If you’re fans of Parent Trap or Freaky Friday you should definitely check this out. Siri and Jamie are two sisters (not twins) who are separated when they’re younger by their parents. Over a decade later they meet again at a wellness retreat and decide to switch places. Before they switch places on the last day of the retreat they have some Freaky Friday like magic happen that makes them look exactly like each other.

I personally connected the most with Siri I love how open and honest she is with her feelings right when she meets Jamie. I also love that Siri likes metal music lol I don’t think I’ve ever seen a character talk about that before. I like the relationship between Dawn and Siri I think they complemented each other so well. Both Siri and Jamie are so different from each other it was really funny to see them switch places. It was very sad to see the way the parents divorce affected these girls. The main thing I had a problem with in this book is the magic element. I feel like most times it was brought up it was very briefly talked about and we never got a good enough wrap up on the magic element for me. Overall it was an enjoyable/ quick read for me. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy for an honest review!

First of all, I don't usually write reviews for books that I've read - typically only leave stars.
I was so excited that Christine was about to release her second book! So grateful I got a chance to read it early. This book is about two sisters who have been separated for most of their lives, who unexpectedly find each other and a Parent-Trap (with a twist) type situation ensues. I really enjoyed the dynamic between Jamie (the more carefree/funny sibiling) and Siri (the more rigid sister that has her whole life planned out). I think they bring a wonderful balance to each other. I like the story of their journey and mishaps that help them find themselves and each other. I don't want to give too much away about the book, but it was a fun read and if you like Christine's first book, odds are, you'll like this one too. While I enjoyed the book overall, the main characters did bother me with some of their idiosyncrasies -- one has trouble letting people in and the other likes to say "excrement" -- and the parents in this book have trouble making smart decisions regarding their children. I thought that this was a cute and fun-loving sister story with some mildly ridiculous shenanigans (and glitter) thrown in.

I wanted to like this book so badly. Freaky Friday and the Parent Trap are two of my most loved movies.

The characters in the book are bland and have little development throughout. The magic aspect of this book seemed forced and didn't make much sense to me.

I DNF'd around 45% :(

I have been a fan of Christine Riccio’s YouTube channel for several years and was excited to read her first novel, Again but Better. While it didn’t blow me away, it was still a fun read. I felt much the same about Better Together. The concept isn’t unique or original, but it was interesting to read a new take on the classic Parent Trap sister swap story. I wasn’t expecting the second element similar to Freaky Friday kick in as well, but I suppose it makes sense to have this twist thrown in considering the girls were sisters and not twins. Combining these two tropes was clever, but a little confusing to keep up with. Ultimately, this book read like a fairytale retelling or fan fiction. The writing style was a bit quirky and at times trying too hard to be funny which reflects Christine’s personality and therefore has the potential to appeal to younger readers. I liked how the sisters were developed and their different character traits. I applaud Christine for attempting the dual narrator perspectives. As in her first novel, she incorporates several pop culture references which can be fun but date the book and alienate readers who may not be familiar. I liked the twist at the end about how the girls found themselves at the same retreat by “coincidence.” I know this book is already receiving harsh criticism, but I still found it to be a cute, enjoyable read appropriate for her target audience of teen girls.

thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for providing me the e-arc of this book. all opinions are my own.

DNF at 52%.

i want to preface this by saying this review is not meant to spread hate to christine! ive looked up to her for years and i think she is a wonderful person! this is simply just a critique on the novel itself.

im very sad that i didnt like this. i wanted to like it so badly, but i had SO many issues with the story and characters and there were a LOT of things about christine’s writing i did not enjoy. for example, the chapters were insanely short, and sometimes one sister would be telling a story to the other sister, and then in the middle of the story it would switch perspectives for no real reason, AND THEN SWITCH BACK TO THE OTHER SISTER BEFORE THE STORY ENDED. that happened MULTIPLE times throughout and it was frustrating as hell.

