Customer Reviews

Dying to Be Thin: A Fat City Mystery

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I really liked this book. It was a great combination of 'whodunit' with a nice bit of romance thrown in. My favorite combination. The author keeps the pace fast with a lot of interesting detail. I live in Durham so it's neat to see her descriptions of the places around here. I can't wait for the next one!

Kate Gallagher, TV producer, loses her job and boyfriend and begins a new life in Durham, North Carolina. She checks into a fat clinic and that's when the mysteries begin. On her second day there, she discovers a dead body. She is working part time for the local TV station, so she begins to investigate the murder of the head of the diet clinic.

Filled with humor, romance, and mystery, this book should not be passed by. Order one today!

My usual read is hardboiled, so this was a departure for me. But I'm glad I took a friend's suggestion and opened Dying to be Thin. Kathryn Lilley knows her way around an entertaining concept: solid characters and good fun from start to finish!
Robert Fate, Author of Baby Shark

DYING TO BE THIN is a mystery featuring Kate Gallagher. Kate has just been laid off from her television news producer job and dumped by her boyfriend in the same week. She has resolved to make some changes in her life - lose that extra fifty pounds and land an on-air television position - and is off to a famous fat farm (residential weight loss program, in polite jargon) to start on her goals. To supplement the high cost of the diet program, she is working at a small local television and producing a piece about her weight loss experience.

But when Kate gets to the Hoffman Clinic, she gets the feeling that something isn't quite right there. One of the staff members says that a lot of the dieters have checked out and that they need the good publicity that Kate's story will bring the clinic. When Kate finds the body of the clinic's founder the next day, both her plans and her story idea change. Kate is suddenly on the inside of a major story and her journalistic instincts kick in.

I really enjoyed this book. Lilley is both a former television journalist and fat farm veteran so she gives the reader a detailed look inside both worlds. Kate Gallagher is a great new sleuth who is smart, funny, and very human as she struggles with her diet, her professional ambitions, and how both affect her view of herself. And, of course, there is a little romance in the story as Kate meets two very different and interesting men involved with the case.

Favorite character? Kate - she is personable and easy to relate to. Did I guess it? No. Will I read another? Yes.

After being dumped by her cheating boyfriend and laid off from yet another job, Kate packs up for North Carolina sick of hearing about how she could get more TV work if she were thinner. Her decision to enroll in a fancy diet clinic seems cut and dry - until she discovers someone at the clinic has an appetite for murder and is involving her in the chase of her life... Dying to be Thin is a fine, fun read perfect for lending libraries with strong mystery paperback interests.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Plus-sized TV Producer Kate Gallagher has been told she has the "face" for TV - it's the body she needs to work on. So when she gets dumped by her boyfriend and laid off from her job in the same week, Kate decides it's time to trade in her Whoopie Pies for thinner thighs and enrolls in an exclusive weight loss clinic.

After just one day at the Hoffman Clinic, Kate is about ready to sell her soul for a white mocha with a coffee cake chaser. Working freelance for a small local TV station during the time of her own weight-loss transformation, she must endure petrified fruit, tasteless gruel, sunrise walks and crazy neighbors. But when the clinics' head diet guru turns up dead with a pair of fondue forks where his eyes should be, Kate loses her appetite. Now that the clinics menu offers murder, Kate has a breaking story to report.

Dying to be Thin is one of the most original and fun cozy mysteries I've had the pleasure of reading in a long time. Along with hilarious diet tips from Kate's friend Mimi, there's plenty of witty dialogue, hilarious abbreviations and a little love triangle thrown into the mix. I absolutely loved this book. I, and many others, can relate to the many dieting woes Kate has throughout the story. I felt like I was dieting right along with Kate throughout Kathryn's book.

If you love cozy mysteries or you're getting ready to start a new diet, I'd definitely pick this one up! You'll have a friend to diet with all the way through. I can't wait for the next one!

Armchair Interviews agrees.

