Ørstavik writes with grace and sensitivity to explore the complexities of grief over the loss of a loved one. However, it is not the grief that comes after loss that sets Ti Amo apart, but Ørstavik's focus on the present grief that wraps the individual as they contend with the inevitability of losing someone they love to terminal illness. 

While this is a work of fiction, Ørstavik draws from her own experience of losing her husband to cancer to write an unflinching account of suffering. I really appreciated the way she revealed the realities of grappling with even the thought of losing someone, and the ways in which emotions are in constant flux. The world continues on while the griever moves sideways, unable to move forward but not quite regressing either. 

The prose is sparse, but Ørstavik writes with such affective power to have the reader reflecting on their own understanding of loss and grief.