today i finished the space between here & now by sarak suk(@_saraksuk). this book follows aimee roh, a teenager with sensory time warp syndrome. smelling certain scents will cause her to temporarily warp back in time to one of her own memories, and her estranged mother has been appearing in those memories more and more frequently. this book’s blurb is extremely compelling, and it did not disappoint at all. this is a minor thing, but aimee lives in vancouver, british columbia, and as somebody from the US, i like reading fiction that takes place outside the US. it’s a nice change of pace, even if it doesn’t impact the story at all. almost everything about this book is flawless, from its worldbuilding to its characters to its plot. i could not get enough of this book and of aimee’s internal monologue. she’s a deeply relatable and likable character, which also contributed to how easily i made my way through this book. the other characters that she interacts with were both likable and realistic, and her world is really fleshed out in a way that i enjoy. suk clearly spent a lot of time thinking about the minutiae of sensory time warp syndrome, or STWS, and it adds even more depth to the story. this story is packed to the brim, and normally i would think a romance would be out of place here. but the relationship between aimee and junho is very sweet and believably paced, which means it only strengthens the rest of the story. my sole minor complaint is that the main conflict of the book felt a bit pushed to the side by the end. without spoiling anything, i’ll say that it’s not something that one can easily get closure for, so this makes sense. i still felt that it was worth noting. if you’re a person who can read, you absolutely need to read this book. it’s incredible, and i’m absolutely getting a copy when it comes out on october 31 of this year. thank you to netgalley and harpercollins children’s books for providing me access to this title in exchange for my review!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy!! This is really good. A blend of sci-fi with emotional drama. This takes you through a lot in a quick span of time and wishing you had more. If you are a fan of more believable sci-fi without the world ending doom coming down on you, and you want more family healing this is the book for you. Warning!! You might cry. Enjoy!

Perfect for fans of They Both Die at the End and You’ve Reached Sam, this gripping, atmospheric YA novel follows a teen with a mysterious condition that transports her to the past when she smells certain scents linked to specific memories.

a time travel book with a unique twist

The Space between Here & Now was a phenomenal read. The story drew me in right away and I devoured the whole thing in two days. The story follows Aimee, who is 17, and dealing with something called Time Warp Sensory Disorder, which is a disease that causes her to disappear back into her old memories when triggered by certain scents - literally disappear, like poof! Having TWSD is disruptive enough, but what makes it worse is her father totally not supporting her and basically ignoring that its a problem. When she disappears into a memory of her mother for 9 hours - longer than she's ever experienced before - she learns of details about mother that don't match up with the story she's always been fed about her mother leaving. Convinced that finding her mother might be the answers to learning more about herself and TWSD, Aimee travels to Korea in hopes of tracking her down.

Despite, TWSD being a fictional disease, Suk, does a great job of paralleling the isolation and anxiety that can accompany those with chronic illness through Aimee's struggles. This really is a perfect coming of age story that can be enjoyed by teens and adults alike. I thoroughly enjoyed it and found myself not wanting to put it down.

I loved this book. Such an inventive twist on the time travel trope, one I often see played out in ways that involve too much magic and not enough science. So many intriguing YA new releases are out in the world this year.

Aimee Roh, a Korean-American high school student who lives in Vancouver, Canada, has Sensory Time Warp Syndrome, a rare condition in which she disappears for minutes at a time into memories from her own past. Her condition is triggered by smells that take her back to memories associated with those smells.

Lately, the disappearances have become more frequent and longer duration each time, which frightens Aimee, who is stressed about school. The memories routinely take her back to times with her mother, who left the family when she was young, leaving only her and her dad, who has grown distant from her and won't talk about her condition or the past.

Aimee realizes it's a sign that she needs closure with her mom, who she suspects may have the condition herself and stuck in a time loop. Everyone's so shady about how her mom left, she jumps to the impossible things as teenagers do. She books a spring break trip to Korea to investigate further, where she runs into Junho, her first crush on a boy as a child, and a charming, slow-burn romantic subplot follows.

There, Aimee's investigations are fairly clumsy, but it's a story about finding yourself and getting closer to your family and friends, opening yourself up to the vulnerability of firsts, more than time travel, even though time travel is a large part of it.

