Woke Up Like This (2023) by Amy Lea is a romance that focuses on what happens when Charlotte Wu, a high school senior, and her rival, J. T. Renner, wake up after an accident to find themselves 13 years older and engaged to be married. Char must learn how to let go of anger from her past and anxiety about her future to be happy in the present. Her experience of being 30 years old exposes her to new ideas and unexpected events, allowing her to develop empathy and understanding. Woke Up Like This is Amy Lea’s third novel. In the book’s Acknowledgements, Lea admits that she used to be very similar to the novel’s protagonist: the one who took over group projects in school and an ambitious goal chaser who wanted the dream job and dream house. She learned, firsthand, The Importance of Being Present—one of the novel’s major themes. Char learns something similar, and it changes her in all the best ways; she develops more confidence and assertiveness, finding the strength to confront difficult situations, learning to trust herself and others, and letting go of the resentments and worries that keep her from enjoying life.

This guide refers to the 2023 Mindy’s Book Studio paperback edition of the text.

Plot Summary

The novel begins with Charlotte Wu’s High School Bucket List, consisting of nine items 13-year-old Char planned to accomplish before graduation. She has completed four, has given up on two, and still hopes to finish the remaining three by celebrating Senior Week with her best friend, getting a promposal, and planning her dream prom. It is one month until prom, and Char, the vice president of student council, is about to pitch her “Around the World” theme to the president and Char’s long-time rival, J. T. Renner; her best friend, Kassie; Kassie’s boyfriend, Ollie; and Nori, Char’s most artistically inclined friend. Char believes that prom is the most important event in a teen’s life, and she is devastated when J. T. shoots down her idea. For her, this is just the most recent offense in a four-year history of wrongs that he has perpetrated against her, beginning with standing her up for homecoming in ninth grade and then winning the election against her this year. Char imagines the million ways that prom could turn tragic, especially if she does not control the planning. She loves to be organized and in charge, and she bristles at J. T.’s presence and his insistence that he play a role in planning the dance.

Char doesn’t have a date for prom, and she wants to ask Clay Diaz, a boy she’s had a crush on for years. Ever since J. T. asked her to freshman homecoming and then failed to show, Char has resented J. T., and she never gave him a chance to explain why he stood her up. Now, he only aggravates her more in the weeks leading up to the big night. In one particularly humiliating moment, an argument at their lockers leads to Char’s emergency tampons flying through the hallway just as Clay is walking past. Char holds J. T. responsible for the embarrassing incident. J. T. feels badly about it, and the pity on his face makes Char feel worse; she does not realize that J. T. has feelings for her.

Two days before prom, Char and J. T. visit a rental store and choose decorations to fit the “Under the Sea” theme. Char’s dad calls while J. T. is loading the van, and he tells her that he is having a baby with his new girlfriend, Alexandra, and asks Char to spend the summer with them at Alexandra’s lake house. He left Char and her mom when Char was in elementary school, and he wasn’t around much before that due to his job. Char’s mom is rather forgetful, so Char learned to manage both her own schedule and her mom’s in order to keep the house running smoothly. Char feels resentful of her dad’s new family and his willingness to work less with this baby on the way, but she tries to hide her feelings from J. T.

When they get back to school and begin decorating the gym, Char breaks down, thinking of all the times that her dad wasn’t there for her. J. T. is empathetic and kind, offering support and helping her up off the floor. Char goes to get him some scissors, and she finds their class’s time capsule. Each member of the grade is supposed to write a letter to their future self to go in the capsule, and then they will open it in 13 years, when they’re 30. They both get shocked by the metal container. Later, Char is up a ladder and asks J. T. to pass some crepe paper, but when he holds it up, she leans too far and falls face-first toward J. T. and the gym floor.

When Char comes to, she is wearing unfamiliar pajamas and lying in bed in a house she doesn’t recognize, next to a naked J. T. Somehow, they are 30, and the year is 2037. Neither can remember the last 13 years, but they soon learn that they are engaged to be married, with a big pre-wedding party tonight at Ollie’s house. After accepting that this is not some elaborate prank being played on them by peers, they begin to work together to figure out how to return to 2024. They tell Nori about their leap in time, and she suggests that they recreate Char’s fall since that preceded their time travel. To do this, they must return to the gym at their old high school, where they both now work—Char as a counselor and J. T. as a gym teacher. Getting in the gym when it is free of students proves difficult.

