NEW RELEASE
Charlie Glass's Slippers - Holly McQueen (2014)
Charlie Glass has spent her life being the caregiver of her very ill, very famous father. Her only consolation is cooking - and eating - which doesn't really make things easier for Charlie, seeing as she is overweight and her step-sisters are stick thin. When their dad passes away, Charlie and her step-sisters think that they already know his wishes and for Charlie, that means just inheriting the home she shared with him and nothing else. But Elroy Glass has thrown them all a twist from beyond the grave. He has decided to give Charlie his share of the company stock, making her the primary stockholder. This means that Charlie now runs a shoe company - and not just any shoe company but Elroy Glass, a company so famous that A-listers clamour to get their hands on a pair of her father's heels. What can Charlie possibly know about the shoe industry? And how will she be able to get through the wrath of her horrendous step-mother, Diana, in the process? On top of that, Charlie needs to get thin - fast - so that she can present the right image for the company. But is life just going to miraculously change if Charlie looks ten shades of gorgeous? Well, yes, it just might. Especially when she attracts the affections of the very handsome, very rich Jay Brodrick. Fairytales, however, almost always come crashing down. Will Charlie be able to get her Happily Ever After with so much in the way? This is a hilarious modern take on Cinderella, complete with the evil step-mother and two pretty step-sisters, who treat Charlie like trash. While Charlie and her cast of characters were fabulous, there was one thing that would have made the story even better: If Charlie actually let Jay Brodrick know who she really was and revealed their pre-makeover encounter. This story is so full of heart and eye-wateringly-funny moments that you won't be able to put it down! (AS)
Holly McQueen first introduced Charlie Glass in the 2013 novel The Surprising Life of Charlie Glass (size 18 and a Bit), written under the pen-name Angela Woolfe. Now known as Charlie Glass's Slippers, it offers a spin on Cinderella. The summary says: "When Charlie's beloved father, iconic shoe designer Elroy Glass, dies after a long illness, everyone expects that he'll leave his business to his glamorous wife and eldest daughters. After all, they've been running the company for years. But Elroy surprises everyone from beyond the grave: at the will reading, it's announced that his fashion empire has been left to Charlie, his youngest - and plumpest - daughter. Before she can run the company, Charlie decides she needs to make a few changes in her life. After several weeks at a California boot camp, she returns to London a new woman: thinner, blonder, and ready to revitalize the Elroy Glass brand. But as she'll soon discover, a good esthetician and a killer pair of stilettos can only go so far, and there's more to reinvention - and running a fashion empire - than meets the eye. Charlie Glass's Slippers is a modern-day fairytale about finding your own magic and transforming yourself from within." It is out in August 2014.