You and Me on Repeat
Chris O’Brien and Alicia Ochoa can’t stop graduation day. Literally – they’re stuck in a time loop and don’t know how to find their way out of it. You and Me on Repeat by Mary Shyne takes on graduating high school and all the fun that entails with a modern, sci-fi tinged angle.
Chris and Alicia are former childhood friends, now estranged classmates and about to be graduates of the class of 2025. Their paths diverged after Chris became one of the popular athletes. Senior year’s been tough, with his beloved swim coach suddenly passing away. He’s ready to be done this high school nonsense and start college in New York City alongside his girlfriend Andy. They haven’t had their first kiss yet, but the perfect spot for it, the biggest party of their teenage lives, is ahead of them. When nothing’s going as planned, Alicia comes to the rescue, taking Chris to the solution to his problem: a swirling portal inside a superstore that will help him relive the day and make things perfect. Except he gets stuck alongside Alicia who has been reliving their graduation day over and over on her own. Can they find a way out and manage to restart their friendship?
You and Me on Repeat reads like a perfect teenage romcom. There’s the rekindling of old relationships, the anxiety of the future ahead, and of course, the blow out party to end all parties. The writing, especially the occasional annotations that dot the pages, even feel like a voiceover effect while reading. But the characters have depth. Alicia is dealing with the expectations of being a first generation college student. Chris is dealing with grief that’s not always easy to articulate, plus the emotions of your first serious relationship.
The book is modern enough without being too obvious in its references; teenagers will recognize personalities and situations that match their own lives. There are some references to drinking and sexual activity, so it’s better suited for older teens, those closer to Chris and Alicia in age. These are only minimal and really nothing out of the ordinary for a young adult novel of any format.
The coloring is a highlight of the graphic novel’s art. The portal itself is a swirling rainbow, so each individual loop is colored in that specific color pattern. New loop, new color. It also helps with the storytelling as a visual cue that a new loop is beginning yet again. Shyne switches Alicia’s appearance up throughout the book too. She tries on different looks in some loops, another clear visual to show the changing days. It’s fun to see the characters evolve and find new details in the many, many loops we follow them through.
You and Me on Repeat is about an endless loop but it’s not repetitive storywise. The details of the loop grow as the days go on and new discoveries continue to be made. Teen readers who enjoy stories with elevated emotions alongside romance will find themselves both hoping the loop never ends and rooting for Alicia and Chris to find their ways out.
You and Me on RepeatÂ
By Mary Shyne
Henry Holt Books for Young Readers, 2025
ISBN: 9781250851840
Company Age Rating:Â 14-18
NFNT Age Recommendation: Older Teen (16-18)
