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emmabeckman's review against another edition
4.0
Super cute and nerdy!! It reminded me a lot of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (unsurprisingly). I really liked the witty writing style and the characters. The one thing that bugged me was that some of the transitions were really abrupt and jarring. Also I feel like Brody and Why could have had a better learning curve in the end...... but overall I enjoyed it!!
ceena's review against another edition
4.0
*I received this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
I absolutely LOVED this book. I love this trend of geeky/nerdy books that are being published. While I personally don't cosplay or sew, I have to say that this book made me want to buy a sewing machine. I want to make all the things! Also, I need to look up D&D info.
I went into this thinking it would be more of a fluffy book, and it is, but I didn't except the internet troll portions to be so...accurate. The scenes where Cameron checks her blog or e-mail, the comments are actually written out for the reader and they can be so difficult to read. We all know what is going to be written, at this point in time we all know what trolls are like, but it is still so shocking that people can be so cruel. Anyhow, these portions are a bit dark and I felt so, so bad for Cameron, but I think the scenes were written well and the fun moments help balance the book, so it isn't too sad to read.
As for the characters, I loved them. Like I said, the trolls were done well, Brody seems like "a real geek", you know "a nice guy", so I disliked him, but he felt so real. All the characters did to me. Cameron in her donut dresses is a bright light, her brother makes me laugh and I love their relationship, while Lincoln and Why are funny and add good dynamics. Why and Cameron's brother are gay, by the way. Which adds an additional conflict when Why likes boy-Cameron. More conflict in poor Cameron's life. I will say, the lack of female interaction in the book peeved me, but I understood it: her friends are busy or don't want to talk to her because of what happened before she moved and she doesn't have any new friends in her new town. There are some female interactions and since almost none of them revolve around boys, I was pretty happy with them :)
This isn't a book about someone who has everything figured out. Not everything is handed to them. This book feels real to me in that aspect, so between that and the funny moments, I really did love reading this book.
I have already recommended this book! I enjoyed reading it and I think anyone who likes going to cons, cosplaying, or who has a geeky heart will enjoy this or at least relate to it.
I absolutely LOVED this book. I love this trend of geeky/nerdy books that are being published. While I personally don't cosplay or sew, I have to say that this book made me want to buy a sewing machine. I want to make all the things! Also, I need to look up D&D info.
I went into this thinking it would be more of a fluffy book, and it is, but I didn't except the internet troll portions to be so...accurate. The scenes where Cameron checks her blog or e-mail, the comments are actually written out for the reader and they can be so difficult to read. We all know what is going to be written, at this point in time we all know what trolls are like, but it is still so shocking that people can be so cruel. Anyhow, these portions are a bit dark and I felt so, so bad for Cameron, but I think the scenes were written well and the fun moments help balance the book, so it isn't too sad to read.
As for the characters, I loved them. Like I said, the trolls were done well, Brody seems like "a real geek", you know "a nice guy", so I disliked him, but he felt so real. All the characters did to me. Cameron in her donut dresses is a bright light, her brother makes me laugh and I love their relationship, while Lincoln and Why are funny and add good dynamics. Why and Cameron's brother are gay, by the way. Which adds an additional conflict when Why likes boy-Cameron. More conflict in poor Cameron's life. I will say, the lack of female interaction in the book peeved me, but I understood it: her friends are busy or don't want to talk to her because of what happened before she moved and she doesn't have any new friends in her new town. There are some female interactions and since almost none of them revolve around boys, I was pretty happy with them :)
This isn't a book about someone who has everything figured out. Not everything is handed to them. This book feels real to me in that aspect, so between that and the funny moments, I really did love reading this book.
I have already recommended this book! I enjoyed reading it and I think anyone who likes going to cons, cosplaying, or who has a geeky heart will enjoy this or at least relate to it.
diana_blackmoon's review against another edition
2.0
It is nice that this book so heavily focus on the problems girls face in male dominated spaces. Unfortunately, I was expecting something better? A lot of advice about situations is boiled down to : it is your responsibility as a girl to find a way to exist in those spaces. Main love interest is also friends with the most scary misogynistic guy possible and as a firm beliver in 'you are only as good as your worst friend' I hate him so much.
thebookberrie's review against another edition
2.0
What is this, the month of me reading books that I already knew I wouldn't like? I need to be stopped.
Chaotic Good is about a girl named Cameron who is into cosplay and making costumes. One day after getting gatekeeped by some dudebro at her local comic store, she decides to dress as a boy and then ends up joining their D&D group and things get carried away.
I'm not just a clown, I'm the whole circus. I do not like books about fandom/nerd culture and constant pop culture references. This one didn't drop as many pop culture references back and forth but most of this book is the characters playing Dungeons and Dragons and talking about cosplay (along with all the ~nice guy~ rage comments at Cameron for being a fake nerd girl). I've never played D&D and reading about people playing it every other page was another level of "oh god can we please move ON". It was just so annoying and I really didn't care for it.
