Betting on You was a disappointing read to say the least. The characters were insufferable and one dimensional, despite the promising concept of children of divorce becoming friends. Even though the story was mainly character driven, there was hardly any development by the end of the book. The tropes were overwrought in a bad way rather than comforting. The male MC swore entirely too much for a YA book and the female character was so spineless and never learned to stand up for herself. Plus, as a card-carrying swiftie, I feel I have the right to say there were way too many Taylor Swift references.

I've read several Lynn Painter books for adults and I am such a fan. I requested this one not realizing it was YA, but I loved that it kept the same great chemistry and tension between the characters that make the author's adult titles great and kept the content more PG. I'll definitely be recommending this one to my YA romance girls.

Lynn Painter is one of my go to YA writers. She is the author I am most recommend to students. All of her books do such a great job of telling an interesting story from the teenage perspective. They are funny, adorable, and delightful! Bailey and Charlie have the definition of a meet-cute gone wrong. Ultimately they wind up being absolutely perfect for each other. As always Painter does banter fantastically .

Thank you #Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

✨I’ll have what she’s having*✨

*fake dating a hot guy your mom’s boyfriend hates to break them up

Disclaimer: When Harry Met Sally isn’t a favorite movie of mine. Honestly the idea of reading it in book form—the movie is already so long—gives me hives. But I do love Lynn Painter, so I was always going to give this a read. Also there are a few spoilers below, but nothing crazy!

In my opinion, When Harry Met Sally just really doesn’t make sense in a YA setting or even really in any setting. I just think that it’s its own thing and should be left alone. It’s a movie in my mind that requires less from the plot and everything from the actors’ performances and personalities…which is so hard to capture in book form. Because while the book had a grip on the plot, the characters just didn’t quite fit.

For example, I love Billy Crystal so I could kinda excuse his character at the beginning of the movie…but nothing endeared me to Charlie at the beginning of the book. Because we were working with a blank slate, it took a LONG time for me to warm up to him.

Then it almost felt like this book had a little bit of an identity crisis. It was YA but it really just felt like an adult romance with characters who were 17 that could’ve easily been 26. The scope was just off on some parts. School was barely part of the setting and Bailey also apparently had a high school nemesis that we never met. She also gained a step sister whom we never met on page. I wanted to see that relationship!!

Now don’t get me wrong, it did have unique angles and perspectives, especially the exploration of divorce. I also think it handled the fake dating in a really fun way that I wasn’t expecting. Once it started getting into its own groove and not trying to be a retelling, I had a really good time with the book. I also thought the plot structure was fun and different than I’d anticipated it going. It definitely hit its stride around fifty percent. Once they were just invested in becoming friends, I was invested in them.

And while I’m not a huge When Harry Met Sally fan, I’m so happy the secondary relationship made it into the book!! I loved the drama of that bowling date. And did I absolutely eat up when he remembered her popcorn eating habits? OF COURSE I did I’m not a robot. I really enjoyed the second half of the book and think I’d have had a lot less issues if I’d have just waited on the ARC and grabbed the audiobook instead. I notice quirks of writing a lot less via audio and Jesse Vilinsky has me loving everything her voice touches.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5

P.S. This could totally be an ARC thing, but her hair is described as dark and curly several times. But on the cover she’s nearly a redhead with wavy hair?? I am confusion.


Thanks so much to the publisher for an eARC via NetGalley. All opinions are honest and my own.

After meeting the insufferable Charlie on the first flight between her divorced parents, Bailey hopes to never see him again. But two years later, they meet again, working together at a water park. He's just as annoying as he was then, but the more time they spend together, the more his charm and soft heart seep through. As a fellow custody kid, he's sympathetic to her situation, and the two work together to drive Bailey's mom's new boyfriend away and show Charlie's friends he's moved on from his ex by fake dating. But the line between fake and real is ever so thin.

Lynn Painter is a master at crafting truly cinematic stories that feel like the modern relative of classics such as 10 Things I Hate About You or She's the Man. I'm surprised none have been made into movies yet! I loved this third book, binging it in one sitting, though I have to admit it's my least favorite of her three YA novels. I think Charlie's chapters were too few and too short, and it just felt less plausible as a whole. But when her first two books were, like, twelves out of tens, it's hard to compare. This book is undoubtedly still worth both a read and a spot on your bookshelf, but Better Than the Movies will remain number one in my heart.

Thanks to Simon Teen for my eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

5 stars - 9/10

I had such a fun time reading this book. Lynn Painters, 'Betting on You' was such a great enemies to friends to lovers romance.

