Name: Big Girl Pill
ISBN: 9781947253353

Kd Williamson

Maya Davis is on a mission to get rid of feelings for Nina, her best friend from college, who's about to get married. Maya hopes being in the wedding will burn her feelings away. But as she reconnects with Nina, who is torn between being who others expect her to be and who she wants to become, old sparks could become a fire.

Big Girl Pill

Lucia Correa

4.5 Stars for K.D. Williamson's Big Girl Pill

Another entertaining read by KD Williamson. This book felt lighter than her Cops and Docs series. In this book, Maya Davis has accepted her college bestie, Nina Stirling’s request to be be in her wedding. The problem – Maya has been in love with her straight friend since college. She has been avoiding Nina since graduation. Maya’s brother T. discusses the impossible situation with Maya “So, we’re clear. Your idea is to torture yourself with this wedding stuff to the point where you don’t feel for her anymore.” T huffed. “And then go back to being besties?” Maya felt it was the only way other than cutting Nina out of her life completely and she wasn’t prepared for that.

There is a great cast of characters in this book. Tops among them is Nina’s brash, says and does what she wants, lesbian cousin Rachel. I loved Maya’s brothers who had themselves had a story arc. Lowest is Nina’s bigoted, emotionally abusive mother. For a time, Nina and Rachel were close, but Nina’s mother forbade Nina from seeing her. In spite of her mother’s objections, Nina chooses Rachel as her maid of honor and Maya who is not only a lesbian but is a WOC to be her bridesmaid. 

“Look at you, sounding all grown up. Did you take a big girl pill?” Rachel to Nina 

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the story arcs of the MCs. Give it a try and you might too.

Jude Silberfeld

4.5 *

Nina was Maya’s best friend, the most important person in her life – with her brothers –, until they slept together one drunken night in their last year of college. Nina, a supposedly straight girl, had complained about a bad experience with a woman (it’s college, right?) and Maya had offered to show her how it’s done. Maya had feelings for Nina, but never told her. Nina had feelings too but didn’t acknowledge them, not even to herself. What she felt that night terrified her to the point that she hurt Maya badly the next day. She immediately regretted it and tried hard for two years to maintain some sort of relationship between them. Maya went along, albeit reluctantly. Now, two years later, Nina is getting married to a man and Maya has agreed to be her bridesmaid, hoping it (i.e. the pain of it all) will help her to finally move on, while Nina is hoping to get her best friend back.

I’ve been struggling with this review for a couple of days and I think it’s because the things I loved about this story are mostly small, intangible things. I loved the characters, I loved Maya’s determination and sensitivity, I loved Nina’s journey to accept herself, I loved Rachel’s (Nina’s maid of honor and her loud and proud lesbian cousin) brashness, I loved everything about Maya’s brothers and the family dynamics, I loved Drew’s (Nina’s fiancé) confusion, I loved hating Nina’s horrifyingly shallow and bigoted mother and I loved that Nina’s first act of rebellion was choosing Rachel, her mother’s despised niece, and Maya, a black woman, both lesbians, as her bridesmaids. I also loved the interaction between Rachel and Nina, and between Rachel and Maya. The three of them together make the best scenes. Their lunch together when they first reunite is one of these, my heart was breaking for Maya and Nina, it was so awkward and sad.

The whole story is excellent and heartwarming. I also found myself smiling unexpectedly quite a few times, and it all felt very natural. I loved that the angst never felt forced, I loved the doubts and the will to trust, I loved the humour and witty dialogue even in dark and deep moments. And I think most of all, I loved loved loved Rachel, she’s someone you’d be lucky to have in your corner. 

I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.