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Spoiler Alert
by Olivia Dade
There is almost nothing I would consider myself an "expert" at. I am great at parallel parking and I'm an excellent gift-giver. But I am an Olympic-level, honorary PhD holding, lifelong, FAT GIRL. I have lived and breathed this expert status since I was 8 years old.
I love representation of all kinds in Contemporary Romance. In recent years we have seen an influx of "chubby" leading ladies. These women are seemingly always described as having a "slightly rounded belly" and are, at most, a size 14/16. And this is BEAUTIFUL and very much NEEDED in romances. But every romance I have read (including my much-hated stint with "One To Watch") paint being a plus-size female with very light strokes. Read: "She's big and beautiful and sassy and she doesn't care what you think! Behold, the loud, funny, FAT GIRL!"
It's close to realistic, but it also isn't.
But guess what? SPOILER ALERT is so real-deal-dead-right-spot-on that I found myself continually feeling emotional as I read MYSELF on the pages. Not a surface version or chairactchur of the life of a plus-size woman, the UNVARNISHED NAKED TRUTH. And not a mildly curvy size 14, but an honest-to-goodness, 220+ lb. fat girl.
And THIS is the truth that is so beautifully found in the pages of this book:
- We go through peaks and valleys of self acceptance.
- We spend out adolescent years being the "side character" in our group of friends.
- We watch Disney movies as little girls and know, deep down, that we could never "qualify" for our own HEA.
- We become teens and slog through years of diets and eating disorders, trying to be "normal".
- We wear all black and pretend it's because we are Parisian Chic or filled with Teen Angst, but we're really trying to disappear.
- We live daily with parents, friends, dates, and strangers telling us we have to change to be whole. Sometimes this is said straight out and other times it is implied through thousands of verbal micro-aggressions disguised as health advice or concerned care.
- We can live in a space where we finally love our bodies and still live in fear and dread of those verbal attacks from others.
- We are convinced by others that the ONLY way a man could be attracted to us is if he has a Fat Fetish and is a Chubby Chaser.
And author Olivia Dade fucking GETS IT. Olivia Dade wrote the character of April with such beautiful honesty that I tear up thinking about it. And April's mother in this book is MY MOTHER. Like, to an eerie extent. As in, there are word-for-word quotes in this book that have come out of my mother's mouth to me.
It feels odd that so much of this review is about this one topic and not about the storyline, plot, characters, or steam level. But I can't NOT say it because I feel SEEN. And that is worth gushing about.
All that aside, this story is delightful! It tackles heavy topics without feeling depressing and while being a wildly fun read. The steam in this book is smoking hot! And the fan fiction aspects are epically entertaining. You'll fall in love with these characters and their love story!
Read this book. You will LOVE it.
I love representation of all kinds in Contemporary Romance. In recent years we have seen an influx of "chubby" leading ladies. These women are seemingly always described as having a "slightly rounded belly" and are, at most, a size 14/16. And this is BEAUTIFUL and very much NEEDED in romances. But every romance I have read (including my much-hated stint with "One To Watch") paint being a plus-size female with very light strokes. Read: "She's big and beautiful and sassy and she doesn't care what you think! Behold, the loud, funny, FAT GIRL!"
It's close to realistic, but it also isn't.
But guess what? SPOILER ALERT is so real-deal-dead-right-spot-on that I found myself continually feeling emotional as I read MYSELF on the pages. Not a surface version or chairactchur of the life of a plus-size woman, the UNVARNISHED NAKED TRUTH. And not a mildly curvy size 14, but an honest-to-goodness, 220+ lb. fat girl.
And THIS is the truth that is so beautifully found in the pages of this book:
- We go through peaks and valleys of self acceptance.
- We spend out adolescent years being the "side character" in our group of friends.
- We watch Disney movies as little girls and know, deep down, that we could never "qualify" for our own HEA.
- We become teens and slog through years of diets and eating disorders, trying to be "normal".
- We wear all black and pretend it's because we are Parisian Chic or filled with Teen Angst, but we're really trying to disappear.
- We live daily with parents, friends, dates, and strangers telling us we have to change to be whole. Sometimes this is said straight out and other times it is implied through thousands of verbal micro-aggressions disguised as health advice or concerned care.
- We can live in a space where we finally love our bodies and still live in fear and dread of those verbal attacks from others.
- We are convinced by others that the ONLY way a man could be attracted to us is if he has a Fat Fetish and is a Chubby Chaser.
And author Olivia Dade fucking GETS IT. Olivia Dade wrote the character of April with such beautiful honesty that I tear up thinking about it. And April's mother in this book is MY MOTHER. Like, to an eerie extent. As in, there are word-for-word quotes in this book that have come out of my mother's mouth to me.
It feels odd that so much of this review is about this one topic and not about the storyline, plot, characters, or steam level. But I can't NOT say it because I feel SEEN. And that is worth gushing about.
All that aside, this story is delightful! It tackles heavy topics without feeling depressing and while being a wildly fun read. The steam in this book is smoking hot! And the fan fiction aspects are epically entertaining. You'll fall in love with these characters and their love story!
Read this book. You will LOVE it.