octobertune's review
4.0
Gods, this book made me miss conventions SO MUCH.
Of course, this being a Cinderella retelling, I kind of knew where the story was going, but the characters are what made me enjoy this so much. Sure, I didn't like Elle at first - she was the type of fan that I really don't like, but towards the end, she grew on me. I liked Darien as well, and I like that we got his POV as well - otherwise I might not have liked this book as much as I did.
As I said, with this being a retelling, the storyline was rather predictable, but I loved that it took place during a convention and featured a cosplay contest.
In the end, I really enjoyed Geekerella and I will definitely pick up the sequel (because I also already own that).
Of course, this being a Cinderella retelling, I kind of knew where the story was going, but the characters are what made me enjoy this so much. Sure, I didn't like Elle at first - she was the type of fan that I really don't like
Spoiler
the one who criticises everything that's not the original stuff, ugh give me a fucking break, she reminded me of those star wars fans who hate everything that's not the original trilogyAs I said, with this being a retelling, the storyline was rather predictable, but I loved that it took place during a convention and featured a cosplay contest.
Spoiler
Also one of the stepsisters not being a total jerk surprised me and I actually really love that.In the end, I really enjoyed Geekerella and I will definitely pick up the sequel (because I also already own that).
jenbsbooks's review
4.0
While I adore Jane Austen Fan Fiction, I don't always get into retellings of fairy tales. But this Cinderella remix was included in AudiblePlus, and I was ready for something light and fun. This fit the bill. A contemporary setting, very focused on a "Starflield" series, which similar to Star Wars, Star Trek, Harry Potty, LOTR, has a very large (fictional) fan following. It was fun to learn more about this make believe book/movie series. A "con" (ala comicon) also plays a big part, with all the fans of this (and the other aforementioned series, which as also real in this universe) come together for panels, pictures, autographs, contests for best costumes ...
Here, the "Cinderella" is "Elle" is Danielle (it's always interesting to see what the actual name is in these repurposed stories). Living with her stepmonster after her father passed away. Two step-sisters. Not absolutely abusive as in the traditional tale, but still unfair treatment. Fun to see how the other elements were modernized and worked in. There is a dress, a slipper, a ball, a pumpkin "coach"/foodtruck. Not really a fairy-godmother, just a friend who is a seamstress. A literal Prince (at least in the Starfield series).
This was cute and fun.
Here, the "Cinderella" is "Elle" is Danielle (it's always interesting to see what the actual name is in these repurposed stories). Living with her stepmonster after her father passed away. Two step-sisters. Not absolutely abusive as in the traditional tale, but still unfair treatment. Fun to see how the other elements were modernized and worked in. There is a dress, a slipper, a ball, a pumpkin "coach"/foodtruck. Not really a fairy-godmother, just a friend who is a seamstress. A literal Prince (at least in the Starfield series).
This was cute and fun.
stilienski's review
4.0
I don’t think I need to explain the slight sense of dread I feel as a fangirl when I find out about a book centred around fandom and fanculture. We’ve all been there at least once, getting our hopes up for a “documentary” or a book about our culture, our little home away from home, our thing, only to have those hopes cruelly and coldly exterminated as only a dalek can. Suffice to say, I was a bit wary about reading Geekerella.
Still I picked it up as soon as I found myself in the mood to read a fun contemporary. And boy, I was not disappointed. This book certainly met my highest expectations. Of course, it has its flaws. The fact that it’s a Cinderella retelling not only gives you a slightly over the top Stepmonster, but also makes it predictable, cliché and cheesy. Though I’ve always been a firm believer of clichés being clichés for a reason, and this book really has the best kind of cheese.
The plot may not be new, but there’s also plenty of reasons that make this story a story worth telling. The characters are fun, diverse, strong in their own ways, and with every turn of the page you can see them grow. They interact with fun quick-witted dialogue in a fast-paced story, which all makes it hard to put the book down at all.
But the one thing I loved the most was also what I dreaded the most going in. The representation of fandom and fanculture. Geekerella manages to both celebrate fandom and still critique its flaws. And it’s done in another way than “it can be great, but all the girls who squeal and scream when they see their favorite actor are wrong and don’t belong”. It’s an inclusive celebration of fanculture that made my heart sing with a sense of community that I usually only find in my fandoms.
If you enjoy a cheesy little romcom with characters who love geeking out just as much as you do, I think it’s about time you pick up this book.
