All the Feels: All Is Fair in Love and Fandom

by Danika Stone

College freshman Liv is more than just a fangirl: The Starveil movies are her life...and her last tangible connection to her deceased father. Thus, when her favorite character, Captain Matt Spartan, is killed off at the end of the last movie, Liv Just. Can't. Deal.

Tired of sitting in her room sobbing, Liv decides to launch an online campaign to bring her beloved hero back to life. With the help of her best friend, Xander, actor and steampunk cosplayer extraordinaire, she creates #SpartanSurvived, a call that ignites the fandom. But as her online life succeeds beyond her wildest dreams, Liv is forced to balance that with the pressures of school, her (mostly nonexistent and entirely traumatic) romantic life, and her disapproving mother's new boyfriend. A trip to DragonCon with Xander might be exactly what she needs to get away from it all... and figure out what (and who!) she really wants, in this geeky romance by Danika Stone.

Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult, Romance, Fandom, Realistic Fiction, New Adult, Fiction

304 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 7, 2016

About the author

Danika Stone is an author, artist, and educator who discovered a passion for writing fiction while in the throes of her Masters thesis. A self-declared bibliophile, Danika now writes novels for both teens (Switchback, All the Feels and Internet Famous) and adults (Inescapable: A Ghost Story, Sip Sip Bang Bang, Edge of Wild, The Dark Divide and Fall of Night). When not writing, Danika can be found hiking in the Rockies, planning grand adventures, and spending far too much time online. She lives with her family and a houseful of imaginary characters in a windy corner of Alberta, Canada.

Ms. Stone is represented by Moe Ferrara of BookEnds Literary Agency.

Reviews

[Lyn *GLITTER VIKING* · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't understand why so many "fluffy" books have to include so many harmful cliches:

-Female on female hate: Liv HATES Arden (Main Love Interests (MLI)'s cute, perfect, blinde, perky, GF for NO reason.

-Supporting characters "goodness" with a world full of horrible characters: Seriously, EVERY male that isn't MLI is a horrible, rotten asshole. Another possible love interest who is kinda sweet? Big asshole in an unrealistic, over-the-top manner. Liv's mother's boyfriend is so redneck and cartoonishly rude and evil!! Every other guy on the planet is so rude to Liv, but there is Xander, MLI, to SAVE THE DAY!! Isn't it awesome how the world is filled with horrible, rude people, except for Xander and Liv? They are SO unlike all of the other assholes of the world!!

Fat hate: A character that is pretty well liked previously to in person introductions is discovered to be middle aged and fat, and her pushiness and her weight become a joke, such as using sausage fingers for her description.

All the Hate: This book totes so much hatred. Girls wearings too-tight shirts and yoga pants are scoffed at and called "unfeminine" by MLI to help poor belittled Liv feel better about her looks. The person that Liv just adores HATES her, because that makes "real love" so much better, you know? Liv's mom is just so mean to her, even though she has a great point; if your hobbies are causing you to fail school work, then there is a problem. Even though the ending is just perfect and ideal and fuck schoolwork, that isn't idealistic, and supporting the idea that it is okay to blow off school work because you want to act like a slobbering fangirl online is concerning.

Immature characters: These characters act like they are fresh into middle school, not college kids. Liv mopes for weeks when a character from a show dies. Like, mopes and falls into a depression and whines to her friends how depressed she is that a character died. And Liv has seriously no other interests. It is even brought up that she has no other passions outside of her ONE fandom, and that is never resolved. Seriously, this book makes me more worried about Liv - I felt no connection to her issues. It was like the great big book of white whine.

Supports Abuse: The book supports that actors are here to only serve the "fans" - that they are only put upon this Earth to meet the demands of the audience. Like entertainment slaves. Seriously, MLI tells Liv that the only opinion that matters are the ones supported by the fans and the audience. It doesn't matter if an actor is unhappy with a role or ready to move on - it isn't their call to make. Even earlier in the book, there is a death threat against a real person because a movie didn't end the way the "fans" wanted it to. This was the main reason why the book is at a one star. I hardly ever rate books I finish at one stars, but here it is.

This book was a heaping pile of horrible. The characters were flat and unrealistic, and the book wasn't even really about "fandom", but how unfair life is for Liv, even though she made her own issues.
-

[Amelie · Rating 3 out of 5]

All the Feels war für mich eine Mischung aus Begeisterungsstürmen und Kopf-gegen-Wand Momenten.

Das Buch ist tatsächlich wie geschaffen für alle Fangirls dieser Welt. Mit dem Starveil Fandom hat die Autorin viele bekannte Fandoms vereint und reale Phänomene integriert, die das ganze glaubhaft machten. Mir gefielen auch die kleinen Twitter Unterhaltungen, die bei großen Entwicklungen im Fandom hier eingefügt waren super gut, inklusive der zusammengephotoshopten Bilder. Man konnte die Protagonistin super verstehen, auch wenn es um ihre Besessenheit mit dem Fandom ging und wie das ihr Leben beeinflusst hat. Natürlich hat sie es ein wenig zu weit getrieben und ich finde es etwas schwierig, dass all ihre Probleme am Ende einfach so verpufft sind, aber tendenziell haben mir auch diese Zukunftsängste sehr gut gefallen. Das Gefühl auf der Dragon Con hat mich persönlich stark an meine Erfahrungen auf diversen Buchmessen erinnert und ich denke, dass es da vielen anderen Lesern auch so gehen wird.

Ein weiterer großer Punkt, der mich zum swoonen gebracht hat, war Xander. Er war einfach ein sehr toller Charakter, den man schon sehr früh ins Herz schließt und der einzigartig ist. Seine charmante Art, sein ständiges Cosplay und was für ein guter Freund er gewesen ist, haben die Liebesgeschichte zu sehr süß gemacht, sodass man am Ende glücklich aufseufzen kann.

Leider gab es mit dem Buch auch einige Probleme. Eines davon war Xanders Freundin. Sie war einfach ein wundervoller Mensch und ich habe nie verstanden, warum die Prota sie nicht mochte. Oder eher ich habe es sehr gut verstanden, fand es allerdings recht unfair. Warum die Beziehung auseinandergegangen ist, ist auch offen geblieben. Ich hatte ja schon das Gefühl, dass sie gemerkt hat, dass die "Freundschaft" der beiden deutlich mehr ist als nur das. In diesem Zusammenhang erfährt man auch nicht, wie lange Xander Gefühle für sie hatte. Das hätte ich auch ganz interessant gefunden.

Hinzu kommt die Tatsache, dass fast alle anderen Charaktere wirken, als seien sie nur Mittel zum Zweck. Die Mutter, die sehr unsympathisch dargestellt wird, ganz zu schweigen von deren Arschloch-Freund. Hank, der teils gar nichts falsch macht, aber dargestellt wird wie der Teufel persönlich und dann tatsächlich handelt wie der letzte Vollidiot, um zu bestätigen, dass Xander in diesem Buch das einzige männliche Wesen ist, das auch nur ansatzweise in Ordnung ist. Kein Wunder, dass man ihn so sehr mag. Auch der Schauspieler von Spartan war überzogen Klischeehaft dargestellt, was ich sehr schade fand. Hinzu kommt ein ziemlich mieser Moment, in dem Liv auf Joe trifft, eine Frau aus dem Fandom, und schockiert darüber ist, dass diese übergewichtig und um die vierzig ist. (Liv selbst war noch ein kleines Kind als der erste Starveil Film erschienen ist und es handelt sich hier NICHT, um Teenie Filme, das bedeutet, dass die meisten Fans etwas älter sein werden als Liv). Das war wirklich ein cringe Moment, weil sogar von ihren "Wurstfingern" die Rede war.

