After dubbing Kiley Reid's debut novel one of my best books of the year when it came out a few years ago, I was ecstatic to get my hands on her new book. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to her debut.

What I loved: the nuances that Reid captures in her dialogue and writing. As with any literary fiction, the plot is often not the focal point; the characters and their motivations and conflicts often drive the story. The latter is true with this novel, and as much as I enjoyed the richness of the characters, I just could not get into the story. Still, I found enjoyment, and I will continue to excitedly pick up any novels Reid writes.

This was such a good read! I loved Kiley Reid's last book and was so excited to read this one. Lived up to expectations and kept me turning pages well into the night.

I haven't read Reid's debut and now I most definitely will. I agree this starts slowly but it held my interest from the very beginning. I love stories set on college campuses and reading about dorm and sorority life. The character development in this book is top notch and I love Reid's prose. I find myself thinking about this book when I'm not reading it. Highly recommend!

Really enjoyed this unique book! Told from multiple POVs, everyone is a different race/class/sexual orientation and they all bring a lot of different perspectives and context to their interactions with one another. It was like watching a car crash in slow motion, you knew something bad was going to happen but just didnt know when. I did get tired of reading "ohmygod" and omygosh a million times but i understand that was just the way the characters spoke. My one qualm was there was so many names/people it was hard to keep it all straight at times.

Thank you to Penguin Random House and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of "Come and Get It" by Kiley Reid. I appreciate having the opportunity to dive into Reid's latest work ahead of its release. Please know that all the opinions I share in my review are entirely my own.

"Come and Get It" by Kiley Reid is set at the University of Arkansas in 2017, where Millie Cousins, a senior resident assistant, is eager to graduate and start her life. An unexpected offer from visiting professor Agatha Paul leads Millie into a complex web of relationships with her fellow RAs and three challenging students. The story explores themes of ambition, desire, and the consequences of our choices, all wrapped in a narrative that examines the dynamics of power, privilege, and personal responsibility.

This novel shows Reid’s exceptional ability to craft characters and stories that resonate with themes of race, privilege, and human nature. While "Come and Get It" might not cater to those seeking a fast-paced plot, it is an great choice for readers looking for a character-driven narrative.

Reid's talent in creating characters sets the tone for a novel that prioritizes the depth of its characters over the intricacies of its plot. This approach might test the patience of some readers, especially at the halfway mark where the temptation to DNF could arise. Yet, I urge you to stick with it. I feel that the novel will provide an impact that will stick with you.

Some things you’ll see in this novel are microaggressions, the ramifications of selfish behavior, and the often overlooked consequences of our actions on others. The way Reid writes these themes feels like real-world interactions, which adds a layer of authenticity and relevance to the narrative. Also, the way Reid addresses race, privilege, and the essence of human nature recalls her previous work, "Such a Fun Age," yet "Come and Get It" distinguishes itself with fresh perspectives and insights.

One particularly compelling aspect of the book was the contrast between her characters' impulsive speech and their reflective silence, particularly at the end. This back-and-forth really paints a picture of what it's like to be human. It shows how what we think and feel on the inside doesn't always match up with what we show to the world. It's like we're all walking, talking contradictions.

Reid's attention to dialogue adds another layer of authenticity to the narrative, with Casey’s Southern accent and then there are the young women in the story, always flipping between "No. Yeah." and "Yeah. No." and saying sorry for stuff they really shouldn't have to. It's so spot-on how Reid captures this way of speaking that's all too common, especially among women. It's like she's shining a light on how we often downplay our own thoughts or make ourselves smaller in conversations, without even realizing it. It's these little details that make her characters feel so real and the story so grounded in everyday life. These language choices not only flesh out the characters but also shows the pressures that influence our self-presentation.

"Come and Get It" offers a reading experience that engages the mind and prompts thoughtful reflection, making it an excellent choice for those who appreciate the beauty of complex narratives and character studies. I can absolutely seeing this book creeping back into my thoughts during future interactions and conversations. I am looking forward to more people reading this book and discussing it with them after they finish.
____________________
I will share to my instagram page and link here as soon as I have a physical copy to photograph.

What attracted me to read Come & Get It was the fact that it was set in beautiful Fayetteville, Arkansas, on the University of Arkansas campus. For some reason I was expecting a story revolving around sorority life and campus escapades.

Well, the escapades were there, but the story did not revolve around sorority life. Even so, the group dynamics of the women living in the dorm was very similar. Everything centered around the Resident Advisors and the students. Rounding out the players was one oddball of a professor who made a hobby and extra cash off of eavesdropping on some of the students.

I’ll be honest. I did not want to finish the book until I read the glowing review my local newspaper published. That inspired me to stay the course. I did become more interested near the end, but the story was never one that captured my interest. In a nutshell, I felt the characters and the storyline had no redeeming qualities.

