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With the slow decline and death of her husband, Holly put on a lot of weight.  Never a skinny girl anyway, she has now moved well into obese.  But a chance encounter on an airplane with gorgeous personal trainer Logan may change everything.  Logan usually only takes on rich and famous clients but drawn to quirky Holly he thinks she might just be the perfect challenge, a chance to try something new, to transform her.  Spending time together brings the two closer and an attraction builds, but can they take the chance when society makes so many assumptions based on looks?  And as Holly becomes more confident in her new self, will she find happiness with someone else?

Big Girl Panties is a fantastically fun look at a very serious topic.  Holly is full of humor and grace, even at her heaviest and her wacky sense of humor and amazing work ethic are an instant attraction for Logan.  She’s different from other people he knows and they quickly become friends.  It’s a sweet friendship, but there is still that disparity there – Logan is one of the “pretty” people in the world, those who are wealthy and gorgeous, and even though Holly is attractive, she will never be called hot, not like the models that Logan normally dates.  As their friendship deepens, Holly is still a project to Logan, one where he is trying to turn her into something more fitting to what he is used to.  But Logan is also, unbeknownst to either, a project for Holly.  Drawn to her spirit and wit, he starts to see the chance of something more between them, even as he is still stuck thinking of the kind of person he should be with.  Someone who is a socially acceptable match to his hotness.

The slow build of emotions and the growth for these two is addictive – I read the book basically in a day because I just could not put it down.  Big Girl Panties gives readers an interesting take on how we view ourselves and each other, and the expectations society puts on people and their choices.

(I will give a couple of warnings.  First, the point of view switches between multiple characters (not just Logan and Holly) and sometimes does it from one sentence to another.  Evanovich does a great job of making sure that readers are clear on who it is but it could be a little unnerving to some.  Also, Logan’s friends Chase and Amanda have an unusual relationship – it is publicly known that they are into spanking and it does come up in this story.  Personally I did not have any issue with it, but it could be a deal breaker for some.)