Tag: Maggie Dallen

Posted on

Featured New Release Of The Week: The Man The Myth The Nerd by Maggie Dallen

This week we look at the exciting conclusion to Maggie Dallen’s High School Billionaires trilogy. This week, we’re looking at The Man The Myth The Nerd by Maggie Dallen.

This book was Tieg Larson’s long awaited story, and it did not disappoint. Dallen did the best friends to lovers thing in the first book in this series – Tall, Dark, and Nerdy – but honestly, she outdid herself by coming back to the same trope in this tale.

I’m not going to bother with a description of the tale other than this: It is effectively a happy version of A Star Is Born. Same romance-with-a-musician concept, but to me done so much better because it doesn’t have the depressive notes of that tale. Instead, we get a lot of angst about a three year separation, but we also get a truly epic concert scene to close the book.

And really, while the rest of the book was solid, it is that concert scene that really works to truly elevate this book into phenomenal territory. The entire series is fairly quick, fun reads, and this was one epic way to cap it all off. Very much recommended.

As always, the Goodreads/ Amazon review:
Continue reading “Featured New Release Of The Week: The Man The Myth The Nerd by Maggie Dallen”

Posted on

#BookReview: The Not So Perfect Fiancee by Maggie Dallen

Fun, Fast, and Fluffy. This was a very light, very funny romance designed for the Hallmark Movie crowd but with elements that could draw in fans of the various home renovation shows all over TV (and even some streaming services) these days. Very fast read, without sleep catching up on me and Facebook being too addicting, I could have easily finished this book in 3 ish hrs. (As it was, I still finished in 12 – most of that asleep.) Book 2 in the series, but the main couple from the first book barely appears at all (indeed, the male half *doesn’t* appear at all) and even the secondary couple in that book barely registers in this one. (The man in it is in this book for maybe one scene, the female is mostly just a convenient plot device to make introductions to other secondary characters.) In other words, can very easily be read as a stand-alone book. Not a lot of drama here, just a syrupy sweet romance where the most action even hinted at is hugs and kisses – so good for the “clean” crowd too. Given that Dallen surprised us with a brand new couple in this book, I’m very interested to see where she takes Book 3 in this series. Very much recommended.

This review of The Not So Perfect Fiancee by Maggie Dallen was originally written on July 31, 2019.

Posted on

#BookReview: Too Nerdy To Handle by Maggie Dallen

Fun and Fast Read. In the second book of the “Nerdy” series (that Dallen officially calls the “High School Billionaires” series), we see the couple from the first book a bit, but the focus is on a pair of secondary characters from the first book: media mogul heiress Jamie and rock god Tieg… except Dallen quickly swerves from the expected to give us a new tale that in a way combines this series with her sport series from 2018 (at least insofar as one of the characters is a major sport guy). Maybe one slight criticism here is that despite the title, the “nerd” qualities of either of the main couple in question are barely if ever mentioned. But beyond that, yet another excellent, fun, mostly light (until the requisite fight near the end), fast read from Dallen. Very much recommended.

This review of Too Nerdy To Handle by Maggie Dallen was originally written on July 22, 2019.

Posted on

#BookReview: Tall Dark and Nerdy by Maggie Dallen

Nerds Rule! Ok, so this one was particularly fun for me because I *am* the nerd that can’t communicate well with others and often both doesn’t understand others and isn’t understood by them. Never developed an app that I then sold for mega money (or any money) but I’ve been coding almost as long as Oliver has been alive in this book, and I’ve developed a few tools to solve problems presented in my own life, much as Oliver does here. So yes, very relatable to me in particular. But also a genuinely good book with a lot of laughs and an appropriate amount of angst – let’s face it, these are teenagers we’re talking about – and it does in fact have the RWA-required Happily Ever After. Very curious to see where Dallen takes the next book in this series, and this book itself is very much recommended.

This review of Tall Dark and Nerdy by Maggie Dallen was originally published on June 17, 2019.

