Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

A coming-of-age tale of fan fiction, family and first love.
Cath is a Simon Snow fan.
Okay, 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 fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.
Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from 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 fan fiction 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? Writing her own stories?
And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow beehind?

I love Rainbow Rowell SO MUCH. I love her writing so much that I used all caps. I never use all caps. I was a little late on to the Rainbow Rowell fandom, but once I read Eleanor and Park I was completely hooked on her writing. I couldn’t wait to read Fangirl. I wasn’t even worried if it would live up to my expectations. I knew it would. I read this a few weeks ago, and I’m still ecstatic about it. Rainbow is a writing genius. Fangirl is addicting, thought-provoking, and awe-inspiring.

The characters in Fangirl are impeccably real. I would gladly sit down with them over coffee any day. Cath was so relatable. Her love of Simon Snow was adorable and one of the best things about the story. Fangirl had fan fiction. I mean, do I need to say more? Though the bits of fan fiction that were included in the story distracted a bit from the actual story, I liked it. I just loved all the characters in Fangirl. I honestly have no complaints about the story. This book is one of the ones that you read when you need a friend, or if you feel like curling up with a good, unforgettable novel.

Rainbow Rowell is one of the best young adult authors of today. Her writing eclipses that of other novels. I can honestly say that Fangirl was one of my favorite novels of this year (along with Rainbow’s YA debut, Eleanor & Park). This review isn’t so much a review, as a huge fangirly post about how much I love Rainbow and her writing. But, everything in this is totally true. Fangirl is SO GOOD. You should all go read it, because I’m sure that you will love it.

FTC- Received for review via Edelweiss.