I’m so sad that this was not for me. I enjoyed the first one but found myself trudging through this one. I definitely would just read the first one. I felt it didn’t really need this book.

I didn’t think BTTM needed a continuation, but I loved how Nothing Like the Movies was executed. It captures a different vibe, showing Liz and Wes growing and evolving as they navigate university life and personal challenges. The dual POV lets you connect deeply with both characters, and the portrayal of grief felt authentic.. I couldn’t put this book down, because of how much I missed Wes & Liz! It was great to see more of Wes’ family and the dynamics with both new and returning side characters. While I loved their journey, I do wish there had been a bit more of their happy moments together. Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

If Better Than the Movies was a cheesy teenage drama full of angst, Nothing Like the Movies was a more grown up (but still cheesy and YA) version. The characters were more mature but still retained the banter that was so enjoyable in book one.

Liz still annoyed me at times and Wes was giving off stalker vibes on occasion but as far as YA second chance romances go, it was an entertaining read. If nothing else, it was worth reading for the Wes/flowers/balcony scene alone which had me laughing out loud!

Nothing Like the Movies was a fun read with plenty of rom-com film and soundtrack references that made me laugh and kept me entertained, how can I not be happy with that!

4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher, Simon & Schuster UK Children’s, for my early copy.

Silly little love lover

Nothing Like the Movies by Lynn Painter is a solid 4-star sequel, and honestly, it’s so good to be back with Wes and Liz!

Wes is out here trying to win back his girl, Liz, after totally blowing it. He’s got this full-on rom-com plan—grand gestures, movie moments, all the clichés she loves. But the catch? Liz is not having it. She’s moved on, or at least she’s trying, and Wes has to fight for every second of her attention. And oh, there’s a new guy friend in the mix, too, which only cranks up the tension.

What I loved: Wes is totally relatable here. He’s a mess, trying way too hard, but you can tell his heart is in the right place. His schemes are adorable, even when they don’t work out, and the whole second-chance romance is done really well. There’s definitely angst—Wes knows he messed up and spends most of the book trying to fix it, while Liz is protecting herself from getting hurt again. Painter gives us all the feels with their emotional journey.

Now, the miscommunication trope usually drives me nuts, but here it worked because it’s what the story needed. Without it, we wouldn’t get Wes’s growth or Liz’s journey toward figuring out what she truly wants. But still, I spent half the book like, “Come on, just talk to each other!” That being said, the payoff is worth it.

The only reason it’s not a 5-star for me is that I wanted more moments where they really connected, so their happily ever after could have been a bit longer. Still, their chemistry? On point. I was rooting for them the whole time.

If you loved Better Than the Movies, you’ll enjoy this sequel. It’s got the same charm, humour, and swoon-worthy moments, with a little extra heartache thrown in. Plus, Wes is giving serious rom-com hero energy, even when his plans go hilariously wrong.

thank you to Netgalley and Simon&Schuster for the ARC of my dreams

BTTM is one of my comfort books so I was over the moon when Lynn Painter announced the sequel and now I can’t believe I’ve read it???

I loved having both Wes and Liz POVs in this book, it definitely worked well with the more angsty vibes. The quote choices were excellent (two Hunger Games quotes in there which I LOVED) and the playlist is chefs kiss

2 stars

I didn't love BTTM, but I thought it was a very sweet coming of age read with an absolutely adorable romance... this? This wasn't it.
What's up with Wes becoming an absolute trash and Liz after everything she grew in the previous book, became a whiny immature girl? These two can't possibly be the same characters?
I don't know what happened, but these felt like totally different characters, and I wasn't happy reading this. This is a shame because I was truly excited about going back to see how much they grew up.
I'm very disappointed.

I’ll start the review off by pointing out that I am new to romance as it has never really appealed to me. Better Than the Movies was actually my very first romance novel and I was pleasantly surprised, it was an easy, fun-going read that I finished within 24 hours.

Nothing Like the Movies, as with this first, is a YA Romance so I did have to keep an open mind to the target audience.

Nothing Like the Movies follows Wes and Liz after the events of Better than the Movies and delves deeper into the character of Wes, then for the plot to abandon his backstory half way through, leaving him simply a walking, talking red flag. This sets a completely different tone from that of the first book, which is so lighthearted, with Nothing Like the Movies being more melancholy. I personally felt this sort of portrayed what we all go through as we grow up. We realise the world isn’t all sunshine and rainbows, that love isn’t easy and nothing is like the movies. This redeemed the book a lot for me as, if intentional, I think this was very clever.

