As far as tropes are concerned, academic rivals to lovers is the best. There's a reason they are the most prominent in YA contemporary rather than adult contemporary and I think in part, it has to do with the academic setting (whereas the adult counterpart would be workplace rivals to lovers) and how when you're coming of age, the stakes appear to be so much higher. Bel's reluctance and hesitancy to think of the future is something a lot of young adults can relate to. The future is scary and I like how instead of the "gunner" characters that are usually the protagonist of an academic rivals story, the author decided to go about it in a different way. It was refreshing and definitely made this book stand out. My Mechanical Romance's exploration of being a woman in a male-dominated sphere is reminiscent of Michelle Quach's Not Here to Be Liked in the best way. There's something so sincere and tender about witnessing first love and this book was such a pleasure to read. Definitely recommend this book and it is definitely one of the cutest YA contemporaries I've ever read.