[ 4.5 🌟 ]

I read this book in a day, and I loved EVERY MOMENT OF IT!! From reading things like The Plague by Albert Camus and Beyond Good & Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche to a lighthearted and joyful story about friendship, family, fandoms, and nerdy conventions was exactly what I needed! Just another note: The Princess & the Fangirl is a companion novel to Geekerella, but you don't have to read Geekerella first to understand the story of The Princess & the Fangirl! Though, I do have to say, it's fun to see the cameos of some of the characters from Geekerella.

THOUGHTS

To write my reviews, especially if I'm reading on my kindle, I look back on what I've highlighted. For The Princess & the Fangirl, one of the first highlights was commentary on Hollywood through Jessica Stone's perspective. It really makes you re-evaluate at how you look at the idols of society. Sometimes it's difficult to remember that they are people, too.

On a similar thread, Poston also contemplates the good side and the bad side of social media. On one hand you can make some incredible connections that would not have been possible if it were not for social media (I can attest to this), but then, since people are anonymous behind their screens and their usernames, one has the potential to be cruel to others because that anonymity protects them. At the same time, Poston stresses how internet friends are valid and very much so real. One does have to be cautious about what they're putting out there but similar interests can lead to friendships that are not limited by time or distance. 

THE CHARACTERS. I love them all (to varying degrees, of course), and I need to protect them. Plus, it's amazing that Imogen's nickname is Monster; I love that! Ashley Poston writes such developed (and wholesome) characters, which was evident in Geekerella, and even more so in The Princess & the Fangirl! The book is a little over 300 pages (according to the e-ARC), but I have such a clear picture of each one of the characters, probably because Poston creates such diverse and unique cast. The characters are similar in their own ways, but, ultimately, they are all different with their own wants, desires, and insecurities, and that is refreshing to see. Plus, the hate-to-love trope showed up, and I'm definitely here for that.

It was so great to see Darien, Elle, Sage, and Calliope again!! When I first say Elle's name, I was like, ELLE!!! (Geekerella has such a special place in my heart that I was not even able to fully express my thoughts in a review).

What particularly struck me about Poston's writing was how relatable it is. I felt it in Geekerella, and The Princess & the Fangirl was no different. I highlighted so many things Imogen said about her insecurities. I had not even thought about this aspect of myself, but once she expressed how she sometimes felt like "nobody," I realized that I definitely have those kinds of thoughts and feelings as well. It took a book character and a brilliant author to make me face some of the insecurities I have about myself ( I tend to push my fears deep down and ignore them, which is not healthy, please don't do this).

Some other random(ish) thoughts: Ashley Poston mentions J-pop!! I'm more into k-pop but I have heard of J-pop!

Also, I can't write a review about The Princess & the Fangirl without mentioning the nerdiness!! The Once Upon a Con books always have a center message: Be proud of your nerdiness! (but I do now really have to watch Star Wars and Star Trek) 

I can't wait to see what else Ashley Poston has in store for the Geekerella Fairytales/the Once Upon a Con books because these stories are such a love letter to nerdiness and cons and fandoms, and they always make my heart so happy in such a special way (as in I feel like my heart is going to explode from the joy and all the smiles)! The fun and geeky (with a dash of romantic) books are always balanced with hard-hitting realness with Ashley Poston, and I think that is what makes these stories even more unique.

Thank you to Netgalley and Quirk Books for letting me read The Princess & the Fangirl early!

This book was for a younger audience that I anticipated but was a really light and cute read. I'd recommend this book.

Geekerella was a surprise love affair for me. It managed to balance quirky and cute perfectly to create an adorably unique romance. The fan elements of Geekerella were not subtle, but they weren't extraneous either. Geek culture played a role in the book, and it was woven into the narrative such a way that it did not feel like it took over the storytelling. The Princess and the Fangirl unbalances the successful formula of fan culture and fairytale retelling from Geekerella to create a shallow follow-up, devoid of the magic of the original.