Liz and Wes, change a lot between the two books, which I can imagine big fans of the first book wouldn’t be too happy about. Even I didn’t see the two being a couple that break up in the epilogue, though it is expected as how else would there be a second book?

On the whole, I enjoyed Nothing Like the Movies as much as the first. But this is because I prefer the deeper plot lines as someone who isn’t a huge romance reader. But fans of romance may want to enter this one with an open mind.


Thank you to the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Link to Instagram to be added shortly

I was in love with better than the movies and loved liz and Wes, it isn’t an understatement to say I was looking forward to this book. I never thought they would break up after the epilogue so I was a bit Disappoint that it was such a big part of the plot. I feel like the characters weren’t the same as they were before and I know this book is like a time jump but the characters just didn’t hit the same.

Liz just not loving romance feels like her character was thrown into a shredder and wes actions annoyed me quite a lot and I just don’t think the bttm version of them would have acted like that together I thought they would have stuck together through everything .

I didn't like how this sequel changed Wes into a huge red flag, being manipulative and a liar with terrible communication skills. It just feels like the author created this lovely character in book one and then tore him to shreds. Their relationship went from being a sweet romance of two people that were kind of meant for each other, to a relationship where they are too immature and the absolute worst for each other. Really disappointed with this book, and I will not be leaving a public review of this novel out of respect for the authors first book.

Oh, Liz and Wes 🥹 after absolutely adoring Better than the Movies with my whole heart, I couldn’t wait to return to these characters. Nothing Like the Movies is sweet, funny, and incredibly moving; it will really tug at your heartstrings. This story has truly left a permanent mark on my heart. Lynn Painter just gets it right every single time. 🫶🏻

When I tell you I literally screamed when this landed in my inbox I’m not joking. Nothing Like the Movies was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024 and I was ridiculously excited to get an advanced copy.

Now, this isn’t what I was expecting to write in this review at all, but I didn’t love Nothing Like the Movies. Sometimes books don’t need sequels and unfortunately, that’s what I think here. This book wasn’t bad, but it also wasn’t what I wanted. I was hoping for more Liz and Wes romance and less sadness. I never thought they’d be one of the couples that would break up after the epilogue but here we are. Better Than the Movies was one of my favourite reads of 2022 so you can imagine my disappointment when this one didn’t meet expectations.

I knew going into this book that Liz and Wes had broken up, so that wasn’t a shock. The way they acted was though. It didn’t feel like I was reading the same characters. I get that they both went through a lot since we last saw them two years ago, but this didn’t feel very much like a sequel. Having Wes completely change would have made more sense but he was pretty similar to how he was in Better Than the Movies. But Liz was a completely different person, unrecognisable even. Taking away her love of romance basically took away her entire personality and the magic was completely sapped from her story.

One part I really liked was the rom com/romance quotes at the start of each chapter. Especially as there were two The Hunger Games references.

I’m really struggling to write this review as I really don’t know what I thought of Nothing Like the Movies. It was a decent read but I didn’t have the best time reading it. I spent the majority of the book hoping Liz and Wes would get their acts together and admit they still have feelings for each other because that’s obviously where the book was going. I was fine with Liz being standoffish with Wes in person as it was actually quite funny seeing how he reacted but it felt pointless to have her deny her feelings to herself. Does that make sense? Probably not.

The start of the book was too long (and a little boring) and the second half was too rushed. Having Liz and Wes actually become friends again before dating would have been great. Instead of having them constantly argue about whether or not they still know each other, they should have got to know each other all over again. I’m just being bitter because I didn’t enjoy this very much.

