I devoured this book whole in a matter of hours – I couldn’t wait to find out what happened to Bea, plus size blogger turned dating show star, as she juggles her own emotions about relationships, her body and how the world treats her, alongside the men that she is matched against. I loved how I was constantly changing my mind about who she is best suited to, and it felt like a real inside glimpse into what it must be like for a diverse candidate for these shows. The book also doesn’t shy away from the trolling that the plus size community is exposed to online, which can be very hard to read at times, but it tackles these issues with grace without it becoming all of Bea’s identity which I liked. Definitely a great read for any fans of show like The Bachelor, Bachelor in Paradise, Love Island or Unreal,  or for a rom-com reader looking for a fresh take on a meet cute with a strong female lead. Thanks to NetGalley for the free advance reader copy of this book!

The story of Bea, a plus-sized blogger. After a rant online at TV show Main Squeeze, Bea ends up being the next star of the show, with 25 men for her to choose from. Sometimes they were setting her up to make entertaining viewing at the expense of Bea, which was difficult to read.

As the number of men reduces will she fall in love?

I revieved a copy of this book via Netgalley to review. Thank you for the opportunity.
OMBEA, I love this book.
It is so smart, funny and relatable. I identified with Bea on so many occasions and I think most women would find some aspect to identify with as the book contains themes such as being plus size, social media and relationships. There is something for everyone.
The writing is amazing with gorgeous imagery. Bea is crafted so well that you can see her as a friend by the end of the novel.
I particularly enjoyed the use of different types of writing e.g. Texts and articles which gave a broader view of events and allowed different perspectives to be shown.
The book was super readable, I read the book in a couple of sittings and even stayed up late to finish it. As someone who doesn't normally do this, it shows how quickly the book draws you in with so many twists (not just Main Squeeze ones!) and won't let you go until the last page.
This book has already got so many readers talking and wanting to read it but I think it will be one the most popular books this summer. Now go read it!

This book was the perfect combination of trashy rom com and emotional character study. I was obsessed reading this and devoured it in a few hours. Whilst I’ve never watched The Bachelor I loved the way it’s premise was used as the reality dating show in this, and tbh it has made me want to watch a shit ton of The Bachelor despite all the obvious issues with that kind of show (which are very much acknowledged throughout the whole book). I loved Bea as a character, as much as she was super flawed, and could see a lot of myself a couple years ago in her insecurities so at points it was really hard to read for that reason.
Basically, I don’t understand why the world isn’t raving about this book right now.

Wow! I really loved reading this book from the very first page. I consumed the entire story while it fed my soul in one frantic sitting.

Bea is heartbroken when she settles down for a boozy night in with her best mate to watch the launch of her favourite show 'Main Squeeze', which is a show very similar to America's 'The Bachelor' from what I can tell.

Bea loves the premise of finding true love on the show but not it's label of 'reality TV', whilst portraying anything but reality in it's diversity lacking cast, which in no way represents the average woman. She posts on her blog in a drunken rant about this and gets shared, and re-shared over and over. Before she knows it she is in a meeting with the new producer of the next season of of 'Main Squeeze', they want her to be the 'Bachelorette' type, while 25 men fight for her attention with the winning chap proposing at the end of the series.

Bea reluctantly agrees. She has sworn off men and decides that she will do the show but she will Not fall in love. She will do this for all the plus sized people who do not see themselves fairly represented on TV and for the 600K followers of her blog OMBea which is all about plus sized fashion.

This book is written in a multitude of styles, texts messages, emails, social media posts, normal narration, etc. This made the book so much fun to read and it felt a bit like watching a really good season of Love Island, complete with how friends form group chats to gossip about what they are watching.

What I really loved about this book was how accurately the author shows how the world discriminates against anyone who does not fit into some archaic ideal of beauty. I also really appreciated how imperfect Bea is and the mistakes she makes right from the off.

I really liked the idea of this book but I just couldn't couldn't get through the back to back text scripts. So confusing.

