Thank you to HarperCollins and NetGalley for this eARC!

I was immediately swept up into this fun, heartwarming YA story. We follow Rochelle, a smart queer black girl navigating the many emotional trials of growing up and getting her first job while attempting to get into her dream Ivy League college.

There’s LGBTQIA+ representation, nonbinary they/they representation, and minority representation generously displayed throughout the book.

There’s also a huge frenemies to lovers arc, + many examples that strong friendships can form even between people with extremely different personalities.

Zakiya cleverly highlights the innate desire to connect with those around us and find strength in community to work together.

I also loved the healthy relationship Rochelle has with her mother.

It’s beautifully written and I highly recommend reading!

This book completely made me kick up my feet and giggle the whole way through. This was the absolutely perfect sapphic contemporary YA romance, and that gorgeous cover absolutely drew me in.

Rochelle is committed to going to Wharton and becoming the human rights lawyer her mother had wanted to become, but put off after she had Rochelle and her husband passed. But one thing stands in her way of the perfect application - work experience. Until a summer job falls into her lap at Horizon, the local Black-owned movie theater. Only hitch: Her mortal enemy Amara works there and is going to be her boss.

The two have known each other since they were kids and were inseparable, until Rochelle realized her obsession with Amara was distracting her from her academic goals and they became rivals instead, one-upping each other at every turn.

They get to know each other again without the animosity at Horizon, and sparks soon fly.

This was a proper enemies to lovers arc where they really were enemies and not just rivals and didn't know each other well. The flip to lovers wasn't sudden and was masterfully done, as oblivious Rochelle gradually realizes that the tension in the air is sexually charged and her obsession is really a crush.

Her work at Horizon, too, soon becomes more than extra credit as she loves the friends she's made there and they throw themselves into saving the failing historic cinema.

Rochelle was a bit snobby, but I loved how dedicated and single-minded she was on her pursuit of college. I love seeing more nerds and introverts in YA who don't get a makeover and their LI loves them just as they are. I also loved the supporting cast in this and their love for the movie theater. They all felt like a family and were fully fleshed out characters. I also appreciated how Rochelle's and Amara's moms were so supportive.

I absolutely loved this book and I fell in love with Rochelle and Amara as a couple. The perfect high school romance where the setting was just as much a character as well. I need more Black sapphic books in my life!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

If we were a movie is a sweet contemporary romance about two girls falling in love. I really enjoyed the plot and the characters. The story seemed believable and the plot didn’t drag on. However I think the characters needed a little more substance to them.

Such a cute story. And a very strong debut! The characters were very lovely and easy to follow. The older I get the harder it is for me sometimes to enjoy high school stories, but that wasn’t the case with this one. In fact I found myself wishing my own adolescence was more like Rochelle and Amira’s . I liked how the “rivalry” was not overly dramatic or convoluted, instead pretty believable as far as YA Romance goes. The plot was easy to follow and although predictable at times, especially the “reveal” near the end, I still liked it a lot. I do wish there was an epilogue with a glimpse into their future plans, either their last year of high school or even graduation day. Their friend group was a lot of fun, especially Shawn and Taylor’s dynamic.

This is a super cute coming of age, enemies to lovers sapphic romance. It feels young and silly and some of the reasoning and actions of the main characters are childish which is perfect because she is a child! She is 17 and that’s the age to make mistakes and find yourself and be ambitious about your future. I did feel like the ending was a little odd and rushed. Seeing who the prankster was and the random falling out about who got her the job was weird in my opinion and did not contribute to the story

cute romantic enemies to lovers vibes with some awesome feels and some great characters. 4 stars. would recommend.

I feel like I could have loved this book more, I honestly wanted to love it so so much! It was good but I just didn't love it. I felt like it was kind of slow at some points and I didn't really like some of the pop culture references I just feel like I couldn't really connect. I will always love a sapphic romance though! This was still very cute.

This is my first ever ARC approved in Netgalley and I was certainly not disappointed; saying I adored this book would be an understatement.

First and foremost: Puerto Rico mention!!!! 🇵🇷 As soon as I saw "Rodriguez" I knew. I'm so happy.

