Again but Better Christine Riccio Amazon Cover

This review was plagiarized!

Then, hither we are again. A booktuber writes a book and I receive an ARC of it.

And, yeah, it was bad.
Non a full trainwreck like Zenith, but nonetheless... Bad.

I have seen A LOT of people saying that they will love this volume regardless if it'south good or not because they love Christine and that'due south fine, practice what y'all want. But it also means that I will be as brutally honest as I could be to fifty-fifty it out.

I believe that you should always judge a volume based on the book and not the autho

This review was plagiarized!

So, hither we are again. A booktuber writes a book and I receive an ARC of it.

And, yeah, it was bad.
Not a full trainwreck like Zenith, but notwithstanding... Bad.

I have seen A LOT of people saying that they will beloved this book regardless if it'due south good or not because they love Christine and that'due south fine, do what yous desire. But information technology also means that I volition be as brutally honest as I could be to even information technology out.

I believe that you should always judge a book based on the volume and non the writer but since this book is basically about the author (and I will admit to not liking her very much) that is basically impossible.

These are my opinions. I am allowed to accept opinions about stuff and things.
If yous love Christine so much that y'all volition be offended by criticism aimed towards her so kindly fuck off right now. There is a lot of criticism to be found here.
(Reading comprehension on this website is very bad and so I apparently have to analyze that this statement is for people who get offended on Christine's behalf and tell me I'g a mean bitch or that I'm patently cyber-bullying the author lmfao)
You are allowed to disagree with me, you are allowed to dislike or even hate me! I literally don't requite a shit! But if yous're just gonna tell me I'chiliad existence mean or some shit like that, yous can fuck right off because I exercise not care!

OK? Don't carp leaving butthurt comments because I'll only delete them.
Delight and thank you, etc.

OK, got that out of the mode, allow's get.

SPOILERS AHOY!

The first thing I take to say is that reading this volume fabricated me realize how much I know near Christine Riccio. Which is a weird thing to say, let me explain:
I used to exist a subscriber of hers. I watched her videos regularly as a teenager and eventually outgrew her (she is also loud and obnoxious for me, likewise she's get somewhat of a sellout and thus very untrustworthy, but that's besides the point).
However, unbeknownst to me, I learned a lot about her during these years. How do I know this and why am I bringing this up?
Considering 'Shane Primaveri' is Christine Riccio.

You see, it started slowly... Like when we starting time acquire Shane's last proper noun and its vaguely Italian I was like:

And then she tells the Love Interest Human being (whom nosotros will become to) the story about her online username and I was like:

FrenchWatermelon19

Yeah.

That is the main characters online username.

Because... french toast is her favorite breakfast food and watermelon is her favorite fruit.

So if you lot didn't know, Christine's online username Polandbananas20 (which she however uses...... for some reason) is based on her favorite make of jump water (???) and her favorite fruit.

At this indicate (it's like four chapters in) I was like OK... she'southward paying a little homage to her stupid username right? Right???

Yeah, no.

The longer I kept reading, the more Christine and Shane started to meld together until I ended up just picturing Christine as the main character.

1.Both of them are bones white girls with blondeish hair
2. They accept the same type of 'social anxiety', the 'relatable' type (listen, I struggled with social anxiety for years, it was crippling at times, similar you physically couldn't do stuff, information technology'south non simply 'LOL I'Thousand AWKWARD XD' and while it tin can exist overcome it's not just similar flipping a switch or trying to 'make a change')
3. The manner they talk is the exact same
4. They geek out excessively about the same stuff (harry potter, lost, taylor swift, the beatles, vampire academy, cassandra clare, john dark-green etc.)
v. They're both writers and avid readers
6. They both have a thing where they name inanimate objects and merely refer to the objects past their names (her computers name is Sawyer, Christine names all her computers and her cars equally far as I know)
7. They both studied a year abroad in London
8. They both accept a trip to Rome that they certificate, Shane via her weblog and Christine via her YT channel
nine. They're both very clumsy (though Shane's clumsiness is a scrap ridiculous, like she can't sit in a chair without knocking it over start)
(this listing is yet growing)

Listen, okay. Earlier I read this I didn't fifty-fifty realize I knew these things well-nigh Christine, only apparently I practise, and I don't like it.

And I tin't ignore that she basically merely wrote a book well-nigh herself traveling effectually Europe and falling in love with a girlfriend-having basic white boy whose fucking proper noun is Pilot Penn.

I also do not similar self-inserting, like, at all. I find it unbearably cringy and it'southward something I would expect of a middle schooler.
But hey, that's merely me.
Also, every bit her first published piece of work, it shows a huge lack of imagination.

So, disregarding the self-insert stuff, you may wonder; is the story good at least?

Non actually.
'Tis bland. Also, unoriginal.
It'southward basically Anna and the French Kiss in London with stupid and unexplained magical time travel thrown in. And there's a spirit guide type character. So, yeah, at that place's bodily magic in this.

And the writing?
Juvenile. Filled to the fucking brim with references, like holy fuck. Very herp-derp 'relatable', which is pretty much how Christine talks and acts lmao. Only... not expert. It's nil new, I feel like I've read this book a hundred times considering information technology's so unoriginal and boring. Nothing stands out. And most of the story takes place in similar 2011 so at that place'south a lot of 'LOL NEW GAME ANGRY BIRDS WANNA TRY??' and it was sooooooo cringy.
Was actually going to give this a 2 star rating (because, like I said, it's not a complete wreck, it's just boring and unoriginal) but the final chapter/epilogue bullshit made me cringe so hard I think I entered another dimension.

It'southward simply Christine writing her ain wish fulfillment fanfiction.

And if you like that, that'due south fine. You are allowed to similar things, just every bit I am allowed to not like things. Like wish fulfillment fanfiction. It's fine to do as long equally y'all don't charge people for it.

Even if by some miniscule take chances that it's not meant to be a self-insert (which I highly fucking uncertainty) it however shows so much weakness in her ability as a writer that she can't separate her own voice from her character. Because reading this volume is exactly like having Christine tell me a story about something that happened to her, when it really shouldn't.
Having a literary vocalism or a particular writing style is a matter, but that's not what I mean.
For case:
In Vampire University, Rose is the principal character. When I read those books I don't experience like Richelle Mead is telling me this story, I feel like Rose does.
When I read Madeline Miller's books (my favorite writer) I don't feel like she is telling me the stories, it's Patroclus or Circe.
(I should also point out that I've been following both Richelle and Madeline for years and while I obviously don't know them personally, simply similar I don't know Christine personally, I know how they nowadays themselves to the public, which is why I chose them to compare)
My indicate is, if you're going to write in first person, you lot need to be able to dissever yourself from your character, which Christine cannot practise. Because she hasn't created a character here, it'due south just her.

So, yeah. I practise believe she got this volume deal handed to her on a silver fucking platter. I just don't believe that annihilation this bland that does non include smut could exist published on its own.

I would keep a rant again most money-hungry publishers but I'grand tired so y'all can head on to my Zenith review for that.

Just, please. Please stop giving booktubers book deals. It's been proven by now that reading a lot of books and gushing nigh them online does not mean you can write one yourself. There are so many talented writers who get overlooked in favor of these 'internet sensations'. Imagine all the great stories that never see the light of solar day because shit like this gets pushed to the front.

And please don't come at me with the "of class they're money-hungry, information technology's a business!" argument because that'southward so fucking stupid. Yeah, it's a concern, the whole fucking world is a business organisation.
That doesn't hateful at that place shouldn't be integrity and a priority for talent in the publishing industry!

Bitch, farewell.

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Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41147279-again-but-better