Apologies for the all over the place review. It really sucks when a highly anticipated read isn’t what you thought it would be. If you loved Better Than the Movies, I’d suggest you don’t check this out. I would have said LizWes was one of my favourite book couples before reading Nothing Like the Movies.

i want to start by saying that i did enjoy this book! unfortunately, for me it just didn’t hit the same as better than the movies. don’t get me wrong, i am still obsessed with wes (forever and always). i felt like this breakup plot line was just not needed, and it felt forced!! however saying this, i still had such a good time reading as i missed wes and liz so so much and it was so enjoyable to read about them again. i really enjoyed the pacing of the book, it didn’t feel too short or too long, and it made for a really great easy read that had me flipping the page from beginning to end.

one thing about the book that got me was how much wes and liz had changed. i understand that because of the time jump and this new part of their lives that sometimes people go though huge character changes, but i was so obsessed with wes and liz in bttm that it HURT!! they are not the same characters that we once new so BE PREPARED for this when you go to read it!

liz in this book has changed drastically from who she was in book one. i was on her side of the breakup (sorry wes) because miss girl went thought so much out of nowhere! she has matured so much as a character but she has grown out of a lot of the things that i felt made her liz. her love for all romance and romcoms have vanished, so it felt like a huge part of what made bttm special is gone :(

wes still feels like the same old wes, just a little bit older and sadder. however, i feel like wes’ trauma was just forgotten about. he went thought so so much at such a young age but it felt like once he got back to college it was all dumped so there would only be a focus on getting their relationship back. in the first stint of the book we really learn how much he suffered and all the mental challenges he was facing but then suddenly all he’s worried about is getting back together with liz?? i just wish his trauma was expired more and maybe it would make the breakup makes SO MUCH MORE SENSE THEN IT DID!!! as much as i love him as a character i really didn’t agree with his choices to break up with liz and cause so much pain for both of them, (even though i can see why he did it from his pov) when they could have worked through it all together. some of the things he did would be things that bttm wes would NEVER THINK about doing, and it bugged me so bad. but saying that, i feel like we got more glimpses of old wes when he really didn’t give up trying to win back liz with all his movie-like gestures, and how he was genuinely still so in love with liz that he would do anything for her.

i really feel like the comedy aspect was gone in this book. i felt the loss of the lightheartedness and all the things that made bttm stand out to me over other ya books. although it was there in parts, it just didn’t hit the same unfortunately.

however, the ROMANCE WAS THERE!!!!! wes’ grovelling really made the book so enjoyable to read. like man was ready to FIGHT ANYONE to get liz back. he had his charisma, his little flirty quirks anytime he was talking to liz, the pining, the ANGST was all written so well that it was what was making me keep turning the pages to see how their relationship advanced! liz was so so mature and really took her time to build up that trust again with wes, and didn’t just fall at his feet once he started showing interest again. she really made him WORK for her (as she should) and it made the story so much better.

now, the ending to me felt so so rushed and unresolved. although we get a HEA, it felt like it was such a last minute thing thrown in there to make fans happy. before the ending, liz had some really valid concerns and questions about their relationship that just NEVER GOT ANSWERED and were completely forgotten about!! i would have really liked to see them both work though them together but ig we won’t be seeing it!?

overall i did enjoy it, but if you are in dire need for more lizwes content i would recommend reading it, but if you don't want to ruin the preconceived ideas and version of lizwes that already exists, i would maybe reconsider this book because it is NOT the same!!! maybe because i went in with such high hopes after reading bttm i was met with shock and confusion at such a change in the character of the characters, but towards the end i was really able to appreciate how much they have changed and find a new love for these new versions of lizwes, but i know that bttm lizwes will always be the version that i think about when it comes to these books, and they will be the characters that will always feel so special to me and hold such a big part of my heart forever.

Firstly thank-you to @netgalley and @simonandschuster for allowing me a copy of this book! 🥰

Everybody knows how much I am loved Better Than The Movies and how Lynn Painter has become an auto-buy author for me! 😍 I did enjoy this story, however for me, it didn't quite live up to the first book! Firstly, for me, I loved the story of Wes and Liz so it broke my heart at the beginning of this story! 🫠 however, it did become slightly more realistic for me throughout the book in terms of your "traditional relationship" and I still loved the lyric references and the way the book is laid out (well how it should be if NetGalley wasn't silly!) 🥰 I do still recommend this book but Better Than The Movies would still be a good stand-alone in my opinion! ❤️

I had such high hopes for this as I loved better than the movies but honestly, I was a bit disappointed. There were definitely some great moments and I really liked how the backstory was slowly explained throughout the book (and also the Taylor swift lyrics throughout), but it just felt like they had ruined the romantic Liz that I loved from the first book. The beginning did also drag on a bit but it wasn’t unbearable, and overall it was okay but I wouldn’t read it again.

