Review // Geek Girl - Holly Smale (ARC)

Published - EXPECTED 28th February 2013
Publisher - Harper Collins

Format - Kindle
Goodreads Synopsis - Harriet Manners knows a lot of things. She knows that a cat has 32 muscles in each ear, a "jiffy" lasts 1/100th of a second, and the average person laughs 15 times per day. What she isn't quite so sure about is why nobody at school seems to like her very much. So when she's spotted by a top model agent, Harriet grabs the chance to reinvent herself. Even if it means stealing her Best Friend's dream, incurring the wrath of her arch enemy Alexa, and repeatedly humiliating herself in front of the impossibly handsome supermodel Nick. Even if it means lying to the people she loves. 
As Harriet veers from one couture disaster to the next with the help of her overly enthusiastic father and her uber-geeky stalker, Toby, she begins to realise that the world of fashion doesn't seem to like her any more than the real world did. 
And as her old life starts to fall apart, the question is: will Harriet be able to transform herself before she ruins everything?

Geek Girl by Holly Smale was exactly what I was expecting - which is a good thing. It was fresh, easy to love characters and a storyline that not only flows well but fast - hard to put down. Harriet is the kind of character that everyone can relate to in some way, whether you're also a geek, or you like fashion, whether you strive for popularity or even just to go unnoticed. It's all there.

There are plenty of morals in Geek Girl that are staring you in the face but not so much that you constantly feel like anything is being thrown at you. You take it, and move on - hopefully a little wiser! I particularly liked all of the little facts that Harriet shares as no matter what happens in the book, she is always true to the reader.

I did find the book was aimed at a younger audience than me even though I adore YA. It's the kind of book that my almost-teen nieces would devour but I *did* enjoy it all the same. More importantly, it made me realise that there is so much good YA set in Britain by British authors that I just don't come across. The fact that this is based somewhat on Smale's own experiences with geekdom and modelling adds that extra level to the novel. If you like quick, good, YA British reads then this one is for you.