Thank you NetGalley and Candlewick for the ARC of Stuck Up and Stupid by Angourie Rice and Kate Rice. Although I still have no idea how Lily came to have the feelings she proclaimed to have for Dorian, I still think this was a cute and easy read, though it did fall a bit flat. The beginning of the book was confusing initially, trying to differentiate all of the characters being named, but it did not take long to follow along. I feel like the characters needed more depth, as I didn't really feel anything for any of the characters except anger and irritation towards the mother. None of the characters were well developed enough to have a strong personality or allow me any attachment to a character. Dorian's character was very flat, and I was baffled by Lily's response because they had only a few conversations, most of which ended in an argument. I realize they are supposed to be the mains, but I don't love either of their characters. Lily had a decent character development in the end, but Dorian stayed boring with no personality through the entire book. Overall, it was not a bad book if you want an easy and simplistic YA book to read.

this was an interesting story and it was cool to see a mother and daughter duet on a ya book. i also didn't know or realize that this was the girl in the mean girls musical. very talented loved this quick read it is perfect for summer time.

This was a cute pride and prejudice retelling ! The romance was so fun and the banter was so cute! Would recommend

This book was cute, but it fell flat. I couldn’t really get it to this book. I couldn’t read it on my kindle because the format downloaded weirdly. But I was able to read it on my Ipad.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

I love me a good Pride and Prejudice retelling, especially one that truly honors the original. Lily had all of the spunk and demeanor of Lizzy Bennett and Dorian had all of the charm and aloof behavior that we’ve come to know with a Darcy. Stuck Up and Stupid had me hooked from the beginning and I loved laughing and sometimes cringing at all of Lily’s family escapades . A quirky retelling full of that classic Austen heart!

I was excited to read Stuck Up and Stupid because I am a huge Jane Austen fan and enjoy reading books based on her novels. Unfortunately, I did not finish the book. Like other reviewers, I felt the pacing was off and the characters did not jump off the page. I also did not enjoy how this was written from the third-person perspective. The copy I received was not well-proofed, which is understandable as it is an advanced copy, but it made it even more difficult to read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

found myself skim reading most of this book. it just didn't get my attention at all. didn't gel with the writing or characters

super cute retelling of one of my favorite books ever. although the characters were a bit annoying at times that was on purpose and it added depth to the story. I loved how the Bennet sisters were the aunts.

I didn't laugh, or smile or cry or feel anything while reading this book. I was just bored.

I tried so hard to continue it, but I just couldn't connect with the story or the characters. I DNFed it, which is sad since I was so very excited for it.

PS I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. So thank you!

As a huge Pride and Prejudice fan, I was intrigued and excited to read this "retelling" from an Australian location.
Stuck up and Stupid definitely did a good job portraying the main aspects of P & P from a fresh teen perspective. While Lily's independence gets a bit redundant through the story, it is a fun and lighthearted read. My students will love it.

Thank you netgalley for an arc of Stuck Up and Stupid by Angourie Rice: Kate Rice

I thought the premise of this book was really interesting and was excited to receive the NetGalley ARC. However, from page one you could tell It was going to be really hard to read. The way It was written and the formatting as well as grammatical errors just made It impossible for me to read. I could not picture the story at all because I had to keep stopping to use context clues to guess at incorrectly spelled or cut off parts of words. I had to DNF this one and I never do that :/

[review copy & pasted from my goodreads]

Stuck Up And Stupid is a retelling of Pride & Prejudice set in modern day Australia with movie stars, which is definitely an interesting take on the classic. The writing style sticks very closely to what you would have read during the Regency Era, it truly is like reading a Jane Austen novel…except I’m not sure how well that really works present day. I found myself wondering why I wasn’t just reading Pride & Prejudice the entire time. I don’t think this take on it brought anything new to the mix—or at least not in a positive way.

That isn’t to say it wasn’t good, because It is written well and I think the authors accomplished what they set out to. It’s just I really don’t think it was needed. They stuck so close to the original writing style that any reference to present day felt out of place and awkward. Every character was just a copy of the original characters, adding nothing unique. There are some slight differences here and there, obviously, but for the most part this book just has no originality.

I’m not trying to be harsh, because they did a good job, but I really just couldn’t stop wondering ‘why?’ the entire time I was reading it. Why go with this writing style? Why choose the age gap that they chose? Why are all the characters just even more annoying?

I don’t want to just say ‘negative’ things about it though, so I will say I always find a romance book that doesn’t solely rely on the overuse of intimacy, or tropey shenanigans refreshing. They did a good job of keeping my attention even though the romance was slow moving and could have easily felt overly drawn out.
So, yeah, if you love the story and characters in P&P you’ll probably really enjoy this book!


Thank you to the publishing team and the team at Netgalley for this arc!

Imagine if the Bennett sisters from Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice grew up with families of their own and Lydia is a single mum of two?

