I always love the Time loop concept in books and movie, the The Do Over is even better than that. It’s fantastic. You get Emilie reliving days and Nick just being awesome, Nick making me fall in love with him over and over. I loved them so much, I loved Emilie’s attitude and how it changed as the days repeated and the book progressed. I loved how Nick was up for anything. I loved how the book is filled with Taylor Swift references. I loved the hilarious confessions at the beginning of each chapter. I loved the story, the romance, but also everything else happening around it. I loved this book so much that I actually pre-ordered a physical copy and I can’t wait to re-read it over and over again.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC of The Do-Over in exchange for an honest review.

The Do-Over was actually one of my most anticipated reads of the year. I picked up Better Than the Movies shortly after its release last year and absolutely adored it. In retrospect, I'd say that it is one of my favourite YA Contemporary novels ever. This past March, I also devoured Mr Wrong Number - an Adult Romance novel by the same author - in one night. Needless to say, I am quite a fan of Lynn Painter's work and had some high expectations going into this novel.

I am pleased to say that The Do-Over did not disappoint! I found that I grew to deeply love the story and characters despite being initially unattached.

In general, I am often wary of the Groundhog Day premise because of how repetitive it is. Painter expertly navigates this storyline in The Do-Over; there wasn't a moment where I was skimming through pages because each Groundhog scene was valuably different.

Additionally, I was initially sceptical about whether I would become invested in the main characters and their relationship. Part of the reason why I loved Better Than the Movies so much is because I felt like I could personally connect with many of Liz's struggles and ways of thinking. Also, Wes was my favourite kind of fictional love interest - witty, funny and flirty. I didn't think I would be as interested in the story of an overachieving high school student and a quiet/mysterious love interest. However, these concerns were put to rest as I progressed through the novel. The characters became more complex as well as interesting by the page and I became very invested in the story.

Overall, I was surprised by how much I grew to love The Do-Over. This book may have a cutesy synopsis but its characters and the issues it takes on are deep and hard-hitting. I very much enjoyed this read.

Emilie's a bit screwed up from her parents fighting and subsequent divorce in her childhood. She has an idea that love and relationships are 'safer' if they're planned, but on what's supposed to be the perfect Valentine's Day, everything goes wrong and the say keeps repeating.

It's a really overdone trope but the characters are lovely and the story is incredibly fun and pretty feel-good despite having some heavier plot points as well- especially loneliness. I couldn't stop smiling while reading and I finished it super fast. I really felt like I was in the story too. I'd definitely recommend this for a fast fun read for anyone who needs a pick me up.

Thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster Canada for the arc.

The Do-Over
Lynn Painter
🌟4.5/5

First of all, I want to thank @simonschusterca for providing me an advance e-copy of The Do-Over.

@lynnpainterkirkle, thank you so much for writing such heartwarming romance stories, which I always devour within a few hours. You are an absolute gem of a person and a writer.

The Do-Over is a story about Emilie Hornby, whose life is organised to the minute. She has vowed to make her life NOT like her parents and that’s why, she has chosen the perfect boy to go out with. The perfect boy to spent her Valentine’s day with; Josh.
But her life comes tumbling down when she has a little fender bender resulting in her car blowing up into flames, and then has to see her perfect boyfriend cheat on her on Valentine’s day.
And now she is living this nightmarish of a Valentine’s day in a loop and is colliding with Nicholas Stark, no matter how much she tries to avoid him.

"Why are you smiling like that?"
I shrugged. "Because I just kind of like you, I think."
"Oh, you think?" he drawled, giving me a teasing smirk that did wild things to my insides.

Let me tell you something, I loved this book. It made me laugh and it made me sad. It made me fall in love with love by just reading how sometimes doing simple things mean more.
I love Nick Stark. He is broody, surly but he is a dream 😍

The Do-Over is a perfect YA romance to warm your heart.
Thank you Lynn Painter for giving me a chance to read this, which kept me awake till 3 in the morning, but no regrets 😁

Lynn Painter, you are the YA romcom queen! THE DO-OVER now sits at the top of my list of my all-time favourite YA romances. It had so many great elements, such as loveable, three-dimensional characters, magical realism, the grumpy/sunshine trope, fluffy and heartwarming moments and plenty of scenes that will make you laugh and, perhaps, feel some secondhand embarrassment. I'm fascinated with books and films that use the time loop narrative well, and Lynn Painter tweaks and enhances this storyline in this fun whirlwind of a YA novel.

