Reviews

Better Than the Movies by Lynn Painter

nyahcloud's review

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A

4.5

life_full_ofbooks's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Romcoms are my favorite kind of movie and Lynn Painter did a fabulous job incorporating them into this YA romcom. 
Liz Buxbaum is a hopeless romantic. Her favorite movie is any romantic comedy and she’s trying to live her life according to an invisible script. Senior prom is quickly approaching and her old childhood crush, Michael, just moved back to town having moved away 8 years ago. She knows he’s who she is destined to be with and when she realizes that her next door neighbor and life long nemesis, Wes, is friendly with Michael, Liz bribes him to help get Michael to notice her. She knows this is who she’s meant to be with, so why is Wes suddenly taking up all of the room in her thoughts?
This romcom is so much fun! It’s filled with so many of the great (and maybe some not so great) tropes like enemies to lovers, the boy next door, and miscommunication (my least favorite). The characters are all complex and multilayered, thus making this book more deep than your typical romcom. 
I loved how each chapter started with a quote from a romcom movie and I really loved how Liz curated soundtracks for every event in her life, even the more mundane ones. This is the first book I’ve read by Lynn Painter but it certainly won’t be my last!

kelliv810's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? Yes

3.25

Lynn Painter is always a bit predictable for me, but it doesn't stop me from liking her books.  This was a cute teenage romcom :)

xenxen's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

luz0512's review against another edition

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fast-paced

4.0

cnf9v4's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

meganfitz7's review

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funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

this book was really cute i enjoyed it a lot. it was the first book i read after a sarah j maas overload so that was a change but i did really like 

pbookmarked's review

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5.0

“enemies-to-lovers — it’s our trope buxbaum”

emmamedina0515's review

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funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I THINK I JUST FOUND MY NEW FAV BOOK!!!! I haven't read many teen romance books with the exception of John Green's books but his are kind of on a different level for me bc of the way he tries to be deeper and not as superficial as most YA romance books (which is fine I think that's part of the reason I love his books). But back to Better Than The Movies, I have never read a book like this one that was just so teen girl coded. Like I really felt like the story was super relatable bc I could relate to Liz with all her delusionalness ;) (except she's way more brave than me for actually talking to her crush lol). This book was just amazing on so many levels and I am so excited to read more books by Lynn Painter, I am actually planning on buying everything she has ever written haha. I love Liz and Wes and they are so cute together. Not only was the plot and the characters amazing but there were so many cute things that Lynn added to her book that just make it so unique. Like the quotes from different rom-coms to start every chapter (I love this idea and I'm planning on watching every rom-com mentioned!!:)). Also the fact that Liz knows so many songs that she can just tie a song to whatever moment was happening like that is so relatable and I aspire to be like that lol. OMG and the soundtrack for Liz and Wes is so cute, I'm actually listening to it while I write this. I can totally relate to the way that Liz uses music to just relax and deal with the turbulent emotions that comes with being a teenager and I just loved seeing all the music references in the book. I also really loved the little text message conversations with the emojis, that was so cutie patootie 🥰. Honestly what first drew me to this book was the fact that I saw an Instagram reel about it's Taylor Swift references and I was like yesss must read before even knowing what it was about. I'm so glad I stumbled upon this book it's without a doubt one of the best books I've ever read. I am already planning on reading it over and over just to experience the giddiness I felt the first time I read it. There were def many moment where I had to close the book and just squeal from the cuteness overload. If you ever come across this book, buy it, it's amazing and def worth the read. It only took me about 2 days to read and that's only cause I had to stop to go to bed haha. But you could def finish it in a few hours. 

mart9616's review

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

4.25