4.5/5

Okay yes!!!!! Just yes! That’s the whole review!

But if you need more….

This is probably the best retelling I’ve read of any kind, but to be fair, Twelfth Night is my favorite of Shakespeare’s plays. This was just so cute and fun and well-done!

I loved so many of the characters in this book - like literally all of them except the ones I was supposed to hate! The personalities and the way they all interacted with each other was just perfect.

In addition to good characters, this book had sports, computer games, cosplay, tabletop games, theater….. truly what more could somebody want?!?

I would consider this a highly feminist book but it was not written in a “men are the worst” way. In fact, this book had a male MC who I loved, which is very rare for me.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest rating and review.

"you," i inform him, "are the bane of my existence, jark orsino."
"as you are mine," he assures me.

MY BABIES. my actual babies. love them so much. they deserve the whole universe. first arc ever and i love it sm. definitely could have been more romance, especially when they got together in the end but yk what it's fine because they're so cute anyway.

'someone who keeps colliding with you, over and over. in everything you love. he's there too, and real or not, you can exist in every universe with ease because of him. because for every version of him, there is a corresponding one of you.'

This one was difficult for me to get through. I think it leaned a bit too heavy in both directions, a lot of football jargon and a lot of gaming jargon that made it hard to have its own identity.

I also felt some of the gender themes were a bit too in my face, and it effected my reading experience.

I do like the main characters arc from unlikable to more likeable, but ultimately this just wasn't for me.

Firstly, thank you to Netgalley and TOR for this ARC. Unfortunately, I only managed to read 8 percent of the book and DNF. The writing was too descriptive for a YA book and even more so, too much unnecessary dialogue. The first chapters are spent in the football game narration and the online game Vi is playing which , I would understand as though the writer is trying to make us get a better understanding of the characters but it's unnecessary. It just makes you sleep. Maybe this is for some other readers out there but not for me.

A remix of Shakespeare set in both the world of athletics and video games is the type of novel structure that covers a lot of bases for a lot of different types of students. It also shows teens that you can have your toes dipped in a lot of different areas. You don't have to just be "the jock" or "the perfect student" or "the gamer." Finding out that you have a lot of different interests is what adolescence, and especially high school, is all about. While some of the scenes (i.e. the verbal fights) were a little over-dramatic for my taste, the specificity of Vi's character and world surrounding role play video games was well developed. I got to learn about something I'm not super familiar with, but my students are very interested in.

The perfect book for anyone looking for something fun and charming but also... socially relevant. This book delt with so many topics like sexism, sexuality, social and familial responsibility, dealing with self-worth issues, etc., but incorporated everything so realistically into a light-hearted romcom.

Viola Reyes that it's kind of comical to me. She's a self-proclaimed nerd (same) with very strong feminist views (also same)... but the difference is, she is so firm with her own self-worth that she is willing to put her friendships on the line so that she doesn't ever get stepped on as a woman, which is something I can only aspire to be. Jack was amazing as well and he was so caring and kind hearted. I also liked how this was in dual pov because that helped me understand jack even better.

Overall, this was a fantastic read. Here's to all the feminist nerds of the world who need to be seen!

I really enjoyed this book! I started it expecting it to be more romantic but overall the messaging and romance went great together.

The story takes you through a journey of learning how to be yourself while navigating relationships around you. It teaches valuable lessons about handling emotions, feeling like you are alone or the world is ending.

Jack shows that you dont have to be just one thing. I love that a “popular” guy at the school discovers, enjoyed and then shares with the school Twelfth Knight. His realization that he’s more than a football player and can have interests and hobbies outside of football is important.

I really loved Vi’s cynical attitude paired with Jack’s determination. The tension between them was so great! The side characters were lovable and diverse. I did not see the twist with Olivia coming!

Overall 4 out of 5 stars. I really enjoyed this book.
Thank you NetGalley for the e-Arc in exchange for this honest review!

