Author: Rachel Lynn Solomon
Genre: Contemporary Romance / YA Fiction / Time Loop
Ideal For: Readers who love witty, emotional stories that mix humour, introspection, and a dash of magical realism. Perfect for fans of Groundhog Day, The Love Hypothesis, and character-driven romantic comedies that dig deeper than they first appear.
Plot Summary (Spoiler-Free)
In See You Yesterday, Rachel Lynn Solomon takes the classic “time loop” trope — a single day repeating endlessly — and injects it with warmth, humour, and genuine emotion. The novel follows Barrett Bloom, an ambitious, slightly awkward freshman on her first day of college. She’s determined to reinvent herself after a rough high school experience marked by humiliation and regret. This is supposed to be her fresh start — a new chapter.
Except it’s a disaster.
Her roommate hates her. Her journalism class turns into a nightmare. Her ex-boyfriend makes an appearance. And then, after one especially embarrassing day… Barrett wakes up, and it’s September 21st all over again.
As she struggles to understand what’s happening, she discovers she’s not alone. Another student, Miles Kasher-Okamoto, is also trapped in the loop. What follows is part sci-fi puzzle, part slow-burn romance, and part journey of self-discovery as Barrett and Miles attempt to figure out why time has stopped — and what they must learn to move forward.
Rachel Lynn Solomon’s Voice: Funny, Fearless, and Full of Heart
Solomon’s writing style is instantly recognisable: fast-paced dialogue, sharp internal monologue, and characters who feel like real people — flawed, funny, and full of longing. She writes with a cinematic rhythm, switching effortlessly between snappy banter and quiet moments of vulnerability.
Barrett’s narration is equal parts self-deprecating and sincere. Her voice anchors the book with emotional authenticity, making her not just a protagonist but a companion. She’s the kind of character who says exactly what you’ve thought before — but funnier, and with more caffeine-fueled chaos.
Solomon excels at emotional layering. Beneath the rom-com exterior lies an exploration of trauma, failure, and the fear of never being “enough.” Barrett’s humor becomes both shield and self-expression — her way of navigating the pressure to succeed and the weight of her own expectations.
Miles, meanwhile, is the perfect counterbalance. Where Barrett is impulsive and loud, he’s methodical and quiet — a physics major with a soft heart and a skeptical mind. Their chemistry doesn’t explode instantly; it builds slowly, through shared frustration, late-night conversations, and the intimacy of living the same day together over and over.
The Time Loop as Emotional Metaphor
At first glance, the time loop premise might sound like a fun sci-fi gimmick. But Solomon uses it brilliantly as a metaphor for emotional stagnation — the way people get stuck in patterns of guilt, fear, or self-sabotage.
For Barrett, the endless repetition mirrors her inability to move past high school humiliation and self-doubt. She wants to change, but she’s haunted by the version of herself that failed before. The loop forces her to confront not just external obstacles, but her own inner narrative — the one that tells her she’ll always mess things up.
For Miles, the loop reflects something quieter but equally painful: his obsession with control and logic. He’s a boy who measures the universe in data points and formulas, but can’t solve the emotional equations of loss and regret.
Together, their journey becomes less about escaping the loop and more about healing the parts of themselves that keep them trapped. That emotional precision — using a sci-fi framework to explore human growth — is where Solomon shines.
The Romance: Awkward, Adorable, and Authentic
One of the book’s greatest strengths is how it handles romance — not as instant attraction, but as a slow accumulation of understanding. The relationship between Barrett and Miles unfolds in layers. At first, they annoy each other endlessly. Then they start collaborating. Then, gradually, they see each other — truly see each other.
Their dynamic captures the rare balance between intellectual connection and emotional intimacy. You feel their chemistry not just in the romantic tension, but in their conversations about ambition, fear, and purpose.
Because the time loop isolates them from the rest of the world, they create their own small universe — a space where they can experiment, fail, and try again without consequence. It’s both sweet and symbolic: love as the ultimate act of vulnerability, repeated until you get it right.
Solomon avoids clichés. The romance isn’t built on grand gestures, but on small, everyday moments — laughter in the dining hall, late-night confessions, awkward silences that become comfortable. There’s a sense of realism in their connection that makes the emotional payoff feel earned.