Das Ende war mir generell etwas zu over the top Happy. Und wenn das von mir kommt, dann heißt das schon was. Nichtsdestotrotz habe ich All the Feels sehr gerne gelesen, weil es so viele Querverweise auf andere Bücher hatte und das Fandom Gefühl perfekt eingefangen hat. Die Kapitel beginnen übrigens jedes Mal mit einem Zitat aus einem Fandom, was auch ganz toll gewesen ist!

[Dahlia]

Cute, fandom-y, and a super unique love interest who's actually an on-page bi boy!

[Rhea · Rating 1 out of 5]

I loved the idea of this book when I first saw the summary of this book. And don’t get me wrong, I still believe that this book—re-written with a completely new cast—has loads of potential among the fan community. I just don’t get why this book was ever written with this particular godforsaken cast. It’s one thing to write cute and fluffy, but one completely other to write a book that borders on childish, whiney and worst of all, hateful.

My first complaint with the book—my most pre-dominant problem with the book—was the main character, Liv. I wish this girl had never been written ever, and I hope for my sanity’s sake that I don’t see any more characters like her. We’re talking about a college freshman who stops eating, drinking, or doing anything at all because her favourite character from her favourite movie series dies unexpectedly.

Now, we’re readers. READERS. We read more than we function IRL. Obviously, we’ve all had characters die that we never thought would. (See: Red Wedding, Remus Lupin, Charlie Bradbury) But beyond maybe a day or two’s time of brief sadness, I don’t remember falling into a sort of low and down after reading/seeing a particular death. And I most definitely don’t remember becoming a constant source of whining. Liv is exactly this. She doesn’t have any interests that are talked about, and she sort of slides into this funk for weeks. According to me, the girl needs therapy, not another instalment of the series. I’m a part of many fandoms myself but I couldn’t connect with Liv at all, or even empathise with her “problems.” Hobbies are important, but would you really place them above your studies and schoolwork?

The supporting characters in this book were a nightmare. A legit, walking, talking nightmare. I couldn’t find one person I liked. Xander, the best friend, was a Steampunk cosplayer, but dressed up like a 19th century Englishman, for some reason that is beyond me. Like, how are the two even remotely connected? It is mentioned, several times, that Liv and Xander met in college, but what does he study? Acting? Freak-showing? I have no clue whatsoever. And the way Xander spoke was…creepy. He referred to women as “dearest,” and actually used the word “delicious” while talking about Liv’s body. It was downright disgusting. Calling a girl “delicious" while leering at her is not cute or awkward or hot. It’s ridiculously creepy and you need to run away from such a person, please.

Major disappointment, this one, with a third person POV that was only made more unbearable by the cast of characters who belong in nothing else but therapy. Too much drama, too less substance, the “romance” was disturbing, and definitely not an apt representation of the men and women that make up any given fandom.


I was provided a free earc of this book by Swoon Reads through Netgalley in exchange of an honest review. This did not in any way, however, influence the content of this review.

[Fafa's Book Corner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review posted on Fafa's Book Corner !

Beware spoilers ahead!

I received this E-ARC via Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I am also participating in the Sunday Street Team for this book.

I had heard about this book through GR. At the time I didn't really pay attention to it. Then when I joined the Sunday Street Team for the author's other book Edge of Wild I noticed that the author was having another book coming out this year. Honestly the first time I read the synopsis I thought I would hate this book because at the time it sounded really dumb. But I decided to give it a shot. There are a lot of books that I now love and at one point I thought I would hate. I am happy to say that I enjoyed this book!

The book begins with explaining us a movie. The only thing you know is that it's an alien movie. The main character whose name is Spartan is trying to kill the aliens. With him is a little girl who is attempting to help him. When the two reach an escape pod Spartan tells the girl to run while the countdown is going off. The girl is able to reach the pod and escape. Meanwhile Spartan dies in the explosion.

We are then taken to Liv and Xander. The two are both in shock. Although Liv is in much worse shape. Xander gently tells her that they need to leave the theater and guides her out. He goes to get the car meanwhile Liv waits inside. She has an emotional outburst and takes it out on the workers. Eventually she leaves still very upset. The minute she reaches her house she goes to Twitter and tells some of her friends that Spartan died. Spartan could have made it out as there was one more pod left.

The following week Liv remains depressed. Xander has tried his utmost to help her and get her out of the house. Her mother has tried to same although she doesn't do it very nicely. Then one day when her mother's boyfriend comes over and Liv's mother wakes her up. Liv changes and goes downstairs to find her mother and her boyfriend going out somewhere. Liv's mom asks her to tag along but Liv declines noticing that Gary (the boyfriend) doesn't want her to come. They leave and she opens the fortune cookie's they left her. Taking the fortune as a sign Liv comes up with #SpartanSurvived and enlists Xanders help.

Wow I seriously did not expect to enjoy it that much! The book is written in third person which I found surprising considering it's a contemporary book. But luckily I liked the writing style! I found that it suited the story. It is divided into two parts. Before Dragon Con and during Dragon Con. There are text messages, twitter conversations, and some fanmade pictures! This was really cool! I've never read a book that's formatted this way. The chapter titles are quotes from things like Harry Potter and Doctor Who. I think that added a nice touch the to overall story.

I completely understood where Liv was coming from! While I haven't been an active member in fandoms I have loved so many tv shows and books, and mourned the characters that died. While I never let it take over my life I can see why some people would.

Liv's only connection to her father was through the Starveil films and when Spartan died her whole world feel apart. It wasn't much help from her mother who viewed fandoms to be dumb and also internet friends. She isn't close to her mother because of this. Xander and his girlfriend Arden helped whenever they could.

Xander and Liv's friendship was adorable! He was so sweet to her and understanding. He agrees to help her with #SpartanSurvived and eventually gets sucked into the fandom. This in particular was amusing to read about. I was really glad that for a majority of the book they remained friends. The romance was really slow burn but I liked it.

I thought it was brilliant when Liv came up with #SpartanSurvived and it was awesome watching it grow and become such a big deal to the fans that Liv talked to! I would never have come up something like that. And I absolutely loved reading about Dragon Con! It was amazing and I so need to go there one day!

The author did an excellent job writing about being in a fandom! It was so much fun reading and it reminded me about how I converse with my friends on GR! While Liv loved Starveil Xander loved steampunk and cosplays. The author did a good job fleshing out the two different fandoms.

The characters in this book was realistic! Liv eventually finds the confidence to get out there and explore the real world and try to make friends with people in her classes. Xander was her support system as was the other fans of Starveil. She grew into a strong and likable character! Xander was a doll! I loved how he said things like 'dearest'. He's so different than the other male love interests. It was refreshing reading about him.

I only had three problems with this book. I would have liked to see her of Liv and her mothers relationship. When she goes to Dragon Con you're not shown her mothers reaction and I really wanted to read about that. And when she reached Dragon Con Liv only called her mother once. I'm surprised that her mother never called her. And like most contemporaries Xander and Liv get into a bit of a fight which I didn't understand. Thankfully it was resolved quickly. While the epilogue was sweet I felt that it was rushed and somewhat unnecessary. Nonetheless I still liked this book!

Overall I enjoyed this book! I recommend it to all fangirls and fanboys. And anyone trying to understand fandoms.

[enqi ☾⋆˚*̣̩✩ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was where she felt like home.

[...] She needed this like she needed air.

Reading All the Feels was like coming home.

Why do I say this?