Bailey and Charlie meet at an airport. The first impression is not good and they have to sit next to one another during a long flight. As a child of divorce, Charlie is used to these solo flights as a teen. It's Bailey's first one. Fast forward a year later and these two run into each other... and end up working together.

Bailey was so relatable and Charlie was hilarious. I loved their banter and how they were kind of opposites in a lot of ways, but could still connect. Seeing their friendship grow and watching them fall in love. I loved it. Lynn Painter does YA so well and I enjoyed this book lots!

Rating: 4.5 Stars

It's no secret that I am a Lynn Painter fan. She writes romance that never fail to make me feel something. She also doesn't shy away from tropes and always does a great job utilizing them in the best ways.

Betting on You had a fun premise which alluded to two great films. First, there were shades of When Harry Met Sally. While making the trip from Alaska to Nebraska, Charlie and Bailey crossed paths. Though they had the shared experience as children of divorce, they did not share any warm feelings towards each other. Fast forward three years, and their paths cross again. Bailey and Charlie are now woking together. This time around, a friendship takes root as Charlie and Bailey embark on a fake relationship in order to put a "Parent Trap" type plan in motion to cause a wedge between Bailey's mother and her boyfriend.

Fun little plot which was fairly low drama, exactly how I like it. And, I have to say, I was a fan of this coupling. I felt that Bailey was her true self when she was with Charlie. She was able to express herself, honestly, and she really shined in his presence. Charlie was the best version of himself when he was with Bailey, too. She softened his edges and forced him to drop his protective armor. Then we were able to see that sweet boy with the tender heart.

I know this book was called Betting on You, and the synopsis mentions said bets, but I really didn't care about them. I cared about Bailey and Charlie, and I wanted them to find happiness and find some peace with their family situations. I was frustrated as I waited for them to be honest with each other, but at least there were some over the top antics, sweet and tender moments, and lots of top notch banter to ease my pain as I waited.

This was a hit for me, overall, tough I did wish we heard more from Charlie throughout the story because he had a lot of baggage to unpack. Still, I was extremely pleased with Bailey's personal journey. In the end, this was classic Painter for me. It was fun and witty with a touch of drama, a sweet romance, and characters who were easy to root for.

This was a cute premise. However, I felt the execution fell flat. The book seemed around 25% longer than it had to be. The characters were well drawn and the romance was believable, but there was a lot of repetition.

Thank you kindly to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I ADORED this book so much that I read it in one sitting. I had a huge smile on my face the whole time and especially loved the many dialogue and text scenes between Charlie and Bailey. I wanted to give them both hugs so many times! All the nods to WHEN HARRY MET SALLY were spot on and Nora Ephron would be proud to know her rom-com legacy lives on in great YA romance books like BETTING ON YOU. I know my students are going to go crazy for this when it comes out.

I really enjoyed this book! I thought it was an adorable story with fated mates vibes. Bailey and Charlie are complete opposites but they find a true friendship in each other while navigating their family lives together. They become each other support system which I think was adorable. Even though Charlie refuses to believe that guys and girls can be friends, he really steps it up to be there for her. Of course there has to be a curveball thrown in where Bailey finds out that Charlie may have made a bet that he could win her over and that bet may threaten their relationship.

I loved the dual POV and all of the characters were so cute. This was definitely on the YA scale so for me I wanted more but knew going in this wasn’t going to live up to all my romance hope. Either way this was adorable and I would definitely recommend.

This book was so cute! Definitely a great YA romance that I'll be recommendinng to patrons. The characters were fun and funny, and their dynamics were interesting. I do kind of wish there was a bit more information on their family dynamics (besides Bailey and her mom), especially when it came to the other characters because it seemed to impact them a lot but I wasn't always sure why. It was really cute though and I couldn't put it down. Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for this ARC!

3.75 and rounding up because it was fun and a quick read. I liked this book and the further in I got the more invested I was. The very beginning almost made me dnf bc the characters just seemed too annoying but then I told myself that they're 13/14 years old and new teens are always annoying lol. But once the story progresses to the future when they're 18, they're def more palatable. Fake dating is my fave trope and I got plenty of that in this book and it was quite enjoyable! This book also had some emotional moments dealing with the characters having divorced parents and how they're processing this change in their life. It made me feel more connected with them and even if I didn't agree with some of their plans, I was rooting for them. All in all, a good book that's def worth a chance reading.

One thing about Lynn Painter is that she will always write an incredible YA book and Betting On You is no different! This book had me giggling, blushing, and kicking my feet in the best of ways! Charlie and Bailey were so relatable and so freaking sweet. I'm so excited for everyone to get their hands on this one!