i also just...didnt like Siri. at all. i initially thought it was because ive had trouble reading from cynical characters’ perspectives recently, but i just dont like the way her character was written. she has this weird “quirk” where she replaces cuss words with other words that mean the same thing (ex. shit = excrement, hell = underworld, fuck = intercourse) and it was really fucking weird. i feel like it was supposed to be funny, but it just felt fake.

there was also a MASSIVE piece of character development and plot that was SO unbelievable i could not stomach it. i wont spoil it because after all this is a review of an ARC, but seriously it was so annoying and i couldnt suspend my disbelief. at all.

i also feel like the plot was just completely unoriginal. i must not have gotten to the Freaky Friday stuff, but i absolutely got to the Parent Trap stuff and it didnt do anything to separate itself from the Parent Trap. at all. she takes scenes DIRECTLY out of the Parent Trap but assigns it to her own characters and it felt disingenuous and messy.

this book truly feels like she didnt know what she wanted from the book, so she jam-packed it full of ridiculous stuff that i couldnt get behind and i dont think i can bring myself to finish it. thats not to say i dont think she can improve in the future, because i think she can! she just needs to clean up her writing as a whole because it felt very juvenile and messy and underdeveloped in a whole lot of ways. and one more thing: cool! it! on! the! exclamation! points! (this isnt a huge problem and it wasnt what broke the book for me, just a pet peeve of mine)

overall, i feel like this book wasnt honed in enough which is shocking considering she began working on it so soon after the release of Again, but Better. she worked on this for a LONG time and, as harsh as it is, i do not think she met the mark. i might read the final copy when it comes out just to see if its improved at all, but for now im gonna stop reading while im ahead.

40/100.

let's say it together folks.....this was NOT IT.

so, just as many other reviewers that have received an arc, I also read her book, Again but Better. That was a trainwreck and so was this. I honestly don't even want to go into detail with why I didn't like it because this book has sucked all my energy out of my soul.

Usually, even if I've read a book and not enjoyed it like HATED it, I can see that in some way, some person may find joy from the book. This book is not like that. Seriously, don't read it......

An ARC was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

How to begin! This is my first ARC and, after nearly 6 years of reviewing every book I read, I was excited for the opportunity to read something in advance. I am still very excited! It is a really wonderful privilege to be able to read a book that isn't out yet.

It was not, however, a privilege to read this book. This book was―and I cannot stress this enough―bad.

While I didn't like Christine Riccio's first effort, Again, But Better, it still had some structure to it that made sense and, even if I didn't like it, it still had things about it where I could see why others might enjoy it, which is why I rated it a 2 of 5 and called it done. I didn't loathe Again, But Better but I did loathe Better Together.

If this hadn't been baby's first ARC, I would not have finished this book. I usually never finish books I dislike as much as this unless they are so bad that they become funny. This couldn't even get to that point, this was just plain bad. This book was painful.

One thing that kicked things off in a really poor fashion was Riccio's inability to distinguish the two girls' inner voices from one another. I was constantly having to thumb back to the top of a chapter just to check if it was a Siri or a Jamie chapter.

And okay, yes, let's talk about names, shall we? I really hated the name Pilot Penn in Again, But Better but Riccio really had to outdo herself when she legitimately, actually, really named her two main characters after Jamie and Cersei Lannister from Game of Thrones. This is something that is acknowledged in the text because the parents are mega freaks for Game of Thrones, and Riccio attempts to play it for laughs, but I'm sorry, there is no parent in the world, especially not people who are actually fans of those characters, who would legitimately name two siblings after the world's most famous incestuous siblings, and the fact that Riccio had the idea for it and kept it in is honestly a bit troubling.

The dual POV from each girl does make sense thematically, but functionally, it does very little to serve the story, as both girls are going through such a similar journey that the book goes through the same lessons twice, making the book twice as long as it needs to be. I would have preferred Again, But Better as dual POV over this.

