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Viola Reyes is not generally known for being warm and fuzzy, friendly and welcoming. She’s annoyed with other people more often than not, just wants things to get done the way they should, and to have fun the way she wants to — playing ConQuest (think Dungeons and Dragons) with a small group of other teens and retreating on her own into the MMORPG Twelfth Knight.
But those things get harder when some of the guys playing ConQuest cause some problems and the student body president, Jack Orsino, won’t do any of his duties. She has to get on his case and/or do the things herself.
Jack is known as “Duke Orsino,” the son of his school’s legendary coach (“King Orsino”) and the football team’s talented running back. His future is bright, with a football scholarship waiting for him at a great college, and he (of course) has a cute cheerleader girlfriend. He does not get why Vi Reyes, the student body vice president, is so demanding and particular.
Then Jack’s world falls apart when he sustains a major knee injury and is sidelined for months and his girlfriend starts ghosting him. A friend suggests he try playing Twelfth Knight, and he is surprised to find it interesting and fun.
Vi has played Twelfth Knight for a long time as a male character, having learned the hard way being a guy online saves her from harassment. One day she comes across Jack, who hasn’t exactly created an anonymous handle, and figures out who he is. He messages her (not knowing who she is) to ask for help in learning some things in the game, and they end up working well together. Who would have guessed?
At night on their computers, Vi and Jack get to be buddies, and at school, they start getting along better. All the while, Vi knows exactly who she’s chatting with online while Jack is in the dark. As Jack and Vi seem to be even falling for each other, Vi knows she must tell him the truth about who he’s sharing his inner thoughts and feelings with online. But she just can’t make herself do it.
Twelfth Knight is a fun young adult romance pairing a “grumpy” female character with a positive, outgoing guy. Vi is struggling to figure out how to be more “likable” and give other people more of a chance, and Jack is trying to figure out who he may be without his spectacular running talent. Put all that on the delightfully entertaining gaming framework, and it’s a geek lovers’ dream. Really, it’s fun for anyone, though.
Rated: Moderate. Profanity includes one use of strong language, around 60 instances of moderate profanity, about 30 uses of mild language, and 65 instances of the name of Deity in vain. There are some kissing scenes.
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