I am THRILLED to be part of the Geekerella blog tour today. I was really excited about this book when Quirk sent me a copy, and, as you all know, it's become one of my favorite books, and I can't stop talking about it! Today author Ashley Poston joins me on the blog for a fun guest post about finding Prince Charming.
Pub Date: April 4, 2017
Publisher: Quirk Books
Genre: young adult contemporary romance, retellings
Format/Source: arc, from the publisher
Status: standalone
Links: Geekerella website, my 5 star review
Summary:
Cinderella goes to the con in this fandom-fueled twist on the classic fairy tale.
Geek girl Elle Wittimer lives and breathes Starfield, the classic sci-fi 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's ever wanted, but the 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.
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.
The Quest for Orange Soda,
and the Agency of Prince Charmings:
and the Agency of Prince Charmings:
Prince Charmings tend to act as a vehicle for princesses to accomplish her dreams. And because they act as a foil for Happy Ever After, they’re one-dimensional and adhere to the trope of gallivant knights on white steeds.
I think that’s why I loved the TV show Galavant so much—it took the trope of the steadfast knight and turned him on his head. I knew when crafting Darien, I wanted something of the same. So, I made a list of everything that made a Prince Charming, and decided to do the exact opposite.
- Prince Charmings are fearless. They must be, to slay dragons. Or, at least, their fear is never discussed in fairytale or in passing. The Charmings are always like, “Yeah, bro, I got this,” with so much bravado that the plot can’t help but to have him win. So, I made Darien the exact opposite. He’s afraid—of a lot of things. Heights, spiders, living up to fandom expectations… I wanted him to be real, to have real feelings and pitfalls. And most importantly, I wanted him to show some emotion. I wanted to drag him through All the Feels. And I did.
- Prince Charmings save the princess. This is one part of the Cinderella fairytale I was okay with deviating from. I wanted Elle to save herself, and I wanted Darien to need saving, too.
- Prince Charmings can do no wrong. Because he is the hero of the story, the vehicle to which the princess (or Cinderella, in this case) finds her happily ever after. He has to be likeable, right? And to be likeable you must be perfect…or do you? I wanted to explore that question with Darien, because I sure as hell didn’t want him to be a Gary Stu.
- Prince Charming’s agency is his princess. It feels like Prince Charmings have one-track minds: Find a girl. Save the girl. Marry the girl. That is his tiny, little world—and I couldn’t stand it. So I gave Darien a sweet tooth, a string of bad luck, and a quest for orange soda.
Now in recent years there have been a few prince charmings with a little umph to them—Hans from Frozen being one of the most notable. Albeit evil, he certainly has agency. The titular character from the gone-too-soon TV show Galavant is another (heroic) example. Prince Niklaas from Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay. Prince Rhy from Victoria Schwab’s Shades of Magic series. Prince Kai from Cinder by Marissa Meyer.
Slowly but surely, we’re finally beginning to humanize these white-steed-riding knights. Because sometimes, princes need to take a lesson from Tuxedo Mask in Sailor Moon and let the princess do the saving.
About the Author:
Author Links:
Ooo a pricne that needs saving?!
ReplyDeleteYES, AND HE IS PRECIOUS AND ADORABLE AND I LOVE HIM!
DeleteI have been looking forward to this, great post!
ReplyDeleteThank you! Ashley's posts for the tour are all amazing!
DeleteLove this post. Glavant was such a great show. This book sounds amazing and has been on my radar for months now. Insta handle: debooknerd13
ReplyDeleteI need to look up Galavant! Definitely pick up Geekerella. It's fantastic!
DeleteAwesome post! I love retellings and this one sounds different! It will be interesting to see a prince that needs saving! Insta handle @sandrathebookworm
ReplyDeleteThank you, Sandra! It's a great retelling. Does the Cinderella origins justice, but it's totally unique!
DeleteI can not wait to read this book!! And now that ashley has mentioned similarities to Galavant I can't even imagine how much I'm going to love this book!!
ReplyDelete@stmetcalfe
IT'S SO GOOD!!!!
DeleteI adore the cover! I love the idea of this book and it sounds so much fun to read. To be likeable, my characters have to be flawed or I can't identify with them.
ReplyDeleteThe cover is great, but the FULL JACKET is even better. The design of this book is utterly stunning. The case cover of the book is adorable, and I love the endpapers too.
DeleteI adore this post! I honestly agree with humanising Princes'. I loved how Darien was a regular guy and how there really wasn't anything "special" about him. I also loved how Elle and Darien saved eachother, not boy saves girl but they helped eachother out! And that Sailor Moon reference killed me! Perfect analogy! @theundergroundbookdom(Instagram)
ReplyDeleteTOOOOTALLY perfect analogy, and I love that they rescue each other.
DeleteThis sounds like so much fun! :P
ReplyDelete(@anovelescape on IG)
It really is!
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