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*This book was sent/sponsored by a publishing company, but this will not influence the content of my review or my opinions in any way. You can expect complete honesty from me. Hey guys! I was so, so, so VERY excited when Shadow Mountain Publishing contacted me and asked me to review another book for them (my first review for them was Success is Never Final by Dale Van Atta)!!! I chose this book to review based off of the summary that they gave me and boy have I loved it! I am literally so excited to share this with you guys so let's get started! Back Cover Summary: Can the fairy tale bring Charlotte the happiness she’s looking for, or was he always there to begin with? A modern, reimagined Cinderella story. When aspiring author Charlotte Kingsley finally gets published, she thinks all her dreams have come true. But the trouble begins when her publicity firm reinvents her quirky online presence into a perfectly curated dream life. Gone are the days of sweatpant posts and ice cream binges with her best friend, Anders, replaced instead with beautiful clothes, orchestrated selfies, and no boyfriend. Only, that carefully curated fairy tale life is ruining her self-esteem and making her feel like a fraud. When a bestselling author takes Charlotte under her wing—almost like a fairy godmother—she helps Charlotte see the beautiful person she already is and the worth of being authentic. But is it too late to save her relationship with Anders? The clock is quickly ticking towards midnight, and Charlotte must decide between her fairy tale life and the man she loves, before he's gone forever. My Thoughts: I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH!!! Right off the bat I'll tell you my rating is a 5/5. I connected a lot with the main character Charlotte (or Lettie, or Char) because she's an introverted writer nerd! The plot is well thought out and includes a lot of messages and themes from society today. It's a great book for looking at the undertone messages that society throws at us: is having a picture perfect life and an amazing Instagram the recipe for happiness? Is a fictional, online persona the only way to find success and love in the modern world? Is there a place for authenticity and all of life's imperfections? It's a very interesting concept. Personally I have never struggled with the negative aspects of social media that experts are telling us are causing mental health issues, but I have many friends that have and do and that is why I chose to read this book. So, like I've been trying to say, in story format, this amazing book addresses the growing concern that social media has become so highly curated it is distorting reality and adversely affecting self-esteem. It also addresses the Fairy Godmother theme in a funny, but sincere way, first as a "where's my fairy godmother at my freezer doesn't have ice-cream," to a mentor type relationship. Okay, so the plot is well thought out and written, and I had to calmly set the book down in several places and make the sea-lion sound and clapping hand motion that only you other fangirls will only ever truly understand. And once I put it down to take a short walk. I don't know about you guys but sometimes I get so wrapped up into the main character that I'm just like "NOOOOO DON'T DO THAT!!!" Because of course I care WAY too much about a person who isn't even real and I have to die of second hand embarrassment. It's all good, what I'm trying to tell you right now is that this book gave me the feels, and it made me really happy. Literally every time, during various parts of the day, when my roommate walked in the room I'd be smiling like a complete idiot and she'd be like "Wow, you're really happy today." And I'd look up at her, and again, smiling like an idiot, said, "This is a really good book." Okay, but now let's talk ROMANCE. Okay, I didn't understand why the book says "Proper Romance" on the top of it. Like, what is that? But I think the point is to say that it's wholesome romance, which it totally is. The relationship is healthy, it's funny, it's witty, it's everything a romantic relationship should be (well there is a rough patch in the relationship, but that's kind of the point, plus it's realistic). I loved the romance between Lettie and Anders so much. They're the cutest canon couple ever and I totally ship them!!! (If you didn't understand that last sentence, it's okay, it's fangirl speech, a different language.) Overall, I really loved the messages and themes of this book and the relationships and the characters and the writing and everything!!!! What I Didn't Like: I know you guys are like "Wait Rachel, didn't you just say you like everything? Why is there a 'What I Didn't Like' section?" Dang, give me a second to explain why won't you? NOTHING! There was absolutely nothing about this book that I didn't like. And y'all should know by now that I'm always honest when it comes to books, whether or not the publishing company sent it to me. So you can trust that this is my honest to God opinion. This one, this book, was my personal definition of perfection. Who Should Read This Book: Everyone. It has a great message and a great romance. I do think writers (or aspiring writers) and/or nerds will love this book because they can relate to the main character a little bit more, but I think that this book is so wholesome and pure and happy I would honestly recommend it to anyone and everyone. Christians: It is safe for your children (middle school+) to read. There is absolutely nothing inappropriate that I can remember in it. If you wanna read it first because that's your practice, then that's completely fine, but I think you'll love this book as much as I did. About the Author: Julie Wright is the author of more than twenty novels, including the Proper Romance® novels Lies Jane Austen Told Me and Lies, Love, and Breakfast at Tiffany’s. She is a Whitney Award winner and a Crown Heart recipient. She is represented by agent Sara Crowe. She loves reading and writing, playing on the beach or hiking with her husband and kids, and watching her husband make dinner. Additional Information:Publication Date: 10/21/19 Paperback ISBN: 9781629726076 Retail Price: $16.99 Page Count: 336 Fiction / Romance / Contemporary Cover Design: © Shadow Mountain Art Direction: Richard Erikson Design: Kimberly Kay
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About the AuthorHi, I'm Rachel, and I'm here to share reviews of books with you so you can know what to read next! Archives
October 2021
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