Book Summary and Reviews of The Nerdy and the Dirty by B. T. Gottfred

The Nerdy and the Dirty by B. T. Gottfred

The Nerdy and the Dirty

by B. T. Gottfred

  • Critics' Consensus (2):
  • Readers' Rating (1):
  • Published:
  • Nov 2016, 304 pages
  • Rate this book

About this book

Book Summary

His classmates may consider him a nerd, but Benedict Pendleton knows he's destined for great things. All he has to do is find a worthy girlfriend, and his social station will be secured. Sure, Benedict is different - but that's what he likes about himself.

Pen Lupo is sick and tired of hiding who she is. On the outside, Pen is popular, quiet, and deferential to her boyfriend. On the inside, however, Pen is honest, opinionated - and not sure that she's quite like other girls. Do they have urges like she does?

When fate intervenes, Pen and Benedict end up at the same vacation resort for winter break. Despite their differences, the two are drawn together. But is there such a thing as happily ever after for this unlikely pair?

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Reviews

Media Reviews

"Starred Review. A truly beautiful story about passionately falling in love with another and learning to love and share your true self." - Kirkus

"Starred Review. Although this novel includes detailed descriptions and discussions of masturbation, consent, and first-time sex, it's never didactic or heavy-handed, and instead offers a raw, empowering, and lighthearted view of first love and teenage - and especially female - sexuality. Ages 17–up." - Publishers Weekly

"Though this work is not completely without charm, lazy characterization and offensive language make it a pass for school and most public libraries." - School Library Journal

"This is a love story that is genuine, explicit, passionate, and often adorable. Pen's and Benedict's ability to accept their true selves transcends their hormones, their parents' burdens, and their peers' expectations, and makes for a reading experience not soon forgotten." - Booklist

This information about The Nerdy and the Dirty was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

Write your own reviewwrite your own review

Anthony McDowell

The Nerdy and the Dirty
Very Very good book

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

More Information

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Read-Alikes

Read-Alikes Full readalike results are for members only

If you liked The Nerdy and the Dirty, try these:

  • Seduction Theory jacket

    Seduction Theory

    by Emily Adrian

    Published 2026

    About this book

    For fans of Conversations with Friends and Vladimir comes a magnetic, fresh take on marriage and loyalty: when two married professors tiptoe toward infidelity, their transgressions are brought to light in a graduate student's searing thesis project.

  • My Fine Fellow jacket

    My Fine Fellow

    by Jennieke Cohen

    Published 2023

    About this book

    Culinary delights abound, romance lingers in the air, and plans go terribly, wonderfully astray in this gender-bent take on My Fair Lady from Jennieke Cohen, author of Dangerous Alliance - perfect for fans of Bridgerton or A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue.

  • The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman jacket

    The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman

    by Julietta Henderson

    Published 2022

    About this book

    Julietta Henderson's delightfully charming, tender and uplifting debut takes us on a road trip with a mother and son who will live in the reader's heart for a long time to come, and teaches us that--no matter the odds--we must always reach for the stars.

We have 10 read-alikes for The Nerdy and the Dirty, but non-members are limited to three results. Join free to see the complete list of recommendations.
Search read-alikes
How we choose read-alikes

More Literary Fiction

Browse all Literary Fiction books

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!
Win This Book
Win Theo of Golden

Theo of Golden by Allen Levi

One spring morning, a stranger arrives in the small southern city of Golden. No one knows where he has come from…or why…

Enter

BookBrowse Book Club

  • Book Jacket
    Days of Sun and Shadow
    by India Hayford
    A young woman’s coming-of-age story set in the early American frontier, shaped by tragedy, nature, and resilience.
  • Book Jacket
    Merry-Go-Round Broke Down
    by David Woo, Margalit Shinar
    Nine linked stories reveal how globalization sparks life-changing consequences across continents.
  • Book Jacket
    Chelsea Girls
    by Catherine Lloyd
    A glamorous biographical novel on Mary Quant, whose daring design of the miniskirt revolutionized fashion.

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket
    Summer of Love
    by Kerri Maher
    Three women reshape their family's Napa Valley winery after the 1967 Summer of Love.
  • Book Jacket
    An Infinite Love Story
    by Chanel Cleeton
    “A tender, romantic drama that soars as high as it’s astronauts.” —Kate Quinn
Book
Trivia
  • Book Trivia

    Can you name the title?

    Test your book knowledge with our daily trivia challenge!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

The C is A R

and be entered to win..

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.