A novel that carves a space in your heart and remains there forever.' Rachael Lippincott, bestselling co-author of She Gets the Girl and Five Feet Apart We Are Okay meets They Both Die at the End in this YA debut about queer first love and mental health at the end of the world—and the importance of saving yourself, no matter what tomorrow may hold. If Tomorrow Doesn't Come is a celebration of queer love, a gripping speculative narrative, and an urgent, conversation-starting book about depression, mental health, and shame. Avery Byrne has secrets. She's queer; she's in love with her best friend, Cass; and she's suffering from undiagnosed clinical depression. But on the morning Avery plans to jump into the river near her college campus, the world discovers there are only nine days left to live: an asteroid is headed for Earth, and no one can stop it. An electric, urgent miracle of a book that asks what--and who--we dare to live for. Avery's story will shatter your heart and fill it with light again. Keep an eye on this writer: St. Jude is here to stay."

Any student who has struggled with intense depression or feelings of isolation while friends and family drift away will identify with Avery." — School Library ConnectionAvery Bryne is depressed. A freshman at Eaton, she plans her suicide one morning, writing good-bye letters to her roommate and her unrequited love of her life, Cass. But when she’s about to drown herself in a river, Cass calls, and tells her the news: an asteroid is headed towards Earth, and the inhabitants have nine days to come to peace with the thought of mass extinction. Yes, I think Avery values her friends and family so much and so deeply. She sees their humanity easily. She would do anything for them to live. It’s a much harder thing for her to see it in herself, but over the course of these 9 days she finally arrives. I’m not someone who thinks, either, that we must always be living for ourselves only. Sometimes if the only reason you have to keep living is someone else, that’s OK. Our lives are often longer than 9 days. There is time for many reasons, we just need at least one at all times. At once cinematic and intimate, If Tomorrow Doesn't Come weaves the apocalyptic chaos of a doomed world with the quiet vulnerability of complicated love to create an urgent, action-filled tapestry of humanity, hope, humor, and high stakes. The best kind of thriller: One that reminds you what it means to be alive, and what it means to be together." It’s always an interesting thought experiment—what would I do if I only had 9 days? I would be incredibly intentional. I wouldn’t waste time on the mundane or unfulfilling, and I would take risks and push myself to be open and loud and adventurous. My YA novel, If Tomorrow Doesn't Come , is available now from Bloomsbury Children's in the U.S. and Penguin Random House UK. The novel is represented by Erin Harris at Folio Literary Management. Cover art is by Mary Metzger (see more of her process here !), design by John Candell.

I loved everything about this of course: the premise, the characters, the relationships—the family dynamics, the friendships, the romance. Even though I couldn't necessarily relate to everything the main character was going through, every line hit so deep and so personal, I felt it in my bones. It definitely touches on a lot of heavy themes, but I think St. Jude did an amazing job with all of it. The way they wrote the main character's depression and her religious trauma... it's hard to say that it was "wonderful" because that's such a positive word for an otherwise terribly devastating life experience, but their writing skills really are stellar.

Review

It seems rude to already be looking into the future—savor all of this now!—but what are you working on?

On the morning Avery Byrne plans to end her life, the world discovers there are only nine days left to live: an asteroid is headed for Earth, and no one can stop it. Avery Byrne is on her way to kill herself when she receives news that there’s an asteroid heading towards earth. This follows Avery on what happens when you find out you and everyone you love has only 9 days left to live. This book is devastatingly brilliant. Jen St. Jude is hands down one of the most talented new voices in YA, and soon, everyone will know it." - Leah JohnsonYou know you had an experience when you finish a book and you immediately search for more words, more stories. If Tomorrow Doesn’t Come had my head spinning and my heart wanting.

If Tomorrow Doesn’t Come is a tender emotional story about the end of the world. About the ways in which our world can end. All the little and large ways. Keep reading this book review for my full thoughts. SummaryAvery isn’t sure if she’s gay, just that she loves Cass. We get to know Avery through her questioning, to her wavering belief in her sexuality; from worried about being damned because of her Catholic upbringing, to fully embracing who she is. It’s a complex dance and Jen St. Jude does a wonderful job of showing us all the facets of what Avery goes through as she comes out. Almost 2 years ago, you wrote a first-person essay in the late Catapult magazine about writing, and being a writer. It’s about whether our passions and dreams can save us, and what it means to be committed to the craft, without—somehow without—expectations. My debut YA novel, If Tomorrow Doesn’t Come, is about mental health, queer love, and what makes life worth living. Avery Byrne has secrets. She’s gay; she’s in love with her best friend, Cass; and she’s suffering from undiagnosed clinical depression. But on the morning Avery plans to jump into the river near her college campus, the world discovers there are only nine days left to live: an asteroid is headed for Earth, and no one can stop it.