Reviews – THE GETAWAY LIST & BETTING ON YOU
TGIF! I’m not sure why but this week has felt so incredibly long. I’m beyond excited that the weekend is finally upon us because I’m so ready for some downtime. I don’t read much YA anymore but I still have a few authors that if they write YA, I’m going to read it. Emma Lord and Lynn Painter are two of those authors and they both have new novels either out or coming out soon so this week I actually have two YA reviews to share with you.
The Getaway List Goodreads
Author: Emma Lord
Publication Date: January 23, 2024
Publisher: Wednesday Books
FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Wednesday Books via Netgalley and a complimentary ALC from Macmillan Audio. All opinions are my own.
With her latest novel, Emma Lord has penned one of the most relatable coming of age stories I’ve ever read. She perfectly captures what I think is a pretty universal experience for most young people as they turn 18, graduate from high school, and look to leave home and find their path forward as adults, in some cases, before their parents are really ready to let them go.
Riley finds herself in just such a situation when we meet her on her graduation day. She has been following a path her mom laid out for her but then fails to get into any of the colleges she applied to. Her mom is pushing her to go ahead and at least start community college, but Riley just isn’t feeling it and after some awkward exchanges with her mother where she really has to stress the fact that she is now an adult, Riley finally just tells her that she is going to NYC to see her childhood best friend, Tom, and to think about what she wants.
I loved seeing Riley re-connect with Tom. Their bond was clearly a special one and I especially loved that they still had this “getaway list” they had written years before and that they were now determined to actually complete the items on the list. Not only does this list help facilitate Riley & Tom’s re-connection but it also introduces Riley to several wonderful new friends who become like family for her. And while the list and its antics are meant to be fun, they also start to open Riley’s eyes and give her some concrete thoughts about what she might like her future to look like.
There is also a sweet romance brewing as Riley realizes she may have more than just friendly feelings for Tom, but at its heart, The Getaway List is really about Riley’s personal journey and Emma Lord has delivered her readers yet another gem of a read.
I alternated between the physical copy & the audiobook. The audiobook was narrated by Norma Butikofer who did a great job capturing both the fun and the soul searching vibes of Riley’s journey. I enjoyed both formats immensely! 4.5 STARS
Betting on You Goodreads
Author: Lynn Painter
Publication Date: November 28, 2023
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
Lynn Painter is the queen of witty banter and I’m a big fan of her books because I just know I’m going to have a good time while reading them. For that reason, even though I don’t read much YA anymore, I’ll always make an exception for Painter. Betting on You is her latest YA book, and although not my favorite because that will always be Better Than the Movies, it was still an enjoyable read for me.
Charlie and Bailey first meet on a flight to Nebraska. Bailey’s parents are divorcing and her nerves are frayed anyway, but pretty much everything about Charlie rubs her the wrong way, particularly his cynical views about the world and relationships. By the time the flight lands, she really hopes she’ll never see this annoying guy again. Flashforward a few years and Bailey finds herself working at a waterpark with who of all people, Charlie of course. This time around though, she gives him a second chance and they actually become friends, even though Charlie’s “When Harry Met Sally” belief that male and female coworkers cannot be just friends tests her patience at times.
I really enjoyed Charlie and Bailey together. While that initial plane ride had some hilarious moments just because Charlie annoyed Bailey so much, I definitely preferred to see the two of them bonding. It turns out that they are both parents of divorce. Charlie’s parents divorced a few years before Bailey’s so she is able to turn to him for advice or comfort whenever she’s feeling down about the changes taking place in her life.
Bailey also turns to Charlie for help when she decides she wants to break up her mom’s new relationship. I have to admit that as a child of divorce myself, while I found Bailey’s fear of change very relatable, I was not the biggest fan of her trying to sabotage her mom’s happiness, especially since the guy in question seemed like such a good one. The whole scenario does offer the opportunity for personal growth while we wait for Bailey to realize this too, which I liked, but I guess as an older and maybe wiser (haha!) reader, I just wanted to scream at her to just let her mom be happy.
