I absolutely loved the commentary on class, status, privilege, and opportunity. The choices the main character has to make as a result of poor financial circumstances wonderfully illustrate how merit and intelligence often come second to money.

Really enjoyed, and would definitely recommend!

it's monday, and that means another review from the queue (tbh everyday of the week is fair game for a belated review, but here we are), this time for ann liang's ya novel 'if you could see the sun'. this book got really popular on #bookstagram when it first came out, but unfortunately this was just not my jam.

in short, the book follows alice, a girl from a poorer family on scholarship at an elite boarding school who suddenly finds herself able to turn invisible. seeing an opportunity to make some tuition money, she enlists the help of her classmate to create an app to monetize her new power, doing the dirty work of her classmates for a price. but as the tasks escalate to committing actual crime, alice must decide if continuing with this app is worth the high consequences.

this book overall felt like a rough first draft: the dialogue was very juvenile, and the plot felt very simplistic. none of the characters were particularly compelling, and the rivals-to-lovers romance that the book features left me feeling lukewarm. there was also no explanation for alice's sudden bouts of invisibility, and the reader was meant to just accept it at face value. it all just felt short-sighted, and the book could have used more time to develop its plot and characters.

This book is absolutely wild. Private school drama! Economic inequality! Random superpowers! I only wish the causes, etc. of the last one were better explained, as it seemed like there were some threads left unraveled. However, I haven't read anything quite like this before, and I really enjoyed it.

This book is full of twists a turns, it’s such an engaging and thoroughly entertaining story. The world building, the descriptions, these are just everything and makes the read so much more immersive, fantastic

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This is one of those books that I had to put down and return to when I was in a better mindset for this particular story. Ann Liang has crafted a totally unique and wholly intriguing story that still has some tried and true tropes that make it accessible and familiar as well. I am a sucker for magical realism and it has been wonderful watching the teens I work with connect to this story and seek out more stories that feature magical realism! I am very excited for Ann Liang's future work!

This book has a really interesting premise but for some reason it didn't resonate with me. I had a hard time understanding the main character and her motivations and ultimately did not care about her very much which made the novel difficult to get through.

I was unable to provide review due to time constraints of me starting college. I look forward however to reading this book in the future simply as a fan, not a reviewer.

I had a lot of fun reading this book. I love a good “academic rivals to lovers” - just enough tension! I liked that the book focused primarily on Alice instead of the romance. However, I wish there had been more being invisible hijinks - and I wish there was a clearer resolution to the invisibility thing.

A stunning and heartfelt work. Perfect for those looking for meaningful drama and young adult character growth. Would recommend to young high schoolers seeking to find their place in the world.

I enjoyed this book so, so much. The superpower, the way she uses it, the romance, the setting, the themes...it was all so so good. Can't wait to read everything Ann writes!

4.25* (⅘)

Rep: Chinese cast of characters

‘If You Could See the Sun’ by Ang Liang is a young adult novel about Chinese American Alice Sun. Alice goes to an elite boarding school in Beijing with a partial scholarship. She finds out her parents can no longer afford her tuition, so she is faced with two options; go back to the States or go to a public school in Beijing. She one day has the availability to turn invisible and she uses this availability to her advantage to raise money for her tuition. Alice works with her class rival, Henry, and her availability to cause shenanigans to their classmates and peers.

This book was an action packed, fun and fast paced read. It has an academic rival to lovers storyline. The main character, Alice, is a relatable character to those who are ambitious in academics, I often find myself rooting and feeling for her. The side characters are amazing and bring life to the story.

‘If You Could See the Sun’ is a fun and entertaining read and it is an amazing read.

It was an interesting enough concept but I just couldn't seem to get into it enough to finish. Possibly I might pick this up at a later date to try again.

This was a fast read about a girl, who is trying to make her way in the academic world. Where her Chinese parents are trying hard to provide for her, she uses her abilities to help them, but things get complicated when her business and business partner/frenemy. Readers will fly through this book and wish it was longer.

If You Could See the Sun by Ann Liang follows elite international boarding school student Alice Sun. She’s always felt invisible at school, especially since she is the only scholarship student. Alice’s parents break the news to her that they can no longer afford to pay for her to attend that school. One day, Alice actually starts to turn invisible. She decides to take this opportunity to monetize on her newfound power by discovering secrets. She does this with the help of her academic rival Henry Li. Things quickly escalate when discovering scandals turns to discovering actual crimes. All this goes down as Alice develops growing feelings for her rival.

This book is an utterly unique mix of contemporary fiction and urban fantasy elements. I liked how this book tackled classism, as since Alice was the only student on scholarship, she was treated differently than the others. I liked how Alice and Henry grew close because of this strange situation Alice was facing with invisibility. I think it’s awesome how she decided to monetize it!

