Scan barcode
rebeccaisabelle's review
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I like the overall cinderella theme of the book. It was really cute. The better between the main characters is also cute. I didn't like how the 'evil stepsisters' - especially Chloe treated Elle. same for Brian - the way he treated Darien , but that's expected in Cinderella adaptations so it's okay. I thought Elle was gonna buy her house afterward. No mention was made at the end of the book. I thought we would have seen a bigger confrontation at the end btwn Darien and his father. I thought the father would have shown up or something but he didn't. I'm glad Gail got promoted. Well deserved indeed. There was character development throughout the book but I felt that most of the conversations between the main characters were on their phone/ online. I would have wanted there to be more physical interactions between them, even if they didn't know the others' secret as yet. The phone texts I believe took up more than ½ of the book. Instead the texting part could've lasted around ½ the book and their physical interactions could have started right after. They could come across each other more than once. Let their lives intertwine a bit more - the parts when didn't know the either was their phone crush. Kind of like Miraculous Lady Bug and Cat Noir in a way. Both protagonists could feel that their phone crush would never reciprocate what they were individually feeling and slightly give up on pursuing a relationship- conflicted. Then in person, they are seeing each other, not knowing it's their phone crush,start off hating each other then finally liking the other through a series of events (standing up for another, etc.), then they could feel even more conflicted because they feel they are being unfaithful to the phone crush...only to find out they were them all this time. I feel like I would get slightly upset reading that kind of book but it would've been more interesting for sure. I would have also wanted to see more of their interactions after they got together .
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, and Abandonment
yvo_about_books's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
3.75
Finished reading: August 9th 2024
"My dad said that the impossible is only impossible if you don’t even try. So I want to try."
After enjoying her most recent adult fiction, I decided to dive into Ashley Poston's backlist for more books to read. While it's true that I don't read all that many YA books anymore, there was just something about this Cinderella retelling with a geek vibe that I couldn't resist. And I can't deny that I ended up having a lot of fun reading Geekerella! The retelling itself is really well done; the references to the fairytale were incorporated in a way that felt natural. My favorite part is the whole geek vibe though, with the fandom and ExelsiCon. This was so much fun to read about, and I could especially appreciate the connection both main characters have to the event. Geekerella uses a dual POV structure, switching between Danielle (Elle) and Darien. I did much prefer Darien over Elle, as it took me a little while to warm up to her and she could be quite stubborn. I liked her friend Sage a lot more, although I can't deny that I was rooting for both Elle and Darien with everything they had to go through. The text messages between them were a nice touch! The writing style itself was engaging, and it was really easy to keep turning those pages. The way everything was wrapped up in the end was also very satisfying... All in all a more than solid YA retelling, and I will be continuing the series in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
emilywemily6's review
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
While this book started off slow, I really enjoyed this cheesy YA retelling of Cinderella! I loved the sci-fi fandom aspect and how thoroughly the author created the fandom. It felt new and fresh and I wish I could watch the TV show! The FMC’s relationships with her step sisters and step mother were abusive and honestly made me really uncomfortable, to the point that they took away some of my enjoyment of the book. The FMC made a lot of poor assumptions about other people that also weren’t very fitting for a Cinderella-type character. I love the shenanigans at the very end of this book too! I wish we got a more in-depth look at the epilogue for these characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Lesbophobia
Minor: Sexual harassment
rafacolog's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Death of parent
jjohans3's review
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying
beckyremillard's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, and Death of parent
theonlybaillie's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Grief, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
Minor: Physical abuse and Toxic friendship
ofgreengables's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying and Death of parent
lakinglaze's review
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I wanted to love this story so much more than I did. It made my geeky little heart sing with the references to some of my most favourite fandoms! However, the characters took far too long to stand up for themselves and I like my characters with a bit more candor and backbone than these. They just felt a little lacking for me, but the story was fun though.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Stalking, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Classism
cait's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail