Notes on Your Sudden Disappearance: A Novel

3.5

**Named a Best Book of the Year by NPR and The Chicago Tribune** “Heartbreaking and funny, often in the same sentence—a deeply felt, finely wrought, and highly satisfying novel. Alison Espach has created a family whose every sorrow, joy, and idiosyncrasy is utterly, vibrantly real.”—Claire Lombardo, New York Times bestselling author For most of her life, Sally Holt has been baffled by her older sister Kathy, who seems to have all the answers about life, love, and the enigmatic Billy Barnes, a rising senior and local basketball star who works at the town pool concession stand. The sisters have long been captivated by Billy, who caught their attention when he jumped off the roof in elementary school. However, it’s not until the summer before Sally starts eighth grade that Billy begins to show interest in them. As the sisters’ shared fascination with Billy becomes one of their last common bonds, Sally watches with a mix of confusion and excitement as Kathy falls deeply in love with him—until a tragedy forever links Sally’s life to Billy’s. Set in the early nineties and spanning nearly two decades of intertwined destinies and missed opportunities, *Notes on Your Sudden Disappearance* is a poignant love story about two broken people inexplicably drawn together, and a sharply insightful coming-of-age tale filled with unexpected moments of joy.

This is not my kind of book. Coming of age stories are usually too dramatic for me and this was no exception. Still it was an interesting deep dive into grief and it's lending to desire for connection and love.