The Perfect Valentine’s Day Book

Junior Danica Shanahan reviews “The Do-Over.”

The+Do-Over%2C+by+Lynn+Painter%2C+is+a+romance+comedy.

“The Do-Over,” by Lynn Painter, is a romance comedy.

Danica Shanahan, Staff Writer

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner it is the romance genre’s time to shine. The Do-Over, one of my favorite books of all time, gets bonus points because it takes place on Valentine’s Day. I love this book so much! It’s a little cheesy but it honestly feels like reading a rom-com.

The young adult romance by Lynn Painter follows main character Emilie Hornby as she goes through an absolutely awful Valentine’s Day over and over again in a Groundhog Day-style adventure.  Her day begins every day by crashing her car into her grumpy chemistry partner Nick Stark’s truck, continues on with her catching her “perfect” boyfriend kissing another girl, and ends with her father telling her that he’s moving across the country, and she will have to finish high school living with her mom. This day repeats over and over again and drives Emilie insane; she tries to change up what she does trying to get out of the time loop.

During one loop Emilie and Nick, despite their dislike for one another, get up and ditch chemistry class and decide to have a day of fun. Emilie knows they won’t remember it the next day since they’ll have to repeat the same awful day again anyway, so she’s up for adventure. However as Nick and Emilie hang out they realize they might not hate each other as much as they thought. Talking about their futures and their pasts really makes them feel comfortable with each other. It’s so easy to read and the 304 pages fly by. The characters are so loveable, even Nick once you get past his “bad boy” persona.

Will they fall in love? Will Emilie be able to break the time loop? Will she do anything she will regret?

This book is a 5/5 stars for me and an absolute must read! It even has a playlist in the back- what more could one ask for?