There is so much time dedicated at the beginning toward Jamie and Siri being just soOOooOO dIfFeReNt that it was pretty painful from the start, especially with the lack of proper distinctive voices between the sisters' inner monologues. Not only are we basically given a laundry list of reasons why these girls are such opposites, but nobody talks like a real person in this book, least of all our main characters. Jamie swears like a sailor, but they're cute, colorful swears that nobody in real life would use! How different! Siri refuses to swear, instead using the word excrement instead of shit or intercourse instead of fuck. Again, this is played as a way to supposedly show how different the sisters are, but instead it only proves they do the same "look how quirky!" B.S. and it does nothing to endear the reader to them, only proving they are cartoon caricatures of caricatures, nowhere close to being relatable or interesting.

So, let's get into the basic plot and setup, shall we? This book bills itself as an homage to Freaky Friday and The Parent Trap. How do I know this? Not only is that listed on the inside flap (which is fine, I'd like to establish; there's nothing wrong with listing your comps on the inside flap) but it's repeated multiple times in the text that the girls are in the middle of a Parent Trap-Freaky Friday situation. I don't know about you guys, though, but when I'm reading an homage to something, I really don't love it when the characters announce they are in the middle of an homage and then say the title of the thing the homage is to.

I think Christine has a pop culture problem. Her whole life is centered around the things she watches, reads, and listens to. That's okay, so is mine! There's nothing wrong with that, in my opinion. There is, however, a problem with dragging constant pop culture references into your writing. Timothée Chalamet plays a weirdly large role here for some reason. I do not care to ever hear a Game of Thrones reference in anything ever again, because this has enough of them to cover me for the rest of my life. We also get Billie Eilish, Men in Black, and a plethora of other things here that only serve to make the reference to the thing and leave, adding nothing to the story and leaving me groaning in its wake. It's nowhere near as bad as it was in Again, But Better but it's still pretty bad here. Using a pop culture reference is not always a lazy choice; sometimes it can build your setting or show something your character is interested in, but rather than referencing something real, Christine could instead use her creativity to create a new, different show that the girls' parents were into, making all those constant Game of Thrones references feel more original and important to the story, rather than pulling a random bluray off her shelf and calling it good. I'd like to challenge Christine to write a book with no pop culture references. She may not be able to help herself.

Speaking of laziness, the magic in this book feels particularly lackluster, even in comparison to the sorry excuse for magic in Again, But Better and, even before the magic begins, the girls are already planning to do a regular non-magical Parent Trap because they look so similar, so when the magic is introduced, it doesn't do much for the story. The girls also don't seem to learn much while in one another's shoes, making the justification for the magic feel entirely non-existent. There's also some weird business with glitter and sneezing that feels like a little too much in a post-COVID era, honestly.

All in all, this was an extremely painful experience. I honestly have no idea how this book made it to this stage in the state it's in. It's extremely poorly written, pointless, and is filled to the brim with cringe, flat characters, and poor excuses for standup comedy routines. I really was willing to give Christine a chance to improve as a writer from her altogether lame debut, but unfortunately this only somehow proved to be worse.

This book was described as a mix between Freaky Friday and The Parent Trap, and it’s written by Christine Riccio, one of my favorite booktubers, so I was so excited for a chance to read! Better Together is pretty much exactly The Parent Trap, if the sisters had a little help from some Freaky Friday-esque magic. This was a fun read, and I really liked the dynamics between Jamie and Siri, their parents, and their respective love interests. However, the one complaint I had was that this book seemed very long. There was a lot of excessive dialogue and scenes that just seemed like filler. Other than that, for what the book is, it was fun, action-packed, and heartwarming. I know a lot of people have problems with Christine’s tendency to self-insert in her novels, and there is definitely less of that here than in her previous book. Regardless, whether they are based on her or not, the characters are fun and relatable.

