Confession time: I, like many others, have quite the obsession with Pride and Prejudice - especially the BBC version with Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth. So when I found out that Epic Fail is a modern reimagining of one of my favourite books, my interest was most definitely piqued. 
 The story here follows the basic outline of P&P superimposed on a modern high school setting. Eliza and her family have just moved to LA, where her mother has accepted a position as principal at a private school for the socially privileged. Through their mother, Eliza and her sisters, Julianna and Layla, also get positions in a school that they wouldn't normally be able to afford. 
 A good selection of the P&P case are also in this story, though some characters are cut (Mary, Charlotte, Mr Collins,...) and others have had their roles shifted slightly (Layla - Lydia - is no longer the youngest sister) presumably because this made it easier to fit the story into a high school setting, which necessarily sees all the main characters at a significantly younger age. 
 Derek, this story's Darcy, is the son of two major Hollywood stars, and consequently he's used to people only wanting to know him in order to go through him to his parents. When he catches Eliza checking him out in the cafeteria, he looks down on her. She immediately concludes that he's proud and decides that good looks don't necessarily mean pleasant personality. Derek's in for a bit of a shock when he realises that she doesn't care who his parents happen to be. 
 There's not really much to say about the various characters as they're obviously all based on Jane Austen's originals and fit those same moulds. I'd say that the author has done a good job of making the transition to our modern day society in a YA friendly book, finding convincing roles for all the characters. Unfortunately, the change in era, setting, and ages of the characters means that a number of prominent scenes can't take place (the showdown between Elizabeth and Lady Catherine). Furthermore, the story loses part of its potency, which focuses on the difference in class in a society based on a class system. 
 Epic Fail is fairly short and stays light. It's a far cry from the social commentary of P&P but it did make an enjoyable evening read. It's a good story in its own right, but because it's being compared with a book that is widely considered one of the best English literature has to offer, it doesn't quite shine the way it ought to.