Thank you to the publisher, Harlequin Trade Publishing, Inkyard Press and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Alice Sun is a scholarship student at an elite international boarding school in Beijing and despite being one of the top students, has always felt overlooked amongst the wealthy students. One day, she suddenly starts turning invisible, and uncontrollably at that. When her parents tell her they can no longer afford the fees for her private school, Alice sees an opportunity to use her new power to earn some extra money and pay her tuition. It starts off with little things at first, school gossip and scandals that she uncovers anonymously but when the requests on the anonymous app she has set up take a step up to unethical jobs and outright crimes, Alice must decide if this scheme is worth it.

YA contemporary is not a genre I typically pick up, but the synopsis hinted at a rather interesting mix of genres in this one which is why I decided to read it even though magical realism hasn’t worked very well for me in the past. I liked how the main plot started right from page one without too much dallying and the base of the story was neatly established within the first couple of chapters, while introducing the main character and her situation making it clear how high the stakes are for her. This was a fast paced and easy read and I finished it in a single sitting.

Alice was a great protagonist, smart and likeable, and she was very easy to root for and relate to. Alice’s new power of invisibility is not just a superpower but also a metaphor for how she feels, unseen by many of the rich and privileged students at her fancy private school who have no idea how people like her live and struggle in poverty. What I liked best about this book however, was the number of themes and strong messages like classism, poverty and racism that the author managed to integrate into it without losing the relatively lighthearted tone of the story. The romance subplot was kind of an undertone to the story, but unlike other books where this is the case, this actually made the story more likeable and I enjoyed it a lot more because of it.

It would have been nice to find out where Alice’s power came from but to be honest, I wasn’t really expecting that to be delved into. Either way, that aspect was left on a very vague note which made the book feel kind of incomplete. It was barely brought up in the last couple of chapters and there was no information on what happens, if she lost the ability, or learned to control it for example. Once Alice’s actions, to some extent anyway, are revealed, there was a startling lack of consequences for everything she did which didn’t really sit right after everything she did. I also found the mood of the book to be a little disappointing – from the looks of the premise I expected it to be more thrilling.

For a debut novel, this was quite good, if not as deep as I expected it to be given the themes and I liked the writing style as well. Overall, this was a fun read and I would definitely recommend it!

If I wasn't already obsessed with the premise and cover of the book, I've become a die hard fan after reading the book. If You Could See the Sun is written as a mix of most of my favourite aspects- thriller, boarding school setting, girl monetizing her powers, social commentaries and the ultimate favourite, academic rivals to lovers.

Alice Sun is an excellently written protagonist, one whose motives and situations feel real enough and make you root for her instantly. I mean, making money off her strange invisibility powers sounds badass enough. But I loved to get to know the ambitious yet compassionate side to her. It's commendable how the different themes are subtly woven through the story as well as how the classism is portrayed through her POV.

Also can we talk about Henry? Her supposed rival? I just loved their dynamic so so much. Their arguments were so entertaining and seeing their relationship reluctantly blossom was a whole experience. Chanel too, is a great supporting character for Alice!

Cherry on top would be vividly visualised Beijing setting and how Liang managed to capture the struggles of Asian Americans in an academic setting so well.

A very good book on the Chinese experience in Beijing elite schools and just all out amazing! I loved it

This book had more in store than a little invisibility power. Readers learn to not judge others by what you can see on the outside, everyone has something going on internally. A+

This book caught my attention for its premise and I was quickly swept up in Alice's world. The high stakes of being a scholarship student in a prestigious private academy with grades alongside personal and academic ethics was explored so well through her story arc. I only wish this was longer as there were scenes that felt rushed or in place to speed the plot up - the book itself is so much shorter than I expected. However, Alice and Henry have joined the ranks of my favorite couple and I need more of them!!

Alice is an intelligent, driven young woman attending Airington, an elite, and very expensive, private school in Beijing. Students at Airington come from some of the most powerful, influential, and affluent families. Alice, on the other hand, doesn’t come from a wealthy family; in fact, her family can no longer afford the yearly tuition, even with Alice’s scholarship. To make matters worse, Alice, who always felt a little invisible at Airington, begins to actually turn invisible. Soon Alice sees her new ability as a financial opportunity–anonymously uncovering secrets and creating new ones–but one request for her services will make her question just how far she is willing to go and how much of herself she is willing to lose in the process. 

If You Could See the Sun is a good story with, I felt, some important messages and social commentary. There is an honesty to this novel that I found very refreshing. I liked the characters; they are very well developed and likable. I especially liked Alice; she is relatable as it relates to her desire, ambition and determination, as well as her feelings and reactions to the obstacles placed in her way by society. The ending seemed rather perfect. It is one of those endings that resolves the problems yet includes real-life consequences. If You Could See the Sun is a supernatural page-turner that, with its deep messages, is really so much more.