Fans of Kiley Reid’s Such a Fun Age already know that Reid has a masterful way
of capturing everyday observations and turning them into real and unique stories. The
author’s sophomore novel, Come and Get It, follows a series of characters at the
University of Arkansas, primarily Millie, an RA ready to graduate and buy a house, and
Agatha, a visiting professor and author.
Millie is 24, took a year off school to take care of her mom, and is determined to
put a down payment on a house when she graduates. The issue? She doesn’t get paid
much as an RA. When Agatha enters her life, offering to pay Millie for her help setting
up interviews with Millie’s residents, Millie jumps at the opportunity. But how far will
Millie go for a side-hustle? Will she make it through a year of the dorm pranks and
roommate issues, namely from the suitmates Tyler (a wealthy, dog-obsessed, sorority
girl) Peyton (who spends most of her time cooking) and Kennedy (a lonely transfer
student whose dorm is stuffed with decorations)? Will her friendships with other RAs
survive dorm-room eavesdropping? And what will happen when Millie and Agatha’s
relationship turns to a bit more than friendly, a dynamic that might just put all of Millie’s
goals in jeopardy?
While some reviews have critiqued Reid’s sophomore novel for being unrealistic
and overstuffed, I found a lot of truth in her story. There are some aspects deserving of
critique, like one character’s Southern accent, which is phonetically spelled out perhaps
more than it should be. Regardless, I think Reid so successfully captures what it’s like to
be an American college student in today's world (which is a perspective that other
reviewers lack). In a book centered around money, power, and the tension that inevitably
arises when the two clash, Reid’s dialogue especially stands out. The author has a unique
ability to so realistically capture conversations that I myself have heard around campus.
From conversations about “going out” to “fun money,” from inner monologues of
loneliness and desire to the pressing anxiety of the future, even side characters in Come
and Get It feel plucked from real life. They are complex and flawed and almost as hard to
love as they are to hate. I couldn't put the book down (though it helps that it was one of
my Spring Break Reads).
Love it or hate it, Kiley Reid has captured attention with her fiction and I couldn’t
recommend Come and Get It more.