Publishers Weekly
06/19/2023
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. (Aug.)
From the Publisher
"So freaking cute. Tilly in Technicolor will have you aching with love for these characters while swooning at their awkward adorableness together. I want to hug this book to my chest." —Chloe Gong, #1 New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights
"A sweet neurodivergent love story.. Hand to readers who could write an essay about how Mr. Darcy could be autistic, or any fan of well-written love stories." - School Library Journal, starred review
"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." - Kirkus
"A tender, heartfelt, and effortlessly inclusive feel-good YA romance with one of the best (read: hilarious) disaster-cutes I've ever witnessed, Tilly in Technicolor captures the giddy thrill of finding the person who sees you, who gets you, and who, ultimately, adores you exactly as you are. I loved Mazey Edding's YA debut—the equivalent of a firm bear hug—from the very first page, and by the time I reached the last, I felt loved back. This is an affirming and joyful novel about rediscovering yourself outside of boxes, expectations, and comfort zones." —Lillie Vale, author of Beauty and the Besharam
"Mazey Eddings has one of the most realistically hilarious voices in Romance and has secured this across age categories with her new YA rom-com, Tilly in Technicolor. Equal parts funny, awkward, tender, hopeful, and swoony, I would do anything for Tilly and Oliver. WE MUST PROTECT THEM AT ALL COSTS. Can’t wait for more books from Mazey! —Susan Lee, author of Seoulmates
“Tilly in Technicolor is the perfect coming of age story set in far off places and featuring one hell of an adorable love story. Eddings has brought a new and inspired voice to YA romance with her own (very welcome) spin, inviting neurodivergent readers to find themselves understood, accepted and fully loved within the pages.” -Erin Hahn, author of Never Saw You Coming
"Tilly in Technicolor lives up to its name, as Mazey Eddings writes with a full palette of colors. Beneath the laughter and the swooning, there’s a rich journey of self-acceptance and not changing who you are to fit in with the rest of the world. This book shines bright. —Brian D. Kennedy, author of A Little Bit Country
"A wildly fun travel adventure, poignant celebration of neurodiversity, and swoon-worthy romance all at once, Tilly in Technicolor is an unforgettable YA debut. It will leave you laughing, making heart-eyes, and running to add anything Mazey Eddings writes to your shelf. I loved every bright, colorful minute with Tilly and Ollie!" —Kaitlyn Hill, author of Love from Scratch
"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." - Publishers Weekly
"Eddings' [YA] debut will appeal to readers looking for both a coming-of-age story and a romance with well-developed and relatable neurodivergent main characters." - Booklist
School Library Journal
★ 08/01/2023
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
NOVEMBER 2023 - AudioFile
Narrators Chris Nelson and Justis Bolding's heartwarming and comical performance will have listeners immersed in the unlikely relationship between interns Oliver and Tilly as they trek across Europe on a business trip with Tilly's sister's start-up. Bolding's voice is quick and bright when portraying Tilly, a creative whose boundless energy is often stifled by her family because of her ADHD diagnosis. Oliver is a talented color theorist who inexplicably finds himself drawn to Tilly's whirlwind of energy. Nelson's youthful voice and elegant British accent work well for the orderly autistic teen. The narrators expertly display the complex emotions of the neurodivergent pair as they learn how to communicate with each other. Opposites attract in this breezy, fast-paced listen. J.E.C. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2023-05-09
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)
