Synopsis:
Having recently come out of her shell, Mia now enters her sophomore year with two goals: getting her driver’s license and getting over her cheating ex-boyfriend Tim.

Review:
While there were some things I admired about Mia the Magnificent, I was disappointed by other aspects of the third book in the Mia Fullerton series by Eileen Boggess.

I really liked the characters, especially Mia. The girls were all bright and outspoken without being overly sassy, and the boys were a nice mix of doltish, caddish, and space cadet-ish. Mia’s family life was goofy and warm, but not sappy, and felt authentic.

But for me, some of the humorous scenes were a bit over-the-top. I have blogged before that I’m not a fan of the chick lit cliché of the klutzy heroine who’s always getting into embarrassing situations, especially in front of the guy. I get that it makes her vulnerable/accessible, but I just wish authors could find another way to do that. However, I may be in the minority on this because it’s still such a common trope.

And this is the second young adult/middle grade book I’ve read where a teacher forces a reluctant girl to kiss a boy during play rehearsal. I guess I don’t understand how this is okay? Eileen Boggess is a middle school teacher herself so maybe I’m just too prudish. ‘Tis possible.

Many thanks to Bancroft Press for the review copy.