Fearless (Taylor’s Version) is the first of Taylor Swift’s rerecorded albums, which she created to regain ownership of the six albums she created under Big Machine Records. It includes a new version of every song on Fearless Platinum Edition, along with the standalone single “Today Was a Fairytale” and six songs she cut from the original 2008 Fearless album.
The original album version also contains a succinct explanation of what the word “fearless” means to Taylor:
"To me, ‘fearless’ is not the absence of fear. It’s not being completely unafraid. To me, fearless is having fears. Fearless is having doubts. Lots of them. To me, fearless is living in spite of those things that scare you to death. Fearless is falling madly in love again, even though you’ve been hurt before. […] No matter what love throws at you, you have to believe in it. You have to believe in love stories and Prince Charmings and happily ever after. That’s why I write these songs. Because I think love is fearless."
Swift has said the rerecorded album is "...full of magic and curiosity, the bliss and devastation of youth. It was the diary of the adventures and explorations [of] a teenage girl who was learning tiny lessons with every new crack in the facade of the fairytale ending she'd been shown in the movies."
1. Fearless (Taylor's Version)
According Taylor:
"This is a song about the fearlessness of falling in love. No matter how many break up songs you write, no matter how many times you get hurt, you will always fall in love again. When I wrote ‘Fearless,’ I wasn’t dating anyone. I wasn’t even in the beginning stages of dating anybody. I really was all by myself out on tour and I got this idea for a song about the best first date. I think sometimes when you’re writing love songs, you don’t write them about what you’re going through at the moment, you write about what you wish you had. So, this song is about the best first date I haven’t had yet."
If It Makes You Happy by Claire Kann
High school finally behind her, Winnie is all set to attend college in the fall. But first she's spending her summer days working at her granny’s diner and begins spending her midnights with Dallas—the boy she loves to hate and hates that she likes. Winnie lives in Misty Haven, a small town where secrets are impossible to keep—like when Winnie allegedly snaps on Dr. Skinner, which results in everyone feeling compelled to give her weight loss advice for her own good. Because they care that’s she’s “too fat.”
Winnie dreams of someday inheriting the diner—but it'll go away if they can't make money, and fast. Winnie has a solution—win a televised cooking competition and make bank. But Granny doesn't want her to enter—so Winnie has to find a way around her formidable grandmother. Can she come out on top?
2. Fifteen (Taylor's Version)
Fifteen is a song written about Taylor’s freshman year at Hendersonville High, specifically about her best friend Abigail, whom she met during ninth grade and is still best friends with. Taylor explained:
"I wrote it about the journey that my best friend, Abigail, who, you know, we’re still tight. We met in freshman year of high school (…). And so I wanted to tell the story of being 15, kind of through the lens of a friendship. And, you see what these two people go through together as friends and on their own. It still gets me, this song, because those were all real insecurities of like walking in your freshman year and thinking like, where am I going to fit in, in this massive ocean of people? Like, where’s my locker? How do I fit in here? You’re like, who am I going to be? That’s a question that we ask ourselves a lot through the course of life, but I think never more than when we’re 15."
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
Some summers are just destined to be pretty.
Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer—they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. But one summer, one wonderful and terrible summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along.
3. Love Story (Taylor's Version)
The 2021 re-recording of “Love Story” was released following a surprise announcement on Good Morning America on Feb 12, 2021. During the interview, Taylor announced that she had finished re-recording the entirety of her breakout album Fearless, featuring the subtitle of (Taylor’s Version), and that it would be released soon.
Taylor was inspired to write “Love Story” when she was going through a difficult situation with a boy she liked, whom she wasn’t “officially” dating. The lyrics talk about disapproval against the relationship, and her desire to go somewhere far away with him, and escape the people who look down on them.
She chose to portray the story of Romeo and Juliet in the song, because she felt like she could relate.
"I used to be in high school where you see [a boyfriend] every day. Then I was in a situation where it wasn’t so easy for me, and I wrote this song because I could relate to the whole Romeo and Juliet thing."
