Missed Connections

by Tashie Bhuiyan

A compulsively readable young adult novel with a magical twist that follows a teenage runaway who finds herself stuck in an airport where every flight takes her to a different memory.

Jasmine Nur will do anything to escape her childhood home—even flee in the middle of the night with her bags packed, anxiety weighing down her chest. She heads for LaGuardia Airport, ready to sacrifice everything she’s ever known in the hopes of starting anew. But every time she attempts to board her flight, she wakes up back at her gate. Again, and again, and again. 

Lost in airport limbo, Jasmine meets three other teenagers who are equally stuck, including Logan Mercier, a college student who’s perfectly content to stay in the airport forever. Upon discovering the other flights take her and her new friends to memories they’d rather forget, Jasmine must decide how far she’s willing to go to escape the airport—and if she’s capable of facing the horrors that sent her running in the first place.

Genres: Young Adult, Magical Realism, Contemporary

304 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication April 27, 2027

About the author

Tashie Bhuiyan is the author of Double Take, Right as Rain, and several other novels. She is a New Yorker through and through, and hopes to change the world, one book at a time. She loves writing stories about gaining agency through growth and surviving against all odds. When she's not doing that, she's probably traveling, attending a concert, or bothering her cat, Zuko.

Reviews

[Tashie Bhuiyan]

this one is for the avoidant girlies xo (more details to come!)

[Fernanda (ivyfer_isreading)]

Tashie’s books always leave me wanting more. Not in the unsatisfying-ending way but in the I'm-not-ready-to-say-goodbye-to-these-characters way. 
I've loved every book by the author so it's no surprise that Missed Connections was perfect. I love how emotional and deep Tashie's books are, you can always count that you will reflect about something while reading and it will leave you with food for thought after it's done. 
Missed Connections is about a girl running away from her home after enduring her abusive parents for way too long. She's on her way to university and to live with her online best friend, the dream really. Unfortunately the magical realism of it all had other plans and she ends up stuck in the airport in a time loop(not really but kind of) with other teens and apparently no way to get out. 
The book has the classic fluid writing with heart wrenching emotional damage that I've come to expect from Tashie Bhuiyan. Much like her other books it focuses a lot on difficult parent-child relationships. I love the differences but also the similarities between all our main characters and the dynamic of the friend group is just really great. Needless to say that I absolutely love all four of them, and I will miss them. 
Missed Connections is definitely worth your time, I recommend it to everyone that loves books about identity and surviving the path that was set out for you by breaking that mold. Also, there are queer characters, always good to inform because that's a really important thing to me as a reader. 

Thank you Netgalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the ARC.

[carthi ♡]

⋆˙⟡ — pre-read : time loops + running away from home + tashie bhuiyan?? oh yeah ik what im doing in a year's time (or less if that arc dropped into my lap hehe ꉂ(˵˃ ᗜ ˂˵) ) graduation? who needs that when u get THE book of all time 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️

[Zoe]

Thank you Macmillan and NetGalley for the ARC.
I was very excited to read this one as the premise sounded interesting. That faded quickly with the dialogue. Reading “your aura is so negative right now” and other TikTok brain rot phrases is going to date this book considerably quickly.

[Lola]

A tashie book about memories and running away...I FEAR this is THEE book for me. just because of my 1) love for Wendy mass books and how much she affected my life with time travel
2) that one oddly specific Annabeth Chase fic where she runs away her wedding because she in fact TIME TRAVELED to her past
3) for the poem that I am writing about how I am no longer sixteen but still not twenty three - yeah im so SO ready to be fucked up by this book

[bells]

Rating: 4.25⭐️


✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

“Because I'm enough for myself.
And even if you can't find it
in your hearts to love me,
other people will.”

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦


Now I can officially say I’ve read all of Tashie Bhuiyan’s books, and this is now my second favorite after Counting Down with You. Look at me completing the books like I’m collecting Infinity Stones.

Tashie’s books always deal with mental health, and this one is no exception, but somehow Missed Connections felt refreshing. It still gets super heavy, and there were moments where the book basically jabbed me directly in the chest like, whoa, okay, that was personal. But at the same time, it made me feel seen and understood. Oh how I loved it here.

And the magical realism was chef’s kiss. The time loop was genuinely trippy and a little terrifying, but in a good way. It added this unexpected layer of complexity that made the story so much more intriguing. And I loved how it basically screamed that sometimes, in order to keep moving forward, you have to face the things that scare you. It’s never easy, but sometimes the only way out is through.

Jasmine is so avoidant, she’s just like me for real. But seriously, I loved her bravery. The way she finally chooses herself after being cornered by her toxic, abusive parents definitely takes so much courage. She knows leaving is terrifying, but she also knows staying will destroy her, and she chooses herself anyway. I love that for her.

