Had me laughing, had me crying!
Chester Wheeler was a character I wanted not to like....but he was I couldn't help liking him.
Lewis is a lovely man who seems to bring out the best in Chester,
A fantastic holiday read

I loved this so much! I absolutely did write a review before, but iDK what happened. Despite the inevitable end of the book, it left me feeling strangely hopeful! I would love to read more books based on the same main character. Where does his new role take him?

I think we all need to agree that this author cannot write a bad book and leave it at that. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher!

👨🏼‍🦳🧑🏼‍🦽Book Review:
Title: So Long, Chester Wheeler
Author: Catherine Ryan Hyde
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/3 stars

I liked this book, but I really wish it would have ended with even more of the story of Chester Wheeler and his caretaker, Lewis Madigan.

Lewis has just lost his job as a software developer. Recently leading up to the job loss, his partner, Tim, has left him and has taken all of their money. So, needless to say, Lewis is desperate for a means to make money.

Chester is Lewis's, 70 year old neighbor. He is mean, homophobic and barely hanging on with a terminal illness. His most recent caregiver has just quit. This is the perfect opportunity to earn money, but Lewis is not interested! Chester is terrible to him!

But as you probably figured out, Lewis takes on the role as there are really no other options, and Chester's daughter, Ellie, is desperate. Chester and Lewis go on an end-of-life road trip to help close loose ends before Chester passes. Eventually, these two end up as what might be considered friends. Forgiveness, loss, love, grief, redemption, and friendship in the most unlikely places.

Published: December 6th, 2022

Thank you, @netgalley and @lakeunionauthors, for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book captures Hyde's trademark heartwarming style and reminds readers that life is generally more about the journey than the final destination. It gently grapples with complex topics like illness and aging. Readers of this author's prior works will enjoy this one.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

In my library of books Catherine Ryan Hyde is consistently a 5 star author, with the exception of one or two outliers I read years ago. Her books are so deep and meaningful. All of them have amazing protagonists who make you, the reader, want to be a better person. The way she captures emotion in every single character is simply amazing and the way she tells the story is spectacular.
Lewis is a software engineer in his young 20’s and is in the early days of a budding relationship. He’s pretty happy with his life despite his cantankerous, homophobic, elderly neighbor, Chester Wheeler. Things seem to be going fairly well for him until Lewis loses his job and his boyfriend in the same day. A few days later Lewis meets Chester’s daughter Ellie when she knocks on his door after realizing Lewis is in between jobs. She begs him to step in and help with her Dad since Chester has run off every home health aide from the agency they were using and Ellie has other family commitments out of state. Hard pressed for a job, Lewis agrees to it and what follows ends up being life changing for both Lewis and Chester.
Ms. Hyde has such a unique way of writing. I listened to this and because of the style it was like listening to Lewis tell me this story. It’s written in first person, but more than that there are little spoken nuances throughout the narrative- “let me make a long story short”, “you might not believe it but it’s true”, etc. This brings Lewis to life and turns what would be a 2 dimensional character of one’s imagination into a 3 dimensional person. It’s really an incredible way to bring a book to life and it’s why Ms, Hyde is a master at her craft.

This is a beautiful, touching story about two men celebrating differences and discovering themselves. They take a journey of discovery together that is moving, touching and interesting. I loved these characters and felt very connected to them by the end. Loved this touching coming of age in a sense story.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝙐𝙣𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙙 𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙥 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢 𝙖𝙣 𝙪𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙣 𝙪𝙥𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙖𝙨𝙩—𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙.

This is my first book by Catherine Ryan Hyde and for some reason, I put it off for so long. I didn’t expect this kind of read to be my thing, but the premise sounded so interesting.

I had such a love/hate relationship with Chester Wheeler and Lewis Madigan, but I loved how well-developed both characters were. They were both so fleshed out and I appreciated the growth both showed throughout the book - primarily towards each other.

From early on we know Chester is dying from cancer so I already knew this was going to be an emotional read, but I wasn’t expecting to get attached to the characters by the end of the book.

I also loved the journey/trip they took together. While Chester did say something awful things to Lewis, I loved the journey they took to find a strong relationship between them.

This was a heartwarming and emotional story, but I just enjoyed the writing. The story and characters are written in such an inspiring and beautiful way. I normally wouldn’t have picked out this book on my own, but I decided to request it on NetGalley one day and I’m so glad I did. This was such a delightful read.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the review eARC in exchange for my honest review!

•𝗧𝗪/𝗖𝗪: Death, Homophobia, and Terminal Illness

When Lewis suddenly loses both his job and his boyfriend he is forced into a period of uncertainty around what to do with his life.
That’s when the opportunity to become a carer for the grumpy Chester Wheeler over the road who has driven away every past carer he has had.
This leads to journeys to find closure and more discovery over Chester, but will Lewis be able to cope unlike all the people before him?
This was a heartwarming story and really teaches you about being able to try and see the good in people, no matter how hard that may be. I loved the dynamics between the characters and it really felt like they were real people that I was just observing.
I would love to read more by this author!