These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong
The year is 1926, and Shanghai hums to the tune of debauchery.
A blood feud between two gangs runs the streets red, leaving the city helpless in the grip of chaos. At the heart of it all is eighteen-year-old Juliette Cai, a former flapper who has returned to assume her role as the proud heir of the Scarlet Gang—a network of criminals far above the law. Their only rivals in power are the White Flowers, who have fought the Scarlets for generations. And behind every move is their heir, Roma Montagov, Juliette’s first love…and first betrayal.
But when gangsters on both sides show signs of instability culminating in clawing their own throats out, the people start to whisper. Of a contagion, a madness. Of a monster in the shadows. As the deaths stack up, Juliette and Roma must set their guns—and grudges—aside and work together, for if they can’t stop this mayhem, then there will be no city left for either to rule.
4. Hey Stephen (Taylor's Version)
Taylor wrote this song about Stephen B. Liles from the country music duo Love And Theft, an opening act on her Fearless Tour in 2008:
"This is a guy I had a crush on. I wrote about all these reasons he should be with me instead of other girls (…). This guy has absolutely no idea I had a crush on him. It’s gonna be kind of interesting when he finds out."
Kiss and Repeat by Heather Truett
Stephen Luckie isn't so lucky in love. He's completely inexperienced when it comes to girls and wonders if his tics - caused by Tourette's Syndrome – are the reason.
Using the scientific method drilled into him by his scientist father, Steven begins the best experiment ever--one that involves kissing as many girls as possible. Then a game at a party reveals that his body goes still while kissing. Who knew science could be so fun?
But when the experiment gets underway, Stephen begins to question how he treats girls - and if his tics have been standing in his way at all. With two girls interested in him, he has to figure out what really matters to him and what he'll risk - and gain - by being his true self.
5. White Horse (Taylor's Version)
This song follows Swift’s tradition of putting the most vulnerable, deep, and personal songs on her albums as a track 5. Lyrically, it’s about reality striking your mind and realizing that a relationship you were in isn’t in fact as perfect as the fairytale you thought it was.
Swift explained more:
"It was just about comparing the fairytale imagery we are taught as kids to what can really happen in young love and young heartbreak, and how you just expect a ‘happily ever after’ type thing. It’s like that coming of age where you realize you’re stronger than wanting that happily ever after, you want something better for yourself."
Not So Pure and Simple by Lamar Giles
Del has had a crush on Kiera Westing since kindergarten. And now, during their junior year, she’s finally available. So when Kiera volunteers for an opportunity at their church, Del’s right behind her. Though he quickly realizes he’s inadvertently signed up for a Purity Pledge.
His dad thinks his wires are crossed, and his best friend, Qwan, doesn’t believe any girl is worth the long game. But Del’s not about to lose his dream girl, and that’s where fellow pledger Jameer comes in. He can put in the good word. In exchange, Del just has to get answers to the Pledgers’ questions…about sex ed.
With other boys circling Kiera like sharks, Del needs to make his move fast. But as he plots and plans, he neglects to ask the most important question: What does Kiera want? He can’t think about that too much, though, because once he gets the girl, it’ll all sort itself out. Right?
6. You Belong With Me (Taylor's Version)
This was the most successful single on the original album. It tells the story of a boy who is too wrapped up in a toxic relationship to see how much another girl likes him and Taylor talked about how it changed her life:
"It was one of those songs that I had written about unrequited love and crushes at school. And I never would have imagined (…) that it would be this thing that launched me and my career into this place that I never imagined it would go to. It was this song and ‘Love Story’ that really, really changed my life in a huge way. And I’ve had so much fun with the fans singing this into crowds over the years. So, getting to redo it was really a joyful experience. Cause I kind of was looking back on all of those memories and thinking, ‘Wow, I’m really lucky.'"
Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Anna has everything figured out - she was about to start senior year with her best friend, she had a great weekend job, and her huge work crush looked as if it might finally be going somewhere... Until her dad decides to send her 4383 miles away to Paris. On her own.
But despite not speaking a word of French, Anna finds herself making new friends, including Etienne, the smart, beautiful boy from the floor above. But he’s taken – and Anna might be too. Will a year of romantic near-missed end with the French kiss she’s been waiting for?
7. Breathe (Taylor's Version) [feat. Colbie Caillat]
The seventh track features country artist, Colbie Caillat.
Lyrically, this song finds both artists singing about the loss of a frienship, what can present more difficulties to move on, since once someone that means a lot to you goes away, it gets much tougher to accept it — It’s believed Swift wrote it for her friend, Emily Poe, who used to be a part of Taylor’s band, but left in 2007 to focus on law school.
We Used to Be Friends by Amy Spalding
At the start of their senior year in high school, James (a girl with a boy’s name) and Kat are inseparable, but by graduation, they’re no longer friends. James prepares to head off to college as she reflects on the dissolution of her friendship with Kat while, in alternating chapters, Kat thinks about being newly in love with her first girlfriend and having a future that feels wide open. Over the course of senior year, Kat wants nothing more than James to continue to be her steady rock, as James worries that everything she believes about love and her future is a lie when her high-school sweetheart parents announce they’re getting a divorce.
8. Tell Me Why (Taylor's Version)
Taylor wrote this song about her frustration concerning someone she was developing feelings for but didn't know what they wanted.
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
Jude was seven when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.
To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences.
As Jude becomes more deeply embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, she discovers her own capacity for trickery and bloodshed. But as betrayal threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.
9. You're Not Sorry (Taylor's Version)
In this song, Swift sings about a guy who didn't seem to be who he initially showed to be. Then she addresses his constant apologies that she acknowledges were never sincere.
Vinyl Moon by Mahogany L. Browne
When Darius told Angel he loved her, she believed him. But five weeks after the incident, Angel finds herself in Brooklyn, far from her family, from him, and from the California life she has known.
Angel feels out of sync with her new neighborhood. At school, she can't shake the feeling everyone knows what happened--and how it was her fault. The only place that makes sense is Ms. G's class. There, Angel's classmates share their own stories of pain, joy, and fortitude. And as Angel becomes immersed in her revolutionary literature course, the words from novels like The Bluest Eye and Push speak to her and begin to heal the wounds of her past.
This stunning novel weaves together prose, poems, and vignettes to tell the story of Angel, a young woman whose past was shaped by domestic violence but whose love of language and music and the gift of community grant her the chance to find herself again.
10. The Way I Loved You (Taylor's Version)
Lyrically, "The Way I Loved You (Taylor's Version)" finds Swift singing about being in a relationship with someone who's apparently perfect for her but missing her passion for her ex, even if the ex-affair was unstable, complicated, and frustrating.
Swift explained the track, "I got this idea for a song about being in a relationship with a nice guy who is punctual and opens up the door for you and brings you flowers… but you feel nothing. The whole time you're with him, you're thinking about the guy who was complicated and messy and frustrating."
When We Caught Fire by Anna Godbersen
It’s 1871 and Emmeline Carter is poised to take Chicago’s high society by storm. Between her father’s sudden rise to wealth and her recent engagement to Chicago’s most eligible bachelor, Emmeline has it all. But she can’t stop thinking about the life she left behind, including her childhood sweetheart, Anders Magnuson. Fiona Byrne, Emmeline’s childhood best friend, is delighted by her friend’s sudden rise to prominence, especially since it means Fiona is free to pursue Anders herself. But when Emmeline risks everything for one final fling with Anders, Fiona feels completely betrayed.
The city is at a tipping point as the summer turns to fall: friendships are tested, hearts are broken, and the tiniest spark might set everything ablaze. Sweeping, soapy, and romantic, this is a story about an epic love triangle—one that will literally set the city ablaze, and change the lives of three childhood friends forever.
