Still really enjoying this series. I find Elli and Aditi both deeply annoying – why can't they just do their jobs? Luckily Michelle and Taneesha are getting things done.

Another interesting book in this series. Not my usual genre, but it was fun to read nonetheless!

This one was more upbeat than the last, but some of the depressing storylines continue, and more pop up. There’s still enough funny moments to keep me going, but this wasn’t as fun as the earlier episodes.

Pussy Bites Back
Geek Actually, Book 1.7

I Picked Up This Book Because: This title specifically got me interested in the series.

The Characters:

Aditi Sodhi, Christina Webber, Elli Kelman, Michelle Andrada, Taneesha Adams:


The Story:

My takeaway from this book: Men are awful. I know this is not universally true but OMG almost all the men in this episode SUCK! I’m disappointed that I had to skip from 1 to 7 because obviously I missed a lot of information but I can’t get my wallet to give me the okay for spending 1.99 for less than 50 pages. So from what I can tell from where I’m at, Michelle’s husband is a jerk. Taneesha is dealing with the motherload of all of the terrible examples of humans, and Aditi is about to dive into that pool with her.


The Random Thoughts:



The Score Card:

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4 Stars

I have to admit this was one of my favorite episodes in the Geek Actually Serial as lately I've found the last few to be a bit on the blah side. Pussy Bites Back was like feminism coming up on the rise and standing up for what they believe in. Aditi is feeling pressured from Michelle about the blog posts needed for publicity and decides to blog on Jezebel about Safe spaces. The blog goes viral which is awesome, and I loved the post as it does get you thinking as on the world of the Internet, do we have any safe spaces? Most sites, even Goodreads and Amazon fall prey to trolls. Taneesha's harassment is getting worst with packages and nasty surprises arriving at her home address. Can Taneesha finally get the authorities to take notice now before her life ends up in complete danger? Ellie's job as a PA has been going well, but what happens when she is exposed to the world of hate mail? Will Ellie up and quit as she has been so known for in the past or will she persevere and realize that the world we live in, especially the book world isn't all sunshine and roses? Episode #7 of the Geek Actually serial is quite a suspenseful episode and in places darker than the previous episodes. I am looking forward to reading how Taneesha's storyline plays out and also to see if Aditi will ever finish her book for Michelle's company?

PICK
This serial is simultaneously super good and super stressful. The harassment storyline heats up in this episode as Elli gets a look at her new boss's huge file of hate mail and Aditi takes a stand. Thankfully, the scenes about Christina's love life relieve the tension as she and Vivi add a new element to their relationship.

Next episode, please.

Having read a serial, The Immortal Circus, only once before, I wondered if I would find this format just as compelling a second time around. While the element of being introduced to a new fantasy world ensnared me the first time, I was compelled to read the Geek Actually series because I relate to the authors and characters, who are primarily women of color. While the concept of receiving a book chapter-by-chapter may seem new to many, it is actually a format that was used very much in the 19th and early 20th centuries. What was then published in magazines to subscribers, would often offset the cost of entire book, which were expensive in those times. As a book reviewer and someone who reads a lot of academic papers for work, what I like most about this format is that I don’t feel like I’m lagging behind when it comes to completing a chapter. Each chapter that I read for the Geek Actually series took about an hour, which is the approximate length of my commute on the New York City subway.

Geek Actually is one of the series available under the Serial Box imprint and is written by four authors, Cathy Yardley, Melissa Blue, Cecilia Tan, and Rachel Stuhler. Each episode chronicles the adventures of Michelle, sci-fi book publisher extraordinaire, her half-sister and production assistant Christina, an author in the Midwest named Aditi, Taneesha, a game developer who geeks out on games as much as she does Beyonce, and Elli the young, free-spirited cosplay enthusiast. Serial Box offers teasers into their world with a free preview and first episode on their website. I dare you to read them and NOT get hooked. I found the most captivating aspect of this series to be how well each author has seemed to capture behaviors that I recognize in myself and others, including using Slack to communicate as a group. At times I feel as if someone has peeked into the diary I’ve never written! While I’d like to share my insight on the whole story, I have only received the ARC for episode seven, thus, I can only review the plot of it and episode one.

When episode one left off, Michelle contemplated her dissolving marriage and how to maintain her semblance of authority at work while managing her recalcitrant author and friend, Aditi. In episode seven we get a better glimpse into how Michelle holds this together (not well) but that she has good instincts when it comes to her friends. It also seems that she’s experienced a lot of personal growth after becoming a publisher and needs to further explore what this means for her and her personal relationships. Part of me wonders if Aditi would be better served in not working directly with a friend and instead had someone who understood her professional needs to represent her as an author. As we see in chapters one and seven, Aditi has a tendency to avoid her problems and become defensive when pushed to do something she has no desire to do or doesn’t understand how to do (very similar to my own tendencies). She also continues to hold a grudge against Michelle for signing her into something she didn’t want but benefits her in the long run. While Michelle’s prodding bears fruit in Aditi’s work, I felt this didn’t release any of the tension in their relationship. I hope that the pair can resolve their issues without having a huge blowout but I have a feeling that wish will not come true.

Speaking of tension, Taneesha is going through her own private hell as she faces backlash from a community of MRA bros who have doxed her for successfully beating a guy in World of Warcraft. When she tries to relieve some of the tension by having a glam day, it seems to inspire even more undesirable attention, from an unexpected place. In LA, Christina ignores the tension that is bound to come up when you mix business and pleasure. She’s literally dating the star of the movie that she’s works on as a PA! Can’t imagine issues that could arise there… Finally, Elli seems to have found her calling as an assistant for a cosplay queen, but has to evaluate whether she has what it takes.

So who is the metaphorical pussy biting back in this episode? Aditi and Taneesha reacting to the negative forces that they encounter? Is ‘pussy’ being used as a negative pejorative for the cowardly men imposing their will onto the women? I’d like to think it’s the former because pussy is actually WAY more resilient than male genitalia (and is more commonly used in colloquialisms) and each of the women display some form of resilience in this series. I look forward to catching up with the episodes that I’ve missed and reading upcoming installments.

I didn't really enjoy the last few issues but this one was pretty good. I mean first of all I love the title and also really liked Aditi's article. The last two episodes were kind of depressing to me [I mean, rightly so, but I don't read to get even more depressed than I am already so I wasn't really into it] but I think this one is kind of turning to a more hopeful tone [or at least I hope so, I want these ladies to get happy endings by the end of this. They've been through enough]. Also there weren't any sex scenes or BDSM stuff in this one so I actually read the whole thing without skipping around!

OMG! Another captivating episode in this awesome series! The last one left me worried about Taneesha so I am pleased to report satisfaction about how her challenges were handled since.