This book explored topics which in my opinion need to be explored.
Bea is plus sized and after a drunken blog post, finds herself on a reality tv show to find love (Very similar to The Bachelor).
The book shows the up and downs of someone forced into the spotlight. I feel this is book relatable with the way Beas confidence was built up and knocked down by the men and producers on the show. I also found the back story of the “one that got away” VERY relatable!
A solid 4/5 stars for me. Thank you for the opportunity to read this book.

One to Watch is fun and feel-good whilst at the same time examining a lot of issues around body-image and relationships. This book is a great cultural commentary on what it’s like to be in the public eye when you don’t fit societies high standards, it has characters that are easy to empathise with, and just the right ratio of romance vs feminist ranting. I enjoyed reading it, in the same way to you enjoy watching The Kardashians and other trashy reality tv (which is fitting considering to story revolves around a reality dating show).

One thing that I really enjoyed about this book is that it is made up of various media texts around the story- text conversations, emails, blog posts, Instagram comments, tabloid articles, podcast transcripts, fan forums, the lot. I really loved piecing the story together through the views of different people, it helped me to get a more well-rounded opinion of the characters by telling the story from so many unique points of view.

'One to Watch' gets a solid 4/5 stars from me!

Bea and her would be suitors made me smile as I read the story of a reality tv dating show abs their “modern” idea of having a plus-sized lead. Bea was likeable, sassy and you wanted her in your real life she was written so well!

The suitors were likeable, relatable and well presented too. This tale of “will live conquer all- even a plus size lady” is funny, sad, exciting and a real good read- loved it!!!

This book was super relatable and I'm not even plus sized that's how good it is. It was so beautiful watching Bea find herself and proving that once more you can only love yourself first before letting others love you. She didn't conform to the rules of society. She was strong, she let herself feel and she came out even stronger than before.

I'm not sure why it took me so long to get around to reading this book, most likely because I've been wary of reading any romance novels (for all manner of reasons!) I'm so glad I did because this book was such a joyous surprise. Although I've never watched The Bachelor, I know all about it through press coverage and the underrated tv series Unreal.
The book has a similar premises to Unreal as it focuses on the backstage carnage that goes on behind the scenes of structured reality tv, but it's way more charming with a main character you really root for! Bea is a plus-size influencer and blogger, she's empowered and independent when it comes to everything but her love life. She's spent almost a decade in love with her best friend, a man who may or may not realise or care that this is the case. Bea gets invited to take part in Main Squeeze as it's next star looking to find love - although really she's there to further her career and inspire young women. But it doesn't take Bea long to get up in a romantic whirlwind, maybe she's finally found her shot at a happily ever after?
The reasons that this book works so wonderfully are countless. There's Bea, who is a character that is impossible not empathise with - she's an everywoman who wants to finally find love and truly deserves for that to happen. There's the structure, almost epistolary with its blending multi-modal formats (there's tweets, emails, newspaper articles, podcast transcripts, group messages alongside the more expected storytelling). Doing so creates a truly immersive experience, akin to really watching something like Bachelor or Love Island - we become invested in Bea's life to an even greater extent.
I read this quickly as I was so desperate to find out what was going to happen, romance with an edge and I *loved* it.

This book was certainly an eye opener, I really enjoyed the story of it. Loved all rollercoaster of emotions it brings with it. All the wonderful characters make the story so too.

I really enjoyed this book, it definitely kept me interested. I loved the fact that it was more about Bea’s personal journey than the romance, in spite of the fact that it was set around a romance reality tv show.

There were many humorous moments, but the story was also very emotional. Bea was immediately an appealing and relatable character for me, and I thought her journey of self discovery was well shown (rather than just being written about). I really liked that fact that she struggled, but still (mostly) stuck up for herself. I loved the ending she chose for herself on the show.

Overall, this was a fun and emotional story, and I’d definitely recommend it.

I was given a free copy of this book, my opinions are my own.

Ah what a lovely book. The premise of this drew me in immediately and I was dying to get my hands on it. It is about Bea, a plus-sized girl’s girl who is approached to star in a show which is basically The Bachelor. Bea is just so likeable as are her friends and most of the other characters (not Jefferson, ugh) and I found the whole premise of the behind-the-scenes of a reality show fascinating. The writing flows and there are text conversations and transcripts mixed in with dialogue and narrative so the book is just so pacy and smart, I devoured it. A firm ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me. Can’t wait to read more from this author.

