this was a boring and annoying story. i think the marketing on this could be better? it's sold as a mystery and honestly it's mostly about two people struggling with guilt. it was entirely too long and lacked a plot.

Billy Barnes is swoon worthy and young Sally Holt loves listening to her older sister Kathy talk about him. Their fascination and secret devotion to Billy is a sweet and innocent part of their bond. As Sally prepares for eighth grade, Kathy begins dating Billy; a calm but memorable summer with long afternoons poolside ensues… until the morning Billy speeds down Main Street and slams into a tree to miss a deer. Billy is injured, Sally walks away unscathed, but Kathy dies instantly
The book spans fifteen years as Sally tells the story of before, during, and after Kathy’s death. She not only addresses what she goes through, but what her parents and Billy experience as well. This is a book that looks at sisterhood, love, family, how the loss of someone affects your entire life, how sharing a bond/experience with someone brings you closer, loss, grief, and moving on.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an e-arc of this novel.*

An intimate story of two sisters who were very close. Kathy is the older sister and Sally idolizes her. The things they talk about and do are pretty ordinary. Their family seems fairly happy. Kathy has fallen in love for the first time with Billy Barnes. Sally watches him and has a crush on him. Sally assumes that life will stay like this and she will always have her sister to depend on and love. Then suddenly that is over. Billy, Kathy, and Sally go out for a drive. There is a terrible accident and in an instant Kathy dies. Life changes forever.

The book is written to Kathy. Sally holds Kathy throughout everything, her death and reliving it and then after Kathy is really gone. Sally still always has Kathy beside her. A very poignant look at love, grief, and how trauma changes someone. Sally hadn’t ever become herself yet when this occurs. She must navigate every choice and decision through the lens on her sister’s thoughts. She is supposed to be ok again, but is not, doesn’t have a sense of what to do or say. The only person she can speak honestly with is Billy. Yet, Billy is tied as tight as rope to Kathy, and she must tug her along even with this. Is it possible to have real feeling for someone under these circumstances? Is love possible or is this just a person to hold onto to keep Kathy extra close? An incredible examination of all of this and how her family changes while Sally is trying to figure out how to live without her sister. Heart aching look at love and loss. Very well written and different then I expected, I felt very taken in by Sally and almost as if I was invading on her personal space with Kathy. Definitely Recommend this book.

I read this book with both the book and the Audio 🎧. This worked very well together. I liked reading many of the passages, but the narrator, Jesse Volinsky’s reading made the connection with Kathy seem that much more real. It was done well and added to the story.

Thank you NetGalley, Alison Espach, and Macmillan Audio for a copy of this book. I am glad I had the chance to read a review it.

Went in blind and this was not at all what I was expecting! Looking at the title I was thinking thriller, but definitely coming of age story. Half of this story is told by from the POV of Sally as a young girl, and her stages of grief as she grows into an adult. Grief is something that stays with you, and Sally is very lonely without her sister. Her entire world came crashing down around her and she struggled to find her way in life. As she grows older she continues to run into her sister’s boyfriend, Billy, and he seems to be the only one who understands her.

This was an emotional ride. In the beginning I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it, but it didn’t turn dark like I was expecting. Sally uses humor and sarcasm to cover up what she is feeling. I loved how the author showed Sally’s stages of grief and growth, and I thought the narrator was perfect for Sally’s personality!

Thank you @netgalley and @macmillan.audio for this audioARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an audio copy to listen to in exchange for an honest review.

What happens when the darling of the family is no longer there? How does the family keep living? This novel explores these questions through Sally, a teenage girl as she lives her life after her older sister Kathy is no longer there. Well written and intriguing - very hard to put down!

"Notes" is okay, not great. I love the premise, but the plot (written in second person) was too slow-moving for me. The protagonist is writing to her dead sister, Kathy, explaining life events before, during and after her death. There are a few love interests. So it felt part mystery, part romance. Hard to pinpoint.

The narration was ok. Thanks to Macmillan for an advanced listener copy via Netgalley.

Thanks NetGalley and
Macmillan Audio for an adcanced copy.

A few notes....

First the title. I would have rather it been "Notes on your sudden death" to say disappearance suggest some mystery. There isn't any.

Second...the chapters. There were not clear beginning and ends to the chapters. Very confusing when listening to the audiobook.

Third...the ending really? That was a horrible ending.

Would I read a second book if it came out? Maybe. Will I do it happily? No. This book was a mission to get through. I like the reflective part but some of it just seemed too much? Too long. Too drawn out.

