A review by poisonpotion
One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London

funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

Pros: 
  • Easy to read and fun concept. 
  • Episode 5 and 6 were my favorite ‘chapters’ to read through. 
  • When drama happens, it’s excellent drama. 
  • There were few times where I truly understood Bea’s inner demons and connected with her.
  • The social media, e-mail, texts, and tabloid portions of the book did add some fun. 

Cons:
  • Bea was one of the biggest issues of this book. I found her way too whiny, can’t go by one ‘chapter’ where she’s self deprecating, a hypocrite,
    slept with an engaged man yet the book went light on Bea for that for some reason like only Ray is the bad guy
    , switches from being self conscious mouse to sassy and confident for some reason, I had to suffer through her thinking of
    Ray
    way too many times, and just isn’t a good person yet the book still tries to convince us. 
  • A couple other worst characters that got away too easily was
    the producer, Lauren and Luc. Despite being one of the bachelors and the show’s producer, Lauren and Luc slept with each other during the EARLY season and didn’t stop until they got caught by Bea. Once again, the book went light on them like with Bea and didn’t really suffer from the consequences.
    Despite being in the book for a short time, I still got incredibly annoyed with
    her and Luc
  • The cast characters themselves are hit or miss. I feel like only 2 characters stood out the most to me while the rest are forgettable or unlikable. 

Overall: 
Book should’ve been about Bea and her love life than just making it all about her weight because it got incredibly draining (for me personally). They did do well in showing Bea’s insecurities about finding love and if she’ll make the right decision when it does come. Wish it was more of that and loving herself than hating herself due to her weight (yet confident?). At least this was an easy read and had drama to look forward to since it did help me finish the book pretty quick despite the issues I had. A shame because I really did like the premise of the book. 

Favorite Quote:
“It’s the hardest thing in the world. To have been that hurt, to feel that afraid, and to know that the only way you can be really, fully happy is to risk going through it all again? It’s a terrifying choice to make. But if you want to let someone be that close to you, it’s the only way.” -Sue (Page: 197)
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