Please find review on my blog Carriereadsbooks

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/7097801138930210722/8378983110229444566?hl=en

One to watch is a fantastic read about body confidence and finding love within yourself and other people! Such a great summer quick read that had me unable to stop turning the pages

WOW. This is it, people. This is FANTASTIC.
But let me start at the beginning: I absolutely love and adore when plus-sized girls get features in books. I do. As one myself, I always love to see myself in characters, you know?
BUT HOT DAMN: Never have I related so much as I did to Bea. She is plus-plus size. By that I mean that often, there is a girl in books and she's plus sized but you wouldn't know at ALL if you weren't told. But Bea? Her experiences? Her struggles with people and clothes and all of that? YES. 100% agree.

And then, this book didn't just give me a fantastic, fabulous, lovely, showstopping protagonist to adore, but she also got all the love. I loved laughing and crying and doubting these men with Bea because again - her doubts and issues? Way too real. But I loved it. The main characters are absolute darlings and I was so torn between the top guys. I couldn't put this book down because I couldn't have chosen between them, honest to god.

I did not see either the end of the show or the end of the book coming but oh my god, both made me so, so happy.

So please, if you guys read one book this year, make it this one.

I simply loved this book!

My last four reviews have not been good, I was starting to think maybe it was me? Maybe I didn't like reading anymore (let me just question my entire existence with that one sentence!)
By God I was so happy to realise that it wasn't me, it was the books!

This reeled me in quickly and kept me awake late into the small hours, when I wasn't reading this book, I was thinking about it!

I didn't know who I wanted Bea to be with, three in particular were the main runners and I would have been happy with either of them.

This book was just what I needed, a breath of fresh air and an easy five stars.

Thank you to the publishers who provided me with a copy of One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London in exchange for an impartial review.

This novel is the story of Bea, a plus size woman who use to hide in the shadows. Thanks to a pivotal moment in her past she has shaken off her self doubts and now celebrates her love of fashion. Bea has a successful social media presence and her many followers look forward to her most recent words of wisdom and fashion advice. There is one thing missing though. Bea is still single.

When Bea's best friend from high school comes to visit she realises her long lasting crush on him has never gone away. Despite him being engaged to another woman, Bea can not ignore the sparks that seem to fly. When he disappears the next morning Bea is left heart broken and confused.

Then the opportunity to star on a reality love show presents itself to her, but she isn't keen. After all, it has historically represented all the things she despises - that love is meant for the thin and beautiful. She hasn't exactly been silent about her opinion either.

Bea is now faced with a dilemma. She could accept the chance to be the first plus sized person to star on the hugely popular reality show, proving that love is for everyone. However, it isn't as easy as that. Will her followers and fans feel she is abandoning her principles? Or will she be making history by bringing body inclusivity to main stream reality television? There is also the chance that she will be made to look like a laughing stock. After all, even Bea has her doubts about whether the sort of men that are the usually on the show would ever settle down with someone like her. Also, the producers have not made a name for themselves because of their morals.

When Bea finally does accept the offer, is she doing it for the right reasons? What is Bea getting herself into, and will she ever recover afterwards? Is it too much to hope for that she might actually find true love?

This novel may appeal to adult fans of Julie Murphy's Dumplin' series. Despite the important messages this novel carries, the writing is light and the story has momentum. How surprised will you be with what happens in the end?
At 4/5 stars, The paperback of One to Follow is now available to pre-purchase. Alternatively, read it now on.
Kindle.

Definately a great book to read. One to get lost in funny, emotional, loved reading found it hard to concentrate on work in between.
Loved the characters, the story
The text parts were real, as you would get on daily basis. Loved it and would recommend to everyone

Thank you for the oppurtunity to review this novel.

I'm very sorry to say that I put this down. I had very high hopes but I had hard time varming up to Bea. She was very secure and had a great attitude in the beginning but that faded away. I was probably not the right reader for this novel.