In Emma Gannon’s endorsement of I Hope This Finds You Well, she described it as “The Office but for burnt-out millennials” and honestly, I was sold on this alone. I Hope This Finds You Well is a darkly funny, captivating novel set in the corporate office of ‘Supershops’. The novel follows Jolene who purposely keeps her distance from her colleagues to the point that she does little to acknowledge them and maintains an outsider status. However, following a major IT screw-up, Jolene gains access to her colleagues’ private emails and messages which reveals exactly what they think of her. When the threat of layoffs across the company emerges, Jolene takes advantage of this access to secure her role.
I Hope This Finds You Well is exactly the kind of quirky, comedic book that I love. The characters truly burst from the page, and Sue not only does a brilliant job at crafting a very complex, original protagonist but also creates well-rounded, layered secondary characters. Through Jolene’s cynicism, her colleagues are at first portrayed as unlikeable, irritating and in some cases cliquey but after being able to peer deeper into their lives through their email access, Jolene’s compassion for them grows. Each of these characters is dealing with their own personal struggles and feeling insecure about their role with the looming job cuts, which in a way provides Jolene with an avenue to connect. I also can’t understate how much fun it was to follow the day-to-day happenings within this office setting, with Sue creating such funny scenarios – you can’t help but also form an attachment to (most) of the characters.
I think what I loved most about I Hope This Finds You Well was the balance Sue perfects between light and dark, offering a book that is filled with comedy but also grapples with some very serious topics. Jolene’s anxiety is at the forefront of the narrative, at times feeling confronting and uncomfortable in its relatability. We see it in her overthinking every scenario and anticipating the worst, but in trying to control everything, aided by the email access, she puts herself in more dire, risky situations. The story also deals with the ongoing effects of trauma, and the anxiety, depression and addictive behaviours that can spiral from this. Despite not agreeing with all of Jolene’s decisions, I became so attached to her character and was desperate for everything to work out for her, making for an anxiety-inducing read in itself as things inevitably come crashing down.
There’s so much more this book goes into, like the antics of Jolene’s Iranian family, the beautiful friendship she develops with the HR representative, Cliff, and the external pressures of marriage and career progression in your 30s. I loved every moment of this novel and can guarantee it will now be my go-to book recommendation.
Rating: 4.5/5
Review copy kindly gifted by Harper Collins Australia.
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