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The Set-Up Girl
The only thing worse than having a secret crush on the hottest boy in class? Setting him up with your best friend! A fresh and contemporary romantic comedy for fans of Alice Oseman, Tobias Madden and Sophie Gonzales.
Amalia's life runs like school, family book club, hanging out with her best (and only) friend Mae. It's comfortable in its predictability.
So when Mae announces she's ready to start dating - against the wishes of her strict parents - Amalia's life is thrown into chaos. Forever the dutiful friend, she agrees to help set-up Mae with the hottest boy in Kasun. The only problem? He's Amalia's secret crush.
Pushing her feelings aside and adopting the role of wingwoman, Amalia does her best to navigate an unfamiliar world of parties and romantic drama. As her matchmaking efforts intensify, Amalia grows closer to Kasun's best mates, Jake and Laeli, who frustrate and intrigue her in equal measure.
When a series of misunderstandings (and secret kisses) threaten to derail relationships, Amalia is left more confused than ever. Who does she really want to be with? And can the set-up girl ever become the main character of the story?
A feel-good romantic comedy of errors, where the road to love rarely runs straight!
'Funny, romantic and relatable - a queer delight.' Erin Gough, award-winning author of Amelia Westlake and Into the Mouth of the Wolf
Amalia's life runs like school, family book club, hanging out with her best (and only) friend Mae. It's comfortable in its predictability.
So when Mae announces she's ready to start dating - against the wishes of her strict parents - Amalia's life is thrown into chaos. Forever the dutiful friend, she agrees to help set-up Mae with the hottest boy in Kasun. The only problem? He's Amalia's secret crush.
Pushing her feelings aside and adopting the role of wingwoman, Amalia does her best to navigate an unfamiliar world of parties and romantic drama. As her matchmaking efforts intensify, Amalia grows closer to Kasun's best mates, Jake and Laeli, who frustrate and intrigue her in equal measure.
When a series of misunderstandings (and secret kisses) threaten to derail relationships, Amalia is left more confused than ever. Who does she really want to be with? And can the set-up girl ever become the main character of the story?
A feel-good romantic comedy of errors, where the road to love rarely runs straight!
'Funny, romantic and relatable - a queer delight.' Erin Gough, award-winning author of Amelia Westlake and Into the Mouth of the Wolf
384 pages, Paperback
Published July 29, 2025
35 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 5, 2025
Lovely warm, diverse story.
August 1, 2025
**warnings: minor spoilers? but also me being high off painkillers, reviewing this as I leave hospital, hence the chaos**
FIVE. STARS. Beautiful story, beautiful characters, BEAUTIFUL (and messy and accurate) DEPICTION OF WHAT IT'S LIKE TO HAVE CRUSHES AS A TEENAGER.
*throws 'The Summer I Turned Pretty' out of the window (no offence to Jenny Han, a credited author in her own right)*
TAKE THAT, TOXIC LOVE TRIANGLE!! I Present To You Instead;
♡ A book that represents romantic feelings in a healthy, honest, less explicit and safe manner for teenage audiences
♡ Accurate in-story depictions of awkward, comical real-life conversations I swear I had at that one house party when I was in Year 12
♡ A loveable M/C who is out here SUPPORTING HER BEST FRIEND'S ROMANTIC ENDEAVOURS AND APOLOGISING WHEN SHE GETS THE WHOLE SET-UP THING WRONG AAAND IS A BEAUTIFULLY FLAWED YOUNG WOMAN
♡ Supportive male teen characters who are sweet and respectful to the M/C (none of the dark a**hole brooding stuff)
♡ Actually funny moments that made me laugh without being cringeworthy
♡ Low self-esteem issues addressed in a way that made ME feel seen
♡ LGBTQ+ REPRESENTATION YASSSSSSSSS
♡ A book that feels like a mix between 'Heartstopper' and Sophie Gonzales' novels
Honestly, the only thing that I found inaccurate (from limited personal experience) is one of the male characters having enough emotional and spatial awareness to recognise that our female M/C Amalia had a crush on his best friend 😆😆 AND managed to talk to her about it in a way that wasn't generally d*ckheadish. Because. Let's be honest. Most teenage boys tend to miss signals (BUT NOT all of them. Just the ones at my school.)
final notes:
THIS BOOK IS YA 👏🏼 DONE 👏🏼 RIGHT 👏🏼.
GO READ IT, HONEY 🗣🗣
THANK YOU SASHA VEY 🙇♀️🙇♀️
FIVE. STARS. Beautiful story, beautiful characters, BEAUTIFUL (and messy and accurate) DEPICTION OF WHAT IT'S LIKE TO HAVE CRUSHES AS A TEENAGER.
*throws 'The Summer I Turned Pretty' out of the window (no offence to Jenny Han, a credited author in her own right)*
TAKE THAT, TOXIC LOVE TRIANGLE!! I Present To You Instead;
♡ A book that represents romantic feelings in a healthy, honest, less explicit and safe manner for teenage audiences
♡ Accurate in-story depictions of awkward, comical real-life conversations I swear I had at that one house party when I was in Year 12
♡ A loveable M/C who is out here SUPPORTING HER BEST FRIEND'S ROMANTIC ENDEAVOURS AND APOLOGISING WHEN SHE GETS THE WHOLE SET-UP THING WRONG AAAND IS A BEAUTIFULLY FLAWED YOUNG WOMAN
♡ Supportive male teen characters who are sweet and respectful to the M/C (none of the dark a**hole brooding stuff)
♡ Actually funny moments that made me laugh without being cringeworthy
♡ Low self-esteem issues addressed in a way that made ME feel seen
♡ LGBTQ+ REPRESENTATION YASSSSSSSSS
♡ A book that feels like a mix between 'Heartstopper' and Sophie Gonzales' novels
Honestly, the only thing that I found inaccurate (from limited personal experience) is one of the male characters having enough emotional and spatial awareness to recognise that our female M/C Amalia had a crush on his best friend 😆😆 AND managed to talk to her about it in a way that wasn't generally d*ckheadish. Because. Let's be honest. Most teenage boys tend to miss signals (BUT NOT all of them. Just the ones at my school.)
final notes:
THIS BOOK IS YA 👏🏼 DONE 👏🏼 RIGHT 👏🏼.
