Kiley Reid writes into awkwardness and power differences so well, Come and Get It is a campus novel that interrogates money, race and power in relationships as it plays out in one transfer dorm where a visiting professor enlists the help of an RA to work on a new a project about college students and money. There are so many characters at play, which initially made me unsure how each piece would fit together, but fit together it does as microaggressions build towards big consequences. This story is very character driven, stepping back in time with glimpses into events that impacted who each of these women are. These characters are messy and flawed yet none are painted as villains or victims. Come and Get It would make a great book club pick, with so much to discuss within these relatIonships and the decisions each character makes. I’m still thinking about it. Huge thanks to NetGalley and Putnam for access to the eARC of one of my most anticipated January reads!

DNF @ 30%. I really wanted to like this, since I loved Such a Fun Age. But I just... didn't. 30% in, I still had no idea what the plot was (or even if there was a plot). Every character so far is pretty mediocre in terms of their likability. No one is outright evil, but everyone just kind of sucks or is not that interesting. The prose is written in a "tell me" way rather than a "show me" way. There's straight dialogue and then a character does something and then more simple dialogue.

And there were some things that were confusing, like in one chapter, Kennedy's mom is named Jerilyn, but then in the next chapter, she is with someone named Nichelle who is described as her mother but who calls her daughter "sis." Maybe it's some joke or something that I would have gotten if I continued with the book, but I flipped between those two chapters trying to make sense of it, and I couldn't.

Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for providing me with an eARC of Come and Get It in exchange for my honest review.

Such a Fun Age made such a splash that I was nervous for Reid and her follow up. And while it seems to be getting some mixed reviews, I thoroughly enjoyed her commentary on race, class, Some of the critique has been that nothing happens, which while untrue, is more of a taste preference than the book being "bad". PLENTY happens in this book, just subtly and with a lot of context needed. In that way I thought it was very clever (much like Such a Fun Age) and made for a thoughtful read. Reid is now an autobuy author for me and I can't wait to see what she does next!

I loved "Such a Fun Age," so I was pumped to get an advanced reader copy of "Come and Get it." I am pretty disappointed. This was a lot of character back story and not a lot of plot. I kept thinking something would happen and it really didn't. I would skip this one and hold out for Reid's next book.

Thank you to Netgalley & PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, G.P. Putnam's Sons for the advanced reader copy.

Kiley Reid has an amazing talent for creating characters, giving them depth, personal stories and anecdotes that let us define them and amuse us. But with an amazing cast of characters, we still need a plot to propel the characters forward, unite them in some common cause or have some incidents that divide them, or even entangle them in a mystery to be neatly resolved at the end.

There are multiples characters (the visiting professor, the Resident Assistants, and at least 5 students with major roles), each with an elaborate backstory, but none of them interconnected except by the day-to-day experiences of dorm at a southern university (noted by the “Ah”s instead of “I”s, and ubiquitous “you’all”s). The most drama concerns pranks and no one is portrayed sympathetically. I kept waiting for a plot, but it never appeared. Library Reads has selected “Come and Get It” as a January 2024 pick, so I feel this must have a more patient audience elsewhere. 3 stars.

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): YES Keisha has green eyes.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO Most flowers are in bouquets.

Thank you to Penguin/GP Putnam and NetGalley for a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

I loved Such A Fun Age and was so excited to dive into this one but sadly it left me underwhelmed. While I can appreciate the character driven nature of the book I needed a little more plot to keep me engaged.

I really wanted to like this book. Such a Fun Age got me back into reading consistently. But this book felt like it was trying to accomplish too much thematically, leaving characters underdeveloped and the plot lacking. For a character-driven book, I want to really know them in an in-depth way, but they all felt one-dimensional. I’m not sure if Kiley Reid was trying to go for satire? The characters all felt like dramatized versions of people in a college universe who say and do stereotypically problematic and ignorant things, but she made that their personalities. Maybe in art, you have to be a bit on the nose, but I think smart writing conveys the nuances and subtle ways ugly aspects of humanity show up in the world. This just wasn’t it.

Reid had smart moments where she portrayed the subtle ways money influences our relationships and who has power and how it affects daily life. She conveyed the wide gap between the haves and have nots, or at least those who have to work for what they’re given compared with peers who have parents to cover most expenses. That was relatable, but I think the fact that other aspects of these characters were underdeveloped — and that there were too many characters — made the message fall flat. They weren’t believable. The mostly female cast was almost entirely portrayed as vapid, shallow, and/or self-serving. Colette seemed to be intended to counter that, but it fell flat in the busy-ness of the book.

It’s clear that the blinding quest for money produces problematic behavior and greed, but the story we were told to get that message — the prank, the hall decor, the climactic event. Why? It didn’t make sense to me. The last third picked up, but it was such a slog to get there. Kennedy’s story was disappointing and kept a secret for so long for what?

Kiley Reid's writing is interesting and smart in how she captures relationship dynamics and societal forces, at its best, so I’ll read her again but I hope her future books find their focus more than this one did.

Also, this is a nitpick - but the street in Iowa City they call Clinton Avenue is either Clinton Street or Iowa Avenue!! Hope this is corrected before publishing. (Go Hawks!) Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin/Putnam for the ARC.

