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A review by beereadsya
I Hope This Doesn't Find You by Ann Liang
5.0
"you'll always be my first choice, julius gong."
— five beautiful stars.
this is it. this is the book that solidifies ann liang as my favorite author, maybe ever.
i wanted to be fun and silly and format this like an email, but this book emotionally wrecked me so much that i don't physically think i can. i would be lying if i said to you that this wasn't everything i had hoped it would be and more. i would be lying if i said i wasn't already one hundred and ten percent sure of what my rating would be even before i had opened the book.
however, i would also be lying to you if i said i expected this book to absolutely shatter me the way it did. i hope this doesn't find you is so much more than just a silly little romance book, and the way that there is so much tucked into the pages of this book... i genuinely don't have the right words to describe how much i adored this book from start to finish.
let me start off by saying that this is, without a doubt, ann liang's best book. and when i say without a doubt, i mean without a doubt. she has knocked down every expectation set by her previous two books, which is an insane feat considering how amazing if you could see the sun and this time it's real are. in only three hundred pages, ann solidifies her storytelling skills, and makes you feel everything. you can tell there's been a definite step-up in her writing, because while the style hasn't changed, the impact of her words has, if that makes sense. i don't know if anyone else will catch and hyperfocus on this the way i have, but there was something so different about this book that made it stand out among her other two releases, despite being a similar premise. i hope this doesn't find you is academic rivals to lovers done in absolute perfection, and dare i say executed even better than if you could see the sun? like this, this was academic rivals to lovers. this was academic enemies to lovers. this was perfect. this was everything. god.
now, with all of my little formalities about the writing style and the plot and tropes out of the way... i can finally talk about sadie and julis. the roman empire. my roman empire. the chemistry between these two was absolutely unbelievable, even when they were chucking every name in the book at each other. they are easily my favorite ann liang characters. no competition, and you know that that is a hard feat considering how much i adored eliza.
sadie wen. the definition of people pleaser. the definition of "you're so mature for your age; thank you, i was forced to grow up too fast." sadie wen is, without a doubt, my favorite book character of all time. putting julius and the whole romance aside, there are so many parts to her; she's so complex, and there's a reason given for every single action she takes. for every bit of her personality. she's, for lack of a better word, traumatized, shouldering the responsibility of everyone around her, and quite frankly... she had every right to snap. she had every right to write those emails, god knows i would have had i been in her shoes. she's been shouldering every burden imaginable since she was a child, and it shocks me, genuinely, how ann created such a gutwrenching character in what's supposed to be a lighthearted ya romance. i adore sadie wen. she will own a piece of my heart, my brain, and my soul, because she is me, i am her, and she is by far the greatest character ever written by ann liang.
"if not, then let me establish for now and forever that you will never be second. you will never be inadequate. you will never be anything but good."
julius gong. where do i even start with julius? i think one thing i really appreciated in this book, as opposed to iycsts, was the fact that julius was actually sadie's rival. although i love henry... i appreciated an "enemies to lovers" style book where they're actually enemies (or academic rivals, in this case) and it isn't just one sided. and god, even though we never got to see inside of his brain (i would kill for a julius pov.) i did love seeing him slowly fall for sadie, even though she never realized it. once again... ann liang has set a new standard for men. i mean it. i adore julius gong. he is the boy of all boys.
anyway, i don't want to end up word vomiting a review because i'm desperate to get my thoughts down, so i'll wrap it up here. i wasn't prepared for the way this book would make me cry. i wasn't prepared for this to be anything more than a silly romcom, but ann once again knocked it out of the fucking park, and delivered what will likely be my favorite read of the year. this book is absolutely stellar. and i cannot scream it from the rooftops enough just how much i adored it.
now, if you'll excuse me... it's time to open my inbox, and go read those preorder campaign emails for some more emotional damage.
"all of which is to say i really hope this finds you. and i hope you find me too."
[pre-release] if ann liang is writing a gut wrenching ya romcom you best believe i will be seated for it
[release day!] she's waiting on my doorstep right now. cannot wait to get home and eat her up!
