A short and sharp novella but packed with humour and magic, GILM! is the story of new transfer high school student Geoff struggling to fit in and dodging a bully, who happens to be the brother of his crush Corinne.

When challenged by Corinne to write a song with a lyric rhyming with 'film', Geoff finds himself making a wish on one of his father's esoteric books. The result, 'GILM!' becomes a catchy hit among his classmates and teachers, but is there something more sinister at play?

GILM! was a lot of fun, you can easily breeze through it. Like most teens, Geoff is trying to find his way. It doesn't help his dad is a 'king' of goths, not only through his dress sense, but owning an esoteric curiosity shop, which further makes Geoff feel more alienated from his classmates. I really liked their father-son relationship, and the humorous inner thoughts of Geoff. Most funny was the class with the teacher leading the discussion on the lyrics of 'GILM!' and the varying interpretations his classmates had about the lyrics and its deeper meaning.

I'd be curious if there's more adventures featuring Geoff, because they'd be a welcome read.

Thanks to Electric Fern and NetGalley for the ARC.

Quirky and quick read with an interesting concept and a lot of humour. Geoff was a great character to spend time with too. Would make a fun graphic novel perhaps?

GILM! is about a boy who is challenged to write a song about a word that rhymes with film. Geoff Smith, a recent transplant from Texas to Portland, has a single father who is a collector of magical oddities. When Geoff finally talks to his crush Corrinne, he offends her by saying he dislikes musicals, and brags that he is a songwriter himself and is in a band (although it's in Texas.) She challenges him to write a song that has a word in it that rhymes with film. If he succeeds, she will go out with him. After drawing a blank, he goes home and finds one of his dad's book on magical spells. Executing one, he wishes to write a popular song that includes a word rhyming with film and his wish is granted. However, be careful what you wish for! He arrives at school the next day and his song Gilm! is on everyone lips. To make matters worse, his father can't stop saying it. Now Geoff has to find a way to undo the spell but keep the girl. The author is a songwriter/musician in the rock band The Mars McClanes, who have recorded a new song of the same name, which in turn inspired the novel.

This was so much fun, I loved the humour and the ease with which the author managed to deal with some big ideas in a relatively short story.
This had a really vivid visual feel, and I could imagine it working really well as an animation. I’m adding this author to my following list, such a vivid imagination.

GILM! That was so cute! What a fun, short read!

Geoff just started at a new school, hasn’t made any friends, but did attract a bully. One day in class, his crush, Corrine actually speaks to him and he tells her he’s in a band. His band is back in Texas, but she doesn’t know that. Once Geoff shares his distaste for musicals, Corrine challenges him to find a word that rhymes with film and put it in a song. If he does, she’ll buy him pizza. While Geoff loves pizza, he really likes Corrine so he tries, but can’t think of anything. His dad runs a quirky shop and while looking through his things, he comes across a magic potion spell that promises a wish. You can guess what he wished for. The next day, his new song GILM! has blown up and everyone is saying it. Is this the work of the magic potion or did Geoff actually write a fantastic song? Then it escalates to a caliber that Geoff can no longer contain and GILM seems to be entrancing anyone who listens. Geoff has to come up with a plan and fast. Can he beat the curse, defeat the bully, win the girl and still restore peace in his universe?

This was fast paced, funny and sweet with a super fun magical element! I loved this short story where an awkward high schooler finds his way. I think the author did a fantastic job with the internal monologue and it really hit its mark.

"Experiences like this can make for good songs"

This was SO FUN, GILM!
What else can i Say???
Perfect for fans of R.L.Stine !!!!

This was a great concept overall, I enjoyed that it mashes music and magic. The characters were everything that I was hoping for from the description, it was everything and glad it was what I was hoping for. Brian Corley does a fantastic job in writing this and left me wanting more.