Written by: Elena B.

Hey friends! Thanksgiving Break was so fun and relaxing and DELICIOUS, but best of all, it allowed me to finish one of my new favorite books! I have been so excited to post this review, so I can share my newfound love of this book. I knew I’d love it since the moment I read the synopsis, and I definitely wasn’t let down. Here’s my spoiler-free review of Better than the Movies by Lynn Painter.

{you may also like – The Do-Over Review}

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Quick Synopsis

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BUY THE BOOK HERE – AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | BOOKS A MILLION

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WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?

In this rom-com about rom-coms, in the spirit of Kasie West and Jenn Bennett, a hopeless romantic teen attempts to secure a happily-ever-after moment with her forever crush, but finds herself reluctantly drawn to the boy next door.

Perpetual daydreamer Liz Buxbaum gave her heart to Michael a long time ago. But her cool, aloof forever crush never really saw her before he moved away. Now that he’s back in town, Liz will do whatever it takes to get on his radar—and maybe snag him as a prom date—even befriend Wes Bennett.

The annoyingly attractive next-door neighbor might seem like a prime candidate for romantic comedy fantasies, but Wes has only been a pain in Liz’s butt since they were kids. Pranks involving frogs and decapitated lawn gnomes do not a potential boyfriend make. Yet, somehow, Wes and Michael are hitting it off, which means Wes is Liz’s in.

But as Liz and Wes scheme to get Liz noticed by Michael so she can have her magical prom moment, she’s shocked to discover that she likes being around Wes. And as they continue to grow closer, she must reexamine everything she thought she knew about love—and rethink her own ideas of what Happily Ever After should look like.

See Goodreads for more

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Better than the Movies Review

Holy CRAP this book was fantastic. I haven’t finished a book this fast since May, and I enjoyed every single wild second of it. It’s officially been 11 days since I finished it and I still want to reread it so badly. I’ve had a lot of time to stew on my feelings, so I hope that I can express them in a way that’s worthy of this masterpiece.

Characters – 8.5/10

Liz is my hero. I know some people don’t like her, but I love this girl to literal pieces. She was portrayed differently than most other redheads. She was feisty, but it wasn’t stereotypical. Yes, Liz was sarcastic. Yes, she was feisty and fiery, but it wasn’t in a way that was like, “Okay girl, stop with this extraneous stereotyping before I explode.” Liz was so different from any other character I’ve read about in general. Her obsession with rom-coms was ADORABLE and something I think we definitely can all relate with in a way. It makes her character arc even better when she realizes the life she always dreamed she’d live was different from her reality, and that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Wes is my new book boyfriend and obsession and is the reason I will never find true love. I melted a little inside every time he called Liz “Libby Loo” and I was GONE when she called him “Wessy” after they kissed. Everything about him was just so perfect. I loved his sarcasm and the way he got all soft on Liz when he learned something new about her, his facial expressions and how he wasn’t afraid to tell LIz the hard truth. I need a man like him asap. Do I wish he didn’t smoke? Well, yeah, but at least it was cigars and not cigarettes. 

Michael was really boring and typical. There was nothing special about him. I didn’t hate him but I didn’t love him either. 

Joss is also pretty boring and typical but I can definitely see where she’s coming from.

Helena is a girlboss and I need her in my life stat. I loved everything about her. She was witty and hilarious, but most of all, she waited for Liz to come to her. She waited for when she was ready but stood there with arms open wide all the while. Helena knew she couldn’t replace Liz’s mom, but she was okay with that. She didn’t try to, but instead was her own person and Liz’s hero in a different way. She has no problem discussing difficult things with Liz and telling her what’s up, but she does it in the kindest way possible. That woman is a model stepmother. 

Atmosphere – 8.5/10

The atmosphere of this book was good, but was very typical of YA contemporary. There really wasn’t anything special about it, but I personally loved the atmosphere. It is, however, super popular and similar to so many other books’, which is why it’s not as high a rating as it could be.

Writing – 9/10

The writing in this book was so amazing. It was super cool how every chapter started with a quote from a rom-com, and I loved the way it painted all the characters. They all seemed so real. Real humans with real problems and real concerns and likes and dislikes and oh my gosh…it was just so good. I was honestly really impressed. This writing is easily the best I’ve ever read for a YA contemporary book, especially.

Plot – 9/10

I LOVED the plot of this book with every fiber of my being. It was enemies-to-friends-to-lovers + fake dating + boy next door + boy falls first + slow burn + love triangle + mutual pining + opposites attract + second chance. Honestly, what more could you possibly want? This book took overused tropes and twisted them to be a little different, which is honestly the only way to survive in this saturated market of YA contemporaries. Even though the plot was predictable at times, I was never bored and there were times where I was actually surprised. I thought it was all done really well, and easily takes first place for my favorite of its kind. 

Intrigue – 10/10

The intrigue was amazing and I’m rating it really high because there was never a single moment when I was bored. I’ve seriously never been so invested in a story as I was with this one. It was heartfelt and ADDICTIVE. It’ll always be special to me because it got me out of a reading slump. 

Logic/Relationships – 9.5/10

This one is pretty straightforward. Everyone was true to their character and the plot was consistent, even if it was predictable. It checked every box for me. 

The ROMANCE in this book made me scream into my pillow, kick my feet, widen my eyes, giggle my face off, and so much more insane manifestations of my all-over-the-place emotions. It’s so cute to see Wes and Liz’s relationship progress from enemies to friends to lovers. I actually think this might be my new favorite trope. I’m a sucker for best friends to lovers because I love it when friends realize their true feelings for each other. I’m a strong believer that you can’t have romantic feelings without first having platonic feelings and this book portrayed that really well.

Wes and Liz’s banter was ahmazing and Wes literally killed me every time he made fun of Liz or called her names she didn’t like. Every single one of their scenes together was just so darling and I was “ooo-ing” and “awww-ing” in every single one of them. I loved that Liz made the first move because it showed that the guy doesn’t always have to initiate and that girls can go after what they want. 

Enjoyment – 10/10

All in all, I don’t think I could’ve enjoyed this book any more than I did. It was seriously so freaking good. I’m in literal love with Libby Loo and Wessy and they have my heart. Ever since I finished this book, I’ve wanted to reread it, and there is no doubt in my mind that it’ll happen sooner rather than later. 

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Trigger Warnings

I hate to say it, but there were definitely a couple contributing factors to my rating not being quite 5 stars.

Language – 4.5/5: 
F*ck:5 (two are from a movie quote)
Sh*t:68
D*mn:13
A*s:39
B*tch:2
P*ss:23
H*ll: 18
G*d:137
J*sus:3 

Drugs – 1.5/5: Mention of people smoking and drinking beer. Characters go to a keg party. Two characters smoke cigars.

Sexual Content/Innuendoes – 1/5: Character says she understands how people could have sex in a car. A few other innuendos, but nothing too bad.

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This book is fantastic as long as you don’t mind a little swearing (well, a lot of swearing), but I think it definitely lived up to the hype. 

Recommended: 9/10 for 14+

One Word Summary: Delightful

Movie Rating: TV-14

Recommendations based on this book: 

Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

Better than the Prom by Lynn Painter (a novella from Wes’s POV)

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