Once again Catherine Ryan Hyde has written a book that makes me both think and feel - without making me feel like I've been smacked in the head one too many times with "The Message". This is a bit of a road-trip/buddy story - except the two people on the road trip (in an aging Winnebago) aren't buddies at all, instead they're two very different men from very different generations who are thrown together due to circumstances that neither is happy about. Nor can either can find much to like about each other as they travel across the country, but the more they learn about each other, the more they inch towards some understanding. As usual Hyde has written characters that seem like stereotypes on the surface, yet as she reveals the stories of their lives we realize that people are almost always more complex than they seem - and that the most unexpected people can affect our lives in the most unexpected ways.
Thanks to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for providing a copy for an unbiased review.

When Lewis finds himself without a boyfriend or a job, he does not relish finding employment with his difficult and flawed next door neighbor. Chester Wheeler has run off the last home health aide available, but his daughter Ellie convinces Lewis to take the job until she can make other arrangements.

There are several predictable plot points, but I did enjoy the way the author unraveled Chester’s past to build sympathy for a very difficulty and unhappy old man. I wish there had been more development with Lewis’ character.

This was an easy read, but the predictability and awkward epilogue had me ready to get to my next read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I highlighted this book on my Booktube channel. The video can be accessed here: https://youtu.be/d0yIVLVC22U

A delightfully uplifting book about two different men. I felt so many different emotions and it's a beautiful story and accepting those who are different to what you expect.

Thank you NetGalley for the advance copy of this novel.
Catherine Ryan Howard writes a delightful character driven novel with oodles of charm as it explores the surprising intergenerational relationship that develops between 24 year old gay software developer living in Buffalo, Lewis Madigan, and his unbearable hateful and homophobic neighbor, 70 year old Chester Wheeler,
I always get excited when Catherine Ryan Hyde writes a new book. I love how she writes about a friendship that develops between two people you would never suspect.
I am happy I had the opportunity to read!
Leslie Ponder

Catherine Ryan Hyde does an amazing job of writing books that are emotional, captivating, and full of characters you adore. So Long, Chester Wheeler was a book that I finished reading and kept thinking about. It is a beautiful story that deserves to be read.

This was an amazing book and such a delight to read. I experienced so many emotions while reading it.
Many thanks to Lake Union Publishing and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

So Long, Chester Wheeler by Catherine Ryan Hyde was a very enjoyable novel involving the relationship of two very different men. Chester Wheeler is a very cantankerous, homophobic elderly man who needs a caretaker. His daughter Ellie has trouble hiring anyone who will stay for any length of time. In desperation, she turns to Chester’s neighbor, Lewis, who lost his job and his boyfriend at nearly the same time. He needs a job, desperately. Neither of the men want anything to do with the other.
Many thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for this most recent novel by an excellent author.

Confession time, I requested this book on NetGalley without reading the information correctly; my brain decided to see Catherine Ryan Howard rather than Hyde, and I clicked request without reading anything else! Oops. Thankfully I enjoyed the book.

Lewis Madigan is young, gay, freshly out of work, and newly single. To make matters worse, he lives next door to Chester Wheeler, an insufferable, cantankerous, homophobic elderly man who even his paid carers cannot stand to be around; every single one at the agency has quit.

Chester’s daughter Ellie desperately needs someone to help care for her father and, running out of other options, turns to his neighbour for help. Chester doesn't want any help from a gay man, but Lewis, desperate for cash, swallows every last ounce of pride and steps in as Chester’s caregiver. How bad can it be to run a few errands, be on call, and put up with the miserable oul lad?

They exchange barbs, bicker and bait each other relentlessly, but when Chester hits Lewis with his dying wish: drive Chester to Arizona in his rust bucket of a Winnebago, he cannot say no.

Chester wants to see his ex-wife for the first time in thirty-two years and for one last time. One week, two thousand miles. For Lewis and Chester to be so constrained for this time should be hell on earth, but they learn about each other, their innermost secrets and vulnerabilities.

So Long, Chester Wheeler is a character-driven book. It is a story that will make you smile, laugh and gasp in pure horror at times. But ultimately, it is a book of personal growth, introspection and understanding, as themes of love, loss, hate, forgiveness, and redemption are threaded through the story. 3.5⭐

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an Advance Readers Copy in return for an honest review.

Yet another great book by Catherine Ryan Hyde! Meet Chester Wheeler, a cantankerous, homophobic old man who is dying. He lives next to Lewis Madigan, the gay neighbor who has just lost his job and his partner in the same day. Desperate, he takes a job caring for Chester temporarily. The only problem is, they really can't stand each other.

Chester is horrible. He's been through every since home health worker in town. He says terrible things to Lewis, who is immediately sorry he took the job and despite wanting to quit almost every day, sticks it out. As horrible as Chester is, once the details of his life are revealed and the story progresses, it's understandable why he is the way he is.

Some parts of the book are funny, some are sad. As terrible as Chester was, I found myself hoping he would find peace and I really loved Lewis and the trajectory his life took post-Chester.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the chance to read and review this book. All opinions are mine and freely given.

This book was an entertaining, funny, and heartfelt read that truly captures your attention from the beginning. I felt that Catherine Ryan Hyde did an amazing job with detail, exploring insightful topics, and character progression. Lewis is a gay man who is out of work and gets entangled with providing care for his homophonic next door neighbor, Chester, who is dying with one last wish to travel to Arizona to see his ex-wife. The journey of the two main characters, which ends up being 2,000 miles, will make you laugh, cry, and leave you with the thought that we all just want to be understood.

You don’t want to miss this one! I highly recommend it!