**This review will not comment on typographical or grammatical errors.

In short, this story is essentially a merging of The Parent Trap and Freaky Friday EXCEPT that the goal is not to get the parents together, but to get to the bottom of the family’s extreme dysfunction.

Here’s the spoiler-free premise: Siri is an 18-year-old professional ballerina in New Jersey who, due to a recent back injury, has just been told she will never be able to dance again. (Super tragic, right?) Her mom, a professional choreographer with whom Siri dreams to work and dance, has registered Siri for the Rediscover Yourself retreat in Colorado. Meanwhile, Jamie is a stand-up comedienne and improv group co-leader in California who recently experienced an utter failure at her last gig. She’s now living with her “Grams” again and contractually obligated to attend -- you guessed it -- the Rediscover Yourself retreat. (And that’s just stipulation #1.) The two girls literally collide in the bathroom at the retreat where Jamie is surprised but excited to see Siri and Siri nearly breaks down completely. It turns out that they’re sisters! But Siri’s mom has made her believe that Jamie never existed and was an imaginary friend all this time. So, naturally, they hatch a plan to switch lives, get some answers, and convince their parents to fund their sister-bonding trip. And naturally, that goes completely awry and not at all like the girls have planned.

Let’s start with the good: The chapters have names, which I thought was cute, and are pretty short, usually only a few pages. However, towards the end, the chapters became almost infuriatingly short. On the plus side, the chapters shift between Siri’s perspective and Jamie’s. Personally, I love when authors employ that writing style, and in this case, it was even better because the chapter names correlate with Siri and Jamie. (That became super helpful after the girls switched!)

The characters: Siri is originally portrayed as sensible, serious, risk-averse, very punctual, and pretty responsible. She’s the kind of kid a parent probably never has to worry about. Jamie is much more care-free and plan-free, very go-with-the-flow, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants, and silly. However, as the story progresses, both are shown as more sensitive and strong than they realize, especially in each others’ eyes. Siri and Jamie both have a support system -- for Siri, it’s Papa, her mother’s father, and for Jamie, it’s most often Grams. Siri and Jamie definitely need support because Siri describes herself as anti-social (understandably) and Jamie, while much more extroverted, is actually quite socially awkward.

The not-so-good: Siri is such a goody-two-shoes that she even censors her expletives, a habit she picked up from her mother and which I found quite annoying. I also think her reaction to meeting Jamie was a bit over the top; she would rather believe something highly improbable than the much more obvious truth and that’s concerning. Also improbable was the switch itself considering that Siri and Jamie are not twins -- Jamie’s nearly 3 years older than Siri. I will say, though, that I was definitely interested to see how they would pull that off. However, the answer is a bit far fetched, and dare I say even unnecessary. I also thought it was somewhat unfair that (mini-spoiler) Siri has to do comedy -- because she’s living Jamie’s life -- but Jamie doesn’t have to do any ballet -- because Siri can’t -- or anything far out of her own comfort zone; in fact, she gets to hone her comedy craft! (Mini spoiler over.)

Final verdict: The ending was explosive! I definitely did not see it coming and I quite enjoyed it. I also loved the epilogue; I felt that it was well done, and I liked the format of it as well. Overall, this seems like a pretty quick novel that high-schoolers might enjoy. Personally, I think this would fare very well as a movie -- it’s not overly romantic or dramatic and it did have both funny and serious moments that I think would play out well on screen. I’m interested to see the final version of this novel and to read more from this author.

I ended up dnf’i g this book at 35% for now It was exactly what the plot said it would be but I didn’t care about the characters. I might try it again closer to it’s publication date.

"Better Together" by Christine Riccio
Release Date: 6.1.2021

Jamie and Siri are sisters, but they live separately, one with each parent. Siri is a ballerina in NJ; Jamie is a standup comic in LA. They are reunited at a Colorado retreat and decide to switch places, (sound familiar?), with Siri going to LA, and Jamie traveling to Jersey. They want a break from their own live.

