Gena/Finn by Kat Helgeson, Hannah Moskowitz

Gena/Finn

by Kat Helgeson and Hannah Moskowitz

Gena and Finn would have never met, but for their mutual love for the hit TV show, Up Below. Regardless of their differences—Gena is a recent high school graduate whose social interactions largely take place online, while Finn is in her early twenties, encountering the difficulties of job hunting in a poor economy and contemplating marriage with her longtime boyfriend—the two girls realise that the bond between them is more than fan fiction. But when disaster strikes and Gena's world turns upside down, only Finn can save her, and that, too, comes with a price. Told through e-mails, text messages, journal entries, and blog posts, Your Machine Anatomy is a story of friendship and love through social media in the digital age.

Reviewed by shannonmiz on

3 of 5 stars

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You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
3.5*
My fangirl heart could not get enough of this book. I was so invested, because I could relate to so many of the things that Gena and Finn talked about and went through. Fandoms, balancing real life with an internet-based hobby that takes up tons of time, befriending other fabulous people who love the same stuff you do- it was not only fun to read about, it was a scarily accurate portrayal! I feel like it's some combination of my actual blogging life mixed with all the Tumblr blogs for The 100. And those are my favorite things!
So I liked Gena and Finn as characters quite a bit. The whole story was told via emails, texts, blog posts, even journal entries, and I loved it. Sometimes it is hard for me to connect to characters in this type of book, but not so in this case. I felt a definite connection to them both, but especially Finn. I found that I related to her on a lot of levels, and both characters really felt authentic. I also enjoyed the dynamics of Gena and Finn's relationship, both online and then when they meet in person. The story flowed well, and since I definitely enjoyed the whole online friends/convention aspect of it, I was hooked on the plot.

So, what went wrong? The ending. Yeah, the thing I cannot talk about. Well, I can a little I guess, right? So I just felt like it didn't fit with the story, nor was it realistic. I felt like it basically negated the point of the book, and frankly I felt let down by it for a lot of reasons.

Bottom Line: If I was reviewing the first ninety percent of this book, it would be 5 stars for awesome characters and a plot that any fanperson would appreciate. But I can't ignore the last ten percent, and the disappointment it left me with.

**Copy provided for review

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 6 April, 2016: Finished reading
  • 6 April, 2016: Reviewed