She Gets the Girl

February 21, 2022
Using lightly funny alternating narration, Lippincott (Five Feet Apart) and debut author Derrick, spouses, infuse the opposites-attract trope with some real suspense via a rom-com starring two seemingly dissimilar characters seeking the same things. Alex Blackwood and Molly Parker are both gay and freshmen at the University of Pittsburgh, but they’re temperamentally different. While Alex, who reads as white, has been accused of not being able “to have a conversation without flirting,” she knows she keeps things casual due in part to her home life, which involves hiding her mother’s alcohol reliance. Molly, meanwhile, is quiet and shy, and close to her family—especially her mother, a transracial Korean adoptee. Alex wants to get her ex back by proving she can have platonic female friends as well as assist others, so she works to help Molly get the girl she’s had a crush on for years. Despite their differences, they find themselves opening up to each other, and the authors build a friendship that feels real while letting readers wonder if the two characters will see what else is possible. Ages 14–up. Agent (for Lippincott and Derrick): Emily Van Beek, Folio Jr.