Stone, Danika Internet Famous, 336 pages. Swoon Reads (Macmillan), 2017. $11. Language: R (89 swears, 0 ‘f’), Mature Content: G; Violence: G.

Madison’s blog has really taken off. Her #rewatch #funemployment has been doing double duty as her final project for her online Language Arts final project and connected her with a wide fan base all over the world. Online school has been god-sent, allowing Madi to help her parents navigate the peculiarities of her younger, autistic sister. Madi’s life starts to implode, however under a confluence of events: her mother leaves for a teaching stint at Oxford without letting Sarah know until the night before; a new assistant principal has decided that Madi’s blog, because she earns money from followers clicking on links, violates the rules of her class contract and is not admissible for credit; she starts messaging a new MadLibs follower, Laurnet, and agrees to come to New York City for a live MadLibs rewatch – kind of falling for Laurent and exposing her to MadLibs followers in person for the first time ever; an internet troll starts flaming and trollingcontroversy on her site, including trying to hijack the blog.

Had Stone eliminated the whole love-interest part of the story, I would much more enthusiastically endorsed this. I see how it kind of helped with a part of the plot, and romance is a big seller for some types of readers, but it was one more issue in a book brimming with plot points. At times I was rolling my eyes at Madi’s egocentric behavior – enough that I almost wanted the troll to take her down. But, Stone does a pretty good job of showing the “look at me” attitudes of people who are internet famous.

HS – OPTIONAL. Cindy, Library Teacher

Girl + lap top + blog = "Internet Famous."

Madi is a senior in high school, a daughter, a sister and most importantly, a blogger- a very popular blogger. She is what she likes to call "#funemployed" updating her blog (Madlibs) with reviews and live streams with her followers old cult classics and whichever films her followers vote on.

She relies on her real life and internet life staying separate, in part due to her father's job, a popular lifestyle columnist. When a new follower invites her to a "madlib meet up" she learns she has hundreds of followers just in nearby New York City who actually meet up and watch movies she has discussed together. She decides to go and meet some of those followers.

Enter Laurent, whom as you may have guessed is the love interest in this fluffy contemporary. As the book progresses we follow along as Madi attempts to navigate balancing her growing admiration for this new French man, problems at home, finishing her senior year, her blog, and of course -as anyone who has ever posted online may guess- trolls.

Over all this is an easy beach read, that most fans of the contemporary genre will enjoy.

3.5 Stars

I received this book from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is such a cute book. The characters were quirky and witty, my favorite combination. I thought she handled some pretty tough topics in a great way - especially for YA. Even just the idea of fame, which teens often equate with happiness and success, was shown in such a way that readers understand that it isn't the perfect carefree life that it is often thought to be. Bravo. Can't wait for the next book by Danika Stone!

This one wasn't gripping for me. Dialogue felt stifled and plot seemed cliche. Bailed.

This was very contemporary young adult, and I realized that even though I was really excited about the premise for Internet Famous, it was a little too juvenile for me. Madi, the main character, seemed far younger to me than a high school student preparing to graduate, and I had a lot of trouble with her inner dialogue for most of the story.

A few quibbles...

• Her parents were a rough spot for me. I definitely believed how strict they were, but somewhere around the middle of Internet Famous, her dad did a complete about face. He was still worried about his image, yes, but he was far more on Madi's side than he had been. I'm glad, because he should be on his daughter's side, but he wasn't there to begin with. It was tough to believe he would transition so quickly.

• I also had a tough time understanding how both of her parents were SO okay with her deciding to forgo college, at least for the first year, to blog instead. My parents would've shredded me into 20 pieces, even if I was bringing in a ton of money!

• The way Madi and her parents talked about Sarah really grinded my gears, too. Madi mentioned once that Sarah was on the spectrum, but I hated that Madi and her parents both treated Sarah like a problem to deal with the entire book and never really came to terms with that.

• Laurent was too perfect. Not interested.

Some things I really enjoyed

• I did love the little "Snapsed" dates that went on between Madi and Laurent, and I loved how texts, blog posts and Snap pictures were shared in line in the ebook. I imagine those will take up a lot of space in a print book, so it would be almost like a picture book, but it really worked on the Kindle.

Madison Nakama is Tumblr famous, with a pop culture blog that has thousands of readers. In real life, however, she is focused on school, and caring for her special needs sister, who is becoming more difficult as their mother abandons the family to do some work abroad.