And Logan is just a chill little guy. Oh, and he also looooves to beg. Exactly how I like my men. That’s it, that’s all I have to say about him.

Jasmine and Logan are genuinely so cute. The way their pet names are Flash and Bane was just so adorbs. Like, hello, DC, are you seeing this potential ship? Just kidding… unless👀 But anyways, you know I can never say no to witty banter, and thank godddd they delivered.

Also, my chaotic little found family!!! I LOVE THEM. Even Sara and Tristan, who are technically side characters, felt like actual people instead of just background noise. I’m so invested in them, I fear I need more of them.

But that epilogue was FOULLLL. Tashie Bhuiyan, you better get back here because I deserve MORE. Feed me another dose of epilogue, but make it longer this time. Consider it an emergency.

Overall, this was such a heart-wrenching and heartwarming read at the same time. It destroyed me, comforted me, and made me go all giggling and kicking my feet.


P.S. I looooooved the easter egg. Yes, I noticed and I picked up the crumbs. Like, OMGGG I KNOW YOU, I’ve read about you before!!!


════════════════════════

Thank you to Macmillan and NetGalley for the ARC!

[Liesl Young]

Oh man. How do I even describe this.

Books about messy families are one of my weaknesses, from fiction to memoirs, but I've rarely seen one as achingly honest as this. Jasmine reminds me of myself. Though I found her character off-putting and coarse in the beginning, the growth she goes through made the book unputdownable. I loved the unique premise--I'm not often a fan of contemporary with a magical twist, but this is one I hoped never ended.

I really appreciated how even though there was a romance plot, it wasn't the main through line of the book. I loved Tristan, Sara, and even Logan (though I found his character grating at times, it was realistic). The story of a young adult leaving an abusive family and finding a group to become her new family resonated deeply with me. I appreciated how Jasmine's parents were portrayed as unapologetic--Jasmine had to change because they weren't going to, had to take action on her own because they would never let her. That's the unfortunate reality of many abused kids, and I wish there were more books that didn't shy away from that reality.

I found the portrayal of anxiety incredibly realistic--I liked how Jasmine used the 54321 grounding exercise and how it grounded me in the setting of the book. I also really appreciated how the author included a list of trigger warnings at the beginning. All of the teens' manifestations of trauma felt believable yet distinct from each other. I also found the ending incredibly satisfying--it didn't feel cliche as some "face your fears" narratives often do. (I'm also a big fan of the physical goal of this book being to get to the Detroit airport and ultimately U of M, from an Ann Arbor girlie, but I've never heard it referred to as UMich before, lol.) I did think that some of the slang will date the book ("catching strays," "aura," etc.) but I'm actually not mad about that--I like how contemporary fiction catches a snapshot of that time. If this book stays in 2026 forever, I won't care.

All in all, I think this is one of my top reads of this year. I'll be checking out the rest of Bhuiyan's work and hoping to grab a physical copy of this book at some point soon.

[Brittney]

Missed Connections • Tashie Bhuiyan

One phrase: airport limbo for the avoidant girlies ✈️💔

Okay so Jasmine runs away from home, gets stuck in LaGuardia, and every flight takes her to a memory she probably did not want to unpack?

Immediately yes.

This sounds like YA magical realism with emotional damage baked directly into the walls of an airport. Jasmine is trying to escape everything, but instead she gets trapped in a loop with other teens, haunted memories, and the absolute audacity of having to face the very things she was running from.

Rude, but effective.

I love the idea of an airport as limbo. Everyone is leaving, arriving, waiting, avoiding, hoping, spiraling. Very on brand for teenage feelings, honestly.

Add in found family, messed up parents, magical flights, anxiety, friendship, memory work, and “being avoidant is not the answer” energy?

Yeah. This sounds like it might hurt my feelings.

✨ Tropes and vibes:
✈️ airport limbo
💔 runaway FMC
🌀 time loop vibes
🧠 memory magic
😭 avoidant girlies
🫶 found family
🏠 complicated home life
✨ YA magical realism
👀 emotional unraveling
🌙 healing and survival

📚 Read this if you like:
YA magical realism, airport settings, teenagers with heavy emotional baggage, found family, memory based stories, running away from your problems, and books that gently force characters to look their trauma directly in the face.

This sounds weird, emotional, and deeply targeted.

