Cait’s Review of “I Hope This Doesn’t Find You” by Ann Liang

By: Cait Marie

Blurb

Snarky and romantic, I Hope This Doesn’t Find You is Never Have I Ever meets To All the Boys 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

I was super excited to see another Ann Liang book pop up on Everand. I started the audiobook immediately (it released in 2024, so I don’t know how I missed it), and I’m so glad I stumbled across it. It was so, so good!

This book reminded me why I love YA romance still, even as an adult. There was a lot of angst, obviously, but it was also just so… light and feel-good. Every once in a while, I’ll read a book or watch a movie that gives me this tingly, butterflies-in-my-stomach feeling. It’s extremely rare and has only happened a few times in my life, but this book managed to do it several times.

Rivals to lovers is one of my favorite tropes, especially in an academic setting. It’s so fun, and the build up in tension is fantastic. I Hope This Doesn’t Find You really hit the mark there. It is very obvious early on that Julius has feelings for Sadie, but she doesn’t see it, which does get a little frustrating but in a good way.

The only complaint I have is that it was a super slow burn. I don’t want to spoil things, but because of this, the ending felt rushed. But honestly, that’s just me wanting more of these two. That being said, that does also mean the tension built longer. I felt like that meme saying, “now kiss,” over and over in my head.

If you like YA romance, definitely check this one out. Yes, it’s very predictable, but it’s also adorable. And if you’re anything like me, if you’re a vibe reader, this is a good one. I really enjoyed it and couldn’t stop reading (aka listening).