WTF (Geek Actually Season 1 Episode 1)

3 stars | it wasn’t mind-blowingly good, but it was entertaining enough for me to want to read more.

I had never heard of a book serial before. I've heard of book series, but never a book serial. For those that are like me and are just hearing it for the first time, a book serial is written in "episodes" - a shorter story. Each episode is published on its own, but it created a story arc that, when completed, can be a full novel, called a "season." I received Season 1, Episode 1 of Geek Actually from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. FIRST IMPRESSIONS: I have been a Cathy Yardley fan since my mid-20's (I'm now pushing 40). After college, I started to buy books to get back into reading, and one of them was LA Woman by Yardley. I was hooked. It's one of my favorites that introduced me to the "chick lit" publisher Red Dress Ink, and the genre as a whole. So when I saw her name pop up as one of the writer's of Geek Actually, I had to request it! A play on Love, Actually. A boss bitch on the cover. I'm in! ALL THE THINGS THAT MADE ME HAPPY: After learning about serials, I discovered this was the first of 13 episodes. For anyone that knows me, you know that I love a good sequel. And 12 "sequels" would put me over the edge. This serial tells the story of 5 friends: 1) Michelle - an editor with a sci-fi/fantasy publisher 2) Aditi - a writer that just happens to be published by Michelle's publishing house, who is going through some writer's block 3) Taneesha - a video game programmer who is experiencing the sexist side of working in a "bro" world 4) Christina - she's not featured as much until the second episode, but she's there, working in Hollywood, behind the scenes. 5) Elli - living in her parent's basement, working a job until she gets enough money to make costumes for the next "con" (like Comic-Con, not like Ocean's Eleven). Looks like someone has some growing up to do. I did enjoy the first installment of this serial - the stories are interwoven and stand alone nicely. I was drawn into their world and left the episode wanting to hang out with them more. There is some naughty-business mixed in, because every woman needs that side of her as well! I enjoyed it so much, I bought the whole series to continue my adventures with them. I'm just about to start episode 4 and wooooo - it's been an adventure so far! WHAT MADE ME SCRATCH MY HEAD: NetGalley classified this episode as "erotica" which now makes me think that NetGalley is sitting their clutching its pearls because I would classify this more as a steamy women's fiction. This is nowhere near 50 Shades territory, so please don't let that put you off of it. FINAL THOUGHTS: If you're like me, and like women's fiction, or stories about women figuring out their place in this world, then this may be a serial for you. You can read it in bite-sized chunks and never miss a beat. Embrace your inner geek and give this one a try!