I wanted to love this book. I wanted to love it so much; I just couldn't. The fact that I did not enjoy this book breaks my heart. I'll start with what did not work for me.
- The book uses texting acronyms for words that a character is thinking. I can only hope that these are removed before final publication because this is my most massive pet peeve in a book.
- The whole book reads like the author was challenged to name drop as many things from fandom as possible, and the result is, honestly, hard to get through.
- The plot is just a loose construct there to encourage as many memes as possible. The book is more meme than plot.

To balance this review, I will say that I applaud the author's continuing use of diverse characters. Ashley Poston does also seem like a lovely person, but I think having read Heart of Iron and The Princess and the Fangirl, she needs a much stronger editor.

I'm not the target demographic for this book, and (hopefully) some of the issues that I had with the book will be cleaned up before publication, even if I'm not optimistic. As it stands, I'd recommend this book if you liked What If It's Us or Ready Player One.

Rants, Raves, and Thoughts
I don't want to spend this review comparing this book to Geekerella, because in the end I think the books accomplish different goals. Perhaps it is because of when I read both books or my mind state....who knows. That being said, I loved Geekerella, and view it as an absolutely adorable YA romance retelling. And while it does have the undercurrent theme of "hey, celebrities are humans too and you need to remember it," The Princess and the Fangirl takes this idea and builds on it exponentially. And honestly, it is a large part of why I love this book so much. 

Trolls are a massive problem with the internet today, and I cannot imagine why anyone wants to be famous and have to put up with that kind of spotlight. You have to have tough skin, or be off social media entirely (which can be career damaging too) or be willing to fight. Thinking about it is absolutely exhausting. And in part, this book shows that those who may look the toughest (Jessica Stone is known for being solid and stoic and almost emotionless) can be the ones who have the most anxiety about what is being said. And what's even more outrageous is that the women in popular films - comic book, science fiction, fantasy - take the absolute brunt of this toxic feedback on social media. And what about women who held these roles back in the 60s or 70s or 80s?

Book Quote: What my agent should have said was that Starfield would make me a household name like Kelly Marie Tran, or Daisy Ridley, or Leslie Jones, actresses whose bigger stories are not about their performances but about the trolls who chased them off the internet. 

I have made this book sound a bit depressing, haven't I? That's what Poston does SO WELL: this book isn't depressing at all! She delivers this heavy reminder in a light sugar coating of nerdy commentary and geeky fandom moments that show that Poston loves culture in spite of all of this. That part of the reason why we should be so intent on changing it is because it IS such a part of who we are (at least my generation? I don't know. BE NERDY AND HAPPY.) We are reminded that it is perfectly fine to fangirl or geek out over anything, that pop culture has substance and importance in this world. I mean, part of my overall enjoyment of this book is the giddiness of how many references I understood, and finally working up the nerve to ask if I was misunderstanding references to a podcast I love. There is nothing wrong with wanting to read or watch "higher quality" literature or movies, to be "cultured," but at the end of the day, I am surviving in NYC because I found a peer group based on a love of a podcast network that happened to have an active Facebook group. 

And while I may be making deep mountains out of what could easily be viewed as a simple YA romance book (don't belittle YA like this, SEE THE LAYERS), don't worry - both romance stories are adorable and worth it. There is queer representation throughout the book, which seems to be a question on several Goodread members' minds. The book hits on two romance tropes I absolutely love: enemies turned lovers and celebrities dating normies. 

AND there are characters from and nods to Geekerella.

Final Moments
At the end of the day, this book was light, fluffy, and yet incredibly meaningful. I swooned and cheered for romance to persevere, I laughed at all the fandom references, I genuinely missed being at a convention. I only go to two in a year - BookCon and NYCC - and while they can be anxiety inducing, stressful, germ filled events, they're also moments you can spend with people who genuinely seem to get being excited to cheer for fictional characters and where you can be you. In a cosplay or out of it. I look forward to (hopefully) reading more books in this series. 

PS: Ashley, if you ever just need someone to geek out over a tv show or something, I'm so there. Just give me a Ravi Chakrabarti cosplay next book!

