Book Review: Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Publisher’s description

The Hating Game meets Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist by way of Morgan Matson in this unforgettable romantic comedy about two rival overachievers whose relationship completely transforms over the course of twenty-four hours.

Today, she hates him.

It’s the last day of senior year. Rowan Roth and Neil McNair have been bitter rivals for all of high school, clashing on test scores, student council elections, and even gym class pull-up contests. While Rowan, who secretly wants to write romance novels, is anxious about the future, she’d love to beat her infuriating nemesis one last time.

Tonight, she puts up with him.

When Neil is named valedictorian, Rowan has only one chance at victory: Howl, a senior class game that takes them all over Seattle, a farewell tour of the city she loves. But after learning a group of seniors is out to get them, she and Neil reluctantly decide to team up until they’re the last players left—and then they’ll destroy each other.

As Rowan spends more time with Neil, she realizes he’s much more than the awkward linguistics nerd she’s sparred with for the past four years. And, perhaps, this boy she claims to despise might actually be the boy of her dreams.

Tomorrow…maybe she’s already fallen for him.

Amanda’s thoughts

Sometimes it’s the books I like most that make me want to write the laziest book review. Do I have more thoughts beyond, “I absolutely adored this book, you should go get it, and I don’t want to tell you much more because it’s just such a joy to discover the story as you go in fresh”? Sure. And I’ll offer a few. But really, this book should be able to be sold with just a “trust me, you’ll love this.” And you’ll get about five pages in and see I was right.

Rowan and Neil’s combative relationship is full of taunting and competition, which means two things: one, they’re very good at bantering with each other, and two, they’re never far from one another’s minds. Flip their relationship to a romance, not a rivalry, and you might think they’re a little bit obsessed with each other. This, of course, is the thing that Rowan can’t see and is appalled at when her friends tease her about her obsession with Neil. But when she really starts to examine things, as their adventurous night running all over Seattle for a game unfolds, she is shocked to find she really does like Neil, especially as she’s finally getting to know the real him.

Going in, I figured I’d like this. I have really enjoyed Solomon’s previous two books and I am a huge fan of romances, especially enemies-to-lovers romances. But this book exceeded my expectations. Real highlights include how frankly Rowan discusses and approaches sex, the truly excellent banter, the deft handling of a large cast of secondary characters, and the completely satisfying and adorable romance. This book was a total delight.

Review copy (ARC) courtesy of the publisher

ISBN-13: 9781534440241
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication date: 07/28/2020
Age Range: 12 – 18 Years

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