Emilie is different from a lot of the female protagonists I've grown up reading about, and I love how strong-willed and bold she is in this book. She's such a lovely character, and I enjoyed seeing her evolve as she continued to be stuck in this unexplainable time loop.

Nick Stark is also the cutest love interest. I like how he starts out as this grumpy, seemingly pessimistic character but you just fall for him as you learn mote about his past and who he is. Emilie and Nick's banter emphasized the sparks between them, and I literally felt knots in my stomach whenever they had those more intimate moments.

If I had to be nitpicky about this, I guess it would be that I wanted to see the closure between Emilie and her father/stepmother, as well as a more detailed exploration of the theme of grief. That aside, though, this book is still wonderful, and it reminded me so much of Tonight Today Tomorrow (which I also adore), and it has the perfect balance of coming-of-age, humour and romance. Please add THE DO-OVER to your tbr ASAP because it's a must read if you're looking for a feel-good, cozy book. I'm definitely going to buy a physical copy just for the upcoming colder months.

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this arc!!

after reading “better than the movies” from lynn painter, i expected another amazing YA romance and that’s exactly what i got. however, i was surprised by how much her writing has improved on every level. shes come back with better plots, better characters, and it was palpable with this book.

it's hard to keep a book interesting and a reader intrigued when the plot is about reliving the same day over and over again… yet painter managed to do it. she executed the groundhog day trope so well and i was hooked throughout the entire book. although the plot and themes were pretty similar to some movies ive watched with this trope, this book managed to be cliche without feeling cliche and i loved it. the message in the book was portrayed masterfully and i was so impressed with the creative way lynn wrote it.

onto the characters. emilie is my favourite mirrorball girly. i think lynn wanted to write a character that would be super relatable to teenagers and she exceeded expectations. i loved emilies development throughout the book. it was realistic and the pacing was amazing. one of my favourite things in this book was the heartwarming and hilarious way emilie progressed from the do-gooder planner she was at the start of the book to a carefree and confident girl by the end.

i loved nick. hes probably my favourite lynn painter love interest by far. sorry wes… but the grumpy but secretly nice, pretends not to know the girl but is actually obsessed with her trope always wins ??? nick is insane. he had so much depth to him and his character development was beautiful. it was also just so satisfying to see all the different ways he meets emilie when she lives the same day repeatedly. they felt like soulmates and i just adore the banter between them.

overall, this has taken the crown for my favourite lynn painter book and i would love to see her explore themes such as the groundhog day trope again in her future works, especially because i think she does a great job of balancing it out with the romance. this was the perfect YA novel and i will 100% be reading whatever lynn has to publish next.

Review of ‘The Do-Over’, by Lynn Painter

I don’t quite hold Valentine’s Day as being special, quite honestly. It’s cute and amusing, but the capitalistic take on having to celebrate your love for someone on that day with a certain set of action (flowers, chocolates, restaurant, etc.) has always rubbed me wrong. But I know that this day is quite important for a lot of people, including Emilie, who has the worse Valentine’s Day ever. She goes to her grandmother’s house for an impromptu sleepover to get over this terrible day… Only to wake up in her own bed on the morning of 14 February yet again.

This book is a wonderful, subtle exploration of grief and the difficulties of being a child in a blended family. It also offers the opportunity to think about the reasons why we do certain things. In Emilie’s case, it’s an opportunity to think about why she puts so much pressure on herself and where she could, perhaps, consider letting it go. By the end of this experience, when time finally resets, Emilie learns that while her old self seemed to be doing better, her new authentic self is set to live a much healthier and more fulfilled life.

I deeply appreciated the contrast between the old Emilie following rules rigidly and the new one understanding that sometimes, rules are outdated and we need to push back against them. As a mother, I find myself reveling in the pushback I get to some of our house rules, which makes me seriously look into the reasoning behind the rule. This exercise helps the family either by underlining just how essential the rules are, understanding how some rules are just a matter of preference that need to be respected out of love or logic, or understanding that some rules are just relics of the past.

