Ellie Pillai has decided to be a better friend, daughter, future sister and all round Better Person. Which means Trying To Help and sometimes doing the exact opposite. Armed with Dr Jada's podcast on how to beat heartbreak she's determined not to get distracted from her mission by Ash Anderson (ex-boyfriend), Shawn Kowalski (current bandmate) or the cute guy she just met at her Aunt's wedding (future husband?). Because Ellie Pillai is better than the boys she thinks she loves. But then the song she wrote about heartbreak goes viral and suddenly all anyone wants to talk about is love and who she's going to choose, when Ellie Pillai wants to choose anything except that feeling of not knowing what you want. Throw in some exams, an audition for drama school, a record company in New York, a heavily pregnant mum and a Granny with a penchant for emotional blackmail and Ellie Pillai is more confused than ever. Why is being a better person so hard? And can you beat heartbreak, if you're not really sure you want to?

A tender teen love story from the Carnegie-winning author of Look Both Ways. 'Jason Reynolds has done it again!' Judy Blume Seventeen-year-old Neon is about to have sex with his girlfriend, Aria, for the first time. In 24 seconds to be precise. He's hiding in the bathroom, nervous, wanting to do everything right . . . Rewind. To 24 minutes earlier where Neon rushes from work, taking the gift of fried chicken to Aria's house. Rewind again. To 24 hours earlier when Neon's big sister has advice about sex which makes him think he probably shouldn't be listening to his friends. To 24 days earlier. To 24 weeks earlier. To 24 months earlier, when he and Aria first met. This tender, sweet, wholesome piece of fiction discusses how to approach first sex, how to respect women, how to be gentle, how to make it about love. It shows us a refreshingly different side to male sexuality. 'Twenty-Four Seconds From Now will stay with readers for years to come. A gem of a book!' Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give Jason Reynolds won the Carnegie Medal for his book, Look Both Ways, in 2019 and was a New York Times #1 bestseller on 3rd November of the same year.

Note to self: what is falling in love, and am I really sure I want to do it? Ever since Ellie and Ash Anderson got together, Ellie Pillai has been discovering love, and kissing and doubting yourself, and questions.so.many.questions. Like, what happens when your boyfriend (boy that is more than just a friend) hand is half way down your back, fumbling at the place where a bra hook should exist, but instead there's a neon pink band that reads 'HELLO KITTY' because your dad shrunk all your bras in a 90° hot wash, when your dad never does your washing - ever. When Ellie goes to visit Granny in New York, she has to say goodbye to best friends Hayley and Jess, and hello to her annoying cousin Hope (walking model for argan oil), not to mention cryptic text messages from Ash and a meet-cute with a Dirty Blond stranger, who might just be less of a stranger than a boy from school who wants her to join his band... Suddenly Ellie Pillai is back in the spotlight, and everything feels a bit more complicated when you're falling in love or possibly falling flat on your face. And what happens if you're not actually sure who you should be falling in love, with?

The perfect coming-of-age romance by the most spectacularly funny and original debut voice.My name is Ellie. Ellie Pillai . . . And I suppose I am a little bit weird, but then, aren't we all, just a little bit?Most days, Ellie Pillai is somewhere between invisible, and not very cool - and usually she's okay with that. But suddenly, Ellie feels different. Maybe it's the new boy at school who makes her brain explode into rainbows every time she sees him (and also happens to be going out with her best friend), or maybe it's her new drama teacher, the one who seems to have noticed she exists. Suddenly, her misfit style, her skin colour, her songwriting and all that getting lost in the music in her head seem to be okay too. Because maybe standing out isn't a bad thing after all.'I adored this.' Simon James Green, author of Alex in Wonderland'I loved the fresh and original voice.' Bookseller, Highlights of the Season'A hilarious and heart-warming story.' Aisha Bushby, author of A Pocketful of Stars'Warm, funny and hopeful.' A M Dassu, author of Boy, Everywhere'A fresh, funny, feel-good story.' Rashmi Sirdeshpande

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