The Baddest Girl on the Planet - by Heather Frese (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

WINNER of the LEE SMITH NOVEL PRIZE

"This sun-and-salt-kissed coming-of-age story reads like a wry, honest chat with a close friend." -Jaclyn Fulwood, Shelf Awareness

Evie Austin, native of Hatteras Island, North Carolina and baddest girl on the planet, has not lived her life in a straight line. There have been several detours-career snafus, bad romantic choices, a loved but unplanned child-not to mention her ill-advised lifelong obsession with boxer Mike Tyson. Evie is not plucky, but when life's changes smash over her like the rough surf of the local shoreline, she muddles through-until that moment of loss and longing when muddling will no longer suffice. This is the story of what the baddest girl on the planet must find in herself when a bag of pastries, a new lover, or quick trip to Vegas won't fix anything, and when something more than casual haplessness is required. The Baddest Girl on the Planet is inventive, sharp, witty, and poignant. Readers will want to jump in and advise this baddest girl on the planet-or at least just give her a shake or a hug-at every fascinating turn.

Review Quotes

WINNER of the LEE SMITH NOVEL PRIZE

"Frese debuts with an impressive examination of small-town island life in coastal North Carolina...dynamic structure and strong voice...Readers will find lots to love."-Publishers Weekly

"This sun-and-salt-kissed coming-of-age story reads like a wry, honest chat with a close friend." -Jaclyn Fulwood, Shelf Awareness

"Frese's debut is a snappy novel with a relatable character that will resonate with readers."-LynnDee Wathen, Booklist

"The Baddest Girl on the Planet is set on an island known as the 'Graveyard of the Atlantic' for all the shipwrecks it's caused, which feels just right: the novel is about, among other things, the islands-both literal and metaphorical-where we feel stranded; the wrecks we cause or find ourselves marooned by. In The Baddest Girl on the Planet, Heather Frese explores some of the most tender spots of what it is to be human: how to come to terms with our choices, how to grow and change in a place that seems to want us to stay the same, and what it means to call a place (or another person) home." -Maggie Smith, author of Keep Moving and Good Bones

"Heather Frese has written a coming-of-age story like no other-with a fiercely original narrative voice that's funny, brave, honest, and occasionally terrifying . . . in fact, compulsively readable!" -Lee Smith, author of Blue Marlin and The Last Girls

"Heather Frese's The Baddest Girl on the Planet is an absolute knockout about seeing the ruts in the road of life and choosing to drive another way. Evie's story is hilarious, edgy, heartwarming, and true-you'll cheer for her at every turn and commiserate with her when things go wrong. There are unforgettable scenes involving a terrorizing Yorkshire Terrier, a postpartum chapter that was so vivid I had to remind myself my kids aren't babies anymore, and, of course, Mike Tyson. I read this book in one sitting and loved every minute!" -Elizabeth Chiles Shelburne, author of Holding On To Nothing

"In Heather Frese's novel, The Baddest Girl on the Planet, we meet Evie. Smart and sassy Evie. I loved this book. I loved its humor and its compassion. I loved the beautiful portrayal of North Carolina's Outer Banks. Most of all, I loved Evie. Rarely have I found a narrator so compulsively readable and identifiable, yet endlessly compelling in her complexity. Heather Frese has written a book that will break your heart, then put it back together into startling wholeness." -Kelly Sundberg, author of Goodbye, Sweet Girl

About the Author

Heather Frese's fiction, essays, and poetry have appeared in Michigan Quarterly Review, the Los Angeles Review, Front Porch, the Barely South Review, Switchback, and elsewhere, earning notable mention in the Pushcart Prize Anthology and Best American Essays. She received her master's degree from Ohio University and her M.F.A. from West Virginia University. Coastal North Carolina is her longtime love and source of inspiration, her writing deeply influenced by the wild magic and history of the Outer Banks. She currently writes, edits, and wrangles three small children in Raleigh, North Carolina.