Twelfth Knight

April 15, 2024
Viola Reyes is a gamer, a fangirl, and a feminist. Vi plays tabletop games and massively multiplayer online role-playing games, and she obsessively watches the medieval fantasy TV show War of Thorns. She loves to spend time at Renaissance faires and fan conventions, where she can be herself. Unfortunately, male-dominated fandoms aren't always welcoming to female-identifying and presenting people. More often than not, Vi is forced to defend herself and her right to exist in fandom circles. She plays as Cesario, a boy, in Twelfth Knight, her current MMORPG, so she can actually enjoy the game rather than battle constant harassment. Meanwhile, Jack "Duke" Orsino is student body president (Vi is the vice president) and high school football royalty. When he seriously injures his knee and is benched for the season, he starts playing Twelfth Knight, too--and DukeOrsino12 encounters Cesario. When the two begin chatting and teaming up within the game, Vi panics and pretends to be her twin brother, Sebastian. This engaging modern retelling of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night has a genderbending plot that's a perfect fit for contemporary readers. While some of the allusions will be a bit too on the nose for anyone familiar with the source material (and may make suspending disbelief difficult for some), the slow-burn enemies-to-lovers storyline (and the absence of Twelfth Night's sinister subplot) more than carry this successful adaptation. Duke is Black, and Vi is cued Latine. A delightful nerd romance. (dramatis personae) (Romance. 14-18)

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May 1, 2024
Grades 8-12 Jack "Duke" Orsino is the handsome, charming, and popular star running back of the Messaline High football team. Viola (Vi) Reyes is an angry, snarky gamer girl with a million nerd T-shirts and a habit of pushing people away. But when Jack tears his ACL and his girlfriend, Olivia, mysteriously breaks up with him, he recruits Vi to uncover the real reason behind her excuses. Meanwhile, as Jack's knee heals, he dives into the online world of Twelfth Knight, a fantasy MMORPG where he meets and befriends Cesario, a seasoned player who guides Jack through the game. The only problem? Cesario is secretly Vi, who uses male alter egos to avoid online hate. As the two begin to see past the other's walls and masks, they each must decide what to share and what to hide. Chock-full of Shakespeare references and gamer culture, with nods to nerd franchises like Game of Thrones and D&D, this adorkable Twelfth Night retelling from the author of My Mechanical Romance (2022) is the stuff that rom-coms are made of.

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June 1, 2024

Gr 9 Up-Being student VP to Jack "Duke" Orsino's student body president is frustrating. Add in a recent fallout with her tabletop group, and Vi Reyes's only safe haven is her MMORPG Twelfth Knight, where she plays as a male character. However, Vi's sacred gaming space is changed when a football injury benches Jack for the season. He is introduced to Twelfth Knight and unknowingly begins late nights gaming with Vi. There's just one problem; Vi's pretending to be her brother Bash online. While the pair build a virtual friendship, Vi grapples with telling Jack the truth, especially when their real-world interactions begin to spark feelings. Follmuth's sophomore YA novel is as lively as it is charming. The modernization of Shakespeare's work perfectly showcases teens grappling with anger over life circumstances. Vi is no stranger to inequality, and her gruff, guarded demeanor will resonate with many readers. Jack's search for positivity, coinciding with the potential loss of his future, hits the reality that life is more than just a game; it's about the people who stand with you. As Vi and Jack's relationship develops, both learn to appreciate the other while ultimately finding that having conviction, sensitivity, and steadfastness isn't bad if one cultivates and communicates with the people they love. Jack is Black, and Vi is contextually cued as Latinx. VERDICT A coming-of-age Shakespearean revamp where building personal connections, while unapologetically being yourself, is at the forefront of this romantic comedy.-Emily Walker

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