If You Could See the Sun was one of my most anticipated reads of the ENTIRE year. Obviously, when I got lucky enough to get an early copy in the mail, I kind of screamed. Let’s see if it met all of my expectations, shall we?
If You Could See the Sun by Ann Liang Published by Inkyard Press on October 11, 2022
Genres: contemporary, young adult
Format: ARC
Source: Harper360UK
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Alice Sun has always felt invisible at her elite Beijing international boarding school, where she’s the only scholarship student among China’s most rich and influential teens. But then she starts uncontrollably turning invisible—actually invisible. When her parents drop the news that they can no longer afford her tuition, even with the scholarship, Alice hatches a plan to monetize her strange new power—she’ll discover the scandalous secrets her classmates want to know, for a price. But as the tasks escalate from petty scandals to actual crimes, Alice must decide if it’s worth losing her conscience—or even her life.
In this genre-bending YA debut, a Chinese American girl monetizes her strange new invisibility powers by discovering and selling her wealthy classmates’ most scandalous secrets.
I received this book for free from Harper360UK in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
☂️ TRIGGER WARNINGS:
off-page parental abuse, racial microaggressions, racially motivated crime, kidnapping, mild violence, ableism.There are no spoilers in this review.
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I ENJOYED…
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- If You Could See The Sun is one of these stories that captivated me, right from the very beginning. Alice, our main character, is fierce, determined and absolutely endearing. I could deeply relate to her reaching for perfection, to her trying, wanting to be perceived, seen, loved and yet, not so much. I loved her and how she grew as the book went on, learning to speak up for herself, learning that she’s more than just a study machine… and most of it all, learning that she’s just a kid. Still.
- Oh, the setting! I love a good boarding school setting and this one certainly stood out to me. It’s set in an elite international Beijing boarding school and I just LOVED it so much. The setting’s descriptions made me want to know more and it was so interesting, how the author explored the deep constrasts between all the privileged, rich and influencial teens and Alice, the only scholarship student.
- If you enjoy the academic-rivals-to-oh-friends-maybe-more-wait-what kind of trope…. you will ADORE this, I swear. I absolutely fell for the way the relationship was set up, right from the start. The feelings develop slowly, the characters are absolutely endearing and so real with their feelings, sometimes messy, sometimes not-really-getting-it. It’s slow-burned and just, EXCELLENT, every single one of their interactions was gold. I loved it.
- Friendships! I really enjoyed how friendships developed in this story. A little unexpected, at first, but blossoming into such a lovely “I got your back, no matter what” kind of female friendship.
- You all know I love a good contemporary with that little something extra. I’m not sure how to explain this in the best of ways, but… If You Could See the Sun had it. Alice’s invisibility added that little something exciting, unpredictable, a little bit of fantasy I enjoyed and that was perfectly working with this particular story.
OVERALL
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In case my review wasn’t clear enough, I LOVED If You Could See the Sun so much. A unique, captivating, powerful YA contemporary read I’ll recommend forever. I can’t wait to read more from the author!
FINAL RATING : 5 stars!
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Did you read If You Could See The Sun, or do you want to? What’s the last book you read and enjoyed? Let me know in comments!
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Ah as soon as I saw this book I chucked it onto my TBR! Eeep your review has made me more excited to eventually get round to reading it, I mean boarding school vibes? Sign me up, plus a good slow burn with academic rivals to friends to oh something more. Honestly I was drawn to this book from the cover initially, the pretty blues but now I’m happy that my magpie tendency hasn’t led me astray since it sounds like such a fun book!
AHH YAY! I loved this book so, so much and you’re so right, this cover is STUNNING. I can’t wait to hear what you think of it!!
oh wow, your high praises for this book make me want to read it even more!! everything you described about it hits all of my checkboxes for ya contemp ahh. great review and i’m so glad that you found a new favorite with this!
Ahhh yay! I really feel like you’d love this one, hopefully I’m right! <3
i absolutely loved this book!! i have been gone down a wormhole trying to find more books with trope and setting, i absolutely adored henry and alice 💗💗
Ahh so happy you loved it so much, it’s such a gem! <3
I read this book just yesterday, and I absolutely loved it, being myself a top student just like Alice I felt her rage for Henry so justifiable and relatable, cause I always go through that myself, and the message of taking care of your own happiness was brilliant! In the end I loved Henry’s character so much when I came to know him actually, it was just so sweet he was in love with her the whole time!
YAY!!! I’m so, so happy you enjoyed the book so much, definitely one of my favorites! ❤️