Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Better Than the Movies | 2021 | Lynn Painter | Buy |
| 2 | Meglio che nei film | 2021 | Lynn Painter | N/A |
| 3 | The Party | - | Lynn Painter | N/A |
| 4 | Wes e Liz na estrada | 2022 | Lynn Painter | N/A |
| 5 | Liz’s Proposal | - | Lynn Painter | N/A |
| 6 | Nothing Like the Movies | 2024 | Lynn Painter | Buy |
| 7 | Better Than the Prom | 2022 | Lynn Painter | N/A |
| 8 | Mr. Wrong Number | 2022 | Lynn Painter | Buy |
| 9 | Better Than Before | 2023 | Lynn Painter | N/A |
| 10 | The Love Wager | 2023 | Lynn Painter | Buy |
Better Than the Movies was published in 2021 as Lynn Painter’s YA debut. The story follows Liz Buxbaum, a film-obsessed teenager who has been quietly devoted to her neighbour Michael since childhood. When Michael returns to town, Liz enlists the help of Wes Bennett, her other neighbour who she has always found infuriating, to get Michael’s attention. The setup follows a familiar rom-com structure, but Painter’s writing gives it enough energy and self-awareness to feel fresh.
The novel’s title reflects Liz’s habit of measuring real life against the grand romantic gestures of her favourite films. Her father shares her love of movies, and their relationship adds warmth and emotional weight that keeps the book from being purely comedic. The slow shift in Liz’s feelings from Michael to Wes is well-handled, and the ending sets up the sequel without leaving the first book unresolved.
Nothing Like the Movies continues Liz and Wes’s story from Wes’s perspective after a period apart. The second book examines how relationships survive real-world complications that no movie script accounts for, and it takes a somewhat darker emotional tone than the first before arriving at its resolution.