Siri is crushing on Jamie's best friend, and Jamie is in love with Zarar. The sisters have new experiences, make new friends, and connect with the parent they never see.

This is an updated version of "The Parent Trap." Cute. Good read.

I have loved Christine Riccio in the past and found her books to be very cute and fun! Better Together was not my favorite, but I did enjoy it, especially the first half. The second half was a little on the sillier side and seemed more childish, but overall, I enjoyed this book.

Thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

1/5

I really didn't love this one, unfortunately. I loved the concept of a Parent Trap retelling, and I was hooked from the beginning because the cover is so cute! But the book overall fell a little flat for me.

I was really caught off guard by Siri, the main character, refusing to swear. There's nothing wrong with that, but it just felt so awkward. She says "what the underworld?" instead of "what the hell?" and "gluteus maximus trench" instead of "asshole." I'm all for quirky main characters, but this is just... not it. It felt like Siri was trying too hard to be quirky.

The characters were the biggest issue I had with this story. The writing wasn't bad, and I think I'd like to give this author another shot sometime in the future. This book, however, was unfortunately a miss for me.

I am not familiar with Christine Ricco or her background nor have I read her previous book, so I picked up “Better Together” with no idea what to expect. This was a cute read that I found myself enjoying and sometimes, there is nothing wrong with dessert before dinner.

This story follows a similar plot to “The Parent Trap” where two sisters, Siri and Jamie, meet and decide to switch places. Siri is a dancer who has been side-lined with what might be a permanent injury. Meanwhile, Jamie is an aspiring comedian. They meet in a retreat in Colorado and similar to the plot of “The Parent Trap,” decide to switch places.

Yes, the characters might have been further developed. Certainly, parts of the plot were predictable. The writing, for the most part, could have been brighter. But despite that, I did like the story; it was a quick read that let me forget some of harsh reality going on outside my window.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review.

This was an interesting attempt at a Parent Trap-esque YA novel. Ultimately, I couldn't really get into the story. The characters were alright, but could have used a bit more development. It was a great concept and effort overall, but I just couldn't get into it.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with this ARC on NetGalley.

This makes me SO SAD to write a review for this book. I had the highest hopes, and unfortunately I was completely let down.

As most of you who know me know, I really loved Again, But Better. It was a 4-star read and I genuinely enjoyed it. It was fun, fluffy, magical, and self-insterty in a way that was charming and exciting. But this...this was a train wreck.

Starting off with the characters, every single one of them was unlikeable. I feel like there’s a difference between fun and entertaining unlikeable, and then just straight up unlikeable. Jaime tried too hard to be cool and outgoing and her overall demeanor was unsettling. I did like her stand-up, but when she was just normal Jaime that humor didn’t translate as well. Then there’s Siri whom I hated a little bit more than Jaime. Siri was insufferable in the way she refused to curse. Refusing to curse isn’t a bad thing, but no real person says “excrement” instead of “shit”. They would say “shoot”. No real person says “gluteus maximus trench” instead of “asshole”. It was just not at all realistic. And the way every single person found it cute was so confusing.

Then the plot just felt so loose and the resolutions were unearned. It was hard to suspend my disbelief about how these parents were fine with just splitting the kids up, and then 14 years later everything is fine and it gets resolved in a couple of paragraphs. I feel like it was easier to believe the Parent Trap and Freaky Friday plots in the movies, but it just wasn’t able to work in this narrative.

Also the magic in this book compared to Again, But Better just didn’t work for me at all. It felt completely unnecessary to the plot, and I don’t want to spoil anything, but it’s pretty useless because the magic doesn’t even convince everyone that Siri and Jaime have swapped identities. It conveniently doesn’t affect their love interests. Which, fine, but it just felt lazy to me.

Overall, I really didn’t like this book and I feel entirely let down. I was really looking forward to this book and it was one of my most anticipated books of the year. The cover is gorgeous, but it doesn’t make up for the lacklustre content.

