This book is excellent in its approach to centering Black boy’s journey through first love. I appreciate how Reynold’s story ebbs and flows through time masterfully. This book would be excellent for anyone wanting to read a love story or build their empathy toward young folks’ navigating complex emotions.

Twenty-Four Seconds from Now… by Jason Reynolds is a beautifully crafted story that captures the emotional depth and complexity of young love. The protagonist, Neon Benton, is on the cusp of a major decision with his girlfriend, Aria, as they reflect on their two-year relationship. What makes this novel unique is its reverse timeline, unraveling their story from the present moment back to the beginning of their bond. This structure allows readers to piece together the significant milestones and heartfelt conversations that have defined their relationship.

Reynolds writes with incredible authenticity, giving voice to the raw emotions, doubts, and joys of teenage relationships. The characters feel real and relatable, and the dialogue flows naturally, making it easy to connect with their experiences. The story also thoughtfully explores themes of consent, trust, and communication in a way that feels honest and respectful.

This is a book that doesn’t just tell a love story; it invites readers to reflect on what love means and the moments that make relationships meaningful. It’s a touching, memorable read that’s perfect for teens and adults alike."

Jason Reynolds does an excellent job approaching the sensitive subject of adolescent physical intimacy. Reynolds takes the reader back and forth between the present and different increments of time where the main character considers making the very sensitive decision with his girlfriend.

I’m glad this book exists.

It’s beautiful like all of Jason Reynolds’s works. And it shows the beauty of normalcy. And that normalcy is seen in two Black teens with two normal families. It’s unfortunately something you don’t see a lot of in YA or literature as a whole. Neon is a good kid from a good family. If this was about white teens it wouldn’t feel special. Plus Reynolds structures this in an unusual way which also makes it stand out.

This is joyful and tender. And mundane. In a good way, for the most part. It’s not my favorite Reynolds and it’s not something that had me itching to get back to. But it’s needed. And I’m happy Reynolds wrote it. I love Neon and I love Aria and I love their love.

As Reynolds says, black boys deserve love stories too.

Neon and his girlfriend, Aria, are navigating high school and their relationship, and 24 seconds from now, about to take the next big step. But not without reflection from Neon first, alone and beforehand, nervous and excited, as he recalls how they got together and how they got to here and now.

While I’m not a big YA reader, Jason Reynolds’ talent is crystal clear and Twenty-Four Seconds from Now… is no exception. Reynolds does a great job balancing young adult feelings in today’s world.

This book is perfect. Short and so sweet. Two high school seniors plan to have sex for the first time and there's no shame or blame or anything but realistic anxiety and adoration for one another. I love how Jason Reynolds plays with time in his books. Long Way Down takes place in a matter of moments. This one is 24 seconds, but with flashbacks in 24-intervals *24 seconds, minutes, days, etc.). It's wonderful. I truly hope Jason Reynolds writes more love stories. This is so tender and loving. The cast of characters is full and complete. Highly recommend!

Many thanks to Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing | Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books and NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

Once again, Jason Reynolds hits it out of the park, on a topic that I don't think he's tackled before--romance. But it's more than romance. It's about being a good partner in a healthy relationship. While the overarching story is about a boy's first time with his girlfriend, it's so much more than that. At the beginning, Neon is a black boy who will be having his first sexual experience with his girlfriend Aria in 24 seconds and he is absolutely freaking out. The story then goes back in time to 24 months ago when he first met her to 24 weeks ago, 24 days ago, and 24 minutes ago. You really get to know Neon as he listens to advice from his friends (not always the best choice), his sister, his mother, and his father. In particular, I loved the honest conversation he had with his father--it brought me to tears. This was such a good story about what healthy relationships should look like, and it is one of those books that I will absolutely be rereading, probably on audio. I know the narrator and just know it will be phenomenal.

