Cover Image: She Gets the Girl

She Gets the Girl

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Member Reviews

A big thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for sending me an e-ARC of "She Gets the Girl" by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick!!

...is it possible to write a review that truly encompasses all of the emotions I feel after finishing "She Gets the Girl"? I don't think so. I am full of gay screaming, an intense longing to get a girlfriend, and Taylor Swift's iconic queer anthem "This Is How You Get the Girl" on repeat in my head. If you want:
- a new adult romcom that takes place at college
- a queer coming of age story that doesn't involve coming out
- character development that doesn't paint out either leads to be assholes at first
- the sweetest friends-to-lovers arc that I have read in a VERY long time
Then you will need to read "She Gets the Girl" ASAP.

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This is such a fun queer romance!

I really loved that this was set in college, and that they really felt like college freshman. A little awkward, but trying to find their footing.

The main cast of characters were super cute, and I really loved some of the side characters (JIM!), but I wish the book had talked a little deeper about the bad relationships in the book. Natalie was so toxic, and quite frankly abusive, and while we got to the point that Alex realized Natalie was bad, but the abuse was never really called out for what it was. Same with both girls mothers.

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I just loved Molly Parker! I think that we can all relate to that crush you just hold on to! Molly is ready for college and ready to start over fresh and be this whole new person who isn't shy and can talk to a girl she likes. Except it just isnt as easy as she planned and she falls into old habits that keep her isolated. Her paths cross with Alex who is also ready to start new at college without her alcoholic mom and needing to prove to her girlfriend that she can be trusted.

Alex thinks that helping Molly get the girl will prove that she is reliable and can open up to people to her girlfriend. What could go wrong with these opposites spending time together. I love when you can just feel them falling and they are clueless. Alex's girlfriend returns and Molly gets the girl-- but is that what they really want? Such a sweet coming of age and finding out about who you should let close to your heart story.

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Alyson Derrick and Rachael Lippincott's She Gets the Girl was wonderful! I appreciated the combination of well-rounded characters and queer themes presented in this novel. A great read!

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More YA novels need to take place in college and this book needs a movie.

Everything about this book was sweet, heartful and made me feel lonely. This is what I want when I ask for a sapphic rom-com, something that will make me smile but also feel so many emotions.

Both Alex and Molly are great complex characters, but I wish we had more of Molly and the story line of her internalized racism. There were mentions of it, but I wanted more in depth discussions on it. Beside that, Molly reminded me a lot of myself, awkward with a lot of anxiety.

Alex on the other hand, felt like the breakout character and was given more growth; her storyline broke my heart.

Over all, everything about this book had me smiling and wishing I could have a love story like this.

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This was a good enemies to friends to lovers plot. I liked the lessons of what it means to truly love and having romantic feelings for someone. I also always appreciate LGBTQ books that aren't about coming out. I listened to the audiobook version.

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I managed to listen to SHE GETS THE GIRL by Rachel Lippincott and Alyson Derrick in a single day. It was so delightful that I absolutely could not stop listening to it.

I can confidently say I was in heart-eyes mode the entire time.

I really enjoyed the friendship between Alex and Molly. There’s so much self-discovery that happens for both of them that has you absolutely rooting for them. I mean, you can truly feel the friendship flourishing between them and the exact moment it shifts into something more.

This was just such a sweet read! It was so relatable and the fact that it was set on a college campus gave it that extra oomph we’re missing in YA contemporary fiction. We demand more books set on college campuses!!

I have to share that my favorite part was absolutely the roller skating “date” - just wait till you get to read it! 😍

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This is a cute little sapphic retelling of the 12th knight by William Shakespeare. The main characters are so different in personality it’s hard to see the chemistry at first. Makes you start to wonder if it’s ever going to show up but it does. Alex’s character was a little too jaded for me in someone so young but I could tell they were going for that “Bad Girl reformed” thing with her. I found Molly the most relatable. Anxious. Socially awkward and needing to get out of her own head. It was nice seeing her get Alex out of her own self absorption.

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The writing style and synopsis reminded me of wattpad, which kind of gave me more of a comfortable introduction. The characters were welcoming, and easy to understand/get to know. The plot was more interesting than expected, but I do wish the author had put more description towards the main charcters' primary interest.

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She Gets the Girl by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick is one of my favorite YA reads this year by far.
Seriously, my heart is overflowing with how much I adored this sapphic book.

I actually really loved seeing a YA novel set in college. There should be more! I think teens really need to see what life is like after high school. It was great to see our characters trying to navigate life after leaving everything they know.

Our MCs Alex and Molly were amazing! I loved them both so much. They were both so different yet so complimentary of each other. This was a very slow burn romance but I’m okay with that. I loved witnessing their friendship bloom, I honestly didn’t even need the romance. That’s how beautiful their friendship was.

This book gave me 90s rom com movie vibes. I’m gonna need a show asap!

She Gets The Girl was an all around wonderful story. I also listened to the audiobook and it was perfect. Loved the narrators so much.

Highly recommend it!

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Cute! Didn’t hate it, didn’t love it.