This book drops some important tea about gross men online and their toxic behavior toward women and while that was good, it was a lot of getting hit on the head with it. Cameron was such a passive character too who didn't have enough emotion about the mistreatment she was getting online. Get mad! Go wild! Delete all your shit! Don't just sit there, reading their comments and crying??
While her reasoning to dress as a boy the one time made sense, to keep it going was weak and when people eventually find out the truth and get mad at her, Cameron mostly just takes it because she's the asshole I guess. Reading the comments she was getting made ME angry to the point where I couldn't believe she didn't respond the same way. But that's just me being tired of bullshit and not wanting to take it. (Those boys were stupid I don't get why she still wanted to be friends with them.)
Otherwise it was cute enough and a fast read but try as I might, I have nothing else to say about this book besides it wasn't for me and I should have just skipped it.
Chaotic Good is about a girl named Cameron who is into cosplay and making costumes. One day after getting gatekeeped by some dudebro at her local comic store, she decides to dress as a boy and then ends up joining their D&D group and things get carried away.
I'm not just a clown, I'm the whole circus. I do not like books about fandom/nerd culture and constant pop culture references. This one didn't drop as many pop culture references back and forth but most of this book is the characters playing Dungeons and Dragons and talking about cosplay (along with all the ~nice guy~ rage comments at Cameron for being a fake nerd girl). I've never played D&D and reading about people playing it every other page was another level of "oh god can we please move ON". It was just so annoying and I really didn't care for it.
This book drops some important tea about gross men online and their toxic behavior toward women and while that was good, it was a lot of getting hit on the head with it. Cameron was such a passive character too who didn't have enough emotion about the mistreatment she was getting online. Get mad! Go wild! Delete all your shit! Don't just sit there, reading their comments and crying??
While her reasoning to dress as a boy the one time made sense, to keep it going was weak and when people eventually find out the truth and get mad at her, Cameron mostly just takes it because she's the asshole I guess. Reading the comments she was getting made ME angry to the point where I couldn't believe she didn't respond the same way. But that's just me being tired of bullshit and not wanting to take it. (Those boys were stupid I don't get why she still wanted to be friends with them.)
Otherwise it was cute enough and a fast read but try as I might, I have nothing else to say about this book besides it wasn't for me and I should have just skipped it.
katnortonwriter's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
There was a lot to like about the D&D aspects of this story, and the commentary on doxxing and nerd culture. The end, though… the end really bothered me, in large part because a character who has been gross and toxic the whole book just… gets a pass? And Cam never really reckons with some of her own internalized misogyny. It was okay, but I wanted more from the ending. It felt very rushed.
roeckitcody's review against another edition
5.0
I've decided that Whitney Gardner's novels are perfectly my style.
This book is wholesomely nerdy. Dungeons & Dragons and Cosplay. It's the most beautifully nerdy thing I've read in a long time.
the art reminded me of Noelle Stevenson's NIMONA, and the story inside matched the heart of it all. I absolutely loved Cam, her grit, her love for costume making.
Cam is one of those girls that is determined and committed to anything she does. and I loved that about her.
I loved loved loved her twin Cooper and really felt for him. My favorite little gay boy. <3
and I loved Why even more.
Lincoln was the purest boy who I also loved to death.
I loved everything about this book.
If I had to officially blurb it it would say this:
"A nerdy feminist tale perfect for fans of NIMONA. With queer side characters, CHAOTIC GOOD shines in more ways than one. Filled with heart, humor, and nerdy goodness- CHAOTIC GOOD will carefully open your heart and sew it back together with the characters inside. Unforgettable, lovable, and just so fun. You need this in your life."
This book is wholesomely nerdy. Dungeons & Dragons and Cosplay. It's the most beautifully nerdy thing I've read in a long time.
the art reminded me of Noelle Stevenson's NIMONA, and the story inside matched the heart of it all. I absolutely loved Cam, her grit, her love for costume making.
Cam is one of those girls that is determined and committed to anything she does. and I loved that about her.
I loved loved loved her twin Cooper and really felt for him. My favorite little gay boy. <3
and I loved Why even more.
Lincoln was the purest boy who I also loved to death.
I loved everything about this book.
If I had to officially blurb it it would say this:
"A nerdy feminist tale perfect for fans of NIMONA. With queer side characters, CHAOTIC GOOD shines in more ways than one. Filled with heart, humor, and nerdy goodness- CHAOTIC GOOD will carefully open your heart and sew it back together with the characters inside. Unforgettable, lovable, and just so fun. You need this in your life."
cibani's review against another edition
hopeful
fast-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
4.0
bugprince's review against another edition
5.0
I really liked reading about a cosplayer, because that's something I'm interested in but never see in published books. When I first started reading it I was scared that it would end up being like overdramatic about the patriarchy and feminism (a weird fear in the first place), but it turned out to be really accurate from my experience, and I thought that was a really nice issue to address as a person who has experienced sexism. I genuinely really liked this book, and it inspired me to read again this year.