11. Forever & Always (Taylor's Version)
Lyrically, "Forever & Always (Taylor's Version)" finds Swift looking back on an affair in which her lover promised to stay, but she just watched him gradually fade away.
This song is assumed to be inspired by her relationship, especially the break-up with Joe Jonas. In 2010, Swift described it as a song about a relationship with a man who she could feel was "slowly slipping away."
She went on to add, "It's about the confusion and frustration of wondering why? What changed? When did it change? What did I do wrong?"
A Week of Mondays by Jessica Brody
Sixteen-year-old Ellison Sparks is having a serious case of the Mondays. She gets a ticket for running a red light, she manages to take the world’s worst school picture, she bombs softball tryouts and her class election speech (note to self: never trust a cheerleader when she swears there are no nuts in her bake-sale banana bread), and to top it all off, Tristan, her gorgeous rocker boyfriend suddenly dumps her. For no good reason!
As far as Mondays go, it doesn’t get much worse than this. And Ellie is positive that if she could just do it all over again, she would get it right. So when she wakes up the next morning to find she’s reliving the exact same day, she knows what she has to do: stop her boyfriend from breaking up with her. But it seems that no matter how many do-overs she gets or how hard Ellie tries to repair her relationship, Tristan always seems bent on ending it. Will Ellie ever figure out how to fix this broken day? Or will she be stuck in this nightmare of a Monday forever?
12. The Best Day (Taylor's Version)
Here, Swift sings about her childhood, growth, and family, especially her mother, Andrea Swift, who has always looked out for her, even if she was wrong, sad, and happy. Then Swift addresses how much of herself is mirrored of who her mother is.
Edie in Between by Laura Sibson
It’s been one year since Edie’s mother died. But her ghost has never left.
According to her GG, it’s tradition that the dead of the Mitchell family linger with the living. It’s just as much a part of a Mitchell’s life as brewing cordials or talking to plants. But Edie, whose pain over losing her mother is still fresh, has no interest in her family’s legacy as local “witches.”
When her mother’s teenage journal tumbles into her life, her family’s mystical inheritance becomes once and for all too hard to ignore. It takes Edie on a scavenger hunt to find objects that once belonged to her mother, each one imbued with a different memory. Every time she touches one of these talismans, it whisks her to another entry inside the journal—where she watches her teenage mom mourn, love, and hope just as Edie herself is now doing. Maybe, just maybe, Edie hopes, if she finds every one of these objects, she can finally make peace with her loss and put the past to rest for good. But this journey to stake her independence from her family may actually show Edie who she truly is…and the beautiful gifts that come with being just a little different.
13. Change (Taylor's Version)
This song is about fighting for a chance for Taylor's dreams to come true as a superstar and all the change that happens in the process.
Rayne & Delilah's Midnite Matinee by Jeff Zentner
Every Friday night, best friends Delia and Josie become Rayne Ravenscroft and Delilah Darkwood, hosts of the campy creature feature show Midnite Matinee on the local cable station TV Six.
But with the end of senior year quickly approaching, the girls face tough decisions about their futures. Josie has been dreading graduation, as she tries to decide whether to leave for a big university and chase her dream career in mainstream TV. And Lawson, one of the show's guest performers, a talented MMA fighter with weaknesses for pancakes, fantasy novels, and Josie, is making her tough decision even harder.
Scary movies are the last connection Delia has to her dad, who abandoned the family years ago. If Midnite Matinee becomes a hit, maybe he'll see it and want to be a part of her life again. And maybe Josie will stay with the show instead of leaving her behind, too.
As the tug-of-war between growing up and growing apart tests the bonds of their friendship, Josie and Delia start to realize that an uncertain future can be both monstrous...and momentous.
14. Jump Then Fall (Taylor's Version)
This song finds Swift telling a summer love that no matter the difficulty they might eventually face, she will be there with them, as she wants them to be with her.
Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler
Lara's had eyes for exactly one person throughout her three years of high school: Chase Harding. He's tall, strong, sweet, a football star, and frankly, stupid hot. Oh, and he's talking to her now. On purpose and everything. Maybe...flirting, even? No, wait, he's definitely flirting, which is pretty much the sum of everything Lara's wanted out of life.
Except she’s haunted by a memory. A memory of a confusing, romantic, strangely perfect summer spent with a girl named Jasmine. A memory that becomes a confusing, disorienting present when Jasmine herself walks through the front doors of the school to see Lara and Chase chatting it up in front of the lockers.
Lara has everything she ever wanted: a tight-knit group of friends, a job that borders on cool, and Chase, the boy of her literal dreams. But if she's finally got the guy, why can't she stop thinking about the girl?
15. Untouchable (Taylor's Version)
This song finds Swift wishing for her lover to come to me for them to be together, however, for some reason, they are not succeeding.
Under the Milky Way by Vanessa Barneveld
Nothing ever happens in Dawson, Colorado.
Until high school senior Cassidy Roekiem’s mom checks into a “wellness center,” but nothing is wrong with her.
Then people start seeing lights in the sky and missing chunks of time, but the town insists nothing is going on.
And now Hayden, the new boy at school who keeps to himself and is more than a little mysterious, starts to notice her like it’s nothing out of the ordinary.
Suddenly, “nothing” is starting to feel a whole lot like something. And everything leads back to Hayden. The boy she’s starting to fall for. The boy with too many dark secrets for his kind heart. The boy she’s pretty sure isn’t human…
16. Forever & Always (Piano Version) [Taylor's Version]
Unlike the initial version, this version of the song finds Swift revealing her sadness and melancholy over the affair's end, a song assumed to be about Joe Jonas. As it is just a stripped-down version of the song “Forever & Always”, which appears earlier on the album, check out the lyrics.
Furthermore, this song’s version is considered by many fans, the most different on the re-recorded album, when compared to the 2008 version.
Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon
My disease is as rare as it is famous. It’s a form of Severe Combined Immunodeficiency, but basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in fifteen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.
But then one day, a moving truck arrives. New next-door neighbors. I look out the window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean, and wearing all black—a t-shirt, jeans, sneakers, and a black knit cap covering his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly. I want to learn everything about him, and I do. I learn that he is funny and fierce. I learn that his eyes are Atlantic Ocean-blue and that his vice is stealing silverware. I learn that when I talk to him, my whole world opens up, and I feel myself starting to change—starting to want things. To want out of my bubble. To want everything, everything the world has to offer.
Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.
17. Come In With The Rain (Taylor's Version)
“Come In With The Rain (Taylor’s Version)” calls back to an old expression whose meaning is, that when bad times come, people will come to their senses and realize what they were always looking for was right there the whole time.
Lyrically, this song finds Swift tired of trying to get this guy to like her, so she is just going to wait for him to, sooner or later, come in with the rain.
Kissing Max Holden by Katy Upperman
Kissing Max Holden was a terrible idea...
After his father has a life-altering stroke, Max Holden isn't himself. As his long-time friend, Jillian Eldridge only wants to help him, but she doesn't know how. When Max climbs through her window one night, Jill knows that she shouldn't let him kiss her. But she can't resist, and when they're caught in the act by her dad, Jill swears it'll never happen again. Because kissing Max Holden is a terrible idea.
With a new baby sibling on the way, her parents fighting all the time, and her dream of culinary school up in the air, Jill starts spending more and more time with Max. And even though her father disapproves and Max still has a girlfriend, not kissing Max is easier said than done. Will Jill follow her heart and allow their friendship to blossom into something more, or will she listen to her head and stop kissing Max Holden once and for all?
18. Superstar (Taylor's Version)
This song is about Taylor’s celebrity crush and how much she is besotted with him. Although, she knows that she will never notice him and she is just a fan of him.