Thank you to NetGalley and GP Putnam & Sons for allowing me to read an advance copy.

Kiley Reid has written another timely novel that traffics in big issues, disguised as small ones: the lives of roommates in 2017 at the University of Arkansas, their RA, Millie, and Agatha Paul, a visiting well-established professor who interviews them for her research, but in the process stumbles into an ethical slippery slope and keeps sliding. Is one of the roommates a master manipulator or a victim of circumstance? Another roommate is so haunted by a recent trauma that she painfully and poignantly overthinks any and all social interactions. For many of the characters money is no issue, for others, the lack of it has them in a stranglehold. Questions about the rigor and professionalism of academic research, the nature of informed consent, the very elastic notion of privacy and privilege, sexual politics, the interplay of racial undercurrents, and the porosity of moral concessions pulse through the story. And it is also a meditation on friendship: it’s transactional nature, its delicacy, and sometimes it’s cruelty. There are a few weak areas; a climactic scene in the shared dorm room has some technical believability issues, but the focus and reach of the narrative more than compensate. Riley excels at the chess game of group dynamics and power revealed through dialogue, its subtle shifting of social hierarchy, and the even richer unspoken dialogue (she’s like a behavioral neuroscientist). I finished this novel a while ago, but in its wake, new connections and insights are still rising to the surface. Chief among them is how tender and fragile it is to be human, how much we need to be seen and known by others, and once damaged, how very hard it can be for us to mend. Recommended. My thanks to NetGalley and the Penguin Group Putnam.

This is such a difficult book for me to review. I'm generally happiest when there is some kind of plot to the story and this is truly character driven. At about 27% in, I realized that while things were happening, things really weren't happening if that makes any sense. The characters, save one, were really not all that likable but then I realized, I lived that dorm and those characters to some extent. When you have people from all different walks of life come together in a setting like a dorm, things will get interesting very quickly. I wasn't completely sold on Agatha and her "stories" kind of reminded me of a 90210 (early edition) episode. Nor was I sold on her entanglement with the other girls in the dorm. There are some difficult parts to read (yes the dog was difficult but I had that happen to me (the accidental death), it was brought back in vivid color) but they are situations that happen in real life so it didn't color my reading. In the end, I'm still thinking about the story so although I started out at 3 stars...I've decided it is a 4 star story for me.

If you like a character driven novel, you need to pick this one up! This book is a wild ride - I was absolutely hooked from the beginning.

This is a book where pretty much nothing happens, but at the same time it felt like a lot happened (does that make sense?)

⭐️⭐️⭐️
Come and Get it
By: Kiley Reid
Publisher: Penguin Group Putnam
Pub Date: 1/30/24

After reading Coming of Age I was excited to start this one unfortunately it was just not it. There is no plot.
The story is about a resident advisor at the University of Arkansas. He’s dealing with all the coming of age things, graduating, focusing on his future, as well as dealing with the trivial problems of college kids. When a visiting professor arrives on campus he starts a relationship with her.
Unfortunately it never seemed like the story had much substance to it.
Thanks to Penguin Group Putman and NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you G.P. Putnam’s Sons for approving a NetGalley ARC of Come and Get It by Kiley Reid in exchange for an honest review!

Structurally, Come and Get It is nothing like Kiley Reid’s debut Such a Fun Age. There are more POV characters, the plot is more loose in terms of event sequence until a Big Incident (it is still a book after all!), so what I’m saying is this book is all vibes.

Thematically though, Come and Get It very much aligns with Such a Fun Age when it comes to portraying money and finances. In the character Millie, I very much could relate to wanting to embrace being young but not get crushed under very real financial obligations. Sometimes, money is a driver between really bad decisions, which this book explores in great detail. In that sense, having a huge state school like University of Arkansas as a setting can help show the breadth of finances and the power they have. It made me think more critically about what I saw people in my college past go through. Moreover, I applaud Kiley Reid for exploring themes in a subtle way that’s only hitting me now that I’ve completed the book.

Look, this is a literary fiction book with unlikeable characters that definitely won’t be for everybody. That said, this is at least a lit fic choice that actually made me want to sit with what I just read. For me, that’s an easy 4 stars to give.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Kiley Reid is excellent at writing awkward and tense racial situations and I loved this book. While I wish that she had gotten to the core conflict of the story sooner, getting to know the back stories of the main characters helped to illuminate why they made certain choices and had less than pure motives throughout the book. It was a slow start but if you can stick with it to figure out how everyone and everything connects, the twists that come in the final third of the book are worth it.

Happy Pub Day Eve!

At one point of Kiley Reid's sophomore novel, a frantic college student says, "We need an adult."

Spoiler alert: there are no adults.

