Covet

by Tracey Garvis Graves

What if the life you wanted, and the woman you fell in love with, belonged to someone else?

• ISBN10: 0142181129
• ISBN13: 9780142181126
• Publish Date: 29 April 2014 (first published 17 September 2013)
• Publish Status: Remaindered
• Out of Print: 8 December 2016
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Plume Books
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[Angie]

After absolutely loving The Island, I was super excited to give Covet a read. Sadly, it wasn't what I was hoping for at all. Claire and Chris have grown distant in their marriage. After pulling through some financial hardships, Chris is back to work, but he's never home. And when he is, he's locked in his office, making no time for his wife and children. Claire is extremely lonely until she strikes up a friendship with a super handsome police officer. Claire is convinced that she and Daniel can be just friends, but that's not what he wants.

Covet was a weird one for me. I know that I don't care about marital problems. At all. But Claire possibly straying from her marriage intrigued me. However, the focus really is on Chris and Claire's failing marriage rather than her developing relationship with Daniel. The first part is super boring, because we get a run down of every little thing that has ever happened between Chris and Claire. There's also an odd amount of detail about what everyone in the neighborhood looks like, as well as their houses. It was slow going for sure.

I also didn't like how Covet alternated between Claire, Chris, and Daniel. The vast majority of the story is from Claire's perspective, which makes sense because she's the center of this love triangle. Daniel's chapters add absolutely nothing, and they're all just one or two pages each. Chris's chapters just show us that he's not a jerk, really does miss his family, but doesn't want to lose this job that he hates. I guess that was to draw sympathy from the reader, and possibly condemn Claire's actions. I don't think that was necessary, because Claire's feelings and decisions are her own.

Covet was just not the book for me. Marital issues bore me to tears, as do adult problems. If you're interested in that kind of stuff, then maybe this book will be for you. If you're hesitant about the cheating plot thread, don't be. There's not much going on in regards to that, and I think characters grossly overreact. I hate this idea that men and women can't be just friends. Of course they can! Although I do agree that you can't help who you're attracted to or fall in love with.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[leelu92]

I started this one late last night and got about 20% in and went to sleep. Today, I finished it. I procrastinated and just let myself disappear into this book. Ms. Garvis-Graves always manages to pull me into her books by my throat. :)
This one has been on my Kindle for quite awhile and I wanted to read it before the next book in the series comes out 10/28. Mission accomplished!
ETA:
Hours later, this book is still sitting with me. TGG's books always tend to stay with me afterwards and "stew" in my brain. You have to be a patient reader of TGG's books and understand that she is going to take you on a bit of a journey. I think we've become a bit ADD with our books and don't have as much patience for anything over 60k words. TGG needs you to be patient.

[Ashley]

Nose Graze — Book reviews & blogging tips

Covet had an aura of sadness and tragedy around it. Claire desperately wants her husband Chris's attention and affection. Chris wants to give it, but feels like he needs to work really hard to impress his boss and secure his job. They both want to be together, but they don't communicate that well, so distance grows between them. Hearing both of their sides is just so heartbreaking! Claire questions whether or not Chris even still loves her because he doesn't communicate that, touch her, or even share her bed. But when you read from Chris's chapters, you can clearly see that he adores Claire, he just doesn't know how to deal with his life right now. You want to yell at them to stop being stupid, communicate, and work things out.

I really like how this book dealt with the issue of a "sort-of" love triangle. Normally if a woman is married or dating someone, I'd glare at her and despise her for eyeing another man. But that's not how this book was at all. Claire enjoyed Daniel's company and just wanted to be his friend. When she started feeling an inkling of a little more for him, I could see why and sympathize with her. But I loved how she never wanted to cheat on her husband. She was determined to just be friends with Daniel. But I think most importantly, the author was able to get me to understand Claire's reasoning.

I think the one problem with the story is that it really puts the reader at a distance. I didn't feel emotion or personality dripping off the page. The book is interesting, but it all feels very emotionless. It's just: this happened, that happened, I went there at this time, I met this person at this place, then I did that. It feels like a sequence of events being told by a withdrawn narrator who has very little presence. We're told practically every detail of Claire's day-to-day life and some of it was pretty boring. I felt like Claire had very little or no personality and that made it tough to really get to know her or like her.

But that being said, the story itself was interesting enough that I kept reading and really wanted to see how it would unfold. Overall, I'm very happy with how things ended! I'm so glad that she started to make progress with Chris and broke things off with Daniel. I loved watching her and Chris come closer together. I think part of me was wishing for a little more at the ending like I wanted to see how Chris's business was doing in the epilogue, but for the most part I was very happy with it!

