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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
My thanks for the ARC goes to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca. I'm voluntarily leaving a review—all thoughts are my own.
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Side helping of Romance, Humor
Spice Level: Kissing (I'd call this a no-spice romance book.)
Language: Med-Hi. There's swearing but it's not on every page.
Representation: Gay couple and racial diversity within secondary characters
Theme: Equality, Misogyny
If someone tells me a book is funny, I better be smiling and laughing. And NOT BAD FOR A GIRL gave me the giggles and laughing aloud. In fact, I found a part so funny, I had to read a paragraph to my hubby—he thought it was humorous too. When a book tackles equality in the workplace, it's a sore subject and the best approach is through laughter. So, yes, there is that theme, but it's also about Indiana coming to know who she is, believing in herself, and making us laugh at her (and her friends') antics.
This is actually a light-hearted read and so fun. I would read it again for the giggles.
There is a side helping of romance, but I would say it's the B plot. Everything revolves around Indiana and her work, not her romance, or even her dad's romance. I thought this was great because even though romance is one of our most important relationships, it's not the only thing that makes life tick.
The geeky gamer references are hilarious. I didn't even watch 90210 and caught the humor there. But never fear, if TV isn't your thing, the author included games, books, WEIRD history facts, sports, and animals to geek out over. IF you're not a self-proclaimed geek like me, the references are broad enough for anyone to be inside the joke.
I highly recommend this book for a fun read and to consider doing some stereotype busting.
Happy (laughing) reading!
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Side helping of Romance, Humor
Spice Level: Kissing (I'd call this a no-spice romance book.)
Language: Med-Hi. There's swearing but it's not on every page.
Representation: Gay couple and racial diversity within secondary characters
Theme: Equality, Misogyny
If someone tells me a book is funny, I better be smiling and laughing. And NOT BAD FOR A GIRL gave me the giggles and laughing aloud. In fact, I found a part so funny, I had to read a paragraph to my hubby—he thought it was humorous too. When a book tackles equality in the workplace, it's a sore subject and the best approach is through laughter. So, yes, there is that theme, but it's also about Indiana coming to know who she is, believing in herself, and making us laugh at her (and her friends') antics.
This is actually a light-hearted read and so fun. I would read it again for the giggles.
There is a side helping of romance, but I would say it's the B plot. Everything revolves around Indiana and her work, not her romance, or even her dad's romance. I thought this was great because even though romance is one of our most important relationships, it's not the only thing that makes life tick.
The geeky gamer references are hilarious. I didn't even watch 90210 and caught the humor there. But never fear, if TV isn't your thing, the author included games, books, WEIRD history facts, sports, and animals to geek out over. IF you're not a self-proclaimed geek like me, the references are broad enough for anyone to be inside the joke.
I highly recommend this book for a fun read and to consider doing some stereotype busting.
Happy (laughing) reading!
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
As a female coder I find this a little preachy, a lot coincidental (for a forthright character twice secretly taking to an important person is 1.5 times too many) and garishly unbelievable. I did not find quoting male gaze essays in an IT product meeting very plausible.
The false Indiana stuff however is very funny and nearly carried it all the way through
The false Indiana stuff however is very funny and nearly carried it all the way through
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
ALC Review
Not Bad for a Girl by Anastasia Ryan narrated by Jesse Vilinsky
Thank you NetGalley & Dreamscape Media for the ALC.
Woman in STEM
4/5
Not Bad for a Girl follows Indiana Aaron as she navigates the male dominated field of coding and IT. She is outspoken and of course her bosses don’t like that. She speaks out in a meeting and is promptly reassigned to a remote team. Her new boss mistakes her for a man because of the name and the story takes off from there. The lie keeps growing to unbelievable heights and yet the boss is none the wiser. This was hilarious and I loved that her friends had her back. The relationships between friends was really special. The relationship with her Dad was amazing. The romantic element was pretty minimal, although I didn’t mind too much. The shenanigans that ensued were really great. I loved the resolution to the mix-up and the fun things that happened in Vegas. This touched on a lot of misogyny and male privilege and really highlighted what it means to be a woman in a male dominated field, but also any field really. Ana’s struggles are not unique unfortunately. Overall, a great read! Jesse Vilinsky was great as narrator!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
challenging
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
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
Not Bad For a Girl follows Indiana (Ana), who’s a coder and IT specialist who isn’t afraid to speak up for herself, say how she feels, and stands up for what she believes in. This causes some problems for her at work, and she’s suddenly transferred to a remote team - who sees her name is Indiana and her old, white, male privileged boss assumes she’s a he - and she doesn’t correct him. Because for once, she’s getting more stuff to do work wise and people aren’t questioning her work because she’s a woman. As the story continues, obviously the mistaken identity and gender tends to get out of hand, and more people are roped into the secret, but she struggles with how to reveal her true identity when it’s tied to her livelihood.