When one of her blog fans, a French exchange student named Laurent, invites her to a screening and live blog, Madi accepts. She soon finds herself falling for Laurent and wanting to have more of a life, beyond her screen and away from the commitments of caring for her sister. A troll soon starts targeting Madi, however, and she soon finds it all to much to handle, and puts a lot of her relationships (with Laurent, her father, her sister) in peril. Madi will have to come clean and figure out what it is that she really wants.

A wonderful realistic read. I found myself rooting for Madi so much.

Full review available on my blog and Goodreads (linked below) and on Amazon.co.uk.

My thoughts

I LOVED this book. So fun, so cute, so fluffy, but it also deals with some serious topics like a parent leaving, and cyberbullying. All the characters were great and pretty well-developed for such a quick book. The plotline was great and the pacing felt right for the story. The fact that online friendships was such a central aspect of the story was so nice! Online friendships aren’t taken very seriously by people who don’t have them, so I loved that there were strong relationships depicted that formed online. I loved how fandom life was portrayed too, because it does get a bad reputation from some people who like to ruin it for everyone else. This was exactly what I wanted from books like Fangirl.

Pros

Madi is such a relatable character. She’s very awkward around other people, but she’s also fun to be with once she feels comfortable. She works hard on her blog and on her schoolwork, and manages to balance everything with her personal life. She’s great to her family most of the time, and their relationships felt real and natural. I especially loved her dynamics with Sarah, Madi’s sister, who is autistic, and how they took care of each other.

I loved the style of this book – it’s fun and easy to read, and it includes snippets from Madi’s blog posts, tweets, emails, texts, memes, Tumblr posts, Snapchats (or “Snapsed”, as it’s called in the book), you name it. I also appreciated the glossary at the front of the book containing all the internet terms and abbreviations – I knew most of them, but there were a few I wasn’t sure of. It made me feel old. I also loved the inclusion of ’80s movies – it made me want to have a movie marathon of my own.

The romance. It was gooooood. It was very fast-paced but it was just so damn cute that I didn’t even care. That ending!

The cyberbullying was so well written and I was really rooting for Madi the whole time. The ending wasn’t predictable, which I’m always wary about with books like this, and it wraps up nicely but not too blandly.

Cons

This book reads a little bit young for the ages of the characters (Madi is 18), but I was fine with it because I was looking for something quick and fun.

This isn’t necessarily a con, but because I don’t have the experience to determine how good the autism rep is, I thought I would mention it here. As far as I can recall, the word “autistic” is never used for Sarah, but Madi does state that she’s “on the spectrum”. I would recommend checking out reviews from autistic readers to decide if the rep is actually good.

Final thoughts

Rating: 4 stars

Recommended for: This is a really fun, fluffy read that I really recommend if you’re in need of a pick-me-up, or if you want a book to read over the summer.

This one here is such a relevant piece that I’m sure everyone on the Internet and social media can relate to even if you are not a blogger. Especially those times where you have to deal with keyboard warriors. I can totally relate to Madi in a lot of ways. The joy of having a community where you feel safe to share your ideas and opinions, the pressure of blogging and connecting with people whether it be online or in real, dealing with an internet troll which will affect your morale, and the uncertainty of having met someone special that started online. They all felt so familiar.

Madi is a pretty good blogger and she is handling her fame on the online world coolly. She is smart and she represents most people on the internet who’s into blogging as well as those who are part of fandoms. That would be one reason to like her, of course. I also admire her relationship with her sister and how she stepped up when her parents can’t be bothered with Sarah’s needs. She has her flaws, and that makes her more relatable. I get how she’s more comfortable talking to people online than in real life. But it irked me how she reacted to people who disagrees with her.Her constant dramatics can be quite tiresome. I like the format of the storytelling. Aside from Madi’s narrative, it also uses blog posts from Madi’s blog, Tumblr posts, series of text messages, and photos, that make the story more realistic. I am not surprised upon learning who the troll is since I have a pretty good guess about it early on.

I don’t buy the romance between Madi and Laurent. Things just happened too fast. I am a bit dismayed that Sarah didn’t play much of a big role to the story than what I expected and it showed a different side of her too little, too late.

Overall, I’d say it’s a cute story with a solid plot. An over-reacting main character Madi might be but relatable in some ways. People who’re into cute YA contemporary romance will definitely appreciate Internet Famous.