[kimbacaffeinate]

Despite trepidation over the subject matter, last year I read and enjoyed Tracey Garvis-Graves’ novel On the Island. I enjoyed it so much that I bought several copies for friends and family as holiday gifts. Imagine my delight when they enjoyed it as much as I did. As a result Covet was one of my most anticipated releases in 2013. I approached it with both excitement and nervousness, as once again Graves touches on a taboo subject. It focuses on relationships and dealing with stressful situations that test the sanctity of marriage. While boundaries are pushed it is important to note that no actual physical cheating occurred. Graves has become a must read author, whose talent at capturing human emotion is breathtaking. Three Four word review: honest, captivating, heartbreaking and beautiful.

Clair and Chris Canton’s marriage has been suffering since Chris lost his job. There are no shouting matches, but tension is high as Chris suffers depression and closes himself off from Clair and the children. Chris eventually lands a job, but the position requires traveling. Despite Clair’s concerns about their fragile marriage, Chris takes on the job with vigor. From the outside their world looks picture perfect; with two kids, and a beautiful upscale suburban home. Clair is lonely. Chris is losing sleep in order to keep up in the dog-eat-dog competitive world of sales. Daniel Rush is a police officer who used to have it all but now comes home every night to an empty home. A routine traffic stop, and a graphics job opportunity, helps to create a friendship between Clair and Daniel. The story that unfolds is beautiful, heartbreaking and truly captures the human emotion.

The tale is broken up into three POV’s and it was brilliantly done. The first belongs to Clair, and you cannot help but admire this woman and her patience. She struggles with loneliness and mourns the loss of intimacy that she and Chris once shared. Chris grew up in a family that struggled to make ends meet. He prides himself in taking care of his family. An A type personality, whose whole identity revolves around being number one in his career and taking care of the people who matter most. The loss of his job is a blow to that identify. While he appears completely without emotion to Clair, his POV shows the turmoil and emotional struggle this noble man faces. Daniel, is drop dead gorgeous, and a real sweetheart who has his own deep battle wounds. All of the characters were fleshed out, and I identity with each of them. We meet other couples in the neighborhood and Graves gives them voice showing their struggles reminding us the grass isn’t always greener elsewhere.

I was worried as I began Covet because I loathe cheaters. I have always believed that you fix it or walk away and that using relationship trouble to cheat is a cop-out. The synopsis is pretty clear that a line is never crossed regarding infidelity despite the emotional involvement. Graves made me see another side, and while lines weren’t crossed I understood why things were unfolding, and how these relationships developed. The pace moved slowly but I appreciated how fleshed out the characters were. I laughed, I cried, and I screamed in frustration. I wanted Chris to wake-up and express his emotions, or for Clair to get seriously pissed off. Daniel worried me the most, this sweet, sweet man never crosses the line, but you know he is falling for Clair. Graves slowly revealed Daniel’s past and gads..tissues please! What I found to be remarkable was that even though each character had reason to piss me off, Graves made me connect and understand. I felt compassion for each and every one of them. It was brilliant. Despite everything that was happening the tale is surprisingly low on angst and by the end Graves had me smiling and full of hope.

Copy received in exchange for unbiased review and originally published @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer

[Leah]

Last year, Tracey Garvis Graves’ novel On The Island rocketed up my list of favourite novels, ever. It wasn’t a novel I expected to like; I thought a relationship between a teacher and her student was weird, but I frigging loved it so much. It sort of had that effect on everyone who read it and it was a massive bestseller, blowing people away left, right and centre. So it’s fair to say when I was approved for her second novel Covet I nearly died of excitement.

Covet is like the When Harry Met Sally of books, it asks the lifelong question of whether men and women can be just friends. (I think they can, but it depends on the circumstances, and it most certainly wasn’t true in this instance.) Claire Canton is happily married, until her husband Chris loses his job and it all falls apart. Once he gets back onto the career ladder, Claire can’t help but feel lonely as her husband spends 90 per cent of his time on the road. So when she meets officer Daniel Rush, she finds herself growing closer to him, but they both tell themselves it’s just a friendship, until it turns into something more.

When I started reading Covet I wasn’t sure who I was meant to be rooting for – did Garvis Graves want me to root for Claire and Chris’s marriage or was I meant to be spellbound by Daniel Rush? The more I read, the more I became captivated by Claire and Daniel’s friendship, the more I pulled in their direction. In my heart of hearts I always felt as if it was a long shot, but I’m always rooting for the love that can never be and I couldn’t understand Claire’s desire to stand by Chris, who I found cold and distant. But, that’s because I have no idea about marriage, about how you’re meant to stay when the going gets tough, and not just run because things are hard. One day I’ll see and appreciate that part of the novel, but for now, I was firmly Team Daniel.

I was surprised how much I enjoyed Covet, no, I’ll be honest it wasn’t as good as On The Island – I think it would be super hard to ever write a book like that again, but Covet was amazing in itself. I was torn for so long over what I wanted to happen and even though it didn’t always go in the direction I wanted it to, I still thought it was a seriously well written novel, with some pretty stellar characters, particularly Daniel Rush. This is a real thinker of a book, and it definitely has stayed with me since I finish it, it’s a really great 2nd novel from Tracey, and I look forward to book 3!