Howdy YAL!

Really 1.5 stars, but I'm giving it a boost because it's a Rapunzel retelling. To see full review click here.Oh boy.I have mixed feelings about this one. I like the fact that it's good clean fun and that it's a Rapunzel retelling (who doesn't love a Rapunzel retelling) and that's about it...Which is sort of sad.It was my first Kindle purchase after all. And I wanted that purchase to be kick ass. But this wasn't.Yet, I don't feel like ripping this one into little bitty shreds because while it had several dumb ass moments, I could see some people enjoying this one.I know, weird right? Me not wanting to rip into something bad. What is wrong with me?What I'm trying to say is if you can suspend logic, like fairly bland characters, or are just naive you might like this this one. And that's not a bad thing.However, there were lots of problem with form and substance with this one and I think for the purpose of the review. I'm going divide these two sections up.Form:In general this one read okay. Major issues I found were repetitions with words or scenarios. There were like four or five chapters that ended with the same scenario (i.e. Rapunzel either went to sleep or kissed Fang). Also, there was repetitive uses of certain words throughout the book. Another issue with form was excessive descriptions. I really hate it when characters are described in detail. Not that I hate descriptions, I like descriptions. But to have the characters describe themselves to each other in such detail over Facebook...um yeah, it doesn't work so much.I think that was the same feeling I got with a lot of the dialogue that went on between the characters as well. It just felt stilted. And that wasn't just because dialogue was often used for info dumps. I think it was because of third person. Honestly, I think it's more difficult to write in third person than first and it shows here. There's just a very stilted tone with the writing and I felt it told more than showed. Was it bad? No. I enjoyed it enough. It was pretty clean over all, but there was just something off if that makes sense.Substance:Okay, this is where the real problems with the book reside.Substance.Let's talk with the characters first. God, were they dumb. Dumb. Dumb. Dumb.I can't handle stupid characters. Because I figure out their problem before they do. And that's just not fun. And really...really Rapunzel you didn't think anything was up? If you really were Bubble Girl you'd think you'd be seeing doctors on a regular basis. You'd be not allowed to open your windows and see pretty blue birds and if you wouldn't be immune to your mother's germs.Then there's the fact she knows about Google but never thinks to Google herself, her mother, or anything related to the questions that her mother refuses to answer. Can we say stupid?It gets worse though....you want to know what she does Facebook stalk? And she meets a random guy, who uses a fake name on Facebook who doesn't have a profile picture (She doesn't either-who doesn't have a profile picture?) Internet safety much? Or for that matter any knowledge about how Facebook actually works....ugh.And then the fact that Gothel blindly trusts her and doesn't even have Spyware, have some sort of blocking program on the machine, or check her online history? Really? I thought that was how she was going to get caught-because no way in the YA version would they have Rapunzel gets knocked up by the prince like in the original version. But the way that she got caught, she practically handed herself to Gothel by confronting her. Girl, what did you expect Gothel to do admit she was wrong and take you back to your birth parents?And then there was the end. It seriously, seemed like something out of Anastasia bad guy included. In fact, I felt like this was a mixture of that movie and Tangled (the characters are described looking just like Disney's version and there's even some scenarios). It just didn't make sense, not to mention Rapunzel had no one who cared about her save for Fang?Really?You think her bio parents just because they're divorced don't give a rat's ass about her. Did you see that Anderson Cooper special about missing kids last week? Geez....Best Feature: Appropriate. I really like the fact that this book was age appropriate. That's hard to find in this day and age. And I really think that this would've made a good middle grade book. Okay, so yeah, I do think that sometimes the book was immature but overall it's a YA book that I wouldn't be that nervous handing to a preteen save for one issue which I'll discuss later. Also, the idea is pretty kick ass.Worst Feature: Illogical mess. A lot of the plot is driven by stupidity. If the characters had a lick of common sense then the story could've been over a lot sooner than it was. Also, seriously, would you just randomly accept a request from a stranger on Facebook. I mean, that's not safe internet behavior. And the fact that this book sort of says that's okay...sort of ruins its best feature.Appropriateness: If you're looking for something for a younger teen, this is a book to get. There' s no cursing that I can think of and they barely kiss. Okay, maybe the end has some magic violence. But it's nothing you wouldn't see in a movie like Anastasia. Probably the worst thing is the message it gives about finding significant others on the internet. Obviously, Bennet has not watched Lifetime television.