One of my favorite things that a book can have is different story tropes. In literature, a trope is like a piece of the story that is similar to other books. For example, in Western books, there is a trope of having a dramatic fight in an old town as a tumbleweed rolls past. In romance books, different tropes keep the story moving and exciting. One book that has those different tropes is “Better Than the Movies” by Lynn Painter. This book has something almost everyone would enjoy.
For the music lovers, “BTTM (Better Than the Movies)” has a page at the end of the book dedicated to the music playlist the two main characters listen to. Some of the music they listen to vary from Taylor Swift to Metallica and many other popular artists.
For the classic movie lovers, BTTM makes references to several different movies: Notting Hill, The Sandlot, 10 Things I Hate About You and Love Actually.
There is also a classic trope many people enjoy: enemies to lovers, when two characters in the beginning ‘hate’ each other, but slowly grow to love each other. BTTM has some of the best tension and romance scenes and has a beautiful ending that wraps up the story perfectly. One quote that had many readers hooked is, “So you think that two enemies—in the real world—can magically get over their differences and fall madly in love?”
This book has won the award for New York Times best-seller, but it has also won over the hearts of many people who love Taylor Swift, classic rom-com movies and the enemies to lovers trope.
So, if you love books with music and enemies to lovers, you should definitely read “Better Than the Movies.”