This is an excellent first book by Kathryn. She has mastered the art of plotting, keeping me guessing right until the end. Even more impressive was the number of characters in the book, it takes a solid writer to manager an intricate plot and a large cast. Kudos!

It was enjoyable learning about the inside world of journalism firsthand, and I appreciate that the use of industry lingo was lightly sprinkled in.

It was refreshing to read that the lovely redheaded journalist, Kate Gallagher who is self-conscious about some extra pounds, attracts a number of ardent admirers. Kate has wit, depth, and intelligence. We need more of such positive female role-models. Women of all sizes are beautiful and desirable.

This book will appeal to BSP's (Born Skinny Persons) and WCP's (Weight Challenged Persons)! Kathryn's "Glossary of Durham Dieters Terms" is not to be missed, it's a brilliantly funny way to wrap up a great read.

This BSP can't wait for the next installment in the Fat City Mysteries.

Dying to be thin is a sentiment that at one time or another has come to the minds of most women. Well Ms. Kate Gallagher, the heroine of this who in the world done it, falls right in with most women. Kate is the little chubby girl with the cute face that is not fat; she's just big boned and will probably lose that baby fat.. Kate dreams of being the next Katie Couric--not Oprah (they have the same problem). But life is not making this dream come true. As a matter of fact, life can't get any worse for Kate. She's lost her job, her man and you guessed it--she eats for comfort. It sort of like Janet Jackson told Robin Roberts. Janet told Robin that some people get thin in times of crisis whether happy or sad ones, but not her she gets heavier and that's Kate.

Kathryn Lilley, the author of Dying To Be Thin, takes us to the "fat farm" with Kate. Ms. Lilley calls it a resort, but take my word for it, it's the fat farm in Durham, North Carolina which is supposed to be the diet capital of the world--go figure. When Kate first drives up to the fat farm, you will find yourself telling her to keep driving, it's not worth it. But Kate's dream is to become an anchor for television news; she wants to become a high price talking head. She has the face and talent to make it happen but according to her previous bosses, not the body. Kate has decided to sell her soul (story) to a local news station in exchange for hopefully a job. She will document her weight loss in front of the camera. Can we all say, "Kristi Ally?"

You will find yourself liking Kate and wishing that she could read the dieting tips at the beginning of each chapter. She's had the problems that most women have had; you know the skirt that's a little too tight, eating the last of the pie so that it won't be there to tempt you anymore. As she begins her journey it seems as if bad luck for some is good luck for her. She is in the middle of not one but two murders. In an instant she has become an investigative journalist. These murders may even make her lose her appetite thus allowing her to be a thin, investigative reporter.

Kate represents all the women who seem to be trying to fit into a mold of the perfect body. She is likable because her insecurities are the insecurities of most women. She can be witty, childlike and unpredictable at the same time. I won't spoil it for you, but her unpredictability is evident in certain choices she makes. I think Kate has a lot more adventure in her. As we have learned from all the celebrities, it's hard to keep the weight off, and it's always an adventure when dieting especially with Kate.

Reviewed by Marcia D.C. Johns
For BBW Reviews

Dying to Be Thin (2007) introduces Kate Gallagher, a TV producer who would like to move in front of the camera. Kate has been told she has the face for TV, but a bit too much body, so she checks into the exclusive Hoffman Clinic, in Durham, North Carolina, Diet Capital of the World. Armed with The Little Book of Fat Busters, a collection of tips from her friend Mimi, Kate is determined to lose enough weight to fit comfortably again into her tiny vintage sportscar. She finds work with the local TV station covering her own weight loss, but soon finds herself investigating the sudden death of the director of the clinic. This humorous traditional mystery is fast-paced and great fun.
http://www.stopyourekillingme.com/L_Authors/Lilley_Kathryn.html

This book is was fun to read...couldn't wait to solve the mystery. Slightly different than Sue Ann Jaffarian writes, but I still enjoyed it. Am looking forward to following up with the next books...