'i hope this reaches her in time' - by R. H. Sin.

'i hope this reaches her in time' - by R.H. Sin. A review.

I came across this book by complete accident. I had recently purchased 'Depression & Other Magic Tricks' by Sabrina Benaim (review coming soon for that also) - (spoiler: its fantastic) - and this little gem popped up on my recommended. And that is exactly what this book is, a little gem. It was 4 in the morning, I hadn't slept, and desperately wanted a new poetry book to read. I had considered purchasing 'Milk and Honey' by Rupi Kaur but had already seen so much of it online from people posting pictures that I wasn't sure if I would enjoy it. 'i hope this reaches her in time' popped up and without reading much about it, I decided to buy it.

When I had received it I was surprised by how little the book says before it gets straight into the poems. The back of the book reads 'call ended...' and nothing else. The only page before the poetry starts says the books title on it. This intrigued me. I was excited to start this book. Now, before I finally get on to the actual poems I want to state my expectations beforehand. I had read a lot of this style of poetry before and had mixed feelings about it. Poetry that consists of just sort emotional lines can often feel bland or not powerful enough, almost weak in a way of not trying too much. I enjoyed Depression & Other Magic Tricks because each poem told a story, but I had doubts about this particular book. Non the less, I excitedly started to read it in bed the night I received it.

The first few pages contain poems of roughly 4-10 lines. Some longer, some shorter. As I continued to read I found some poems were simply one line or one word; although I had doubts that such little words could make an impact on me, I was thankfully proven wrong by this book. The way the poems are arranged allowed me to create a story within my head. I felt like this book was someones way of reaching out to a loved one who was not responding. A raw out pour of the heart. Imagine this; you're drunk, heartbroken, and crying at 2am. Your heart starts letting out every thought you have right now. That's a little how it feels to read this book.

As I read the first few pages I started to form a character in my head. This girl the poems seem to talk about, who is she? As well as picturing someone in my head, I felt I could relate to some of the words. When Sin talks about "you should have loved her when she cared" or "you were the emptiness I felt" I took time to think and feel about all the relationships I've experienced and have known others to. I questioned if we as humans ever truly appreciate what we have before its gone, and how wrong is it not to? Whether this was Sin's intentions for the reader or not, it was certainly the reaction it evoked from me.

As I turned page after page my heart began to hang on every sentence. After reading several pages that first night, I decided to pick the book up a few days later when I was travelling to Manchester. I read another portion of the book on the plane and yet again began to question how we don't see the value of everyday love. The way people love us in our everyday way. I started to look round the plane at the different people, wondering about their own heartache. I read the next portion on the train to City Centre and the last bit of it on the plane journey home the following day.

This book surprised me. R.H. Sin created so much story and power while giving the reader very little detail. While my review so far has been glowing I cannot say this book is without fault. Two pages are filled with nothing but "1:11" and "121914" and on one page the font changes drastically for one line. While I understand this may be an aesthetic choice, I have to question it. Are the codes and or/ times there to make us feel more like this is a phone call? Are we reading someones text messages? The pages with these numbers break up our reading flow a little and I am eager to know if others felt this too.

If you are someone who would like to take a chance on romantic / heartache style poetry, take a chance with this book. Turning the last page felt like a purge of emotion. When I closed the book over after finishing I sat and stared at it for a few minutes. I reflected, yet again, but also allowed myself to be comfortable with feeling a little emotional over this book. I enjoyed every minute.