In this charming romantic comedy perfect for fans of Meg Cabot and Sophie Kinsella, critically acclaimed author Teri Wilson shows us that sometimes being pushed out of your comfort zone leads you to the ultimate prize. Charlotte Gorman loves her job as an elementary school librarian, and is content to experience life through the pages of her books. Which couldn’t be more opposite from her … opposite from her identical twin sister. Ginny, an Instagram-famous beauty pageant contestant, has been chasing a crown since she was old enough to enunciate the words world peace, and she’s not giving up until she gets the title of Miss American Treasure. And Ginny’s refusing to do it alone this time.
She drags Charlotte to the pageant as a good luck charm, but the winning plan quickly goes awry when Ginny has a terrible, face-altering allergic reaction the night before the pageant, and Charlotte suddenly finds herself in a switcheroo the twins haven’t successfully pulled off in decades.
Woefully unprepared for the glittery world of hair extensions, false eyelashes, and push-up bras, Charlotte is mortified at every unstable step in her sky-high stilettos. But as she discovers there’s more to her fellow contestants than just wanting a sparkly crown, Charlotte realizes she has a whole new motivation for winning.
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Not a life-changing book by any means but a fun, engaging read. I was pleased that the ending was not the perfect fairy-tale ending but still left me satisfied.
Funny and sweet romance. Charlotte and Ginny are identical twins but couldn’t be more opposite. Charlotte loves her life as an elementary school librarian and Ginny loves her life on the pageant circuit. The Miss American Treasure pageant is a perfect place for a twin sister adventure and a little romance! A real feel good book.
The Accidental Beauty Queen is a book I thought I’d never pick up. I’m not in to the whole pageant scenario. I actually bought this book on a whim when I seen someone post a picture of it on Instagram. I have to say I’m glad I did, I really enjoyed the story of Charlottes adventure as her twin sisters stand in for the Miss America Treasure Pageant. I also was really smitten with how the author incorporated Harry Potter into the novel. Bonus points for that!
ACCIDENTAL BEAUTY QUEEN takes the twin story and turns it on its ear. Utterly delightful with great sister insights. A story with great heart. Recommended read.
This book was very enjoyable. Easy read and light hearted. Feel good book!
I really liked this book. It was funny and romantic all at once.
I loved this book! This was a great witty, romantic book with a twist about sisters love.
I love this author. A few of her books have been turned into Hallmark movies. I have to admit I hesitated on reading this book. Beauty pageants aren’t my thing. The main character is an elementary school librarian so my interest in this book didn’t quite go away. I figured I’d wait for the library to get their copy in and then give it a try and then if it really wasn’t my cup of tea I’d just turn the book back in unfinished…no harm, no foul. Then a book subscription box that I’m a fan of posted a one time box they were doing for Valentine’s Day. It was a rom com box. Turns out this was the book. So yet another sign I should read this book. I started reading the book on a Friday night and didn’t get out of my chair until I had finished it. Obviously I could not put this book down. There are a lot of Harry Potter and Jane Austen references. Two literary loves of my life. I had to stop and take a picture close to the beginning of the book because the main character was wearing a Harry Potter shirt and so I was.
I messaged most of my friends and told them they have to read this book. Mind you if you’re not into Harry Potter and/or Jane Austen you might roll your eyes at the references or miss them entirely. This book spoke to my nerdy soul. I was sad when I got to the end. I almost wish I hadn’t read it so fast. I can’t wait for my friends (and some library patrons) to read this book so we can discuss it.
Librarian Charlotte Gorman is on a much needed vacation with her sister Ginny. Well, her sister invited her to share her suite in Orlando while she is competing in the Miss American Treasure beauty pageant and Charlotte is planning on hitting all of the amusement parks while giving moral support to Ginny. At 29 this is the last year that Ginny will be able to compete, and she wants to win just like her mother did years ago. Unfortunately, Ginny comes down with an allergic reaction to something and her face swells up like a pumpkin and you guessed it, she guilts Charlotte, her TWIN sister, into taking her place….just until the swelling goes down.
Even though Charlotte and Ginny are twin sisters and share the same face, they don’t share the same self image. Charlotte has always felt like Ginny was the pretty sister but when Ginny works her beauty pageant magic Charlotte is shocked she’s the spitting image of her sister, yet she is still just Charlotte on the inside. I loved how Charlotte’s journey in going through the first few levels of the pageant really helped her see herself differently. Mostly I liked how these two twin sisters grew closer through this process and honored the memory of their mother.
Charlotte’s journey of self discovery was not just through the beauty pageant. There is also a love interest for Charlotte and he is her perfect match! Although the romance was downplayed a bit for the plot about the two sisters, I still enjoyed that tension and loved the secrecy of their flirtation. If I were partial to sighing while reading I probably would’ve fainted from lack of breath. That didn’t happen, but I did have a slight smile on my face through all of their scenes and even laughed out loud a few times. This was one funny book!
Do you know when you start a novel and the words flow easily and you can feel yourself relaxing into the main character, not fighting against the words? That was how The Accidental Beauty Queen was for me. It was the perfect book for that perfect moment in time and I just loved it. I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for my honest review and it was honest!
This book needs to be made into a movie. Yes, I know several of author Teri Wilson’s books have already hit the airwaves and this one definitely deserves to be added to the list of book to movie too.