On a societal level, as humanity acquires, collectively, new capacities, we need to do the same work that Emilie did on this repetitious (and hilarious!) day. Out with the useless, in with the useful, and let us live a much healthier and more fulfilled life, all together.

The Do-Over by Lynn Painter tells the story of Emilie, re-living the worst Valentine's Day ever.
Although this trope of waking up and reliving the same day is repetitive, I found myself amused by Emilie. She's quite and reserved on the outside but on the inside she's quite the fire cracker. I specifically love her confessions before ever chapter.
This book was well written, and the plot was enjoyable! (Also we love Nick 😍)

Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the arc!

Lynn Painter is an icon.

I thought this was a perfect YA rom com! I normally don’t enjoy Groundhog Day storylines, and only Lynn could pull it off. Once again she returns with a lovable heroine that speaks to teens today. A high achiever with klutzy tendencies and a heart of gold. I loved it! Highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

When all her plans for the perfect Valentine's Day go awry with car accidents, cheating boyfriends, clerical errors and more - Emilie wishes she never got out of bed that morning. Much to her surprise, Emilie wakes up the next day to find that it's still Valentine's Day and she's caught in some kind of time loop. As she adjusts her actions and tests the limits of her situation, Emilie will learn that planning only goes so far and sometimes you need to embrace your circumstances to find your joy.

I love this book - it was the right blend of serious and silly. It was endearing to read about Emilie letting go of who people expect her to be and to find who she wants to be. Read it!

Emilie Hornby is a classic overachiever, perfect daughter, perfect student, perfect girlfriend, who has a not-so-perfect Valentine’s Day. She’s planning to say those three little words to her bf Josh for the first time and ends up crashing her van into Nick, her Chem lab partner. She loses her scholarship to a summer program due to a clerical error and then finds out her perfect bf is cheating on her. Em starts to spiral but ends up sleeping off the worst day ever at her grandma Max’s place, only to wake up the next morning and have to relive February 14th all over again.

This book is love!!!!! Honestly, I couldn’t put it down. Lynn Painter is a genius. She reminds you of what it feels like to be a teenager in such an honest way. No sugar coating. You empathize with Emilie and Nick as they slowly (or to Nick’s point of view, super quickly) get to know one another. There is an amazing balance of emotion, humour, and a tiny bit of heat.

TLDR: Buy this book. If you’re a teenager, or just remember what it was like to be one, you will love it!

I received a free ARC of this title from Simon & Schuster Canada and NetGalley in exchange for this honest review.

*my very first ARC eeek! Doesn't affect my review though*
Originally on Story graph

An adorable story of a girl and a guy and how she got stuck in repeating Valentines Days that all include him.

Em's Valentines Day is far from ideal, what with relationship and family issues unfolding around her. All she wants is to escape the day. But instead, she finds herself reliving it over and over, and seems incapable of escape. But the one thing that stays the same between the days is that an annoying acquaintance, Nick, keeps getting involved

I really enjoyed this one, it was very cutesy and a very very quick read, I finished it in a day!! The characters were adorable, had such fun chemistry and just adorable interactions. I loved the inside jokes and banter.

I did find the pace to be a bit bizarre, and the romance, by the nature of the plot, was a little insta-lovey. I also could have used some more side character screen-time, and some more time with Nick and Em developing their relationship. But take it for what it is, a fluffy YA read, and it is overall a very very cute read

And eeeeek Taylor Swift references I STAN


PG+ for swearing

I received an e-arc of The Do-Over by Lynn Painter from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I was really into LP's other book Better Than the Movies and I thought this would be like WesLiz in a time loop story similar to See You Yesterday by Rachel Lynn Solomon.
Unfortunately, this really missed the mark for me, I DNFed at 41%. After reading "I'm a raging feminist lunatic" I just couldn't anymore.
Timeloop stories are always kinda ridiculous, but this one really made no sense and there was no counter for how many times it reset, like at the beginning of chapters instead of a counter there were random confessions from Emilie that made no sense whatsoever. And the cars, how does everyone have vintage cars? Also in the synopsis, Emilie sees her boyfriend cheating on her but then she has a thing with Nick and doesn't confront her boyfriend about it so she's lowkey also cheating? Her parents are also the worst. The only thing I was interested in was Nick, only because he was basically Jess from Gilmore Girls.
This had no WesLiz energy and I'm disappointed, if you want a time loop story I wouldn't recommend this.

