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3.65 AVERAGE
3.65 AVERAGE
I toyed with the 3.5 stars but I'm going with 4 stars just because of the John Hughes references.
Apparently I read this book back in September 2013, but I requested an ARC on NetGalley and reread it in November 2017 not realising until I came to write a review.
The blurb What happens when you’re the ugly stepsister and your obnoxiously perfect—read pretty, smart, and, worst of all, sickeningly nice—stepsister is dating the charming, tall, devastatingly handsome guy you’ve had a thing for since you were nine years old?
Quirky, artistic and snarky Mattie Lowe does not lead a charmed life. Her mother is constantly belittling her on Skype. Mercedes, the school mean girl, has made it her personal mission to torment Mattie. But worst of all? Her stepsister Ella is the most beautiful, popular girl in school and is dating Mattie’s secret longtime crush, Jake Kingston.
Tired of being left out and done with waiting for her own stupid fairy godmother to show up, Mattie decides to change her life. She’ll start by running for senior class president against wildly popular Jake.
Mattie is a tall, athletic-looking, one-quarter-Japanese girl. Her famous artist father has been married (and divorced) six times and she has one step-sister, the unbelievably perfect-in-every-way, Ella. Mattie rebels against her Japanese mother by rejecting her Asian heritage (she even eats sushi with a fork) although she secretly draws Manga.
NA/YA authors please take note this is how to do it well. With more than just intertextual references to John Hughes' body of work and The Princess Bride (inconceivable) this book had me from the word go. OK, the villain kids were a bit too evil to live but then sometimes kids are mean just because they can be!
I loved Mattie, and Ella, and their Dad, I even loved Mattie's evil Japanese mother.
Highly recommended.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
Bumped for release.
Apparently I read this book back in September 2013, but I requested an ARC on NetGalley and reread it in November 2017 not realising until I came to write a review.
The blurb What happens when you’re the ugly stepsister and your obnoxiously perfect—read pretty, smart, and, worst of all, sickeningly nice—stepsister is dating the charming, tall, devastatingly handsome guy you’ve had a thing for since you were nine years old?
Quirky, artistic and snarky Mattie Lowe does not lead a charmed life. Her mother is constantly belittling her on Skype. Mercedes, the school mean girl, has made it her personal mission to torment Mattie. But worst of all? Her stepsister Ella is the most beautiful, popular girl in school and is dating Mattie’s secret longtime crush, Jake Kingston.
Tired of being left out and done with waiting for her own stupid fairy godmother to show up, Mattie decides to change her life. She’ll start by running for senior class president against wildly popular Jake.
Mattie is a tall, athletic-looking, one-quarter-Japanese girl. Her famous artist father has been married (and divorced) six times and she has one step-sister, the unbelievably perfect-in-every-way, Ella. Mattie rebels against her Japanese mother by rejecting her Asian heritage (she even eats sushi with a fork) although she secretly draws Manga.
NA/YA authors please take note this is how to do it well. With more than just intertextual references to John Hughes' body of work and The Princess Bride (inconceivable) this book had me from the word go. OK, the villain kids were a bit too evil to live but then sometimes kids are mean just because they can be!
I loved Mattie, and Ella, and their Dad, I even loved Mattie's evil Japanese mother.
Highly recommended.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
Bumped for release.
Loved this one! It was a fun twist on the Cinderella story and I loved how the main character stayed true to her integrity. Her up-and-down emotions in dealing with her crush also felt pretty realistic.
A quick easy read that I came across thanks to bookbub.com. The characters are in high school so it's more of a teen read.
As a Cinderella retelling, viewed from the perspective of an ugly stepsister, this book had the potential to be all too predictable and sickly sweet. However, the delightfully cynical nature of Mattie, the eponymous ugly stepsister, stops this from being the case. Constantly belittled via Skype by her absent mother, Mattie has cast herself in the role of ugly stepsister and misfit, viewing the beautiful, outgoing Ella as the perfect fairy tale princess, complete with handsome prince in the form of Jake, Mattie’s crush since she was a child. But, as this book shows, what people see on the outside is not always what is true of the person on the inside, and princesses don’t always want to wear their crowns.
The inclusion of chapters showing the story from Jake’s point of view is a lovely touch, and adds a depth to a character who might otherwise appear unworthy of our heroine’s devotion.
With touches of John Hughes and The Princess Diaries, this book is a must read for fairy tale lovers of all ages.
