Puddin' (Dumplin', #2)

by Julie Murphy

[layawaydragon]

I was super excited for Puddin'. Part of it was thinking/hoping it'd be a w/w romance between Millie and Cassie. That didn't come to be. The only queer characters are still background support.

That, wondering where the title Puddin' came from (it'll be clear late in the book), and trying to remember why Willowdean hated Cassie so much were the only issues I had.

I LOVE how it goes deeper into fat shaming, bullying, and diet culture. I loved Millie & Willowdean's bonding fat girl moments. I loved Millie's passion for broadcasting and journalism. I loved how Millie dealt with shy dude and it didn't dissolve into "grow a pair". I love how the genuine nice guy from Dumplin' gets to come back and get a happy ending. I love Cassie's family. I love how it gets involved locally in politics. I love the possibilities and responsibilities and happiness.

Millie is a sweet crafty girl but she doesn't have the firepower to carry the book alone like with Dumplin and Willowdean. She's TOO nice while Cassie's too mean. It's so ingrained to hate the mean girl and their squads. I needed Millie's POV so she didn't come off as perfect and I needed Cassie's POV so her redemption arc was believable.

It's too bad neither of them had a w/w romance or crush. It's too bad there wasn't Millie learning how to dance and killing it and maybe the other girls joining in too?

But it's still a great story with depth, different important issues and romance.

And this probably says a lot about me, but I didn't feel bad for the secret spilling thing at all.