The Grief Of What's Gone by Sheryl Owens

I was drawn to this book after losing a loved one who would've turned thirty next year, same as me, it seems unreal we won't celebrate together. The book feels like a friend who understands, as the author does, set across different sections, The Quiet Hours the part of the book I found the most completely relatable to the times I have laid awake thinking of him, many tears, many nights writing thoughts, reading as I did this book in part in the early hours to feel a bit calmer and able to drift into sleep. Grief truly comes in random waves, I expect him to come home and be never will do again. The Firsts poem, about doing anything for the first time since they passed away is so heartbreakingly true as well, I've cried driving and had to pull over, I've cried at home and before losing him, no one in my friend group had even seen me cry, grief changes you and hits you randomly. There's a beautiful poem about carrying them with you in your mannerisms and I totally speak sometimes how he did with odd words and phrases he used I adapted to as well, in those times I feel love is reminding me he lives on in certain ways. A song for loss I found helpful is When You Lose Someone by Nina Nesbitt, I hope it helps if you listen to it to feel others get it and are here existing day to day learning how to live again after loss. A truly beautiful poetry collection.

Texts I Never Sent by Ariel Day

Heartbreakingly beautiful texts that have been typed and remain unsent to an ex. A simple yet effective way to find some closure and freedom from your thoughts and emotions for sure. I think many if us can relate to the thoughts and feelings captured in the messages and concept of the book. Beautiful and heartbreaking words.

Where No One Looked: 30 Quiet Days of Self-Return by Noah Grey

This was such a great book, one again I found myself nodding along feeling my thoughts heard right from the beginning. The book is set across 30 days, so thirty poems and writing about life and the very first one myself I have realised over the years becoming an adult, I was emotionally neglected growing up becoming quieter and never reaching out. I am glad to say as an adult, family is who I've met and made so with my friends now in my twenties who see me for the person I am and have my back whenever I need them, reflecting on my own past readng this book makes me thankful for them. It is a beautiful book to make you think deeply and question life and moments you have lived through as I found myself reflecting and sharing here definitely worth a read!

Sunsets & Cliffs by Dominika Stančíková

This was a beautiful poetry book and the poems were written like stories, snapshots in verse of a relationship thriving and sadly breaking down. Gentle fortress was my favourite poem so emotive about coming together as a duo in love. I also have to say I love the cover design simple in colour but impactful nonetheless showing a girl standing tall solo overlooking the world around and below.

Broken Petals by Stephanie Rose Correa

As flowers grow so do we through life dealing with love, loss, longing and poems too about dealing with anxiety and depression trying to deal with the daily struggle of life these poems were really touching and relatable. I really liked them being longer poems, each line and verse captured so much feeling to visualise as well.

Love Story In My Notes App by Rommela Marie Panal

Well, I was drawn to read this collection of poetry just from the title I write lots in my own notes app too and thought here's one I can relate to already! Push and pull was my favourite poem easily here so relatable about having a crush, becoming friends, wanting more and feeling torn between telling them or just keeping them in your life, been there and been through that! Simple yet beautiful poems documenting life's rough and tough times.

Black Roses by Ariel Day

A great collection, as I call, of common sense poetry, you read each word or each line, reflect on it and I find myself nodding along agreeing, it makes so much sense, someone else gets how it can feel in certain situations. Poetry about parents and love situations I really related to again agreeing along on how much someone else feels how I too have felt in trying to feel you are enough. The poem, The most popular guy at the funeral, was easily a favourite and made me reflect on my own relationship and how lucky I feel I have someone now who could reply with 20 things I like as Ariel asks her guy in the poem, but, previously I have been in a relationship to realise they dont actually know me, this isn't love, hard as it was and again the poem following it, Naive cynic, was similar again to a situation I went through and generally I love a collection like this that is really relatable and being a shorter collection stans out all the more so impact wise.

The One Who Kept Running by Noah Grey

Gentle words written with care of fond memories and telling the story of a relationship breaking up with tender words and aching lines of longing for things to work out differently. We could've lived a quiet life was a beautiful hopeful poem about imagining a future growing old together which I think all of us could relate to in some way, dreaming or realistically. Stay, as well as a tender poem, from the title you can imagine why that word words packs in a punch in that one word alone and reminded me of the singer Bank's last album and highly recommended giving that song a listen too, a sort of companion to the poem if you will. Tender poetry to be a companion through heartbreak or heart ache.

The Hours I Struggle To Talk About Now by Isobel Raine

Isobel is easily one of my favourite poets I have found as my love of poetry has grown. This collection focuses on poetry born from the late night and early hours when sometimes we feel our emotions strongly especially in a love situation of some kind, it hits different in the night hours when the world slows and you may wait for a message, that may never arrive which she's captured the feelings of love and longing perfectly in this collection.

Subject Unsent by Isobel Raine

This collection of poems was a raw honest look at heartbreak and the aftermath of dealing with the feelings and emotions written as unsent emails born in the early hours contemplating feelings and processing the emotions in the early hours which can be long dark times unable to sleep from overthinking. If you've ever written messages to anyone you felt anything for and deleted it this poetry collection is one to relate to for sure worth a read to sit and contemplate.