The Summer I Became a Nerd by Leah Rae Miller

The Summer I Became a Nerd
By: Leah Rae Miller
Release Date: May 7, 2013

Description:
On the outside, seventeen-year-old Madelyne Summers looks like your typical blond cheerleader—perky, popular, and dating the star quarterback. But inside, Maddie spends more time agonizing over what will happen in the next issue of her favorite comic book than planning pep rallies with her squad. That she’s a nerd hiding in a popular girl's body isn’t just unknown, it's anti-known. And she needs to keep it that way.

Summer is the only time Maddie lets her real self out to play, but when she slips up and the adorkable guy behind the local comic shop’s counter uncovers her secret, she’s busted. Before she can shake a pom-pom, Maddie’s whisked into Logan’s world of comic conventions, live-action role-playing, and first-person-shooter video games. And she loves it. But the more she denies who she really is, the deeper her lies become…and the more she risks losing Logan forever.

Review:
This was the most adorkable book ever!  I don't know why I waited so long to read it and I almost passed it up.  I'm super glad I picked this book up because again it was just too cute.  The characters were fun and funny and the situations, some of them were just too good.  Its hard being in high school and it's especially hard trying to please everyone but secretly wanting to be another way and I think this author portrayed that in her book quite nicely. 

 We meet Maddie, as she is on the verge of getting the last book in the comic series she secretly loves, well she secretly loves comics in general but again it's a secret.  Why?  Because she's a cheerleader and dating the quarterback of the football team and she doesn't want her social standing to drop, yes it's definitely superficial, but it's high school.  The only way to get this final book is to actually go to the store and purchase it, luckily for her there is a comic book store in town, but unluckily for her, it’s in town.  Putting on the best disguise she can find she sneaks into the comic book store and gets a copy of the book only to find out that there is someone she knows who works there. 

Logan knows that it’s Maddie under her horrendous disguise, but that’s only because he’s been watching her in class, and Maddie knows Logan only because she too has been watching him, secretly of course.  Something clicks in both of them as they share this last copy of the comic book and things take off from there.  Although need I say it again, secretly.  As time goes on and Maddie starts to become more comfortable with the whole situation she has to wonder if this should be a secret at all, after all she’s finally happy and trying to be herself.  There are some really, really sweet moments in this book where something is about to happen and you’re all geared up for them and they are interrupted but amazing almost moments.  Sometimes it’s all about the anticipation though.

This book was a must read, especially a really great quick and easy summer read that will just have you smiling from ear to ear.  The characters are lovable and relatable and the scenes throughout the book are an experience to be had, especially if you’ve never done the whole LARP thing, which I haven’t but was interesting none the less.  Absolutely Adorkable!

I also really love the cover, because I can totally picture that being Maddie hiding against the wall in the back of the comic book store or the side waiting to sneak in and see Logan.  Fabulous cover!