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The Prince and the Pauper gets a modern makeover in this adorable, witty, and heartwarming young adult novel set in the Geekerella universe by national bestselling author Ashley Poston.
Imogen Lovelace is an ordinary fangirl on an impossible mission: save her favorite character, Princess Amara, from being killed off from her favorite franchise, Starfield. The problem is, Jessica Stone—the actress who plays Princess Amara—wants nothing more than to leave the intense scrutiny of the fandom behind. If this year's ExcelsiCon isn't her last, she'll consider her career derailed.
When a case of mistaken identity throws look-a-likes Imogen and Jess together, they quickly become enemies. But when the script for the Starfield sequel leaks, and all signs point to Jess, she and Imogen must trade places to find the person responsible. That's easier said than done when the girls step into each other's shoes and discover new romantic possibilities, as well as the other side of intense fandom. As these "princesses" race to find the script-leaker, they must rescue themselves from their own expectations, and redefine what it means to live happily ever after.
Review:
I won The Princess and The Fangirl from a Goodreads giveaway (wishes do come true!). Once I won that book, I had to go back and read Geekerella, (the first book in the series) which was a fun retelling of Cinderella. The Princess and The Fangirl, by Ashley Poston, is a retelling of the classic Mark Twain story, The Prince and The Pauper.
What I Liked:
Setting: I loved that this takes place in the same universe as Geekerella, but focuses on one of the minor characters from that book, an up and coming startlet named Jessica Stone. While the first book took place mostly on a movie set, this book focuses more on a ComicCon called
ExcelsiCon. We really get a feel for the culture of Cons: how much effort is made on costumes, going to see your favorite actors at panels, and the endless waiting in lines for everything from food to autographs. This was so much fun, especially if you've been to one of these conventions.
Characters:
The Princess of the title is Jessica Stone, an actress who plays the princess in a science fiction movie called Starfield. The Fangirl of the title is Imogen, a super fan of Starfield who is campaigning to get Jessica Stone back in the next movie, even though her character was killed off in the first movie.
Both Jessica and Imogen are clueless as to what the other is going through. Imogen thinks she is helping Jessica by campaigning on behalf of her character. Little does she know that Jessica has no interest in returning to the role. She is eager to move on to bigger and more serious roles. Similarly, Jessica really has no idea what her Starfield character means to the fandom. The Princess embodies the start of women's empowerment in sci/fi. But Imogen doesn't think the Princess's story should end. They both start to see the other's point of view by the end of the novel.
Story:
As with the original story, The Prince and The Pauper, the two main characters looked almost like long lost twins. This does seem unbelievable at first. But I was relieved to see that many of the characters were not fooled one bit by the switcheroo. The fun of mistaken identity continued in scenes where Imogen must navigate through meet and greets, and other fan encounters. Jessica encountered equally daunting scenarios such as working a Con booth, and going to a Karaoke party with "regular" people.
Inclusive Themes:
I liked that there were several characters who we knew were gay, and it was not a big deal. This was not a book about coming out. But it was one about embracing who you are. I was so glad that Jessica was more cautious about having friends sell her out to the tabloids over all sorts of things such as looking foolish, or not being perfectly stylish. She was not worried that people would find out she liked girls.
Rating:
Release Date: April 2nd, 2019
Author: Ashely Poston
Publisher: Quirk Books
Genre: YA Fiction
Page Length: 320 Pages
Source: Goodreads Giveaway
Format: E-Book
Recommendations: Another entertaining retelling, this time of The Prince and The Pauper. A fun, quick book.
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