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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
Thank you to Netgalley for providing an eARC of this novel in 2020 in exchange for an honest review. My deepest apologies for my review being so egregiously late.
This was my second time reading a novel by Ashley Poston (my first being Geekerella), and honestly my biggest takeaway is just how fun these characters and stories are. Typically I don’t enjoy contemporary storylines. I like to be up to my neck in fantasy worlds, unrealistic plots, and wildly unrelatable character experiences. However the best way to describe this story, and its characters, is relatable.
Fan culture plays a huge role in this series. If you’ve ever participated in a fandom yourself you’ll feel right at home among the AO3 references, fan art plastered all over bedroom walls, and squealing in public over the release of a brand new trailer. So often women (and fans) are criticized for what they love, and how they express their extreme admiration for something, but Poston’s books allow the reader to fully embrace fan culture without guilt or shame.
In this retelling of Beauty and the Beast we meet two characters who should automatically be inexplicably drawn to one another. However they respond to each other like feral street cats defending their turf. Instead of a meet cute our MCs are in this for the long game, and we get to watch as they fall for each other at different times throughout the story. Always orbiting one another, but never quite connecting in time. My only true complaint of this novel is that by the time both characters realize what they mean to one another the story ends, and we are left to speculate or imagine what might have happened next as they tackle life as a couple.
This story also deals with the grief over the death of a parent, and our FMC is learning how to navigate the world without her mother. Relationships play a huge role in supporting our characters through some major life changes, with each main character having a solid core group of people who remain unwavering by their sides through it all. We also get a glimpse at how important the father figure role is in each of their lives, whether that figure is the biological father or simply the man in charge of caring for them at this point in time.
This is such a cute story full of homecoming drama, a guy who cannot wrap his mind around consent (definitely not cute), and a castle housing a dusty (yet dreamy) library. I cruised through this sweet story, and found myself cheering for both our characters’ inevitable happily ever after. Fans in fandoms all across the globe will more than likely be able to relate to, and wish they could dive into this enemies-to-friends-to-more young adult romance.
This was my second time reading a novel by Ashley Poston (my first being Geekerella), and honestly my biggest takeaway is just how fun these characters and stories are. Typically I don’t enjoy contemporary storylines. I like to be up to my neck in fantasy worlds, unrealistic plots, and wildly unrelatable character experiences. However the best way to describe this story, and its characters, is relatable.
Fan culture plays a huge role in this series. If you’ve ever participated in a fandom yourself you’ll feel right at home among the AO3 references, fan art plastered all over bedroom walls, and squealing in public over the release of a brand new trailer. So often women (and fans) are criticized for what they love, and how they express their extreme admiration for something, but Poston’s books allow the reader to fully embrace fan culture without guilt or shame.
In this retelling of Beauty and the Beast we meet two characters who should automatically be inexplicably drawn to one another. However they respond to each other like feral street cats defending their turf. Instead of a meet cute our MCs are in this for the long game, and we get to watch as they fall for each other at different times throughout the story. Always orbiting one another, but never quite connecting in time. My only true complaint of this novel is that by the time both characters realize what they mean to one another the story ends, and we are left to speculate or imagine what might have happened next as they tackle life as a couple.
This story also deals with the grief over the death of a parent, and our FMC is learning how to navigate the world without her mother. Relationships play a huge role in supporting our characters through some major life changes, with each main character having a solid core group of people who remain unwavering by their sides through it all. We also get a glimpse at how important the father figure role is in each of their lives, whether that figure is the biological father or simply the man in charge of caring for them at this point in time.
This is such a cute story full of homecoming drama, a guy who cannot wrap his mind around consent (definitely not cute), and a castle housing a dusty (yet dreamy) library. I cruised through this sweet story, and found myself cheering for both our characters’ inevitable happily ever after. Fans in fandoms all across the globe will more than likely be able to relate to, and wish they could dive into this enemies-to-friends-to-more young adult romance.
Okay, so the synopsis for this book intrigued me, which is the main reason why I read it. My expectations were that this would be a lighthearted retelling of beauty and the beast, with a more modern twist. To a point I can say that this was accurate...however as some have said, there are too many pop culture references and for me this broke the flow of the narrative. The main characters were not that bad...but they did sometimes feel kind of boring and one dimensional. Quite frankly, I initially wanted to read this because it felt like one of those "easy" books, like a well-known story that I could just listen to and enjoy. For the most part things progressed as I expected and the story was okay, but the ending felt super rushed....and quite honestly, I probably would have enjoyed it more if things had ended differently. Not to mention the fact that after the first three quarters of the story, I quickly began to dislike both Rosie and Vance. I guess maybe this book is just not for me.
informative
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Grief, Death of parent
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It was cute. Kind of cliche but almost in a good way. I definitely am not the target demographic for a YA romance anymore though.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent
I could see it being a predictable love story movie or short. I didn’t like it until about 1/2 of the way through, but then I didn’t want to stop. It was a cute story but it feels like it’s been done over and over. I knew what was coming next.
This was a cute read. My favorite part were all the little Beauty and the Beast references/quotes and the reference to Fangirl made me laugh! This is the third book in a series. However, I did not read the first two and it works 100% fine as a standalone.
