Anyway, after I finished reading Tell Me Three Things, I knew I wanted to follow it up with another YA novel, so I went looking through my Kindle library, and I came across Dating on the Dork Side, which I borrowed through Prime Reading on a whim several weeks ago.
Stung by an epic betrayal, Camy Cavanaugh relies on the sure things: her best friend, her job as peer tutor, and her safe spot on the sidelines of life. But when she hacks into a secret, trash-talking website, it ignites a war between the sexes that won’t end until the whole school is turned upside down—and Camy’s world is turned inside out.
Now the hottest girls in school refuse to date the A-List boys. But with the Homecoming dance looming, everyone from the queen bee to the girl “most likely to” pushes Camy to hook them up with guys from the nerd herd.
And then there's quarterback, A-lister—and former crush—Gavin Madison. He hasn’t spoken to Camy in three years … but he’s talking now, begging her to pair the guys on the football team with girls from the Honor Roll.
It’s a contest of wills and everything is on the line—even Camy’s heart. Will she retreat to the sidelines, or will she find the courage to get back in the game?
Dating on the Dork Side is a book that I could easily see being made into a teen movie in the likes of Easy A or The Duff. It wouldn't surprise me at all to find it on the big screen one day. It's more about friendship than romance (though there is a bit of romance, too), which is a nice change of pace from most YA.
High school tutor Camy is surprised to find baseball star Jason "The Ab" Abernathy in the tutoring room on the first day of school. Even more surprising is what he's doing there—using the school computers to access a password-protected website. She's able to hack in once he leaves (his password isn't particularly difficult to guess), and what she discovers turns her world upside down: it's a wiki called "The Hotties of Troy," and most of the girls in school—including Camy—have pages devoted to them. After Camy alerts Elle, the school's most popular girl, to the presence of the wiki, the girls band together to get back at the boys ... and unexpected friendships and relationships spring from the chaos.
The first two-thirds of this book is simply fantastic! It's so entertaining and, at times, unexpected. The last third isn't as strong, as the plot goes down a predictable (the creator of the wiki), head-scratching (the "evil" teacher who apparently goes through a personality transplant in Camy's disciplinary meeting), and unbelievable (the aforementioned disciplinary meeting and its aftermath) path.
I still greatly enjoyed the novel—it's quite engaging and perfect for film. I just hope that if it is ever adapted, the filmmakers tweak the ending. 3-1/2 stars.
Content note: There are a few swear words throughout (not many—I'd guess 10-ish), and there's some non-explicit talk of sex. I'd rate it a PG-13.
Buy (or borrow) the book.
Charity Tahmaseb and Darcy Vance have been writing BFFs since the last century. Their first outing together, The Geek Girl's Guide to Cheerleading, was a YALSA 2012 Popular Paperback pick in the Get Your Geek On category.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I borrowed this book with my Prime membership and chose to review it. The opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
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