One to Watch

A Novel

By: Kate Stayman-London

Narrated by: Kristen Sieh

Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Real love . . . as seen on TV. A plus-size bachelorette brings a fresh look to a reality show in this razor-sharp, “divinely witty” (Entertainment Weekly) debut.

“Effortlessly fun and clever . . . I found the tension impeccable . . . and that made my reading experience incredibly propulsive. Read it in a day and a half.”—Emily Henry, #1 bestselling author of Beach Read and The People We Meet on Vacation

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Time • NPR • Marie Claire • Mashable

Bea Schumacher is a devastatingly stylish plus-size fashion blogger who has amazing friends, a devoted family, legions of Insta followers—and a massively broken heart. Like the rest of America, Bea indulges in her weekly obsession: the hit reality show Main Squeeze. The fantasy dates! The kiss-off rejections! The surprising amount of guys named Chad! But Bea is sick and tired of the lack of body diversity on the show. Since when is being a size zero a prerequisite for getting engaged on television?

Just when Bea has sworn off dating altogether, she gets an intriguing call: Main Squeeze wants her to be its next star, surrounded by men vying for her affections. Bea agrees, on one condition—under no circumstances will she actually fall in love. She’s in this to supercharge her career, subvert harmful beauty standards, inspire women across America, and get a free hot air balloon ride. That’s it.

But when the cameras start rolling, Bea realizes things are more complicated than she anticipated. She’s in a whirlwind of sumptuous couture, Internet culture wars, sexy suitors, and an opportunity (or two, or five) to find messy, real-life love in the midst of a made-for-TV fairy tale. In this joyful, wickedly observant debut, Bea has to decide whether it might just be worth trusting these men—and herself—for a chance to live happily ever after.

©2020 Kate Stayman-London (P)2020 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Thoroughly charming”—Hillary Clinton

“[E]ffortlessly fun and clever . . . I found the tension impeccable . . . and that made my reading experience incredibly propulsive. Read it in a day and a half.”—Emily Henry, #1 bestselling author of Beach Read and People We Meet on Vacation

“One to Watch is a fundamentally entertaining and uplifting book. . . . A powerful imagining of how reality TV could look . . . Stayman-London dismantles stubborn and destructive ideas about plus-size women: Namely, that they can’t be fashionable, popular, or successful. [Bea is] complex in a way that fictional plus-size characters often aren’t. . . . As the title makes clear, One to Watch is a book to watch.”—O: The Oprah Magazine

Great Summer Romance Read

Fun, low stakes with a bit of substance. I love the the performance by Kristen Sieh as well.

Great Story

From the beginning it has you on a roller coaster I loved it! A must for all who dream of true love

Cute summer beach read

Although it was a cute story I hate those reality dating shows so it was a little hard to listen for me. The narrator was amazing and the story was cute, just not my favorite!

Fun, quick read for Bachelor/Bachelorette fans!

If you love The Bachelor/Bachelorette, you'll enjoy this fun read! The main characters are quite enjoyable.

Loved this so much

The story is unique and fun, with characters you can really get invested in. And the way the author addresses Bea's issues with weight are realistic and not overwrought. Truly wonderful.

stellar wish for sequels

I so want to hear more about the characters!! I loved Bea and I loved the realistic aspects to the story.

The Bachelorette with a Real Person

I love the Bachelor/Bachelorette, so this book was right up my alley. The narrator did a great job, and the main character was very relatable and compelling. If anything I wish there was less narration of the emojis and more consistent social media breaks because it felt a little disjointed to jump from one type of media feed to the other and then back into the story. Overall very cute romance.

Just WOW

I cannot even put into words just how much I loved this book!!! I honestly believe every single person no matter gender, race, or sexual orientation. Every. Single. Person.

Triggering if you’re fat

Story is so cute and written really well, but something kept rubbing me the wrong way. The way this character keeps getting beat up and bullied again and again and again... These kinds of comments can be pretty triggering if you’re a fat woman. The author was writing from a perspective that isn’t her own, and it really shows.
Loved the book, loved the idea of representation. Wish it would have been authored by a fat woman.

wonderful book

this book is wonderful and the narrator dud a great job. i really felt like i was there watching it unfold