Size 14 Is Not Fat Either

More of the same, except that this time when a student turns up dead, it’s obvious to everyone that she has been murdered. Instead of trying to convince everyone of the need for a murder investigation, Heather is trying -- unsuccessfully -- not to get involved in it.

I like how supportive Heather’s friends and colleagues are. Her father has been absent (in jail), her mother and her manager ran off with Heather’s money, and her long term boyfriend was unfaithful, but she’s still got people in her life who care and who are there for her.

And I did enjoy some of her song lyrics.

The “no” in “annotation”
The “um” in “circumvent”
The “err” in “aberration”
The “con” in “malcontent”
The “rat” in show more “unreliable narrator” show less

This is the second book in Meg Cabot's Heather Wells series. A former pop star, Heather now works at a dorm (residence hall) at New York College. When a cheerleader's severed head is found in the cafeteria kitchen, Heather promises not to get involved in the investigation by trying to solve it herself. Of course, she just can't seem to help herself, which results in trouble for her.

I really enjoyed this, as I did the first one. I think it's more chick lit with a mystery thrown in, but it's also more than the mystery. There is, of course, the obligatory crush, but there is also a slightly complicated relationship between Heather and her father. My favourite secondary character was definitely the neighbourhood drug dealer, Reggie, who is show more always chatting with Heather! It even picked up a little at the very end. show less

Not your typical chick lit.

Heather Wells is a former pop star. Her mom took off with all her money when her career tanked. Her ex-fiance is getting married to the girl he cheated on her with. She lives with her ex-fiance's brother, who she is madly in love with.

Okay, so far it sounds like a typical chick lit book.

But there's a murder at the college and Heather plays a role in solving it, although she promises everyone she won't get involved.

This is book 2 in the series, and I didn't read book 1, so I'm not sure what happened the first time around.

It's a fairly easy read, but I don't like how the author uses all these parenthetical statements. It gets confusing after a while and you forget how the sentences even started.

Still, I like the show more story line. It's not completely believable, but that's not to say these things couldn't happen. Especially in today's screwed up society. It does seem like something you'd see in a B movie. Still, it was entertaining and nice to not have to think too much when reading this book. show less

Size 14 Is Not Fat Either is a lot of fun. I don't think it's quite as funny as Size 12 Is Not Fat, but it still got quite a few laughs out of me. Meg Cabot certainly knows how to put people in a good mood with her books, which is why she's one of my favorite authors.

This book is a bit more serious than the previous one. I don't think this is a bad thing, it's just different. Actually, I liked that Heather had to deal with more than just the murder of the girl in the dorms (as if that isn't enough, ha!). She has to face her father, her ex-boyfriend, and I think the next book will bring a final confrontation with her mom, which is much needed. I appreciate that this isn't just another mystery and that Cabot has Heather deal with these show more issues. It adds depth to all the characters involved.

There were some parts that were slow, but for the most part, I couldn't put this book down. I kept wanting to know more and more about the mystery and about what would happen in Heather's personal life. The criminal(s) was/were a bit over the top, but that wasn't a huge issue for me, especially considering how the murder was played out.

Overall, this is a quick, fun read that is guaranteed to at least put a smile on your face. The mystery and Heather's investigation are incredibly amusing and entertaining. I can't wait to see what else Heather is forced to deal with in Big Boned. show less

Heather Wells is settling in nicely at her job as assistant director of Fischer Hall at New York College but there's a lot of life drama suddenly stacking up. Her ex-fiance won't stop calling her even though he's about to get married, her ex-con dad is suddenly back in her life, and Cooper, her gorgeous landlord, still has no clue she's desperately in love with him. And things only get more complicated when the head of a cheerleader is found and Heather just can't seem to keep herself from investigating.

In the second book in the series, Heather and her group of her friends remain thoroughly charming and funny and the mystery is a delight even when you know whodunnit. Thoroughly enjoyable throughout.

Assistant dorm - er, resident hall, sorry - director Heather Wells has the usual roommate reassignments to make on the first day of winter semester at New York College, but those are really the least of her worries.

A cheerleaders head has been found . . . without the rest of her.

The Heather Wells books are such fun because they're a great blend of some celebrity fun (Heather being a former pop star), some light mystery, and humor. Reading Size 12 is Not Fat the first Heather Wells book will give you more of the background on Heather, the different men in (or not in) her life currently, her parents and how she came to be working as an assistant dorm director after being a famous popstar.

It's not, however, all that necessary, that you show more read Size 12 to read - and enjoy (and follow) - Size 14. Enough recapping is done as to who different characters are, why they're in Heather's life and basic info, that you get the basic info.

Sure, you'll probably enjoy the series more if you read it all together, but it seems to be written so that each can be read individually.

The main - and not so main - characters from the first book are back again. Some of them you'll be thrilled to see again (or even see a little more of) and some, you might, at first, wonder why they are back. It all works out, though.

While the mystery aspect was not as strong in Size 14 as it was in Size 12, it's still there and still a great part of the story. It didn't keep me guessing - less because I had it figured out and more because it wasn't a think-you've-figured-it-out-but-ha-red-herring type mystery and more of one that just unfolded more and more.

There were little parts of the novel that did surprise me - that I think were more part of a mystery and I loved their inclusion.

The characters and their interactions were the stronger part of Size 14. Smaller things introduced in the first book were expanded on - not just the relationship between Cooper and Heather but other relationships Heather has or had. It was great that the relationships in this series aren't stagnant while whatever mystery is going on and that, in fact relationships that seem to be sort of a throwaway mention weren't so throwaway after all.

!The conversations we hear about Pete's five kids makes me wish we'd hear just the tiniest bit more about them, but I don't know where they'd ever fit in!)

The ending holds some promise for where Book 3, Big Boned will go - and you know someone(s) else is going to die . . . it just seems to happen around Heather.

A great, funny, goofy - and light - mystery series from Meg Cabot. show less

Former pop star Heather Wells has settled nicely into her new life as assistant dorm director at New York College—a career that does not require her to drape her size 12 body in embarrassingly skimpy outfits. She can even cope (sort of) with her rocker ex-boyfriend's upcoming nuptials, which the press has dubbed The Celebrity Wedding of the Decade. But she's definitely having a hard time dealing with the situation in the dormitory kitchen—where a cheerleader has lost her head on the first day of the semester. (Actually, her head is accounted for—it's her torso that's AWOL.)

Surrounded by hysterical students—with her ex-con father on her doorstep and her ex-love bombarding her with unwanted phone calls—Heather welcomes the show more opportunity to play detective . . . again. If it gets her mind off her personal problems—and teams her up again with the gorgeous P.I. who owns the brownstone where she lives—it's all good. But the murder trail is leading the average-sized amateur investigator into a shadowy world. And if she doesn't watch her step, Heather will soon be singing her swan song! show less