I'm so disappointed. Such a Fun Age is a great book but Come and Get It was unentertaining and dragged on. The true exciting part of the story doesn't come until around 60% of the book. Character driven stories are only entertaining when the characters are themselves. Many contributed more than others (kennedy and agatha) and you found yourself missing them when the chapters weren't focused on them. The student-teacher relationship was expected but how it went was uncomfortable (not in age gap way but in a "what is the point" way?).
Thank you Netgalley for this arc.

This novel is like watching a train wreck in slow motion, everyone is yelling NO! STOP! DON'T and there is nothing to be done to change what's coming. Kiley Reid does an excellent job with nuance and shades. There are no bad characters or good characters, just people making choices that ripple out to the people around them in profound and dangerous ways. There was no character I couldn't identify with despite differences in ethnicity, economic status, age or sexuality. We all have dirty little secrets, moments we want to erase, choices that make us blush in shame. This is humanity at its finest and its worst.

As an Arkansas native, the setting and tone of this book is SPOT. ON.
Reid does it again- she captures the intricacies of how race and gender play into the plight of women in the modern south. And she does so with absolutely riveting storytelling ability.

Read if you like:
•Contemporary Southern Culture
•Complex Female Characters
•HBO’s show “Sex Lives of College Girls”

I loved this book. Each character was well drawn, including side characters., and the dialog was spot-on. I had so much empathy for all three POV characters, and I liked that there wasn't any clear-cut good or bad guys, just a lot of complexity and gray areas, which is pretty much like life. Just a tremendous book.

Thank you Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC of @kileyreid "Come and Get It". I'm generally a slower reader taking anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks to finish a book. It turns out what I needed in my life is what is known as "the campus novel". I read this book in 5 days, more likely 4, because I think I didn't read on one of those days. 


Into the book: it starts with dorm move in day and takes off from there. Having recently moved my freshman son into his college dorm and witnessed the gazillion posts related to all things dorm in the parents Facebook page, this was very relatable! The interactions between roommates and RAs was very real and fun to read about as they played out. Ms Reid then takes it off the rails and the fun really begins when the underhanded behavior begins. 


Great book! Super fun read



#ComeandGetIt #NetGalley

Having loved Such a Fun Age, I was excited to be approved for an ARC of Kiley Reid's second novel. Like with Such a Fun Age, Reid's writing is incisive and clever. I agree with other reviewers saying the plot was a bit messy and hard to follow given the number of characters, but I was hooked nonetheless. I appreciated the focus on college life and the fallout from decisions we make.

Good story but the aftermath was too short. It felt balanced and unfinished at the end. I also was more interested in the side characters than the main ones. Knowing more about Peyton and Tyler would have been more fun than Agatha.

I loved Such A Fun Age so had high hopes for Kiley Reid’s second novel unfortunately it is okay at best. The characters are one dimensional and the plot is paper thin.

An unusual story set in a university dorm, Millie is working as an RA while she finishes her second senior year of college. Her life becomes complicated by some of the residents that she is responsible for and by her involvement with a visiting professor, Agatha. While Agatha has her own issues, Millie is striving to realize her dreams of being promoted in a resident life job and owning a home.
I feel like this book hasn't been given the love that it deserves.It seems like the issues are somewhat petty - mean girl drama, eavesdropping residents and typical dorm pranks but Kiley Reid uses these issues to develop the characters in subtle but impactful ways. I really liked the way the author wove serious issues into the seemingly petty day to day problems of dorm life. She addresses racism, complicated relationships, suicide, bullying and ethical dilemmas in subtle but powerful ways and I think she is talented in making her readers feel all the emotional ups and downs that her characters are experiencing. I also appreciated the creative ways that some of the problems were solved but this book is anything but a light read.
# NetGalley #PenguinGroupPutnam

Come Closer by Kiley Reid did not disappoint. Reid’s honest yet humorous outlook on life is thoroughly entertaining and this was a perfect follow up to Such a Fun Age. I look forward to reading more of Reid’s work and find her to be a necessary voice in contemporary women’s fiction.

I still don't really know what this book was supposed to be about. It was a jumbled mess with way too many 1D characters that seemed like variations of the same person. A lot of the pieces didn't really fit together and I legitimately thought my ARC was missing a few pages at the end when it went to acknowledgments out of nowhere. Nothing happened for 90% of the book and it was SO much meaningless dialogue.

Without spoiling anything, I think power dynamics should have been explored more and it's irresponsible not to have a clear conclusion there.

This was a fast read that I’m not sure exactly what I thought about it. There were storylines and characters that I really enjoyed, and then there was a lot of cringe that I don’t think was intentional cringe (beyond the microaggressions that were ment to be cringey). Maybe it’s just that I am getting too old to care deeply about the mistakes and thoughts of college age kids, I work with them so maybe I’m just at capacity. Maybe this just had one or two elements more than it should have to really work. I’m not sure.

I did read it quickly and it did hold my attention, even with some pretty one-two dimensional supporting characters. I think what held me attention the most was trying to figure out exactly what the author’s intent was. We have a few fully fleshed out dynamic characters who are experiencing the dehumanization of being treated as if they are stereotypical, but at the same time many other characters (other RAs, residents in the halls, etc) are written as very one dimensional. Was that an intentional decision? If so it’s interesting, but I don’t know if it worked that well over a 400 page book with that many characters, plot lines, and back stories.

Set at the University of Arkansas, this novel focuses on a number of different characters with some connections to one another (some of these connections are stronger than others). It’s hard to tell who the main character is, but a number of them are compelling. I liked the college setting.