"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a fandom in want of a princess will save that princess." That is the mindset Imogen "Mo" Lovelace has when she begins the #SaveAmara campaign on social media, trying to bring back from the dead Princess Amara, who was tragically fridged in the both the ending of the original Starfield TV show and the new reboot movie. She's excited to be at ExcelsiCon, meeting her friend Harper IRL for the first time, and is on a mission to save her favorite princess.

Too bad Princess Amara doesn't want to be brought back from the dead. Jessica Stone is desperate to put Starfield behind her and move on to bigger, better productions. After all, why would she want to stay when her Twitter and Instagram are flooded with trolls and manbabies who criticize everything about her? It's perfectly understandable that ExcelsiCon is the last place on earth Jess wants to be. Good thing she has Ethan, her best friend and personal assistant.

Then the script for the sequel leaks... And all signs are pointing to Jess. Fortunately, she has a plan when she and Imogen are mistaken for each other. After all, what harm is there in swapping places for a few days?

An excellent companion novel to Geekerella, Ashley Poston accurately captures the essence of the beauty, wonder, and camaraderie of being in a fandom, while simultaneously not shying away from the other, uglier side of fandom. Trolls are not only just in the dungeons, but everywhere you look and do their best to zap away all of your joy and fun. (*side eyes Voltron fandom*)

Fans of Geekerella will be happy to see the return of familiar faces and feel a sense of returning home on the floor of ExcelsiCon, while simultaneously falling in love with new characters and eagerly awaiting the reveal of who is behind the script leaks.

Look to the stars! Aim! Ignite!

While this was really cute, It was just an okay read for me. The reason why I didn’t think it worked that well for me maybe because I’m in my late 20’s. There were quite a bit of pop culture references that I wasn’t familiar with.
I liked the main characters, Imogen and Jess. I also liked that the author included diverse characters. Like I said before, I just wasn’t the in the right demographic this way aimed for.

I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review.
The Princess and the Fangirl by Ashley Poston was a delight to read. The premise takes the classic Princess and the Frog fairy tale and places it in a fan convention for the fictional sci fi show Starfield. This is the second book in a series but it stands on its own.

The writing style is light and fun, full of pop culture references that made this geek girl's heart smile. The two heroines each get their own story line and love interest which are satisfactorily concluded. There are themes throughout of the power of entertainment to inspire and change lives as well as the real issues surrounding sexism and bullying in fan culture.

The culture around the Starfield show feels entirely familiar for the geeky audience and there are plenty of references to the real standbys. The use of the convention makes for an interesting setting for the plot with the established panels and events to move the story forward and give conflict deadlines. It is a believable world and creates enough fantasy for the fairy tale setting. If this series continues, it should prove quite successful. I would recommend this title for anyone who enjoys popular fan culture.

Sometimes books just shoot cupid's arrow right into your heart and you have so much love for it, that it's hard to explain why.
I'm gonna tell you all of the things that I enjoyed and loved about The Princess and the Fangirl, but there's no way to actually explain to you how it made me feel. This book literally filled a void in my soul that I didn't know existed and I'm so grateful for this book and the whole universe around ExcelsiCon that Ashley Poston has created.

Before we really get into this review, let me talk about the representation. One of the main characters, Jess, has a f/f romance and her love interest is black. Both characters never mention any labels or specifics about attraction (or maybe I was crying while they mentioned it) and I'm digging it. We need on-page representation but we don't always need specifics.
The love interest of the other main character, Imogen, is Japanese-American (although I don't know how I feel about the fact that Imogen said he looked like a J-Pop star). Imogen has two moms and her brother is in a relationship with another guy.

I really enjoyed Poston's Geekerella on a lot of levels but what really got me about the novel were the fandom elements and how much of her own love for fandoms Poston put into it.
And The Princess and the Fangirl did it AGAIN.. maybe even better. There were so many beautiful, fandom related moments in here. Reading this as someone who has made herself a home online and in many fandoms, this book felt a little like coming home too. Poston just GETS IT! And she writes about how it feels to be part of fandom culture like no other.

