Gena/Finn Hardcover – May 17, 2016

I read most of this book in one sitting; then real life and responsibilities kicked in and I had to sneak short snippets of it in on lunch breaks and the few precious moments of consciousness before sleep. All in all, I think I read it in three days... I lost the pacing at the end of the book... at times I worried that I had stopped liking it or caring about how it ended; but I kept going. Even as I finished the book I wondered if I really liked it, but quickly realized this was a book, these were characters that were going to resonate with me. I won’t be forgetting this one!

I found the characters in Gena/Finn to be well written, especially the primary duo and the people closest to them, specifically Zack and Charlie, despite their limited scenes. Some of the situations leading to the major crisis seemed almost too much of a "perfect storm", but once the storm was there, it was impressive. I felt like the ending was ambiguous in a positive manner. It had a feeling of hope, a feeling that these two would weather the storm and come out stronger on the other side. What EXACTLY would their relationship be? That's hard to say, but they will be together in some manner, because their bond goes beyond mere friendship. They are family, regardless of romantic attachments. Nothing will change that.

The concept of this book was great. Girl meets girl. Girl has boyfriend. Girl bonds with girl over an internet fandom. Let's face it, it's a really common thing these days. But unless you're a big "Fault in Our Stars" fan or have a bit of a God complex, this book doesn't exactly sit right. Up until the end, I was really into the book but the latter 1/3 or so did not appeal to me and just really didnt do it for me.

I really enjoyed this look at fandom and friendship. Anyone who's participated in an online community will find something to enjoy and relate to in Helgeson and Moskowitz's unconventional novel. It's told through a variety of media, from text conversations and emails to Tumblr-like posts and, eventually, letters and journal entries. A lot of reviewers have noted how the narrative and the mood shifts gears about halfway through the novel. It's unexpected, and it moves the novel into the expanded territory of overseeing a friend through a crisis (and how an online-built friendship naturally changes as it moves into the "real world"). I'll be thinking about this book for a long time -- I feel like it was a bit of an under-the-radar read for 2016, and I hope it continues to find an audience this year and beyond.

While the method of using blog posts and online conversations, etc. was interesting, it ultimately limited the capability of effectively telling the story. I felt that there were a lot of places where the potential for more depth was missed. It was a cute story, but it could (and should) have been more.

This is a really quick read. It's something of a love letter to fandom and internet friendship, without glossing over the messy bits.The shift once Gena and Finn meet in person and are in the same place is a little awkward, but I still love the relationships among Gena, Finn, and Charlie.

Super cute story! Probably easier to read in a physical form, the kindle format just didn't do it justice. I felt like it ended kind of abruptly and I did roll my eyes a few times at the characters, but it was mostly good!

I loved this book, but it made me really sad in places. I don't want to spoil it, so I won't give details, but it was an exploration of mental health that I wasn't prepared for at the time I read it. It's a great book, and I plan to read it again some day, but not right now.

Gena and Finn are both fans of the show Up Below. Gena writes fanfiction about her favorite characters in the whole world. Finn draws and also writes blog posts. That's how she and Finn get to know each other. Finn is a few years older than Gena. Gena is a high school graduate who still needs to start her college experience. Finn already has that behind her and is looking for a job. She's also in steady relationship. She's living together with her boyfriend and marriage could be in their near future, which terrifies her.Gena and Finn have an immediate connection and they become close. When they have the chance to meet their bond becomes even stronger. Everything is going well until disaster strikes for Gena and that is when she needs her new, but really good friend more than ever. Will Finn be able to take care of her or are there too many obstacles in their way?Gena/Finn is a beautiful story written in an unusual format. I love that this story entirely consists of blog posts, chats, journal entries, messages and emails. There are even a few great drawings. It's a fun way to read a story. The connection between Gena and Finn is deep. They love exactly the same things and they can talk about anything. Even though their are at different points in their lives they immediately understand one another and their connection grows into something special and unique.Friendship and love can have many forms and they don't necessarily need a label. That is what I liked so much about this book, not everything can be defined. Gena and Finn are both talented girls who are living a large part of their life via social media. I think it's fantastic that Kat Helgeson and Hannah Moskowitz used this platform with limitless possibilities to their advantage. It's a novel in a modern epistolary form and I absolutely loved that. I highly recommend this impressive story, both the format and the writing itself are fabulous.

Wow. I don't know where to start with my thoughts on this books, which I picked as something fluffy and ended up being a beautiful and immensely difficult emotional experience. The way this story conveys Gena and Finn's immense and complex connection to each other pulled at me deeply.Rarely if ever do I see anything convey how quickly you can become incredibly close to someone through something like fandom. The way this also shows the difficulty of the transitional periods they are both in, how hard it can be to do things that many people seem to find easy, was perfect. I really also love the way Gena's relationship with Charlie was treated and shown throughout the story.I struggled with how dark this got. There was a certain build up, but I also felt very thrown by a major event, which I suppose is the point, but I was not emotionally prepared for it. I also felt like I wanted slightly more at the end. I didn't expect a neat resolution, but just... a little more.I am generally a huge fan of epistolary fiction, and I think it largely worked exceptionally well here, but I missed the more direct communication between Gena and Finn towards the end, which was somewhat a restriction of the form. I overall think it was a perfect way to tell this particular story.I really like the way we were shown Gena's mental health issues over time, the way you can see the support, and lack of it, and how it has affected and shaped her. I also really liked that it made clear both main characters do have romantic interest in women, even as their relationship is not a straightforward or clear-cut romance.More spoilery, I really appreciate the way it showed a fandom and individuals react to the death of one of the main actors in their TV show. While I've not had a personal relationship with the actor, I've been in a fandom when it happened, and the gross reactions, the struggling to understand how to mourn a character when a real live person has also died, trying to understand how to process that and move on, are things I relate to, seeing a version of them portrayed was something I appreciated, while it was also difficult emotionally.I would definitely recommend this book, but be prepared for something that is much more than it may seem. This is a complicated and intense novel about fandom, friendship, and love, and how very hard life can be.

I adored this. The story is told through online and written interactions only, which I thought had the potential to be gimmicky but actually flowed really well and invisibly. One of my favourite YA reads of 2016.

Solid book

I loved everything about this.I'm a sucker for special format books, so i thought a book told entirely in texts, emails and blog posts was genius.The fandom talk was so realistic, I actually cared for the fictional characters from the TV show they watch. I also could relate a lot to connecting to someone you've only ever met online.I also loved the vaguely polyamory vibes when Charlie helps taking care of Gena.This book took me through all emotions: joy, laughter, fear, sadness. I cried my way through the entire part 3.I usually spent a week or two on a book, but this one I devoured in 4 hours, unable to put it down.