I loved the parts of the narrative that focused on Aimee's identity as a Korean-American from a family who emigrated to Canada when they were young, about how she navigated the distances between several different worlds at once. I loved the descriptions of Korean food and since sensory details were a huge part of the plot, they had a prominent place in the story, too.

The time travel in this worked for me because of all the limitations placed on it. Time travelers cannot influence the past, only observe it; it's a rare genetic condition; the travel can be for minutes at a time, and the like. I found that an especially intriguing element of this book.

The characters in this were also very well done, with great character development and a YA novel with deeper themes about loyalty and belonging, struggling to understand your parents while figuring out yourself, that both teenagers and adults can relate to.

Sarah Suk is a fresh new voice with brilliant ideas, and I look forward to reading more of her writing. Highly recommended.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was a seriously beautiful and heart felt read. I wasn't sure what to expect going in because the premise is so unique. I enjoyed how the protagonists condition was described and used throughout the book as commentary on ableism and how others view things they don't know anything about. While it has a supernatural feel where she literally goes back in time and disappears, it all feels very real and emotional. The inclusion of Aimee attempting to find support groups but it is always awkward and difficult feels like something people might have to go through until finding the right people and community. I really related to Aimee's hard relationship with her dad; he is difficult and stubborn but they clearly love each other so much. Relationships with parents are so complicated and I liked how the author wrote about it. It was a relationship that wasn't abusive or bad, just a tangled mess and poor communication. Not every parental relationship has to be horrible and oppressive, everyone's circumstances are different. I love a good journey of self discovery and this definitely delivered. Aimee's relationship with Junho as a friend and place of support was charming and lovable. I could go on and on, I loved this book!

I haven't enjoyed a good book in a minute, and The Space between Here & Now did that for me. Our main character Aimee suffers from a disease that transport her throughout time triggered by one of her senses. The concept of her travelling through time is doesn't make her a superhero, or even a complete social outcast, but it leaves a heavy burden on her personal life and her teen years. I liked her character development and the pacing throughout the book. The book discusses identity and the ways our pasts influence our present and our outlook of the future. I hoped that this book would be a series, but am satisfied with the ending.

This is one that I would love to get picked up as a movie or a TV series.

I really loved this book. The concept was original and the characters were lovable. I was afraid the romance would be forced at the start of the book, but it wasn’t. it flowed properly. Perfect for fans of Adam Silvera.

This YA fantasy pulled me right in.

Our main protagonist, Aimee, has a unique condition called Sensory Time Warp Syndrome (STWS) where certain triggers make her disappear and go back in time.

Suk’s portrayal of Aimee’s experience with this rare condition was relatable to me as someone who has struggled with mysterious chronic illnesses. Aimee seeks answers in public forums and uses art as an outlet, but struggles to get too close to anyone because of her fear of vanishing out of nowhere!

The struggle with her illness was done so well that at one point I thought about Googling this condition to see if it’s a real thing. LOL.

There are family dynamics at play and trauma with Aimee’s mother leaving at an early age. She also struggles with her father who is kinda aloof and not in tune with the fact that her condition seems to be getting worse. He shrugs it off as almost like a lack of willpower?

Aimee starts to wonder if her mother had STWS too and if that’s the reason why she left her. The story unfolds as she goes on a quest, with her best friend’s help, to seek her mother out.

There were some parts that dragged a bit, but I thought the mix of the unique fantasy elements, chronic illness struggles, family dynamics and budding first love were done well and the ending bumped this up from 4 to 5 stars for me.

Recommended overall for those who like YA fantasy with family dynamics and can relate to the mysterious illness piece. 💛

Inventive and engaging, this latest book from Suk will surely delight a wide variety of readers. I kept turning the page trying to figure things out and was amazed by the ending. Highly recommend.

This was such a good read. I really enjoyed the premise and the execution. It gives you an "insight" on what it feels like when you're a little different and the awkward eyes or questions they may receive but also seeing and understanding them as normal people and not like a spectacle. I loved the familial layers as well, the father daughter relationship just really hit home. I definitely recommend this wonderful story.

