Tilly in Technicolor

May 15, 2023
Grades 9-12 This sweet, uplifting rom-com features a love story between two neurodivergent teens. After struggling through high school because of the executive functioning issues that accompany her ADHD, Tilly is spending the summer in Europe interning at her older sister's company. Looming over the trip is her mom's declaration that Tilly has to make a more practical career choice than writing, her passion. But the summer gets off to a less-than-ideal start when Tilly spills ketchup all over her handsome seatmate on the plane, and the embarrassment only escalates from there: Oliver Clark turns out to be her sister's other intern. But after their disastrous beginning, Tilly and Oliver discover that they have more in common than they first thought. Oliver is autistic, and unlike Tilly, he is already pursuing his love of design--specifically, colors. But their connection and Tilly's dreams are threatened by the looming end of the summer. Eddings' debut will appeal to readers looking for both a coming-of-age story and a romance with well-developed and relatable neurodivergent main characters.

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June 1, 2023
A life-changing summer in Europe brings two neurodivergent teens together. Tilly, 18, has ADHD and a psyche dented by parental expectations she's unable or unwilling to meet. Her parents have long held up Mona, her Yale alumna sister, as Tilly's exemplar. Mona has relocated to London to start Ruhe, an environmentally friendly nail polish business, with Amina, her business partner and romantic prospect. Hired as their summer intern, Tilly's thrilled to escape disempowering parental oversight that veers from infantilizing ("Are you being good for Mona?") to rigid insistence on academic achievement. While flying to London, Tilly's English seatmate, Oliver, also 18, witnesses Tilly's ADHD symptoms firsthand (call it a meet-awkward). Handsome but distant, he's Ruhe's other intern, his considerable skills mediated by the impact of navigating the world as an autistic person. Traveling across Europe to market Ruhe, they share diagnoses and discoveries--each one struggles with hyperfocus--offering support as needed. Oliver adores colors, especially understanding and applying the science behind them. Writing is Tilly's passion; with growing confidence, she finds an outlet for her spontaneous creative spirit, something Ruhe needs. Acting on their mutual attraction forces the teens to move out of their self-limiting comfort zones and take emotional risks. Eddings, who shares both characters' diagnoses, brings clarity, humor, insight, and empathy to their challenges. An adjunct assortment of bright, variously divergent teens manifest kindness, affection, and acceptance. Most major characters appear White; Londoner Amina has "amber skin." An inclusive, optimistic message deepens this charming romance. (Romance. 14-18)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 19, 2023
Eighteen-year-old Tilly Twomley feels as if no one takes her seriously because of her ADHD. Though her entrepreneurial older sister Mona, a Yale alumna, wants Tilly to model for her environmentally friendly nail polish startup, she rebukes Tilly’s offers to help run the business side of things. Tilly has also been ignoring her mother’s suggestions that she apply to college, unsure of what she wants for her future. Still, Tilly is excited to accompany Mona to London for the summer as her intern, where she plans to launch her business. On the flight over, Tilly meets Mona’s other intern, autistic 18-year-old British Oliver. While the two teens initially struggle to reconcile their clashing personalities—Tilly’s effervescence is sometimes overwhelming for reserved Oliver—they soon begin to offer each other support in navigating both their neurodivergence and their uncertain futures. Via Tilly and Oliver’s titillating alternating first-person POVs, Eddings (The Plus One, for adults)—who is both autistic and has ADHD—organically develops a heartwarming rom-com about two teens who often feel out-of-step with their peers finding balance with each other. Tilly, Oliver, and Mona read as white. Ages 13–up. Agent: Courtney Miller-Callihan, Handspun Literary.

Starred review from August 1, 2023

Gr 9 Up-A sweet neurodivergent love story. Tilly, who has ADHD and is considered the ne'er-do-well of her family, is spending the summer as her overachieving sister's assistant as she travels Europe promoting her new business. She embarrasses herself in front of her airplane seatmate, the very handsome but "rude" Oliver. Little does she know, Oliver is her fellow intern with whom she'll be sharing a room! Oliver, who is autistic, is a photographer with a large Instagram following and has been hired as the social media manager for the business. Proximity and newfound understanding grow into love in this fun, trope-filled story. Eddings's debut really shines in the way that Tilly and Oliver demonstrate that people in the neurodivergent community can develop deep connections with one another through shared experience even when they have different neurotypes. Tilly's struggle for acceptance from her family is almost painfully realistic as she is infantilized and demeaned by her mother, who tries to convince her to go to college. Though the romance is perfectly paced, the novel could have used more time to resolve this family drama. Includes fade-to-black sex scenes and some swearing. VERDICT Hand to readers who could write an essay about how Mr. Darcy could be autistic, or any fan of well-written love stories.-Jeri Murphy

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