Book Review: One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London
WOW! One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London was so much better than I expected. I say that because I bought this book on a whim and my track record for buying books I don’t obsessively research beforehand sucks. (Sorry pile of random books I started but didn’t like.)
The story is heavily inspired by The Bachelor franchise, but it is not your typical romance novel. It’s more of a personal growth, self-love, and coming-of-age story with a splash of romance. The main character, Bea Schumacher, is a plus size fashion blogger and the first plus size human to be cast on the reality tv show Main Squeeze. Just like The Bachelor, she dates 25 men on Main Squeeze and is expected to be engaged by the last episode.
Throughout the book, Bea struggles with the reality of love and the lies she’s told herself about love almost all her life. She begins the show having believing she’s not capable of love / a relationship because of her size, and after meeting strategically placed rude and weird men throughout the show, who could blame her? Near the end of filming, she discovered that she was the one stopping herself from being loved and once she made that breakthrough, things started falling into place.
Bottom line: Bea is SO relatable and a freaking boss and I’m so happy a novel like this exists. If you like The Bachelor / Bachelorette, believe in inclusive sizing not only in fashion, but in the media as well, personal growth, and a little bit of romance, I think you’ll like this book.