All the Feels was a lovely, heartwarming book about a college fangirl, Liv Walden, for whom the Starveil movies are her life. Refusing to accept the death of her favorite character, Matt Spartan, in the latest movie, Liv starts a #SpartanSurvived movement online that makes her Internet famous. With her best friend Xander, actor and steampunk cosplayer extraordinaire, Liv creates videos featuring Xander as Major Malloy, calling for fans to come forward with any evidence of Spartan's survival. The campaign succeeds beyond Liv's wildest dreams, and now she has to balance schoolwork, her mother's disapproval, and her (non-existent and traumatic) love life. When she decides to make a trip to DragonCon with Xander, Liv finds out what she really wants.

When I read this, I felt like Danica Stone was reaching into my head and capturing all my reactions, all my emotions, to the exact detail. Liv was relatable to the last degree. I understood her pain and her happiness and how fandom was where she truly belonged. I knew the exact same despair and disbelief she felt at the death of her favorite character. I remembered with fondness the same joy I'd felt when meeting my online friends. In short, Liv was cut from the same calibre as me - we were both ardent fangirls - except I didn't start an online fan movement like she did.

Fandom is and has always been a crucial part of my life. It has shaped me into who I am today, and I just cannot describe the joy of finding a new fandom. Returning to old fandoms always feels like coming home, and the hours spent obsessing over new favorites are something I will cherish despite all the sacrifices I've made. There is just something about devoting your mind, your heart, your entire soul to a book, character or even a fictional cause. I loved this book because I could relate to Liv so much.

I remember suffering my first character death. It was the notorious ending of Allegiant, where the main character, Tris Prior, dies . I'd read it on Christmas Day of 2013, and I wasn't prepared for the emotions that overcame me. My entire Christmas and New Year celebrations were ruined. I was sad and in denial throughout the rest of the holiday and I vividly recall reading that part of the book again and again, convinced that there had to be some loophole. In the end, I created a Twitter fan account for the Divergent series to find like-minded people to rant with. I abandoned it after a few short months and forgot the username. But I know that sense of denial.

If she left with Xander, then it was over. It was real.

This wasn't the only character death I would have to suffer. Just two months ago Leigh Bardugo cruelly and completely sank my ship. I was fortunate enough to avoid sad endings throughout 2015 and most of 2016, but it seemed that my luck had run out. Crooked Kingdom broke my heart. I had invested so much emotion, felt so much for those two characters, rooted for them since the start, and then my heart was shattered. I couldn't believe this was happening to my two beautiful, precious children - I was in no way prepared for the crushing devastation that hit me. I sobbed violently upon reading that scene and it was a full two hours before I could continue reading; by the time I'd finished crying there was a puddle of tears on the floor. Then I put the book down and wept for days. Even my family, who are used to my occasional frequent outbursts about my favorite books and characters, got worried. I literally went into mourning. I wore nothing but black, cried at odd times, walked and looked like a living zombie, and had no appetite for meals, let alone anything else. At night, I slept restlessly and my first thought in the morning would be Matthias Helvar is dead. What is the point of me living?



I'm a girl of fandoms. I say this because I am actually made up of a heady mix of tumblr slang, book quotes, and boyband music. All the Feels captured one of the best things about being a fangirl - meeting like-minded people. I can prove firsthand that it is a very amazing thing, to find people that share your interests when the people close to you just don't understand.

It seemed Liv had spent the last eighteen years in search of her people, and in one sudden explosion of fate, they'd all been brought together in this place in time.

When I went to a One Direction concert in my country (I'm highkey a stan) it was truly wonderful to meet my fellow fans who shared the love I had for this band. Quite simply - it felt like coming home. Coming home to like-minded souls, to people who understood why I was speechless with emotion when I saw the boys, why I stayed up four hours to wait for the new album releases, why tears were streaming down my face throughout the concert. That sense of belonging is one of the things I cherish most in my life.

The only other book I've read that touches on the subject of fandom is Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, but Fangirl only addresses the fanfiction part of fandom. I love how All the Feels covered not just fanfiction but every other aspect, including the Twitter conversations, meeting internet friends, spending countless hours on fan websites, and making edits and manips, amongst other things.

She and Spartan were in the same city now. He was seeing the same blue sky. Breathing the same air.

I connected to this book on a soul-deep level, which is why I'm giving it such a high rating. I have no idea how Danica Stone managed to accurately describe the sadness and joys of being a fangirl, but I can vouch for the fact that it is very well done. The romance in this book is definitely not an insta-love either, because the main love interests started out as best friends. It was utterly adorable to watch their feelings for each other grow until they officially became a couple at the end. Also, the romance is sidelined for the general plot, which makes it even better because it doesn't discount any of the events happening at all.

If you've ever exhibited any of the typical fangirl traits I've mentioned above, definitely read this book. You'll be surprised how often you find yourself in these pages. I know I did, and that's what made reading this book so enjoyable for me.

Edited to add: I didn't mention how much I love the chapter titles of this book! They were all famous fandom references such as "My precious!!" (Lord of the Rings), and "In that moment I swear we were infinite." (Perks of Being A Wallflower)

[The Candid Cover (Olivia & Lori) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full Review on The Candid Cover

All the Feels is an incredibly relatable book about, you guessed it, fandoms. This book has everything from cosplay to fanfiction and a main character who leads an online rebellion. An epic friendship made the book even more enjoyable, and I would definitely recommend it.

All the Feels is the ultimate books for fangirls! Literally all the aspects of being in a fandom are there! I loved reading about the forums, the fanfiction, the cosplay, and the conventions. Honestly, Danika Stone really understands the life of a fangirl. This book is one the only fandom books I have ever read, and I definitely enjoyed it.

Liv is such relatable main character in All the Feels. She is a fellow fangirl who is so crushed by her favourite character’s death that she actually leads an online rebellion. It was a nice change to have a more modern main character who spends her life online rather than a cheesy character who has so many adventures outdoors. Though I feel like Liv was a little too dramatic at times, I still found her to be likeable.

I loved the theme of friendship in All the Feels. Xander and Liv have such an amazing relationship where they collaborate on fandom videos, even though they aren’t really into the same fandoms. The fact that they are always there for each other, typically at the coffee shop or McDonalds, was just so sweet. They just have the kind of friendship that is actually goals.

All the Feels is a book all about fandoms starring a main character who is a major fangirl.The friendship in the book was so adorable and a relationship that I dream of having. I would recommend this book to fans of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell as they have similar fandom elements.

[Brooke — brooklynnnnereads · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun and relatable, quick read and I loved the inclusion of a fandom.

For those that loved "Fangirl" by Rainbow Rowell or even "Obsidian" by Jennifer L Armentrout, I would recommend this novel. Both centre around a character that has a true passion towards fiction (whether it be fan fiction in "Fangirl" or a book blog in "Obsidian"). Personally, I relate and I loved reading of a character that had that same passion towards fiction. Often, I don't see that in novels and I really liked how it was included. I can definitely say that I wish this book was around when I was in high school when I felt a little alone in my passion towards literature.

Along with being able to relate to the main character, I liked how the story included mixed media in the photos that were created to represent this fandom, along with text messages. The mixture of the verse formatting with the photos and text messages, kept me reading in interest to see what would come next. Also, I have never attended a convention related to any fandoms and I felt like I gathered more of a perspective of the chaos and what goes on at them.

It wasn't necessarily a predictable story but I did have my guesses on what would occur. Those guesses did eventually become true but it was an interesting journey to get there.

I know that I will be picking up more from this author because this story and her writing style has definitely piqued my interest.

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I started All The Feels, I had no idea what I was getting in to, but this is actually one of the most fun and swoon-worthy books I have ever read in my life. Now I'm a bit of a fangirl, but I am in no means part of any kind of fandom. I love shows, but I don't get crazy over them, although I will confess that once upon a time, I used to read fanfiction about the band Simple Plan. Just one story, and it was the best story ever, but I used to be crazy obsessed with them, so when Quizilla was still a thing, this lass wrote the best Simple Plan stories. And I would actually read them again, if I knew where to find them. Alas, they are lost to the internets.

