★★★★
SYNOPSIS:
Alex Blackwood is a little bit headstrong, with a dash of chaos and a whole lot of flirt. She knows how to get the girl. Keeping her on the other hand…not so much. Molly Parker has everything in her life totally in control, except for her complete awkwardness with just about anyone besides her mom. She knows she’s in love with the impossibly cool Cora Myers. She just…hasn’t actually talked to her yet.
Alex and Molly don’t belong on the same planet, let alone the same college campus. But when Alex, fresh off a bad (but hopefully not permanent) breakup, discovers Molly’s hidden crush as their paths cross the night before classes start, they realize they might have a common interest after all. Because maybe if Alex volunteers to help Molly learn how to get her dream girl to fall for her, she can prove to her ex that she’s not a selfish flirt. That she’s ready for an actual commitment. And while Alex is the last person Molly would ever think she could trust, she can’t deny Alex knows what she’s doing with girls, unlike her.
As the two embark on their five-step plans to get their girls to fall for them, though, they both begin to wonder if maybe they’re the ones falling…for each other.
I absolutely smashed this book out in about four hours.
If you are looking for a sweet, funny, young adult college romcom about girls in love, may I present… She Gets the Girl?
Prepare to have Molly and Alex become your new faves. Both women are emotionally complex, well-established, relatable characters, and it is such a joy seeing them grow into themselves over the course of this book. That’s what She Gets the Girl is about, really – growth. Becoming who you are, learning what you’re worth, and knowing what you deserve (and don’t deserve). Molly and Alex are two incredibly authentic characters that I know a lot of people will be able to relate to.
I loved reading the way Molly and Alex’s relationship transformed over the course of the book. They’re a truly unlikely pair, with Molly’s social awkwardness and anxiety and Alex’s bolshy, bold attitude, but they just work together so well. I inhaled this book (like a horse eating popcorn out of a schoolgirl’s hand, or whatever the saying is), desperate to see the gorgeous, heart-breaking, heart-mending transformation happen.
In terms of plot, GOD, this book is just such a classic. Molly wants Cora, Alex wants Natalie, Alex helps Molly get Cora, Alex… has regrets. I love a good tropey book, and it is so damn good to get that with two lesbians in the leading role. I could just read this book over and over again and be happy forever. It’s our time to shine, baby! Tropes can’t be tired if it’s lesbians!
If you’re on the hunt for a well-written, sweet story with complex characters and a delicious romcom-ey energy (and sapphic leads, did I mention sapphic leads??????), you need to give She Gets the Girl a red-hot try. Trust me – your heart will thank you for it.
Speaking of thanks, thank you to Simon & Schuster Australia and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC!