Get ready for a depressing deep dive into the lives of people who lose a daughter, a sister, a girlfriend, and friend. This tragedy is told through the eyes of Sally, who is 13 when her sister, Kathy dies. The emotional rollercoaster Sally goes through as she describes her pain and how her parents and Kathy's boyfriend deal with their pain is palpable. It's so real and heartbreaking. Books about a teenager's death certainly aren't for everyone, however, if you are the kind of person who like emotionally draining stories about real life scenarios, then this is one you do not want to miss. The audio narration is exactly how you would think Sally sounds.May 2022 Pub Date

This was a perfect mix of a coming of age story intertwined with grief, relationships and trauma. I devoured this book and at first I was hesitant at how much this character "Billy" was being included, but soon it all came together. It felt like a character study of the main character and her family, especially her sister, Kathy. The format of the book is the main character speaking to her sister and including her into her life even after her sister has passed.

I was so engrossed in the characters' lives and thought that they were all portrayed as imperfectly perfect. It was real, raw and emotional and didn't hold back. I'm typially someone who gravitates towards plot-centered books, but I couldn't rave about this book more and it did a character driven story incredibly well.

I really, really enjoyed this beautiful book that captures one family's - in fact, one sister's - experience of grief. Sally and Kathy are sisters and complicated friends, and the summer before Sally starts eighth grade is normal and fun. She and Kathy hang out by the pool and obsess over Billy Barnes, basketball star and heartthrob who Kathy has a massive crush on. By the end of the summer, Kathy and Billy are dating, and their relationship throughout both of their senior years is stable and fun. But not long into the school year, Billy is driving Sally to school when he sees a deer on the road and swerves to hit a tree, instantly killing Kathy. Sally, Billy, and Kathy's parents are, as you can imagine, utterly distraught.

The book is narrated from Sally's perspective, before, during, and after her big sister Kathy's death. It spans 15+ years, reflecting on how grief morphs and changes and stays with you for a very long time - it never really goes away. Immediately after the accident, Sally and Billy become friends, chatting on line and spending hours at night talking on the phone. Somehow, they both understand each other better than anyone, and develop a close platonic relationship (against Sally's parents' wishes, who despise Billy).

The book is beautifully written, and Sally's character development over time is so well done. She feels like a real person, and even those who haven't experienced the death of a close family member at a young age will be able to put themselves in Sally's shoes and empathize with her complicated loss. The secondary but important characters of Sally's mom, Sally's dad, and Billy are similarly complex and fleshed out, each of them experiencing and internalizing this grief in a different way.

I've seen this recommended for fans of Ask Again, Yes, We Are the Brennans, The Dutch House - I think those are all perfect comparisons. It's a beautiful story about coming of age, family, grief, loss, and growth. Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the audio ARC via Netgalley.

This book is really interesting and unique. That said, I don't think it will be for everyone. Although the title makes it sound like a mystery or thriller, it's much more a contemplation of grief and the love between sisters. Another notable thing is that use of second-person narration. I don't think I've ever read a book that uses that writing technique before. It takes a little getting used to. The audiobook narration was very well done and really made the narrative come to life.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and the author for the gifted ALC in exchange for my honest feedback.

This book was an interesting reflection on grief, and how a loss can impact you across the years, told through the eyes of our narrator, who is a young teenager at the time of the loss of her sister. It was interesting and heartbreaking to see how the loss rippled through Sally's life and her choices, as well as the way it impacted her parents and the friends who knew and loved her sister. I actually could have read even more if it focused on just that - but the fixation that Sally had on her sister's boyfriend (who was driving at the time of the accident that caused her death) got a bit tiring. I understood how you could feel connected to someone who you had always admired and were then connected to in such a terrible way, but the fact that the book focused so much on the romance took away from other more interesting storylines. I did enjoy the audiobook reader and the book in general, but it left me wanting a bit more substance.

Ok so I hear the word disappearance and I apparently immediately think ‘Thriller” which is not what this is. No knock on this novel for me not understanding the assignment.

The book is instead more a character study of the relationship between our main character as she talks about and ‘to’ her sister who seems to have gone through an event unexplained until the middle of the novel.

I really enjoyed the format and style of this book but I think it won’t be for everyone. The story is addressed to ‘you,’ the missing sister. I know that can be a format that some people do not like but I found the writing itself, story, and character work more than made up for the odd format.

This was a slow burn story told over such a long period of years that I sometimes struggled with the jumps of time. There was some drag over the middle but I never felt like putting it down. The book wasn’t plot driven at all, and just followed the characters' lives with the focus and endgame of the story being fairly unclear until the very end to me. This could have been a problem for a plot focused reader like myself but I very much enjoyed the ride and writing I was on and felt completely enmeshed in the character’s lives and curious to see what happens.