Come and Get it was an intriguing read. Set in an Arkansas university, it follows the POV of Millie, Kennedy, and Agatha. Millie is an RA, who took a year here and there off from university and is embarking on her second senior year. Her dream is to own a house, and she scrimps and saves every penny that she stores in a boot. Kennedy is on Millie's floor, she keeps to herself, she's kind of messy, and has been shut out by her mean girl roommates whom she shares a suite with. Agatha is teaching a course at the university for a year, and she is a writing, most notable for writing about how people spend their money, or their thoughts on marriage. The three women's lives intersect in very unexpected ways.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around this novel, and that's a good thing. The book is paced slowly at the beginning, to the point of almost meandering but then it takes a turn and moves fast and quick and you realize there are no grownups left.

Thank you Penguin Group and Netgalley for the ARC for my honest review.

You had me at Such a Fun Age, and I kept searching for your next story. I’m so excited I got to read this. This one does not disappoint! Character development and delving into the issue of privilege are a strength. Only those ready to explore and sit with it will get it, but if you do you will love this next read.

Come and Get It is a character driven novel focusing on coining of age and college life. There is a lot to unpack within this book and also not much really happens…. If that makes sense to anyone. It is almost like a socioeconomic dive, looking at the haves and have nots, racism, and LGBTQ representation. There are even interviews conducted going into these topics. I got through the introduction of characters and all the MC is going through and was waiting for something to happen. Honestly it felt like there wasn’t much plot. I was a little disappointed with this as I loved Such a Fun Age.

Come and get it tells the story of a resident assistant, some very interesting students under her tutelage, and a visiting professor. The characters are stereotypical college students. The plot ebbs and flows, so much so that it can be hard to follow and maintain interest. As someone who works in higher ed, I wasn't overly thrilled.

When I started the book, I had high hopes for it. I loved Kiley Reid's other book Such a Fun Age. I mean, I loved it. I gave it five stars without thinking about it. It had important commentary without preaching to the reader and there was a plot. At the beginning, I was enjoying it. Reid has a knack for details, which was present in Come and Get It, and for language. That was the thing I liked most about it.
As I continued to read, I realized that there was really little plot. Nothing happened. Now, I do enjoy character driven novels but there has to be some plot, even if it is loose and not encompassing. I also had trouble connecting to the characters. They did not seem very likeable and I am all for unlikeable characters but I usually like to see one that I like or one that is mixed (after all, the very best characters are not all one thing or the other). I found myself thinking that I could easily get along in life without ever meeting one of them. All of this made me a little bored and if it was not for the language, quite honestly, I might not have finished it.

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the Arc! I really enjoyed this book. It followed students at the University of Arkansas. Most of the book felt very mundane. It was filled with bickering roommates, the weird relationship with your RA, and a questionable relationship with someone much older than you. However, you felt tension bubbling throughout each page. I think the drama and anticipation was the best part of the book.

I was a big fan of Reid's debut novel, Such A Fun Age, so I was excited for her next book. In a nutshell, Come And Get It follows a professor who is conducting interviews for her book on weddings, and after interviewing college students, she becomes interested in their thinly veiled white privileged outlook and racial comments, such as using the word "ghetto" to describe their Black RA, while quickly saying, "but I like her though."
She then starts hanging out in the RA's dorm room to eavesdrop on their conversations, and then uses their conversations to create interview style exposes for Teen Vogue, while taking some liberties with the truth. And then begins taking liberties with the RA....
My reaction and impressions of have changed over the past few days. While reading, I put it down for a period of time because not a lot was happening. The pacing was slow, and while the character development was great- and I have MANY strong feelings for the different characters- I couldn't see where it was going. The plot was taking a long time to solidify, and at one point focus seemed to change from one topic- the micro aggressions of college roommates towards their Black RA, to another- the queer awakening of Millie (the RA) with a professor on campus. While the RA is older having taken time off for various reasons, I am never a fan of professor(or teacher)/student relationships (I am an educator and that is not a favorite topic.)
There was also a character, Kennedy, who had some sort of traumatic event at a previous school that seems to be the driving force behind her eccentric behavior. The incident was sad, and I'm sure traumatic, but it was not what you would think.
After 3/4 of the way through, everything sort of exploded at once. The plot came together, chaos ensued, and it was a lot to process. I think had the build up to the events been structured differently, I would have been more invested instead of just yelling 'WTF!?"
However, this book really got me to think about dynamics in friends groups, how daily subtle microaggressions can build up, and how incidents that don't seem traumatic to us can lead to lasting consequences to others. Racism doesn't need to be blatant and overt to be dangerous.
And also, college students make really poor, poor decisions.
3 stars.
Thank you NetGalley for my copy.

Maybe I'm just not the target audience for Kiley Reid's work. I read Such a Fun Age and while I enjoyed it, I felt like it was trying to be significant and just didn't quite get there for me. Her new book Come and Get It was harder for me to get through and again it just didn't click for me. That doesn't mean it's not a good piece of writing, just that it isn't the right book for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of Come and Get It in exchange for an honest opinion.