Early Book Review: Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade

Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade is a contemporary romance currently scheduled for release on October 6 2020. Marcus Caster-Rupp has a secret. While the world knows him as Aeneas, the star of the biggest show on TV, Gods of the Gates, he's known to fanfiction readers as Book!AeneasWouldNever, an anonymous and popular poster.  Marcus is able to get out his own frustrations with his character through his stories, especially the ones that feature the internet’s favorite couple to ship, Aeneas and Lavinia. But if anyone ever found out about his online persona, he’d be fired. April Whittier has secrets of her own. A hardcore Lavinia fan, she’s hidden her fanfiction and cosplay hobby from her “real life” for years—but not anymore. When she decides to post her latest Lavinia creation on Twitter, her photo goes viral. Trolls and supporters alike are commenting on her plus-size take, but when Marcus, one half of her OTP, sees her pic and asks her out on a date to spite her critics, she realizes life is really stranger than fanfiction. Even though their first date is a disaster, Marcus quickly realizes that he wants much more from April than a one-time publicity stunt. And when he discovers she’s actually Unapologetic Lavinia Stan, his closest fandom friend, he has one more huge secret to hide from her. With love and Marcus’s career on the line, can the two of them stop hiding once and for all, or will a match made in fandom end up prematurely cancelled?

Spoiler Alert is a lovely romance that handles some hard topics with grace. Neither April or Marcus have the greatest relationship with their parents, and the self doubt and pain from their formative years has had a serious effect on them both. Marcus hides behind his good looks and charm, while April has decided to stop hiding all together. They each had issues, fears, and complicated feelings about themselves. Seeing them not just come together, but come to grips with themselves, their lives, their families, and their friends was so wonderful to see. Self confidence, weight shaming, dyslexia, family dynamics, and the wonders of fan fiction were all written about in such real and respectful ways that I would love this book even if the story was less than stellar. Thankfully, the story was wonderful and watching the interaction and growth of the characters, and the introduction of a wonderful cast of secondary characters, that I look forward to reading the next book from the author. In fact, I am a little sad that I am going to have to wait a year to read Alex's story- because I wanted that book about five minutes after meeting Alex in this book. 

Spoiler Alert is a wonderful romance that will speak to just about everyone.