Overall Impression: An unremarkable tale about an unremarkable girl, and therein lies the beauty of this book.

When I first came across this novel I knew I had to have it. Beautiful front cover? Check. A nerdy bookish protagonist who is overenthusiastic about her fictional characters? Check. An anxious introvert girl struggling with adapting to life at university? Check, check and check! Not to mention quirkiness abound. There was no way I wasn’t going to love this novel and I am so happy that it didn’t disappoint. This was my first time reading a Rainbow Rowell book and you can bet I will be searching out more in the future. This author is so damn adorable!
Also, this review is going to be a long one because I have a lot to say! You may want to grab a cup of tea. 😉
Cath is a Simon Snow fan.
Okay, so the whole world is a Simon Snow fan…But for Cath, being a fan is her life – and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.
Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fanfiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.
Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from the fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.
Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend; a fiction-writing professor who thinks fanfiction is the end of the civilized world; a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words…and she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.
For Cath, the question is: Can she do this? Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? And does she ever want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?
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