Just finished Celeste Ng's 'Everything I Never Told You' and wow—my emotions are still all over the place. This isn't just a book; it's an emotional excavation of family dynamics, unspoken pressures, and the weight of expectations.

The way Ng writes about the Lee family feels so raw and real. Lydia's death is the catalyst, but the real story is in the quiet fractures between parents and children, the cultural tensions, and how love can sometimes suffocate.

What hit me hardest? The parents projecting their own failed dreams onto Lydia. Her dad wants her to be popular (something he never was), and her mom pushes her toward a medical career (her own abandoned ambition). Meanwhile, Lydia's siblings are practically invisible—Nath with his Harvard pressure and Hannah just... existing. It’s painfully relatable.

Ng’s prose is delicate but packs a punch. The 1970s Ohio setting adds another layer of tension with its racial undertones, but honestly? The family’s issues could happen in any era. It’s less about race and more about how parents unintentionally break their kids while trying to 'fix' themselves through them.

Fair warning: this isn’t a feel-good read. It’s achingly sad, especially when you realize Lydia’s fate was almost inevitable. But it’s also stunningly written—the kind of book that lingers in your mind like a shadow. If you loved 'Little Fires Everywhere,' brace yourself; this one cuts deeper.

PS: That opening line—'Lydia is dead.'—still haunts me days later.