[ESK]∎ [PDF] Free First Comes Love A Novel Emily Giffin 9780345546920 Books

First Comes Love A Novel Emily Giffin 9780345546920 Books

Download As PDF : First Comes Love A Novel Emily Giffin 9780345546920 Books

First Comes Love A Novel Emily Giffin 9780345546920 Books

I vascilated between 3 and 4 stars........ I so wanted to like this book.

Let me start out by saying that Emily Giffin can write and she does it well. The book sucked me in from the very beginning. The opening chapter--the preview, really--was the best written part of this book. Once I started reading, I devoured the book in a day. It kept me interested and engaged all day yesterday--but the conclusion infuriated me enough that I am up this morning writing this review.

Giffin is the rare author that can make poignant emotional observations and not weigh them down under too flowery prose. She writes simply but allows the reader to experience emotional highs/low. She successfully allows you to get into the rich inner lives of other people. She knows how to hold up a mirror to our latest societal obsessions--facebook, etc. She understands the language of women and is an expert at crafting female relationships that resonated. She also NAILS Buckhead/Atlanta, and having lived there (in her neighborhood, no less) years ago, I recognized the world she drew and enjoyed revisiting. All that was great.

.....and yet.....

These are not very likable characters.

At first, I overlooked their flaws thinking that part of a well-written narrative involves making the reader feel slightly superior to the characters, who after all, are there to grow, right? Flawed characters are interesting. Initially, I appreciated how, for example, she illustrated that Meredith was a negative control freak and Josie was a self-involved drama queen. It reminded me a bit of Jennifer Weiner's "In Her Shoes" and I was excited to bite off a juicy read. I wanted to see Giffin's take on two clearly spoiled children and was excited to see their arc.

Only they did not grow all that much......and if anything, they morphed into even less likable versions of themselves. By the end, I thought of these two women as people I would not want in my life for a myriad of reasons--spoiled, whiny and not particularly concerned about anyone other than themselves.

The male characters are also thinly drawn...... Nolan, the husband, is not anyone I could recognize beyond just the whole "great husband" gig. He was the best drawn character of the bunch.

Pete, Gabe---all mirages whose actions I could identify but whose motivations remained hidden and poorly understood throughout. While I realize it's hard to write about other characters when you are writing from first person POV, the failure of the development of these characters is a direct result of shallow female protagonists with shallow motivations. Putting it another way, if you are writing in the first person about two narcissistic beyotches, chances are you are never going to get any depth of insight into anyone in their world. Which we didn't.

I think this was supposed to be an exploration of grief and it's lingering effects, but it did not work. I get the premise of the book--I am friends with a family that had such a loss, and the impact irrevocably changed their relationships, outlooks and dynamic--and not for the best. I thought this book was going there, but instead, it bypassed it. Instead of addressing the insights about grief--that it can make you stingy, protective, bitter etc--the author used a "not-that-meaningful secret" as a foible and it just missed the mark. It would have been easily forgivable, as a reader, if these characters had then not proceeded to leave the book with two acts of, well, self absorption. If you like the characters, (which I did not) you'd be alarmed at their final acts of self-sabotage. The book literally ends with two bad choices--train-wrecks in the making. Neither character inspires much admiration and if anything, one can't help but feel for their existing and future progeny. If this is their "you go girl" moments, we are in deep doo-doo as women. Their choices are for and about them and the impact of said choices are never explored. It is assumed that if it benefits these two women, then the hell with everyone else.

Finally, I noted something this time around that I realize has been a hallmark of Giffin books and this time it bothered me. Giffin has a hidden bias for "all that is pretty"---her characters are pretty, her setting are pretty. All fine and good as we are reading her books to escape, right?

Except for the fact that as I read, her observations about people reflected a worldview that is rapidly expiring: that the well-ordered life, the thin lulu-mom women "look" is desirable above all else. Now before you tell me I am being picky, let me say this. The world is changing. More and more women are throwing off the shackles of the "put together, affluent" window dressing of the last decade. People recognize that social media is a facade and while a few years ago, Pinterest and Instagram might have haunted more women, these days we are more apt to laugh at the expectations of perfection. We are more realistic about what is window dressing and its importance. Also, after years of financial excesses, 2008 changed us. Parents buying homes for their kids as a means to "keep up appearances" is simply passé and to note it as a "family choice" is loopy.

If you are going to write about women throwing off the shackles and getting divorces or pursuing single parenthood, but still keep in a subtle (but ever present) bias towards keeping up appearances, or insinuate that looking a certain way or having ample money or being a certain weight is a given--well, there is a disconnect there..... and it rang hollow. Writing about spoiled, materialistic, shallow women without ever calling them out on it is very 2006. There are various points when it becomes clear that it's not the characters who have a shallow world view, but rather the author.

First Comes Love is, I think, suppose to denote self-love? If that is the case, the characters have loads of that---what they needed to work on was loving other people and being appreciative for their incredible privilege in living such guilded lives.

So that's my review. A little harsh, yes. I enjoyed the book, read it in a day, and that says a lot. I will buy her next book but my hope is that Ms. Giffin takes some advice from her own characters. I hope she can escape Atlanta society for a jaunt outside her well manicured world so she can write with a bit more depth and self reflection. She is a great writer but the effects of her insular world are showing.....

Even so, I look forward to next summer's read. Compelling, readable......but a drama for and about the 1%.


