Ada's Rules

This isn't a diet book, and it's not a self-help title either. However, this new novel by the author of the New York Times best-selling The Wind Done Gone could be either (or both), as it follows the attractive yet overweight Ada Howard through her weight-loss journey. Suspicious of her preacher husband's busy schedule and fed up with his financial commitment to Full of Love Gospel Tabernacle, Ada decides to lose weight after receiving an invitation to her college reunion from her first love. She wants desperately to rekindle that connection, so she creates a list of rules to follow as she sheds pounds. Randall's honesty on life and change is refreshing, especially as she introduces characters who test and embolden Ada. A seemingly minor character offers the greatest moment of this novel; his story, woven almost imperceptibly into the narrative, shows the strength of Randall's storytelling.