Alicia's Reviews > Twenty-Four Seconds from Now...

Pure FREAKING genius.

Jason Reynolds is the GOAT. Has been for a while, will remain so for life especially when he continues to drop stories like this.

I have talked extensively about my love for YA literature that features sex in realistic conversation and context. Reynolds' new one opens up with Neon in the bathroom psyching himself up for first-time sex with his girlfriend of two years, Aria. And then the rest of the story goes BACKWARD in time from this point in their senior year.

When I share this book, I may or may not share this information as it's both the reason it's so genius and I'd want everyone to discover it for themselves but it's also the selling point for it too. Neon's voice is that introspective and fun peek inside a teen's brain while the rest of the characters are just as three-dimensional as Neon.

The quirkiness of the elements like what the Wednesday family business does or how Neon's mom approaches a conversation about sex or the inclusion of BINGO are the layers of this amazing YA novel. But the intelligence lies in how it's laid out. It's what captivated me in this story and another favorite (adult graphic novel) Always Never.