And oooh, my heart with all of the Geekerella references. You COULD definitely read this without having read Geekerella but I would really advise against it. First of all – if you enjoy Geekerella, you'll probably enjoy this one and vice versa. But this book is really loaded with references to its events and characters, so not only do I imagine it's probably a bit confusing in parts but you'll just have a much greater reading experience if you can recognize all those references.
AND there's some spoilers for Geekerella and I'd find it really sad if you couldn't discover those events and character developments for yourself. So, please read Geekerella first! It's worth it! It also makes the reading experience much more emotional.

This is also important for the understanding of the fictional sci-fi show, Starfield! If you've read Geekerella you have a certain knowledge of this show, which is really important for understanding the impact that a lot of the events in this novel have.
And if, like me, you also fell head over heels in love with this fictional show, it truly feels so wonderful to be back at ExcelsiCon, to read about Starfield again, to experience the fandom. I'm not even gonna lie – I'm a Starfield fan and this book only strengthened my love for it. One day I want this show to actually happen. I can quote so many things from the show. I literally want a shirt that says "Look to the stars! Aim! Ignite!" And there was one really beautiful scene at the end of the book where this phrase gets used and I could literally feel myself experiencing this moment with everyone else and I just BAWLED!

One aspect that I also really loved was the two perspectives that we got. Apart from the fact that I truly loved both main characters with all their flaws and everything, it was just so fun to see the perspective of an actress at a con (and especially someone who is not involved in fandom at all) and of a frequent con-goer who even shared a booth with someone and then see those roles reversed. Both characters learned a lot from this experience and I just think that it worked incredibly well in this context.
This also had so much commentary on social media, misogyny in especially Science Fiction and Fantasy fandoms, harassment at cons.. you name it. Sometimes those moments felt a little clumsy but god, I'd rather have them in there clumsily than ignore the fact that this is A CONSTANT THING that happens.
I like that we see an actress as part of a big Science Fiction franchise (especially a rebooted one) and how much harassment she experiences through social media. It referenced both Daisy Ridley's and Kelly Marie Tran's situations and it was clearly a very timely commentary on that. It was really great to see this talked about in a novel cause I had never read about it, especially from this side of things, and I thought that Poston did such a good thing to also explain how it's hard to escape those comments and how it's scary.. but also sometimes even scarier to not read about yourself. I just thought that this was overall handled incredibly well. And I loved that the main character pointed out her own white privilege and that she acknowledges that she receives less hate than many women of colour in similar situations.

Through those perspectives, especially of the actress, Jess, experiencing the "fan"-side of things, this book explores the theme of the art-house movies vs the popular, entertainment movies and how there is value to both and an audience for both and how the entertainment media shouldn't be belittled, especially by people working inside of it.
I loved this aspect because that is exactly what I feel about this book! This was no Great Gatsby. This book has many flaws. There's some overly dramatic scenes in here, it has a very quickly developing romantic storyline (I'll get into this in the next paragraph) and I know this is gonna be too filled with pop-culture references for a lot of people. And I get all that. This is no Literary Fiction. But this pulled at my heartstrings and it was exactly the fluffy and emotional read that I needed. And it made a huge impact on me, an impact that a Great Gatsby would never achieve.

When it comes to the romantic storyline, you have to go into this knowing what you're gonna get. If you cannot handle a romantic storyline that takes place over a couple of days, this is not the book for you. I do not mind short real-life time spans, especially not if it's at a con because.. let's be real, cons are magical places and feelings are very heightened. But you might have to suspend your disbelief. Let's keep in mind, that this is a fairytale retelling.
If you take out that element, or, like me, just don't care, I loved both romantic storylines SO GOD DAMN MUCH. Now, I gotta say, with the whole Princess and the Pauper situation, the f/f romance was one that some people will probably not love? Cause it's basically build up on a lie and I definitely wish Poston had done something different but at the same time, I can't deny that.. I kinda didn't mind? Like I'm putting this info here cause I know it's gonna bother other people but for me, I still think it worked well and Poston just managed to sell this romance to me regardless, which is SKILLS in and of itself.
The m/f romance was a dislike-to-love (there wasn't enough time for hate) and it was SOME GOOD STUFF! I could tell IMMEDIATELY this was gonna be it and I looove that, I loved the dynamic and development.