It's so hard to put into words how All The Feels made me feel. It made me deliriously happy, the kind of happy I used to get reading books years ago, where my tummy feels all tingly, and you just know there's two characters with that special connection and when they eventually kiss it's just the best thing ever. I got that feeling reading this book, because Xander and Liv and just the BEST. I loved how Xander just went along with Liv's crazy plan to bring Spartan back, no questions asked, because that's just what kind of friend he was, and alternatively I loved that Liv couldn't care less how Xander dressed or acted, which was amazing. I legitimately loved him, from his crazy clothes, to his weird British accent, to his mannerisms, not to mention his apparently gorgeous half-naked chest. I was SWOONING all over the place. I finished the book and let out the happiest of sighs.

I literally loved everything about this book. Liv's love for fandom, for Starveil, DragonCon (which makes me want to go to a con SO FREAKING BAD), Xander, Xander, Xander, Xander, Xander, their cute text convos, the whole #SaveSpartan campaign, just the whole lot of it. It was everything I love wrapped up in a book, but the greatest ever writing in the history of writing. Danika Stone is AMAZING. She just gets fandom, she gets what it's like to fall in love as a teenager, she just gets it all. I need more, though. More from Danika or more from Liv and Xander, because oh man, I just loved them. This was absolutely the perfect read for me, it was everything I love about the YA genre, and as much as I love more serious YA books, I also love the light-hearted ones I can swoon over and smile at and get so much joy from.

All The Feels will literally make you feel all the freaking feels. You'll love Liv's determination to bring Spartan back, no matter what; you'll love Xander's quirkiness, because boy is he quirky, but he pulls it off the way Ted pulls off red cowboy boots (and I'm being genuine!!! Ted Mosby pulled off those cowboy boots), the writing will have you flying through the book at a rate of knots, I finished it in a few hours, and it was the best few hours I have ever spent. There was a letter at the beginning of this book from Holly West, the editor, and she encapsulates everything I felt about this book into that letter, she was telling the truth ABOUT IT ALL. And I loved every page, and every single fandom quote at the beginning of each chapter (but mostly the Castiel quote from Supernatural that never fails to make me LOL). Buy this book. Read this book. FANGIRL OVER THIS BOOK.

[Kimberly Karalius · Rating 5 out of 5]

ALL THE FEELS does, in fact, bring all the feels. Anyone who's ever been involved in fandom will be squeeing and nodding vigorously from the very first page. I know I was. I can't tell you how many times I've mourned the loss of beloved characters who died (or ignored cannon and insisted they are still alive, somewhere, drinking hot chocolate and wearing fuzzy socks, COMPLETELY SAFE AND ALIVE. YES). So the fact that Liv fights back against cannon and sparks the fandom flame to create change is thrilling to read.

The romance between Xander and Liv was great. They're already such good friends and know each other so well that the banter and maybe-something-more feels made the story that much more fun. The will they, won't they aspect. Plus, Xander wears steampunk clothing all the time. In real life. He owns it.

I don't want to spoil anything else, but MALLOY. I love Malloy. Hang onto your feels.

[Kris Mauna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love, love, love this book!

Things this book has:
- A positive outlook on what life is like as fangirls and guys!
- A relatable and likable main character. Liv is EVERY fangirl and guy. Her "real life" is just as relatable as she's still so unsure of herself and what she wants to do with her life.
- A slow-burn romance with some great swoon-worthy moments! Seriously, I love Xander. He is just THE BEST. He's confident, charming, and incredibly unique. I mean homeboy is bi and proud, which is just so great to read about!
- The perfect portrayal of attending your very first con!
- EVERYTHING I love about contemporaries!

Seriously, I highly recommend this book. I haven't really been feeling contemporaries lately, but this one was perfect. Sometimes you just need those books that make you feel good, and this one does just that.

READ MY FULL REVIEW HERE!

[ExlibrisLisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eine super süße, nerdige Geschichte mit tollen Charakteren.
Ein Stern Abzug weil ich mich am Anfang doch etwas schwer tat mit Liv, dafür hat Xander mein Herz im Sturm erobert!

[Chelsea SWATCHSEA]

Status: DNF at page 150 • review also posted on my Wordpress! • spoiler-free review

I really wanted to love this. It started out good: the chapter titles are references to different fandoms, which is really cool!

I bought this book for the sole reason that this has a bisexual character (and they actually say he is bi). I’m still trying to figure myself out, but for now, I consider myself bisexual. Lately, however, I started thinking I might be pansexual instead. Anyway, I want to support more books that feature diversity, so I instantly got this. Most books that feature LGBTQ-characters, solely feature gay boys. Naturally, they deserve representation as well, but I’m also looking for books with trans, bi, lesbian… characters.

Unfortunately, the fact that this has a bi character, was not enough to make me love this. Xander had to remind Liv that he is bisexual. That is incredibly biphobic. She is so heteronormative, she even ‘forgets’ his sexuality. Coming out can be very stressful and she just assumes he is straight because he is dating a girl? Her reaction wasn’t great either. She responded with: ”That’s cool, Xander, it is.”. Last time I checked, he didn’t ask her whether his sexuality was okay. Yes, you can say she is trying to be supportive, but it rubs me the wrong way. He didn’t ask for her ‘permission’, yet that’s her first reaction? Also, she reads gay fanfiction, but then acts uncomfortable when he mentions he’s bi. Sounds like fetishisation to me.

The book is even sexist. Every time Arden, Xander’s girlfriend, is mentioned, Liv rolls her eyes. She even says the following things:

The problem with Arden, Liv thought, was that she was almost too likable.

Why was Arden always so godamned nice to everyone?! It made it hard to hate her.

Who even straightens their hair in the weekends?

It’s 2016, stop making girls hate each other over boys! If Liv wanted to be with Xander, she should’ve gone for it when she had the chance. There is nothing wrong with Arden, she was actually very nice to Liv, yet Liv is being a total bitch, because she sees her as competition.
And of course, Liv had to say ‘she is not like other girls’. This is possible the sentence I hate most, ever. She puts other girls down (“they wear too tight T-shirts”) to feel better about herself. It’s disgusting. I am sick and tired of girls being written this way. We already experience enough sexism from men, we have to stick together instead of fighting over them!
Naturally, I don’t know how their relationship is going to evolve, but that doesn’t take away the fact that she hated Arden for no reason at all.

I really liked the fact that this book was about fandoms, but it wasn’t executed well. Starveil is Star Wars. I don’t know how copyright works, but there were too many similarities, the author should’ve just made them Star Wars fans instead. The villain is called Darthku, it’s called Starveil… Furthermore, the characters were too dramatic when Spartan, a character in the Starveil movies, died.
Look, I’ve been upset over some character deaths, but not being able to go to work because you are mourning a character? That’s too much.

That’s exactly how I could sum up everything I had read: dramatic. These characters are supposed to be in college, but act like fourteen-year-olds. When her mother finds out she is making fandom videos, she acts as if Liv is a drug addict. She literally says:

"Fandom is destroying your future!"

That’s probably the exact moment I gave up on this book. How am I supposed to take any if this seriously? I realize this is fiction, but it’s a contemporary. So I want it to be realistic. And everything in All the Feels was just too much and over the top.
I didn’t like where the romance was going. Two pages ago, she was crying over Hank, now, she can’t stop thinking about Xander again. Stop lusting after a) someone who is already taken and b) your friend!