Anyway, back to the review. Miss Rochelle "the Shell" Coleman was giving major Paris Geller vibes right off the bat and I was absolutely here for it. Then Amira being her academic rival?? I see you and your Gilmore Girls marathons, Rochelle. That and the fact that, intentional or not, they were giving autistic (Rochelle) and ADHD (Amira) vibes immediately made me love them—and I say this as an AuDHD person myself. They were simply too relatable.

The writing was hilarious and heartfelt, beautifully balanced to keep you laughing without jeopardizing the seriousness of Rochelle's internal struggles. Her romance with Amira was so incredibly wholesome, perfectly paced, and genuinely believable—I mean, who didn't make stupid choices as a teenager? I giggled every time Rochelle was hating on Amira because she was too beautiful or smelled too good... she was down BAD. This book had me highlighting all the cute parts in pink and, let me just say, there's a whole lot of pink. I loved how Amira broke down her walls, how careful and gentle she always was. It really makes you see how hard she's been trying despite Rochelle being, well, Rochelle. My heart filled with joy at the way the group just fell into place, slowly melting her cold little heart Grinch-style and showing her that it's okay to let yourself just enjoy life. This is the kind of book I would've loved to read as a teenager, and I'm so happy it exists now.

If We Were a Movie is more than just a romance—it's found family, it's coming-of-age, it's community, its black history, it's growth. When Amira Rodriguez falls back into her life in all her dazzling, vanilla-scented glory, Rochelle doesn't understand why she can't seem to focus on anything else. Instead of processing her feelings, she pushes Amira away... but it's not that simple to push your feelings away. She was really the "get out of my school meme".

One of the most important things for me when reading a book is that the author can make me care about the characters. I can say, without a doubt, that I immediately fell in love with them. I truly believe Zakiya N. Jamal did a spectacular job crafting these characters and bringing them to life, as well as bringing to life Horizon Cinemas—what an absolutely stunning setting. As a customer service employee myself I related a little too hard.

There's minimal grammatical errors, and could definitely use more contractions considering most people don't often say "it is", "they are", etc out loud in real life. Yes I was Rochelle in high school. Other than that, I believe it's a beautifully written, well structured, properly paced, five star read that'll have you hooked—I stayed up until 6AM!

Thank you Netgalley, Harper Collins, and, of course, Zakiya N. Jamal for the ARC in exchange for an honest review! What an absolutely stunning debut!!

Anyway, xoxo go piss girl.

I loved this sapphic ya romance book! It was so nice to read. I fell in love with all of the characters, especially Rochelle! I always love an academic rivals to lovers book. The competition is always so fun. This was such an amazing read that had humor and also had its romance.

Where do I start? This book was soooo great! I loved it. It was such an awww moment type of book. I really did enjoy reading about Rochelle and her friends. I loved her growth with Amira, it was such a cute trope in my opinion. I loved Rochelle's growth in the book as well, she had wonderful character development. I cannot wait for it to be publish, I will be buying this book when it comes out next year! I hope that everyone who reads this book has the same enjoyment that I read reading this book. It was such a cute story about queer love.

Rochelle Coleman is a high-achieving, no-nonsense high schooler with her sights set on attending Wharton, even if it means enduring a job alongside her charming academic rival, Amira Rodriguez. Rochelle's drive and focus on her future are intense, but her unexpected feelings for Amira pull her into uncharted emotional territory. Rochelle decides to work for the summer at the beloved community Horizon Cinemas, a historic Black-owned theater. The quirky crew of Horizon Cinema adds a vibrant and humorous energy to the narrative and feels like a close-knit family. The theater's struggle to survive shifts Rochelle and Amira to work together to save Horizon from a series of mishaps. Their growing chemistry develops naturally and believably, which is sweet. It is a delightful read that balances light-hearted romance, coming-of-age challenges, and community spirit. The story is bound to leave a smile on the reader's face.

I received an ARC ebook for my honest review. Thank you, NetGalley and HarperCollins

If We Were a Movie is a perfect little YA romcom. It’s sapphic and actually funny. I enjoyed the cast of characters. Everyone made me smile or chuckle at some point. So glad Zakiyah N. Jamal has published a novel. Talked about this on IG & TikTok. Thanks for the ARC!

