Katie Sturino Pens 'Carrie Bradshaw for the Next Generation' in Debut Novel “Sunny Side Up” — See the Cover! (Exclusive)

Katie Sturino has an empowering new novel on the way.

PEOPLE can exclusively share the cover of the author and body positivity advocate’s debut novel, Sunny Side Up, which hits shelves this summer from Celadon Books.

The novel follows Sunny Greene, the leader of a New York PR empire who is reeling from a recent divorce. Ready to banish the negativity, Sunny, described in the book’s synopsis as “Carrie Bradshaw for the next generation,” decides to throw herself back into dating.

As she navigates new relationships, including with a charming mailman and an ambitious business mogul, things get complicated for Sunny when her ex unexpectedly enters her life once again.

Since 2015, Sturino, the founder of the inclusive body care brand Megababe, has used social media to promote body positivity and self-confidence across industries. Her fans include celebrities like Blake Lively, Oprah Winfrey and Drew Barrymore. But that doesn't mean it's always been easy — or that her efforts are over.

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"We have taken one step forward and 12 steps back when it comes to body image work in the media and on social media," Sturino told PEOPLE in 2024. "The conversation was going in an amazing direction and then it took a hard left turn."

Related: Katie Sturino Reacts to Blake Lively Reposting Her 'Super Size the Look' Outfit: 'I'm Very Flattered' (Exclusive)

The writer hopes to take her message of body positivity to the page with Sunny Side Up, she tells PEOPLE, especially for readers who may need it.

“I wrote Sunny Side Up for every woman who’s ever felt discarded, who’s looked in the mirror and struggled to love what she sees, or who’s wondered if her best days are behind her,” Sturino says. “Sunny is the hero we need right now — a bold reminder that thriving doesn’t have a size limit, and love is always within reach.”

“My hope is that readers see themselves in Sunny, laugh along the way, and feel empowered to chase joy on their own terms," the author adds.

See Sunny in action in an exclusive excerpt from Sunny Side Up, below.

I was trapped. Panicking. Trying not to, because how embarrassing. My arms were pinned to my  sides by stretched-to-their-limit straps the color of my grandmother’s signature nail polish (a chalky pink, painted on too thick, pointer finger permanently chipped). My waist was being suffocated by the hidden “figure-flattering” boning that the swimsuit’s hangtag had bragged about. My thighs were losing circulation, exiled from the world by two tight leg holes that were cut in as far below the hipline and butt cheeks as one could get without being legally required to call this a wrestling singlet.

It was 10,000 degrees in January. Seal was playing from the same dressing room ceiling that bore down unholy lighting. This was miserable. My worst nightmare. Exactly what I knew would happen.

You are such an idiot, Sunny, I told myself before the stinging prickle of tears began. Why did you think you could fit into anything at Bergdorf Goodman other than a pair of sunglasses?

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Wiping the inevitable tears from my face, I flashed back to the countless dressing rooms that had  become battlegrounds in my life. There was the time my mom yelled, “It’s too short in the crotch!” across Abercrombie as I struggled to jam my adult-sized body into jean shorts seemingly designed for dolls. Or the middle school dances where I opted for "business casual" capris because nothing else fit. Dressing rooms became places where dreams went to die.

Even as an adult, when I’d built a career I was proud of — running my own PR firm, earning awards like Entrepreneur’s 35 under 35 — that voice in my head was still loud. It whispered that I didn’t belong, that I wasn’t enough. And today, that voice was practically screaming.

But I wasn’t going to let it win. Not this time. This trip to Bergdorf Goodman wasn’t just about buying a swimsuit. It was about stepping into the next chapter of my life — a fresh start. After my divorce, I promised myself I’d stop letting anyone — my ex, society, or even me — make me feel small. That wasn’t easy, especially not here, with the unholy trifecta of fluorescent lighting, too-small clothes, and a sales associate who handed me a size 14 swimsuit that fit like an 8.

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Still, I wasn’t leaving this dressing room defeated. As I tore off the swimsuit and left it in a heap on the floor, I made myself a new vow: This was the lowest I’d ever feel. And that meant there was only one direction to go — up.

Outside the store, the cold January wind hit my face like a wake-up call. I shoved my AirPods in, hit play on my go-to empowerment playlist, and started walking. This was my life, my body, my story. And if I was going to climb back up, I’d do it on my terms — with laughter, with love, and with a wardrobe that actually fit.

From Sunny Side Up by Katie Sturino. Copyright (c) 2025 by the author and  reprinted with permission of Celadon Books, a division of Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC.

Sunny Side Up will hit shelves on June 24 and is now available for preorder, wherever books are sold.

Read the original article on People