Book Review of Geekerella by Ashley Poston

Getting an ARC of Geekerella by Ashley Poston in the mail (which was provided free in exchange for my honest review) didn't feel like hitting the jackpot, but it should have. I loved the title, and a subgenre of YA to which I affectionately refer as "geekmance" is one of my favorites, when done absolutely, perfectly right (though it rarely is). However, as I examined the cover art with increasing scrutiny, every witty and charming detail popped out at me--one right after another--and I knew I had something special in my hands. (Also, there was a dachshund. Along with superbly-written YA geekmance, dachshunds are the way to my heart, you guys.)

Cinderella stories have been told a thousand times. Rags-to-riches has been done to death. It requires a truly refreshing new take on a fairy tale to make a new and compelling story at this point. Poston has just such a take. Her cultural references were on-point. Geekerella was just dripping with nerdy goodness at every turn! Her nods to the original fairy tale were entertaining, but not so ubiquitous that it felt like Poston failed to make the story her own. The alternating narration between Elle (the MC) and Darien (her love interest) works so well because Poston uses the shifting POV to build tension, and Elle's voice is different enough from Darien's that the reader won't get confused.

Though Elle and Darien are both well-developed, empathetic characters, my favorite character, hands-down, was Sage. Everything from how she handled the Magic Pumpkin food truck (yes--so zeitgeist-y) to how unapologetically herself she was at every turn, to how much she had Elle's back made her pretty much the most badass incarnation of a fairy godmother I've ever seen on the page (and that isn't even factoring in her hairstyle). Next time I'm in a jam, doubting myself, or in need of a friend to tell me like it is, I hope Sage and The Magic Pumpkin simply appear in my driveway.

Geekerella could've so easily been fluff. ...and that would've been fine--we all need a little fluff in our lives. But it is so much more than that. Poston tackles weighty issues, such as colorblind casting, modern fandom, internet relationships, paparazzi and the media, child actors, grief, and dysfunctional/abusive family dynamics. But, somehow, she wraps all of those big, meaty topics up and hides them inside the nice, warm, chewy pita bread of geekdom + romance, and nothing ever feels preachy or forced. (Well, except all of that constant ah'blena stuff. That got old fast.)

One of my favorite things about the publisher Quirk Books is all of the little extras they put into a book. They don't just do a cover design and select a font. In a Quirk Book, you're likely to find chapter headings/titles that fit with the book's theme, pages (like those separating the book's parts in Geekerella) that are printed differently from the norm, with much apparent thought as to how to keep the reader in the mood of the story, and other visually charming details that you're doing yourself a disservice if you don't stop to appreciate. Much like with the Miss Peregrine's books and and My Best Friend's Exorcism (other YA titles Quirk has published), these careful attentions have been lavished upon Geekerella. So many book reviewers have recently been lamenting how it seems like publishers are just trying to churn out sub-par books at alarmingly fast rates to make money, with no regard to quality. Holding any of these Quirk YA releases will show you that these books are put out by a publisher with a different attitude, which puts a superior product into your hands as a reader. That product has definitely earned its real estate in my limited bookshelf layout, right next to Fangirl, The Improbable Theory of Ana and Zak, and The Summer I Became A Nerd. You know, just behind my Amy Farrah Fowler Funko Pop....

Geekerella comes out April 4th.