I enjoyed this book; the characters were adorable and very much relatable too. They made the read fun and enjoyable. Also, the main character Rochelle was great, and her determination was admirable. Plus, the relationship between her and Jennie was my favorite throughout the whole story.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

This book is by no means a masterpiece, but it doesn’t have to be. It’s a simple teenage romance that is enjoyable to read and easy to get into. The enemy to lovers plot is well done. The reason they became enemies feels childish and dumb, which is perfect because it happens when they are in the 9th grade. (I would have definitely hated someone for a dumb reason then), it makes the characters feel real. As someone who just started college, and finished applying a year ago, the stress and high achievement the characters show will connect many young people to this book. I also loved the movie theater setting and the connection it gives the characters. Overall, this is a sweet book which would be great for highschoolers and young college students. I would give this a 4/5, and I would definitely recommend it to my friends.

A sweet YA romance that brought this middle aged lady back to that time of discovering myself and my passions. I loved seeing Rochelle navigate love, friendship and her relationship with her family.

First, a big thanks to the author, Zakiya N. Jamal, the publisher, HarperCollins Children's Books, and NetGalley for the opportunity to be able to read
this YA coming of age/romance fiction novel, If We Were a Movie. I will share my review to Amazon, Goodreads, and Barnes & Noble upon release.

Amira and Rochelle were very cute characters and this is the kind of book I would've loved to have been able to read as a teenager. There's a lot of representation, as the movie theater in the story is a Black-owned theater and both characters are queer POC. The two have to work together to save the theater and keep an important space in their community open. In coming together, they learn more about each other and discover they have a lot more in common than they thought. There was lots of sweet moments that had me feeling warm and fuzzy inside. Even though it's a queer story, the common themes of queer stories present which can become tired aren't here. There's an enemies-to-friends-to-lovers theme that I found really sweet and enjoyable to get caught up in, even though the enemies part isn't super strong early on.

The cover is super cute, the colors are pretty, and the girls are really cute and enjoying a moment at the theater, so it sets up the story well. The characters are really relatable, and the story itself feels like it could happen. It's nice to have a fun rom-com without too much competition or major traumatic events occuring. This story is a great example for a healthy teenage friendship and community power. I look forward to reading more from this author!

If We Were a Movie is one of the best books that I have read in a while! Zakiya N. Jamal did a fantastic job with this story and fleshing out the details of the plot in a believable and relatable way. Throughout the book readers experience topics of friendship, love, and balancing personal goals with trying to live up to what you think are the expectations of others. There are so many hidden nuggets of life lessons in this book for readers.

I highly recommend this book for lovers of stories related to friendship, movies, supporting small Black businesses, enemies to lovers story lines, and queer romance!

It was a fine read. The theme of the cinema is pretty nice. I like how all the characters are connected to each other and I like the different personalities, although it feels like the side characters are a bit one-dimensional, but with the amount of them, I see that it’s impossible to give each of them depth.
I could connect to the characters on a ground level, as in, I understand their reasons and I understand their wants and goals. But not really beyond that.
There’s a lot of representation. It’s nice to have a black sapphic couple.
The foreshadowing was a bit too obvious. I feel like the plot twist would have been so much better if the foreshadowing was reduced by a lot.
After a while, the plot started dragging a bit, and I found myself a bit bored because it felt the same.
I read this because I was interested in the romance, but reading it, I especially didn’t like the history of their relationship because… what? Also, Amira honestly felt like she was just genuinely mean at times, and I think that wasn’t the intention of the author.

Overall, it’s a decent book, and I believe a lot of sapphic people out there would like reading it.

I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it. This is everything I expected it to be and somehow more. If you're into something queer and cute please pick this up

I really enjoyed “If We Were a Movie.” Naturally, the adorable cover caught my eye. However, it's the story and characters that kept me reading. I absolutely adored the main character, Rochelle. She was smart, funny, charming, and so much more. I wanted to be apart in her friend group really bad and work at the Horizon.