Geekerella

February 20, 2017
In this thoroughly enjoyable, pop-
culture-saturated Cinderella retelling, 17-year-old Elle Wittimer, unhappy with her social climbing stepfamily, pins her hopes on winning a cosplay contest at a science fiction convention. Raised by her late father on the cult TV show Starfield, Elle anonymously blogs about the show and has expressed her lack of faith in Darien Freeman, the Hollywood heartthrob who’s been cast as Prince Carmindor in an upcoming film adaptation. As the cosplay contest approaches, Elle teams up with Sage, her friend/coworker at a vegan food truck, to redesign her father’s Carmindor costume, while texting with a mystery boy. Actor Darien grew up loving SF conventions and Starfield but has avoided them since his uncomfortable ascension to the “it list.” Poston (We Own the Night) builds an endearingly nervous text-based romance between Elle and Darien, and she gives her secondary characters dimension and agency: Sage is a lesbian fashion maven who gets her own happy ending, and Elle’s stepfamily, though still mostly terrible, is complex. A celebration of fandom and happily ever afters, this feel-good reimagining hits all the right notes. Ages 14–up. Agent: Holly Root, Waxman Leavell Literary.

March 1, 2017

Gr 7 Up-Elle Wittimer loves Starfield, the popular sci-fi series that has garnered a cultlike fandom across the United States. When the latest teen sensation, Darien Freeman, is cast in the significant role of Prince Carmindor, Elle vents her displeasure on her fan blog and receives unprecedented readership. While working on the promotions for the show, Darien begins to feel the wrath of Starfield's loyal fans and attempts to get out of an upcoming ExcelsiCon cosplay event by contacting the convention's organizer. Elle's deceased father is the convention's founder, and Darien's text message is forwarded to her cell phone. The two develop an anonymous relationship via text messaging, which starts to attract the suspicion of Elle's evil stepsisters and Darien's production team. When Elle decides to enter the cosplay contest, she must hatch a plan with her new friend, Sage, to avoid the interference of her nagging stepmother and acts of sabotage from her stepsisters. Predictably, Elle's and Darien's paths cross at the ExcelsiCon ball, which ends with the expected lost slipper. The plot in this fairy-tale retelling won't be a mystery, but there are a few twists and turns that add a unique spin to the classic story. Unfortunately, the alternating voices of Darien and Elle are almost indistinguishable. VERDICT This secondary purchase is best suited for collections that serve teens who revel in the fandom and cosplay communities.-Lynn Rashid, Marriotts Ridge High School, Marriottsville, MD

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