Alexene Farol Follmuth aka mother Olivie Blake never fails to deliver on all front no matter the genre and Twelfth Knight was no less than pure and utter perfection.

Twelfth Knight is the story of our prickly hedgehog heroine, Viola, who enjoys role playing games, alongside an online battle game called Twelfth Knight. Our hero, Jack “Duke” Orsino, is the popular jock, well loved and adored, with a cheerleader girlfriend he adores and obsessed with football, until he injures his knee and has to sit out for the season. Bored with nothing to do, his friend introduces him to Twelfth Knight, which slowly takes over his time. Vi and Duke are also on the student council, and are one sided rivals I suppose since Vi doesn’t like him, and they usually clash and go back and forth with one another. Until Jack and his girlfriend have problems, and he requires Vi’s help as she becomes close to Olivia.

What I loved about Twelfth Knight is the subtle nods and ode to the play, whilst Alexene created a new game inspired by the play and has its own life and story. The details and concept really brought the whole story to life and I was invested in all of the quests Vi and Jack went on, and the ending scene of their final quest was like a movie. I was totally on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen. Alongside our loveable grumpy on the outside and cinnamon roll on the inside heroine and our sunshine hero, I adored all of the side characters too, especially vi’s brother and Olivia. Each side character had so much depth and their own backstory which complimented both vi and jacks journeys 🩷

I loved how jack and even vi’s culture/heritage was portrayed in this book, it added some maturity to the characters and really cemented how important it is for YA romance books to tackle real issues whilst writing a fictional world. This is such a huge elevation from My Mechanical Romance and just proves that Alexene is getting better and better at this genre, and has me excited to read more in the future.

If you’re looking for a fun, easy to read YA romcom, which has the reverse grumpy sunshine trope, a gamer/nerdy heroine, and BIPOC representation, then look no further than Twelfth Knight!

Thank you so much to Netgalley, the publishers and Alexene Farol Follmuth for my ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The classic 2000s Shakespeare retelling film in novel format. Jack Orsino is not having a good semester - a debilitating injury, a suddenly distant girlfriend and forced interaction with Viola Reyes. Things aren't looking rosy for Vi either - dude bros and "nice guys", a best friend that takes people pleasing to Olympic gold standard and having to do the work of most of the student body committee - in particular, its democratically elected (even after a recount) but largely useless president, Jack "Duke" Orsino.

Through an online game, the two connect and get to know each other better. The catch? Jack believes he's talking to Vi's brother, Bash. This book is a fantastic exploration of relationships - romantic, platonic and fandom. I was expecting a light, fluffy, funny YA read and I absolutely got that, but also much more. It's also an insightful look at how gender affects how people treat you, how race affects how people see you and how it's OK to be angry about that.

Special mention also has to go to the quoting of lyrics from the 10 Things I Hate About You soundtrack! Loved it.

Absolutely adored this book. The main character is complex but ultimately loveable and we have no problem siding with her. Female Rage needs to be in more novels, especially coming of age! Alexene can do no wrong

Ahh this book is so cute, I just loved it. I'm not usually a huge fan of YA romance atm but this was so much more than regular romance. Plus it's a Shakespeare retelling and we all love that. It also brought back so much nostalgia, as it reminded me of the film She's the Man, but with a nerdy twist.

What to expect:
Shakespeare retelling
Gaming chat
Fierce feminist FMC
Sport romance

Did you know this was Olivie Blake writing under a different name? And this feels like more her roots, it reads very fan fic for me. Which was actually surprisingly perfect. I've not rated a YA so high in a very long time.

There's so much banter in this book, between the love interests, siblings and friends. But there is also a deep message of feminist values and how people view women in the gaming world. How they aren't treated as equals, and regularly have their ideas shattered by men who think women shouldn't be gaming.
Vi doesn't conform for anybody, so she is considered a bitch, but I admire her so much. I wish I could have read this book as a teen or young adult, because I could have learnt a thing or 2 from Vi.

Highly recommend this one book lovers, I've not read anything quite like it ever!