Letters to the Lost
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Published: April 4, 2017
Pages: 391
My Rating: ★★★★

Juliet Young always writes letters to her mother, a world-traveling photojournalist. Even after her mother's death, she leaves letters at her grave. It's the only way Juliet can cope. Declan Murphy isn't the sort of guy you want to cross. In the midst of his court-ordered community service at the local cemetery, he's trying to escape the demons of his past. When Declan reads a haunting letter left beside a grave, he can't resist writing back. Soon, he's opening up to a perfect stranger, and their connection is immediate. But neither Declan nor Juliet knows that they're not actually strangers. When life at school interferes with their secret life of letters, sparks will fly as Juliet and Declan discover truths that might tear them apart.
A girl grieving the loss of her mother falls in love for the first time unexpectedly. 
I had heard a lot of hype going into Letters to the Lost that I had very high hopes for it. The book is about a young girl named Juliet. She just lost her mother and is grieving her at the cemetery one day. She decides to leave a note for her mother on her grave. 

The next day, she comes back to see that there is a reply to her letter. Initially, she is very upset that someone read her letter to her mom but she begins to start up a conversation with a mystery boy who continues to leave her letters. 

Later, she discovers that this mystery boy also goes to her school. It has a You've Got Mail vibe to it. She does not find out who the boy is until the very end of the book. The boy is Declan Murphy and he is just as sad and messed up as she is. What starts off as a relationship to confide in each other turns into love.

The stages of grief are shown beautifully. Both characters grow enormously throughout the entire book. I became very invested in the story. I breezed through the book because I was so invested. Letters to the Lost is one captivating book. There was just enough intrigue to keep me guessing in the story. 

The author has a beautiful way of telling a story and I will for sure pick up more of her books. I had no idea that this was a series. I guess I will have to continue reading because I very much enjoyed this book. The ending was predictable which dropped my rating from a five to a four. Otherwise, this book was everything that I hoped it would be. It did not let me down. 

This is not just a love story. It has depth and growth beyond belief. Anyone would benefit from this book. You can feel the emotion coming off of these pages. Prepare to get emotional while reading this book. I sure did. The relationships in this story are engaging in all the best ways.
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Brigid Kemmerer is the New York Times bestselling author of dark and alluring Young Adult novels like A Curse So Dark and Lonely, More Than We Can Tell, and Letters to the Lost (Bloomsbury), as well as paranormal YA stories like The Elemental Series and Thicker Than Water (Kensington). A full-time writer, Brigid lives in the Baltimore area with her husband, her boys, her dog, and her cat. When she’s not writing or being a mommy, you can usually find her with her hands wrapped around a barbell.