Better Than the Movies (Better Than the Movies #1) by Lynn Painter

"It had a very, "10 Things I Hate About You" feel and parts of it were fun but honestly, Liz was one of the most painfully clueless MCs I've come across in a long time. Like, come on girl, wake up. This one was a struggle but I needed to see how it ended 🙄."

⭐⭐

Pros: Liz and Wes' banter was, of course, witty and charming.

Cons: I felt like I didn't know Liz as a character. Her childhood felt glossed over and hence her infatuation with Michael Young just seemed to come out of the blue/Liz is probably one of the most infuriatingly clueless characters I have ever come across.

Full Review

Elizabeth (Liz) Buxbaum is hitting the most memorable, movie moment time of a young girls' life. High School Graduation! Her Senior year is winding down and it's almost time for prom, so naturally Liz's head is full of day dreams of the most romantic prom-posal ever, offered by none other than Michael Young.

He's recently moved back to town and Liz just knows in her heart that it's meant to be. He's the one. Her mother, sadly killed in a car accident a year or so ago, was a hopeless romantic, raising Liz to believe in fate, true love, all the lessons from the rom-coms that they would watch together. And she just knows that she and Michael Young are going to be a thing.

The only trick is she's not really part of his social circle. The cringe-worthy fact that her next-door neighbor and nemesis, Wes Bennett, is, is something she decides to use to her advantage. Though it sickens her, she asks Wes to help get her close to Michael so she can try and get an in. Wes agrees, on the condition that if they're successful and Michael asks Liz to prom, that she give him "the spot", a convenient parking space on the street where they live.

I'm sure you can see where this is going. Michael Young is the golden boy while Wes Bennett, is the tall, mysterious annoying neighbor. But as they work together on their plan, attending a basketball game, a movie night and occasionally grabbing food, she starts to think of him as a friend. The roles quickly reverse and we plummet down a cliche rabbit hole but in 300+ pages. It was far too long and too many side plots that I just didn't care about.

The story had potential but I wanted to know Liz more as a character. Everyone and everything just seemed kind of surface level, there was nothing really deep about anyone. The subplots as well, Jocelyn and Liz's minimally mentioned social group, were completely forgettable.

This book was a struggle though. I didn't find myself eager to pick it up hence why it took me a few days to finish it. I don't think I'll be reading the sequel.

Comments

Zen in the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury

"Obviously targeted to writers but honestly, anyone could benefit from Bradbury's practical yet poetic advice, this was a collection of esasys by Bradbury about his writing process and reflections on some of his greatest works." ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Pros: Bradbury, duh, though I'm biased, to me, the man's prose is pure poetry, every word beautiful/Since writing is not my career, it was an interesting way to view Bradbury's life. Writing was his job and he was the only income. If he did not produce material, he would not get paid. It help put things into perspective. Cons: The man can go on for a bit 😂/Bradbury's insane work ethic and endless endurance to just produce story after story seems insane and overwhelming but then again, this was his livelihood, so I'm sure it was insane and overwhelming. If he didn't write and get paid, they'd starve, so, it was a life or death situation. Full Review: This was essentially a collection of essays written by Bra...

Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King

“The tale of Andy Dufresne and how he served his time at Shawshank prison, as told through the eyes of his friend and fellow inmate, Red. Dark and disturbing but also compulsively readbale. I finished it in 2 days. Also enjoyable is Frank Darabont's 1994 film adaptation, "The Shawshank Redemption." ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Pros : Red has a soothing, drawl, making the reading easy and flowing/Since I saw the film first, I couldn't help but compare the book though I was pleased to find that the two were very similar. Cons : Things got a bit rambling a bit at the beginning/Since I saw the film first I couldn't help but compare the book but this ended up not being a con. Full Review: The state of Maine has a prison. Shawshank Redemption. And Red is the guy that can get you things. He also happens to be the only guilty man in Shawshank but that's netiher here nor there. He meets Andy Dufresne for business purposes at first and he finds him to be a calm, cool man and Red likes him i...

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick

“Rick Deckard is a Bounty Hunter who's on the trail of six "Andys" (Androids) who have come to Earth illegally. His job is to track them down and "retire" them. Something he found easy to do until he met her, Rachael Rosen. The Android that does the impossible, passes the "Voight-Kampff" test. The story quickly devolves into a slow, drawn out and frankly boring mystery that was putting me to sleep by the end." ⭐⭐ Pros: I was more interested in comparing it to the film, "Bladerunner."/At first I kind of liked the drab, dreary atmostphere but it soon became soporific. Cons: I had no real idea what was going on with Mercerism/The end there had me blinking in bewilderment, like with Herbert's 29th Dune Book/There was a lot of idle chit-chat while they were in murderous/intense situations, it just seemed odd. Full Review: Rick Deckard, a Bounty Hunter, contracted with the San Francisco Police Department hunts down and retires rogue ...

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