GO READ IT, HONEY 🗣🗣
THANK YOU SASHA VEY 🙇♀️🙇♀️
July 29, 2025
"I was never going to be the leading lady. But I could be a supportive friend."
This was such a lovely YA romance. The story follows Amalia, an 18yr old student completing her last year of highschool. Her life consists of school, family, book club and spending time with her bestie, Mae. Unfortunately for Amalia, Mae has decided she is ready to start dating. The person Mae wants to date happens to be Amalia's crush. Adopting the role of wingwoman, Amalia does her best to navigate an unfamiliar world of parties and romantic drama.
I loved this story so much. It took me straight back to my youth and reminded me of what it was like to be 18 and completing my HSC again.
I really enjoyed the friendship between Amalia and Mae. The all too familiar pain of wanting the best for your best friend but also having to put your own feelings aside. I like how the author didn't shy away from allowing Amalia's thoughts to wander to her crush. As the story continues we see the growth in Amalia and how she redirects those thoughts into something or someone more appropriate.
Another thing I really enjoyed about the story was the group chat that Amalia had with her sister and cousins. It was fun seeing them cheering Amalia on in her "baby rebel" stage.
The book club that Amalia has with her family was also another highlight for me. I loved seeing how the family dynamic played out and hearing their thoughts on some of the classics.
There was so much I enjoyed about this story, I feel like I've barely scratched the surface with my review. Whilst it is a YA romance, I think anyone YA and above would enjoy this. Highly recommend.
This was such a lovely YA romance. The story follows Amalia, an 18yr old student completing her last year of highschool. Her life consists of school, family, book club and spending time with her bestie, Mae. Unfortunately for Amalia, Mae has decided she is ready to start dating. The person Mae wants to date happens to be Amalia's crush. Adopting the role of wingwoman, Amalia does her best to navigate an unfamiliar world of parties and romantic drama.
I loved this story so much. It took me straight back to my youth and reminded me of what it was like to be 18 and completing my HSC again.
I really enjoyed the friendship between Amalia and Mae. The all too familiar pain of wanting the best for your best friend but also having to put your own feelings aside. I like how the author didn't shy away from allowing Amalia's thoughts to wander to her crush. As the story continues we see the growth in Amalia and how she redirects those thoughts into something or someone more appropriate.
Another thing I really enjoyed about the story was the group chat that Amalia had with her sister and cousins. It was fun seeing them cheering Amalia on in her "baby rebel" stage.
The book club that Amalia has with her family was also another highlight for me. I loved seeing how the family dynamic played out and hearing their thoughts on some of the classics.
There was so much I enjoyed about this story, I feel like I've barely scratched the surface with my review. Whilst it is a YA romance, I think anyone YA and above would enjoy this. Highly recommend.
June 24, 2025
I really enjoyed this one! If you’re looking for a YA high school romance this is definitely ur next read.
I really enjoyed the overall plot of having the main protagonist set her best friend up with her crush and I enjoyed the dynamics with all the characters. It felt very high school drama but in a fun way.
the only main part that lost me was Amalia’s relationship with Laeli while liking Jack. It felt hard to relate to that part of the character and I wish there would have been more consequences to those actions.
I loved the addition of the book club something little through up but ended up being a cute little button to the story. Very smart and well done.
Overall I think this book did a great job and high school dynamics (tho 18 is pushing it but I get it if you want to have drinking in your story). I enjoyed all the characters and their arcs. Overall really fun YA read
I really enjoyed the overall plot of having the main protagonist set her best friend up with her crush and I enjoyed the dynamics with all the characters. It felt very high school drama but in a fun way.
the only main part that lost me was Amalia’s relationship with Laeli while liking Jack. It felt hard to relate to that part of the character and I wish there would have been more consequences to those actions.
I loved the addition of the book club something little through up but ended up being a cute little button to the story. Very smart and well done.
Overall I think this book did a great job and high school dynamics (tho 18 is pushing it but I get it if you want to have drinking in your story). I enjoyed all the characters and their arcs. Overall really fun YA read
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 4, 2025
What a lovely warm and fun book to read on my holiday. It’s been a while since I’ve read a YA or romance novel but this one transported me back to my high school days; those little crushes, exam stress, and first rebellious outings that felt like the whole world. All with a dash of queerness that made me feel seen.
November 29, 2025
3 and a 1/2. Sweet, funny and romantic. A mildly clueless protagonist trying her best with family, year 12, best friends and new feelings. (And what’s lovely is everyone else is trying their best too!).
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December 9, 2025ah, the days of my youth, when i too was just beginning a major work
November 6, 2025
A warm, realistically messy and fun YA romantic comedy!
I really enjoyed the diversity of characters, family book club, queer representation, as well as the accurate depiction of the often messy or embarrassing transition into adulthood.
This is an incredible debut novel and I am keen to read what is next for Australian author Sasha Vey.
4.5 stars (rounded up)
I really enjoyed the diversity of characters, family book club, queer representation, as well as the accurate depiction of the often messy or embarrassing transition into adulthood.
This is an incredible debut novel and I am keen to read what is next for Australian author Sasha Vey.
4.5 stars (rounded up)
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews