Big Girl Panties

Big Girl Panties by Stephanie Evanovich
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When Holly Brennan meets physical trainer Logan Montgomery on a plane trip, the overweight widow sees a change to regain her life - and result of their workouts will be not only sweat but steam.

First off, let's not mix up author Stephanie Evanovich with her aunt, Janet Evanovich, as I did! This is Stephanie E's first novel.

At the core of Big Girl Panties is a fun fantasy - fat girl wins over studly prince, but the rest is nothing special. The sex scenes and some of the descriptions are awkward ('strong manly hands,' lol), and the rest lacks fizz. The heroine's revenge for a small slight is odd and embarrassing, and the hero at times comes off like a shallow jerk.

I'm not sure the  novel adds much to the discussion of our society's intense disdain for overweight people, but I did find the hero's self-awareness about his own prejudices interesting. The heroine does have to lose a lot of weight to finally gain his attention (and let's just gloss over the ethics of a trainer boning a client), but her backstory is unique and interesting. I wish that her troubled family was more in the picture, because it would have added some needed depth and drama to the story.

That said...it's not all bad. (I know, it sounds bad. But it's not.) For a plane trip or a day on the beach, you could do much worse. Enjoy this book for the fluff it is, but don't expect a whole lot more.

For a funny, action-packed romance with flawed main characters, try Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, which starts with One for the Money. Another classic of the chick lit genre is Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones's Diary, which also stars a female protagonist who finds love in spite of being on the heavy side. You might also try Stephanie Evanovich's upcoming novel The Sweet Spot if you found yourself enjoying her work and want to see this new author developing her voice.

I've Got Your Number

I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A breezy comedy of errors that begins with a missing emerald engagement ring and a businessman's stolen phone lead two people to unexpected love.

At a party one night, Poppy Wyatt loses both her antique engagement ring and her cell phone. Desperate to stay in contact in case her ring turns up, salvation appears in the form of a phone in the trash - except it soon turns out that its owner, Sam Roxton, needs the phone back. Their compromise leads to sharing an email inbox, and Poppy can't keep herself from prying into Sam's life - with mixed results.

Poppy's on her way to the altar and Sam's in the middle of a crisis at work, but the purloined cell phone draws them closer together through a flurry of texts and email. It's a romcom plot in book shape, and as fluffy and fun as a meringue.

Techno-haters will likely be annoyed by the amount of time Poppy and Sam spend glued to their phones (even when face-to-face!), but the plot moves forward text by text, smiley face by smiley face. The ending is inevitable but sweet as Poppy's heart is drawn away from her handsome, "perfect" fiancé toward Sam. All in all, it's a great summer beach read for anyone who wants to dive into a modern romance.

Chick lit is somewhat controversial. It has fierce detractors and defenders, like most genres adored and written mainly by women. But I've never let other people's opinions get in the way of a book I want to read!

There are so many fun reads in this genre, of varying levels of depth: Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding is probably the best-known British work of chick lit out there, thanks to the movie version. Kinsella (also British) is best-known for her Confessions of a Shopaholic series (which led to an Isla Fisher film of the same name). You might also try Something Borrowed by Emily Griffin (again, there's a movie).