Reviewed by Jess
TITLE: Gotta Catch Her
AUTHOR: Kelly Haworth
PUBLISHER: NineStar Press
LENGTH: 130 pages
RELEASE DATE: April 29, 2019
BLURB:
Who says phone games are only for kids? Sometimes they give just the respite you need from a hectic life. At least, that’s the way Ann feels about Ani-min Move, an AR mobile game full of cartoon animals caught with nets. Legendary raids have just launched, and Ann arrives at a nearby park to find it full of people of all ages playing the game, including Rachael, a kind, attractive single mom. And sweet! Rachael is more than willing to teach Ann the proper way to spin her nets to snag the raid boss.
Back in reality, Ann has a lot on her plate: a full workload as a project manager, finding the energy to walk her dog, Franny, and now trying to figure out if Rachael is queer. And how does Ann converse with Rachael about her six-year-old son when she doesn’t know a thing about parenting?
Ann is lost as to how to proceed until Rachael takes the guesswork out of the equation by proclaiming she’s bi—right when Ann gets a massive work assignment that consumes way too much of her time. Life/work balance was never Ann’s forte, but between caring for her sweetheart dog and figuring out how to navigate a relationship with a single parent, Ann’s determined to make it work, especially before Rachael gets cold feet and leaves Ann playing by herself.
So, collect those ultra-nets, Ann. Can you catch her?
REVIEW:
This novella keeps it simple, and it works from start to finish. Ann and Rachael, two women in different stages of their millennial lives find love through a dorky, nostalgic hobby that forces them both out of their comfort zones. While they both deal with real-life drama, escaping for a few minutes in the summer heat to play an AR mobile game brings the sort of relief we all could use more of.
Ann is a project manager working her way up at her job and trying to stay afloat in a competitive corporate world. She’s single and adores her downtime with Franny, her dog, but she’s a hopeless dork when it comes to cute women. During a big Ani-min Move raid in the park, she meets Rachael, a single mother of six-year-old Connor. The two have an instant friendship, but Ann definitely wants to figure out if Rachael is into women—and maybe even into her.
I love when books capture a very specific slice of pop culture that will hit a ton of readers right in the heart. For many millennials, Pokémon is a childhood entertainment staple, and we’ve been chasing the nostalgia high for years with Pokémon Go. Though these characters play Ani-min Move, a fictional counterpart, the innocent joy of the game comes through every time they meet up in a park for a raid or cheer each other on when catching a new critter. It’s a perfect nod to a game that did, for a time, unite all types of people who normally wouldn’t socialize. The title, which definitely recalls the Pokémon catchphrase, comes into play in a corny way at the end, but it totally made me smile.
I also like how this is a sweet, romantic story centered around a video game that never ignores real-world problems. Rachael is often frustrated and lonely as a single mother, but her short temper or disappointment in cutting a date short never frame her as a bad parent—just one who is doing her best. And Ann’s awkwardness around dating someone with kids is totally realistic—she’s not in love with Connor right away, but she’s willing to put in the work for Rachael. Ann’s job is also a really good plot point, because it shows a young millennial worker who really puts in the effort at her job and deals with office drama as best as she can. She might not be following her passion, but she’s content, and that’s okay.
This is a fun, short story that stays sweet while never becoming cloying or saccharine. The characters feel real and the stakes are appropriate throughout. If you’re in need of a low-drama novella for a summer beach read, this is a great pick.
RATING: 
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