Highly recommended!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Fresh and compelling!
Jason Reynold tackles two teenagers' first time from the perspective of a teenage boy. While I enjoyed the unique story structure of going back in time, the reverse order may not appeal to all readers. Unfortunately, as an educator, I cannot add this book to my classroom bookshelf, despite wanting to grab copies and hand them out.
Thank you, Simon & Schuster and NetGalley. for the complimentary ARC of this book.

Jason Reynolds is just incredible at writing stories. I think this book is going to be so important for teenagers, on sex, on relationships, on family. I love how this story is told showing this relationship develop to where the book first started. This is a read a book in one sitting, listen to the audiobook in a couple hours kind of book but still with impact. Jason Reynolds is a master at that from what I've read so far.

This was seriously sweet, and how nice to have perspective from the guy's side! And to have it be real and confused and all over the place. Love Mom's talk with him and the subtle love stories of the other people in the story. Whew, glad the story went back to the present just for a minute (or 24 seconds/) at the end ;) Might just buy for my 20 year old who has a serious girlfriend and he likes Jason Reynolds anyway!

This is a fresh young adult voice. I loved how the story was cleverly told using flashbacks, and think that young people will relate to this.

I love Jason Reynolds, but this book wasn't it. It's about the first time for one young man and his girlfriend. But it goes backwards instead of forwards right before the big moment. 24 minutes before. 24 hours before. 24 days before. Anyway, I found the format to be too confusing and I didn't;t like how the story kept moving backwards. There were good discussions about being prepared and consent, but the format was too much for me..

This is Jason Reynolds at his best! What an incredible take on a YA romance novel. The frank and honest conversations around a boy's first time were breathtaking. The structure was also really cool - working back in increments of 24 from the moments right before the main event. I will be recommending this as often as I can!

Thank you for this ARC.
Not a bad concept of using the number 24 and establishing a timeline. Neon and Aria are your main characters. This is a YA novel. You're at that age of love where you want to take the next step. From here, the timeline works backwards. This story is quick to read and easy to forget.
Not as impactful as Reynold's previous novels.

As much as parents don’t want to think about it, teens do have sex. One way parents can help teens make good choices is having open, honest conversations. And Twenty-Four Seconds from Now is an excellent starting point for all teens, but especially with boys.

That’s because the story unfolds from Neon’s point of view. Twenty-Four Seconds from Now is a book about relationships — parental support, strong friendships and emotional intelligence.

The story does bounce around a bit, and the chapters are longer than many are used to, but once you get used to the formatting, the flow makes sense.

Author Jason Reynolds truly understands his audience. This means his writing, though admired by adults, will speak specifically to teens.

Twenty-Four Seconds from Now is a clean romance about teens on the brink of losing virginity. It’s a thoughtful and engaging read.

This is the cutest, sweetest YA book that I've read in a while, and such a wonderful introduction to this author's work. This story took me back to a time when life was pure and innocent and did such an excellent job of expressing the feelings associated with the experience the characters are about to have in this book. I really liked that the MMC was the pov for this novel because it's such an uncommon take. I especially loved the open, healthy dialogue Neon was able to have with his parents and sister. All teens should be afforded the opportunity to engage earnestly with their support system. I think this is a great book for teens and may help with some of the feelings and questions they have at that stage.

Thank you, netgalley and the publisher for providing an arc of this book.

It should come as no surprise to anyone that Jason Reynolds has created something special with his most recent YA release, Twenty-Four Seconds from Now. He has a tremendous capacity for creating lovable, dynamic characters, and his lyrical writing style is a pleasure to read. AND what I found most impressive about this book was the content and the delivery of this content. This is a book about sex. Specifically, this is a book about teenagers who want to have sex for the first time. This is a book about all the moments that have lead up to *this* moment in Neon and Aria's relationship (but told chronologically backwards, so we see the moment they meet near the end of the book). Jason Reynolds has created a launching point for discovery and discussion for adolescents who are curious about sex and relationships, in much the same way Judy Blume did 50 years ago with her book Forever. And he has done this so, so well. This book is honest and true and relatable and lovely, and I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to read an advanced copy. (Thank you to NetGalley for my digital ARC.)

This is a sweet, clean romance about two 17-year-olds in love and on the precipice of losing their virginity to each other two years into their relationship. Reynolds starts the story in the present, and then goes back in time two years (in increments) to when Neon first met Aria at his grandfather’s burial, returning to the present in the last short chapter. It takes place in an unnamed urban setting (presumably DC/MD area, based on the names of the neighborhoods), but it’s nice to read a YA book that isn’t full of inner-city violence and tragedy. Instead, it’s focused on emotions, sage advice, parental support from both of Neon’s parents and Aria’s father, and solid friendships. Due to childhood abuse and the resultant trauma, Aria’s mother is difficult, but there’s no real angst in the story. This is very much character-driven with not much of a plot to speak of, and readers who are not familiar with black colloquial language may struggle a bit to understand some of the dialogue and Neon’s narrative (it’s told from his POV), but the message isn’t muddied. Recommended for libraries that serve teens.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Simon & Schuster BYR through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Jason Reynolds is an author whose books I love getting into teen hands--the characters and plot are almost always importantly relevant to their lives, and there is just enough mystery or drama to get them to keep reading until the end. "Twenty-Four Seconds from Now..." continues in the same vein with a very relatable focus: a teenage boy's first time sleeping with his girlfriend. I appreciated that this book spoke honestly about this area of life as much of what teens experience in the media is so dishonest or inauthentic to what it will be in real life. The discussions about safety, consent, and emotions are great additions to the YA genre that I feel are necessary in our media-driven world.

Unfortunately, beyond the great messaging and some humorous moments with the main protagonist's mom, I found this book easy to put down and forget about. Because of the way the book is structured, I kept waiting and waiting for some dramatic event or reveal to happen, but it didn't. The most tense moments are in the first few pages of the novel, and the rest of the book just dwindled out slowly. The stream-of-conscious, the backwards-in-time narrative structure just felt like a gimmick that didn't make the plot more engaging or tense. While not my favorite structure of storytelling, I have enjoyed books with the reverse timeline, but I think I would have enjoyed this must better with a traditional narrative arc.

The romantic plot line was cute without being overly sexual despite the main focus of the book, and I thought it could even be approachable for teen boys who are allergic to romance in any capacity. But for this reader, I felt a little bored and hoped for more from this novel.

Special thanks to the author & @simonteen for my gifted copy‼️

What’s 4+4? Cause I know I wasn’t the only one who devoured this book in twenty-four seconds‼️ The author jumped in straight to the point when a teen is ready to take that next step and become sexually active there are a million thoughts going through their minds. Sometimes parents have no idea and in some cases they do but how do you approach your child with the TALK? No matter what you think you cannot prevent it so the best thing you can do is educate them.

Neon and Aria have been dating for a while and now it’s senior year they’re ready to take the next step in their relationship. . . SEX! They have the whole thing mapped out yet Neon can’t get past being nervous. Luckily he has his family to lean on for advice even if some of it is unwanted. I loved his sister’s advice because a woman is not just a body!!! The convo with his mom at breakfast was hilarious. Although Neon and Aria have contemplated on this happening the biggest thing is what will happen to them afterwards since she will be heading off to college soon.

With this book it might take many of us back to that exact moment. What we were thinking, your emotions in that moment, were you actually ready, educated, and prepared for it, and how things would go after you took that step. It’s actually a scary moment for many because once it’s done you can’t take it back.

I truly love everything about this book it was heartwarming, funny, engaging, and sheds light on a sensitive subject. It was also a major plus getting the full perspective from a guy in this situation. For the pacing to move so quickly I actually felt complete after reading this. The characters were well fleshed out and we get enough backstory on both MC’s to understand what they’re going through. Definitely a book I’d recommend‼️