Unconventional

Author: Maggie Harcourt

Genre: YA, Contemporary

Publisher: Usborne

Publication Date: February 1st 2017

Format: Paperback (464 pages)

Goodreads:       Author        Book

Synopsis:

Lexi Angelo has grown up helping her dad with his events business. She likes to stay behind the scenes, planning and organizing…until author Aidan Green – messy haired and annoyingly arrogant – arrives unannounced at the first event of the year. Then Lexi’s life is thrown into disarray.

In a flurry of late-night conversations, mixed messages and butterflies, Lexi discovers that some things can’t be planned. Things like falling in love…

My Rating: ★★★★★

“Everyone’s a fan of someone …”

I think that quote sums up exactly why I loved this book so much. Any book that has something to do with fandoms or being a fan girl is going to resonate so strongly with so many people, especially us bookish folk who tend to be so highly invested in our favourite novels and authors.

Unsurprisingly, Unconventional is a story set around fan conventions. I read this in the run up to and during YALC weekend and it was the perfect companion. I loved Lexi, our MC, so much because I was able to relate with her on so many levels. Although I’ve not been on the other side of the convention scene like she is, deep down Lexi is just a massive fan girl of her new favourite author and I could share in her emotions and excitement so easily.

Lexi’s father owns a company that runs conventions and as we travel around with them we are quickly drawn into their world. Lexi’s convention family are wonderful and I loved reading about her different friends. There was cosplay, panels, guest author appearances (Melinda Salisbury and Non Pratt), things going right, things going wrong and a wonderful romance. I loved that this book was spread over a year of conventions because it allowed us to see some excellent character development, especially for Lexi.

I love a well written slowburn romance and Maggie Harcourt definitely delivered on that with Lexi and Aidan. It’s clear from early on that their feelings would be more than just friends but it’s not rushed and by the time I got the developments I wanted I was SO ready for it. Although there is a huge focus on the romance in this book, I also really appreciated its focus on parent/child relationships too. There is nothing fluffy about that in this book and I really loved seeing Lexi coming to terms with her Dad getting remarried and her feeling of being a bit lost and left behind and how she comes to terms with this by the end of the book. Everything was very well thought out and relatable.

This book made me laugh, it made me cry but most importantly it made me happy. If you have ever been a fan of anything in your life then you must read this book. It will make your heart sing.

Have you read Unconventional? What did you think?

What was your first fandom?

Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Bloglovin’ or Goodreads. Comments are always warmly welcome.