My Goodbye Girl by Anna Gomez (Review by Stephanie Rowitz)

Rating: 4/5

Tessa Talman and Simon Fremont don’t have much in common. She’s a wistful, romance author who doesn’t like making plans. He’s a pragmatic scientist who’s always thinking three steps ahead. They know they’re polar opposites, but their attraction to one another is undeniable. As their feelings for each other grow, they meet in different cities around the world reconnecting, and inevitably, saying goodbye to each other over and over again. Though, after some time they both realize they’ve had enough of saying goodbye and decide to go all in. Then a tragedy strikes and separates them, possibly for good…

My Goodbye Girl is definitely not your typical, romance novel. It has a lot more pain and heartbreak than you might expect, and without giving away too much, the term “goodbye girl” has more than one meaning in this story. It’s a tale of two people coming together despite their history and circumstances trying to drive them apart. It’s about growing up and accepting things for how they are instead of constantly grasping for the idealized version of how you want them to be.

At first I thought there were too many heavy topics in this book, and there are if you want to consider this purely a romance novel. However, if you step back to see this book as a whole, outside the confines of genre, you will see this as a poignant, satisfying novel about making the most of the time we have left to live a meaningful life. Gomez is a talented storyteller who beautifully weaves Tessa and Simon’s journeys together in a way that feels very natural. It’s not the happiest story you will ever read, but it will leave you feeling reflective and satisfied. Just make sure you have some tissues on hand, just in case.