This is a fun and well-written YA romance that's less heavy on the romance and more about the characters figuring out who they want to be. I enjoyed the character development, how smart Viola was, and the detail that went into the gaming element of the story. I guess I'm not rating it higher because I realised half way through that I'm really tired of books set in american high schools with football players, homecoming dances and all the works... So even though this book was a different take on this, I just didn't find the setting super engaging or original.
Overall, I still think this is an appealing book - it just wasn't a stand out for me.

This was such a cute, easy romcom! The development of Jack and Vi, as well as the other side characters, was amazing. Though I had never read Shakespeare's Twelfth Night before, reading this retelling definitely sparked my interest in the original.

Thank you so much NetGalley and TorPublishing for giving me an eARC for the Twelfth Knight in exchange for an honest review!

In this modern re-telling of Twelfth Night, Viola Reyes and Jack Orsino are adversaries in real life and combat buddies in the MMORPG Twelfth Knight. Viola - who is tired of people mocking her for the things she loves - has built a wall around herself. Jack's suffering from a knee injury that might derail his entire future and doesn't feel like he can talk to his teammates. Through the game, they develop an unlikely friendship that is complicated when a tiny lie - Viola telling Jack that her name is Bash - leads to confessions, secrets and spying on classmates. Will their friendship survive the lies?

This was a wonderfully complex tale. Viola and Jack come to life on the page. I really enjoy books by Alexene Farol Follmuth.

Cute retelling/story with good writing! Typical rom com elements, but with a nice touch of coming-of-age that I always like to see in young adult stories. I really enjoyed the writing style the author used!

As someone who was really obsessed with She’s The Man in their adolescence this book was my bread and butter. I highly enjoyed Vi and Jack’s dynamic and witty repartee. This author knows exactly how to portray realistic relationships between her characters and I LIVE FOR IT. It also does a great job of modernizing the classic Shakespearean tale with a diverse cast and unique approach to the storyline. Long story short – If you were a fan of the early 2000s Shakespeare retelling meets high school romcom era this book is definitely for you!

Twelfth Knight is a modern day, YA re-imagining of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Viola Reyes is sick of misogyny in her fandom circles and plays as a male character in the online RPG Twelfth Knight. Duke Orsino is the star football player who starts playing Twelfth Knight in the aftermath of a sports injury. They strike up a friendship, both online and at school. I really appreciated that each character had their own internal battle to fight, and I got quite a kick out of seeing the in-book versions of real-life fandoms. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a grumpy-sunshine with a really feisty heroine. And anyone who, like me, was obsessed with a certain soccer-themed movie re-imagining of Twelfth Night.
I felt seen by Olivia and the struggles that she faces in the story. I empathized with Jack as my husband had not one but two knee injuries changing what his daily life looked like. Olivie beautifully tackled themes of feminism, misogyny, religion, and racism. Some of these were explored more than others, but I feel like this is a great starting point for important conversations. I loved the diverse cast of characters and how they added layers to story. I laughed! I cried! I felt anger and joy. Needless to say I will be thinking about this book for a long time!

omggg 4.5⭐️!!! i love love the authors writing style!! this was such an easy ready and i enjoyed every bit of it!! the characters were so will written

5.0

First off thank you Netgalley and the publisher for gifting me an arc for an honest review.

Love does not even begin to describe this book. Olivie Blake solidified her genius in my mind with her reimagining of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. I felt seen by Olivia and the struggles that she faces in the story. I empathized with Jack as my husband had not one but two knee injuries changing what his daily life looked like. Olivie beautifully tackled themes of feminism, misogyny, religion, and racism. Some of these were explored more than others, but I feel like this is a great starting point for important conversations. I loved the diverse cast of characters and how they added layers to story. I laughed! I cried! I felt anger and joy. Needless to say I will be thinking about this book for a long time!

In my opinion: Perfect for fans of She’s the Man

Thank you to Tor Publishing Group and NetGalley for providing an ARC for an honest review.

Based on the description solely I was very much looking forward to this book! Shakespeare's Twelfth Night is a classic story and retold modern day with a sporty/geekiness twist sounds like a comfort read. As someone who isn't into sports but into MMORPGs (that also got me through high school myself) I knew I would connect with Vi immediately (also being a woman in STEM who advocates for equality I knew exactly the issues she faces online).