Kiss & Tell by Adib Khorram
Hunter never expected to be a boy band star, but, well, here he is. He and his band Kiss & Tell are on their first major tour of North America, playing arenas all over the United States and Canada (and getting covered by the gossipy press all over North America as well). Hunter is the only gay member of the band, and he just had a very painful breakup with his first boyfriend--leaked sexts, public heartbreak, and all--and now everyone expects him to play the perfect queer role model for teens.
But Hunter isn't really sure what being the perfect queer kid even means. Does it mean dressing up in whatever The Label tells him to wear for photo shoots and pretending never to have sex? (Unfortunately, yes.) Does it mean finding community among the queer kids at the meet-and-greets after K&T's shows? (Fortunately, yes.) Does it include a new relationship with Kaivan, the drummer for the band opening for K&T on tour? (He hopes so.) But when The Label finds out about Hunter and Kaivan, it spells trouble--for their relationship, for the perfect gay boy Hunter plays for the cameras, and, most importantly, for Hunter himself.
19. The Other Side Of The Door (Taylor's Version)
This song tells the story of a relationship Taylor has inadvertently ruined and one that she wants back. It’s an extremely dramatic case in which she and her lover have fought, screamed, and miscommunicated with each other.
During their argument, Taylor said things she now regrets and wishes she could take back, and she hopes her ex will just see how badly she wants them back.
Girl Crushed by Katie Heaney
Before Quinn Ryan was in love with Jamie Rudawski, she loved Jamie Rudawski, who was her best friend. But when Jamie dumps Quinn a month before their senior year, Quinn is suddenly girlfriend-less and best friend-less.
Enter a new crush: Ruby Ocampo, the gorgeous and rich lead singer of the popular band Sweets, who's just broken up with her on-again, off-again boyfriend. Quinn's always only wanted to be with Jamie, but if Jamie no longer wants to be with her, why can't Quinn go all-in on her crush on Ruby? But the closer Quinn grows to Ruby, the more she misses Jamie, and the more (she thinks) Jamie misses her. Who says your first love can't be your second love, too?
20. Today Was A Fairytale (Taylor's Version)
“Today Was a Fairytale” was originally written for a movie Taylor acted in, Valentine’s Day. Fairytales, happy endings, stories about a prince and a princess, and terms connected to them, have been subjects on Swift’s first albums, others songs through her musical eras.
Truly Madly Royally by Debbie Rigaud
Fiercely independent and smart, Zora Emerson wants to change the world. She's excited to be attending a prestigious summer program, even if she feels out of place among her privileged, mostly white classmates. So she's definitely not expecting to feel a connection to Owen, who's an actual prince of an island off the coast of England. But Owen is funny, charming...and undeniably cute. Zora can't ignore the chemistry between them. When Owen invites Zora to be his date at his big brother's big royal wedding, Zora is suddenly thrust into the spotlight, along with her family and friends. Everyone is talking about her, in real life and online, and while Owen is used to the scrutiny, Zora's not sure it's something she can live with. Can she maintain her sense of self while moving between two very different worlds? And can her feelings for Owen survive and thrive in the midst of the crazy?
21. You All Over Me (Taylor's Version) [From The Vault] [feat. Maren Morris]
The song marks the first time that Swift has worked with Maren Morris on record. Lyrically, the song describes the feeling of still being connected to a former lover. Even after they’ve broken up and she is free of the intense emotional impact of the relationship, Taylor still has feelings for this boy and isn’t sure if she’ll ever fully get over him.
You've Reached Sam by Dustin Thao
Seventeen-year-old Julie has her future all planned out—move out of her small town with her boyfriend Sam, attend college in the city, and spend a summer in Japan. But then Sam dies. And everything changes.
Heartbroken, Julie skips his funeral, throws out his things, and tries everything to forget him and the tragic way he died. But a message Sam left behind in her yearbook forces back memories. Desperate to hear his voice one more time, Julie calls Sam’s cellphone just to listen to his voicemail.
