This was a very easy to read book; easy to get caught up in the story and easy to finish. But, it felt more like a children’s novel. Maybe for tweens? Definitely not for high schoolers; my older junior high nieces and nephews might enjoy the story, but would also find it a bit too easy.

I should mention that I love nerd books and nerd romances, but this one didn’t really feel that nerdy; it was more a “I can do more than I thought I could” take where they just happens to throw in some token video game stuff. Not real nerd or gamer stuff.

Real Rating: 3.75 ⭐
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!
Short Summary:
Zack, a gamer, and his best friend, Cooper, are stuck in the mall after a tornado blows through their city and knocks down a bridge. Before that happens however, Zack sees the prettiest girl he's ever laid eyes on insert sappy music here . Obviously, he needs to chase after her, so he makes a fool out of himself by making a few misogynistic comments. Samara being the strong and independent young woman she is, rejects him. The rest of the book is basically how Zach "gets" the girl while playing hero to save the rest of the people in the mall during the tornado.

Opinion:
Being a gamer myself, I really enjoyed the subtle references to several games including Zelda!
Anyways, the cute, slightly-geeky romance between Zach and Samara was sweet, but it seemed all rushed. While it was wonderful, it was slightly over-the-top when Zach sees this girl he's met for the first time, and instantly falls in love. Maybe I'm just a pessimist. I don't know. The characters like Cooper could have been developed a bit better, in my opinion. The structure was nice, with the chapters being different rules. It honestly gave me major Allie Finkle's Rules For Girls vibes.

Congratulations to the author on the innovative topic and the praise of kindness! 'The Gamer's Guide to Getting the Girl' is a book about love and friendship but finally it's completely different than so many other books capturing the same topic. Here a bunch of strangers is trapped in a shopping mall during a tornado. Zach as one of main characters meets Samara a girl of his dreams just minutes before one of the greatest natural disasters hits the mall. While trying to stay safe people deal with fear, injuries. basic survival needs but most of all human relations. People are all different but when we care and when we act together with are capable of great things. Zach not only finds a girl, he also realises that he wants to be a doctor in the future, and that his friend Cooper is one of the best people he knows. Nothing gets people closer together than very dangerous circumstances. I highly recommend!

I found the book really easy to read, and really easy to get into to. After short time I was caught up in the story and didn't want to stop reading. I liked the plot and the characters was pretty good developed. Small parts of the book wasn't really living up to the rest, I found the small flashbacks Zach tells about irrelevant and it felt a bit like it was written just to take up some space.
However I thought the story was cute, and it did made me both smile and made me worry so I guess the author succeeded.

I found this book to be a very enjoyable and quick read. As a gamer myself, I found the game references to be amusing and relatable. As a Youth Service Librarian, I can see a lot of my Teens appreciating this book and connecting with it. This book is a fun look at a gamer using skills and tactics learned through various video games to survive the storm of a lifetime and get the girl of his dream.

Thank you net galley for the advance reader copy of this novel. This was a contemporary romance about a gamer meeting a cute girl at the mall started off ok but just kept getting worse. The premise of being trapped in a mall during a storm was plausible but the author kept adding more to the story that made it very far fetched. I didn't make it to the final chapter. This one was not for me.