We Weren’t Looking to Be Found is a dual POV novel by Stephanie Kuehn about two girls, struggling with expectations of themselves and their mental health.
The two perspectives in this novel explore the different experiences the two girls (Dani and Camila) have with addiction, mental health, and their goals in life. While Dani and Camila come from very different backgrounds, they’re extremely similar, setting them up to be enemies or best friends.
Dani is from a rich black family in Texas with access to every resource imaginable. She’s a socialite while Camila is an aspiring dancer in Georgia, the daughter of Colombian parents. While Camila doesn’t have much, she has the same perseverance and ambition that Dani has.
Kuehn’s writing is easy to pick up; while reading it doesn’t take long to like the characters and become immersed. Those attributes make We Weren’t Looking to Be Found a fast read. The novel is also an easy read, despite dealing with mental health and addiction.
The novel has some shaky and entirely unrelated plot points to the main story arc; these events don’t add up much to Dani and Camila’s relationship or their paths to recovery. They’re nice moments, but they blur the intention behind the overall story a little. There are sizable portions discussing family, which both add and detract from the main part of the story (Dani and Camila’s unlikely friendship becoming support for each other).
While this novel is not the best resource for mental health struggles and addictions, We Weren’t Looking to Be Found is a great example of two girls trying to figure out their life after nearly upending it.
Overall, We Weren’t Looking to Be Found is a light read and while not the most informative about mental health issues, it showcases two girls’ mental health journies realistically. We Weren’t Looking to Be Found was a hopeful experience, discovering what real support is through friendship and perseverance.
