Review : Awkwardly Ever After by Marni Bates

Summary (from Goodreads) 

Title : Awkwardly Ever After (Smith High #4)
Author : Marni Bates
Publication Date : June 24th 2014
Publisher : K-Teen
Goodreads - Amazon - Barnes & Noble 

It's prom season at Smith High School and love is in the air. . .for some people.

Melanie Morris knows she shouldn't keep flirting with her best friend's brother, Dylan Wellesley, even though the last thing she feels is "sisterly" around the cute soon-to-be freshman. But attending prom with somebody else might mean losing him for good. . .

Isobel Peters accepts the fact that she's a huge geek, but she never expected renowned player, Spencer King, would want to get his hands on. . .her reputation. What begins as a bargain could turn into something real--or a Notable disaster!

Corey O'Neal is dating the boy of his dreams, rockstar Timothy Goff. But it isn't easy to trade in anonymity for instant celebrity status, especially now that swarms of protesters want them both banned from prom. Dating Prince Charming in real life is a whole lot harder than it sounds in fairytales.

Happily ever after? Try awkwardly ever after!

Personal Thoughts

This series is just so fluffy and cute, perfect for a nice day outside and if you want something that will make you grin from start to finish. I've loved all of the books in the series and I was excited to see this one up on NetGalley. However, I didn't realize that the book would feature 3 different couples in 3 different stories. They were essentially novellas and as many of you know, I struggle with those a lot, so I wound up not loving all three stories as much as the previous books.

Melanie & Dylan 

Melanie has been in love with her best friend's little brother for a long time, but she's afraid of having a relationship with him despite him also seeming to reciprocate her feelings. She doesn't want it to tear apart her relationship with her best friend and for the most part, she struggles with her growing feelings for Dylan and her not wanting to "betray" her best friend. I personally thought she and Dylan made a super adorable couple, but I wanted to see them interact more and because each story is so short, it was hard for me to connect on any level with them. Some issues regarding Dylan's family were also very briefly touched upon, but by the end, I didn't feel like much had been resolved. Still, it was a cute read that gave me warm cuddly feelings once Dylan and Melanie finally got together.

Isobel & Spencer

This was definitely my favorite story in Awkwardly Ever After. Isobel was such a lovely character. She was genuine and very much realistic. I loved how she speaks out her thoughts without mincing her words. She was pretty much a sweetheart and very difficult not to love. She and Spencer pretend to be dating for a while because Spencer has had enough of all the female attention he seems to attract. I love this trope of fake relationship that eventually turns into something more and I think it was particularly done well in this book. Their banter together was so much fun and they had a ton of chemistry together. I also loved how despite the story being short, there was no insta-love to it. Marni Bates shows their progression from acquaintances to friends to more. It was absolutely delightful!

Corey & Timothy 

This story was a little difficult for me to enjoy mostly because I struggled with Corey's character and also because I didn't think it was okay for a 21 year old man to be dating and going to prom with a 16 year old high-school student. I did however enjoy how the author tackled all the issues that comes with being in a relationship with someone who is constantly in the spotlight because of how famous they are. The involvement of the paparazzi was especially done well.

Overall 

In the end, I don't regret reading Awkwardly Ever After despite the stories not being as satisfying as a full length novel. Maybe I sound selfish, but I would have loved if Marni Bates had written a full story for each of these characters, particularly Isobel and Spencer. Her writing is just so lovely, I could read on and on!

Rating
Cover : 4/5
Plot : 3/5
Characters : 3/5
Writing : 4/5

**Overall rating: 3.5/5**


Thank you to NetGalley and K-Teen for the e-ARC of Awkwardly Ever After.

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