At one point, Xander was being rude to Hank for no reason at all (except for that he didn’t want to date Liv, but he has a girlfriend!) and when Hank says Xander was being a dick to him, Liv goes insane. That’s the moment I decided to DNF this. We aren’t in middle school anymore, enough with the relationship drama!

I am writing a thesis on diversity in books, so that’s also one of the reasons I started All the Feels. At one point, Liv says she is curvy, but she still fits in a skirt she wore in middle school, but she’s in college now? Does the author have any idea how awful that makes me feel? Liv isn’t curvy, she’s really skinny if she still fits in something she wore years ago.

There are other things that bothered me as well, but this review has already gotten more elaborate than I’d thought. Clearly, there were many things I didn’t like about this book, so I had to put it down. I started hating every little thing about it, so I wasn’t enjoying it anymore.

Conclusion: I wanted to love All the Feels, but there were too many things that bothered me. Perhaps if you aren’t as critical as me (and are okay with dramatic plotlines), you will enjoy this more than I did.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Find the original review here at This is the Story of My(Reading) Life
There is a giveaway on until June 20th, 2016. Just follow the above link.


This is the type of book that is super relatable for a lot of people. Liv is a heroic won't take that shocking and bullshit death of a character fangirl. How many of us wish our fandom could have done what Liv does? She helps start a fire that ignites and actually brings attention to the creator and stars of her beloved Starveil. Imagine if Fox had actually listened to the fans and brought back Firefly? Or if we'd had Netflix or Hulu back then to come to a rescue. Liv and the Starveil fandom accomplish something I wish could happen in some of my fandoms too; bringing a character back from the dead.

Liv's life centers around her love of Starveil. She eats and breaths the fandom. Like many of us who live on the internet, she found an outlet and friends who are alike in their obsession. Liv has some anxiety when it comes to real life; having friends, going outside, being social, you know the ones that a lot of us geeks face. She is quiet and happy being in the shadows. That doesn't mean she isn't clever. Liv has the skills when it comes to vidding(as she so put it). Which includes graphic design, editing and mixing videos, the things that come in handy when igniting a fandom.

Besides her online friends, she has her best friend Xander. Who is a character all of himself. Steampunk cosplay is his daily life. He's pretty much a 19th-century guy living in the 21st century. Xander is a fun juxtaposition. From his clothes, his love of fast food, texting, being an actor yet kind of hating on actors, and how much more sociable he is than Liv. That's what makes their friendship spot on, opposites yet they get each other through their geekiness. Through banter, a little bit of flirting and being there for each other, Liv and Xander build a solid friendship that has the spark for something more. It's one that everyone can see and soon the friends will let that flirting sprout wings and evolve(which it does very naturally). Such a sweet romance going down.

All the Feels has its fair share of interesting characters. But all in all, I was invested in Liv succeeding in her quest to bring back Spartan. I think we fangirls/boys can agree that our obsessive personalities can take the drivers seat. It's something a lot of our friends and family don't understand. Liv's character does a great job showcasing that in a relatable yet fun way. Liv's woes through real life, her mom, dating, school get drowned out when she gets online. Escape. The build up and then arrival at Dragon Con is the best part. It's not only where Liv and Xander's relationship comes to the forefront, but Liv finally feels at home. And getting to meet the Starveil creator and cast certainly helps(even when that doesn't go to plan).

All in all, All the Feels is exactly the story a fangirl/boy can relate to. It's fun and sweet in its characters and look at the power of a fandom.

[Nicole · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm not even sure where to start with this. While I had no problem diving right into this book, I think it would be useful to have a glossary or at least some explanation of some of the fandom terms used. Not everyone is going to know what an AU is. Other than the novelty of this book being about Dragon Con and fandom, there is nothing really here that I liked. Xander is so over the top he is a parody, and so is Liv. Her mother has real concerns about her daughter getting so involved in fandom that her grades suffer - and they DO suffer and it makes sense for her to be worried given that Liv couldn't get a college scholarship because of her time spent making videos! Her mom is shown to be working all the time paying for her daughter's school and all Liv can do is say YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!!! It's really immature.

Liv's short foray into trying to date people also seems really tacked on and unnecessary. She's into a guy, she asks him out, he says no, she yells I WANT TO DIE!!! and runs away. Later he finds her again, asks her out, and she runs away because he wants a threesome. What was the point of this? To show us that all other guys are bad and Xander is the only one for Liv? We didn't need this, nor did we need the montage of her dating all kinds of other horrible guys and even one girl (what was the point of this random nod to bisexuality if Liv isn't actually bisexual I'm so confused!). It was obvious from the beginning that Xander was endgame. Also, Liv's hatred of his girlfriend was ridiculous, especially when she complains that she's so nice it makes it harder to hate her. What a brat.

I actually enjoyed bits of the second half of the book because it is set at Dragon Con, and though I haven't been to that one, I've been to many other cons, and I like how the author captured the feeling of being among your people. The casual mentions of cosplayers everywhere rang true and I like how they were real characters and fandoms instead of made up ones. However, the other fans that Liv finally met in person were all caricatures of what people think sci fi fans are like. One of them was a clingy middle aged mom, the other was an angry drunk nerdy guy, and yet another was too shy to speak or look at anyone and could only text.

I did laugh a lot when it was clear that the actor did not want his character to be revived because he did not want to be in any more movies, but then Liv's online campaign caused the producer (?) to actually bring back his character for more movies? And Liv got an internship behind the scenes and she got together with Xander and he got to be an actor on the movie. Which sure, great, but what about her mom? Her mom's awful (caricature again) boyfriend? Her grades at school? What about how the actor wanted to go do indie movies but now he's being forced to be in another sci fi thing? THERE ARE SO MANY THREADS THAT GET DROPPED!!!! ALSO XANDER IS REPELLENT!!!! ALL THE WAY FROM HIS OUTFITS TO HIS PRETENTIOUS BRITISH ACCENT TO HIS M'LADYS TO HIS CONSTANT COMMENTS ON LIV'S BOOBS AND BODY!!!!!!! liv is horrible but even she deserves better than him.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**

All the Feels is a young adult standalone by Danika Stone. I think this is a book that fandom lovers, of any fandom, will love completely. All The Feels just made me squirmy with happiness. I really, really loved this one. If you like cons, if you like fanfiction- if you know what terms like AU and shipping and OTP are, this is the perfect book for you. It is a whole lot of fun. It is about a girl that completely loves Starveil, and in particular one character from it. And when they kill that character off in the movie, she takes it pretty hard. And yes, I do know that she takes it a little to the extreme, but if you are going to sit there and tell me that a death in your favorite series or movie or show didn't make you unreasonably upset...ever. I am going to call you a liar. (you might want to check your pants, because I think they are on fire.)

I loved Liv. I loved the lengths she went to, to start a revolution online about bringing her character back. And she didn't go about it in the conventional ways. She tried to turn it into cannon that he never died. The geek in me just loves that idea. She is quirky, and adorable and so, so much fun. And Xander is just as quirky and adorable as her. I really, really liked him. He is different than Liv, but they are just so perfect together. I loved their friendship. Xander is always there for Liv. All the Feels is light on the romance, but what romance is there, I completely adored.

Another one of my favorite things about All The Feels is that each of the chapters starts off with a quote or tidbit from some kind of fandom. And then it tells you what book or show or comic it was from. I played a game with myself where I tried to guess them all before I looked at the answer. I am proud to admit I got almost all of them right. (That darn Dr. Who stumps me again...I should be shunned for never watching that.)

