The Curvy Girls Club by Michele Gorman

Can the curvy girls have their cake and eat it? Meet best friends Pixie, Ellie, Katie and Jane. Fed up with always struggling to lose weight, they start a social club where size doesn’t matter. Soon it’s the most popular place to be – having fun instead of counting carbs. And the girls suddenly find their lives changing in ways they never imagined. But outside the club, things aren’t as rosy, as they struggle with the ups and downs of everyday life.

I have read two books by Michele Gorman before but after I have just finished reading her new release The Curvy Girls Club I can honestly say this is by far my favourite book by this author.

Katie, Ellie, Jane and Pixie all became friends after spending a long time at Slimming Zone all of the ladies are curvaceous women who really want to lose weight but the constant battle and restrictions begin to tire some of them but they love spending time together so they decide to use their time doing something enjoyable together instead but as news spreads what the women have been up to it sparks the interest of others who all want to join and as The Curvy Girls Club takes off problems lay in store but will their friendship be able to withstand it?

This is a perfect subject matter for this time of year as we all begin to make our new years resolutions top of a lot of lists will be the popular lose weight ( I know it is mine every year!) so a lot of us will relate to the women in this book. Although the thought of weight and diet is usually depressing Michele Gorman has shown us this but has spun a very witty and down to earth read surrounding weight loss. The author manages to start the book of very light hearted and introduces us to four very different women who are all full of life but all have their own personal troubles aside from their weight and as we get to know the characters more and the book moves along things become a bit more tender and some very difficult issues are covered but the author writes about these in a very respectful and careful way.

Parts of the book were predictable but this didn’t lower my enjoyment of the book and I have to say I really respect the author for the way she ended this book rather than a typical ending she stuck to her guns and gave us a realistic ending rather than a fairytale one but I can’t say more than this otherwise it will be a SPOILER ALERT!

I thoroughly enjoyed The Curvy Girls Club so much so I read it in a matter of hours as I couldn’t put it down it was a humorous page turner which is the pick me up we all we need in this miserable month!

Kindle                     Paperback

The Twelve Days to Christmas by Michelle Gorman

Having recently finished Misfortune Cookie which I enjoyed I was so excited when I was asked to read the next book in the series The Twelve Days to Christmas. I am a huge fan of Christmas so I was looking forward to meeting our characters again but with a festive feel.

"What if his proposal had an expiration date?"

Hannah’s in a bit of a pickle. In twelve days she flies from Hong Kong to the US with Sam, where he’s finally going to meet her parents… and ask to marry her. Since overcoming a rather rocky patch in their relationship (which was totally his fault), he really is a new man, and they’re completely in love. The problem is, she feels panicky every time she contemplates matrimony. Which is perfectly normal, isn't it? She has no idea but she’s got to find out before he pops the question... because she’s not 100% sure she’s going to say yes which will make for a very uncomfortable family holiday.
He’s got to ask her before they go.
So Operation Proposal begins.
As time ticks down to their flight, Hannah realizes that her own secrets are threatening their future. Before she can be happy with Sam, she’s got a lot to learn about herself in the twelve days to Christmas.

I flew through this book which is easily done at a mere 83 Kindle pages. I found it easy to fall into step with the characters as I feel as though they are friends having got to know them so well in the previous book. I was hoping for a more festive feel to the book but I always hope for all the trimmings when any books either have Christmas in the title or a festive scene on the front page so that is just me getting over enthusiastic!

It was great to follow up on Hannah’s story to see what happens next and I feel it was a great way to read this in a short story. Once again we see Hannah’s roller-coaster romance taking familiar steps and leaves the reader wondering will they, won’t they?

I couldn't predict how this book was going to end so I was quite surprised by the ending. I do feel like you need to have read the previous book to understand and enjoy this book although the author does refer to past events to jolt your memory a little but having the familiarity to the characters helps to fall into the storyline and with it only being a short book you don't have time to get to know the characters. This is well worth buying on kindle if you have read Misfortune Cookie just to be able to catch up with the characters one last time.

Kindle                     Paperback

Misfortune Cookie by Michele Gorman

Would you move 6,000 miles to be with the love of your life? Hannah did. Unfortunately her plan isn't going terribly well. What was supposed to be a move to Hong Kong to start a wonderful new life with Sam is turning into a move to Hong Kong to spend occasional weekends with Sam, when he can get away from an unanticipated work assignment on the opposite side of the South China Sea. Still, she's optimistic, if woefully unprepared for the intricacies of Hong Kong. Stumbling through the alien city, which she loves, she starts to build a life for herself. Things definitely look up when she finds a great boss to work for, and her best friend Stacy moves to the city too. But alarm bells ring as Sam seems to be getting a bit too cozy with his boss. And when things start going wrong at work, Hannah can't help but wonder if she's made the biggest mistake of her life. 

Having just finished Misfortune Cookie I have a great urge to book a trip to Hong Kong as the writer’s descriptive writing pulls you in and makes you feel as if you are walking around seeing the sights with the characters.

There was some great humour in this book especially surround language translation my favourite which comes to mind is translation of numbers which results in a very funny and yet very rude comment! 

As quick as I warmed to the main character Hannah is as quick as I took to loathing her boyfriend Sam, he got my back up from the moment I met him in this book, after his girlfriend has moved 6000 miles to be with him and yet he doesn’t even let her live with him or have the decency to stay in the country! Hannah was a great character although I was a little shocked at how easy it came to her to up sticks and move across the country to be with her boyfriend but then this is what happens in fiction and that’s why I love it so much as it is so extreme and different from my life. 

One thing I didn’t realise is this book is a carry on from the authors first book Single In The City but I still enjoyed this book I just feel maybe the characters would have felt a little more developed if I had read the first book. I enjoyed the authors writing style and I look forward to reading more by this author in the future.