Kait Mae

I have a love-hate relationship with anthologies if you can imagine. I’ve only read two that I enjoyed – and this is one of those two. Meet Cute combines works from various authors in different settings following completely unrelated characters. And normally, I prefer anthologies where each story connects to the others somehow, like in Blackout. That said, I loved this book.

I bought it back in 2020 when I was going crazy in quarantine and spent most of my money on books from various places. I’m still working through most of those, if I’m being honest. Anyway, I’ve finally gotten around to this one after DNF’ing it back in 2023 for a full-length romance.

Let me tell you: I was missing out for so long! I love this book! And if you are even considering picking it up, do it!

Instead of a typical review like I plan on doing sporadically throughout the year for various books, movies, and shows, I’ll be reviewing each story separately. So buckle up, I’m getting right in.

Spoiler Warning: I will talk about some plot lines in some of the stories.

“Siege Etiquette” by Katie Cotugno

This is my least favorite for one reason and one reason, only. It is written fully in second person. If you know anything about me, it takes a certain writer (Brandon Sanderson) for me to enjoy second person.

That said, the story itself – the plot and characters – were the only reason I didn’t skip it altogether. Wolf was interesting, but overall, it’s just not for me. Which is in line with Katie Cotugno’s writing for me – we just don’t fit. And that’s okay, she’s still got readers who do fit with her writing style.

“Print Shop” by Nina LaCour

When I first got to this story, I was a little apprehensive because it starts in second-person perspective. But, the majority of the story is set in the past and is written in first-person. And let me tell you, if it hadn’t been first-person, I wouldn’t have loved it. That said, because of the perspective shift and being a story within a story, I did love it. I especially loved how it was essentially how your friend tells you how they met their significant other. More of these please!

“Hourglass” by Ibi Zoboi

I didn’t know what to expect with this one considering it took until the end of the story to get to the actual meeting. But as we get further into the story, Cherish really comes into her own. I loved seeing her shift away from her toxic friendship and really choose herself for the first time in that relationship. I wish I knew if she decided to still go to Florida or stay in her town after she met Mamadou.

“Click” by Katharine McGee

At the point of reading this short story, it was my favorite. And that still stands. First off, the concept of the dating app is so interesting. I would be down to try that type of dating app.

Anyway, back to the plot. I loved the characters so much and how Raden just dropped his original date to be with Alexa. It was so cute, and the twist at the end was just so perfect. I wish there was more to it – I keep repeating that, but I mean it. I want these to be full-length novels.

“The Intern” by Sara Shepard

I gave this an eight out of ten solely because this was too short. That said, it’s one of my favorites. I loved Phineas and his little quirks – and the way he related Clara to Pele was so cute. I genuinely wish this was a full-length novel. The meet-cute is the perfect little moment in time.

“Somewhere That’s Green” by Meredith Russo

I genuinely liked this story, but I think it should have been a much longer story. It’s one of the longest stories (page-wise) of the book, but it shouldn’t have been in the book – it should have been it’s own novel. It follows a transgender girl and closeted gay girl meeting on opposite sides of a common fight we see today – but they’re not really on opposite sides of the topic.

That said, it was just really rushed, and I think it should’ve been its own book to give the characters more time to grow together and combat the fight against them. I still liked it, just in case that wasn’t obvious.

“The Way We Love Here” by Dhonielle Clayton

Well alright, Dhonielle, make me get close to crying…again. Literally every time I read Dhonielle’s work, I either cry or get really close. This was a bit different compared to the other stories by this point in the book because it’s a “red string of fate” romance. It was amazing, and I was just thinking about this theory the day I read the story. What a funny coincidence.

“Oomph” by Emery Lord

I was completely sucked into this story from the get-go. I could barely look away. It was so cute – I really need to read more Emery Lord. Cassidy and Jo had me giggling and smiling the entire time they talked. And that Peggy and Natasha running joke? Loved it. This is what I was expecting from a meet-cute – and it does not disappoint at all. This is definitely tied for favorite with “Click”.

“The Dictionary of You and Me” by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Maybe it’s because I used to volunteer at the library growing up and always dreamed of a meet-cute during that time at the library. Maybe it’s because I loved how they “knew” each other before they met. But I loved this story. That said, it’s the first of the favorites from this book that I was like, “I don’t wish this was a full-length novel,” because it was perfect at the length it is.

“The Unlikely Likelihood of Falling in Love” by Jocelyn Davies

Do I work in a STEM field? Yes. And I typically love girls in STEM finding love. But with this story, I just didn’t care. And I can tell you why. I don’t like statistics – blame my first statistics professor in my undergrad years. That said, it was still a great short story for what it was, and I loved the ending – especially how she was able to meet him for real.

“259 Miles” by Kass Morgan

I am a big fan of anything Kass Morgan writes, so of course it’s no surprise to me that I liked this story. The entire time I was reading once we found out the reason they were meeting, it felt like a very early prequel to The 100. Then, we get to the end and reveal who was selected and who wasn’t, and my heart shattered for Philip. But the ending was great, and I wish it was longer so we could see more of Philip and Blythe’s journeys.

“Something Real” by Julie Murphy

You know that phrase, “Don’t meet your idols” or something along those lines? This story is the perfect example of that. It’s not my least favorite because I did like it, but I couldn’t see myself wanting to read more of it. That said, I did like the ending, even if I saw it coming from the beginning. Also, fun take on dating show contestants – more like this in real life!

“Say Everything” by Huntley Fitzpatrick

I know I said the first story (“Siege Etiquette”) was my least favorite, but this was a close second. There’s just something about second-person perspective that ruins a story for me. Was the plot good? Yes. Was it also rushed? Also, yes. It just fell flat for me – which isn’t the same for the rest of Huntley’s works, so I’ll stick with those instead.

“The Department of Dead Love” by Nicola Yoon

Have you seen Ariana Grande’s “we can’t be friends” music video? That’s the next step of the story had Thomas chosen different. Anyway, it was an interesting story, and I absolutely love the concept. The story was great, but I wish there was more. I want to see their journey further – in fact, I want to see a whole show around HeartWorkers and all of the Departments of love. It would kill it on television.

For someone who spent most of her life not liking anthologies, I think I’m finally starting to love them. In fact, I’ve got my eyes on a few more, so when I get through most of my physical TBR, I’ll be on the hunt for them. Until then, I’ll be recommending this and Blackout to anyone asking for anthologies of short stories.

See you later!