Hello Bookish Friends:)
Ever since my hubby and I got back from Saskatchewan Entertainment Expo a couple of weeks ago, I've been craving more of the con experience.
One way I thought I could give myself more of that experience is by reading books that are centered around comic cons of some sort.
I've already read a few; some of which were great and some of which were not, but the one I'm going to be reviewing for you all today is probably the one that I was most looking forward to reading.
The Geek's Guide To Unrequited Love by Sarvenaz Tash:
Source: Library
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Publication Date: June 14th, 2016
Genre: Young Adult Fiction/Contemporary
Synopsis:
Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy. Archie and Veronica. Althena and Noth.…Graham and Roxy?
Graham met his best friend, Roxy, when he moved into her neighborhood eight years ago and she asked him which Hogwarts house he’d be sorted into. Graham has been in love with her ever since.
But now they’re sixteen, still neighbors, still best friends. And Graham and Roxy share more than ever—moving on from their Harry Potter obsession to a serious love of comic books.
When Graham learns that the creator of their favorite comic, The Chronicles of Althena, is making a rare appearance at this year’s New York Comic Con, he knows he must score tickets. And the event inspires Graham to come up with the perfect plan to tell Roxy how he really feels about her. He’s got three days to woo his best friend at the coolest, kookiest con full of superheroes and supervillains. But no one at a comic book convention is who they appear to be…even Roxy. And Graham is starting to realize fictional love stories are way less complicated than real-life ones.
(synopsis from goodreads)
My Review:
I honestly thought that The Geek's Guide To Unrequited Love was going to be a surefire win for me. After all a book about fandoms, comic cons, and being proud of your nerdiness with tons of pop culture references thrown in should be something I'd really enjoy. However, I felt like this one really missed its mark for me, and while I did enjoy the story for the most part, it wasn't the amazing contemporary novel I was expecting, and isn't one that I'll be listing as a new favorite.
The premise of it being about a sixteen year old guy named Graham who's in love with his best friend, and the elaborate lengths he goes to let her know his feelings at New York Comic Con sounded adorable, and swoon worthy. The reader can definitely tell that the author is very familiar with the con experience, as this whole ideal vividly comes alive on the page from chapter to chapter. However, the story starts to drag for a lot of the con experience, and it felt like the same things kept happening over and over again without much plot development around them.
I loved that this book includes a pretty electric cast of characters, and I really enjoyed Graham, Samira, Felicia, Amelia and Casey. Unfortunately, where this one really fell short for me was in the character of Roxana herself. Right from the start, she really grated on my nerves, and I had a hard time understanding what Graham thought was so special about her in the first place. She comes across as selfish, and entitled, and I much preferred the chapters where Graham is experiencing the con without her by his side. The reader isn't given much to determine why exactly Graham is so convinced he's in love with Roxana in the first place, and honestly I thought he had better chemistry with another girl he meets at the con than he did with the girl he's known half his life. The whole relationship angle just seemed flat and undesirable, and it definitely hindered my enjoyment of the overall story.
This would have honestly ended up being a two star read for me, if not for the ending. Contrary to a lot of other reader's opinion, I actually adored the ending. It left me feeling satisfied, and I felt it was a lot more realistic than if the author had chosen to go a different route. The ending is the main reason I bumped this one up to a three star rating.
I can't say I'll be personally recommending this one, as I felt the execution didn't match the expectations I had for it, and I found it to be slightly dull and boring throughout most of the middle of the book. However, it was fun to read a story based around New York Comic Con, and to see a book celebrating nerd culture the way this one so effortlessly does.
Thanks so much for reading guys! Have a great rest of your day :)
This is not a sponsored post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. The photo does not belong to me, and all rights to the respective owners.
Ever since my hubby and I got back from Saskatchewan Entertainment Expo a couple of weeks ago, I've been craving more of the con experience.
One way I thought I could give myself more of that experience is by reading books that are centered around comic cons of some sort.
I've already read a few; some of which were great and some of which were not, but the one I'm going to be reviewing for you all today is probably the one that I was most looking forward to reading.
The Geek's Guide To Unrequited Love by Sarvenaz Tash:
Source: Library
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Publication Date: June 14th, 2016
Genre: Young Adult Fiction/Contemporary
Synopsis:
Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy. Archie and Veronica. Althena and Noth.…Graham and Roxy?
Graham met his best friend, Roxy, when he moved into her neighborhood eight years ago and she asked him which Hogwarts house he’d be sorted into. Graham has been in love with her ever since.
But now they’re sixteen, still neighbors, still best friends. And Graham and Roxy share more than ever—moving on from their Harry Potter obsession to a serious love of comic books.
When Graham learns that the creator of their favorite comic, The Chronicles of Althena, is making a rare appearance at this year’s New York Comic Con, he knows he must score tickets. And the event inspires Graham to come up with the perfect plan to tell Roxy how he really feels about her. He’s got three days to woo his best friend at the coolest, kookiest con full of superheroes and supervillains. But no one at a comic book convention is who they appear to be…even Roxy. And Graham is starting to realize fictional love stories are way less complicated than real-life ones.
(synopsis from goodreads)
My Review:
I honestly thought that The Geek's Guide To Unrequited Love was going to be a surefire win for me. After all a book about fandoms, comic cons, and being proud of your nerdiness with tons of pop culture references thrown in should be something I'd really enjoy. However, I felt like this one really missed its mark for me, and while I did enjoy the story for the most part, it wasn't the amazing contemporary novel I was expecting, and isn't one that I'll be listing as a new favorite.
The premise of it being about a sixteen year old guy named Graham who's in love with his best friend, and the elaborate lengths he goes to let her know his feelings at New York Comic Con sounded adorable, and swoon worthy. The reader can definitely tell that the author is very familiar with the con experience, as this whole ideal vividly comes alive on the page from chapter to chapter. However, the story starts to drag for a lot of the con experience, and it felt like the same things kept happening over and over again without much plot development around them.
I loved that this book includes a pretty electric cast of characters, and I really enjoyed Graham, Samira, Felicia, Amelia and Casey. Unfortunately, where this one really fell short for me was in the character of Roxana herself. Right from the start, she really grated on my nerves, and I had a hard time understanding what Graham thought was so special about her in the first place. She comes across as selfish, and entitled, and I much preferred the chapters where Graham is experiencing the con without her by his side. The reader isn't given much to determine why exactly Graham is so convinced he's in love with Roxana in the first place, and honestly I thought he had better chemistry with another girl he meets at the con than he did with the girl he's known half his life. The whole relationship angle just seemed flat and undesirable, and it definitely hindered my enjoyment of the overall story.
This would have honestly ended up being a two star read for me, if not for the ending. Contrary to a lot of other reader's opinion, I actually adored the ending. It left me feeling satisfied, and I felt it was a lot more realistic than if the author had chosen to go a different route. The ending is the main reason I bumped this one up to a three star rating.
I can't say I'll be personally recommending this one, as I felt the execution didn't match the expectations I had for it, and I found it to be slightly dull and boring throughout most of the middle of the book. However, it was fun to read a story based around New York Comic Con, and to see a book celebrating nerd culture the way this one so effortlessly does.
Thanks so much for reading guys! Have a great rest of your day :)
This is not a sponsored post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. The photo does not belong to me, and all rights to the respective owners.
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