The Cinderella Pact    by Sarah Strohmeyer Order:  USA  Can Dutton, 2006 (2006) Hardcover     Reviewed by Kerrily Sapet Trendy British advice columnist Belinda Apple is admired by women everywhere. Not only does she give great advice, but she believes every woman should be treated like Cinderella. But only one person knows that the fab Belinda is a fraud. She's really Nola Devlin, a frumpy overweight editor. But when Belinda pens a weight loss column, Nola's two friends take it to heart. After being booted from their favorite window seat at a local restaurant because of their weight, the three friends vow to shed pounds and to serve the waiter his just desserts. Sarah Strohmeyer's latest book, The Cinderella Pact, is sometimes sweet and often hilarious as Nola's life becomes increasingly complicated. Ever spunky, she challenges a tough guy at the gym, helps her friend through gastric bypass surgery, and navigates dating Chip, a man from her office's computer department, or so she thinks. But living two lives isn't always easy, especially when Nola's magazine begins to sniff out that Belinda Apple may be a fake. Nola also has to field advice questions from her self-absorbed sister about her disastrous wedding to a man whose charming talent is guessing women's weights. Soon Belinda Apple is the maid of honor and things are looking increasingly like a train wreck. Can Nola bring the pieces of her life together without hurting everyone - and herself - in the process? The Cinderella Pact is a wonderful account of a woman who wants to be Cinderella, but also comes to the realization that she can certainly stand on her own two feet, whether pink cowboy booted or glass slippered. The story offers different approaches to the dieting and dating world, but just as Cinderella's life wasn't always easy, the three friends encounter old loves and new problems. The book is a wonderful summer read to which any woman who has ever felt overweight, overlooked, or underappreciated will relate. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Contemporary books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews