Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

The cover is not the only thing different about this book. It lacks the quality, realistic characters, and masterful character development that fans of Emily Giffin's work have come to expect. I have enjoyed Giffin's other books and bought this the day it came out. I found it to be a major disappointment, and I had to force myself to finish it. What makes Giffin's books so enjoyable is that the characters and situations are usually pretty relatable. Even if you haven't personally had their experiences, you could have, or you almost did, or you know someone who has. I could not relate to this book or its characters at all - and I'm roughly the same age as the main character, from Texas, and very familiar with Texas football culture. Shea is easily the worst protagonist Giffin has ever created. She's boring and one dimensional. What does she enjoy other than football and its players? We don't really know. Shea loves to spout off random football statistics and facts, and there are entire pages that consist of nothing but namedropping football players, sports terminology, and statistics. We get it. These people like football. If I wanted to read page after page of Heisman Trophy winners, I'd pick up Sports Illustrated. I was half expecting to see footnotes inserted by Giffin that said, "LOOK!! I did my research!! FOOTBALL STATS. TEXAS. SPORTS WRITERS!!!" The storylines and romantic relationships are baffling. Despite the way that Shea casually puts down groupies throughout the book, all three of her boyfriends are associated with the local football team. And none of these men have anything remotely in common other than their association with the football team... but she's not a groupie. Her first boyfriend is an idiot and a loser who really serves no purpose other than to set up the main love interest, which I could see coming from the first chapter but hoped I was wrong about because it was so perverse. The second boyfriend is a celebrity who is inexplicably infatuated with Shea and, also inexplicably, completely changes his personality halfway through the book to create a contrived hero/rescue sequence for Shea and her final love interest: the man who has been a father figure to her for her entire life. Why is Coach interested in Shea like this having basically helped raise her? When did he start having feelings for her? Shea's obsession with Coach Carr and his reciprocation of her feelings felt so inappropriate and bizarre. I just couldn't root for these characters. The book is full of Texas/Dallas cliches and namedropping (Camp Waldemar and Highland Park - Snobby Socialites! SMU - Rich Kids! Hockaday - Rich Girls! Rice - Smart! UT - Hook em Horns! Texas - barbecued ribs solve any problem!!) Maybe non-Texans will not be bothered by this, but as someone who grew up in Texas, I found myself rolling my eyes. Between that, the nonsensical relationships, and the pages and pages of "look how much I know about sports!!" filler, it was a struggle to get through the book and a bit of a relief when it was over.