The inclusion of chapters showing the story from Jake’s point of view is a lovely touch, and adds a depth to a character who might otherwise appear unworthy of our heroine’s devotion.
With touches of John Hughes and The Princess Diaries, this book is a must read for fairy tale lovers of all ages.
every lover of romance stories loves a good cinderella story right? i thought this was a really cute twist on the story that most teenage girls and young adult girls can relate to. i really liked both the main character mattie and her stepsister 'ella'...they were both really likeable characters with typical teenage struggles with which the reader can empathize. trent and jake were both great supporting characters. the writing was good and the banter between characters was entertaining.
i thought the story was a bit short and predictable but still worth the time to read. i would definitely read something else written by sariah and would love to see a sequel of this group in college.
i thought the story was a bit short and predictable but still worth the time to read. i would definitely read something else written by sariah and would love to see a sequel of this group in college.
This was such a fun and quick read. I wasn't expecting much as I got this ebook while it was free on Amazon. Boy am I glad my expectations were exceeded...and in a big way!
Although this is a retelling of the classic fairy tale, Cinderella, it doesn't seem cliche and formulaic. This is more from the perspective of the ugly stepsister (Mattie), but with a twist.
I love the writing style as it has an effortless feel to it. What also stood out for me were the wittiness and the humor throughout the book.
The characters were extremely well written and they have so much depth in them. It was really interesting reading these characters' development throughout the course of the book. I really love Ella and Mattie. I think in a way they are both misunderstood and they put on these outward personas that don't really portray who they really are. In particular with Mattie, we get to feel her insecurities and you can't help but sympathize why she is that way. At the same time, her inner strength shines through and she always stands up for what she believes in.
As to the romance, I thought the author did an excellent job incorporating elements of "Pride and Prejudice" and "Sixteen Candles". I also thought the relationship progressed just right. There were certainly bumps on the road, but it wasn't typical YA where you just want to throw the book against the wall out of frustration. Mattie and Jake were both loveable and intelligent characters that you can't help but root for them.
This book earns a definite recommendation from me.
Although this is a retelling of the classic fairy tale, Cinderella, it doesn't seem cliche and formulaic. This is more from the perspective of the ugly stepsister (Mattie), but with a twist.
I love the writing style as it has an effortless feel to it. What also stood out for me were the wittiness and the humor throughout the book.
The characters were extremely well written and they have so much depth in them. It was really interesting reading these characters' development throughout the course of the book. I really love Ella and Mattie. I think in a way they are both misunderstood and they put on these outward personas that don't really portray who they really are. In particular with Mattie, we get to feel her insecurities and you can't help but sympathize why she is that way. At the same time, her inner strength shines through and she always stands up for what she believes in.
As to the romance, I thought the author did an excellent job incorporating elements of "Pride and Prejudice" and "Sixteen Candles". I also thought the relationship progressed just right. There were certainly bumps on the road, but it wasn't typical YA where you just want to throw the book against the wall out of frustration. Mattie and Jake were both loveable and intelligent characters that you can't help but root for them.
This book earns a definite recommendation from me.
I bought this after reading a review on here. It could have been worse. It could have been better...but it could have been worse. I think the thing that messed my enjoyment was the fact that I kept picturing that Cinderella type movie that Hillary Duff played in eons ago. You know, back when she was still relevant...if she ever was.
The funny thing is, aside from being very very loosely based on Cinderella...this book did not resemble that stupid movie. It was actually somewhat smart...and sort of funny but yeah...damn that Hillary Duff.
I should probably try to charge her rent for taking up my headspace. Does a cool million sound like a good deal?
The funny thing is, aside from being very very loosely based on Cinderella...this book did not resemble that stupid movie. It was actually somewhat smart...and sort of funny but yeah...damn that Hillary Duff.
I should probably try to charge her rent for taking up my headspace. Does a cool million sound like a good deal?
This was a really great read, but very tame. It was the perfect book for the mood I was in as I really needed a break from all my complex YA paranormals. It was cute, fun, and left me feeling happy and content. It didn't have my blood boiling or get my addicted, so I have to say this book is great, just not amazing. I highly recommend this book if you are looking for a cute, light hearted contemp to read.
I stayed up way passed my bed time consuming this book last night! At first I thought this may be a corny spin on Cinderella, but was I wrong! I loved the add in/reference of one of my favorite 80s movies! I look forward to reading more by this author.