Review: Awkward by Marni Bates


Title: Awkward
Author: Marni Bates
Series: Awkward #1
Goodreads Summary:
"Mackenzie Wellesley has spent her life avoiding the spotlight. At Smith High, she's the awkward junior people only notice when they need help with homework. Until she sends a burly football player flying with her massive backpack and makes a disastrous - not to mention unwelcome - attempt at CPR. Before the day is out, the whole fiasco explodes on YouTube. And then the strangest thing happens. Suddenly, Mackenzie is an Internet sensation, with four million hits and counting. Sucked into a whirlwind of rock stars, paparazzi, and free designer clothes, she even catches the eye of the most popular guy at school. And that's when life gets really interesting..."


Main character: 3/5
Mackenzie was charmingly cute, but sometimes her "awkwardness" was a little over the top. I get it, the book is entitled "Awkward" but sometimes it was a little too much. I loved that she was flawed. It was a little stereotypical, but the fame did change her and she had to realize that.

Secondary characters: 3/5
Mackenzie's friends were so good about making her realize her flaws too. I loved Corey, Melanie and Mackenzie's brother Dylan, although I realize that Jane was a little MIA by the end of the book. As for Logan, at first I thought he was just after Mackenzie for the fame (especially during the Lloyd Center scene where he didn't want people to see them with books) but after his secret came out, everything made sense.

Writing style: 2/5
The writing style was easy to read and I could hear Mackenzie's voice coming through loud and clear. As is usual for chick-flick YA books, there was nothing particularly moving or exceptional about the writing style, but it was entertaining. There were a couple grammatical errors which I realize is picky, but hey, I'm an English major.

Plot: 3/5
Yeah, it has been done a million times, but I like the fact that Mackenzie's fame came from her awkwardness and not because she was instantly discovered. A lot of the moments reminded me of The Princess Diaries. One thing I have to rave about: the Oregon setting! I loved all of the references to my state including Forest Grove, Portland, the Rose Garden, Medford/Ashland, Lloyd Center and many more. So cool.

Ending: 4/5
I loved the whole ending. I thought it cleared up a lot about where Mackenzie's life was going to go through a cool plot device. I also enjoyed her realizations about what she had done wrong and what she had done right.

Cover: It fits well with the theme but not instantly my favorite cover style.

Rating: 6.0 / 10 (3 stars)

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