#MissedConnections #TashieBhuiyan #YABooks #MagicalRealism #BookReview

[Lilly Lilly]

This new-to-me author story found its way to me as I was initially intrigued by the title, cover art, and brief description of the book. Needless to say, I was hooked as early as the dedication page. This story follows a girl trying to escape her abusive parents to attend an out-of-state college while living with her long distant bff and ultimately chase her dreams. What she finds in this escape is that she will need to face some hardships head-on before making her great escape. She finds herself in the likes of similar company, and this story follows their journey figuring out what they have in common and facing their demons that entrap them. To make matters worse, they are also stuck in some loophole in time and keep repeating the same time and place of day.

The character building and personalities of each character was just perfect. The dynamic worked so well together, and the author had a way with words to ensure the feelings of each character came across just as intended. I would recommend this book to anyone, especially those 1980s babies who have escaped their less than stellar parents, or anyone who is experience this journey. I'd also recommend it to anyone just looking for a downright great story. This was a story about survival. It was easy to relate and to understand.. and the last page of the book left me crying. I'd give it 100 stars if I could.

Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and NetGalley for this eARC. All these opinions are my own.

[Alice Clark]

Jasmine runs away from home to chase her dreams, far from her despotic parents who try to control every aspect of her life. Sneaking out of the house, she hurries to the airport, where she unexpectedly gets stuck in a time loop along with three other teenagers. Each of them is running from something, and together they have to figure out how to break the loop and finally leave the walls of the airport behind.

Despite the heavy themes it raises, especially in the context of relationships with parents, the story is filled with light and warmth. I really loved the characters and the way their stories, their pasts, and the problems that landed them in the time loop were gradually revealed to us. I think this book will resonate with a lot of readers and will manage to remind them of something important: in order to move forward freely, without regrets and anxiety, you absolutely have to, at least internally, close out your past problems and allow yourself to let them go. And sometimes, allow yourself to grab hold of an almost-missed chance. In a way, this is even a therapeutic book, and I'm glad I got the chance to read it.

Thanks Netgalley, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and Tashie Bhuiyan for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

[medha (Arin's version)]

I'll be so honest with you, I'd happy give this book four stars because I genuinely enjoyed it. I've never read an English book with an fmc who has the same nationality as me, and it almost felt like I was reading something by Ann Liang (whom I love). It was bittersweet and hit a bit too close to home at times. The found family in this book also hit really hard, it was short, sweet and very easy to read.

That being said, one of the characters in this book goes to Cornell. I know this book was written way before the incident with the seven guys gained attention on social media, but it still felt so off to me. It is probably on me for being SO paranoid about that, but it's also not smth I wanna ignore.

Anyways, I hope all seven of them go to prison.

[Pietra Ibrisimovic]

“You could’ve saved yourself again if you had to, Flash,” Logan says, his voice quiet but firm. “Maybe it would’ve taken some time, but you could’ve done it. Don’t discount your bravery.”

oh im SICKKKKKKK when all of their parents are fucked up? yeahhhh 🚬 this friend group is my FAMILY and their groupchat is constantly blowing up and they’re taking trips to see each other and support each other and love each other and and and 😭😭😭 being avoidant is NOT THE ANSWER there is life beyond that people CAN break free 🗣️🗣️🗣️

[Maren]

(I received a complimentary advance copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

This blew me away! I’m talking, couldn’t put down, read in one sitting kind of amazing!

The concept here is fresh and I love the twist on the classic time loop scenario. I love that the characters all had struggles to overcome and that facing them together made them stronger.

It covers some hard topics, but I think the author did a great job tactfully approaching them and did so in a way that makes them both real and meaningful.

Definitely will read again when it’s out!

[Julia Bozza]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved this book! The concept was so unique, and I thought the execution was amazing. I loved the found family, the characters, and how the story explored grief, healing, and learning to move forward without forgetting the past. It was such a beautiful coming-of-age story with the perfect balance of light moments and emotional depth. No notes! Loved it!

[Page Powars]

Official blurb: Strikingly honest. Tashie’s latest made me feel the intensity of being a teenager again with its rare authenticity. The suspenseful world and deeply layered love story had me rapidly turning the pages.

Unofficial blurb: Logan raising that drink in the club like Leo meant everything to me

[emma]

Review of advanced reader copy from Netgalley.

I’m a sucker for time loop books and this book was great. I loved how it delved into each of the characters backstories and personalities without taking away from the main character. The authors writing style was great as well and it helped keep me hooked throughout the entirety of the book.

[Ardena]

This was probably the most adorable book I’ve read in a long time. The premise was great, execution flawless. Moral of the story and lessons learned there. It was such a fluffy feel good read. Will be coming back to this one.

Tropes: found family, fluffy.

[holly]

sometimes you have to run away from everything to learn it’s worth it to run towards things, too 🫶🩵

[Audrey Marie]

Found family done right for a YA novel. I really enjoyed Jasmine's journey and how her trauma was shown without being overwhelming for readers.