Still I picked it up as soon as I found myself in the mood to read a fun contemporary. And boy, I was not disappointed. This book certainly met my highest expectations. Of course, it has its flaws. The fact that it’s a Cinderella retelling not only gives you a slightly over the top Stepmonster, but also makes it predictable, cliché and cheesy. Though I’ve always been a firm believer of clichés being clichés for a reason, and this book really has the best kind of cheese.
The plot may not be new, but there’s also plenty of reasons that make this story a story worth telling. The characters are fun, diverse, strong in their own ways, and with every turn of the page you can see them grow. They interact with fun quick-witted dialogue in a fast-paced story, which all makes it hard to put the book down at all.
But the one thing I loved the most was also what I dreaded the most going in. The representation of fandom and fanculture. Geekerella manages to both celebrate fandom and still critique its flaws. And it’s done in another way than “it can be great, but all the girls who squeal and scream when they see their favorite actor are wrong and don’t belong”. It’s an inclusive celebration of fanculture that made my heart sing with a sense of community that I usually only find in my fandoms.
If you enjoy a cheesy little romcom with characters who love geeking out just as much as you do, I think it’s about time you pick up this book.
3mmakatariina's review
5.0
Review for the 2019 reread: https://3mmakatariina.wordpress.com/2019/05/07/review-geekerella
This was soooo good omgg. I usually don't read retellings and at first it reminded me of too much Cindrella but later on the nerdy aspect made it so much better and i kinda related to Elle so much i loved it. Everyone neeeeeds to read it aaahhhhhh. ((Longer review when i get home)
This was soooo good omgg. I usually don't read retellings and at first it reminded me of too much Cindrella but later on the nerdy aspect made it so much better and i kinda related to Elle so much i loved it. Everyone neeeeeds to read it aaahhhhhh. ((Longer review when i get home)
itsmandyj's review
5.0
This book was awesome! The main character Elle reminded me so much of myself, it was great to see a "fairy tale" that was about us "geeks"
The way Elle and Darien meet in the book is adorable and I loved how everything played out between them. More over I really like Darien's character and how he wasn't just some knight in shining armor who came to rescue Elle, but instead he needed a little rescuing.
The detail and description of Elle's cosplay dress really made me feel like I could picture it and now I want to go to ExcelsiCon.
The way Elle and Darien meet in the book is adorable and I loved how everything played out between them. More over I really like Darien's character and how he wasn't just some knight in shining armor who came to rescue Elle, but instead he needed a little rescuing.
The detail and description of Elle's cosplay dress really made me feel like I could picture it and now I want to go to ExcelsiCon.
lessariel's review against another edition
5.0
Two geeks, one show and a string of texts.
Elle is our Cinderella living with a stepmother who moans about money and evil step sisters who dont seem to have any chores.
Her only escape is the show her dad and mum loved-> Star Field (think old school Star Trek). Isolated from friends she dreams of being strong and leaving it all behind.
Darien is a teen heart throb, think Zach Efron or Jason Donavan, hired for a role he wants because he will bring the box office money in and pressured by his dad/manager to do certain things. He reaches out to cancel one such event and ends up contacting Elle.
What follows is 30 days of summer jobs and personal perspective linked by texts and a shared love of the show.
The alternating perspectives are excellent each has their own voice which comes across in most of the book, even in the text messages. However, Elle’s story sags in the middle especially if you are familiar with Cinderella stories in many variations. it had me yelling why are you so thick at times?She knows her step sisters are selfish and at least one of them is mean but she constantly leaves things where they can be found by anyone who bothers to look, even after Sage starts to be her friend. Sage saves this chunk of the story a brilliant side kick who I’d love to see get her own story.
My last issue with Elle is that she is the worst kind of geek:- hyper critical of any one saying they are a fan who cant tell you the minor error made in episode 16 or what colour the food was in episode 17. Fans like her give other fans a bad name. Yes, she can have an opinion but not knowing little things doesn’t change how much of a fan you are. Let’s ease up on the teen fans as it may lead many more people to the original show.
Darien on the other hand is trying to do a job under adversity pressured hy his dad not to make the papers but wanting a normal life away away from his heartthrob status. he goes against grain and cares about the film unlike his indie costar who hopes for no sequel. He grows up over the book and realises business must be separate to family and that you are in charge of your own destiny.
Ending happily, although possibly not ever after, this eventually found a way into my heart. A writer to watch as anyone who can make me engage enough to argue with the book is someone whose writing I’d follow.
overall 3.5 stars.