I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Seventeen-year-old Aimee Roh has Sensory Time Warp Syndrome, a rare condition that causes her to time travel to a moment in her life when she smells something linked to that memory. Her dad is convinced she’ll simply grow out of it if she tries hard enough, but Aimee’s fear of vanishing at random has kept her from living a normal life.
When Aimee disappears for nine hours into a memory of her estranged mom—a moment Aimee has never remembered before—she becomes distraught. Not only was this her longest disappearance yet, but the memory doesn’t match up with the story of how her mom left—at least, not the version she’s always heard from her dad.
Desperate for answers, Aimee travels to Korea, where she unravels the mystery of her memories, the truth about her mother, and the reason she keeps returning to certain moments in her life. Along the way, she realizes she’ll need to reconcile her past in order to save her present.

I enjoyed this read. Amiee's story provided some perspective on what it's like to battle your mental health through the lens of this syndrome. I read Sensory time warp syndrome in the description and knew I wanted to read it. This book was easy to read despite the created parts of this world that set it apart as a fantasy novel. I could appreciate how the ending wasn't perfectly wrapped up, but I also wanted a conclusion to Aimee's story and some closur for her. Reading this book will definitely be more interesting if you know Korean, but it didn't dimish my enjoyment of the story.

The Space between Here & Now follows the story of Aimee Roh, a girl who has a condition that sends her back into her memories based on her trigger, smell. Her disappearances keep sending her back to memories where she is with her mother who left when she was young.
Aimee is a wonderfully written character and has a strong depth of emotions and feelings, trying to belong both in the world she lives in with her condition and connect with her father who grew up in a different country than her. Part of the story takes place with a journey that Aimee takes back to Korea and the way it is written captures how it feels to go back to a place that is both familiar and isolating at the same time.

the speculative-time-travel book of my dreams. time travel and time loops are already a certified favourite of mine, and i love the way the 'magic' was executed here. i loved reading from our main character's perspective. the family ties, the experiences, everything felt so far from reality and yet so real and true and relatable. it transported me back to my days of being a younger teenager, and i love it so so so much

The Space between Here & Now, was beyond phenomenal. This book took my mind on a journey that I haven't been on in such a long time.

⏳The Space Between Here And Now
Written by : Sarah Suk
Genre: YA, Sci Fi/Fantasy, Multicultural Interest
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 stars
Pub Date: October 30, 2023
Read if you Liked: They Both Die at the End, You’ve Reached Sam, The Time Travelers Wife

⏳Review: TIME TRAVEL. TIME LOOPS. This is probably my favorite trope when it comes to escaping reality in a great book. I have to admit, it has to be done a certain way, and TSBHAN does a perfect job of mixing fantasy with reality. This is also my first experience with the author and I have to say that I am very excited to watch what she does. Her writing is definitely a breath of fresh air and many times in the book I truly felt tied to the storyline: I felt the emotions and I smelt the smells! This also was the first book I binged in 1-2 sittings in quite sometime now! The MC Aimee was extremely lovable from the very beginning and her story of self discovery plays out beautifully between the pages of her memories. Perfect novel to get anyone out of a reading slump: young teens to adults. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED * watch for this one this fall!

QUOTABLE(s):
“How strange it is that someone could be having one of the best moments of their lives just steps away from where someone else is falling apart.”

“I guess that’s how memories are, even for someone like me who can go back and visit pieces of them. Some you hold on to tight, some you lose to time. Some you find again in the present in a new and different way.”

Thank you to @netgalley and Harper Collins Publishing for my copy, making this my first ever netgalley read and review!

⏳Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Aimee Roh has Sensory Time Warp Syndrome, a rare condition that causes her to time travel to a moment in her life when she smells something linked to that memory. Her dad is convinced she’ll simply grow out of it if she tries hard enough, but Aimee’s fear of vanishing at random has kept her from living a normal life.
When Aimee disappears for nine hours into a memory of her estranged mom—a moment Aimee has never remembered before—she becomes distraught. Not only was this her longest disappearance yet, but the memory doesn’t match up with the story of how her mom left—at least, not the version she’s always heard from her dad.
Desperate for answers, Aimee travels to Korea, where she unravels the mystery of her memories, the truth about her mother, and the reason she keeps returning to certain moments in her life. Along the way, she realizes she’ll need to reconcile her past in order to save her present

