering for some. However, that being said the author also adds a lot of humour to their writing.

This will have you crying and then laughing within a few pages. I'm really glad I gave this a read.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me a copy to read

A self-reflective journey through this journalist's traumatic past and the endless repercussions of not speaking out sooner. There are heart-breaking revelations and moments that truly shocked me. I felt sadness, sympathy and uplifted by this book. Rhik Samadder had so much that he couldn't say, and didn't say, with enormous regret. This book appears to be an attempt to put that record straight and take control of his destiny rather than allow depression to hinder him for his entire life.
I had hoped to understand more about mental health, to support those suffering around me, but this book made me realise what a personal experience it is and that the best you can do is to be there, listen and don't judge.

At first I was really on board with this book but for whatever reason the wheels began to fall off halfway through and my attention began to wane. I did appreciate the oftentimes brutal look at depression and did find myself in several parts nodding along in complete understanding. At other times though I was really put off and can't really put my finger on why. An interesting read nevertheless.

Wow! It is a long time since I have felt such a mix of emotion whilst reading a book.
This memoir is as heartbreaking as it is hilarious, as someone who has suffered with mental health issues in the past there were parts of this book that I could really relate to. There were other parts that really gave me an insight into how it feels to almost hit a mental rock bottom.
This is in no was an easy read, it is a brutal and honest book about abuse and depression but it has a dark and dry humour that goes with it. It feels like one of those hold your breath, keep it in laughing moments that you know you really shouldn’t be funny but is, desperately.
This book stands worlds apart from anything of a similar subject that I have read. It is sad but not soppy, funny but not forced - the perfect combination

This was not an easy read for me. I have a long history of depression and had a breakdown in my late teens. I suffer from intrusive thoughts about death and dying and spend a lot of time walking a very fine line between functioning and failing to function in normal life. So much in this book spoke to me in a very, very visceral way. There were a couple of times when I actually had to put it down and walk away, it stirred my feelings so much. It spoke to me of some of the things I never manage to say. That fearfulness it woke in me is also part of its power and beauty. It is real. What he writes is true. This is how it is, at least for me. And making that connection of the unsaid and sometimes unsayable through the words on the page was quite amazing. I'm nearly fifty now, and this balancing act has been my whole adult life, and Samadder is right. Things do get better. It's easier now. There is beauty in all of this bleakness, and that's something he shows too. And humour. So much dark, bleak, terrible humour. It's a great book. It was a bit shattering, but it was great for all that.