A really interesting book and concept as it is written as if youre experiencing everything yourself. At times it was a bit chaotic but it was still original and I enjoyed it.

This book was so relatable, whether you liked it to not. I feel that everyone can resonate with this in one way or another. The writing and prose were very beautiful, and the book overall was very raw and real. It was lacking in some elements but overall was enjoyable.

DNF 35%

This was not my cup of tea. I didn't mind that it was written in second person, but I thought the cover was very misleading for the dark themes and incredibly unlikeable main character.

People have talked about the plot being slow to start then picking up, but at 35% it was still very slow with a complete lack of any intrigue. The character is full of self-loathing and she mostly just irritated me with her complete lack of empathy and kleptomania (which was super severe).

Would not recommend, not worth the time.

I was intrigued by the idea of this book being in the second person. Unfortunately the style didn't really work for me. I can see how some people find it more immersive, but especially given some of the content of the story it wasn't for me. This is a relatively short but interesting read. This book explores being haunted by emotions, including self loathing and growth.

Not really worth the read, but it was an interesting one.

This has great pacing , It is written well but is shallow. For a YA literary novel it lacked depth and characters. A totally library borrow. That's written well remains a fact

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC in exchange for an honest review. I did not like this book one bit. The premise hooked me at first, but the writing style really bothered me. I could barely get through this one and do not suggest it one bit.

1/5 stars

Have you ever been so fed up with life that you just want to disappear? Well, The protagonist of this novel does. And the protagonist is YOU. This entire book is written in the second person perspective. It was a little uncomfortable for me in the beginning, but as the book progressed, I started loving it. This was the first time for me to read a book written in the second person perspective.

You are tired of your mediocre life in Bondi. You are contemplating your insignificance, and just want to run away. Run away to the world where everything is perfect. But, you can run away from everyone but yourself. One day you will have to face the ghosts of your past. No one can escape it, not even you.

I really liked reading this book. Habituated to reading middle grade and chick-lits, this was pretty out of the box for me. The book started out fine, but it became darker and darker as it progressed. I was screaming inside for every bad decision that the protagonist made, but I understood why she did what she did. Coming to this, I can say the character was very well-developed.

I was a little disappointed by the ending.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book. This is the debut book of a 17 year old author, knowing this, I am very impressed. Will recommend this book to my fellow readers.

You are lost. You cannot seem to know where you are, what you are, and most importantly why you are more than half of the time. You wish you could disappear. Get forgotten. And that is what you will do.

This is simply one of the most intriguing book I have ever read in my entire life. First of all, it was the first time I read a book told in a narration at the second person singular. It was really engrossing and got my attention from the very first page because of it. As a reader, you get sucked into this tale run by a mysterious character that you know so much and so little of at the very same time. It showed that thoughts are so intimate. You can't usually have access to all this information, and yet, here you are reading about a stranger's wish on disappearing from the face of the world. I really liked that concept of the story.

On the other hand, as much as the idea sounds and was brilliant to me, it also played against me. I could not get attached to this narrator. She was plainly despicable to me. Unloveable. I could not support her. This problem is very frequent with me. I won't be able to like the character and my overall appreciation of the story is affected by that. I have to say that as much as she was unloveable, she was also extremely reliable at times. It was refreshing to have a YA main character that is not the "oh so plain girl that makes every boys in a 8 miles radius spin". So I liked that about her.

All in all, the concept is original, the character despicable but relatable. The story is filled with twists and turns and kept surprising me, but the end is quite unmemorable to me. It's the kind of book where the journey is rough, but the memories from it are great. Pick it up to be shocked and brought out of your comfort zone.

The synopsis and the title of the book plays a major role in getting me hooked. I read the first few chapters and it is good :) But it is a bit hard for me to retain my interest.

Had to DNF this one

I was intrigued by the first few chapters and the narration style. Very different from some of the book I have read in the recent past. But then somewhere in the middle I lost interest. I piqued my interest and lost it soon as well. Once I put the book down, I found it very difficult to pick it backup and follow through.

This is something that I really wanted to like and love because it is a ya literary fiction novel but it was lacking character and personality.

If I look at this novel through a more critical lens it had GREAT pacing and beautiful writing but all the beautiful prose wasn't enough for me

The cover and description of this book is definitely what got me hooked. I'm also always open to reading more stories told in second person, as I find them to be extremely unique. This was no exception! It gives such a different experience when you're reading a book, such as this one, where everything that is described is what "you" are going through.

With that being said, although I did enjoy that aspect, I think certain parts of the narrative were a bit underwhelming. The writing was beautiful, however, and I found myself wanting to highlight some of the quotes! Very solid debut.

4/5 stars

What first intrigued me about this book was the cover, but after reading the description I was even more interested. How to Disappear is the unique and beautifully written story of “you.” Told in the second person, this books follows as “you” try to disappear from society and the past. In many ways, this book is about self love, acceptance, and belonging. There are many thought provoking themes present and a couple of darker moments, displaying frank and practically written violence, and some depictions of self harm.

My favorite part about this book was the quotes. I thought the style and flow of writing and the metaphors were beautiful. I found myself highlighting at least one line or paragraph every couple of pages that either resonated deeply with me or was just plain beautiful.

“You want to speak into a loudspeaker and remind everyone that just because happiness is key does not mean there is a treasure chest that has to be unlocked.”

“It is the ultimate itch that you cannot scratch; it is the scarab beetle that resides within the nape of your neck that gnaws at the edge of your brain—self-love.”

