Justin A. Reynolds, author of Opposite of Always, returns with another charming and powerful YA contemporary novel with a speculative twist, perfect for fans of Nicola Yoon, Becky Albertalli, and Adam Silvera. What if you could bring your best friend back to life—but only for a short time? Jamal’s best friend, Q, doesn’t know that he died, and that he’s about to die . . . again. He doesn’t know … he’s about to die . . . again. He doesn’t know that Jamal tried to save him. And that the reason they haven’t been friends for two years is because Jamal blames Q for the accident that killed his parents.
But what if Jamal could have a second chance? A new technology allows Q to be reanimated for a few weeks before he dies . . . permanently. And Q’s mom is not about to let anyone ruin this miracle by telling Q about his impending death. So how can Jamal fix everything if he can’t tell Q the truth?
Early Departures weaves together loss, grief, friendship, and love to form a wholly unique homage to the bonds that bring people together for life—and beyond.
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I really loved Justin’s first book and had incredibly high expectations for his follow up. Like his first book, EARLY DEPARTURES involves some speculative fiction elements, in this case, it’s the ability to bring someone back to life for a short period of time. The premise alone hit me right in the heart before I even met Jamal and Quincy, former best friends who have completely been broken through personal loss. The way Justin explored grief, love, and reconciliation through their characters is just beautiful. And the speculative fiction elements were just enough to really sell me on the premise while keeping the focus firmly on the emotions here. Stories about the death of a loved one can be really challenging but the thing I loved the most about this book was that the tone is very positive and hopeful despite everything. Overall, if you liked Justin’s first book, you’re sure to love this one too.
Jamal is still dealing with the sudden death of his parents nearly two years prior leaving behind just Jamal and his older sister Whit. Jamal’s grief has consumed him and has caused him to place blame where none was due. Specifically upon the shoulders of his former best friend Quincy. Jamal and Q haven’t spoken in nearly two years and Quincy has also suffered the loss of his father, without Jamal to lean on for support.
When they run into each other at a beach party, tensions are running high. Jamal knows that he needs to make things right with his friend. When Q nearly drowns at the party while trying to rescue a girl in the water, Jamal sees his opportunity at reconciliation slipping away, but when Q ends up dying in the hospital after the accident, Jamal’s heart is on the verge of breaking again, this time for the friend he push away.
But a chance at reanimation will give Q more time and give Q’s mother time to say good-bye. Jamal is also hoping it will give him and Q an opportunity to patch things up between them. The only thing is: Q doesn’t know he’s dead, and he definitely doesn’t know that he’s living again on borrowed time. Jamal knows that the right thing is to tell Q the entire truth, but if you know when you’re going to die, will it prevent you from living?
Early Departures was a beautifully crafted story of loss and grief, friendship and family, and most of all: Love. A poignant story dealing with life and death.
Upon finishing the book, thinking back to everything I’ve read, I don’t know that I can definitively say that I’ve read a book centered on male friendship. That highlights the love between these two characters so much that in the past and present recollections you can’t help but feel the gut punch in the fact that they let this friendship slip away. And with every block used to rebuild what has crumbled you feel this immense happiness. But it’s, of course, also tinged bittersweet by the fact that Q has limited time.
It was a bit difficult to warm up to Jamal in the beginning. The parsing out of information, why he stopped speaking to Q, what happened with his parents is drawn out for a ways into the story. So it takes a little bit to form the picture of the fact that Jamal is still deeply grieving for his parents, and just when he’s maybe coming out from that bleakness, his person dies too. I thought it was an interesting commentary on the different ways we grieve.
I like that Justin A Reynolds doesn’t give us a conclusive picture of whether or not Q’s reanimation is more gift or more painful. Is having to lose someone twice, knowing their end is near worth it? Or does the closure outweigh the sadness? I feel like happiness and sadness go hand in hand with one another, not working only as opposites.
I loved each well-spent moment within the pages of this book and even though it doesn’t deal with the happiest of topics – something that normally would have kept me away from reading – I finished this book, somehow, feeling lighter.
This is the first book I’ve ready by Justin A Reynolds, but I will definitely be checking out his previous book.