I’m sorry, this book was just bad.

The plot was unoriginal and used magic as a cop-out (again) - and yes, you can write an original retelling/reimagination of a story. You just need to try.

The characters were undistinguishable from one another at best, and flat out unlikeable at....all the time. Absolutely no use of voice to help the reader tell any of the speakers apart. I had to go back to the beginning of chapters multiple times to figure out whose POV it was. (No, Christine, you can’t just give one character some stupid verbal quirk and call it voice). Ultimately I didn’t care about any of the characters or their stories, and any growth they did go through was so surface level and inconsequential that it was almost laughable.

I’m disappointed that the author keeps getting published at this level. I’m sure with time and lots of practice, her work could be just fine - but she’s not there yet. It seems to me that she’s only published because of her following and until she’s ready, this just ain’t it.

I loved the 1998 version of The Parent Trap movie, so HAD to read BETTER TOGETHER — a New Millennial update of sorts. Dancer Siri and wannabe stand-up comic Jamie are sisters separated when young due to their parents’ acrimonious divorce.

They meet at a Colorado retreat and decide to switch places, homes and parents. This story, like the Parent Trap movies, seems improbable. Yet I suspended judgment and read on, really digging the new book and loving the covers, with one sister on front, the other on back. Great fun for P.T. fans and teen/ya readers!

4 of 5 Stars
Pub Date 01 Jun 2021
#BetterTogether #NetGalley

Thanks to the author, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are mine.

Welcome to another remake / retelling of one of my favorite movies Parent Trap ( sorry my friends but I’m old school about this one: I always prefer 1961’s Hayley Mills’ performance to Lindsay Lohan) You know the drill: the sisters were torn apart at young age and they find each other at Colorado retreat. Both of them have true problematic, dysfunctional relationships with their families. They need a break from their lives. So they made a pact and switch places!

I have to confess I love the author’s booktube performances but her first book “Again but better” was a miss for me.

I can honestly say, I love the premise and ideas of this book so much better. The back stories of the sisters and their family issues, their reconnections with their parents were the strengths of the story.

When it comes to romance parts, team Zarar and Jamie warmed my heart! They were so cute couple. But from the beginning I couldn’t connect with Siri and I found myself yelling at my book: “Siri please call the author and tell her to shut you down, by the way tell me address of the nearest Thai Place !”

She was so whiny, clingy, immature. I try so hard to emphasize with her who lost her future dreams to become a star ballerina. The increasing pressure on her shoulders to be a daughter of a Broadway star!

On the other hand, Jamie was so much likable! Of course I enjoy her profession choice to be stand up comedian even though her entire punchlines inspired from her douchebag father! She’s struggling at her job, losing her apartment and she is forced to go to retreat to obey the rules of the contract she’s made!

The writing style was not engaging. Only my common interest with the author was becoming fan of Billie Eilish . The wordy and long depictions may be edited to fasten the pace, moving forward.

And at some parts the girls’ voices are intercepted! I couldn’t differentiate the characters. They were acting, talking so similar!

Overall: I loved the creative ideas and the girls’ way of facing with their parents to solve their family issues. And I can chant for Jamie and Zarar!

But I have to admit: As another retelling of Parent Trap: I loved Emma Lord’s “ You have a match” more ! This book was smart , creative but there’s something missing about emotional depth of character development and the long, wordy chapters were a little distracting.
So I’m giving three dysfunctional family business meet Parent Trap, entertaining, smart sisterhood stars!

It’s still one of my good reads! And as far as I see, the author gives us so much better materials. I’m so sure with her improving skills, she’ll give us better books in near future and I’ll love to devour them.

Special thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press / Wednesday Books for sharing this one of the most anticipated young adult reads’ digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

This is an intriguing story and I felt compelled to keep reading it, but the language deterred me. There was just too much swearing although the plot and writing were good.