A review by chaptersofchase
Notes on Your Sudden Disappearance by Alison Espach

emotional slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Thank you, Henry Holt, for the gifted book! {partner}

Genre: Fiction
Trope: Coming-of-Age
Format: 📖
Pub Date: 5.17.2022
Star Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆

"All of a sudden, you want an answer for every question you never thought to ask them."

What a beautiful coming-of-age story!

There was something so cathartic about reading this book. It was filled with sadness, loss, and grief, but it was also full of everything that a teenager growing up in the 90s would experience. It took me back to my childhood, and I saw a lot of myself in Sally and Kathy.

While the story had a slower beginning, it really fit with the story's tone. Eventually, I was drawn in and couldn't put the book down. I felt like the entire novel was one long letter to Kathy after her death. You know that Kathy dies, but you aren't told how. Then slowly, in a countdown that only the reader is aware of, you wait for the inevitable moment when you know that no one will be the same again.

Alison Espach did a spectacular job of showing how grief can impact a family - it's a reminder that there is no right or wrong way to mourn the death of someone. In one part, Sally talks about not wanting to leave the funeral home because that's where Kathy is, and I related so much to this feeling. You don't want to just leave them there, alone. The book was full of several moments just like this, and although they were tough to read, they gave me a deeper connection to the characters.

📝 Felt like a letter written to her sister
🥺 Intimate look at grief within a family
👧🏽 Very relatable to growing up in the 90s

❌ - attempted suicide

I couldn't get enough of Espach's writing and how she could articulate so many emotions in such vivid detail. I felt like I was brought in on the most intimate and delicate moments of someone's life.

And the ending? Well, that was absolutely perfect.

Make sure you add this to your reading list when it publishes on May 17th!





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