Hey, so this book is just “I hope I never see what your face looks like going / a face, I swear, I could spend my whole life knowing.” It hurts.

It’s I Hope This Doesn’t Find You and To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before—but quieter, more melancholic. It’s letters from an avoidant person who has to face personal ghosts while on a ghosthunting trip with her older sister, Jenna, and her longtime crush, Justin.

Tessa’s messy. She pushes then pulls back. She hides underneath all her grief. She keeps everyone at a distance, despite craving friendship and holding them close, hoping she won’t have to let anyone go. She’s ready to leave at any given moment because she knows that, at one point, someone has to leave—and that it’s going to hurt.

We explore grief and vulnerability in this book. It’s not pretty; it’s not aesthetic. It’s awkward and scary. That's just how it is. There’s romance and friendship. But we end on a hopeful note. Nothing’s wrapped up in a box with a pretty bow, but we see, through Tessa’s relationships and growth, glimmers of hope.

Clare Osongco’s books always find me at the right time. I read this while feeling like a floater friend, finding myself missing my own friends when they’re right there, at the tip of my finger, one message away. I grew up feeling like Tessa, that I could shrink and simply vanish among the crowd, and, like Tessa, it still startles me that I am actually perceived by the people around me. To feel so seen by a book is so heartwarming and special.

Five stars, because suddenly, I, too, am missing everyone.

[there was jollibee mention tho YIPPEEEE hahahahha]

Good luck, babe! You'd have to stop the world just to stop the feeling!