Geeky anime lover by day, magical Elven princess by night. The classic "gamer with a second life" story. The main character, Maddy, is your typical shy girl who doesn't fit in very well at her new school. She is given an MMO game for her birthday, and begins to escape into it when the real world gets her down. This is a standard high school girl struggles to fit in story, with the added flair of an online game thrown in. All the usual plot devices are at play here. Divorced parents, new school, crush on a popular boy, teased by the popular kids, etc. etc. everything you would expect from a book about a high school kid. The story doesn't add any freshness to the recipe, but it's enjoyable as a light read. And if you're a gamer you can relate to her escape into the game. The main thing I disliked about this book is that it was very cliche, like something I would have written at 14 when I still thought high school popularity mattered in life. The dialogue is equally immature at times, as one might expect from a teenager.I think younger audiences will relate more closely to this story. It's a quick read, it's fun, and has some enjoyable quirks to it. Okay, I admit I read this book because the cover stood out for me. That and it looked like a fairly simple read. Unfortunately, it was too simple: I figured out the "twist" at the get-go (the author isn't very subtle) and spent the whole time reading the book repeating it over and over until the big reveal. Like other reviewers, I'm a girl, a gamer, love manga, and wasn't the most popular girl in high school. So maybe I wanted to find myself in here. Needless to say I didn't. I was annoyed by the constant, seemingly gratuitous name-dropping of manga, music, and "nerd culture" that I started tuning out. What would've been more interesting is if Maddy had the gaming addiction and that started derailing her life. That's a Gamer Girl story I'd read about...and if done right, with far less predictable outcomes.I only really liked the story because it mentioned Boston a lot, and I'm a big Boston fangirl, but other than that, there wasn't much keeping me invested in this story.
What do You think about Gamer Girl (2008)?
Review by D.B.: "I like how the book connects a daughter with her father through an online game."
—gramag
5 out of 5 stars bc it was so cringe worthy and laughable.read this for a good laugh
—pablo4653
this sounds like all of the worst young-adult books in one
—snevad