It did take a bit of adjusting for me to get used to the second person and get into the story, but overall it was a quick, impactful read. I did find it hard to relate to the main character and the plot dragged at time because of this, but that didn’t bother me too much as the writing made up for it. I was a little disappointed by the ending as I thought it wrapped up too quickly, but I don’t think that detracted significantly from the book.

Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a quick, thought provoking read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me an eARC of this book. All opinions and thoughts expressed are my own. All quotes are taken from the ARC and are subject to change with publication.

I really enjoyed the premise of How to Disappear. It was refreshing and unique. I could picture me doing this and it really helped me visualize the story.

You want a new book to read. You want something different, but aren't sure exactly what. So you search and browse. Everything sounds the same. And then, you stumble upon a title the peaks your interest: How to Disappear by Bruna Gomes. You read the description and wonder if you could actually read a book written in second person point of view. You have never done this before so, you give it a try.

Yes. How to Disappear is written in second person, just like the paragraph above. This is a point of view that is rarely used, in part because it is very difficult to create a sustainable story arc, but also because it is so intimate to the reader. Imagine reading an entire novel where you are told what you think feel and experience. A different part of the reading brain is activated and the connection to the story is very different. It's far from "normal".

The book opens by immersing the reader immediately into the main character's life, which is a total disaster (of her own making). But remember, it's now your life due to the point of view. I'm not going to lie. It's a little uncomfortable, but the story is good enough to keep it from getting too awkward. It also escalates quickly and continues to do so steadily throughout the novel. Many of the turning points are perfectly timed--I'd be just about to give up reading and then a twist was thrown in. Naturally, I couldn't stop reading. I had to find out what happened next.

While I struggled to embrace the reality of some scenes, I think the uniqueness of the point of view helped. I stopped a few times and imagined what this story would be like if written in first or third person. It was then I realized it would be a totally different story. This is how it was meant to be written. So, again, I kept reading.

The ending of the book felt a little anti-climactic. I didn't feel a huge build up to the resolution and the ending didn't entirely make sense to me. Yet, somehow, it was still satisfying. It closed the loop, bringing the story full circle. Interestingly, a lot of questions were left unanswered. I suspect in some ways that may have been a gift from the author, freeing the reader to imagine more on their own after the written word ended. And to me, that's what reading is all about.

So, if you are looking for an interesting and mind bending read, I recommend How to Disappear by Bruna Gomes. It could be a nice change for a beach or poolside read or could lead to great discussion at a book club. It's also not purely young adult, either. I think many adults could relate to the concept of escaping your own "mediocre life". Lean in. Enjoy the ride.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley.

I need to say that the cover attracted me the most, but when I read the synopsis I knew I needed to read the book. The book is unique not only because of the plot but because it is written in second person, as If it was me who is experiencing everything.

The first part was pretty slow, but then the book gets more and more interesting. Although the story and the writing style was interesting, this was not my style of book.

Moreover, I didn't empathise with the protagonist and there were parts which I didn't like ´my´ decisions so I couldn't get completely into the story.

What I do have to highlight is the words that the author wrote and there were a lot of phrases that touched me.

This was definitely a cover pick for me but I gladly stayed for this utterly messed up story. I loved every aspect of the writing style so much, it was fantastic. It read as if I were the main character who was quite difficult to resonate with but I was here for it. Maybe a few things were a bit unrealistic but I found it quite enjoyable regardless and if we think about it why could stuff like this not happen. I really can see this as the next big thing, and to think it is a debut.. The only thing I had problems with is that I just couldn't start liking the main character, but you can't like everyone, that doesn't mean there shouldn't be books about unlikeable people. Also there were so many feelings or sort of lessons to take away from this. I wasn't a huge fan of the ending though, but oh well.
Regardless, this book is a whole mood, I suggest you go for it.

Sometimes second person works and can capture a sense of emotion and immerse you into the narrative, but this was not the case. I found it hard to understand what was happening. This was an interesting read, but ultimately I felt lost in the story. If you're looking for an emotional read and don't mind a bit of confusing text, pick this one up.

How to Disappear is a unique story that shares steps on how to disappear.

"Society can kiss your ass."

"You are both the creator and the creation."

I had no clue what exactly I was going to get when I decided to read this book and wow. How to disappear is told from the actual perspective of you, yes you. We read about how you share through the steps on how to disappear. Don't be fooled by the innocent-looking cover, there were darker themes in this book. Such as self-harm/loathing, dealing with emotions, violence, etc. The themes of self-confidence and love shine through inspiringly. The writing was notable with the way it was in the second person. Though it's part of the reason for my writing (personally I don't think it worked for me but can for many others!), it was written fairly. The plot was a little ehhhh for me, I was partially confused and bored for the first 20% or so of the book. How to disappear picked the intrigue again for the remainder of the book. How to disappear is a light and memorable read.

"Wait, how did she die? You killed her."

"Your brain belongs in an art gallery."
I requested and received an e-ARC of this book via NetGalley. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley.
All opinions and thoughts expressed are mine, I voluntarily reviewed this book.
All quotes/sayings are taken from the ARC and may change once published.
REVIEWED: 3/16/2021
EXPECTED RELEASE DATE: June 9th, 2021

I received a copy of this book through the Amazon Vine program in exchange for an honest review.

I was intrigued by the idea of this book being in the second person. Unfortunately the style didn't really work for me. I can see how some people find it more immersive, but especially given some of the content of the story it wasn't for me. This is a relatively short but interesting read. This book explores being haunted by emotions, including self loathing and growth.

Overall an interesting read.