All the Feels is a great book. It is about a college freshman, so it bridges the gap between young adult and new adult. I think it will easily appeal to both age groups. I would classify this as upper young adult, even though it takes place in college. I liked that we got to see Liv balance her internet life with her blooming real life. It was really great. All the Feels is a book that is bound to put a smile on your face. It will make you laugh and giggle like a maniac. And it will live up to its' name. It will give you All the Feels. You can tell that Danika Stone knows her way around the things she was talking about in the book. She is a shipper and a fan too. And I love that about her. All the Feels makes me want to go back and read some of my go-to favorites Harry Potter fanfiction again. (Dramione, anyone??)

Bottom line: Read All The Feels. Just do it. You will love it.

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

[Patty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full review to come!

[Max Francis]

WTF IS THIS YES PLEASE

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like with Sarvenaz Tash's The Geek's Guide to Unrequited Love, All the Feels's strong suit is definitely the depiction of fandom and especially of the con experience. I'm especially glad considering All the Feels is about Dragon*Con, and D*C is MY con. Literally everything—dancing in the atriums, the tight crowds in the dealer rooms, the eclectic groups of mixed costumed fans (especially genderbent cosplay, boys in Disney princess costumes in particular), even the scene depicting am run-in with a douchey guy who thinks he's entitled to a girl's time & calls her a fake fan when she says no, jumping on the up elevator to go down—all of that is 100% authentic. I've lived it. Oooooh, I literally just got hit with a bout of inspiration for a blog post. Brilliant, Mary. I also like the way Danika describes online fandom in addition to the IRL fandom experience at a con, and how those things merge unexpectedly. Because, yeah, you can be super tight with people online, but it doesn't always translate 100% IRL. I like how Sarah, Joe, and Brian are all perfect examples of this.

As much as I wanted to love All the Feels, there are a few things I have a problem with. Mostly I was uncomfortable with Liv, who never seems quite comfortable in her own skin. I couldn't get into her as the mc because I just didn't feel it. And while yes, 18 and a freshman in college is young and you younguns have PLENTY of time to figure out what to do with your life, 18 is also old enough to be thinking about that seriously. I am extremely bothered by Liv completely ignoring real life and acting like fandom is the be all end all. Not how it works. If you love fandom, you can still find a way to make a living at it. This is something that annoyed me about Cath from Fangirl as well. As cool as fandom is, real life sadly exists, and you HAVE to find a way to live in both worlds if you're going to be part of fandom.

I also got really frustrated with Xander. He acts very proprietary toward her, but that REALLY bothers me considering he has a girlfriend. That bothers me a lot. If you're in a relationship, you don't have the right to be upset when your single friend is interested in someone else (whether or not that someone else is a horrible gross person is irrelevant). I love how supportive and sweet Liv and Xander are, but they do cross the more-than-friends boundary a lot, and that bothers me since Xander is with Arden. I'm not a fan of cheating in any forms so while Xander and Liv never physically do anything while he's unavailable, they definitely always gave me a more-than-just-friendly vibe.

Also the tone was strange, and I got it from page one when Liv is described as a young woman and Xander is described as a man. This is a YA book with a college main character, which is fine, but it kept jumping the line from young YA to mature not-YA and back. Like one character who I thought was a nice person, even if he upsets Liv in a very realistic scene, randomly comes back several chapters later and sleazily asks her to be part of a threesome? What the actual? Bit moments like this really jacked with the consistency of the All the Feels's tone, and that is frustrating to read. I found these discrepancies also messed with my ability to read normally. I'm a fast reader, but if the book isn't consistent, I'm going to take more breaks and not read it all in one setting.

Finally, as a Halo fan, I very much did not like Starveil's hero being named Matt Spartan. Spartan is a Halo thing. It felt like Danika appropriated an existing fandom's term so her hero could have a badass name and hashtag. No. No no no. No no. SPARTAN IS JOHN-117 AND HIS COHORTS. I'm not kidding when I say this really annoyed me the entire book. I was irrationally angry about all the Spartan talk. I very much wish Danika and the Swoon Reads editors had thought this through and created another name.

All the Feels does prove how much power fans can have, and that got me thinking about my personal fandom experiences. I was wrong when I originally said the book seemed to be Firefly based. It's apparently more of a love letter to the Coulson Lives movement, which is cool. Coulson is a perfect example of fan power. Supernatural fans have been clinging to the show for YEARS as it has fought against cancellation time and time again. Remember when Kanye went crazy on Twitter because #SatanIsComing was trending? That was because of Supernatural fans. Jericho fans managed to get an abbreviated second season greenlit so the show could wrap up. Star Trek fans have made the new series successful. Firefly fans who were screwed royally by Fox managed to get a movie. So, yeah. Don't tell me fans aren't powerful. However, I am sometimes uncomfortable by this amount of power. It's like, yeah, you CAN force more, but SHOULD you? I have made my anger regarding Cursed Child and the resurgence of Harry Potter no secret. I think this horrible book-script-thing is awful and what I have read of it seems to actively contradict many of the things I fell in love with when I read Harry as a tween and teen. I feel like Cursed Child is attacking my childhood, and I HATE IT. But the entire world keeps asking for more more more more more with no regard for potential consequences. Over the years, I have seen many YA fans beg authors for sequels for their favorite novels. Sometimes they get them, but I have so much respect for the (most contemporary) authors who have said no. These authors have said similar twists on the same concept: if the characters have an HEA at the end of a book, in order to write a sequel, the author will have to introduce conflict. If the characters are in a romantic relationship, the conflict is usually going to break them up and cause them problems, which would be upsetting to the fans. Therefore, many authors have turned to spin-offs and companions or even not-sequels that reference their characters in an oblique, slightly easter egg kind of way.

At the end of All the Feels, MRM, the creator of Starveil announces there will be an "indefinite" number of new Starveil movies. I don't like this. I think it's one thing if they make one more movie to say farewell to the beloved Matt Spartan without killing him off. But indefinite? Eventually you HAVE to say goodbye. You can't just keep doing more and more and more. It will eventually ruin the thing you love. Look at me and Harry Potter. I definitely understand why Tom Grander was angry at having to stay in a world he was ready to leave behind (although taking out his anger on Liv was awful and inexcusable). I do think actors who take on fandom roles need to be okay with being that character for a long time and appreciate their fans, but at the same time, I think fans need to be okay with endings.

All the Feels was an interesting read, and I liked parts of it and disliked parts of it. I'm glad it got me thinking about all the great and bad things fandom has to offer. Thanks to Macmillan and Swoon Reads for sending me a copy for review.

Original review upon discovering All the Feels:
OH MY GOSH THIS BOOK GOES TO DRAGON CON AND SEEMS TO POSSIBLY BE BASED ON FIREFLY MAYBE I WANT IT NOW KPLZANDTHX

[Danielle · Rating 1 out of 5]

My dad's a huge sci-fi fantasy fan and a lot of my childhood memories are intrinsically linked with Wars, Trek, and Galactica. I remember the 20th Anniversary Special Edition and my dad and Uncle Ed screaming that Han Shot FIRST. I was nine. But my first fandom was The Wheel of Time, when my dad stuffed the first half of The Eye of the World into my hand on a car ride and told me read it. And then he told me to persevere (three times) when the first 50 pages turned out to be the dullest in literary history. This was in the early Thousands, before Tumblr or blogs. Instead we had bulletin boards and chat rooms. My nick was golden_lily, (the personal sigil for Elayne Trakand,) and I was obsessed. If my dad had died at the height of my fandom? I don't know what I would have done, but I doubt it would be pretty.

Liv lives for fandom, particularly Starveil. When the fourth movie kills off the main character, she can't cope. After weeks of depression, she convinces her best friend Xander to make a few fan videos with her showing that #SpartanSurvived. The fandom runs with it and soon she'd be the toast of the community - if she wasn't anon.

