Description
Unforgettable, snarky and romantic, I Hope This Doesn't Find You is Never Have I Ever meets To All the Boys I've Loved Before if Lara Jean wrote hate emails instead of love letters.
Sadie Wen is perfect on paper - school captain, valedictorian, and a "pleasure to have in class." It's not easy, but she has a trick to keep her model-student smile plastered on her face at all times - she channels all her frustrations into her email drafts. She'd never send them of course - she'd rather die than hurt anyone's feelings - but it's a relief to let loose on her power-hungry English teacher or a freeloading classmate taking credit for Sadie's work.
All her most vehemently worded emails are directed at her infuriating cocaptain, Julius Gong, whose arrogance and competitive streak have irked Sadie since they were kids. "You're attention starved and self-obsessed and unbearably vain . . . I really hope your comb breaks and you run out of whatever expensive hair products you've been using to make your hair appear deceptively soft . . ."
Sadie doesn't have to hold back in her emails, because nobody will ever read them . . . that is, until they're accidentally sent out.
Overnight, Sadie's carefully crafted, conflict-free life is turned upside down. It's her worst nightmare - now everyone at school knows what she really thinks of them, and they're not afraid to tell her what they really think of her either. But amidst the chaos, there's one person growing to appreciate the "real" Sadie - Julius, the only boy she's sworn to hate . . .
Review
Sadie Wen attends Woodvale Academy and is the perfect, driven and determined student. She is a people pleaser, not only at school, but at home - school captain, a straight A student and a great athlete. But what is really lurking below? Why is she like this? Her draft email folder shows her real feelings - not that she would ever send them!
Julius Gong has been her sworn enemy all the way through school. He too is school captain, a perfect student, and a great athlete, and they are always trying to outdo each other.
But then Sadie’s life is turned upside down, and her perfect reputation is in tatters. How did her draft emails, that she wrote as a way of letting her frustrations out, get sent out in the first place? And how is she ever going to recover from this humiliation?
She might have had always thought of Julius as her enemy, but is he really?
There is a real mix of cultures, language and settings played out in this story, as the author, Ann Liang, has mixed in aspects inspired by growing up in Australia and China, but has also added in American language and places as well.
It is a great story about self-perception, wanting to please others to your own detriment, family pressure, friendship, love, trust and broken trust, and the chaos and damage that technology can sometimes bring to our lives. It will be best enjoyed by readers aged 14 and above.
Reviewed by Sam