Another 5 star read! Lynn Painter does it again!

Her writing is absolutely impeccable and she has easily become a must read author!

The Do-Over is seriously adorable and will have you swooning and laughing at the same time! I could not stop giggling and smiling through out the entire book.

Nick and Emilie’s story was so cute and I loved every moment between them. They were both such likeable characters (as are all of Painters characters!) and you couldn’t help but root for them right from the first encounter.

What a truly enjoyable read!

I’m not the biggest fan of YA novels, but I will literally read anything that Lynn Painter writes. Better Than the Movies is one of my all-time favourite books, so of course I had to request an arc for this and honestly… Lynn Painter has created another unputdownable book. Thank you Net Galley and Simon & Schuster Canada for accepting my request!

It started off a bit slow and repetitive, but it’s sort of a given cause of the plot. However, once it picked up a bit, I just kept going until I didn’t realize that I was already at the end. The banter between Emilie and Nick were just adorable and I found myself swooning and giggling throughout. The Taylor Swift references were also so fun to find throughout the book.

Honestly, Emilie’s DONC day is such an inspiration.

This was such a good time with some really deep moments. Going in it looks like a fun little rom com so I ended up loving that there were so many layers and feelings to it!
I adored watching Emilie figure out what will make her happy even as simple as the outfits she choice. So much of her life was spent making things easy for everyone else so the joy I felt watching her in the time loop figuring out what would make her happy! I loved the chemistry between Emilie and Nick. Their interactions were so great!

Also I can not wait to reread this when the playlist is up on Spotify! Books with playlists are amazing!

i think i have discovered that time loop romances are my new favourite niche and this book is no exception! i loved it so much! the relationship was so fun and spontaneous and also i was on the edge of my seat reading some parts and couldn't put it down! i did not expect the DONC to end like *that* (iykyk) but it came together perfectly in the end of the book and it was perfect in many ways :) i related to emilie in so many ways and just: NICK STARK! MY BELOVED <3 would highly recommended!

Love love love this book! I love Groundhog Day themed books and this one was great. Loved Em and Nick and their developing relationship. Very sensitive and fun.

because i absolutely adored Lynn Painter's Better Than the Movies, i was so excited to read more by her
and i was not disappointed!!

The Do-Over is a such a simple and sweet novel about the main character, emilie, reliving the same horrific valentine's day over and over again, and each time, she always somehow finds her way to nick.
this book is such a fun adventure with the characters traveling the city, doing what they want in the present, not caring about what comes next, and creating a close connection.

Emilie & Nick
"I was telling Nick here that I think he's attractive and I was hoping he'd maybe want to hang out since I'm single now."
i loved emilie and nick; i think they both had unique and realistic characters, and they balance each other so well; emilie having such a fun and bubbly personality, while nick is more careful and stoic.
i was always smiling whenever they started bantering

"Everything in my life had changed, but I had zero regrets. I had a marvelous time ruining everything."
oh, and nothing makes me happier than lynn painter's swiftie side showing in her novels <3

big thank you netgallery & simon & schuster for this e-arc!!

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Confession: I think this book is adorable!!!

Can I just say that this was super cute? Think the movie Groundhog Day but make it a teen romance book and the day that they’re stuck reliving is Valentine’s Day. I mean, who wouldn’t want to live the most “romantic” day of the year over and over and over and over again? Emilie Hornby, that’s who. How does one go from having the most perfect day planned to dreading reliving the worst day ever on loop? More importantly, how does one escape that loop? This is a cute teen romance book that will take you through Valentine’s Day after Valentines Day in the hopes that one small change will allow you to take what should have been a horrible day and make it something memorable.