My biggest problem with All The Feels is its lack of commitment. Liv's father was a massive fan of the cult series turned phenomena and it's obvious in the two paragraphs about him, that her reluctance to let Spartan go is directly tied to her unresolved grief over his death. Her mom talks about a time fandom almost destroyed Liv's life in high school, but the book doesn’t actually go there. I don't know if we're supposed to think her mother's concern is rational or not. I do know that Liv would benefit from some real therapy, not a job on a movie set.

Characters are flimsy and supremely underdeveloped. Xander's involved with the Steampunk community, but he dresses as a Regency rake at all times. Why? We know he met Liv at college and he wants to be an actor, but not what he's studying or his hobbies. His bisexuality is dropped casually into a conversation, which I did like, but we know nothing about his home or family or interests outside of fandom. Liv's lack of motivation or interests is part of her - can I say arc when there's no actual growth? - but the rest of the cast shouldn't be able to be described in single words.

Arden - X's girlfriend, preppy and annoying
Joe - Loud, bossy, fat
Step-Dad - Asshole
Brian - Asshole
Actor dude - Asshole
Hank - Hot and sweet, until asshole

This is not good! If the only way you can make your main character and her love interest seem nice is by making everyone around them not, you need to revise.

The book is a cliche mess full of girl hate, abuse, and easy to guess plot lines, but the one thing it does right is the fandom voice. The tweets/chat/IMs are authentic and capture the feeling of squealing with friends who love the same things as you. When Liv talks to Joe and Brian online, you absolutely understand they’re “real” friends, even if they haven’t met IRL. Of course, once Liv goes to the con and meets everyone in person, that’s no longer true.

I don’t understand the audience for this book. It reads far too juvenile for the characters ages or the proposed market. There’s no growth; there’s barely a plot. It makes men, women, and fandom look bad. It’s not funny or even particularly romantic, something I need from an imprint called SwoonReads. The main character learns that Hollywood is a corrupt place, but ends up happily working for it with her love interest. It’s bizarre. In all, I’d rather read the novelization of the Star Wars Holiday Special.

[Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book definitely called to me the first time I saw it. So I couldn’t resist swiping it out from under a coworker to read it ASAP!

I had a hard time putting this down. I was definitely intrigued by it. I know I’m a hard core book fan, and even a hard core Blockhead (NKOTB fan for those that aren’t familiar with that term)…and I’d even say I’m a lightweight Harry Potter fan and Marvel fan…but I can honestly say, I’m nowhere near as dedicated as Liv is in this book. And that’s not a bad thing (for me or Liv). I actually admired her and how much she loved her Starveil universe and fandom. And I especially admired how she “found herself” and what she wanted to do with her life through her fandom efforts.

I could definitely relate to mourning the loss of a fictional character. You spend so much time with them, and then for the writer/author/creator to kill them off…it’s like losing a friend or family member. There are still a few fictional deaths I’m not over…Cooper anyone? Too soon, too soon. *wiping away a tear*

Overall, this was a delightful story, that was funny and engaging and I had a hard time putting it down! I definitely recommend it.

[Catherine Tinker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Swoon sent me an ARC for my birthday a few months ago, and I truly love the revisions that have taken place. If you're feeling all sorts of emotional after seeing The Force Awakens, this book is absolutely for you.

Devoured this MS on Swoon when it went up and I am so impatient to have a copy in my hands. So much cute.

[Lilian · Rating 2 out of 5]

That... That was the most pointless book I've ever read. Full review to come.

[Hebah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summer 2002 was significant to me for being the year Seether’s Disclaimer came out and waiting for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix to come out. I spent hours upon hours listening to that album and diving full in to the fandom life; Livejournal and Fiction Alley were lifelines to this homeschooled and very socially sheltered then-teen. I wrote fan fiction, reviewed it, and made friends through it, some of whom are still part of my life today. I know the joys and anguish of fandom firsthand, the anticipation of a new installment and the disappointment when things didn’t quite go as you hoped they would.

So I’m pretty comfortable saying that Danika Stone’s All the Feels really gets the fandom allthefeelslife. Protagonist Liv is heartbroken when Spartan, the hero of her favorite sci fi franchise, is cruelly killed off in the most recent movie. After grieving with her friends and denying it through AU (alternate universe) fanfiction, and with the prompting of a fortune cookie fortune, she decides to do something about it. With the help of her best friend, the debonair and typically steampunk-clad Xander, Liv launches a series of fan videos suggesting that Spartan lives, in hopes of creating a grassroots movement to bring back Spartan. Life is not all fandom, though, and through this, she struggles to balance school and fandom and dating and all the stress of being a college freshman.

Honestly, I could probably review this story with one word: SQUEE! I think I smiled my way through the whole story, rooting for Liv and Xander and nodding in agreement at the sense of community depicted in fandom. Nerdom has become, one might almost say, mainstream in recent years with the popularity of Big Bang Theory and new Marvel blockbusters every few months, but I haven’t seen fandom depicted this well since Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl (another squee-worthy book I adored). Fandom isn’t for everyone, and Stone could have shied away from how encompassing it can be—on the one hand, it is a large portion of Liv’s social life, but on the other, she can and does let it consume her life to the detriment of academics, forming one of the important conflicts of the story.

And I have to give a shout-out to the relationships in this book as well. At the beginning of the book, Xander does have a girlfriend, Arden, who could easily be painted negatively. And she isn’t. Arden is largely peripheral as it becomes clear that she and Xander are not long for coupledom, but she’s fundamentally nice, even helping set Liv up on blind dates after a crush on a classmate ends in disappointment. The depiction of women not tearing down other women is important, and feminist, and I love when that happens in stories, especially romances. The eventual romantic relationship of Liv and Xander grows very slowly and naturally out of friendship, which is a romance trope I appreciate. (And yes, ladies, there are cute nerds out there with dashing social graces—I married one of them… #sorrynotsorry)

Overall, I loved All the Feels, but I did have a couple issues with it. It seemed to straddle the line between young adult and new adult; my library at least classified it as YA, and the way the story scales back the intensity of a few certain scenes suggests YA marketing, but I think this was much richer as a new adult story, and I wish it could have more fully inhabited that space. I want to see a wider variety of new adult stories beyond hook-up stories, and if they’re nerd-positive in addition, even better. One scene I really enjoyed was the blind-date sequence initiated after Liv’s crush on classmate Hank ends in disappointment—because she never really dated when she was younger, Liv’s expectations of romance were dashed at the first disappointment, but Xander and Arden help her to learn the dating process as a series of meetings better meant to help her determine what she does want for herself. Hell, some adults still haven’t learned that skill; it’s an important one, and it was handled with the right amount of awkwardness and humor that rang true to life. I want more of this sort of storytelling, please, publishers; perhaps I’ll have to start writing some of it myself.

One scene I did have a problem with was the resolution to the Hank situation. I really would have preferred if that situation ended with Liv realizing she could simply be friends with Hank even if a relationship was off the table. The way it ended with Hank's creepily-down threesome invitation was just jarring, and it threw me out of the story a little bit.

Hand a copy of this to anyone you know who secretly or not-so-secretly ever wrote fanfiction. Gift it to the Browncoat in your life still mad about only getting one season of Firefly. Hand it to your wistful romantic of a friend. Give it to the new college grad who is still puzzling through what it means to be an adult. And if any of these criteria fit you, then get thee to a library or bookstore and snag a copy for yourself.

A copy of this review also appears on my blog.

Reflections upon a second reading, February 2017: - Bumped this up to 5 stars because it made me just as delighted to read it again. Truthfully, this story inspired my own NaNoWriMo nerd romance, and it still makes me want to write more.

