Rating: ⭐⭐️⭐️⭐/️️5 stars

Genre: Young Adult Fiction/ Young Adult Rom-Com

I pushed back against reading Better than the Movies for the longest time because, honestly, high school–based romances in your twenties can be a massive hit or miss. I don’t mind revisiting nostalgic favorites, but diving into a new YA rom-com about high schoolers usually isn’t my thing. That said, I absolutely LOVED this book. It had me giggling and even kicking my feet, it was that cute!

Lynn Painter’s rom-com follows Liz, a quirky senior with a love for vintage dresses and music. When her childhood crush moves back to town, she convinces her neighbor and longtime nemesis, Michael, to help her get his attention. Their dynamic is everything, playful banter, constant teasing, and that irresistible frenemies tension.

What makes it shine, though, is the question lingering beneath the rom-com fluff: does Liz really know her Michael or her crush, or is she holding onto a version of them that no longer exists? Michael just might surprise her, and us, by being more than the enemy she thought she knew.

I like that the story does not age up the characters, and it reminds me of the late 90s and early 2000s Disney movies like Ten Things I Hate About You and Starstruck which are some of my favorites.

This book is light, charming, and heart-squeezingly sweet. Perfect if you’re in the mood for a YA romance that will make you laugh out loud while secretly melting your heart.