Even with that issue though, I still overall really enjoyed reading about Charlie and Bailey and the changing dynamic of their own relationship. As always, Painter’s banter is on point, and she uses some of my favorite romance tropes to bring their story to life, including a little fake dating and of course friends to lovers. Betting on You is another solid YA read from Painter and the perfect read for anyone who enjoys the tropes I mentioned or stories that have When Harry Met Sally vibes. 4 STARS
Can’t Wait Wednesday: THE ROM-COMMERS by Katherine Center
“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, which encourages fellow bloggers to spotlight upcoming releases that we’re excited about. It is a meme that I have loved participating in since I first started blogging, but as Jill is no longer actively posting, from now on I’ll be linking to Can’t Wait Wednesday, hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings, which is a spinoff of the original WoW meme.
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My selection for this week is THE ROM-COMMERS by Katherine Center. Katherine Center is one of my auto-buy authors so I didn’t even have to read the synopsis to know this one was going on my TBR. Once I read it though, I could already tell that I’m going to love Emma, especially because she’s so passionate about standing up for rom-coms and the importance of love stories. Cannot wait to read this one!
THE ROM-COMMERS by Katherine Center
by St. Martin’s Press
Publication Date: June 11, 2024
She’s rewriting his love story. But can she rewrite her own?
Emma Wheeler desperately longs to be a screenwriter. She’s spent her life studying, obsessing over, and writing romantic comedies—good ones! That win contests! But she’s also been the sole caretaker for her kind-hearted dad, who needs full-time care. Now, when she gets a chance to re-write a script for famous screenwriter Charlie Yates—The Charlie Yates! Her personal writing god!—it’s a break too big to pass up.
Emma’s younger sister steps in for caretaking duties, and Emma moves to L.A. for six weeks for the writing gig of a lifetime. But what is it they say? Don’t meet your heroes? Charlie Yates doesn’t want to write with anyone—much less “a failed, nobody screenwriter.” Worse, the romantic comedy he’s written is so terrible it might actually bring on the apocalypse. Plus! He doesn’t even care about the script—it’s just a means to get a different one green-lit. Oh, and he thinks love is an emotional Ponzi scheme.
But Emma’s not going down without a fight. She will stand up for herself, and for rom-coms, and for love itself. She will convince him that love stories matter—even if she has to kiss him senseless to do it. But . . . what if that kiss is accidentally amazing? What if real life turns out to be so much . . . more real than fiction? What if the love story they’re writing breaks all Emma’s rules—and comes true?
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I’d love to hear what upcoming book releases you’re waiting on this Wednesday? Leave me your link in the comments below and I’ll stop by and check out your CWW selection for this week. 🙂
Top Ten Tuesday – My Reading and Blogging Goals for 2024
Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!
This week’s TTT topic is Bookish Goals for 2024. I think most of these are repeats of goals I had for 2023, either because I failed at them last year or because I did well and really want to continue to work on that same goal in the coming year.
My Reading and Blogging Goals for 2024
1) My number one goal this year is pretty much a forever goal at this point and that’s to read more of the books I own. ARCs will always have my heart so I’m not even going to say I’m cutting down on how many I read because we know that’s not true, but I’m determined to keep putting a dent in the unread books I own either by finally reading them or else purging them if I’m no longer interested in reading them. I’m setting a personal goal for myself of reading and/or unhauling 70 books I already own, starting with the 24 in 2024 list I posted on Bookstagram last week. I’ve already read 3 of those books, DNF’ed 1 other, and unhauled 6 others I was no longer interested in reading so hopefully that bodes well for a good year.
2) This is also a repeat goal for the past 3 years. I really want to continue to only participate in blog tours where I have already requested a review book. I’ve done really well with that the past two years, mainly sticking with Berkley Romance tours, but it’s always so tempting when someone reaches out with a tour opportunity.