Truly, this book had me laughing, it was so refreshing, and even had a little hit of romance (because we all know I love me a romance book). Anastasia truly blew it away with this one!
Some of my unfiltered thoughts when reading this:
When writers use the term “dead-ass”, I fucking lose my shit and it’s literally the best thing ever.
All the LOTR & 90210 references give me life.
This bitch is obsessed with fish (like Stassie) which makes it even better.
For once in my life, I understand video game references. Tom Nook is most definitely the devil 😂
I received an audiobook copy of this for my honest review
This is a perfect story to continue the year of Barbie! It showcases systemic sexism in the workplace in a lighthearted but still serious way. Our FMC is outspoken, and because of that, when she questions the boss she is moved from her team to a remote team that has been struggling. When her new boss sends out something with an error, she can't help herself but to correct him, but is shocked with his reply. Instead of telling her off, he compliments the find and thanks HIM. It's bound to happen with a name like Indiana and having never been on screen. This sets into motion a chain of events with her coworkers trying to cover for her, while she proves her work is valuable, and keeps her boss believing that she is a man. There are hiccups and stories of grandeur along the way - but will she be able to share who she really is? Should she have to hide in order to keep her job?
This is a perfect story to continue the year of Barbie! It showcases systemic sexism in the workplace in a lighthearted but still serious way. Our FMC is outspoken, and because of that, when she questions the boss she is moved from her team to a remote team that has been struggling. When her new boss sends out something with an error, she can't help herself but to correct him, but is shocked with his reply. Instead of telling her off, he compliments the find and thanks HIM. It's bound to happen with a name like Indiana and having never been on screen. This sets into motion a chain of events with her coworkers trying to cover for her, while she proves her work is valuable, and keeps her boss believing that she is a man. There are hiccups and stories of grandeur along the way - but will she be able to share who she really is? Should she have to hide in order to keep her job?
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Gah, this book has so much misogyny. I have SO much empathy for Ana. The working environment in this novel would have me teetering on the edge…I would likely have made much MUCH worse choices.
Super cute women’s fiction, not strictly a romance. It felt like an early 2000’s romcom but the romance was off balanced by the hilarious work drama. As a result of the low romance it’s a no heat book with a single POV. The narration was great.
Whole book was really funny but the last few chapters had me cackling. I’ll 100% read more books by this author
* I listened to the audiobook and the narration was great
* I listened to the audiobook and the narration was great
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was interested in doing an ARC review on this book based on the cover and the blurb. I love office romances and, as an outspoken female with no filter, I thought this story would be one that was relatable. (Okay, I will admit, I am a huge Indiana Jones fan which may have had some sway).
Being honest, I almost put the book as a DNF after the first chapter because the opening was just so absurd. I decided to stick with it and was surprised it did turn into a fun read for me. Preposterous as it was, the story gave me a “Never Been Kissed” movie vibe with the zany cast of characters that try to help “Indiana” keep up the charade. I laughed out loud a few times, and I loved the relationship that Ana had with her Dad. I was also a fan of the pop culture references in the book.
On the negative side, while I understand what the author was trying to do by addressing a serious social issue in a witty and humorous way, it was a little over the top for me in places and Ana liked to get on her soap box a little too much. The rom-com element was pretty much non-existent with a few scenes tossed in here and there that really added nothing to the storyline.
I would recommend this if you like humor based on over-the-top stereotypes or absurd scenarios.
challenging
funny
inspiring
reflective
Indiana (Ana) Aaron is an outspoken feminist and coder working in the male-dominated industry that is the tech and IT world. One day, she changes teams and, thanks to the power of remote working, her boss mistakes her for a man. Things escalate, and she has to fight to keep up appearances to avoid getting fired.
This book was really fun to read (I found myself laughing out loud on occasion) and hit close to home for women like myself working in tech industry, with its commentary and take on how it feels to work in this field and face gender discrimination.
The romance aspect of the book was not super well developed and the story felt a little ridiculous at times, but I really enjoyed the banter, the writing, and the general message of the book.
The audiobook narration was lovely. Jesse Vilinsky did a great job in this single narration style audiobook, and portrayed Ana exactly how I imagined her.
Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an Advance Listener Copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
This book was really fun to read (I found myself laughing out loud on occasion) and hit close to home for women like myself working in tech industry, with its commentary and take on how it feels to work in this field and face gender discrimination.
The romance aspect of the book was not super well developed and the story felt a little ridiculous at times, but I really enjoyed the banter, the writing, and the general message of the book.
The audiobook narration was lovely. Jesse Vilinsky did a great job in this single narration style audiobook, and portrayed Ana exactly how I imagined her.
Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an Advance Listener Copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.