Book Review: Geekerella by: Ashley Poston

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Ashley Poston, Book, Book Review, Cinderella, Geekerella, Netgalley, Retelling, review

Never give up on your dreams, and never let anyone tell you that what you love is inconsequential or useless or a waste of time. Because if you love it? If that OTP or children’s card game or abridged series or YA book or animated series makes you happy?
That is never a waste of time. Because in the end we’re all just a bunch of weirdos standing in front of other weirdos, asking for their username.” – Geekerella, Ashley Poston

Initial Thoughts: About a week ago, I just so happened to drive past a comic convention. People with bright purple wigs strolled along merrily with people dressed as Jedi knights. Although I have never been to a convention, I can imagine just how fun it would be to participate in events related to a movie, t.v. series, video game (and so on) that you absolutely adore. We all have our own “inner Geek” inside of us. While reading Geekerella by: Ashley Poston, I almost wish I could’ve gone to the convention.

Summary 

Part romance, part love letter to nerd culture, and all totally adorbs, Geekerella is a fairy tale for anyone who believes in the magic of fandom. Geek girl Elle Wittimer lives and breathes Starfield, the classic sci-fi series she grew up watching with her late father. So when she sees a cosplay contest for a new Starfield movie, she has to enter. The prize? An invitation to the ExcelsiCon Cosplay Ball, and a meet-and-greet with the actor slated to play Federation Prince Carmindor in the reboot. With savings from her gig at the Magic Pumpkin food truck (and her dad’s old costume), Elle’s determined to win…unless her stepsisters get there first.

Teen actor Darien Freeman used to live for cons—before he was famous. Now they’re nothing but autographs and awkward meet-and-greets. Playing Carmindor is all he’s ever wanted, but the Starfield fandom has written him off as just another dumb heartthrob. As ExcelsiCon draws near, Darien feels more and more like a fake—until he meets a girl who shows him otherwise.

The Review 

Danielle “Elle” Wittimer’s world revolves around Starfield, her favorite television show of all time. She is not just a fan, she is a superfan who knows every single miniscule detail about Carmindor and his crew. Online, Elle is an opinionated blogger with a cult following. In real life, she is a nobody, and is constantly bullied by her twin stepsisters and her snobbish stepmother. Elle cannot wait for the day when she can leave her old life behind and begin anew. For now, she works in a vegan food truck, The Magic Pumpkin, and bides her time. When a film reboot of Starfield is announced, along with a cosplay contest at ExcelsiCon Elle is ecstatic. Just one problem, how is she going to convince her Starfield-hating stepmother to let her go?

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Book Review: Patrick Branwell Brontë by: Alice Law

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Alice Law, Book, Book Review, Branwell Bronte, Patrick Branwell Brontë, review

Initial Thoughts: Jane Eyre by: Charlotte Brontë is my favorite novel of all-time. Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights is also very high upon my list of favorite novels. Ever since I discovered the Brontës, I have been astounded by the legends and the myths associated with them. There truly is no end. But, out of all the Brontës, Patrick Branwell Brontë has often been vilified and slandered by the biographers of his famous sisters. Branwell Brontë, unlike the names of Charlotte and Emily, is not a household name. He has been labelled the family failure, or the source of misery to his sisters. Even Daphne du Maurier’s biography, The Infernal World of Branwell Brontë (which I reviewed about a year ago), hardly salvages his reputation. I was curious to read Alice Law’s biography of Branwell (a largely forgotten biography) to compare it to my image of Branwell.

Who was Patrick Branwell Brontë?

Self Portrait of Branwell Brontë

Patrick Branwell Brontë (otherwise called Branwell by his family) was the only brother of the famous Brontë sisters, Charlotte, Emily and Anne. He was born in 1816 and died at the age of 31 from tuberculosis due to an overconsumption of alcohol and opium. Like his sisters, Branwell had literary aspirations, and from a young age, his father believed him to be the genius of the family. But, Branwell never lived up to his family’s expectations. His sister Charlotte Brontë is the author of the acclaimed novels, Jane Eyre, The Professor, Villette, and Shirley.  His sister Emily wrote the famous novel Wuthering Heights. Finally, his sister Anne wrote Agnes Grey, and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. In a family of literary geniuses, what went wrong with Branwell?

Book Review: Manga Classics: Jane Eyre, Les Misérables, and The Scarlet Letter

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Book Review, jane eyre, Les Miserables, Manga Classics, Manga Classics: Jane Eyre, Manga Classics: Les Miserables, Manga Classics: The Scarlet Letter, review, The Scarlet Letter

For the past few years, Manga Classics has been adapting beloved classic novels into a graphic novel (manga) format.

