Betting on You by @lynnpainterwritesbooks was one of my most anticipated YA books of the year and it was such a fun read! I’m so grateful to @simonandschuster for an e-arc, but I definitely needed to have a physical copy as well. I preordered over the summer, forgot, and preordered it again, which is a first for me, and it’s fitting that first should happen with a Lynn Painter book, since I always love her books.

Bailey and Charlie first meet in an airport, and a few minutes later, on an airplane, and they immediately dislike each other. Bailey is a little more type A and Charlie seems to enjoy not following any rules and pushing all of Bailey’s buttons. The one thing they do have in common is that their parents are divorced, but it’s newer to Bailey than it is Charlie, and he scares her with warnings of what her future holds. They meet again years later at a movie theater, and then again a few months later at their first day of work at a waterpark. They become friends, and, in an attempt to scare Bailey’s mom’s new boyfriend away, eventually agree to fake date.

Here’s all you really need to know. There’s super fun banter throughout the book and a lot of built up swoony-ness while both characters try to deny their growing feelings for each other. In reviews, this one is being compared to She’s All That and 10 Things I Hate About You, but to me it felt like an homage to When Harry Met Sally, from the multiple meetings, to their instant dislike and subsequent friendship, and Charlie even espouses the “women and men can’t be friends” philosophy from the movie.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone looking for a fun YA romcom. It delivered on everything I was expecting. That said, I do wish Charlie had made a few different decisions and that we had gotten a little more of his family history. While reading, I was actually expecting some kind of reveal that might have explained some things about him that never came, but I still enjoyed every moment.

Per usual, BETTING ON YOU was full of Lynn Painters cute banter so it pains me to say this is her least favorite book for me ☹️

𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝:
-YA enemies to lovers/fake dating
-Taylor Swift references galore 💯
-relatability of divorced parent dynamics

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡:
-soo much drama
-unnecessarily long
-bored in the middle bc not much happened

While it may not have been a winner for me I still look forward to reading all of Painters work in the future ☺️

Thank you so much to Netgalley & Simon and Schuster for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Why is there so much language in this book?? This book felt like it was written for adults not teens. There was just too much content in this that shouldn’t be in a teen book and the amount of language just isn’t okay. Sleepovers between guys and girls, language, and there was a whole plot that just didn’t sit well with me. We added a copy to our library but this isn’t one I can recommend to teens.

Thank you to @simonteen for a digital ARC & @simon.audio for the audiobook. I love Lynn Painter's YA books, and this one was another fun read. Bailey & Charlie have the opposite of a meet cute when they meet at an airport in Alaska and end up sitting together on a flight to Omaha. Fast forward and they become coworkers with some great "enemies" banter. However, on the flip side, these two both understand each other as kids of divorce and dealing with that change, to the point that they begin to look forward to working together and talking to each other. I thought this was a great "enemies to more" YA story with wonderful dialogue. I'm not a Swiftie, so some TS references may have gone over my head. I did catch several though and it didn't bother me like I've seen other reviewers state. Charlie's character was really bold but slowly we begin to see behind the facade and I think he and Bailey really helped each other grow and work through their feelings about their family situations. Bailey comes across as the studios and a little more reserved girl. Their opposites attract relationship reminded me of my husband and myself. I really enjoyed the story and stayed up late to finish it. If you like YA romance with witty banter, pick this one up.

I love this trope - opposites attract and then the chemistry is better than ever! This book was no exception. I love Lynn Painter books - her books are always easy breezy and this was no exception. The scenes in this book just had me giggling and it was an entertaining read. This book is perfect for the YA audience - especially the swifties! Thanks so much for the ARC!

📖 what was your last “mixed bag” book? As in, you really liked some things but didn’t love others?

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the complimentary ARC. All opinions provided are my own.

🎶 when you read a YA book & it reminds you of some of your less than pleasant teen family baggage 🎶

I’m workshopping the lyrics 🤪.

Betting on You by Lynn Painter has some really sweet moments. Some moments that had me thinking “aww” & “this is so good” &
“my heart.“

I know you can tell a “but” is coming & it is but not yet 🤣.

I really loved how opposites Bailey & Charlie develop a strong friendship over time.

That’s a lovely thing to me.

The initial times they meet and reconnect are given some “When Harry Met Sally” vibes & that’s definitely my jam. That banter between them sparks & the way that Charlie is obviously intrigued & yet also irritated by Bailey’s quirks is cute & funny.

There’s some family mess in this YA & while on one hand I love a book that delves deeper emotionally, on the other, the way that this specific book does it doesn’t totally work for me. I ended up being puzzled by some of the actions of the secondary characters & kinda annoyed with how all of that goes down.

Some of it has to be my aforementioned teen family drama but I genuinely think it’s also that as a reader I wasn’t satisfied.

So my first Lynn Painter book was a bit of a mixed bag for me. I liked it on the surface but didn’t always like how the mess is executed 🤷🏻‍♀️.

3.5 ⭐️. Out now!

Please see a trusted reviewer’s list of CWs.

[ID: Jess’s white hand holds the ebook over a group of orange flowers.]

another amazing lynn painter book! who's surprised? not me! i loved it! i swear she writes the perfect romances to read between dark and/or fantasy books! because they'll have you sitting there kicking your feet every time!

Full review is linked below.

This book had way too many moving parts and somehow managed to be about nothing. Bailey and Charlie are okay, but they both make dumb decisions and it doesn’t feel like either of them has truly changed by the end. Swearing in YA isn’t an immediate turnoff for me, but there was way too much of it here - like every other word in some chapters. And as someone who’s a diehard Swiftie, the references to Taylor Swift got to be annoying the more they appeared. I hope Lynn Painter’s other books are better, because there were some good ideas in this one and I wanted to like it. I’m disappointed that it didn’t end up being for me.