Once again, I’m left with very mixed feelings on this book that I have read. On one hand, I enjoyed it. I loved the idea of this being about a blogger, the online world, and a nice romance with it too. It did mention family issues, and mental health illnesses as well. And while I did enjoy all the themes and the way I flew through this book, I still felt like it was missing some depth that I was searching for.

I have to say, I wanted to read this book because I was so happy about finally having a positive light portrayed on the online world. Madi is a blogger – just like a lot of us book bloggers – except she rewatches movies and blogs about her opinion of them. Her blog is also pretty famous, which is something a lot (but not every blogger) dreams about. I loved when we got to see her blog comments come through, and her posts. Madi was so connected to the online world, and I just loved that positive light being given about the online community.

Of course, being a member of the online community means you will come across trolls and mean people who have nothing better to do with their time than just… be a nuisance. This novel stems into that, and the topic of cyberbullying. Even though the novel does a very good job of dealing with that plot line and theme, I still felt like more could have happened. We do get to see how it affects Madi and how it ruins what her blog is for her – but I still expected the ending to be a little more… dramatic?

I also really liked how we got to have the romance stemming from something that started online. I know a lot of people find this to be a bit controversial and a bit of a wary topic to discuss. But we have to face the reality of it: more and more couples and friendships begin online and that is perfectly alright. You need to be aware of the possible outcomes though, especially the bad ones, and take as many consequences against them as possible. I also really liked Laurent as a love interest, and his French accent and ways kind of made me think of Annaand the French Kiss. But, y’know, lacking a lot of the things that some people can’t stand in that novel.

Danika Stone’s writing style was easy to jump right into. She rights in the easygoing voice which represents a teenager perfectly, and there was no doubt that I felt Madi’s personality flooding me as I read through the book. In fact, I think I sat down and read for about four hours until I was done. It was simply such a breeze to read!

However, there were some aspects of the book I wanted a bit more on. There is a bit of a mention about this being a dysfunctional family. Sarah, Madi’s younger sister, has a mental illness and we see that she needs to stick to rigid schedules and have stability to be able to cope. With their mother leaving to study and research in Oxford, it turns things upside down for Sarah. Madi also has to help out a lot with her younger sister and helping her keep to that schedule. I could relate to her on that side of things because I usually help my younger sister, who has a physical disability a lot around the house. I really identified with Madi’s love she had for her sister, but then frustration as sometimes she didn’t want to help, and she wanted to think about herself for a moment and what she needed. It’s not being selfish… it’s more so frustration. It doesn’t mean she loves Sarah any less.

And while the novel did deal with that and discuss it a bit, I felt myself wanting it to be more fleshed out. I felt like the dynamics between the two sisters should’ve been more central to the novel, especially as it became relevant for the conclusion of the novel. I liked that the mental illness wasn’t the center of the whole book. Although included, it doesn’t always have to be. This isn’t Sarah’s story. On the other hand, I think it needed just a bit more focus than it received.

Also, it may be because I’m in the throes of reading new adult novel after new adult novel back to back (it’s Santino Hassell’s fault), I found the story to be a little bit juvenile at times? At least when it came to some issues with the romance. Side note: That could be because of my reading preference at the moment, and not an actual reflection on the novel itself. In that case, I would recommend you head over to Goodreads to check out more reviews and here what others have tosay.

It was great to read this first novel by Danika Stone, and I would be curious to read more of her books in the future and see how I like them.

This review and others can be found on Olivia's Catastrophe.

I thoroughly enjoyed this trip through the land of blogs, fandom, friendship and trolls. Interesting, well developed characters against a timely backdrop of online bullying and being able to recognize what is real and what isn't. I especially loved the 80s movie references!

Maybe it's me, but I'm pretty sure I've read this before. That's not to say that the teens reading it will have, just that the plot repeats what's been done before. For those that haven't, it's a decent read about what happens when your online life intrudes into your real life, and how people (some people, not all!) can take power and pride in being mean. The bigger problem is that in this case, it all turns out ok. How many teens being trolled will have such a resolution?

Internet Famous is the story of Madi, a blogger, and her romance with Laurent, who is an ardent follower of her blog. Yes, dream story right there, ladies and gentlemen! I mean, all of us here who blog can relate to so many things in this story. The pressure of posting, the need for good content and the trolls. All of it. Which is what I loved about this. I identified with a lot of stuff that was happening in Madi's life. But, I'm nowhere near as famous as she is (she is Internet Famous, after all. She has like, 60000 followers and innumerable hits on all her posts.)

