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A review by averagegal
Weight Expectations by M.E. Carter
4.0
**Read with my Kindle Unlimited subscription**
Penny Reid has assembled a group of authors to write romances set in the universe of her Knitting in the City novels under the name Smartypants Romance. They are slowly being released on Kindle Unlimited and this was the first one available. As a fan of the Pennyverse and knowing that those books don't stay on KU for long, I jumped on it and was glad that I did.
The story of an overweight woman and a gym rat falling for each other can be written poorly. I've read my share of books where the romance only picks up AFTER the heroine's weight loss. While Weight Expectations does get a tad preachy in spots about body positivity and fat-shaming (thankfully those buzz words aren't actually used), for the most part, the story dealt with fitness in a way that didn't turn me off. A lot of it was about the camaraderie that people can build in a gym and in sharing fitness goals.
I also appreciated that the hero and heroine's story was mainly focused on their friendship and how much they enjoyed talking and spending time with each other. There is a bit of sex, but it isn't all throughout the book and the scene between the hero and heroine is mostly behind the bedroom door. I've been reading a lot of new romances where the hero describes the heroine's body in great detail before I even get to the fifth paragraph. There is nothing wrong with that and sometimes I even seek those books out. However, it was a nice change of pace to read about characters who aren't oblivious to each other's appearance but don't feel the need to mention their arousal constantly. It was also nice to read about grown folks (people over 30).
Would I recommend this to my maiden aunt? Yes, I would. The mentions of sex aren't too scandalous, and she doesn't have to be a fan of the Knitting in the City series to jump right into this one. For a fan like me, it was nice to get a peek into Quinn and Janie's work world.
Penny Reid has assembled a group of authors to write romances set in the universe of her Knitting in the City novels under the name Smartypants Romance. They are slowly being released on Kindle Unlimited and this was the first one available. As a fan of the Pennyverse and knowing that those books don't stay on KU for long, I jumped on it and was glad that I did.
The story of an overweight woman and a gym rat falling for each other can be written poorly. I've read my share of books where the romance only picks up AFTER the heroine's weight loss. While Weight Expectations does get a tad preachy in spots about body positivity and fat-shaming (thankfully those buzz words aren't actually used), for the most part, the story dealt with fitness in a way that didn't turn me off. A lot of it was about the camaraderie that people can build in a gym and in sharing fitness goals.
I also appreciated that the hero and heroine's story was mainly focused on their friendship and how much they enjoyed talking and spending time with each other. There is a bit of sex, but it isn't all throughout the book and the scene between the hero and heroine is mostly behind the bedroom door. I've been reading a lot of new romances where the hero describes the heroine's body in great detail before I even get to the fifth paragraph. There is nothing wrong with that and sometimes I even seek those books out. However, it was a nice change of pace to read about characters who aren't oblivious to each other's appearance but don't feel the need to mention their arousal constantly. It was also nice to read about grown folks (people over 30).
Would I recommend this to my maiden aunt? Yes, I would. The mentions of sex aren't too scandalous, and she doesn't have to be a fan of the Knitting in the City series to jump right into this one. For a fan like me, it was nice to get a peek into Quinn and Janie's work world.