If the Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy

If the Shoe Fits is a Cinderella retelling featuring Cindy, aspiring shoe designer and college graduate who returns home after the death of her father with nothing specific lined up. She takes over nannying her three younger half-siblings and triplets while her step-mother runs the successful reality TV show Before Midnight.  But when spots on the show need filling, Cindy takes the role along with her two step-sisters, using the publicity to show off her shoes and becoming a body positive role model for the show’s fans.  As the girls compete for love, Cindy is just looking for her big break… but she may find something surprising in the process. 

Photo from my bookstagram @bookworminkayla - the cover is photoshopped into this 

picture as I did not receive a physical copy of the book

To start, I really enjoyed that this retelling takes a lot of the traditional elements and uses them in non-traditional ways. Without spoiling anything, the triplets take the place of Cinderella’s nice and the reality TV show is the modern version of Prince Charming’s grand ball.  These changes stay true to the story but fit much better in our modern world, and it’s really fun to find other places the traditional and new collide. 

This book has short chapters so the story moves along quickly, and it was easy to binge read the entire book. To assist my binge reading, I love Julie Murphy’s writing and this book is no exception - her main characters are so compelling and even in this retelling, Cindy stands out as unique among them. She is such a positive and wonderfully written heroine, and I loved being within her perspective while reading. Another plus for this book is that it is very body positive. I love that Cindy not only embraces her size with zero self-consciousness but calls it out when other characters refuse to accommodate her. She struts with her own confidence and doesn’t let anyone stop her from reaching her goals and absolutely crushing the competition. 

My only critique is that our Prince Charming seems a little flat, and while the focus is on Cindy, I was looking for more from him and a deeper connection between him and Cindy. Instead the focus is very much on Cindy herself as she goes through the show and gets insight behind the scenes. 

This book is all about girl power and being comfortable with yourself!  I will say read at your own risk - I don’t have a big shoe collection and it’s not usually my thing but dang this book was making me jealous, and it makes me sad that it’s impossible to wear a Cindy original in real life. 

*Note: I received an ARC of this book from Disney Publishing Worldwide through NetGalley.  All thoughts expressed are my honest opinions.