Day’s YA: WE WERE SUPPOSED TO FIND THIS

WE WERE SUPPOSED TO FIND THIS by Emily Snyder
9781250440730
3/16/2026
Wednesday Books
Ages 13-18

Every thirty years, Harmony’s Comet passes over Aurora, Connecticut, and local legends spread rumors of people disappearing and slipping through time. Everly is spending the summer after her high school graduation with her grandmother in Aurora, her mother’s hometown, and is grieving the loss of her mother. It’s been thirty years since the comet’s last appearance, and Everly plans to ignore its grand return until she meets Sam, a playful ’90s-obsessed girl who vanishes as quickly as she appears. In her search to find Sam again, Everly accidentally slips thirty years in the past to 1998, reunites with her, and then quickly comes face to face with her teenage mother. When she finally accepts that she has indeed somehow ended up back in time (and she wasn’t the first to do so), she starts to dig into the comet’s link to local disappearances. She teams up with her own mother to solve the missing-persons mystery and get back home, and they start to uncover dark secrets that threaten the timeline. If she isn’t careful, she’ll risk an altered future without her mother or the girl she’s falling for.

This is a true genre mashup: science fiction and time travel, romance, and a twisty mystery all in one. I always love a good romance book, but my favorite romance plotlines are the ones that take place alongside another adventure, so this was the perfect book for me to pick up (plus, I’ve been on a mystery and thriller reading kick lately)! Just reading the summary of WE WERE SUPPOSED TO FIND THIS immediately piqued my interest, and I can confirm that the book most certainly delivered. Emily Snyder’s writing style is so great—it was a quick, thrilling read with great pacing, and so many plot twists that I was practically getting whiplash from changing my theories on what would be revealed. I absolutely love books that play with time, and the concept here was so fascinating and new to me, especially in figuring out how the two years and their timelines were connected. Plus, having the comet’s portal set in the library was the perfect touch!

I loved getting to watch the culture shock that Everly experienced when she ended up in 1998, as she was thrown into a world with dial-up internet and boybands she’s never heard of (Backstreet Boys!), with her iPhone and headphones drawing confused looks. In trying to hide that she’s from the future, she’s also trying not to alter the timeline—but how is she supposed to know the intricacies of time travel or the 90s? Does the bi flag exist yet? Will having her photo taken later end up as proof of time travel? I honestly think it was as stressful for me reading it as it was for her. But underneath the mystery, the book also beautifully explores grief and Everly struggling with the loss of her mother. You see such a strong sense of love within her family, and you watch her grapple with her desire to stay with her mom in 1998 versus returning home to her loved ones. I loved all of the characters, especially Everly’s friend Ash, who hosts a podcast about strange phenomena (and absolutely believes in the comet, he was right). And of course, the relationship between Everly and Sam was so incredibly sweet. I immediately felt their pull towards each other, and I was rooting for them from the moment they met. They were both so easy to care about and connect to, and I really loved seeing a queer teen relationship being accepted and supported in the 90s.

WE WERE SUPPOSED TO FIND THIS is like ONE LAST STOP meets Back to the Future, to the soundtrack of Tegan and Sara. It’s a heartstring-tugger, a page-turning time-travel mystery, and an epic sapphic romance. It’s a book to add to your TBR right away.

<3 Margo

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