Review: The Things We Don’t See

This book by Savannah Brown will always hold a special place in my heart as it was gifted to me by one of my closest friends, who unfortunately resides in Croatia – too far for my heart to handle! I was superglued to this book for all of Sunday, and the pace was perfect for the writing style.

One of my most favourite things about the book was the main character (Mona) being so unlikeable. Her personality off the bat is despicable – she’s fuelled by selfishness, inconsiderately abrupt and cold hearted. And I found that oddly refreshing! It’s so lovely to not be met by a protagonist that’s screaming “love me, adore me, I’m so likeable” at me.

If I’m honest, looking back at the book, the majority of the characters aren’t likeable. They all in some way represent a toxic or awful trait to have. And I think that’s what I love most about the book. It’s raw and not afraid to expose all the ugly we humans are capable of, but also a reminder, that we do have it within ourselves to be selfless and sacrifice our wants for a greater good.

I also loved that the pursuit to resolve the cold case was always at the centre of the plot; although hints of potential romance was sprinkled throughout, it wasn’t a distraction and the main character was aware of her priorities and would often chide herself when getting lost in thought. I’m not a fan of writers who throw in romance as a curve ball or a bonus that detracts from the main plot. Decisions were all made by Mona with varying levels of self-awareness; she’s no stranger to the deceit she operates on, or how she’s manipulating truths. It’s great not to have another young teen girl who’s oblivious to her environment and people’s emotions. She really reels you into her thinking and feeling with acutely vivid imagery.

For a reflective soul like me, that often gets caught up and lost in thoughts, I really appreciated Mona’s preoccupation with things. Mostly death but the point is, I felt the writer explored the concept of trauma and anxiety and how that really poisons everything if not healed really well.

Diversity is naturally weaved into the book – not just of gender, but personality traits. The characters really worked well together in complimentary and clashing ways that emphasised the flaws in certain mindsets or approaches.

I found the writing style and tone really comforting. It was lyrical and poetic at times without being too much, and I think being able to maintain that balance shows great skill. The writer also alternated between transcripts of a pre-recorded podcast and reality; this variation in media was a great touch but it seems to have died out midway which was slightly disappointing!

The only criticism I have against this book was the plot-holes present. Sometimes certain situations or decisions would be made that just didn’t make sense, or if you paused to really deep it…things would fall apart. I would have liked for certain backstories to be fleshed out or a thorough narrative provided that ironed out any lingering question marks buzzing around our head. Especially considering it’s a detective story, you would expect the plot-holes to be minimal if not, non-existent.

Scope was there for the writer to push the boundaries with trauma and mental health; it could have been dived into a lot more, and I do think the writer would have tastefully addressed it, so was slightly let down when everything was wrapped up succinctly. It would have been amazing to follow Mona on her healing part (she had amnesia from a childhood trauma that rewrote reality, that she just broke through) or see how Mona’s father tackled grief himself. It would have been interesting to see how Ellis’s and Sylvia’s acceptance of the truth behind Roxy’s disappearance panned out, or the anguish or betrayal Archie and Booker may be feeling for having to endure guilt in misguided situations.

I feel a lot of people may think the plot basic or unexciting but I think the ending just exposes how in life, some people, are just really horrible human beings. That sometimes the desire to make everyone else miserable as means of compensation to the wrongdoing they personally feel is stronger, than the desire to be genuine and look inwards for flaws.

QUOTATIONS to make your heart weep

Rightfully so; she had the voice of a thousand lifetimes lived.

I want to live in his world, where everyone has the best of intentions.

After one is hollowed out by suffering, one might expect something to rush in to fill the new, unoccupied parts of yourself – but that’s not how it’s been for me. Nothing rushed in. Instead, I sometimes look in the mirror and see not a different person, but no one at all. Not a canvas. A canvas has potentiality a promise, an ability. Just nothing. I’m no one.

People are more than capable of keeping quiet if they think it is important enough; if they’ve got something to protect – a person, or a way of life; if they have enough of a reason to do so, above all else, believe what they’re doing is right.

This is the thing – because he does get it. He’s not blind to it. He knows how people are but still wants to give them a chance to hurt him anyway.

– and people so blinded by cowardice that they can’t even face their own truth

I think sometimes people expect too much from others. As far as I’m concerned, an easy way not to get hurt is not to expect anything from anyone. No one would say that unless they’ve been hurt…

I tell her what I’ve known about myself all along. It’s not about helping. It’s about truth and liars

That there’s no escape from suffering. That perhaps, instead of this horrible desperate dance to avoid it, we should seek it out and learn its name.