In conclusion, I can only say I loved this book and could probably write five more paragraphs about it. Really, through writing this review I only just realized all the small nuances that added up to this being an absolutely fantastic read for me. It was so enjoyable and emotional and I will cherish this book forever. Look to the stars! Aim! Ignite!

True rating is about 2 1/2 stars because this book was certainly cute and enjoyable to read, it just didn't blow me away.

Jessica Stone is an actress in the popular sci-fi series, Starfield. Imogen is a convention-going geek so also happens to love Starfield and look quite similar to Jessica. When a leaked script gets lost at the major Atlanta con, Excelsicon, the two girls trade places, kind of like a genderbent Prince and the Pauper. The girls learn a lot about themselves, as well as seeing different perspectives of convention life, fandoms, and stardom.

There are enough geeky references and name dropping throughout the book to make any nerd happy, from Harry Potter to video games, Dr. Who to Yuri on Ice. My favorite reference was probably the absolute most subtle, when the characters quoted a scene from the animated movie, The Road to El Dorado. (My favorite movie, ever!)

I've never read Geekerella, but after finishing The Princess and the Fangirl, I am looking forward to diving more into this nerdy world Poston has created. It made my little nerd girl heart happy.

What I didn't like about the book was minor, it was nothing the author did wrong, I just wasn't as drawn into the characters and their problems didn't grip me. Yes, I wanted them to resolve the issues at hand, but how much did I really care? It moved a little fast in areas and kinda jumped right into certain things I think could have taken a bit more time to be developed. Other than that, it was a simple story that was enjoyable and fun to read.

Seriously loved this book. I rarely give out 5 star reviews so this getting a 4.5 in my book is tops. The story was fun. The romance was fun. While it tied into the first book you can get away without reading it, but read it anyway.

When is Ashley's next book coming out?

The classic Princess and the Pauper story gets retold with a geeky and feminist twist! I usually don't like retellings of this particular tale but this one completely won me over with its heartfelt earnestness, nerdy references, mystery, diversity, and kick butt heroines. A famous science fiction movie actress (think Star Wars similarities) needs to find who is leaking the script for the controversial sequel so she switches places at the four day comic con with a long time fan who has her own online campaign to influence the next movie's outcome.

The references and jokes kept me laughing while the hidden identities and mystery suspense kept the fast moving plot going. I really enjoyed the focus of the story on how the characters learned about themselves and saw things from another point of view that shifted their own perspectives. The story highlighted the dual aspects of fanbases and fandom communities as both havens to express what you love with others who feel the same as you do, while also having dark corners of criticism and attacks as harsh bullying. The romances were subplots that were new friends that became closer and nemeses-to-lovers which added more heart and humor to the story. If you like fairy tale retellings, strong female characters, fandoms, hidden identities, and romance then you will love this book.

Having loved Geekerella, this companion/sequel was one of my most anticipated releases for 2019! So you can imagine my excitement about getting to read it already. And I have to say, I ended up enjoying it even more than Geekerella! The main characters were a little more fleshed out, which made it easier to relate to them and made them more believable. I will say I would have liked for the side characters to have a little more depth as well, because they had a lot of potential but I didn't feel like I really got to know them. But the plot was fun and engaging, and the setting of ExcelsiCon worked really well. It reminded me of Queens of Geek in that sense, and even though I loved that book more, just because I could relate to it more, it worked really well here as well. That makes it a definite must read for fangirls everywhere! I would especially recommend it if you're looking for a light, fast-paced read.

This book was absolutely adorable! I love Ashley Poston's writing style, and I was so excited when she announced she was coming out with a companion novel to Geekerella.