And Sam picks up the phone.
In a miraculous turn of events, Julie’s been given a second chance at goodbye. The connection is temporary. But hearing Sam’s voice makes her fall for him all over again, and with each call, it becomes harder to let him go. However, keeping her otherworldly calls with Sam a secret isn’t easy, especially when Julie witnesses Sam’s family's suffering. Unable to stand by the sidelines and watch their shared loved ones in pain, Julie is torn between spilling the truth about her calls with Sam and risking their connection and losing him forever.
22. Mr. Perfectly Fine (Taylor's Version) [From The Vault]
The track’s subject matter deals with a player-type boy who makes wonderful promises to Taylor that he will stay, only to turn around and run off once he’s bored. The song allegedly refers to Joe Jonas, who Taylor was dating at the time.
Finding Mr. Better-Than-You by Shani Petroff
Camryn has been dating Marc FOREVER—since freshman year! She dropped out of volleyball to go to all his games, switched her schedule around to be in his favorite class, and has been busting her butt to get into Columbia so they can go to the same college. So when Marc suddenly, and very publically, breaks up with her a week into their senior year so that he can date the new transfer student, she’s absolutely devastated.
But why be sad, when you can get even? Inspired by her favorite movies, Camryn decides that the best revenge is a Senior Year well-lived, starring a boy who is ever so much better than her ex. With a little help from her friends, Cam is going to have the Best. Senior. Year. Ever. Or else!
23. We Were Happy (Taylor's Version) [From The Vault]
“We Were Happy” was a formerly unreleased song by Taylor Swift, detailing her feelings of guilt due to falling out of love with a boy and the lost future they dreamed of together.
The Weight of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore
For twenty years, the Palomas and the Corbeaus have been rivals and enemies, locked in an escalating feud for over a generation. Both families make their living as traveling performers in competing shows—the Palomas swimming in mermaid exhibitions, the Corbeaus, former tightrope walkers, performing in the tallest trees they can find.
Lace Paloma may be new to her family’s show, but she knows as well as anyone that the Corbeaus are pure magia negra, black magic from the devil himself. Simply touching one could mean death, and she's been taught from birth to keep away. But when disaster strikes the small town where both families are performing, it’s a Corbeau boy, Cluck, who saves Lace’s life. And his touch immerses her in the world of the Corbeaus, where falling for him could turn his own family against him, and one misstep can be just as dangerous on the ground as it is in the trees.
24. That's When (Taylor's Version) [From The Vault] [feat. Keith Urban]
“That’s When” is a duet describing the aftermath of a relationship breakup, with Swift in the role of the individual who stepped away from a relationship due to needing space and Keith Urban contemplating whether he should take her back.
16 Ways to Break a Heart by Lauren Strasnick
Natalie and Dan were electric from the moment they met. Witty banter and sizzling chemistry made falling in love easy—even inevitable. He was in awe of her subversive art and contagious zest for life; she was drawn to his good-guy charm and drive to succeed as a documentary filmmaker.
But that was before. Before hot tempers turned to blowout fights. Before a few little lies turned into broken trust. Before a hundred tiny slights broke them open and exposed the ugly truth of their relationship.
And now Natalie wants Dan to know just how much he broke her.
Over the course of one fateful day, Dan reads sixteen letters that Natalie has secretly, brilliantly hidden in places only he will find. And as he pieces together her version of their love story, he realizes that she has one final message for him. One that might just send his carefully constructed life tumbling down.
25. Don't You (Taylor's Version) [From The Vault]
Formerly one of Taylor Swift’s rarest unreleased songs, “Don’t You” was added to the tracklist of Swift’s re-release of her sophomore album.
It describes Swift running into her ex, and the encounter causing her to remember their past together and feel the pain of their history together that hurt her. She doesn’t understand how this person doesn’t feel the same pain but resigns herself to moving on with her life, rejecting the person’s desire to pretend to stay friends.
