adele_em's review
hopeful
inspiring
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
pikasqueaks's review against another edition
in the hands of a more skilled writer and under the guidance and care of a better editor, this could have been something like camille perri's the assistants, or the lady's guide to selling out.
but this book definitely reads like it was someone's half-assed nanowrimo project and an agent or editor scooped it up because of its timeliness (anything to cash in on those #metoo bux, amiright?), but didn't bother to actually like... edit the book.
the writing itself is... bad. like, "how the hell did this get published?!" bad. someone winks twice a chapter (which is twice more per chapter than it shouls) there's superfluous micro actions by characters (she pulled her lip in, she breathed in deeper, she crossed her arms tighter, she pulled in her lip again, she glanced over, wetness glistened at the corner of her eyes, her freckles lifted as the corners of her mouth, over the top descriptions of someone falling down, blah blah blah). there's all kinds of awkward wording (character wanted to jerk off the sheets, there's a prick in someone's eye), etc.
instead of all of that, we could have had more character development? exploration? because most of all, this book lacked depth. we are preached to about the tech industry via "presentations" that multiple characters give. this is why i feel like someone just zoomed through the editorial process to make sure they could cash in on the Hot Topics Of 2019.
part of it might be the fact that it shouldn't have had to be a YA novel. this would have been so much better if it was an adult novel about pre-college freshman. but instead, we needed the standard issue forced YA romance, the faux ""feminism"" that's rampant in YA right now, and wooden characters who represent the whole "One Of Each Kind" thing, there's The Party Girl, The Stoic Girl With A Soft Heart For Kids, and The Quiet Nerdy One. it's a very YA thing to lock characters into high school stereotypes, and it's disappointing in a novel like this where that's contradictory to the whole point.
ALL OF THAT SAID, the audiobook makes for good easy listening on a road trip (love jorjeana marie), and once you get over the disappointment in what it could have been, you can relax and laugh out loud at the extremely bad writing, and enjoy the predictable plot for how it unfolds.
but this book definitely reads like it was someone's half-assed nanowrimo project and an agent or editor scooped it up because of its timeliness (anything to cash in on those #metoo bux, amiright?), but didn't bother to actually like... edit the book.
the writing itself is... bad. like, "how the hell did this get published?!" bad. someone winks twice a chapter (which is twice more per chapter than it shouls) there's superfluous micro actions by characters (she pulled her lip in, she breathed in deeper, she crossed her arms tighter, she pulled in her lip again, she glanced over, wetness glistened at the corner of her eyes, her freckles lifted as the corners of her mouth, over the top descriptions of someone falling down, blah blah blah). there's all kinds of awkward wording (character wanted to jerk off the sheets, there's a prick in someone's eye), etc.
instead of all of that, we could have had more character development? exploration? because most of all, this book lacked depth. we are preached to about the tech industry via "presentations" that multiple characters give. this is why i feel like someone just zoomed through the editorial process to make sure they could cash in on the Hot Topics Of 2019.
part of it might be the fact that it shouldn't have had to be a YA novel. this would have been so much better if it was an adult novel about pre-college freshman. but instead, we needed the standard issue forced YA romance, the faux ""feminism"" that's rampant in YA right now, and wooden characters who represent the whole "One Of Each Kind" thing, there's The Party Girl, The Stoic Girl With A Soft Heart For Kids, and The Quiet Nerdy One. it's a very YA thing to lock characters into high school stereotypes, and it's disappointing in a novel like this where that's contradictory to the whole point.
ALL OF THAT SAID, the audiobook makes for good easy listening on a road trip (love jorjeana marie), and once you get over the disappointment in what it could have been, you can relax and laugh out loud at the extremely bad writing, and enjoy the predictable plot for how it unfolds.
eggbois_gf's review against another edition
funny
inspiring
reflective
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
It was a really good book about young girls in tech and breaking down sexist stereotyping, just unfortunately it was predictable. I would definitely recommend this for someone younger.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual harassment
megs_s's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-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? It's complicated
4.0
courtneymays618's review
4.0
This book was no at all what I expected when seeing the cover and being intrigued simply by the cover art. However, I loved the tale of woman empowerment that came through in this story!