Stuck Up and Stupid

by Angourie Rice, Kate Rice

An ordinary girl. A Hollywood star. A love story that could change everything. Pride and Prejudice gets a modern twist from two debut authors who know their material—and deliver it with heart and hilarity.

Lily has the whole summer stretched out before her—endless days of sunshine and friends at beautiful Pippi Beach. Then superstar Dorian Khan arrives, with his party of Hollywood types. While most of the locals, including Lily’s glamor-obsessed mum, are thrilled to be so close to the A-listers, Lily can’t help but see them as superficial and arrogant, especially Dorian, the most famous of them all. But as Lily’s and Dorian’s paths continue to cross, she begins to wonder if she’s got him all wrong. Playwright Kate Rice and her daughter, Hollywood actor Angourie Rice, team up to write a teen romance novel from those who know firsthand what the international film industry is really like. Inspired by the ever-popular Austen fandom, Stuck Up and Stupid is for a generation of teens who are definitely NOT looking for love.

Genres: Romance, Young Adult, Audiobook, Contemporary, Fiction, Chick Lit, Retellings

384 pages, Hardcover

Published May 6, 2025

Reviews

[Poppy Solomon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ohhhhh nooooo. I was excited for this one, so I was genuinely shocked when it was ... so ... bad.

I feel bad writing such a negative review because I so wanted to love it, and I always try to support Aussie YA, but I just can't recommend this. Unfortunately I think this novel is just a money grab because of the authors' success in the film industry. No care seems to have been taken to edit it up and make sure it's readable and enjoyable. It's a shame because it's an interesting premise -- a ghostwriter's help could've gotten it a long way, or a lot more editing.

The characters? Flat. The pacing? Off. The writing? Oh lorde where would I even begin.

I appreciate that the authors would be the right people to write on this sort of topic (though it didn't really go too in depth on the film/celebrity things - anyone could've managed writing about it with some research) but just because someone is successful in one industry doesn't mean they're qualified to write a novel about it.

Because ... ick. From the incredibly basic and underdeveloped writing style (I read a proof copy, but even for a proof the writing was in pretty bad condition) to the millions of characters, none of whom had any personality (barely even surface level), there's just nothing to find in the book.

Thank you to Walker Books for my ARC.

[Jeann (Happy Indulgence)]

Could not get into this book and dnfed after a couple of chapters.

It was difficult to get into with a tonne of character names without much introduction and stunted dialogue. The characters were also quite shallow and vapid, who only cared about getting close to an actor.

I received a review copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Madeleine Knutsson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Oh nooooo. I had high hopes for this one, but it really didn’t deliver. The writing style was my first issue—I hated it. It switched between characters in third person without any breaks, so one minute you’re in Lily’s head, and the next you’re suddenly in Dorian’s or Casey’s. It was so jarring and confusing that I could barely keep track of who was speaking.

As for the characters? I didn’t feel like I knew any of them. Lily’s “I hate Hollywood” attitude was repetitive, Dorian had zero personality, and I couldn’t care less about the rest of the cast. The plot was meant to be a modern twist on Pride and Prejudice, but it missed the mark completely.

I wanted to love this, but it just ended up feeling flat, forced, and difficult to follow.

[Iris Bicho · Rating 3 out of 5]

2,5✨
Hummmmm as referências ao original foi o que salvou

[ems ₊⊹ · Rating 1 out of 5]

nope.
There was like three pages of romance and thats it. Also Lily had never actually admitted to herself that she liked Dorian and then all of a sudden she loved him??? They literally spent no time together alone and anytime they did it always ended in a fight. How did she fall in love with him again???
The ending was severely rushed and the pacing of the book was weird.

All in all. I did not like this book - and I somehow forced myself into reading this.

[Ashley]

This modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice was very enjoyable. I thought using the famous of Hollywood as a way to create class difference worked really well, and I loved the descriptions of Pippa (small vacation town) in Australia beautiful and made it a lovely summer read.

[Kayla · Rating 1 out of 5]

run.

[Rachel Roy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reese pick?? Unreadable! The writing was some of the worst I’ve tried to get through.

[Sara Garrity · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars - a nice little fluffy book to read in the week between Christmas and new year. I really liked the first half of the book, but felt it got a bit rushed and random towards the end. However, I very much enjoyed the experience of reading this book! I want to go to Pippi Beach 🌊 🐚

[Bec · Rating 1 out of 5]

I liked the small town beach setting and the direction the story was taking, but the pacing was off and the characters didn’t have ANY chemistry at all. It took far too long to get where we were going, and when we got there it was like okay????

I don’t see how this was a pride and prejudice retelling. It was extremely disappointing.

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

finally read a book lol

I LOVE HOW ALL THE BENNET SISTERS WERE AUNTIES AND THAT MR DARCY WAS UNCLE FITZ THATS THE CUTEST THING EVER 😭😭😭

absolutely loved this book

[Cláudia Oliveira]

Dnf - did not finish 😕

Isto foi tão inesperado!! 🙆🏽‍♀️ Eu tinha expectativas muito elevadas para este livro e achava que ia adorar! Estava na minha wishlist há imenso tempo!!!

Contudo, a principal razão que me fez dar dnf foi a escrita. É uma escrita na 3.a pessoa (que eu amo) mas cheia de narrativa, onde às vezes não vemos as coisas a acontecer porque estamos a ler alguém a contar o que aconteceu (perceberam? 😵‍💫) Ainda por cima, no início temos logo imensas personagens (que se tornou muito confuso) e também altera o pov muito rápido. Tanto estamos na cabeça dela como, de repente, já estamos na cabeça dele sem qualquer tipo de pausa ou indicação (o que se torna ainda mais confuso).