The Space Between Here & Now, by Sarah Suk is not your average Proustian, diasporic Korean coming of age with sci fi elements novel (;p) ! It follows Aimee Roh, a Korean Candadian teen with Sensory Time Warp Syndrome or STWS as she tries to make sense of her life. Suk does something extraordinary here by not necessarily world building, but world retrofitting. She sets the novel in our current, everyday society with one miiiiiiiinor tweak....the world has been aware of a small segment of the population that, when stimulated by a particular sense, disappears into their own past to witness memories as they unfold. While this does require the reader to suspend disbelief, it is very easy to do with the way Suk builds her story and the identities of her characters. She infuses the narrative with excerpts from online STWS chat forums, segments of notes from Aimee's school counselor, and Aimee's journal. Aimee struggles with this syndrome, the constant fear of potentially disappearing at any moment, and the anxiety it creates in her daily life. While very unreal, it feels very real and can easily serve as a representation of the struggles many face with differences in mental and physical health and they ways their family, friends and community respond.
Aimee has grown up without her mother, and feels communication with her father shrinking by the day. When she feels she has to find answers, she boldly decides to take her fate into her own hands. This book becomes at turns a search for self, a suspenseful thriller and a way for Aimee to find strength and safe places in herself and others. I especially loved the characters which were complex, flawed and beautiful. Aimee's love interest is swoon-worthy not because of his jawline or the depths of his dreamy eyes, but because he is sweet, funny and able to say how he feels. He offers real friendship and support to Aimee as well as adorable, realistic banter.
With well placed ruminations on art, memory, perspective and reaching out versus shutting down, there is so much to this novel! I'm on my second read now and highly recommend.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

If you read science fiction, or if you read YA, and especially if you read both, you'll be able to predict all the beats of this book. If you're an adult, that is, and that's an important caveat. Because YA is not primarily for adults, and YA is part of how people learn what the tropes and story shapes are in the first place.

Aimee Roh has Sensory Time Warp Syndrome, a condition that makes her disappear for seconds, minutes, even hours at a time when she encounters a sensory impression that triggers a memory. No one can predict which memories will carry this baggage when--the trigger sense even varies among STWS sufferers.

Her bicultural father is opposed to her seeing a therapist to help deal with this. He also doesn't want to tell her why her mother left, where she is now, what happened. He doesn't seem to want to talk at all, having seemingly embraced the most taciturn parts of Canadian and Korean cultures.

Aimee finally decides that she has to seek out answers herself. Does her mother also have STWS? Could she be caught in a loop, as other STWS sufferers have been? What can Aimee's parents' past teach her about herself and her future? As I said to begin with, the answers to these questions are going to seem pretty obvious as you read. What will not seem obvious, though, is the verve and specificity with which Aimee as a young artist apprehends the world. She and her friends and family are extremely well-drawn, and the characterization makes this short novel very much worth the time.

This book takes you back to the time of being a teenager while adding in the nuanced complexity of dealing with a medical condition where you have no control. Following Aimee Roh and the tense relationship with her Appa after her mother leaves, you’re taken on a whirlwind of an adventure where Aimee works to understand more about her condition, STWS (Sensory Time Warp Syndrome) and what happened with her mother. Aimee’s condition thrusts her back in time to observe her own memories before dropping her back to reality where she’s often disoriented and trying to grasp how much time she’s lost. As she gets pulled back into more and more memories with her mother, she starts to wonder what it is that’s actually happened to her and why she’s not around.
The imagery used in this book is encompassing, the characters are lovable and relatable, and the family relationships and friendships that grow and flourish are heart-warming.
I related to this book on a personal level, having experienced a seemingly-randomly triggered medical condition, coupled with a parent who wasn’t present during my childhood; the emotional descriptions in the book were everything and more that I felt and wanted to put to paper more times than I can count.
This is the kind of book you read when you need to feel seen when you feel invisible, when you’re looking for answers that have evaded you, and when friendships and family feel like the only tether you have.

The premise of this book is having people travel back in times to watch a memory. These trips are triggered by one of their senses tied to the memory itself. I really enjoyed the premise especially how revisiting the memories brought clarity to the traveler. The book had the right balance of the magical realism in the time travel, current story, and back story memories (as it could have been very easy to focus on one aspect too much). I also greatly appreciated the ending … but no spoilers here. I highly recommend checking out this book upon its release. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.