Bookish and the Beast

Tell me a story... of a tale as old as time

 Bookish and the Beast (Once Upon a Con #3) by Ashley Poston

Publication date: August 4, 2020

Date read: October 18, 2021

Rosie Thorne feels stuck in her small town and just wants to get to college, where she hopefully won't only be known as "the girl whose mother died". Vance Reigns, on the other hand, is Hollywood royalty who can't keep himself out of the tabloids. When his parents send him off to the middle of nowhere to hide, he can't imagine anything worse. After Rosie accidentally stumbles across Vance's temporary home, destroying a very expensive rare book in the process, she is hired by Vance's caregiver to organize the home's extensive library in order to pay off the debt. Rosie loves being around the books, but is less than enthused to be around Vance, who is just as much of a jerk as he seems in the tabloids. Or is he?

This is the third book in the "Once Upon a Con" series, after Geekerella and The Princess and the Fangirl. Continuing the theme, Vance Reigns is the co-star of Darien Freeman and Jessica Stone in the Starfield movie sequel. (Think Star Trek, if it was cancelled after only a few seasons).

I was wary going into this one. I loved Geekerella, really liked the sequel, but when I found out that Vance Reigns was going to be the lead character in this one, I was hesitant. We only had a few moments with him in The Princess and the Fangirl, but he was a complete dick in that book. Did I really want to read a whole book about him, and a love story at that? But I trusted the author (and the word of my friend who recommended the series to me in the first place), and I'm very glad that I did.

I'll be honest, part of my love for this book does stem from it being a retelling of "Beauty and the Beast", which is also a favorite of mine. And, as the author herself admits in the notes, she embraced all of her favorite romance tropes in this one - there's even a scene that takes place in the rain. This book is not full of hidden deeper meaning. It's a cute romance based on a fairy tale and set in the world of science fiction movies and conventions. And sometimes that's enough. 

This was probably my favorite of the three, although I did love Geekerella. Vance was a very complicated character, but still felt honest and real and not too much like a bad boy romance trope. And I really liked Rosie. She was strong and self-sufficient, but also a great friend and had a great relationship with her father. Both of them were compelling, and I never found myself wishing that I could hurry through one chapter in order to get back to the other POV. 

It's not necessary to have read the first two books in order to get the story, but you'll definitely be missing a lot of side details if you start here. It's enough of a stand alone that you can get by, though, if you have to. I also almost skipped the Starfield novel chapter at the end of the book, but don't! It's worth a read. 

In the end, if you're not a science fiction fan, this probably isn't really what you're looking for, but the "Beauty and the Beast"-inspired romance will probably still make it appeal to a wide audience. I think this one is actually the book of the three that least relies on Starfield, since it's more about the books than the movie, but there are still a lot of sci-fi in jokes and references that are fun for fans. But if this sounds at all appealing, pick up Geekerella and work your way to this one. They're quick, fun, cute romance reads, and just the light-hearted adorableness that I needed. 

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Trigger warning: death of a parent (mentioned)