Summer 2019 re-read: Yep, still the book of my fangirl heart.

[Karole Cozzo]

Here are some cool things about this book, which I really, really enjoyed:

1) I’ve never been to a Con, but thanks to Stone, I sure feel like I have! The characters described, the diversity in fandoms and events represented, and the vivid and exciting depiction of scenes that went down there – I have to believe she hit the nail on the head. And it was so much fun to read about.
2) If you’ve ever been part of a fandom, you’ll get it…and love it. I appreciated Stone’s honesty in depicting the good, the bad, and the bizarre that goes into a fandom. And it was all just so relatable – the lingo, the habits, and the characters, they’re all there. My favorite aspect of this was when Liv discovers what Jo’s off-identity was really like. It was just so true to life and hilarious.
3) Let me say this – Xander, at first glance, is not my type. And at first I had a bit of a hard time getting to know the man behind the cravat and tails. I had a hard time deciphering where the character ended and the real person began. But the more glimpses he gave me of that real person, the more he won me over. What a good, cool, and unique person Xander is. In the end, I’m really glad I got to know him.
4) Liv’s transformation: in the beginning, as I believe is sometimes the case, the fandom was an escape from a bitter reality. And I wanted more for her; she sometimes frustrated me. I loved how in the end, it became more, it actually became a path to a better reality. I like the how, where, and why she emerged on the other side.
5) I doubt it was done in a purposeful manner, but I appreciate the amount of diversity Stone brought to this novel in terms of characters. There’s some ambiguity in terms of sexuality and gender norms and…it’s no big deal. It just is. The diversity is there without being thrown in your face. Well done.

Danika Stone is a great writer, and it’s my belief that so many people are going to relate to this book and its characters and devour it. If you’ve ever felt the pull of a fandom and the pull of a talented new writer, you’ll feel the pull of this book.

[Ambur · Rating 5 out of 5]

As soon as I heard about this book, I knew it was perfect for me, and I was so right! ALL THE FEELS totally gave me "all the feels" (seriously, it has the most fitting title EVER!)! I loved absolutely every single second, and even though the Starveil fandom isn't real, I still felt like I was part of it, and I loved that!

If you're a big fan or fangirl over anything, I think you'll relate to ALL THE FEELS. You might not be able to relate to how involved Liv is in the fandom, but if you're a big fan of everything, you'll definitely understand how much Starveil means to her. It made me think back to how obsessed I was with a few of my favourite fandoms, and luckily my favourites have always seemed to survive, but I could totally relate to how passionate Liv felt about Spartan dying, and I loved that she did something about it!

Now onto Liv herself! I absolutely LOVED her! I could relate to her late night fandom binges, and her reluctance to let the fandom go. I also loved her friendship with Xander, and I thought that Xander himself was fantastic! He was such a wonderful and unique character, and I loved how supportive he was to Liv. I loved their friendship, but I really, really loved seeing how their friendship progressed throughout the story, and I shipped them so, so so much!

Overall, I thought that ALL THE FEELS was fantastic! It was fun, hilarious, and as a self-professed fangirl, it was extremely easy for me to relate to! Just thinking about this book has me grinning like a fool, and if you like romantic comedies with some fandom nerdiness thrown in then I think this is the perfect book for you, too!

[Melissa (thereaderandthechef) · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's an okay read... was expecting more from it though. I didn't like the MC that much, nor the love interest at first. All this 'dearest' talk and him saying how delicious she always looked was getting on my nerves. It was kind of creepy to be honest.

But... the second part of the book made it all the more bearable once I warmed up a bit to the characters (yet not all the way through).

*le sigh*

I'll write a full review soon.

[Kelly Gunderman]

DNF at 25%. Honestly couldn't get into this...it felt like it was all over the place and the dialouge felt forced.

I'll probably come back to this at some point in the future.

[Kelli Spear · Rating 4 out of 5]

EEK!! I loved this book! Any fellow fangirl, nerd-girl needs to read this ASAP.

I admit things start out slow. From the summary - and a few other reviews - I was expecting laughs from page one. And it kind of was. Along with some thoughts of, "Is this chick serious?" For the latter, I reminded myself of how I was about certain characters in books and such and checked my reaction.

Anyway.

We start out meeting Liv as she's watching the newest movie in her fandom, Starveil, in which the hero and main character DIES. *gasp* It's reminisce of one of my former favorite book series. Her reaction is extreme in every way. She cries, can't function... and to some people it won't make sense. I mean, even I was like, "Enough already" at points. But that is the focus of this book. She soon concocts a plot to (for lack of a better term) resurrect her hero. It goes viral. But it also affects her school life and her mom isn't having it.

Liv is a fantastic characterization of a nerdy fangirl. That outcast who doesn't see herself as beautiful. The girl who recognizes her differences. And her best friend, Xander... GAH! He is so damn adorable! His nineteenth century cosplay is oddly HIM and somehow made him all the more adorable. I was rooting for them the entire book to see that they were meant to be together. But, he had a girlfriend. And part of the story involves the two of them trying to set Liv up with dates (poor girl). Their interactions make it so obvious how absolutely perfect they would be together. It's quite obvious there is SOMETHING there. Liv, however, can't see it --- even though she felt things. Her focus is entirely on Starveil and bringing Spartan back to life.

My absolute favorite part of the story was when they finally went to DragonCon. I've always wanted to attend, so this was almost a second-best chance at it. I thought it was brutally accurate in every way (from what I've heard about large cons). And this is when I really felt like Liv and Xander had a shot at making their relationship a reality. I swear, you will find it hard not to fall in love with him, too!

The book is a dream. I loved absolutely everything about it. It isn't far-fetched in any way. The way the author incorporates online relationships made me laugh at its realism. And when Liv finally meets these people in real life, I couldn't help but laugh then, too.

From the chapter headers to every mention of nerd culture, All the Feels is a blast for anyone who's ever been completely consumed by a fandom. If you've ever been a geek who's felt out of place, this is the book for you!

[Aimie · Rating 5 out of 5]

All the Feels is an amazingly heartfelt fangirl novel that you could definitely relate to.


All the Feels is about Liv, a college freshman and fangirl, who is navigating adulthood while she is still living with her mother. When her favourite character, Captain Matt Spartan, is killed off at the end of the last movie Liv just can't deal with it. Determined for it not to be the end, she launches #SpartanSurvived with her (handsome) best friend Xander. However, as Liv is dealing with the fact that the tag is beginning to gain momentum she also has to deal with her mother who thinks that Liv needs to drop this "fangirl" ways of hers and focus on her education. Balancing college classes, her mother's complaints, and her feelings for her best friend is becoming a lot harder to do.


“Alright. I'm over on the dark side. You'd better have the cookies I've been promised.”


All the Feels is divided into two parts - life before the convention and life during the convention. Which is both intriguing and an amazing aspect to read about. Besides that the characters are so entertaining and delightful to read.

Liv is such a relatable and likeable character. She is a freshman in college unsure with what she wants to do with her life - she believes what she wants is not possible. Rather than spending time studying for her classes, Liv is focused (and occupied) in fingerling especially after her favourite character is killed off. She shows more of herself and who she really is online then in any social situation.

Don't even get me started on Xander, Liv's best friend that acts like everyday is cosplay! Dressing like Lord Byron, carrying around a pocket watch, and seeming to understand Liv makes Xander even more irresistible. When he invites Liv to go with him to DragonCon, and her #SpartanSurvived makes new waves, she decides to go along and let go.


All the Feels is definitely a novel that will give you the feels. Check it out and pre-order it today!


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ARC was kindly provided by publisher, Swoon Reads, via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

For this review and more, check out: http://amalialock.blogspot.ca