Review: Girl Online by Zoe Sugg
Title: Girl OnlineAuthor: Zoe Sugg
Pages: 344
Publisher: Atria/Keywords Press
Publish Date: November 25, 2014
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Synopsis: I had no idea GirlOnline would take off the way it has - I can't believe I now have 5432 followers, thanks so much! - and the thought of opening up to you all about this is terrifying, but here goes...
Penny has a secret.
Under the alias GirlOnline, she blogs about school dramas, boys, her mad, whirlwind family - and the panic attacks she's suffered from lately. When things go from bad to worse, her family whisks her away to New York, where she meets the gorgeous, guitar-strumming Noah. Suddenly Penny is falling in love - and capturing every moment of it on her blog.
But Noah has a secret too. One that threatens to ruin Penny's cover - and her closest friendship - forever.
Cover: Perfect cover to attract teen readers. You have cute fairy lights and adorable pictures. My favorite picture has got to be the nail/milkshake one. It’s so pretty. I love how simple the cover is and it pairs well with the story.
Characters: I connected with Penny a lot. First off, she has some flaws and fears that she has to overcome. She’s not a Perfect Polly… well, Perfect Penny. I loved to see how she grew as a character. Her character development was A1. I really enjoyed reading from her POV.
Noah was hot. It was actually really funny to see how British people feel about Americans, since Penny is British (as well as Sugg). I guess they’re as entranced with American accents as we are with British. It was funny. At first, he seemed to be a bit old for Penny but he was just so sweet. He was incredibly swoon worthy throughout the novel. I think I might have found myself a new book boyfriend.
Plot: COMPLETELY ADORABLE. That deserved capslock because of Noah and Penny are pretty much my new OTP. Any boy that nice and sweet deserves capslock. Just saying.
The language barrier was a tad confusing at first. American English and British English don’t cross a lot. There were some things that I had no idea what they meant. I had to Google quite a few words. (Are “spots” pimples or something else entirely?) (British readers that question was for you.)
I really liked the concept of Girl Online. That is such a cool name for a blog! I know Sugg has a blog (as well as being a YouTuber), so did she wish this was her name or has she had that name? I almost like it better than my name. Also, Penny’s signoff was adorable. I wish I had a signoff. Not really because I would never stick to it.
Ending: A plot twist that I didn’t expect. I probably could have done without it because it was so cheesy. Yet it was perfectly executed and had me on my toes. I felt as if my ship had sunk so great job Zoella.
Overall: Girl Online was a nice read. It was lighthearted and reminded me a lot of Rainbow Rowell’s novels. I would graciously accept more of Sugg’s work because I feel as if she has great potential. Also, I would love more of Penny and Noah.
Nice job, Zoella! Keep writing and I’ll continue reading.
*NOTE*
Alright, I feel as if I have to mention this although I didn't know it whilst writing this review. Zoe Sugg used a "ghostwriter" for Girl Online by the name of Siobhan Curham. I had no clue what a ghostwriter was so I decided to Google it. This is what I found:A ghostwriter is a writer who writes books, articles, stories, reports, or other texts that are officially credited to another person. Celebrities, executives, and political leaders often hire ghostwriters to draft or edit autobiographies, magazine articles, or other written material.
-Wikipedia
Now we can never be sure how much of this book was written by Sugg and how much of it was the ghostwriter, but it does not change my opinion. I've read so many reviews of this book that have basahed on Zoella, but hey, I enjoyed it and I'm not about to dislike it because she utilized a ghostwriter.
About the Author
Zoe Elizabeth Sugg is an English fashion and beauty guru and internet personality. She is best known by her fans and viewers on YouTube as Zoella. She has a secondary channel, MoreZoella, which is primarily for her vlogs. She has collaborated with a myriad of other Youtubers as well as appeared in numerous magazines and won a Teen Choice Award.
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