I love Lynn Painter, her books always make me laugh out loud and fall in love. But I could not get into this book no matter how hard I tried.

I’m nervous to critique this book bc of all the LP stans. I tend to 4⭐️ most of her books, which I’m fine with! I was leaning toward doing the same with this one, but when I think about her others, I definitely liked this one less. I had two major issues. The first is the immaturity of Charlie and Bailey. I get it — it’s YA and teenagers are immature, obviously, but I could not get over how childish they were acting for the entirety of the book. Second issue: random plot points never revisited. The girl that Bailey thought was Scott’s daughter? Why was that needed? Bailey having such deep connection with her online friends and having a big bookstagram following? Mentioned maybe twice? Bailey’s dad suddenly popping up and caring after not talking to her for months? Mom texted him so all is okay? Blegh.

Despite that small rant, it still was fairly enjoyable and entertaining. I wouldn’t go out of my way to recommend it, but I’m sure many will love it.

3.5⭐️

It was such a cute YA book with dual POV’s and a sweet romance.

Bailey and Charlie met three years ago on a long flight. They are complete opposites and did not get along. Now present day they are both trainees at a job training and will be working together. Will they be able to get along?

I loved Bailey and Charlie’s banter and their dual POV’s. I’m going to be honest; I wasn’t a fan of Charlie at the beginning of the book. I thought he was an ass but he did redeem himself (especially with the cat). I felt the pacing was perfect and it was sweet that Bailey and Charlie bonded over having divorced parents. It also had a some of my favorite tropes -fake dating and opposites attract. If you’re looking for a light and fun read, this is it.

Lynn Painter can do no wrong in my eyes. All of her books are a delight and this one is no different. Loved it and am a fan for life!

Lynn Painter can do no wrong! This book felt like if you combined Better Than the Movies, Mr. Wrong Number, and The Love Wager into one book, and since those are three of my all-time favorite books, that was a very good thing!

I loved having this book being dual POV! I feel like I wouldn’t have liked Charlie as much if I hadn’t fully understood his motives for his decisions throughout the book. He was such a fun and witty character that I instantly liked him. I also really liked Bailey. She reminded me a lot of myself when I was in high school.

Bailey and Charlie had amazing chemistry! They had my heart fluttering so many times throughout this book! I was almost giddy at certain moments at how adorable they were. I thought the mixture of fake dating plus being two friends that have feelings but refuse to admit it even to themselves worked perfectly in this book! I also loved how they were there for each other! They would each drop literally anything for the other and I loved that for them!!! The way that she didn’t even ask questions about his anxiety and just helped in any way that she could was so sweet. And him just straight up dropping anything at any point to come to her rescue (which happened like three times) was adorable!

The only thing that I didn’t love was how Bailey’s mom treated her. There was never a conversation about Scott being added to Bailey’s life and it felt like her mom crossed a boundary. It would have been fine, except that I didn’t love that Bailey never really confronted her mom about it, but I guess that’s realistic. I also wished we could have seen Charlie’s interactions with his family and had Bailey be there for him with his family like he was for hers.

Overall, I am a little obsessed with this book and it just reaffirmed why Lynn Painter is my favorite author!

Another fun rom-com from Lynn Painter. I've loved all of her books so far and was excited to get this e-ARC. Definitely read if you're a fan of fake dating and enemies to lovers type stories. Also, there are a lot of fun Taylor Swift references throughout, which I think my female students will appreciate.

Easy 5 stars. Lynn Painter is the queen of YA. Her books feel so nostalgic and make me giddy. This one is no exception.

Thanks to the publisher for the advanced copy!

Can Lynn Painter write anything I don’t like? This was such a cute book (and believe me I loved the Taylor Swift & the Chiefs references. WHAT DID YOU KNOW LYNN?!)

Charlie & Bailey were so cute and this was such a good slow burn. And the dual POV’s made it even better.

This is a must read!

3 stars

This isn't a bad book, but previous experience with Lynn Painter YA led me to have higher expectations.

Bailey and Charlie meet at a pivotal moment in their lives, do NOT hit it off, and then find each other in complicated circumstances that become uncomplicated and a little mushy over time. While this is a satisfying YA romance, there's little that makes it feel different or special, and for this reason, I'm not sure it'll rise to the top of my recs in this genre (and for this audience).

I remain a fan but missed some of that characteristic magic here. I *can* recommend the audiobook, which I listened to on publication day.

YA is hit or miss with me. With a 13 y/o dabbling in some YA, I've started to read more for connection and I also want to start posting more of her reads for other parents in the same position.

BETTING ON YOU heavily focused around divorce and if girls and boys can be platonic friends, both topics my daughter A has been exposed. With no violence, some swearing, and closed door, it was fine for A to read. Yet, the parents in this book frustrated me as their actions were not consistent with the message they were sending to Bailey, especially the drama in the end. As a parent, I am still concerned about the Tums consumption from Charlie; that was not normal and I wanted to know more.

My daughter's review: "The fake dating and scheming to break up the mom and boyfriend was my favorite part. The ending was good too."

Thanks to @netgalley for the advance copy.

This is my first Lynn Painter book and wow, I've been missing out! This was an adorable swoony rom-com that made me teary and laugh out loud in the same scene. Bailey and Charlie have sizzling chemistry and they felt like real people I wanted to hang out with! The witty banter was top notch and so much fun. I'll be recommending this to all YA and rom-com fans. I would love to see this as a movie.

Happy Publication Day! I love Lynn Painter's YA Rom-Coms and Betting on You did not disappoint. I cannot wait to get this one on the shelves in my library!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC.