Paper Princess is a guilty pleasure read. Everything that happens is so ridiculous that you can’t help but keep turning the pages.
What I loved most about this novel is the main character, Ella. She shares a few qualities with the stereotypical main characters in a New Adult romance: innocent, smart, and focused on the future. Despite these generic qualities, Ella is also NOT naïve. She has a firm understanding of the world, the cruelty of people, and sexuality. The absence of her naivety is refreshing and made me appreciate this novel much more than I would have otherwise.
When I read the first new chapters, I thought Paper Princess was going to be a Young Adult novel. It quickly becomes apparent that this is not your typical Young Adult romance. Paper Princess is incredibly mature in its depiction of high school students’ sexual maturity and their understanding of the privileged lives they lead. Without this sexual maturity and understating, the novel wouldn’t work as well as it does. There are moments that feel incredibly juvenile, however they are far and few between.
As mentioned previously, this novel is a pure guilty pleasure read. All the events are ridiculous in how they unfold, but it’s so entertaining that you can’t help but want more. I would liken the way this book reads to the After series by Anna Todd, but with characters who aren’t as annoying and naïve.
Overall, Paper Princess is an entertaining novel that will keep you turning the pages until there are none left. Ella’s character is a refreshing take on a typical New Adult protagonist in a very mature Young Adult setting.
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