A charming YA set in a remote beachside town of Australia, I loved this book for its modern P&P vibes. Embarrassingly though it took me 40 pages to realise that Lily’s mum and aunts are the Bennett sisters! Alas not much of Uncle Fitz or Uncle Charles but they still made some lovely cameos, as does Aunt Kitty.

The only thing that I think was a let down was the authors slavishly copying the P&P plot template. Given this is more a 'next gen' modern tribute, it would've been far better to deviate from the original and just loosely use a few of the major plot arcs. As such this meant important developments were truncated, with more telling that showing.
The romance between Lily and Dorian needed more on-page showing of Lily's gradual change as well as reasons to show why Dorian would be so hung up on Lily given her attitude. Also, Lily’s existenial crisis about her future was rushed. I'd have loved to see the campaign arc develop earlier, instead of having to cut it to fit the P&P plot.

Overall, this was fun and sweet summer beach read and I devoured this in one sitting. I hope we get more from this mother-daughter writing duo.

Thanks to Holiday House/Peachtree/Pixel+Ink/Candlewick and NetGalley for the ARC.

It is a fun summer book with small town vibes and a funny dedicated family. I did feel like the characters could have been developed more with the story progressing. Sometimes it felt a little crass.

Stuck Up & Stupid caught my attention as a modern Pride and Prejudice retelling, set in a charming coastal Australian town. The premise had promise—Hollywood meets small-town life, first impressions, and enemies-to-lovers tension—but while it had moments of fun and lighthearted charm, it didn’t fully deliver for me.

Lily was a likable protagonist, and I appreciated the nods to Austen’s classic themes. The setting was vibrant, and there were glimpses of humor and banter that worked well. However, the character depth felt a bit lacking, and the chemistry between Lily and Dorian wasn’t as compelling as I had hoped. At times, the dialogue felt forced, and the pacing uneven, making it harder to stay fully engaged.

That said, I think readers who enjoy breezy YA romances or are looking for a light, summery read might still enjoy this. It’s a fresh, modern take on a beloved classic, even if it didn’t completely win me over.

I'm a sucker for a modern "Pride & Prejudice" adaptation, yet somehow this one just wasn't the one for me. It really feels like the youth version of a modern version of "P&P," one that reads quickly and resolves easily. There was an over-the-top amount of exposition, where I'd rather have more story points. The writing is fine and sort of basic, like about average but certainly not terrible by any means. In short, it's not the best "P&P" adaptation I've read, like, it's just alright. It is exactly what's expected and nothing really elevates the story to be unique.

I really enjoyed this book. I have high expectations for romance stories and this book hit every expectation I had. I would definitely recommend!

I'm a big fan of all things Austen and this did a good job of adapting it to a teen audience in a fresh way. I loved the Aussie backdrop and the focus on sisterhood amongst the crossroads of post-high school life. I think Rice did a better job portraying the family relationships between the characters as opposed to the romantic ones though.

⭐⭐
Me personally, I’m sorry I could not get into it I often found myself skimming through this novel, the writing was quite confusing and choppy, and the chapter transitions were all over the place. I didn’t find myself excited to find out more. I couldn’t keep up with all the characters. I felt like there were way too many stories being told and it confused me. Also, to me the characters were toxic and never listened to the girls' problems, they always blamed her or put her down. This was upsetting because the book had potential, I don’t think the Pride and Prejudice twist was hit very well, it felt rushed and forced. The chemistry between love interests felt awkward and boring like they didn’t care for each other, and she was there just for the status. It had a cool concept but unfortunately, the plot was weak. As always thank you so much to Net Galley for an ARC of this book. Stay blessed everyone 😊🙏

The premise of this book really caught my attention in the first place and really made me wanna read it! The characters seem interesting as well as the location of Pippi. The shoes and the injury, the fact that this is a normal thing? Wtf! Dorian having to work while on their trip and then staying at theirs for the time being while Juliet is healing. The hot tub scene. Why is Dorian looking at her like that?? Cecelia is jealous! Very attention seeking. Casey seems very genuine. They left?? Did he really get him fired? Cecelia warning her about Alex? Fake and sharp? Wilson! Just left out of nowhere? No contact either is very odd! They are now in LA staying at Wilson's place. The sunset room sounds interesting. The party! I don't know if I trust Stacy Black.. omg the kiss! He's so sus!! Woah Franklin exposing the truth!! He helped him save? Wilson and Nicola??!! Dorian showing up!! He wants her to stay? Damn that was rough. Alex is insane for doing that, Inez just spilled it all. Now she's back home! Him warming up to her/her warning up to him more in Australia versus the other locations that they saw each other at. The whole movie industry part was so interesting! The fact that the mom got sucked in by that Alex dude and then she just left her teenage daughter at a place she didn't know, wow. Them having to go back to pippi and pack what they could was very heartbreaking, I felt their pain. She came back? I wonder what happened out there! Police and actually getting justice? I knew Stacy was sus!!! They kissed!!! I loved this book way more than I expected to, the ending was sweet!

Quote: "not everything women do is for the benefit of men, you know"

I rated it four out of five stars!!