Definitely one to consider for bookclub so we could look at how it matches to the original tale alongside how manipulative people can be written.
Thanks to netgalley for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an unbiased review.
Elle is our Cinderella living with a stepmother who moans about money and evil step sisters who dont seem to have any chores.
Her only escape is the show her dad and mum loved-> Star Field (think old school Star Trek). Isolated from friends she dreams of being strong and leaving it all behind.
Darien is a teen heart throb, think Zach Efron or Jason Donavan, hired for a role he wants because he will bring the box office money in and pressured by his dad/manager to do certain things. He reaches out to cancel one such event and ends up contacting Elle.
What follows is 30 days of summer jobs and personal perspective linked by texts and a shared love of the show.
The alternating perspectives are excellent each has their own voice which comes across in most of the book, even in the text messages. However, Elle’s story sags in the middle especially if you are familiar with Cinderella stories in many variations. it had me yelling why are you so thick at times?She knows her step sisters are selfish and at least one of them is mean but she constantly leaves things where they can be found by anyone who bothers to look, even after Sage starts to be her friend. Sage saves this chunk of the story a brilliant side kick who I’d love to see get her own story.
My last issue with Elle is that she is the worst kind of geek:- hyper critical of any one saying they are a fan who cant tell you the minor error made in episode 16 or what colour the food was in episode 17. Fans like her give other fans a bad name. Yes, she can have an opinion but not knowing little things doesn’t change how much of a fan you are. Let’s ease up on the teen fans as it may lead many more people to the original show.
Darien on the other hand is trying to do a job under adversity pressured hy his dad not to make the papers but wanting a normal life away away from his heartthrob status. he goes against grain and cares about the film unlike his indie costar who hopes for no sequel. He grows up over the book and realises business must be separate to family and that you are in charge of your own destiny.
Ending happily, although possibly not ever after, this eventually found a way into my heart. A writer to watch as anyone who can make me engage enough to argue with the book is someone whose writing I’d follow.
overall 3.5 stars.
Definitely one to consider for bookclub so we could look at how it matches to the original tale alongside how manipulative people can be written.
Thanks to netgalley for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an unbiased review.
lessariel's review
3.0
Two geeks, one show and a string of texts.
Elle is our Cinderella living with a stepmother who moans about money and evil step sisters who dont seem to have any chores.
Her only escape is the show her dad and mum loved-> Star Field (think old school Star Trek). Isolated from friends she dreams of being strong and leaving it all behind.
Darien is a teen heart throb, think Zach Efron or Jason Donavan, hired for a role he wants because he will bring the box office money in and pressured by his dad/manager to do certain things. He reaches out to cancel one such event and ends up contacting Elle.
What follows is 30 days of summer jobs and personal perspective linked by texts and a shared love of the show.
The alternating perspectives are excellent each has their own voice which comes across in most of the book, even in the text messages. However, Elle’s story sags in the middle especially if you are familiar with Cinderella stories in many variations. it had me yelling why are you so thick at times?She knows her step sisters are selfish and at least one of them is mean but she constantly leaves things where they can be found by anyone who bothers to look, even after Sage starts to be her friend. Sage saves this chunk of the story a brilliant side kick who I’d love to see get her own story.
My last issue with Elle is that she is the worst kind of geek:- hyper critical of any one saying they are a fan who cant tell you the minor error made in episode 16 or what colour the food was in episode 17. Fans like her give other fans a bad name. Yes, she can have an opinion but not knowing little things doesn’t change how much of a fan you are. Let’s ease up on the teen fans as it may lead many more people to the original show.
Darien on the other hand is trying to do a job under adversity pressured hy his dad not to make the papers but wanting a normal life away away from his heartthrob status. he goes against grain and cares about the film unlike his indie costar who hopes for no sequel. He grows up over the book and realises business must be separate to family and that you are in charge of your own destiny.
Ending happily, although possibly not ever after, this eventually found a way into my heart. A writer to watch as anyone who can make me engage enough to argue with the book is someone whose writing I’d follow.
Thanks to netgalley for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an unbiased review.
Elle is our Cinderella living with a stepmother who moans about money and evil step sisters who dont seem to have any chores.
Her only escape is the show her dad and mum loved-> Star Field (think old school Star Trek). Isolated from friends she dreams of being strong and leaving it all behind.
Darien is a teen heart throb, think Zach Efron or Jason Donavan, hired for a role he wants because he will bring the box office money in and pressured by his dad/manager to do certain things. He reaches out to cancel one such event and ends up contacting Elle.