This book has all the makings of the perfect RomCom. It has funny bits, romance and yes even sister love. Having come from a large family i understand so much of what is going on in this book. I am not a twin but an Irish twin. Not a pageant girl but the youngest of two super smart sisters. This book had me going oh yes been there felt like that at times with Ginny and Charolette. Been an avid reader the book references are so cool and at times had me reaching inside my head to think which book did that come from. I loved this book and it is one I will probably re-read some time in the future.
A typical Teri Wilson book: cute, sweet, and romantic. A well-written romance with a message in which a plain-jane twin covers for her beauty-queen sister after a disastrous allergic reaction.
I was lucky to have won this delightful book from Goodreads.com. It is an appealing introduction to a new author for me. Endearing characters, a clever plot and an amusing narrative make this a captivating read.
Charlotte and Ginny Gorman are 29 year old identical twins. Until they were five, they looked alike, talked alike, dressed alike (the whole “The Patty Duke Show” thing”, until their mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer the day after their fifth birthday and was gone seven months later.
Ginny’s way to connect to their mother was to continue in the pageant scene, striving to win the title their mother once held, Miss American Treasure. Charlotte, on the other hand, loathed the pageants and escaped into books. Ginny chases crown after crown, stacking up not only the crowns, but scholarships, while Charlotte went away to college got her degree in Library Science and came back home to work in the local elementary school library. Finally competing in the coveted Miss American Treasure pageant, Ginny invites Charlotte to share her room in Orlando. Not having taken a vacation in a long time, Charlotte has purchased a 5-day unlimited pass to Wizarding World of Harry Potter. But the first night Ginny has an allergic reaction to something that they ate, requiring an immediate visit to an urgent care center. The reaction will take several days to go down and the doctor suggests that Charlotte take Ginny’s place until she is better. The idea terrifies Charlotte, but she will do anything for her sister. And so follows a hilarious story about how the twins learn what it is like walking in the other’s shoes, sisterhood and friendship and what is really important in life. And Charlotte finds romance too.
Favorite Quotes:
Ginny chose this life, just as surely as I chose mine. She also gets paid more for one sponsored Instagram post than I make in a week, and when I remember this, I keep my sympathy in check.
The Hogwarts T-shirt I’m wearing might as well be an invisibility cloak… I’m here for the chance to stay in Ginny’s luxury hotel room for a week, for free, and completely nerd out at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. I’m also here for moral support, of course. I plan on being at every single pageant event, cheering like a maniac while inwardly cringing in horror at the very thought of prancing around in only a tiny swimsuit and a crown.
I prefer the scent of ink on paper and old library books to perfume. And while I want to see world peace happen, I’m not convinced that a real-life Barbie can hasten it by uttering those words into a microphone.
Her complexion is covered in red splotches and she looks weirdly out of proportion, almost like a Picasso painting.
I’m so totally in over my head. Last week I was shelving picture books and now I’ve got more secret lives than I can keep up with. I’ve somehow become the beauty pageant version of Jason Bourne.
My Review:
I loved this adorable and cleverly amusing tale. The writing was refreshingly crisp and laden with smart wit, skillful levity, and heart squeezing and insightful observations. I was quickly enamored with Ms. Wilson’s agile word skills and was soon fully invested in her smartly written, delightfully humorous, and well-crafted tale. This was my first exposure to Ms. Wilson’s genius and was an immediate smitten kitten and instant fangirl.
Ginny and Charlotte are identical twins. Although they look alike, their lives have taken very different directions. Ginny spends her time competing in beauty pageants and has worked hard to achieve some success. Her goal is to win the upcoming Miss American Treasure pageant- a title previously won by her mother. Charlotte is more introverted and is happy working as a librarian where she can enjoy her precious books. With little social overlap, the two sisters are not as close as most twins.
Charlotte decides to spend her vacation by supporting Ginny at the pageant. The night before the competition, Ginny breaks out in hives on her face from a food allergy. Rather than withdrawing, the sisters swap identities and Charlotte makes her secret beauty pageant debut. In the process, she makes surprising discoveries about herself and moves forward to repairing ties with her sister.
This was another fun novel by Teri Wilson. I was first introduced to her books in The Royally Roma series. The Accidental Beauty Queen was not only a book about pageants but about sisterly love and rivalry.
The Accidental Beauty Queen is a great bit of escapism. It’s silly, over the top, and completely predictable. It’s also witty, often hilarious, loads of fun, and maybe even a little bit of a lesson about seeing things from both sides of the coin before passing judgment. There is romance – well, there’s instalove, which I’m not usually a fan of, but it’s not really the focus here. The story is about identical twins, Charlotte and Ginny. I’ll admit, I wasn’t crazy about Ginny for most of the story. She has a bad case of “It’s all about me” syndrome and doesn’t even consider how things affect others. However, she doesn’t make excuses for it, and she is redeemable. Charlotte isn’t exactly on this trip for entirely selfless reasons either, but her plans get derailed and she finds herself smack in the middle of interviews, swimsuit competitions, and finding a talent to wow the judges. All in all, the angst level is low and the fun is high for engaging and entertaining read.
The Accidental Beauty Queen was such a delightful read, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. It’s an uplifting story that will warm your heart and bring a smile to your face. It has a lot of bookish references and bookish humor that any bookworm will appreciate, positive female friendships, sweet romance, and an adorable dog that makes the story so much sweeter. A highly recommended read!