Infelizmente, não foi para mim… adorava ter gostado☹️

[Ema S.]

DNF

(Não resultou para mim, muitas personagens e muita confusão...)

[Taffin Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook. Cute take on Pride & Prejudice. Set in Australia for the most part and fun back and forth banter!

[tessa (jeremy jordan’s version) (theater s. ia)]

i fear i’m a mood reader

i got three pages in and i was like “i really don’t feel like reading this” so i didn’t!

soft dnf so i might pick it back up later

the end 🤗

[Tal Sheleg · Rating 4 out of 5]

pretty fire. read it in one day

[Bryleigh Norris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent modern day take on Pride and Prejudice told in ways I think would be really easy for a younger audience to dissect and understand. This would be a good introduction into the classic for young adult readers. Pride & Prejudice is one of my all time favourite novels and I loved being able to see the connections between this and the classic. Thanks to Harper Collins NZ for my gifted advance copy of this one.

[hannah ♥︎ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it for sure, but third person perspective was not working for me. I also felt like Lily was lacking a fleshed out personality? Like it followed Pride and Prejudice a bit too strictly, more liberties could have been taken. I still think it’s a good read, just lacking a few things I typically enjoy.

[melodie | readingwithmelodie · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5

yeah pretty much the whole book & every character can be summed up by the title

[Melissa Barraza · Rating 1 out of 5]

There was way too many POVs, I had a hard time knowing whose POV i was reading.
Characters were dry and lacked chemistry.

[Elisabete Cunha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Orgulho e falta de jeito é uma reinterpretação juvenil e contemporânea de Orgulho e Preconceito, passada entre a costa australiana e o glamour de Hollywood. Lily, a protagonista, é uma jovem que não se deixa encantar pelas celebridades, mas cujo caminho acaba inevitavelmente ligado ao do arrogante Dorian Khan.
Gostei do conceito e da forma como a história trouxe elementos familiares do clássico para um cenário moderno, mas com um toque australiano. A presença de Mr. Darcy como estrela de cinema foi uma reviravolta divertida, e o ambiente de praia no verão é perfeito para uma leitura leve.
Ainda assim, para mim, a narrativa em terceira pessoa e o excesso de personagens, não me conquistou totalmente e senti que algumas personagens, especialmente Lily, podiam ter sido mais desenvolvidas. A relação romântica pareceu um pouco apressada e faltaram momentos mais pequenos e significativos entre os protagonistas.
No geral, é uma leitura leve, com humor e um olhar curioso sobre o mundo das celebridades. Ideal para fãs de Orgulho e Preconceito que procuram uma adaptação jovem e descontraída para o verão.
Não posso deixar de referir como a capa deste livro está absolutamente linda.

[Bec Condran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based in Australia and LA this is a light hearted feel good book. After thinking that both Lily and Dorian were from 2 different worlds and nothing like, the romance slowly grew. Easy to read but also pulls you in wanting to know more.
The start was a bit confusing trying to work out who is who and who is actually the main characters.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8 stars - it was entertaining enough!

[Lindsay Theaker · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am never, not ever, not once in my life going to scoff at an Austen retelling. But this one missed the mark for me in its modern Aussie setting. Beginning with Lydia’s offspring was an interesting take on a “history will repeat itself” motif, but that’s about where it ended for me with its cleverness.

[Imogen · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was so cringe but I think I needed a book that wasn’t too serious so hurrah

[jurdan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow

[Carly Blaho · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping this would get me out of my reading slump and it simply did not :/

[Danielle McGregor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable, but tiresome … all in one!
This modern take on Pride and Prejudice was very fluffy and didn’t quite hit the spot. An easy read, but the characters were often a little intolerable.
It all wraps up nicely like a little Christmas present … definitely only for a holiday read.

3.5 star

[kaitlyns_library · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is meant to be a retelling of Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice but set in Australia and America. When writing a retelling, it’s probably best to fix the dialogue. Whilst the language was modernised, the way the characters were talking was stunted and not written well. There were a lot of characters that were quite problematic, and if the point of them was meant to show flaws, it was not portrayed well. Basically, be aware that certain things don’t look well in a 21st century context (for example, an overbearing guy thinking that it’s okay to be in the girl he likes’ room whilst she’s sleeping…and she wakes up and sees him in her room and is clearly uncomfortable). On top of this, I could not enjoy the writing; the only positive thing I can say was that this book is a quick read.
The back of this book says “perfect for classroom units on reimagined classics.” As a teacher, I would not be recommending this to the English faculty or even to any of my students who enjoy reading. There’s better retellings out there.

If you’re interested in reading this, definitely look into more positive reviews because you won’t find it here.


Thank you @walkerbooksaus for a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

A modern interpretation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, that’s set in Australia and LA as our main characters try and over come miscommunication.

I struggled at the start to grasp who the characters were and how they were related (cousins, siblings, parents), and then who they were in relation to the original story as our focus characters had new names, but their parents were the original characters names. I did like how the parents seemed to have the same personality of Jane Austens characters, and it was interesting to see how they were interpreted as adults. I was just easily confused and ended up writing done a family tree of sorts.

The romantic connection between Lily and Dorian (aka Lizzie and Mr Darcy) was okay, I would’ve liked some more “small” moments between them as I think it was lacking.

Anyone who knows me knows I love Pride and Prejudice, so I can’t fully fault this book. It was a good read but the writing was hard to read at times. I think it might’ve been easier if it was writing from first person POV as the writing felt clunky at times.

Overall it was ok and a nice book to end my year with.