Themes That Resonate
1. Reinvention and Self-Forgiveness
At its heart, See You Yesterday is about the pressure to start over. Barrett’s college journey mirrors the universal desire to “become someone new” — to erase past mistakes and reinvent yourself. But the loop forces her to realize that healing doesn’t come from escaping your past; it comes from accepting it.
This theme will resonate deeply with readers who’ve ever wanted a do-over — and learned that growth isn’t about perfection, but persistence.
2. Fear of Failure
Both protagonists are haunted by failure. Barrett by social humiliation; Miles by the need for constant achievement. Solomon captures how perfectionism and fear of failure can be paralyzing — how it can make time feel like it’s standing still. The novel’s message is subtle but powerful: progress often comes disguised as imperfection.
3. Time, Choice, and Change
The time loop naturally raises philosophical questions: If you could relive the same day forever, what would you do differently? Who would you become? The book doesn’t overcomplicate these ideas — instead, it focuses on how small choices define who we are. Barrett and Miles learn that change is incremental, messy, and deeply personal.
4. Healing Through Connection
Perhaps the most poignant theme is the power of human connection. Both characters enter the loop feeling isolated — trapped in their own emotional timelines. It’s through each other that they learn to move forward. The love story becomes less about romance and more about recognition — being truly known by another person, flaws and all.
The Writing: Sharp and Sincere
Rachel Lynn Solomon has a gift for dialogue that feels natural without being mundane. Conversations flow with quick wit and unspoken meaning, revealing character through tone and rhythm. She balances humor with introspection seamlessly — a scene can make you laugh one moment and hit you in the chest the next.
Her descriptions are vivid but never overwrought. She captures sensory detail with precision — the hum of a dorm, the smell of coffee, the flicker of fluorescent lights in a lecture hall — grounding the time loop in a believable, tactile world.
The pacing, though occasionally uneven in the middle third, is mostly excellent. The repetition inherent to the premise could have felt tedious, but Solomon avoids that through variation and emotional evolution. Each “day” feels distinct because the characters change, even when the world doesn’t.
The Emotional Core: A Coming-of-Age Story Disguised as a Rom-Com
While See You Yesterday is marketed as a romantic comedy, it’s also a story about self-compassion. The humor and charm never overshadow its emotional depth.
Barrett’s growth is handled with care. She begins as defensive and self-conscious, afraid of being laughed at again. Through the loop, she learns not only how to trust others, but how to forgive herself for her own flaws. By the end, her confidence feels earned, not bestowed.
Miles’s journey is more subtle but equally affecting. His quiet grief, revealed gradually, gives the book emotional heft. When his walls finally break down, it’s one of the novel’s most moving moments.
Together, their arcs form a gentle truth: we cannot truly begin again until we accept where we’ve been.
Where It Falters Slightly
Despite its many strengths, See You Yesterday isn’t flawless. The time loop explanation leans heavily on emotional logic rather than science — which works thematically but might frustrate readers expecting a more concrete resolution.
Some parts of the middle section, where Barrett and Miles experiment with loop-breaking theories, drag slightly. The humour occasionally overshadows the emotional stakes, and a few repetitive scenes could have been trimmed.
Still, these are minor quibbles in an otherwise heartfelt narrative. The emotional resonance more than compensates for the slight structural stumbles.
Why It Earns Four Stars
See You Yesterday succeeds on nearly every front — voice, emotion, humour, and theme — but stops short of total perfection due to its pacing issues and a somewhat rushed resolution. Yet its warmth, honesty, and originality make it an immensely satisfying read.
It’s the kind of book that lingers long after you close it — not because of a shocking twist, but because of how deeply you care about the characters. Barrett and Miles feel like people you could meet in real life — people you’d root for, laugh with, and want to see happy.
The story reminds us that even when life feels repetitive or stuck, growth is happening in the background. Every day, every choice, every heartbreak brings us closer to who we’re meant to be.
Final Thoughts
Rachel Lynn Solomon’s See You Yesterday is more than a romantic comedy — it’s a meditation on forgiveness, both for others and for ourselves. It takes the fantastical concept of a time loop and turns it into something deeply human.
It’s about learning that mistakes don’t define us. That healing isn’t linear. That love, when it finally comes, doesn’t erase our pain — it helps us understand it.
By the time Barrett and Miles step out of their repeating day, you realize that the loop wasn’t a curse at all. It was a gift — a chance to practice living until they got it right.
And in that sense, See You Yesterday is about all of us — stumbling, repeating, and trying again, one imperfect day at a time.