What is manga? 

Manga is Japanese style comic art. Each panel is typically read from right to left instead of traditional Western comics from left to right.

Manga Classics: Jane Eyre

As an orphaned child, Jane Eyre is first cruelly abused by her aunt, then cast out and sent to a charity school. Though she meets with further abuse, she receives an education, and eventually takes a job as a governess at the estate of Edward Rochester. Jane and Rochester begin to bond, but his dark moods trouble her. When Jane uncovers the terrible secret Rochester has been hiding, she flees and finds temporary refuge at the home of St. John Rivers” – Goodreads

The Review

Jane Eyre was the first Manga Classics adaptation that I had read. I was so excited to discover a manga adaptation of my favourite novel of all-time, Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre. Reading the manga was a completely new and fresh experience. When reading the original novel, everything is seen though Jane’s point of view. Her interiority gives the novel its richness and depth. A manga is visual and automatically limiting in depicting interiority. Yet, the artwork in the manga, and concise adaptation of the text worked very well. I was so happy to see all of my favourite quotes from Jane Eyre transplanted into the manga. Manga Classic’s version of Jane Eyre is a great adaptation and introduction to Bronte’s masterpiece as it captures the very essence of the storyline.

I received a copy of Manga Classics: Jane Eyre via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. 

Book Review: The 5th Wave by: Rick Yancey

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Book, Book Review, books, Dystopian, review, rick yancey, the 5th wave, Young adult

But if I’m it, the last of my kind, the last page of human history, like hell I’m going to let the story end this way. I may be the last one, but I am the one still standing. I am the one turning to face the faceless hunter in the woods on an abandoned highway. I am the one not running but facing. Because if I am the last one, then I am humanity. And if this is humanity’s last war, then I am the battlefield” – The 5th Wave by: Rick Yancey

Initial Thoughts: About three month ago, I watched the movie adaptation of The 5th Wave. The movie ends on a huge cliffhanger and I was desperate to find out what happens to the main characters, and so, I decided to read the book. The 5th Wave is a trilogy of three books, (The 5th Wave, The Infinite Sea, The Last Star).

Summary

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.

Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother-or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up” – Goodreads

The Review

The first wave: all electricity is shut off for ever. The second wave: destruction and disasters. The third wave: disease. The fourth wave: Infiltration. The fifth wave is coming…

Before the arrival of “the Others,” Cassie Sullivan was just an ordinary high school student with a huge crush on Ben Parish, the most popular boy at school. Now, she must find a way to stay alive and keep her family safe. All of a sudden, Earth has been invaded by mysterious visitors who wreck havoc on humanity in waves. With each wave, the human population quickly dwindles. With over 97% of the population dead, the remainder are left wondering when will the fifth wave will hit….

After watching the movie, I realized… wow, I already know the huge plot twist. So, I was a little underwhelmed. Mind you, the entire novel is intense, and even though I knew how everything was going to play out (more or less), I was completely captivated.

Book Review: A Date with Darcy (Bookish Boyfriends) by: Tiffany Schmidt

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A Date with Darcy, arc, Book, Book Review, Bookish Boyfriends, Netgalley, review, Tiffany Schmidt

Initial Thoughts: When I was a teenager, my bookish crush was Edward Rochester from Jane Eyre. Though, when I got to university and studied Jane Eyre in depth, I was constantly reminded by just how shady Mr. Rochester truly is. I probably should have picked Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice.

Summary 

In this contemporary YA, a teenager’s favorite literary heroes woo her in real life.

The first of two books in an intended paperback original series about a girl whose classic literary crushes manifest in real life. Merrilee Campbell, 16, thinks boys are better in books, chivalry is dead, and there’d be nothing more romantic than having just one guy woo her like the heroes in classic stories. She’s about to get the chance to test these daydreams when she, her best friend, Eliza, and her younger sister, Rory, transfer into Reginald R. Hero High, where all their fantasies come true—often with surprising consequences.

The Review 

Merrilee Campbell is a bubbly teenager and voracious reader. Every once and a while she will find a new book boyfriend after devouring yet another romance novel.  Merrilee believes that boys are better in books. Her friends, Eliza and Toby, have accepted this quirk about their long time friend. When Merrilee and her friend Eliza transfer from an all-girls school to the prestigious Hero High, Merrilee is finally ready to find romance. But will she be able to find a boyfriend just as captivating as the ones she reads about in books?

A Date With Darcy is a modern retelling of Pride & Prejudice with quite a few twists.