The Surprising Life of Charlie Glass (size 18 and a bit) by Angela Woolfe

It's fair to say that Charlie Glass is carrying a little excess baggage - emotionally and physically. For years her excess weight means she's been the butt of her skinny stepmother and half sisters' jokes, and she's had enough. So, after a few weeks at a boot camp, Charlie returns slim, gorgeous and ready to run the shoe firm that, to her sisters' annoyance, she has inherited from their beloved father. And when she bags a glamorous boyfriend, her transformation is complete. Life is almost perfect (skinny stepmother aside), but her best friend Lucy seems resentful, Ferdy, the man she has secretly adored for years, apparently preferred her the way she was, and the constant battle to stay thin and beautiful is torture. Would it really matter if the weight crept back on? There's only one way to find out.

It is that time of year again when the majority of us feel low about our weight and I for one say every January this year will be my year to lose the weight (never has this happened!) so I love reading about the fictional characters who also struggle with their weight. When I read the synopsis for The Surprising Life of Charlie Glass this really sounded like my kind of read, it is the perfect book for this time of year.

Our main character is the lovely Charlie Glass who I absolutely loved from the first chapter although along the way through her journey there were many a time I could have throttled her too so me and Charlie had a Love Hate relationship going on!

When we first meet Charlie she is a more than a little overweight and her self-confidence is practically non-existent just like her personal life. She has spent years looking after her father and so her personal life has suffered so after her father passes away she decides to get her life on track and kicks starts this by going away to boot camp to change her image.When she returns she is fighting fit and full of confidence and it was quite clear the story was about to step up a pace!

The book was a hefty 566 pages and yet the story line is such an easy and enjoyable read that before you knew it the book was over. I didn’t feel as though the book was drawn out and could have been cut back at all. There are some really lovable characters in this book alongside Charlie such has her best friend Lucy, Ferdy who is a little gem and also the completely insane beauty therapist Galina ( I really hope this is not how my clients see me!) The visits to the salon provide us with some great entertainment. There were also some great villains in this book which reminded me of Cinderella with the wicked stepmother and stepsisters!

The author also manages to create a little suspense in the book with a storyline involving Charlie’s mother’s death it wasn’t until about half way through that I began to get a feeling I knew what happened here.

As I mentioned before I had a love/hate relationship with our main character because she seemed to be a little too focused on her image and was losing her spark it was at times like this I want to get hold of her and shake her but she was still a great main character.

If you are looking for a fun modern read with delightful main character then give this one a try.

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