Something Borrowed

by Emily Giffin

[jeannamichel]

Dexter and Rachel met in college, they’ve been friends ever since. Rachel introduced him to Darcy, her childhood friend. Rachel convinced herself that Dex would never go out with a girl like her. He went out with Darcy and after seven years, they are finally engaged and planning a wedding. On the eve of Rachel’s thirtieth birthday, she gets a bit tipsy and sleeps with Dex, her best friend from college who is marrying her childhood friend. After that, nothing is the same.

In anticipation for the upcoming movie, Something Borrowed, I decided that I needed to read the book before seeing this movie. The book was good. These are one of those books that it would be a shame to judge a book by its cover. The cover is simple, bland, and sort of boring.

The plot is anything but. There is absolutely never a dull moment, where the plot is concerned. Reading a book about an affair (because even though Dex was not married, rather engaged, it still is described as an affair) was definitely new. I was constantly wondering what would happen next—the entire mood of each scene made me constantly worry if the two were going to get caught.

Giffin created such characters that you’ll be rooting for the affair to go on, rather than the wedding. Right and wrong goes out the window. Darcy’s the kind of girl that gets everything she wants—she’s repeatedly described as a child. Rachel, Darcy’s follower, is naïve; she lets Darcy take whatever she wants. It’s a very interesting cast of characters, and they all had their flaws (especially Darcy) but I found all of them quite amusing and I could even relate to some of them.

The writing style is what let me down. The plot kept it alive but the writing took some of the effect away. It was slow at times, but by the end I kind of got used to pacing of the novel. Also the ending left me torn. I wanted everything tied up nicely in a little bow. It wasn’t that, but I was satisfied with part of the ending even though Giffin could add something more about Darcy and Rachel and their relationship—go into more detail about what happened after. I don’t think it had to end on such a somber note.

Overall, the book was great and I can’t wait to see the movie.