About two weeks ago I finally caved in and purchased an Amazon Kindle. Then promptly cursed myself for not getting one sooner, because it really is one of the best things I've ever bought. Those who own one will probably be aware of the vast array of ebooks that are available. Amazon boasts a Kindle chart which is full of both free and priced ebooks, and simply browsing can bring up a whole host of great books which aren't available in paperback form. Thus, welcome to the new Kindle review feature at Trashionista!One of the first books I snapped up for the Kindle, aside from Nicky Schmidt's Marrying Out of Money, was Diary of a Mad Fat Girl by Stephanie McAfee. It sounded like a fun read - 'illegal surveillance, stalking and covert operations in a strip club'? I'm totally there.
In Diary of a Mad Fat Girl, teacher Gracelia 'Ace' Jones is looking forward to spending spring break with best friend Lilly Lane - that is, until Lilly cancels at the last minute due to her secret gentleman friend - the 'friend' she's incredibly shady about. To top it off, boss-from-hell Catherine is yet again trying everything possible to get Ace into trouble. Even worse is that friend Chloe, who is being beaten by her husband Richard, an evil yet well-respected friend of the local priest in the small town, is still refusing to leave him. Yet when Chloe confides that she thinks Richard is having affairs, Ace is ready to give Richard exactly what he deserves.
Ace and Lilly are soon on the case, with hilarious consequences. The girls dabble in stalking, strip clubs, and getting arrested. Things are shaken up even more with Ace when ex-love Mason turns up out of the blue and refuses to go away until she agrees to marry him.
Can they get enough dirt on Richard for Chloe to get her revenge? Will Lilly finally admit the identity of her elusive 'Gentleman?' And can Ace really take back Mason?
Diary of a Mad Fat Girl was a fantastic read - fast-paced, funny and delightful. It's quite a short book, but I read it in one sitting and wished there was more! Ace is a great character, feisty, amusing and would do anything for her friends, and so is Lilly. I couldn't wait to find out what happened with the awful Richard, and the ending is unexpected yet brilliant.
My only complaint, however, is that the cover and title of Diary of a Mad Fat Girl really don't do the book justice at all. The cover image does not portray the nature of the book at all and though Ace may be a 'mad fat girl', this book is nothing like a diary as the title implies. In fact, Ace may describe herself as chubby but the book doesn't focus on her weight (despite some hilarious gym escapades); it's more about her friends and her adventures as an aspiring local spy. When I saw this on Amazon I thought it was something different and nearly avoided it, but thankfully I checked out the synopsis which made me download it straight away.
However, that said, Diary of a Mad Fat Girl was a great debut novel and I'd love to read more from Stephanie!
Rating: 5/5
You can download the book here,