Char does her best to get through the day in her new, adult life, but J. T. has the time of his life. Char marvels at how easily things come to him. They go to the party at Ollie’s, aware that they must play the part of a couple in love, and when Char clasps his hand in an iron grip, J. T. teaches Char how to hold hands in a way that feels nice. His speech to the crowd is very complimentary of Char, and it seems sincere. At their friends’ prompting, Char kisses J. T., though the kiss is clunky and harsh. When he kisses her back, however, she feels electricity running through her body. He tells her that they’re putting on a good show, but it’s clear that something has changed between them. Char is upset that her dad hasn’t come to the party, and J. T. is dismayed to learn that his mom has a new boyfriend; they comfort one another. Both Char and J. T. get better at learning to interpret and empathize with the other’s feelings rather than teasing each other.

As time passes, J. T. succeeds in getting Char to let go of her worries and resentments. When she learns that her father has died and—just as troubling to her—that she and Kassie are no longer friends, J. T. helps her to have fun and live in the moment. Eventually, he reveals why he stood her up for homecoming, and it wasn’t to be with another girl, as Kassie said. It was to stay with his mom, who was struggling with grief after the death of J. T.’s little sister, Susie. Susie’s death also initiated J. T.’s fear of being disliked; he learned to make people happy because making his parents laugh after Susie died made him feel good. Char reveals to him that her need to feel in control and her obsessive organization stem from her father leaving their family. The more time that Char and J. T. spend together, the more they grow to love and trust one another. Char realizes that she’s not been able to rely on anyone for a long time, and she can count on J. T.

Char and J. T. try to recreate her fall, but it doesn’t work. When they chaperone the 2037 prom together, they dance to “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” from Dirty Dancing and enjoy one another’s company. Their feelings and attraction are mutual. J. T. even tries to persuade Char to do the lift from the movie, but she refuses. For now, Char decides that she wants to visit Alexandra and her half-sisters. She learns just how proud her father really was of her, hearing about the stories he’d tell and seeing her pictures all over the home. That night, she craves distraction, so J. T. takes her on a fun evening out: thrifting silly outfits, indulging at a candy store, and getting caught in the rain. At the thrift store, they find their class’s empty time capsule, and they each feel a jolt again when they touch it. Later, in the rain, J. T. convinces Char to do the lift from the movie, as they can hear the song emanating from a nearby tavern, and she agrees, knowing that she can trust him. It works, until J. T.’s pants split, and when Char leans to the side to look, she falls.

When she awakens, she is back on the gym floor with J. T., and they are 17 again. Char doesn’t know how to explain what she experienced or if J. T. had the same experience that she did. She quickly returns to old habits, bickering with him and treating him as a rival, though the feelings that she developed for J. T. remain. Her relationship with Kassie deteriorates, and when J. T. tries to help, he and Char end up kissing. She asks him to prom, but he has already asked a girl from an adjacent friend group. Kassie comes to her with a peace offering, and Char enjoys the happy moments with her friend rather than worrying about the future. Char finds the courage to ask Clay Diaz to prom, and he accepts. Things between Char and J. T. are strained, but she asks how he is after the anniversary of his sister’s death, and he asks her about things with her dad. Prom with Clay is very awkward, and Char realizes that they have no chemistry. When she wanders to her locker, J. T. follows her. He confronts her with his feelings, and she begins to think that maybe he, too, remembers being 30. They are interrupted by the announcement that J. T. and Kassie have been named prom king and queen, and, afterward, Char confronts Kassie about the lie she told Char about J. T. four years ago after he stood Char up. Kassie admits that she lied to Char about J. T. to cover up her embarrassment about being rejected by him. While she can forgive Kassie, Char knows that this is the beginning of the end of their friendship.

Char returns to the gym and sees J. T. near the DJ, who has just put on the song from Dirty Dancing. J. T. asks Char to dance, and they finally learn that they both have the same memories of being 30. Char is upset, though, that Kassie’s lie created a situation that deprived them of so much time together, but J. T. reminds her that they have now. Char realizes that being happy really is about being in the moment, enjoying it for what it is and not worrying about what comes next or being angry about what came before. Thus, Char can reconcile with her father, accept the decline in her friendship with Kassie, and fully appreciate her time with J. T. The novel closes with her letter to her 30-year-old self, in which she advises herself to be present and let go of her need for control.