This book was full of heart and Ashley's descriptions of fandoms and all things nerdy, always make me emotional. She describes what it's like to be such a huge fan of these things, and how amazing the community is. I liked that she also explored the bad part of fandoms. The trolls. How so many people take advantage of the fact that they're behind a screen and they don't see what they're doing to that person. It really should make you think before you type.

So Ashley has confirmed that ExcelsiCon is based off of DragonCon. DragonCon is my favorite time of year, I've been going for three years now and have always had an amazing time, and pretty much spend the rest of the year wanting to go back. Ashley captured the heart and soul of DragonCon and it makes me so happy. She included the retro carpet, the beautiful elevators in the Marriott, and just the overall atmosphere was perfection. It was so cool reading about all the places I've been to and seen. I felt like I was back at DragonCon, running to catch different panels, and taking pictures with amazing fellow cosplayers. Seriously, Ashley, you did DragonCon justice.

I loved the characters, although they can't beat Elle and Darien for me. Like Imogen said, they're totally my OTP. But I did enjoy getting to know them.

My one complaint was probably Jess's internal dialogue at times.When Imogen said stuff like that it made sense, she lives and breathes fandoms, but with Jess... not so much. She's expressed a lot that she isn't much of a nerd, but by the end she's calling people a Hufflepuff or making Star Wars references. It just didn't feel totally natural to me.

I really enjoyed this book though and can't wait to read whatever else Ashley writes.
If you're looking for a cute, fluffy nerd fest, you're going to love this book.

Disappointing. I really enjoyed GEEKERELLA and was excited to read THE PRINCESS AND THE FANGIRL. It started off okay then started going downhill. The situations the two main characters found themselves in just didn't make sense. Unrealistic and too many unanswered questions. The last 80% to the end I actually liked. I saw the book it should've been. Maybe a victim of too much editing?

This book was so sweet and so AWESOME! I love the continuation of the series and that our people from the first book make appearances throughout! Poston makes a situation that not many can relate to (being famous) and brings it down to a level that so many people are working with today. Learning to love and accept yourself, and being brave enough to show the world that raw piece of yourself knowing that not everyone will accept you, but the important people in your life will stick by your side. I wish this series could go on and on!

As a loose retelling of The Prince and the Pauper, this was a super cute read! Jess and Imogen are two of the greatest characters. I thoroughly enjoyed the diversity and dialogue between characters. Having read Geekerella, this was a really great follow up filled with nods to the story. It's not necessary to read Geekerella, but if you haven't yet, you'll want to do so immediately after finishing the Princess and the Fangirl.

Many thanks to Quirk Books for providing me with a copy of The Princess and the Fangirl via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Princess and the Fangirl is a companion novel to Geekerella, written in the same setting, with interlocking characters, but a different set of main characters.  I really enjoyed this story.  It held the same geeky feeling I loved in the first book, and a few similar themes.  

Jess (the actress who played Princess Amara in the hit movie, Starfield, in Geekerella) is in a spot of trouble at Excelsicon and needs to stay out of the limelight for a while to try and fix it.  Luckily for her, a lookalike, Imogen, already accidentally took her place on a panel and the crowd didn't seem to notice...  They agree to switch places for a a couple of days, but both get more than they bargained for in the identity swap.  Because the book was told from dual points of view, and Jess and Imogen have switched identities, I must admit I did get a bit confused at times who I was reading about, but the story was cute and a fun read.  

I really enjoyed the way the author managed to explore positive and negative aspects of celebrity life and how we perceive other people's 'happiness'.  I'm probably not quite enough of a fangirl for these books to resonate with me completely, but I still think they are super fun and I hope to see more in the series.

This was a really cute follow up to Geekerella.  The Princess and the Fangirl takes place at the same con, but a year later.  There are some cameos from the characters in Geekerella.  



There are two points of view.  One is Imogen and the other is Jess.



