This was not the first book that I read by the author, the first and only one before this one was Baby Proof. Which I thoroughly enjoyed. I appreciated it in both books how intensely the author gets into the character. So intensely that I hated her.
Yeah, I hated Rachel, disliked Darcy, and couldn’t stand Dex. I don’t think that there ever was a story where I had such negative feelings for most of the main characters. Ethan, who plays an important long distance role, was the least disliked and I feel as though he should have gotten more airtime on this show.
I also need to clarify that I loved the story. Yeah, I did. I love the heart pounding “is anyone going to find out?” The sneaky meetings, the make out sessions, secret rendezvous and other. And although I have never cheated, I’m thinking that Giffen made it so vividly clandestine, that either I have to run out and do it, or I’m ok since I’ve already done it through these characters.
But I also did have a hard time with it because I couldn’t wrap my head around women being so incredibly snarky to each other from an early age, being so incredibly competitive and just downright evil. There were some dark moments of insightfulness of how we operate as humans and how we are capable of being so self-involved and alienating and I’m just so thankful that I don’t feel the need to be in anyone’s circle bad enough to put myself through the abuse that some of these characters do. To have to create an illusion to keep the “right” friends around.
I’m glad that Giffen was able to write this from the Rachel’s point of view, and how we were able to see her growth (not much). She was a person that things happened to; she wasn’t much of a person that made things happen for her. She was not an active participant in her own life and that’s what makes her hateful to me. Whether it was good or bad most of her experiences were things that. She would not be someone that I would want to hang out with.
Darcy…too toxic to even fathom, but chances are she wouldn’t want to be my friend anyway, I’m not shallow enough and I read.
