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Loved this one too. I really like how Heather is generally dismissed, but is really very clever. Very.
Library copy
Loved this one too. I really like how Heather is generally dismissed, but is really very clever. Very.
Library copy
Okay, so this isn't the best cover illustration in the world. In fact, it's kind of weird and not exactly unique either. But I have reasons for liking it and not only because the bride-groom figures are in a rather risqué pose.
There is a pistol tucked into the bride's garter belt.
I know. I'm very easily amused. But I like it.
The rest of the covers in the Heather Wells series aren't really anything to write home about. But they're cute in their own way, too.
Heather Wells series
by Meg Cabot
Book #4: Size 12 and Ready to Rock | Goodreads | Rating: 4.0 Stars
Book #5: The Bride Wore Size 12 | Goodreads | Rating: 4.0 Stars
See Also Previous Reviews:
Overall Series Average Rating: 3.6 Stars
The reason why I decided to combine these last two Heather Wells books into one bundled review was because I couldn't really think of much to say about Size 12 and Ready to Rock. To me, there was really no point in taking up a whole post with the words, "This was a very good book, probably my favorite of the Heather Wells series. Very enjoyable."
The summary blurb to personal thoughts ratio was just too unbalanced for it to merit a whole individual post. Because while it's true that I really enjoyed the fourth book in the Heather Wells series, I think I've already said all I need to say about the series overall.
The same goes for The Bride Wore Size 12.
To be totally honest, both books were excellent, enjoyable, entertaining, un-put-down-able. And to be honest, even while these last two installments of the Heather Wells series seems to be the least liked by many others, I actually found them to be my more favorite of the five book series.
Heather's tacky jokes are toned down a bit. Heather and Cooper get more time together and we get to see how well they work together both as partners in investigation and as lovers. At the same time, Heather seems to have grown a lot over the course of these books and has learned to live for herself more than for the sake of being with Cooper.
Really, this is just my opinion, but Book #4 is probably my favorite of the five. It could just also be that all the characters have grown on me after so many installments.
The Books
Final Thoughts:
Overall, the Heather Wells series was extremely enjoyable, even in spite of my reserves after not quite enjoying the first book. But things got better, Heather grows on you, and you start to look forward to seeing how things end up for her and her students and her friends.
The final ending in the fifth book might have brought back a bit of the tacky, but I'm completely satisfied enough not to dwell on it. A lot of things might have been left unresolved, but open-ended-ness isn't all that bad when you're enjoying yourself.
I will definitely be looking forward to another Meg Cabot book or series.
***
2016 Reading Challenges:
• Goodreads Reading Challenge
• BookLikes Reading Challenge
• Bookish Resolutions Challenge
Big Boned
by Meg Cabot
Book 3 of Heather Wells series
Big Boned was not as fun or as well outlined as the previous book in the Heather Wells series, but still enjoyable, just the same. One thing I can be sure of, these books have become fun to read--coupled with them being easy reads, as well as how readily Heather has grown on me, I find myself liking the series more than I thought I would have.
This book was entertaining with some good humor, even in spite of some of the tackier humor. But, as I'd stated somewhere before, I found Heather can be quite charming and very easy to relate with.
While Cooper doesn't ever seem to have much of a presence in any of the books, I still find that I love his every single appearance, no matter in what capacity. There's a little bit more romance in this book than the previous two, even if part of it is due to Heather's rebound guy, Tad Tocco.
The murder mystery wasn't entirely hard to predict and actually seemed a little forced, honestly. But the bit of investigating that Heather does was fun to follow nonetheless.
There is a specific scene I keep mentioning to anyone in my real life who cares--a scene I found quite relatable and interesting:
Heather is questioning one of her students about what she might know about the murder. And while the two are talking, they find themselves digging into the little apple crumble dish that said student's mother specifically told them not to touch. They continue to talk and spoon more apple crumble into their mouths. And it's just the most natural, banal, daily activity. Afterwards, Heather leans back in her chair and pops open the button of her jeans.
And I'm thinking: "Ha! I totally do that too after overindulging in good food!"
It was just such a "That is SO me!" moment that I loved it!
Some Final Thoughts:
This series and Heather are definitely growing on me and I'm finding it very highly enjoyable. I also like the new addition of Gavin and Jamie in the series. Oh, and Tom. Tom's pretty awesome when he's not being annoying.
***
2016 Reading Challenges:
• Goodreads Reading Challenge
• BookLikes Reading Challenge
• Bookish Resolutions Challenge
Size 14 Is Not Fat Either
by Meg Cabot
Book 2 of Heather Wells series
Confession: In spite of what I thought of Heather Wells in the first book of this series, I found myself loving her strange charm in this second book. While there were still a lot of things I found frustrating about her, I felt like the circumstances of the murder mystery in Size 14 really brought out the best of Heather Wells.
I definitely enjoyed Size 14 Is Not Fat Either and found Heather and the book itself a fun, entertaining read--something you don’t have to think about too hard either.
And I also confess, the murder mystery really DID manage to have me stumped. While I had a feeling that I knew there was something going on with certain characters (Kimberly, Coach Andrews, etc….), I wasn’t entirely certain what it was and my suspicions about the killer had been flaky at best--too many characters to lay suspicion on, really.
Official Blurb:
My Thoughts:
Much like the first book, this cozy mystery is actually not so much cozy mystery as it is chick lit about Heather Wells and how her life is going. Then again, it could also be said that the genres in this book were bouncing all over the place: chick lit, cozy mystery, contemporary romance, humorous something or other… etc. But whatever it was that this book ended up being, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The tacky, untactful jokes Heather makes are still kind of tacky, but she’s toned down her penchant for over dramatisation as compared to the first book. There was a lot less of her focusing on her size and her weight, and more of her just telling the facts as they are--which made the self-deprecating fat jokes a little bit more readily received by yours truly. After all, I make fat jokes about myself as well, and the ones in this book were quite aligned with how I usually joke around.
Jokes aside, Heather is quite charming and amusing to follow, especially in this second book wherein she spends a little bit of time at the beginning of the book trying her darndest not to interfere in the murder investigation. But to be totally honest, either she’s just way too curious for her own good, way too impatient to see things getting done, or the detectives in this book are just plain incompetent. It DID kind of feel like the cops weren’t really investigating the case of our decapitated student very seriously, and then whenever Heather offers some viable information she has come across, they treat her like she’s some sort of comedian.
I might be mistaken, but no matter that you don’t want your civilians investigating a murder on their own, if said civilian DOES come up with something suspicious or a clue that might help the investigation along, shouldn’t the cops at least look into it or treat the matter a bit more seriously? Just sayin’. This is what hotlines are for, isn’t it?
Anyway, the romance in this book is still a backseat event, and I’m kind of glad that Heather’s ex, Jordan, is getting hitched--maybe he’ll stop pestering her finally. Secondly, for a woman nearing her thirties, I still find it a little bit disconcerting that Heather still acts like a teenager most times--and that everyone else around her also treats her like a child and feel the need to get into her business and tell her how best to run her romantic life.
Otherwise, Size 14 was an entirely, very enjoyable book and I definitely plan on finishing the rest of the series.
***
2016 Reading Challenges:
• Goodreads Reading Challenge
• BookLikes Reading Challenge
• Bookish Resolutions Challenge -- My TBR List - April Winner
See Also: First Impression @ 3 Chapters
