Review: Big Girl

Meet Victoria Dawson, heroine of Big Girl by Danielle Steel. The firstborn child, she grows up feeling out of place in her family because of her fair hair and thicker build. While the rest of her family is dark haired and thin, Victoria is blond, blue-eyed and according to her father, has his grandmother’s ‘big’ build. Victoria puts up with her father’s thinly-veiled barbs while her mother constantly drops weight remarks. Meanwhile her parents dote on the younger sister Grace, as she is beautiful and thin. Victoria and Grace form a strong sisterly bond despite the family tension.

Victoria goes to college at Northwestern, then later becomes a private high school teacher in New York City. She is aware that she often overeats – especially when things go wrong – but she doesn’t know what to do about it. She tries therapy, hypnosis and one diet after another with little results other than gaining and losing the same weight over and over. Until finally she meets the man of her dreams and the weight starts coming off…

This was one of those classic “overweight girl tries to lose weight, is unsuccessful until she meets a man who makes her feel whole” kind of novels. It is at least mildly painful to read about Victoria’s constant dealings with ‘fat girl’ stereotypes and watch as her parents put her down constantly. Unfortunately (SPOILER ALERT!!!) she never stands up to them, although the love of her life does eventually. I was disappointed with the ending because it seems like she learned nothing other than that she is a great person only because she has a wonderful man to tell her so. (Seems like there is very little personal development for the character!)

The writing in this story is extremely redundant (the author repeats the same thing over and over) and the characters were seemingly one-dimensional. I would have rated this book 2 stars, however, I am a sucker for ‘dieting lit’ kind of chick lit novels and I did manage to get through the entire book.

Overall, Big Girl by Danielle Steel turned out to be a mostly ‘OK’ read. I would recommend waiting for it to come out in paperback or getting it at your local library, however, as the hardcover edition is pretty pricey.

3 Stars
Reviewed by Rian Montgomery

Review: Priceless

Twenty-two year old Charlotte Williams seems to have it all: she’s a tall, gorgeous blonde, has a rich father who dotes on her and a huge Park Avenue penthouse where she has just returned to after studying in Paris for a year.

After an exciting first night back in town, Charlotte’s world crashes down around her quickly. Her father Jacob is arrested on charges of fraud, and suddenly everyone is out for her blood. The tabloids trash her and she has enemies threatening her security. Her personal bank accounts have been frozen, and Charlotte feels she has no choice but to leave town.

Charlotte heads down to New Orleans to stay with her beloved former nanny Millie and finds a job in a local restaurant. In no time at all she has a new best friend Kat, who introduces her to the New Orleans nightlife and vintage fashion. Soon Charlotte is scoring singing gigs and becoming known for her smoky, sexy voice. She even reconnects with an old friend Jackson, who is looking like he might become more than a friend.

However, there are still problems… for one thing, Charlotte is being stalked by someone who wants to make her pay for her father’s crimes.

I enjoyed Nicole Richie’s Priceless quite a bit – especially in the beginning & middle of the novel. The pace was breathless and there was plenty of suspense. Charlotte was an interesting character for the most part although a little one-dimensional. The story line flowed rather well except in the last several chapters, where it almost seemed to be rushed to the final conclusion.

Overall? I’d recommend this to anyone who liked her first book The Truth About Diamonds.

reviewed by Rian Montgomery

2011 Site Updates!

Hey all! As usual, it’s been awhile since I’ve updated here. Thanks for continuing to visit and leave comments. So here’s the deal: I am snowed in for at least the next couple of days, so I’m going to take some time to update this site with some new reviews. I took a road trip to the northeast (New Hampshire & Boston, MA) in October 2010 and managed to get some good chick lit reading in. For whatever reason, when I’m traveling, I prefer reading Chick Lit to anything else!

Here are four books I read on the road (and since the road trip) and plan to hope to review on this website at some point in the near future. (In the meantime, you can click on the book to read the publisher’s description):

The Recessionistas by Alexandra Lebenthal
Turning Tables by Heather & Rose MacDowell
Priceless by Nicole Richie
Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

I also plan to read and review the second and third books in Lauren Conrad’s LA Candy series.

Stay tuned for more…