Posted on

#BookReview: Beach Town Bad Boy by Maggie Dallen

It’s Gotta Be You. I’ve read a lot of Dallen’s other work, but this was my first time with the characters of the Briarwood High series. Even as an entry point, it didn’t feel disconnected from the rest of the series yet it also didn’t feel weighed down by the series either – in other words, a solid entry point. Which is a good thing since it is also part of a summer collection from several authors teaming together to cross-market with each other – a newish tactic I’ve only really seen crop up this year, but which seems to be a good way to get introduced to a wide range of similar authors.

This particular book does have all the elements one comes to expect from Dallen’s YA/ high school based books, even at novella length. Great book, very much recommended.

This review of Beach Town Bad Boy by Maggie Dallen was originally published on May 22, 2019.

Posted on

#BookReview: The (Not So) Perfect Day by Maggie Dallen

Perfectly Hallmark. If you’re looking for the book version of a Hallmark Movie romance… you’ve found it. Funny yet angsty, with the classic clueless best friends and the friends that know before the best friends do. Perfectly zany ending. It aint deep, it aint earth shattering, but sometimes light and fun is … perfectly… what you need. 😉

This review of The (Not So) Perfect Day by Maggie Dallen was originally published on May 10, 2019.

Posted on

#BookReview: Once Upon a Comic Con by Maggie Dallen

Perfect Conclusion. This tale turned out to be about a somewhat unexpected couple – the male was fully expected, but based on the other two books this reader somewhat expected the female to be a different character than who it turned out to be. But it actually made for the perfect conclusion to the series, with a tale that had similar themes of the two other books but in a form that hit home according to this reader’s own experiences in high school – on both sides, as it would turn out. Excellent story of what some call the Stained Glass Masquerade and how it can be overcome by love. Very highly recommended.

This review of Once Upon a Comic Con by Maggie Dallen was originally published on April 17, 2017.

Posted on

#BookReview: My Virtual Prince Charming by Maggie Dallen

Virtually Perfect. In this continuation of Dallen’s new #GeeksGoneWild series, we open up at the very same point the first book does – the Labor Day Weekend party that created the hashtag and all of its subsequent fallout. But then we quickly skip ahead to after the events of the first book, so this book *can* be read standalone, but it does have expected spoilers… and one MAJOR reveal that has been a question for nearly two full books at the time it is revealed here. The story is typical Dallen – light, sweet, and fun, with just enough angst and drama to keep things moving. And while this professional software developer that moonlights as a reviewer and blogger was hoping to see a bit more actual coding, coding generally was presented in a somewhat real world (if amateur – these kids *are* high school students) setting, and that alone makes it different than many books out there. Excellent continuation of the series, and I’m very much looking forward to the conclusion!

This review of My Virtual Prince Charming by Maggie Dallen was originally published on March 6, 2019.

Posted on

#BookReview: Audible Love by Maggie Dallen

Aural Transcendence. Over the last 18 months or so, I’ve found myself reading most of this author’s work – and this particular book is easily among the best she has written. Dallen does young adult romance well, but this one is truly particularly transcendent. The depth of emotion in this book is among the best in romance today, better than many works by far more famous authors. Dallen has truly outdone herself with this one, and I for one hope to see more in this particular world.

This review of Audible Love by Maggie Dallen was originally published on February 15, 2019.

Posted on

#BookReview: Love at First Fight by Maggie Dallen

Well, we knew it would happen. The Geeks got caught doing something wild and the cool kids posted a pic of it for the entire school to see. Then the geeks found embarrassing pics of the cool kids and created a website all about it. And through it all, star QB Jason and first chair clarinetist Margo get stuck in the middle as the voices of reason inside their respective camps. Oh, and there is that tiny little thing about each having crushes on the kid next door – each other – as kids… and those feelings are about to flare as they begin their Senior Year of high school…

Great introduction to another new series from Maggie Dallen, and a solid introduction to her writing style for those who have never read her before. Very much looking forward to the next book in this series!

This review of Love at First Fight by Maggie Dallen was originally written on January 23, 2019.