Here's to Us by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
Ben has spent his first year of college working on his fantasy manuscript with his writing partner Mario, who is a great Spanish tutor, and an even better kisser. So why can’t he stop thinking about the fact that Arthur’s back in town two years after they called it quits?
Arthur is in New York for a dream internship on Broadway, with a boyfriend back at home that he couldn't be happier with. But when he comes upon Ben cuddled up with a mystery boy, he starts to wonder if his feelings for Ben ever truly went away.
Even as the boys try to focus on their futures, they can't seem to help running into each other in the present. Is the universe forcing them to question if they’re actually meant to be?
Possibly not. After all, things didn’t work the first time around.
Possibly yes. After all, the sparks are still flying.
Sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith and raise a glass.
Here’s to celebrating old friends!
Here’s to embracing new beginnings!
Here’s to believing in second chances!
26. Bye Bye Baby (Taylor's Version) [From The Vault]
“Bye Bye Baby” was originally an album outtake from Taylor Swift’s second studio album Fearless. Although the song’s main interpretation is about the end of a romantic relationship, it can also be seen as relating to the end of Swift’s business partnership with Scott Borchetta and Big Machine Records. Ultimately, he was not on her side, or Taylor wouldn’t be having to re-record her music to own her masters.
In a similar vein, Swift could be saying goodbye to the original Fearless recordings, since, for the foreseeable future, they will be by the side of Shamrock Holdings rather than by her side.
Aftercare Instructions by Bonnie Pipkin
“Troubled.” That’s seventeen-year-old Genesis according to her small New Jersey town. She finds refuge and stability in her relationship with her boyfriend, Peter—until he abandons her at a Planned Parenthood clinic during their appointment to terminate an unwanted pregnancy. The betrayal causes Gen to question everything.
As Gen pushes herself forward to find her new identity without Peter, she must also confront her most painful memories. Through the lens of an ongoing four-act play within the novel, the fantasy of their undying love unravels line by line, scene by scene. Digging deeper into her past while exploring the underground theater world of New York City, she rediscovers a long-forgotten dream. But it’s when Gen lets go of her history, the one she thinks she knows, that she’s finally able to embrace the complicated, chaotic true story of her life, and take center stage.
If This Was A Movie (Taylor's Version)
On March 16, 2023, Taylor Swift announced that 4 songs would be released at midnight to celebrate the first night of The Eras Tour. One of the songs released was If This Was A Movie (Taylor's Version).
This song, about daydreaming and wishing for a lost love to come back to her like at the end of a movie, originally appeared as a deluxe track on Taylor Swift's third studio album, Speak Now. As a re-recording, it is featured as a track in The More Fearless (Taylor's Version) Chapter. It is worth noticing that the song was the only track on Speak Now not to be written entirely by Taylor. Fans have speculated this might be why it's now being promoted as a Fearless (Taylor's Version) single, so the upcoming Speak Now (Taylor's Version) would be entirely and solely written by her.
Better Than the Movies by Lynn Painter
Perpetual daydreamer Liz Buxbaum gave her heart to Michael a long time ago. But her cool, aloof forever crush never really saw her before he moved away. Now that he’s back in town, Liz will do whatever it takes to get on his radar—and maybe snag him as a prom date—even befriend Wes Bennet.
The annoyingly attractive next-door neighbor might seem like a prime candidate for romantic comedy fantasies, but Wes has only been a pain in Liz’s butt since they were kids. Pranks involving frogs and decapitated lawn gnomes do not a potential boyfriend make. Yet, somehow, Wes and Michael are hitting it off, which means Wes is Liz’s in.
But as Liz and Wes scheme to get Liz noticed by Michael so she can have her magical prom moment, she’s shocked to discover that she likes being around Wes. And as they continue to grow closer, she must reexamine everything she thought she knew about love—and rethink her own ideas of what Happily Ever After should look like.
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