What follows is 30 days of summer jobs and personal perspective linked by texts and a shared love of the show.
The alternating perspectives are excellent each has their own voice which comes across in most of the book, even in the text messages. However, Elle’s story sags in the middle especially if you are familiar with Cinderella stories in many variations. it had me yelling why are you so thick at times?She knows her step sisters are selfish and at least one of them is mean but she constantly leaves things where they can be found by anyone who bothers to look, even after Sage starts to be her friend. Sage saves this chunk of the story a brilliant side kick who I’d love to see get her own story.
My last issue with Elle is that she is the worst kind of geek:- hyper critical of any one saying they are a fan who cant tell you the minor error made in episode 16 or what colour the food was in episode 17. Fans like her give other fans a bad name. Yes, she can have an opinion but not knowing little things doesn’t change how much of a fan you are. Let’s ease up on the teen fans as it may lead many more people to the original show.
Darien on the other hand is trying to do a job under adversity pressured hy his dad not to make the papers but wanting a normal life away away from his heartthrob status. he goes against grain and cares about the film unlike his indie costar who hopes for no sequel. He grows up over the book and realises business must be separate to family and that you are in charge of your own destiny.
Ending happily, although possibly not ever after, this eventually found a way into my heart. A writer to watch as anyone who can make me engage enough to argue with the book is someone whose writing I’d follow.
Thanks to netgalley for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an unbiased review.
efv's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
codyleigh's review
3.0
Geekerella is exactly what the title suggests, an adorable book dedicated to geeks and fandoms with a Cinderella retelling twist. It’s about a girl called Elle who grew up watching an old but hugely popular sci-fi series: Starfield. She’s the biggest fan of the show and her dreams come true when she finds out Hollywood are doing a brand new adaptation.
Elle’s excitement for a new Starfield doesn’t last long when she finds out Hollywood’s up and coming ‘it’ boy is being cast as Prince Carmindor; Starfield leading male character. Sure Darien Freeman maybe perfectly cast in the looks department but he’s far too arrogant and glamorous to play her Prince Carmindor, I mean the guy has his abs insured? Soo not Carmindor. Naturally Elle goes to her blog to rant about the casting choice and overnight it becomes an Internet sensation.
Staying true to the Cinderella classic, Elle lives with her terrible Stepmother and stepsisters. She's also desperate to attend ExcelsiCon, a fangirls dream convention in order to enter the Cosplay contest. It’s at ExcelsiCon that Elle bumps into Darien Freeman. This was such a cute story; I loved watching Elle and Darien work through their problems, both with their careers and family life.
Now while this book was all kinds of adorable, it was just far too slow for my liking. I enjoyed that Elle and Darien didn’t meet straight away but when they finally do near the end of the book, everything speeds up and then it's over. The erratic pacing put me off slightly and I just wanted more of a connection between the two. I get that having a fandom in common is pretty much everything to a fellow fanboy/girl but I would have loved them to connect in other ways or at least interact a little more. I guess I just wanted more of a romance as I was expecting a star crossed lovers/true love trope.
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Elle’s excitement for a new Starfield doesn’t last long when she finds out Hollywood’s up and coming ‘it’ boy is being cast as Prince Carmindor; Starfield leading male character. Sure Darien Freeman maybe perfectly cast in the looks department but he’s far too arrogant and glamorous to play her Prince Carmindor, I mean the guy has his abs insured? Soo not Carmindor. Naturally Elle goes to her blog to rant about the casting choice and overnight it becomes an Internet sensation.
Staying true to the Cinderella classic, Elle lives with her terrible Stepmother and stepsisters. She's also desperate to attend ExcelsiCon, a fangirls dream convention in order to enter the Cosplay contest. It’s at ExcelsiCon that Elle bumps into Darien Freeman. This was such a cute story; I loved watching Elle and Darien work through their problems, both with their careers and family life.
Now while this book was all kinds of adorable, it was just far too slow for my liking. I enjoyed that Elle and Darien didn’t meet straight away but when they finally do near the end of the book, everything speeds up and then it's over. The erratic pacing put me off slightly and I just wanted more of a connection between the two. I get that having a fandom in common is pretty much everything to a fellow fanboy/girl but I would have loved them to connect in other ways or at least interact a little more. I guess I just wanted more of a romance as I was expecting a star crossed lovers/true love trope.
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