Geekerella

A Novel

By: Ashley Poston

Narrated by: Eileen Stevens, Tristan Morris

Length: 10 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

Geek girl Elle Wittimer lives and breathes Starfield, the classic science-fiction series she grew up watching with her late father. So when she sees a cosplay contest for a new Starfield movie, she has to enter. The prize? An invitation to the ExcelsiCon Cosplay Ball and a meet-and-greet with the actor slated to play Federation Prince Carmindor in the reboot. With savings from her gig at the Magic Pumpkin food truck and her dad's old costume, Elle's determined to win - unless her stepsisters get there first.

Teen actor Darien Freeman used to live for cons - before he was famous. Now they're nothing but autographs and awkward meet-and-greets. Playing Carmindor is all he has ever wanted, but Starfield fandom has written him off as just another dumb heartthrob. As ExcelsiCon draws near, Darien feels more and more like a fake - until he meets a girl who shows him otherwise. But when she disappears at midnight, will he ever be able to find her again?

Part-romance, part-love letter to nerd culture, and all totally adorbs, Geekerella is a fairy tale for anyone who believes in the magic of fandom.

©2017 Ashley Poston (P)2017 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

cute!

really cute modern cinderella AU.

great narration.

noticed a few areas where the audio hadnt been edited, which was a shame but didn't distract too much from an otherwise well written & narrated story

Cute

This book was just ok. My main problem was Elle. It frustrated me soo much now weak she was. And even in the end she never stood up for herself, but once. (When she stood up to Darien made me roll my eyes because it did not go with her WEAK character) Other people had to keep standing up for her. I did not like her. Darien was fine, unrealistic but I’m not listening to his for the realism ha. He was a little too cheesy for my tastes though.

So much fun

Loved it. Very well done modern day Cinderella. Especially if you're a geek like me.

I won't repeat this 1, but it was pretty good.

Highly disliked the male narrator; he is far too old (or at least his voice is) for the character of Darian. In addition, he reads far slower than his counterpart and sounds like he's trying to channel the spirit of Shatner. I almost stopped listening after his first few lines. In addition, I myself am a self proclaimed geek and have watched Trek, Wars, and Doctor Who. I have never heard the Doctor's greatest enemy referred to as "day-liks." I'm not saying that it's not possible, but I certainly haven't, and yes, I've watched the classics too. That was a huge turn off for me and I did put it to the side for awhile.

The female narrator saves the story for me. Her El is so passionate and so real, and sadly, I can relate to her so well. (Adopted, still abused, but a survivor) She also did her various characters really well, and I enjoyed the friendship that sneaks up on El. There's a nice twist at the end, and overall, I enjoyed the story. Love the ice cream machine reference, and there are a good many more references that the SuperWhoLocks, Trekked, Star Wars fans and even gamers will get.

Enjoy it once ; I am certain I won't be repeating this one.

Holy [Insert Nerd Thing Here], Batman!

I’m a bit of a nut for fairytale retellings and romance, and Cinderella is a story that I know is both standard and cliche at this point. I can’t help but enjoy it regardless.

This was a fun retelling and I liked the premise, but had a hard time slogging through the execution. The characters were fun (Sage is the best, no contest), but our main characters were at times hard to stomach due to cornballness and just their internal turmoil just did not hit me at all emotionally. Elle could be especially grating because of how much of an entitled, obsessive fan she was.

I know it was supposed to spark more friction in the plot, but it was the type of person I really couldn’t rally behind. Especially when we were getting Darien’s point of view to reassure that he’s a sympathetic character alongside her hating on him. I feel like it could’ve been presented in a better way so we could really support our heroine as well as our hero. Like legitimate criticisms besides whining about how he’s too pretty and too shallow to play the main character of her favorite series.

I still enjoyed parts of it, but the second half of it was just me being amused and groaning over the cheese and poor decisions. There’s only so much my tolerance can take.

BUT if you are someone who likes fluffy, light teen romance and just enjoy the feeling of secondhand embarrassment then I’d say go for it. It was interesting and I did like the concept. The narrators did a great job as well, although Tristan Morris sounds like the understudy for a guy who does commercial voices. It’s not a bad thing but it’s definitely a different thing that I’m not sure how I feel about. Eileen Stevens was very solid and I liked listening to her voice in general.

It’s not a great story though and I feel like it relies too much on just the outline of Cinderella even though it tries to be different. None of the characters feel real though. It’s just fluff tied up with a neat little bow of happy endings and online fan pop culture references. Also with that as you will.

A cute story

This book is an easy listen. It's heartwarming but also teaches a few good values. Always stay true to yourself and never give up. Life is tough sometimes but all you can do is try your best. AUDIBLE 20 REVIEW SWEEPSTAKES ENTRY”

Cinderella meets Fandom!

SUCH a cute book! Such a different take on Cinderella. I love Poston's way of bringing the story in for the 21st Century. Best part is, is that its not the typically super cheesey; retelling :) #audible20 #sweepstakes

Fandom's fairytale

A cute retelling of Cinderella heavily centered on fandom culture. As other reviewers have said it is a love letter to fandom culture. It is an adorable adaptation of the fairytale that modernizes the classic characters we love and/or hate. The story features a great friendship that emerges throughout the book as well as the reflection of fandom as a community that you can rely on to get you through the tough times.

I agree with other reviews on the narration aspect of it. The female narrator was far superior to the male narrator. It was much easier to tell the characters apart during Elle's parts because the female narrator gave each character distinct tones, I also felt that her voice fit Elle's character much better than the male narrator's fit Darien. The male narrator sounded much older than the teenage character he was portraying, it just wasn't a great fit. If you're looking for a geeky, quirky, kind of book then I would recommend this book as it's a fast read or listen.
"Audible 20 Review Sweepstakes Entry"

Don't usually do reviews

As others pointed out, there​ are a few redundant sentences in the reading, but not nearly as many as I thought there would be. I remember three.
I LOVE the fact that throughout the book race isn't mentioned one time, neither are gender preferences. Although they are in the book if one pays attention. Maybe United States could learn a thing or two from this book.
Overall, a fun book with a rating between G-PG.

excellent

I loved it. I loved the characters and the story. I can't wait to listen to more by this author. The narration was excellent also.