This book falls under the Young Adult category well with the characters in their last year of high school determining what to do for college. With Jack's knee injury, he is having to re-evaluate his college plans of continuing to play football. Meanwhile, Vi doesn't know what she wants to do but she just wants the boys to listen to her while they play ConQuest (a DnD-style tabletop).

I wanted to love Vi as she slightly reminded me of myself but she was such a mean character. She gets called a bitch quite a bit throughout the book (sometimes even by herself) and some of the actions she takes it's understandable why people are mean right back. I was hoping she would have a redemption arc but she never does. Jack even tells her she never needs to change, just be herself. While you cannot please everyone in life, I was hoping to see more of her understand what her actions mean to others. Even later in the book with the minor fight between her and her brother it is glossed over. While Jack seems to have a character development and understanding that life will throw curve balls at you and you just have to do your best, it seems like Vi won't change and grow.

I wish we got to see more of Olivia, as she turned out to be my absolute favorite character. I loved her from the beginning and understood her actions and was happy to watch her character growth. If the author would ever want to continue the storyline or write up a bonus chapter, I'd hope to see Olivia in college being more herself.

Overall, I think the book was well wrote. It brought up feminism, race-issue, and religion issues. Though I do feel some of these issues were glossed over, knowing the intended audience is Young Adult, I hope that spears more conversations and allows them to stop and think if they would have acted any differently and maybe open their minds up more.

My TLDR: If you enjoyed other Twelfth Night retellings (or even enjoyed movies such as She's the Man), this book is for you. While Vi doesn't have any sort of character growth, Jack and Olivia's growth makes up for it.

StoryGraph Review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/f30708e3-198f-4641-9953-f939f95fca7f
GoodReads Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6238224425

Twelfth Knight is a modern day, YA re-imagining of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Viola Reyes is sick of misogyny in her fandom circles and plays as a male character in the online RPG Twelfth Knight. Duke Orsino is the star football player who starts playing Twelfth Knight in the aftermath of a sports injury. They strike up a friendship, both online and at school. I really appreciated that each character had their own internal battle to fight, and I got quite a kick out of seeing the in-book versions of real-life fandoms. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a grumpy-sunshine with a really feisty heroine. And anyone who, like me, was obsessed with a certain soccer-themed movie re-imagining of Twelfth Night.

Thank you to NetGallery for a free ARC.

At its base, this book is a fun, classic retelling of Twelfth Night. The characters are so fun and individual, I had no issues pulling them apart from the Shakespeare counterparts. I adored Vi and Jack. I loved watching them grow and watching Viola's walls break down to let Jack in, especially during the pseudo third act break up. These two are surprisingly mature for high school seniors but I appreciate not dumbing them down. I will say that towards the beginning Viola felt a little like a "I'm not like other girls" character, but I realized it was more of her protecting herself rather than trying to be different.
This book plays a lot on things such a sexism in the geek/nerd world. I think this translate very well into the Viola pretending to be her brother part of the plot. It also briefly touches on some notes of racism with Jack being mixed race, but it didn't hold much to the story. That being said, I loved having non of the main characters be white. It doesn't add or subtract much from the story itself, but I loved the inclusion of different races and heritages including Muslim (?) for Olivia Hadid.
This is such a fun YA novel. I thoroughly enjoyed devouring this book. It stays loyal to the source material while nurturing its own fun spin on the classic story. Well worth the read if you are a Shakespeare fan, or a fan of DnD or MMORPGs.

Okay. So I loved the author's previous book which was why I was so excited to get this one. Yet, the beginning was really slow start for me. Like really slow. And the topic of gaming was a bit boring for me. Too many references thrown at me about the games and role playing parts. The two main characters were great though. And I definitely wanted to know what happened to them. Some parts were very predictable but gave the story the flow it needed. Overall, it was a nice romance, I just didn’t enjoy this book as much as I hoped. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for my ARC in exchange for my review.

This was a really fun read! It was super nerdy in a good way and I loved the main characters. The romance was super cute and their initial awkward friendship was fun and weirdly realistic. My only complaint was that there were a few too many unnecessary side characters and it kind of got confusing after a while.