I would have liked to have gotten to know Billy a little more but I kind of liked the use of him as a childhood fantasy, too hard to really know even years later. Sally was likable as our main character. She felt very real to me.

Overall, really enjoyed this one despite it not being at all what I thought it was and something I probably wouldn’t have thought I would like. This was narrated by Jesse Vilinksy who did such a wonderful job that maybe she is why I liked something so out of my wheelhouse!

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for a copy of this audiobook!

A wonderful coming-of-age story with a fabulous narration by Jesse Vilinsky.

Told from the perspective of a now older Sally Holt, she reflects back on her life before, during, and after her sister's death. Sally's voice was a beautiful balance of both grief and humor that made this book hard to put down. I truly felt what the character was feeling. I felt her trauma, heartbreak, anxiety, and love.

Highly recommend this read.


Thank you NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for the copy of Notes On Your Sudden Disappearance.

Based on the cover and the title, I was expecting a mystery or a thriller. Instead it was a book about grief. Sally, the little sister idolizes her older sister Kathy. The book takes you on the journey of growing up with the sisters and the death of Kathy. I'm not a big fan of books on grief and the aftermath of the loss of someone. This was not a book for me.

This story is essentially a reflection on grief and the burden it leads one to carry throughout life. While the plot isn't necessarily one that's unique, I don't think there is enough fiction writing out there for one to relate to in regards to sudden loss at a young age. How do you cope? How do you move forward, and "live like they would have wanted?"

Sally loses her sister at a very young age, due to her sister's boyfriend. The family excommunicates her boyfriend, but Sally never feels the closure she seeks from him. They begin to talk more and Sally gets to know her outside of "my sister's boyfriend". Even into adulthood, Sally still speaks to her sister. Somewhere along the way she realizes that she probably always will.

I think I enjoyed this novel even more because I listened to it. Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

While this book was NOT for me—it could be for someone else. This is not a mystery or a thriller and I think I went into this book misinformed. It felt very long with nothing really happening after the death of Sally’s sister.

I was rooting for Kathy—she had a great, dry sense of humor and lived her references to the 80s and 90s.

I do believe this story portrays a family grieving very well.

Notes on Your Sudden Disappearance

3.75 stars rounded up to 4 . This book centers on the loss of a loved one and told by the younger sister Sally who happens to have a crush on her deceased sisters boyfriend. Not much of a plot so much as a journey of the characters as they deal with love, loss, grief, resentment, and forgiveness. I felt Sally’s pain and found myself just wanting her to be heard and listened to.

The story is somewhat of a slow burn as Sally reflects on her favorite memories of her sister and has a dual timeline of how she and her family are coping in present day. I loved connecting with these characters and feeling like I wish I could be their friend through it all. Sally had such an authentic tone and you could feel the sibling connection she felt and how she looked up to her older sister in many ways. I loved loved loved all the 80’s and 90’s references too!!

Thank you @netgalley and @henryholtbooks for this advanced copy! Pub date 5/12/22!!

Pros: This is a well-written, quiet examination of a family’s grief following the death of their older sister/daughter told from the point of view of the younger sister. The author did a fantastic job capturing the voice of the younger sister as a preteen, teenager, and 20-something.

Cons: This book was not for me in the same way that Sally Rooney’s books are not for me. That being said, I think readers who love Sally Rooney books will enjoy this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, Henry Holt & Company, and MacMillan Audio for the opportunity to read this book.

Notes on Your Sudden Disappearance by Alison Espach
General Fiction
Audiobook
Pub Date: May 17, 2022

This is a coming of age story turned into a unconventional love story.
The story starts by introducing us to Sally and her older sister Kathy. Sally is the younger sister who adores her older sister and everything she does. Kathy is in love with a boy named Billy and is all she starts talking about with Sally, so they both become obsessed with him.
This book is over a 15 year timeline and is Sally’s story before, during and after Kathy’s death. You are taken along with Sally and her thoughts through her tough loss of her sister. We see how her parents handle or don’t handle the loss, and what this does to everyone. We see Sally and Billy’s relationship through the loss of their connecting part.
This is a sad book but you continue to root for Sally and her family. Sally has a very dry and witty personality that made me laugh out loud at times. This book could be very slow at times but I was always coming back to it waiting to hear the story continue. I do recommend if you like books about real life issues, and have dealt with the loss of loved one.

Thank you Netgalley, Alison Espach, Jesse Vilinsky, and MacMillan Audio for the Audiobook eARC.