A coming of age story about complicated relationships and memories that bring us home, The Space Between Here & Now by Sarah Suk takes readers on a ride.

Aimee Roh is a seventeen year old with Sensory Time Warp Syndrome (STWS). Her sense of smell can transport her back to the past, to old memories. While the condition has been manageable, lately she seems to be traveling more frequently and always to memories of her mother who left when she was a small child. This prompts Aimee to head to Korea, where her mother now lives, to learn more and perhaps gain closure to help calm the disappearances. What she finds is not what she was expecting.

I love how Sarah Suk uses the device of an invented condition to bring up topics of family dynamics, loss and the future. Aimee is limiting her life because of her condition. It’s something that many people with complicated medical conditions face, feelings of loneliness and fear about the what if. This story takes readers from North America to Korea where we experience all these feelings so viscerally along with Aimee. Throw a little crush into the mix and you have a recipe for an engaging that thrilling YA read.

I love Sarah Suk’s writing in this story. Prose interspersed with text conversations and journal entries make this a dynamic read with lots of interest. I also love how the story leads readers in unexpected ways. The conclusion is maybe not so satisfying to all readers but it is incredibly authentic. We don’t fully get a sense of closure and to be honest it‘s not really that hopeful however, it’s very real. Life will often not be tied up in a nice neat bow. I love how messy and chaotic this story is, leading to a conclusion that I found very satisfying.