I Hope This Finds You Well

A novel about the complex lives of office workers....

This ended up being a sweet story, and it was a good reminder that everyone has things going on. I liked Jolene's transformation, and the other characters were memorable. I was also wondering why I'd felt like I read this before, but I feel like it reads a lot like Yellowface, which I really liked! Definitely recommend.

Rating Description:

1.0 - DNF/Despise

1.5 - Almost DNFed and wish I had

2.0 - Almost DNFed but had redeeming qualities/just boring

2.5 - Alright with lots of notes

3.0 - Alright with notes but I'm not raving about it

3.5 - Technically good but I'm not raving about it

4.0 - Love but with notes

4.5 - Love it so much I want to highlight the book but still with notes

5.0 - Love it so much I want to highlight the book and notes are very positive

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At just 7% of this audiobook, I give up. This my 1st DNF here.

I don’t know if it’s because the audiobook narrator did such a good job at making the protagonist as this annoyingly passive, anxiety ridden, exhausting to listen to person. But maaaan, I dislike Jolene. She is the kind of person I avoid because they are an energy vampire. I could feel her sucking the joy out me as I listened to this book.

okay, I see why Dolly wanted to put hands on Jolene!
jk jk jk! but, it is a fun book. it makes you wonder if spending your life at a job you hate is even truly worth it (this is not legal advice). it also makes you question if YOU are also to blame for hating your job? are you the reason why the office sucks, are you the ANTI-HERO?! a good read and a nice tug on your heart. oh? and it's #TEAMCliff4eva

ok, bye!

xoxo,
Dijy

I don't know if I'll do a longer and more detailed review since I'll be on holiday but let me already say : I loved this book so much I absolutely inhaled it ! such a heartfelt office comedy that made me cry several times, the romantic subplot was cute but what really touched my heart was the main character. 

I just loved her awkwardness, selflessness, empathy, petty and unhinged moments, her relationships with her colleagues etc, she was such a complex and compelling character to read about. I also loved the author touched upon her Persian heritage. 

Overall an incredible novel and debut by this author, I'll be looking forward to reading her next books! 

Perfect airplane read that captured my attention for five hours. It started off so relatable for anxious people (and so well written too) and slowly unravels into some unhinged territory - but you can't help sympathizing with the main character too. Mental health is talked about so much but this is another read that can help you FEEL it.

PS love a straight forward romantic story. Love Cliff

A fun workplace dramedy, written in a heartfelt manner from the point of view of the lead, Jolene. I enjoyed reading about the Persian culture too and the pressure to succeed and have a rich life. Cliff the MMC was a cool dude too and loved his nerdiness.

PS. Supershops sounded like a horrendous place to work. No idea if it's real but if you work there, move on.

Really good read, takes a while to get good however. The characters are amazing and very easy to sympathise with. I love the idea that everyone's going through their shit and doing their best. The moral the ending, what it says are great. The only reason it loses a five star from me is that sometimes I found dialogue a bit cringe. Very OTT and odd, it really is quite minor and definitely doesn't stop it from being a must read but also it's there, it's present so watch out for that

Excellent! Every character in the ensemble felt so real and consistent. The plot developed with so many unexpected turns. This is a thoroughly enjoyable, FUNNY and CLEAN read!

I absolutely adored this! Jolene was the perfect main character for this type of book — she did things that made you want to jump into the book and knock some sense into her but you also love her and want to see her grow. 

This book was funny, emotional, heartwarming and an all around stunning read. A very promising debut, I can't wait to read more by Natalie Sue!


Thank you to Harper Collins for providing me with an early review copy of this book. All thoughts are my own. 

I first thought this would be a novel equivalent to the very funny [b:Several People Are Typing 54468020 Several People Are Typing Calvin Kasulke https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1627964160l/54468020.SY75.jpg 85004135] - with the setup of an office worker getting access to everyone's emails and deciding to take advantage of the situation - but it rather turned into a compassioned study of loneliness and anxiety. A good listen.

4.5 - I had an absolute blast diving into this book! Natalie Sue's writing skillfully breathes life into characters with remarkable depth. She effortlessly blends outrageous and humorous workplace conflicts with poignant explorations of complex themes. From grappling with grief and parental expectations to shedding light on issues like child neglect and domestic abuse, this book exceeded all my expectations. And let's not forget the utterly charming romance subplot that had me swooning!

What really stood out to me was how the book delved into the idea that the cutthroat nature of work and the relentless demands of capitalism often blind us to the humanity of our coworkers. It's a poignant commentary on how this system fosters competition at the expense of genuine connection and community.

I was so engrossed in this story that I even brought it along to a concert! It consumed my thoughts and sparked countless discussions with friends. Relatable and engaging, it's a must-read for anyone navigating the corporate world, especially those who struggle to find meaning in the daily grind imposed by society.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me access to this review copy.

Jolene is an anxious misanthrope who gets through her workdays by venting her frustrations at her coworkers through hidden white text rants at the bottom of emails. When she forgets to change the text colour on one, she faces disciplinary action, but an IT screw up that was meant to monitor her emails instead gives her access to the emails of everyone in the company.

This novel hooked me with the premise, but it ended up being a surprisingly sweet and wholesome book with the main takeaway that you never really know what shit people are dealing with and how it informs their behaviour.

As an Iranian British woman, I also really enjoyed seeing the familiar Persian diaspora dynamics whenever Jolene interacted with her family. It's not something I often get to see of my own experience in modern litfic, and it was a nice surprise.

Main downside of this book has been Dolly Parton's Jolene getting stuck in my head since reading it...

ETA 12/24: I enjoyed this more as a re-read, because I already knew when the cringe moments would take place and could focus on the well-constructed characters instead. I had more sympathy for Jolene this time around; given her past trauma and the toxic workplace dynamics of her soul-sucking job, I might have resorted to the same kind of passive aggressiveness that got her in trouble.
*******
I had the unusual experience of being both eager to read and anxious to avoid this debut novel. Natalie Sue creates the type of FMC who is usually right up my alley - introverted, socially anxious, hiding a troubled past - but her morally gray behavior made me so uncomfortable that I could only manage a few chapters at a time.

Jolene Smith is an office drone for a supermarket chain who passive-aggressively adds snarky postscripts to her emails in white font so her coworkers can't read how much she despises them. One day, hungover from her nightly drinking, she forgets to change the font color and is reported by her office nemesis. Jolene's punishment is to endure weekly anti-harassment sessions with Cliff, the nice new HR analyst, and to allow the installation of monitoring software on her computer. But the new software mistakenly gives her administrative status, allowing her to read the entire staff's emails and DMs. Tired of being the office pariah, Jolene vows to use her newfound power to avenge herself by sabotaging her coworkers while elevating her own work.

To her credit, Jolene does try to alert Cliff to the technical glitch, but he misinterprets her concerns, leaving her free rein to feed her worst impulses. Frankly, I had to question Cliff's sanity for being so quickly smitten by a woman basically comprised of 75% vitriol and 25% alcohol. At home, Jolene alternates between drinking heavily and trying to avoid the needy, friendless middle schooler who lives in her apartment building. I know, I know - “hurt people hurt people.”

Jolene's situation is complicated by cultural issues; her overly involved Persian parents and community raise the stakes when her plan inevitably explodes. Her redemption arc humanizes her without completely smoothing over her rough edges. Honestly, the fact that I had such a hard time with Jolene's behavior demonstrates Natalie Sue's skill at creating realistically flawed but relatable characters (and that I spent way too much of my working life sucking up to authority figures).

ARC received by NetGalley in exchange for objective review.