Recent Release Review: She Gets The Girl

Although the book brings a lot of much needed representation to rom com genre, I doubt I’ll remember it very well…

Name: She Gets The Girl

Author: Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick

Published: April 2022

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.

---

For fans of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, She Gets The Girl follows Alex and Molly in their first year of college as they struggling to get (or in Alex’s case keep) their girls. Both characters were so likeable: Molly felt similar to Fangirl’s Cath as she struggled to fit in at college, while Alex’s confident exterior masked a complicated back story. There were so many female characters! So many queer women! And a non binary character!

She Gets The Girl has flawless rom-com energy, complete with a ‘teaching to flirt’ scene and a shopping montage. I do love a good friends to lovers, falling for each other while trying get other people deal… even if Alex’s motivation for getting Corey and Molly together was a bit weak. I didn’t think her girlfriend would really care that she’d been playing Cupid, but as long as it meant loads of tropes, I don’t mind!

This will be easy. Selflessly help Molly get with Cora. Show Natalie I’m basically Mother Theresa, and not an emotionally unavailable and unable to get close to people. She gets the girl. We get back together. Everyone wins.

– THIS WAS ALEX’S LOGIC! IS IT SOUND? WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Also, it’s super easy to read – there’s loads of action and no info dumps or unnecessary scenes. Alex and Molly had nice character developments that weren’t overly predictable (I know! In a rom com!). A range of tricky topics are handled well, so that they don’t overshadow the plot but are not just there to tick a diversity box. And if that won’t make you read it – just look at the cover!

My only criticism is that, because She Gets The Girl is dual narrative and a relatively short book, you don’t that time for much depth of character for both Molly and Alex. It was also a very slow burn: I’m talking snail’s pace, yelling through the pages for both characters to please be more observant… For such a fast paced book it was surprising how slowly the romance moved. What did you think? Have you read this book? Let me know if you also thought the romance was too slow in the comments!

The downside to it being the perfect rom-com is that a lot of the scenes weren’t particularly original, although the book brings a lot of much needed representation to the genre. It’s a fun book and I’d recommend it to anyone who wants a fun light read, but I doubt I’ll remember it very well.