I like how Madi, despite her internet fame, is a shy, reserved girl who doesn't boast of her follower count to anyone who will listen. With huge following she has and all the fan merch she sells, it would be easy to slip and become condescending, but she isn't like that. In fact, she is so baffled that people follow her blog. I really like that about her. And I love how she takes care of her sister, Sarah. Sarah plays a huge role in the book. She has special needs and gets thrown off when her schedule changes even by a minute. Her life is meticulously planned and Madi is a huge part of this meticulous life. So, she's always there for her sister and I adore how much effort she puts into her relationship with Sarah.

And, then, there's Laurent! He's such an adorkable little cinnamon roll. I adore him so much. He's always there when Madi needs him. He's a great boyfriend and an even better friend. He's supportive and a shoulder to cry on, an ear to listen, whenever Madi has issues. He's just... He's amazing. I adore him. I love how he goes out of his way to make sure that Madi is okay and how he's always reassuring her with all the drama going on in her life. He just makes it so easy to love him. 

I love how family centric this is. Sarah is always mention atleast once every two pages and her parents are always there in the background. She has a conversation with her father every so often and he takes an active interest in the life of both his daughters. I don't particularly like Madi's mom. She assumes too much and comes off as really selfish in majority of the book. It feels as though she believes that Sarah is a responsibility and not a kid. I felt that she just pawned off all her responsibility on Madi and her husband so that she could go follow her dreams. Yes, following your dreams is important, but she had responsibilities and it felt as though she just shunned them. She always runs away from conflict, so it feels as though she can't stand up for anyone.

All in all, Internet Famous is an enjoyable read and I definitely recommend it to others!

Danika Stone has created a fandom filled world with all the best elements. This doesn't mean she's ignored the parts of the internet that cause us grief or disappointment. Maxi is well rounded with real world issues outside of her virtual 'life'. It's these issues that drive her just as much as her love of fandom culture. We first meet Madi dealing with the parts of her life she can't control, her mother leaving to work in Oxford for 6 weeks. This eventually leads her to agreeing to meet some of her fans IRL. Madi shows that despite being sacred she has something to contribute in the real world. This opportunity also allows her the chance to make an online friendship work. Stone's ability to make Madi a real girl and give her a happy ending was a joy to read.

4/5 Stars

Last year I discovered the wonderful talent that is Danika Stone through the Sunday Street Team and I couldn't pass up the chance to read and review her newest release, Internet Famous. Madi is a big time blogger but has to keep her real life separate. When both crash together, things begin to unravel and a troll lurking in the shadows comes out of hiding. 

Madi is an absolutely endearing character. She's witty, smart, and totally passionate. She takes on so much and has a hard time connecting IRL. Laurent, my utterly charming French boy who's good with a camera, stole so many scenes. And the two of them together was such a joy to read. I also really liked Madi's sister, Sarah, and the familial bond between them.

The online community can be a magical place. Connecting with people who are passionate about the same things, sharing this joy far and wide, and making lasting impressions on those you've never met. All this can be seen first hand through Madi's eyes. Unfortunately with the good comes the bad and online harassment has gotten worse and worse. Stone shows the extremes from persistent attacks to actual doxxing. 

I did have a few issues with this story, mostly in regards to the family aspects. First of all, what mother screws up the schedule of her autistic child, for her own selfish goals. Not to mention leaving most of her care to her other underage daughter. Plus the father was completely non existent when it came to parenting. Madi had to handle everything on her own and that really grated on me.

Overall Internet Famous by Danika Stone was an adorable and clever story that highlighted both the good and the bad of the online community. Madi and Laurent were ridiculously sweet and I totally connected with the two of them. Plenty of swoons were had but I did have a few minor issues along the way. If you're looking for a cute romance with a dose of reality, this one is definitely for you.

Internet Famous manages to tackle issues of online vs real life and you vs your parent expectations. It has a good story and writing and amazing siblings relationship. Despite that, the second half felt lacklustre and aim for different mark than the first half. But overall, it’s fun to read and a good reading experience!

**Live on 6/15**

That was such a fun light read, which was apparently what I needed and I didn’t even know it. I enjoyed reading about another blogger, even if she was like the super blogger of the universe. Blogger goals, I guess. Anyway, MadLibs looked like a fun place to hang out and that half of the story was the true highlight of Internet Famous.