One of Rosie’s best friends is nonbinary.
Her dad is bisexual.
Vance is bisexual.
One of Rosie’s best friends is nonbinary.
Her dad is bisexual.
Vance is bisexual.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual content, Death of parent
Rosie’s mom passes a year prior to the start of the book.
There is no “spice” in this book but the teen girl characters discuss reading/writing smut online. At one point I think the dad gave one of the girls a book with smut in as well.
Be still my nerd heart! This may have been my first foray into Poston’s Once Upon a Con series but I can tell you right now that it will not be my last.
Rosie Thorne is still reeling from the death of her mother a year ago. Made to move out of her house and sell her mothers beloved Starfield collection to pay for the funeral, she’s stuck working a job she hates to make sure she can pay for college. The only brightness in her life is her father, her two best friends Quinn and Annie and the memory of her night spent with the General Sond cosplayer. Then one night she nearly runs over a dog, follows it into a house she thought was abandoned and accidentally takes a dive into a pool with a priceless copy of the first Starfield novel she ends up having to work at the house, putting the library in order to pay for the damage. But the house is currently housing THE General Sond, Vance Reign while he hides out from the paparazzi after his last stunt, and while her friends are ecstatic, Rosie knows otherwise, Vance is a beast and working in the library with him is not going to be the romantic story they think it will be, at least not until Rosie realises something that may change her perspective of Vance forever.
If you know me then you know this is not the type of book I normally read, however Beauty and the Beast is one of my all time favourite Disney films, and I had read some really good reviews for this series so I decided to give it a try. I am SO glad I did, Bookish and the Beast is a fun, easy and charming read, with a brilliantly written enemies to lovers romance, full on nerd MC’s and lots and lots of Easter eggs that any Disney lover and nerd will appreciate.
The characters really make this book, Rosie and Vance are our MC’s and I loved their interactions. At first Rosie thinks hes stuck up and just another spoilt rich kid and Vance thinks Rosie is only after one thing… a story to tell to TMZ. But being stuck with each other makes them realise that first impressions can often be misleading and they may actually have more in common than they think. Quinn and Annie, Rosies BF’s whose reactions were basically mine throughout the book. Space Dad (quite possibly my favourite side character), Elias, Vance’s guardian and Garrett, our Gaston, and honestly someone I could quite easily punch.
Poston throws back to the Beauty and the Beast story we all know and love, while giving us a ‘small town girl meets famous boy’ story that I absolutely adored. One thing I loved about this is she doesn’t try to tone down on the tropes from enemies to lovers, oops we got caught in the rain, one hell of a homecoming and reading too each other *swoon*. Plus pop culture filled Easter eggs throughout the book she unabashedly throws in everywhere including Sansa the German Shephard.
If you’re looking for an easy and fun filled read then I can highly recommend this and I will be searching out the other books in the series!
Rosie Thorne is still reeling from the death of her mother a year ago. Made to move out of her house and sell her mothers beloved Starfield collection to pay for the funeral, she’s stuck working a job she hates to make sure she can pay for college. The only brightness in her life is her father, her two best friends Quinn and Annie and the memory of her night spent with the General Sond cosplayer. Then one night she nearly runs over a dog, follows it into a house she thought was abandoned and accidentally takes a dive into a pool with a priceless copy of the first Starfield novel she ends up having to work at the house, putting the library in order to pay for the damage. But the house is currently housing THE General Sond, Vance Reign while he hides out from the paparazzi after his last stunt, and while her friends are ecstatic, Rosie knows otherwise, Vance is a beast and working in the library with him is not going to be the romantic story they think it will be, at least not until Rosie realises something that may change her perspective of Vance forever.
If you know me then you know this is not the type of book I normally read, however Beauty and the Beast is one of my all time favourite Disney films, and I had read some really good reviews for this series so I decided to give it a try. I am SO glad I did, Bookish and the Beast is a fun, easy and charming read, with a brilliantly written enemies to lovers romance, full on nerd MC’s and lots and lots of Easter eggs that any Disney lover and nerd will appreciate.
The characters really make this book, Rosie and Vance are our MC’s and I loved their interactions. At first Rosie thinks hes stuck up and just another spoilt rich kid and Vance thinks Rosie is only after one thing… a story to tell to TMZ. But being stuck with each other makes them realise that first impressions can often be misleading and they may actually have more in common than they think. Quinn and Annie, Rosies BF’s whose reactions were basically mine throughout the book. Space Dad (quite possibly my favourite side character), Elias, Vance’s guardian and Garrett, our Gaston, and honestly someone I could quite easily punch.
Poston throws back to the Beauty and the Beast story we all know and love, while giving us a ‘small town girl meets famous boy’ story that I absolutely adored. One thing I loved about this is she doesn’t try to tone down on the tropes from enemies to lovers, oops we got caught in the rain, one hell of a homecoming and reading too each other *swoon*. Plus pop culture filled Easter eggs throughout the book she unabashedly throws in everywhere including Sansa the German Shephard.
If you’re looking for an easy and fun filled read then I can highly recommend this and I will be searching out the other books in the series!
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes