Sarah Meuleman

Zie mij graag. Sarah Meuleman.

Een tijdje geleden won ik De vondeling, het vorige boek van Sarah. Blij dat ik dat gewonnen heb want het is een boek dat ik uit mijzelf niet zou kiezen maar dat ik verslavend goed vond. Ik was dan ook enthousiast en nieuwsgierig naar Meulemans nieuwe boek: Zie mij graag.

Dat speelt zich grotendeels af in het mooie Damme, waar wij jaarlijks het Stadsfestival bezoeken, ik ken het daar dus een beetje en dat maakt de leeservaring extra rijk. Als persoon met een blog en een Instagramaccount waarop ik graag dingen die ik fijn vind aanprijs kan je me misschien ook een mini influencer noemen.

Wel, Lieve, de hoofdpersoon in Zie mij graag is een mega influencer; met meer dan 300k volgers, ook dat gegeven boeide me dus enorm. Net als de onderwerpen: moeilijke familierelaties, schuld en schaamte, je proberen losmaken van je verleden, de waarheid willen onthullen, vergeving, jezelf proberen beschermen, pijn doen,… Daarnaast leest het boek als een spannende thriller en het zoeken naar de waarheid maakt het tot een spannende detective. De familieproblematieken geven het verhaal een psychologische laag en het hele influencer-deel zorgt voor een actuele, schappelijk relevante spiegel.

Meuleman schreef een boek dat je op een toffe manier aan je stoel gekluisterd houdt, het leest vlot, je vliegt er zo doorheen. Wat ik minder goed vond is het einde. Maar dat ligt aan mij: ik behoor tot het kamp dat het einde van The sixth sense en Fight Club ook niet zo goed vond.… (mere)

In this coming-of-age tale, after several years in New York City and with an uber-successful career as a fashion magazine columnist, Hannah decides she wants to write something more meaningful and abruptly quits her job. She’s determined to write about three authors . . . Agatha Christie, Barbara Newhall Follett, and Virginia Woolf . . . all of whom mysteriously disappeared after achieving success in their writing careers. Could Hannah’s obsession with these women have anything to do with her long-lost childhood friend, Sophie?

The convoluted narrative, divided between the present and the late 1990s when best friends Hannah and Sophie were growing up in a small town in Belgium, incorporates chapters devoted to the three women authors; this purports to be portions of the book Hannah is supposedly writing.

Unlikable characters who seem determined to embrace every unflattering, entitled attitude possible populate this depressing tale. Present-day Hannah is so self-absorbed and so busy feeling sorry for herself that, early in the narrative, the character becomes nothing but annoying. She falls into things like a leaf in the wind, apparently with no thought or reason. She picks up random guys, becomes a drug user late in the tale [with absolutely no predilection toward this sort of behavior throughout most of the story] . . . her “story” feels like nothing more than random acts haphazardly tossed together, offering no cohesiveness for the reader. The earlier story of the girls’ school days in Belgium is less random, but it, too, is discombobulated and suffers from both disconnectedness and unresolved plot points.

There’s a “twist” near the end of the book that’s relatively easy to predict early on, but the late-in-the-tale appearance of the ghost makes it clear to the reader long before the revelation itself. Overall, this is a grim, dark read certain to leave readers disheartened. Don’t bother.… (mere)

Find Me Gone from Sarah Meuleman is a suspense novel that grabs your interest early but doesn't rush along with it. The time invested, however, is well worth it. So if you're tempted to stop because it is slower than you normally like, keep going and make it more about the details than a straight line plot.

The hints about what might be called the surprise are evident throughout the book but most only become obvious after the fact. Reflecting on the book after finishing actually increased my overall enjoyment. I often reread books (maybe 30-40 of my 175-200 books a year are rereads) and while this is not a genre I often reread I may make an exception here. Not so much for any "deeper" insights, though those may well come, but more to read the details with a knowledge of the resolution. Kinda like re-watching Sixth Sense for the clues and hints rather than the plot.

I did enjoy the way the research into the writers worked along with Hannah's psychological journey. In imaging scenes from those writers' lives she would give them a phrase that she would then say in her real life, making a very interesting parallel.

I found myself reading the first half or so of the book fairly slowly, so much so that I completed 4 other books during that time. But during those several days I often thought about what was happening and what I thought it all meant. So for a reader who wants a fast-paced event-leading-to-event type of book this will frustrate you a bit in the beginning. Again, I suggest sticking with it because the last part of the book moves faster and brings many fuzzy ideas into focus very well. I will say that if you don't read close enough to catch the literary parallel then perhaps this isn't for you, part of the fun is in the detail and if you skim details strictly for a story line then maybe not for you.

In writing this I have actually reconsidered my rating and moved it up, it has stuck with me more than I had even realized.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via LibraryThing Early Reviewers.… (mere)