When Harry Me Sally is one of my favorite rom coms ever and this reimagines the story for a new generation of YA readers. The twists of incorporating the heartbreak and challenges of being a divorced kid will resonate with readers who have experienced it (like myself). Painter writes about these feelings with incredible depth and heart. While Charlie is a questionable character at times, bordering on toxic, he and Bailey balance each other out in a sweet way. They are both complicated people and they are written in such a way that they feel real, so despite their mistakes, you really do want to root for their HEA.

Being such a WHMS fan, I did find the storyline similarities to be a little much at times. I would have really enjoyed seeing a little more effort to switch up the details, but for readers who did not grow up with the movie, I think they will fall in love with this new version just as we all did.

Also, I'd like to mention that the first book in this series, Better Than The Movies, is one of the best books I've ever read. If you're drawn to read this because of that book, try to take this one for what it is. This is a completely different cast of characters with different personalities, stories, etc. I think reading this so close to the first one did cloud my judgement of this one a little. Even still, it's a great story that all ages will enjoy.

#NetGalleyARC I’m really enjoying this author. This book is the perfect read for when you need a romance book in your life and just want to feel that flutter in your heart. I loved the characters and how they were written. They’re relatable and not boring and the story was sweet but again relatable.

Charlie and Bailey, are as opposites as opposites get, or are they? Their first disastrous meeting takes place on a plane, and they decide they do not like each other. They meet again years later and are forced to spend time together as co-workers. Charlie is convinced guys and girls cannot be "just friends," and Bailey thinks he could not be more wrong. They make a bet about Bailey's best friend and their new co-worker in the hopes of proving each other wrong.

However, as they spend more time together, they find that they have a lot in common; they both have deep reservations about their divorced parents’ new chosen partners. While Charlie chooses to deal with said reservations with blunt rudeness, Bailey is filled with anxiety that she cannot express to her mother. Bailey's father has become distant, and she is terrified that her mother's new boyfriend will break the close relationship she shares with her. Charlie agrees to help Bailey by annoying her mother's boyfriend in the hopes that he may go away.

Their antics lead to a lot of time spent together outside of work and Charlie and Baily begin to form a genuine friendship, which turns into deeper feelings that neither is willing to admit. Teenagers being teenagers they make a lot of teenager-like decisions and there is angst and miscommunication, but nothing too heavy and there is a happy ending of course.

Betting On You was another cute, young adult read from Lynn Painter.

Lynn Painter's YA books continue to be the best out there. They're sweet, swoony, hilarious, and feature relatable emotional-depth.

Charlie and Bailey meet at an airport in a way that far from a "meet-cute." Over the next few years, they continue to bump into one another and then ultimately end up working at the same waterpark. Slowly they begin to enjoy each other's company, and they decide to make a friendly bet. Thrown in some of my favorite romance tropes (forced proximity and fake dating), mix in all of Lynn Painter's YA magic, and what do you get? A 5 star read. Don't skip out on this one, it will have you laughing out loud and swooning!

This was such a great return to form for Lynn Painter. As I originally fell in love with her writing through Better than the Movies, an all time favorite for me, I have chased every release of hers since for that same high. Her adult releases have widely been a disappointment for me and I think it is clear to see this is where she shines.

“Betting on You” follows Charlie and Bailey as they go from annoyed acquaintances to friends to more. After 2 chance encounters, Charlie and Bailey begin working together and start a friendship, even if Charlie won’t admit that. They bond over their recent breakups and divorced parents who are starting to move on with new partners. Several bets are involved in this story that lead to misunderstandings as their feelings for each other change.

I have always enjoyed Lynn Painter’s books, but this one fell short for me. I think there were too many tropes in one book to fully develop storylines. Bailey’s storyline with her parents was not fully formed. I wanted her to have a more in-depth conversation with both her parents. The story tells you her parents care, but I just didn’t see that in any of their actions and it was all resolved too easily. Charlie and Bailey were cute together, but I wish we got more of a look at Charlie’s home life. And finally, I cannot believe I am saying this, but there was way too many Taylor Swift references and this is coming from someone who has listened to nothing but Taylor Swift music since May. I know Lynn loves Taylor from her social media, but the references felt like she was trying too hard to reach a younger demographic which it might since I am definitely not a teenager anymore. Still looking forward to more of Lynn’s book, but this one wasn’t for me.

A teenage meet cute turned friends turned romance set amidst teenage angst and the changes caused by divorce.

Bailey and Charlie meet on an airplane as two kids traveling between their divorced parents. Through a series of run ins, Bailey and Charlie become friends, then a fake romance, then real teen love.

Is it great? No, but it’s readable and quick. Overall, I didn’t finish with a warm fuzzy or wanting more.

Themes: 👩‍👧❤️💔❤️‍🩹

My thoughts: 🙂

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