I was very excited to read this as it is a sequel to Better Than the Movies and I was looking forward to exploring Liz's and Wes's relationship - although I was shocked by the continuation I enjoyed seeing them develop and grow with their feelings.

I enjoyed the follow up to Wes and Liz, but felt it was quite slow paced. I liked the college docuseries and Liz focusing on her dreams, but it really seemed like Wes could have avoided the whole problem by just talking to her. And as much as I love the songs and playlists etc, some of the references don’t make sense unless you know the song, which can be a bit frustrating. Enjoyed it, but it lagged a little in parts.

Thanks for you the opportunity to read this ARC

I was a big fan of Better Than The Movies when I read it last year, and was very excited to be rejoining Wes and Liz.

I loved the style of writing, it was fast paced, and the dialogue felt quite natural. Unfortunately though I felt like the characters were too different to their original personalities in the first book, I understand that they’d both been through a lot, and it was good to see how they’ve adjusted into their early adult years, but their spark and playfulness just wasn’t there in the same way, given the circumstances.

I also wish there wasn’t as much miscommunication in it, it made me mad at Wes for how much he manipulated the situation and what he let Liz believe for so long, I was still rooting for them and I still loved how infatuated Wes was with Liz and enjoyed all of the music references

Rating: 3.5 stars

4.5 ⭐️

i loved this so much!!! the most perfect sequel to better than the movies i love liz and wes with my whole entire heart!! lynn painters YA romances just hit like nothing else

Nothing Like the Movies? A more suiting title would be, 'Nothing Like the First Book'

* Very minor spoilers *

I was really excited to read this having LOVED the first book, but once I realised it was a second chance romance I began to feel conflicted. I'm never a big fan of second chance romance books, but because I loved Wes and Liz so much I decided to try... and yeah, my opinion on second chance romance books remains the same.

I will start with what I loved about this book, which is the setting. LA felt new and fresh and I liked Liz's new friends which were introduced as a result. Having a complete 180 on the location definitely suited the characters growth, as they are both completely different to how we last saw them. It was also bit nostalgic for someone who has just graduated and is missing uni life. I must admit it was nice to revisit their hometown and old familiar faces.

However, I was seriously not a fan of this plot. It felt 100 pages too long and the miscommunication between Wes and Liz felt prolonged just for the sake of making the book longer. Because of how Wes was acting, I found it hard to sympathise with him over his treatment and (essentially) ghosting of Liz after breaking up. At times it felt like borderline harassment due to how much Liz genuinely hated him for most of the story. Wes, who was my shining star of Better Than The Movies, became an alpha male, self-centred, aggressive caricature of his original self, which was almost devastating to read.

A big issue for me is the lack of respect people seemed to have for Liz's decision making. Wes's relatives, her own parents, her university friends (who Wes made his friends, too) all repeatedly telling her to rekindle with him. The last nail in the coffin for me was her best friend almost having an argument with her over how much he liked Wes and wanted her to get back with him because he was a 'good guy'. I can't imagine how frustrating it was for Liz. Imagine having to deal with everyone telling you to get back together with someone who has invaded your new safe space, cemented themselves in your new life, and did you so dirty when you broke up. The narrative split read like 80% Wes justification for his actions no matter how things went and 20% Liz's genuine (and valid) angers and upset over it all.

I'm sad to admit I found myself skim reading towards the end of the book. Overall, I gave it 3 stars just because I am fond of the original book and how much I liked seeing Liz make a new life for herself elsewhere.

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read and review this book!

Did the perfection that was better than the movies need a sequel? No.
Am I incredibly happy that we got one and I got to spend more time with Liz and Wes? Yes.

This sequel followed Liz and Wes 2 years after we leave them in better than the movies and follows the fallout of their break up after Wes’s life falls apart around him. I absolutely loved watching Liz and Wes find their way back to each other and find their spark again despite Liz being adamant that she will not be entertaining Wes Bennett and his charm after he broke her heart.

I especially loved that this one was dual pov after only getting Liz’s pov in the first one as I really loved being in Wes’s head and seeing how he feels about Liz from his own perspective. This one while still being ya also felt slightly more grown up that the first one and obviously I loved that we also got another playlist for the book.

Cue the fluttery hearts, ridiculous plots to woo and the inevitable pull that two people who are meant to be have towards each other!