Welcome to Read This Book, a newsletter where I recommend one book that I think you absolutely must read. The books will vary across genre and age category to include new releases, backlist titles, and classics. If you’re ready to explode your TBR, buckle up!
Interested in fascinating stories, informed takes, useful advice, and more from experts in the world of books and reading? Check out our newest newsletter, The Deep Dive, to get exclusive content delivered to your inbox! Choose your membership level today at bookriot.substack.com
Sometimes you’re just in the mood for a book that you can burn through quickly and will make you laugh, and today’s pick is just that! I inhaled this story, and then I wanted to read it again, it’s that good. If you like time loop stories and chemistry that sizzles on the page, this is for you!
The Do-Over by Lynn Painter
Emilie Hornby is ready for the best Valentine’s Day ever. She’s finally going to say “I love you” to her boyfriend, and she’s got every romantic moment planned out. But things do not go as planned. She gets into a fender bender on the way to school, she loses out on the summer scholarship she desperately needed, and she catches her boyfriend kissing his ex. On top of that, her dad announces that he’s moving across the country with or without her. She goes to bed at her grandma’s house, but when she wakes up, she’s back at home, ready to repeat the same Valentine’s Day. As Emilie goes through the day again and again, she finds that many of the results may vary, but she can’t help but be drawn to Nick, whom she keeps running into no matter what she does.
Emilie is a really funny protagonist with laugh out loud dialogue and a hilarious insight on her world. She’s a self proclaimed book nerd and she likes things organized and in order, in part because of her lack of control in her home life, where she bounces between two feuding, divorced parents. Her plans for the Hallmark holiday are admirable even if they are doomed to fail, and while it might be a bit cringe to see her thwarted at every turn, it is super cathartic to see Emilie learn to let go — and when she decides to let loose and live like there are no consequences, well…that’s where the magic happens!
There have been a few time loop books and movies to come out in the past couple of years, and I admit to being a sucker for them all. (Blame it on my parents and the VHS tape of Groundhog Day we wore out when I was a kid!) This one is one of my favorites, ranking up there with the movie Palm Springs. What I love about this book is that Emilie rolls with the punches pretty quickly, and she had fun with scenario. She doesn’t get too bogged down in moral philosophizing or analyzing her way out, and instead shoots her shot(s), earning her some romcom movie worthy moments…and some unexpected consequences. I love the banter between her and Nick, and their challenges to overcome feel realistic, even in a lightly speculative setting.
Pick up this one if you want a YA book with hilarious dialogue, over the top moments, and “she had a marvelous time ruining everything” vibes!
Happy reading!
Tirzah
Do you need help finding your next great read? Subscribe to Tailored Book Recommendations for really great reads year-round.
Find me on Book Riot, Hey YA, All the Books, and Twitter. If someone forwarded this newsletter to you, click here to subscribe.