Sunday, November 11, 2012

Geek Charming by Robin Palmer

Genre: romance
Series and Book #: none
Pages: 338
Summary:

Princess meet frog…
 
Dylan Schoenfield is the princess of L.A.’s posh Castle Heights High. She has the coolest boyfriend, the most popular friends, and to top it all off, a brand-new “It” bag that everyone covets. But when she accidentally tosses her bag into a fountain, this princess comes face-to-face with her own personal frog: self-professed film geek Josh Rosen. In return for rescuing Dylan’s bag, Josh convinces Dylan to let him film her for his documentary on high school popularity. Reluctantly, Dylan lets F-list Josh into her A-list world, and is shocked to realize that sometimes nerds can be pretty cool. As the queen bee of Castle Heights royalty helps Josh turn from a frog into a prince, she’s shocked to find herself becoming friends with a geek—and liking it. But when Dylan’s so-called prince charming of a boyfriend dumps her flat, her life—and her social status—come to a crashing halt. Can Dylan—with Josh’s help—pull the pieces together to create her own happily-ever-after?
 
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So, we're back to Castle Heights, the high school of not only Cindy Ella by also Dylan Schoenfield. Just like Robin's first novel, this book correlates with the fairytale The Princess and the Frog. But, like Cindy Ella, Robin doesn't overwhelm the reader with striking similarities. Although they are most definitely there.
 
Dylan Schoenfield is not one of my favorite characters. I know she's supposed to be popular and cute, but she was ditsy and annoying as well. Sometimes I just wanted to reach into the pages and smack her over the head myself. But I couldn't help but feel for her when she's suddenly kicked to the curb by her "friends." Josh was a sweetheart, too. Though he can be a bit annoying at times as well, I loved his playful banter or sometimes deep conversations with Dylan. As the story unfolded, it was obvious Dylan wasn't going to be Josh's princess and Josh wasn't going to be Dylan's prince. But they were obviously going to become devoted friends.
 
Overall, another excellent retelling on the subtle side. I liked how Robin went back to Castle Heights for the setting of her story. Though there wasn't any contact with Cindy Ella, there were some moments with the stepsisters. This version of The Princess and the Frog doesn't have the same romantic ending but leaves a quirky character finally fulfilled.
 
The Cover: It reminds me so much of Dylan. Very bright and cute.

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