Annie Cassidy writes movies. And when she sells a rom com to the movie industry and the movie actually gets made, she becomes Hollywood’s sweetheart. She leaves her drab Ohio life and moves to Los Angeles to follow her dreams, and the man who stole her heart.

Meanwhile, back in Ohio, Annie’s best friend Chloe is still living her regular life, serving coffee, keeping an eye on her father, and bantering with her boss about his bad taste in music. She loves bright colors and yacht rock and butterflies. They help her stay positive and grounded while she finishes her business degree online, works full-time to help pay for her father’s care facility, and experiments with delicious baked goods for herself and for the coffee shop.

Meanwhile, Annie’s movie, Coffee Girl, is getting tons of press. And Chloe doesn’t really appreciate that, as the main character in the movie, “Zoe” helps to take care of her ill father, works in a coffee shop, and is secretly in love with her boss. Chloe feels a little exposed by Annie’s movie, and she is not—definitely not—looking for love. And if she were, she wouldn’t be looking at her boss Nick.

Except that she is.

In between the yacht rock she plays at the coffee shop, chatting with her favorite customers, and selling her baked goods and drinks, Chloe wonders what it would be like if Nick kissed her. Good, she thinks. But that’s irrelevant, because her life isn’t a movie. And rom coms aren’t reality. And her life is way too complicated for her to take on anything else. Even if that kiss might be really, really good.

Not Like the Movies is the follow-up to Kerry Winfrey’s Waiting for Tom Hanks. I really liked her first in this series, and I had some misgivings about revisiting this coffee shop in Ohio to do it again. And boy, was I wrong. I liked Annie. She was sweet and believed in big ideas like Love and Romance and Movies. Chloe isn’t like that. She’s down-to-earth and realistic and self-reliant, and I think I like her even more.

Chloe’s story picks up a little after Annie’s leaves off, and while the two novels together are superfun, either can be read as individual stories, independent of each other. But if you’re a fan of rom coms, then you’ll want to read them both, just because they’re that good, and they leave you feeling better about life, love, and music.

Are they the novel equivalent of You’ve Got Mail or The Proposal or Sleepless in Seattle? No, probably not. But they’re a solid 27 Dresses or The Wedding Date or Two Weeks’ Notice. Definitely worth the time and effort, especially with popcorn or chocolate and a good playlist.

Galleys for Not Like the Movies were provided by Berkley through Edelweiss, with many thanks.