3) This is also an ongoing goal since my struggle to finish series continues. I did actually complete several from my list last year, but there are always more. For this year, I have 6 series on my shelf that I want to finish and 7 sitting on my shelf that I want to start.
Series I Want to Finish or Get Caught Up On:
- Bridgerton (5 books left)
- Outlander (4 books left)
- The Bergman Brothers (4 books left)
- Chestnut Springs (3 books left)
- Dreamland Billionaires (1 book left)
- Legendborn (1 book left to get caught up)
Series I Want to Start:
- Windy City
- The Off Campus Series
- Heartstopper
- Slammed
- Twisted
- The Edens
- Hoops
4) This is also a repeat goal from the past two years. I really want to continue to grow my Bookstagram account. When I started having so many tech issues and glitches on my blog in 2023, I really started pushing hard to grow my bookstagram account and post almost everyday since I knew I needed a reliable way to still get my reviews, etc. out there if my blog went down. I also discovered I really like taking bookish photos and having a word limit that I can’t go beyond since I can be long-winded in my reviews. In my mind, I have an unofficial goal of reaching 20,000 followers this year, but all of the tech issues seem to be on that platform this year so we’ll see how it goes. If you have a bookstagram account and are not already following me, you can give me a follow at https://instagram.com/thebookishlibra
5) Re-reading more. This is also a repeat goal and one I mostly failed at in 2023, aside from re-reading Fourth Wing and Crescent City 1 to get back into the swing of things before their next books came out. I have a few old favorites that I’d like to try to read this year, but we’ll see how it goes.
- To Kill a Mockingbird
- Pride and Prejudice
- ACOTAR series
- The Handmaid’s Tale
- The Invisible Life of Addie Larue
- Throne of Glass
- Jane Eyre
- The Winternight Trilogy
6) I am aiming to keep my Netgalley percentage at 90% or above in 2024. I did very well with this goal in 2023, finishing the year at 93%. I know I can’t keep it that high, but if I could maintain 90, I’d consider that a success.
7) I say this every year, but in 2024, I want to read more Nonfiction. Last year I failed miserably and only read one nonfiction book, but this is the list of books I’d like to read.
- What Unites Us by Dan Rather
- Oath of Honor by Liz Cheney
- We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers Who Helped Win WWII by Liza Mundy
- D-Day Girls: The Spies Who Armed the Resistance, Sabotaged the Nazis, and Helped Win WWII by Sarah Rose
- Spare by Prince Harry
- Untamed by Glennon Doyle
- Where the Light Enters, Building a Family, Discovering Myself by Jill Biden
8) This is also a forever goal, haha. In 2024, I really want to work on being better organized, particularly when it comes to blogging ahead and with scheduling my instagram posts. I’m usually frantically writing posts the night before I want to post them and I would love to be able to get most, if not all, of my posts for the week done the weekend before.
9) Blogging More Consistently. I used to be pretty good at this, but 2023 proved super challenging with all of those tech issues. I got so frustrated and would just abandon my blog for days at a time. I wondered for a while there if it was time to dump the blog, but I still love it so much and the fact that I was mad that I couldn’t blog and interact with this community I’ve grown to love, told me I just needed to resolve the issues once and for all. With the exception of this week, which started off a little crazy (as you can tell since I’m posting my TTT post on Wednesday, haha), I’ve been trying to blog a little more consistently to make sure things are working properly. They seem to be so fingers crossed that I’ll be back on track for my weekly 3-4 blog posts.
10) I am doing the Goodreads Challenge and have set my goal at 175 books again this year. I read 210 books in 2023 and could probably replicate that this year since we have cancelled our cable TV. I stream a few shows here and there, but for the most part, I spend almost all of my downtime reading. But to keep it from being too stressful, although still challenging, I’m aiming for 175.
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