Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Fangirl

by Rainbow Rowell

A love story about opening your heart, by Rainbow Rowell, the New York Times bestselling author of Eleanor & Park.

Cath and Wren are identical twins, and until recently they did absolutely everything together. Now they're off to university and Wren's decided she doesn't want to be one half of a pair any more – she wants to dance, meet boys, go to parties and let loose. It's not so easy for Cath. She's horribly shy and has always buried herself in the fan fiction she writes, where she always knows exactly what to say and can write a romance far more intense than anything she's experienced in real life.

Without Wren, Cath is completely on her own and totally outside her comfort zone. She's got a surly room-mate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . And she can't stop worrying about her dad, who's loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

Now Cath has to decide whether she's ready to open her heart to new people and new experiences, and she's realizing that there's more to learn about love than she ever thought possible . . .

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell comes with special bonus material; the first chapter from Rainbow's irresistible novel Carry On.

Reviewed by elvinagb on

5 of 5 stars

Share
I was excited to read this newest book by Rainbow Rowell and I was not disappointed. This story captures so well what it feels like to leave home and to venture out into the world of freshman college. Even with her twin sister and used to be best friend and roommate off doing her own thing, learning to cope and navigate this new world is enough to make Cather hide out in her room and try to live on protein bars. Until her roommate makes her begin to venture out to the dining hall to find some real food, Cather is happy to go to classes, eat the occasional lunch with her sister and update her fanfic stories.
I loved how well Rainbow captured Cather's feeling and insecurities and her growing relationships with Reagan and Levi and how she deals with her sister's growing problems, her issues with Nick her writing partner and her father's fragile mental health. Throw into all this the mother that walked out on the family you have to admire how Cather gets through her first year of college and the coming end of the Simon Snow story.
A fabulous read.

Last modified on

Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 22 September, 2013: Finished reading
  • 22 September, 2013: Reviewed