Honestly, I think I was in a weird place reading-wise and perhaps I didn’t fully appreciate the story, but there’s also not much I could say about this. I enjoyed getting to know one of the main characters, I appreciated the tropey goodness, but I just didn’t feel satisfied with how it ended maybe? Bummed it didn’t work out.

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She Gets the Girl is such a heart-warming story. It manages several romance tropes without ever becoming corny or cliche. I love the characters. I was rooting for Alex the whole book and her growth and development were so satisfying. The young adult awkwardness and dialogue were refreshingly authentic. I don't usually care for dual POV books, but the writing style was different enough to pull it off in this book.

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Gorgeous and inquisitive. Rachael Lippincott did it again, she made my gay romantic heart absolutely swoon.

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I just adored this book! I loved Alex and Molly and their growth as the story went on. I was so proud of them, and they were just the absolute sweetest!

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This book was really sweet. Our two main leads were relatable, their issues felt real and authentic, and their personalities were quirky enough to be interesting without being overdone. Could definitely work for the entire spectrum of YA ages and even mature middle grade.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC.

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Loved this so much! ‘She Gets the Girl’ by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick is one of my top favorite reads of the year so far. It was sweet, romantic, a little angsty, real, heartwarming, a bit heartbreaking, funny, fun, swoony. Alex, Molly, this story totally stole my heart and I can’t recommend it enough. Drop everything and read ‘She Gets the Girl’!

𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙫𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝘼𝙍𝘾 𝙘𝙤𝙥𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙗𝙮 𝙃𝙏𝙋 𝘽𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙨 (𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠-𝙮𝙤𝙪!). 𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙤𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙫𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙤𝙬𝙣.

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To set the scene…
I want to set the scene for you on how I heard about She Gets The Girl: I was laying in my bed, scrolling through my

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My reaction to seeing She Gets The Girl on my FYP
FYP on TikTok (as any good Gen Z-er would) when a video with the caption “the feminine urge to write a sapphic college-aged romcom with your wife, set at the school & in the city you fell in love in” with pics of Pittsburgh and an adorable lesbian couple popped up on my page. This immediately peaked my interest, as a Sapphic person who met their girlfriend in college in Pittsburgh. It was like the FYP Gods were smiling on me. That was back in November, and She Gets The Girl has been on my mind ever sense. The book is a collaborative effort between real life wives Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick, which is also stuck majorly with me. Let me tell you folks: Lippincott and Derrick did NOT disappoint.

“Well, I guess I got the girl after all.”

Told in dual POV, alternating chapters, the book follows moody and stormy Alex Blackwood making the big move from Philly to Pittsburgh and sweet, poorly-dressed Molly Parker making the, well, less big move from her small suburb in Southern, PA, to the city. Alex arrives fresh off of a breakup, while Molly is looking to find love with Cora, the girl she has been practically in love with since high school…who doesn’t even know she exists. When Alex realizes she can help Molly get the girl, she jumps at the chance, hoping it’ll prove she is more than just a friendless flirt to her ex. Despite the girls dislike and distrust for one another, they develop a relationship far deeper than what either intended.

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This book has EVERYTHING: lesbians (woot,) palachinkas, grumpy food truck owners, surprise boners, enemies to lovers, and a swoon worthy roller-skating (not) date.

Something special…
Something worth noting that this book DOESN’T have: a traumatic coming out story. A common thing in queer stories is the need for characters to have to come out in some big, dramatic way, with generally some gut wrenching fall out. She Gets The Girl avoids that. The book is a celebration of queer joy and queer love!

I loved the back and forth POVs that really highlighted Alex and Molly’s distinct differences. Lippincott and Derrick do a wonderful job of fleshing out their heroines, warts and all.

Possible trigger warnings to be aware of: Alcohol abuse, car accidents, and racism.


Overall, She Gets The Girl, is a queer love story for the ages. However, it is more than just a romance between two women. It is also about the power of friendship and what an important foundation to romance that can be. I would recommend She Gets The Girl for more than just Sapphic or Queer individuals, but lovers of love overall.

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This is a cute and fun story with a lot of heart. Alex and Molly both have a lot to offer in different ways, and from different points of view and backgrounds. Never the less, they both want what we all want, to be liked or loved for who we are, and to be able to return that love, whether in a family relationship or a love relationship.

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Rainbows and Sunshine book blog
23 April 2022

I loved this book! Sapphic slowburn rom com with roller skating and practice dates at it's perfection! Also dislike at first sight!

Alex and Molly are messy and real and so relatable. Molly is awkward, nerdy and lonely and I think I died from second hand embarrassment at that scene with bananas and condoms. And Alex is outgoing and flirty and confident, the complete opposite to Molly. But together, they are just perfect!

I love that it seamlessly shifts in POV and we get to them both very well. It's hard to read about Alex's struggle with her alcoholic mom or Molly's mom's stuggle about being Korean. But it's also funny, cute, great chemistry between the MCs and overall such a great book.

This was my first book by the authors and it made my day to realize that they are married in real life!!!

CW: underage drinking, internalised racism (parent), alcoholic parent

Rep: lesbian MCs, Korean American MC, sapphic side characters

*ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review

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I’ve been looking for a college-age sapphic romance for a while and this was exactly what I wanted! The romance, the friendships, the growth? All to die for. I’m going to buy a physical copy as soon as humanly possible.

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