Imogen has been going to the con for years.  Her moms both have a booth there.  She is meeting an online friend, Harper, and her brother and his boyfriend are also there.  Imogen is a fun character.  She's insecure at times, but she's also proud to be a con nerd.  She speaks up and causes a bit of chaos.  Her family and friends call her Mo, which is short for monster and Imogen.   She's still dealing with the fact that her boyfriend stood her up at the last con.  She felt really hurt and couldn't understand what went wrong.



Jess is an actress in Starfield.  She only took the role to help get other jobs, but she's now worried that she'll be typecast and won't get serious roles.  She is a snob and doesn't get cons or fans.  She was happy that Amara got killed off and is now just waiting to see if she has to be back for the second movie.  She is given a script, but she throws it away.  Someone took it from the garbage and started releasing pages of the script online.



Imogen and Jess look a lot alike, so Jess comes up with a plan.  Imogen will play Jess on the panels and Jess will be Imogen.  But she's mostly looking for whoever has the script.  Imogen is babysat by Jess's assistant, Ethan.  And Jess meets Harper while being Imogen.



Both girls struggle at times because they are falling for people while this lie is going on.  They also can't seem to find who has the script.   Eventually, Jess comes clean and they get help from a lot of friends.  



There were cute romances and this was a fast read for me.  I really enjoyed the growth of Jess during the book.  She was hard to like at first, but like Imogen found out, Jess is dealing with a lot more than anyone knows.



I gave this book 4  1/2 stars (rounded up to 5 on Goodreads).  Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me a copy for review.

If you loved Geekerella you're going to love The Princess and the Fangirl just as much! This story was written for fangirls like me. It is chock full of witty references to all the biggest fandoms, and our wonderful, dorky cast represents nerd-culture in its finest. Reading this felt like coming home. Everything was comfortable and familar, and even though we have several new characters, I felt like I already knew them and we understood each other. It basically feels like going to a convention, which I imagine is exactly what the author was going for.

It was so much fun revisiting our old friends from Geekerella! There were several little cameos from our favorites from book one such as; Elle, Darien, Sage and even The Magic Pumpkin! We get to experience some more of Starfield and ExcelsiCon as well which was great. However my favorite was probably getting inside Dariens co-star, the actress that plays Princess Amara, Jessica Stone's head. She is a powerful character with a lot to say! I loved her and her doppleganger, Princess Amara fangirl, Imogen Lovelace. They both had very distinct voices, personalities and flaws. I thought they both contrasted and complimented each other really well. It was a lot of fun watching them grow throughout their adventures, when they switch places.

While our plot does have a fun little mystery for us to solve, the romances were what I came for. We get two wonderful, slow burn romances; one f/f and one m/f. It was a lot of fun watching these 4 characters fall "in like" with each other while they're together over the weekend. The relationships develop very subtlety while our MC's are working to fix other issues going on within the story, so there is not as strong of a focus on the romance like in Geekerella, but it's still very present. Since the entire book takes place over the course of 4 days I thought the speed was very appropriate.

Overall I just loved this book! I always enjoy Prince and the Pauper retellings. And Ashley is the best at making her retellings diverse, modern and relevant. (It's so current there was even a new slang term used that I wasn't familiar with yet. 😂) I was giggling to myself the entire time I read this. I couldn't get enough of the pop culture references! There's sooo many, I really appreciated them and I loved the fun twists they brought to this old classic. It's the perfect book for any fangirl looking for a fluffy, fun romantic read.

Recommend for fans of:
- Comic-Con & Geeky Fangirls of all kinds
- HEA Romance/Fairytale Retellings
- Fairytale Retellings
- LGBTQ & Diverse Reads

This was VERY cute. A little cheesy at times and somewhat predictable but it didn't lessen the amount of joy I felt reading it. It isn't completely necessary to have read Geekerella before this one but it will definitely add to the experience as most of the characters make an appearance (some more than others!).

It's clear that Ashley Poston is a huge nerd and has huge love for the nerd/fandom/con community which shines through in both books in this series. If she ever decided to do a third, I'm in!