— five beautiful stars.
this is it. this is the book that solidifies ann liang as my favorite author, maybe ever.
i wanted to be fun and silly and format this like an email, but this book emotionally wrecked me so much that i don't physically think i can. i would be lying if i said to you that this wasn't everything i had hoped it would be and more. i would be lying if i said i wasn't already one hundred and ten percent sure of what my rating would be even before i had opened the book.
however, i would also be lying to you if i said i expected this book to absolutely shatter me the way it did. i hope this doesn't find you is so much more than just a silly little romance book, and the way that there is so much tucked into the pages of this book... i genuinely don't have the right words to describe how much i adored this book from start to finish.
let me start off by saying that this is, without a doubt, ann liang's best book. and when i say without a doubt, i mean without a doubt. she has knocked down every expectation set by her previous two books, which is an insane feat considering how amazing if you could see the sun and this time it's real are. in only three hundred pages, ann solidifies her storytelling skills, and makes you feel everything. you can tell there's been a definite step-up in her writing, because while the style hasn't changed, the impact of her words has, if that makes sense. i don't know if anyone else will catch and hyperfocus on this the way i have, but there was something so different about this book that made it stand out among her other two releases, despite being a similar premise. i hope this doesn't find you is academic rivals to lovers done in absolute perfection, and dare i say executed even better than if you could see the sun? like this, this was academic rivals to lovers. this was academic enemies to lovers. this was perfect. this was everything. god.
now, with all of my little formalities about the writing style and the plot and tropes out of the way... i can finally talk about sadie and julis. the roman empire. my roman empire. the chemistry between these two was absolutely unbelievable, even when they were chucking every name in the book at each other. they are easily my favorite ann liang characters. no competition, and you know that that is a hard feat considering how much i adored eliza.
sadie wen. the definition of people pleaser. the definition of "you're so mature for your age; thank you, i was forced to grow up too fast." sadie wen is, without a doubt, my favorite book character of all time. putting julius and the whole romance aside, there are so many parts to her; she's so complex, and there's a reason given for every single action she takes. for every bit of her personality. she's, for lack of a better word, traumatized, shouldering the responsibility of everyone around her, and quite frankly... she had every right to snap. she had every right to write those emails, god knows i would have had i been in her shoes. she's been shouldering every burden imaginable since she was a child, and it shocks me, genuinely, how ann created such a gutwrenching character in what's supposed to be a lighthearted ya romance. i adore sadie wen. she will own a piece of my heart, my brain, and my soul, because she is me, i am her, and she is by far the greatest character ever written by ann liang.
"if not, then let me establish for now and forever that you will never be second. you will never be inadequate. you will never be anything but good."
julius gong. where do i even start with julius? i think one thing i really appreciated in this book, as opposed to iycsts, was the fact that julius was actually sadie's rival. although i love henry... i appreciated an "enemies to lovers" style book where they're actually enemies (or academic rivals, in this case) and it isn't just one sided. and god, even though we never got to see inside of his brain (i would kill for a julius pov.) i did love seeing him slowly fall for sadie, even though she never realized it.
Spoiler
fuck, he literally punched someone for calling her a bitch, even though he was angry at her! god! he also won a race for her because she was overworking herself, and he gave her the medal! and he helped her clean after a party she regretted throwing! and! and! and!anyway, i don't want to end up word vomiting a review because i'm desperate to get my thoughts down, so i'll wrap it up here. i wasn't prepared for the way this book would make me cry. i wasn't prepared for this to be anything more than a silly romcom, but ann once again knocked it out of the fucking park, and delivered what will likely be my favorite read of the year. this book is absolutely stellar. and i cannot scream it from the rooftops enough just how much i adored it.
now, if you'll excuse me... it's time to open my inbox, and go read those preorder campaign emails for some more emotional damage.
"all of which is to say i really hope this finds you. and i hope you find me too."
[pre-release] if ann liang is writing a gut wrenching ya romcom you best believe i will be seated for it
[release day!] she's waiting on my doorstep right now. cannot wait to get home and eat her up!