Reviews with content warning for Violence - If You Could See the Sun

Received a copy from Harlequin Aus.
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I thought from the blurb this was a little interesting and would be a fun quick read. Life drama with some fantasy elements thrown in. A little like With this Kiss, I guess?

And in most respects it was, quick yes, fun? Funny is probably the better word, as it went deep and dark and fast paced more than I expected but had laugh out loud moments. The main character Alice did start to grate my nerves but after finishing it, I wouldn't have it any other way. Replace her with a perfect character and it would not have had the same effect. She needed to be an imperfect teenager who still acted rashly from time to time. If you're interested in class power dynamics or even slight racism intentional or unintentional and how it makes us feel this one had it all.

I don't want to give plot lines away, or secrets within secrets out... So I'll say if you liked adult books With this Kiss, or In Five Years, it's similar to them in terms of contemporary fiction with fantastical or supernatural elements. Just a bit less romance. In terms of YA, perhaps if you enjoyed The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling this would be a good one to pick up.

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chrisljm's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

need a henry in my life

so many things are left unanswered, like why anna became invisible and why it just conveniently stopped? also unclear why her aunt was so cryptic. it was made to sound like a plot point but at the end of the day it meant nothing.

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janinesmp3's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

cried through the last chapter lol. i related to this book in so many ways, from being a scholarship student since high school, feeling indebted to my parents, being grateful for my english teacher who's connected me with opportunities, feeling the need to be recognized as a teenager, creating a reputation in school, and more... reading some of the lines felt like reading stuff i'd thought to myself years ago. i just want to give alice a hug.

oh and how can i forgot how well-written the academic rivals-to-lovers storyline is? henry li stole my heart the moment i found out he knew how to create apps 😅

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readingthroughinfinity's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Thanks to Harper360 for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Dramatic and compelling, this is a speculative novel that follows Alice Sun as she discovers an unexpected ability to turn invisible and decides to use it to pay for her expensive school fees. Alice and Henry's rivals-to-friends relationship was one of my favourite aspects of the novel and their budding romance was sweet, though I would have also been happy if they remained platonic friends because this seemed like a more interesting and dynamic aspect of their relationship than the romance to me. This book spends a lot of time reflecting on the classism and toxic social hierarchies that can exist within fee-paying schools and does a good job of critiquing the entitlement and prejudice of the wealthy and powerful.

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nadiaherondale's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Jesus I wish I knew were to start the praise for this book but I guess it took over my heart and head so much I don't even know how to think anymore.
Alice's struggles, everything felt so real, so relatable. How power and need corrupt you.
One of my favorite reads of the year and probably forever

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chichisode's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

this is one of the most unique YA books i have read. i loved it. i was intrigued by dialogue snippets on instagram and i just had to read it. a correct decision, an amazing decision. i loved the setting, how different their school is from the environment that alice moves in whenever she's not IN school. i fell in love with all the characters, i feel interested in and intrigued by them which makes me wish the book was longer because i wanted to know all of them. it's one of the greatest and most frustrating feelings in the world. i think what makes a book a good read is when you finish it and you ask, "is there more of this?" i wish alice's relationships with her peers were explored more but it was understandable considering her character. and i really get her, i get her more than i do henry. i loved the dialogue, the casual references, the writing style. the characters felt like they could be actual students from an elite international school, they were on page behaving like actual teenagers.

the specific detail i appreciated in the way alice was written was her obsession and guilt about her mother's hands. i just loved how it was a recurring thing for her because the incident that caused it was one of the clear memories she had from america (she does mention that america isn't all that clear to her, that they're flashes so i assumed this)

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skudiklier's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

I absolutely could not put this book down.

This is the best combination of so many types of genres and stories; it's got supernatural abilities, and romance, and class struggles, and heists, and so much heart. It's such a page turner that I read almost the entire thing today--I just needed to find out what happened.

This is such an amazing YA debut and I can't wait to read Ann Liang's future work. Thank you to Netgalley and Inkyard Press for the chance to read and review this ARC.

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