I really loved reading about MadLibs. I thought the effort she put into it and how friendly she was with her followers was awesome. It was inspiring. I also thought the story of the troll was a great antagonism for Madi and her online world. I loved the turn into cyber bullying and cruel online behavior. I thought Madi’s reaction, her panic, was true to how an attack like that would feel. When it came to Madi’s bully, I never once faulted her reactions, and I didn’t think anyone should have.

Unfortunately I did have some problems with the story. First, there was a lot of emphasis on Madi’s family being conservative which was fine. I just didn’t think their political views added to the story. Other than explaining why Madi was private, it didn’t really affect anything else. It was overkill. I also thought the relationship Madi had with her sister Sarah wasn’t as detailed and enhanced as it should have been. There was more there, more about why taking care of Sarah was so trying. I would have loved more to them and less of the romance between Madi and Laurent.

And finally, I thought Laurent himself (and their relationship) was far too perfect. It was so over the top charming that I kept waiting for the shoe to drop. Something about perfect Laurent felt creepy, and I couldn’t quite put my finger on why. It reminded me a bit of Hans from Frozen. I don’t think the romance was up to par.

Would I recommend this read? Yeah, I would. I don’t think everyone will have the same problems I had, and in the end I did enjoy the story. It was sweet, light and fluffy, and a great escape from my everyday existence.

Last year, I read and absolutely loved All The Feels by Danika Stone so it’s pretty reasonable to expect that I was super, insanely excited to read Internet Famous. It’s similar to All The Feels in some way, but this time around it’s focused on what it is to be famous on the Internet. Madi writes a blog, MadLibs, and she has tons of followers on Tumblr and social media and she has to deal with that. I have no idea what it’s like to be famous, Internet or otherwise, which is why I was so intrigued to read Madi’s story, especially when it came to the whole troll thing (which, by the way, is disgusting and if you’re the type of person who is happy to sit behind a computer slagging someone else off, then you need to get a new hobby that will actually add something to your life).

I didn’t love Internet Famous as much as I loved All The Feels, in fact my love for All The Feels is so intense not many books can live up to it, but I certainly enjoyed Internet Famous. I would probably have liked to see how Madi built her following as that isn’t really ever touched on in books like this, they’re just magically famous as if it happens overnight, whereas I’m interested in what it takes to BUILD and keep a fan-base. Because it’s hard work. It’s easy to look at Zoella and see millions upon millions of followers, but it must take a heck of a lot of work. I thought Madi handled it all so well, and I especially liked Madi’s relationship with her sister, Sarah. Sarah is on the autism spectrum and she likes her routines and Madi does a lot to help her, too much I personally think, because it kinda seemed like Madi’s parents were checked out, and in Madi’s moms case that was literal.

Danika Stone really knows how to tap into that fandom aspect with her books. The Tumblr posts, the tweets and text messages, were all really incredible ways to tell the story, although I will say that it bugged the living daylights out of me that Madi would use silly acronyms when, in the day and age of auto-correcting smartphones, isn’t likely to be a real way of typing now. It’s such a stupid thing to get irrationally angry about but I never said I was rational! I loved the blossoming relationship between Madi and Laurent, despite the fact for the first bit of the book Madi thinks he’s a girl named Lauren! This was another quick, fast-paced read and proves that Danika Stone is here to stay and is firmly on my auto-buy list. I love her books.

Internet Famous is Danika Stone’s second book with the Swoon Reads line. I haven’t actually read her first novel with them, All the Feels, yet, but I still was excited to get a hold of a copy of Internet Famous!

Madi is Internet Famous thanks to her Madlibs blog, which has massive following. She loves the escape her online world provides from the problems in her real life, such as dealing with the fallout of her absent mother and helping out her sister. However, her blog has attracted a troll who just won’t leave her alone. At first his comments just seem to be cruel, but things get serious when he starts hacking her website, reporting her to her school for plagiarism, and doxing her.

One bright side to all of this drama is Laurent, who has been a calming force for Madi. Laurent is right there for Madi as she tries to get everything under control. An exchange student from France, Laurent is such a sweetheart. He is a geek just like Madi, and they really are perfect together.

Each chapter includes text message bubbles, tumblr posts, or snapchat photos. These were such a fun and fitting additions, and I loved whenever I would come across the next set of messages.

Overall, Internet Famous is a fun read while still tackling more serious subjects such as online bullying and doxing. I recommend this for younger teens looking for a cute contemporary read, especially if they love online fandoms.