In Kate Stayman-London's smart, snappy first novel, One to Watch, a lovable and complex heroine sets out to bring an extra dash of "real" to reality television but could lose her heart in the process.
Thirty-year-old plus-size fashionista Bea Schumacher's style blog OMBea clocks millions of views per month, and half a million followers keep up with her on Instagram. One night, after watching the season premiere of America's favorite reality dating show The Main Squeeze, Bea writes a snarkily passionate blog post calling the show out for its " 'appalling' lack of racial diversity, its 'perplexing' erasure of queerness, and... its 'abject refusal to include any woman who wears above a size 4.' " When the post strikes a nerve and goes viral, the show's newly promoted executive producer Lauren recruits Bea as the next Main Squeeze, the sought-after love interest of 25 eligible men.
Bea balks at first. She's still broken-hearted over a painful betrayal by a close friend and longtime crush, as well as reluctant to open herself up to the public backlash she knows a size-20 dating show star will receive. When she does accept, she warns Lauren that she wants only the publicity and will not become emotionally invested in the contestants. At first, her experience is as awkward and insulting as she feared, but she's also surprised to find herself interested in a few of the men. Over time, she becomes attached to kind farm boy Wyatt, grumpy professor Asher, free-spirited volunteer Sam, and sexy French chef Luc. If she's going to find her happily ever after, though, Bea will have to face the possibility that keeping up a wall around her heart may hold her back instead of protecting her.
While The Main Squeeze is transparently patterned after ABC's iconic franchise The Bachelor, complete with hometown dates and fantasy suites, this rom-com is no simple work of fan fiction. Stayman-London tells her story from inside and out, through Bea's point of view combined with realistic blog and tabloid articles, tweets and online fan group conversations. Bea's journey shines a bright spotlight on the treatment of plus-size women in fashion, entertainment and social media, but the character shows beautifully that women are more than their dress sizes. Creative, intelligent and vulnerable, Bea brings depth and emotion to a story purposely set in a shallow environment. Whether readers loathe or adore reality TV, this unconventional love story deserves the final rose. --Jaclyn Fulwood, blogger at Infinite Reads
Shelf Talker: A plus-size fashion blogger takes a reality dating show by storm in this funny, romantic debut.