Tags : First Comes Love: A Novel [Emily Giffin] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <b><b><b>#1  NEW YORK TIMES</i> BESTSELLER • </b></b>A pair of sisters find themselves at a crossroads in this dazzling new novel from the author of Something Borrowed,Emily Giffin,First Comes Love: A Novel,Ballantine Books,034554692X,Contemporary Women,Romance - Contemporary,Domestic fiction,FICTION Contemporary Women,Life change events,Life change events;Fiction.,Mate selection,Mate selection;Fiction.,Sisters,Sisters;Fiction.,AMERICAN LIGHT ROMANTIC FICTION,FICTION Literary,FICTION Romance Contemporary,FICTION Women,Fiction,Fiction - General,Fiction-Romance,FictionWomen,GENERAL,General Adult,Literary,POPULAR AMERICAN FICTION,United States,best sellers list new york times;new york times best sellers;friendship;love;parenting;beach reads;beach books;summer reading;Emily Giffin;book club recommendations;contemporary romance;family life novel;literary fiction;contemporary womens fiction;sisters;Contemporary Women;contemporary;marriage;romance;romance books;romance novels;women;relationship books;books for women;relationships;family;relationship;dating and relationships;family life;womens fiction;women's fiction;love story;family saga,contemporary romance; family life novel; literary fiction; contemporary womens fiction; sisters; Contemporary Women; contemporary; marriage; romance; romance books; romance novels; women; relationship books; books for women; relationships; family; relationship; dating and relationships; family life; womens fiction; women's fiction; love story; family saga; best sellers list new york times; new york times best sellers; friendship; love; parenting; beach reads; beach books; summer reading; Emily Giffin; book club recommendations

First Comes Love A Novel Emily Giffin 9780345546920 Books Reviews

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. I had to devour it all in one day. It was funny, emotional, sad, and really all about love. This family was rocked to its core in 2001 when an unexpected tragedy shook their family. Fifteen years later they are still trying to deal with it and the ramifications of that night. The relationship most explored was between sisters. Josie and Meredith fight all the time, about everything. They are so different, yet similar. They are both hurting and envious, to an extent of one another's life. This was a beautifully woven story of family, those that we are born into, and the ones that we create, and also the best and sweetest tale of love coming first.
I guess it’s inevitable to compare with other books by the same author, and this one just comes out lacking in all aspects.
The plot is terribly dull and I felt all the characters were sort of unlikable.
I honestly struggled to get through it to the end.
It’s especially disappointing as I’d loved other books by this author, which were fun and engaging.
I just loved Gabe! The relationship between Josie and Gabe was awesome, which I don't understand why Pete was needed in the story...... Don't get me wrong Pete was cool), but I don't think he was needed. I am disappointed that Gabe & Josie didn't make the baby the normal way and that they don't get together.

Meredith....gees what a witch...maybe that's unfair..she is confused and very depressed with unhappiness. I wanted to smack her several times for her attitude.

I can see that a death in the family can impact everyone , but there is also a point that you have to move on...but in this situation Josie had to much guilt, Meredith couldn't seem to understand that everyone grieves differently, parents couldn't come together. Maybe in the future the girls could get their act together and grow up, which could happen.

Characters...my favorite was Gabe...would love to have that man in my life! I thought relationship between the two roommates was awesome, but was a letdown that author didn't let them be. Towards end of story I really didn't want to read anymore about Meredith...so annoying and I really didn't have any sympathy for her( .....

I would NOT recommend buying this book, but maybe borrow it and read it when you can't sleep.
I truly hope Meredith and Josie weren't based on Giffin and her real life sister...because Meredith and Josie are kind of awful, in different ways. Meredith is Scrooge McGrumpyPants and Josie is a 14 year old in a 38 year old's body. Both need therapy. LOADS of therapy. And since they're central to the story, it doesn't make for riveting reading.

The one bright spot in the entire novel...Josie's relationship with Gabe.

Final thoughts? I'd give this book a hard pass.
2.5 stars
Ugh! Once again, I am completely disappointed in her endings. Nearly 400 pages, mostly of inner musings and background info dump writings. Too much tell, not enough of story. If she had spent more time on the actual story and plot, maybe the characters would have had an actual resolution.
The main characters were completely unlikable. Josie was a self-destructive nut; Meredith was just... a bitch!
Not only was there absolutely zero personal journey change or resolution but their relationships were still pretty much in the same state they began in. If that wasn't enough, she used a lot of page space to tell of a conflict resolution for her book, Love The One You're With... because, essentially, there was no real resolution in that novel either. I think it is poor craftsmanship tie loose ends with one novel, intermittently throughout another one... really!
Such a disappointing read. I don't think I'll be reading any more of her books.
I vascilated between 3 and 4 stars........ I so wanted to like this book.

Let me start out by saying that Emily Giffin can write and she does it well. The book sucked me in from the very beginning. The opening chapter--the preview, really--was the best written part of this book. Once I started reading, I devoured the book in a day. It kept me interested and engaged all day yesterday--but the conclusion infuriated me enough that I am up this morning writing this review.

Giffin is the rare author that can make poignant emotional observations and not weigh them down under too flowery prose. She writes simply but allows the reader to experience emotional highs/low. She successfully allows you to get into the rich inner lives of other people. She knows how to hold up a mirror to our latest societal obsessions--facebook, etc. She understands the language of women and is an expert at crafting female relationships that resonated. She also NAILS Buckhead/Atlanta, and having lived there (in her neighborhood, no less) years ago, I recognized the world she drew and enjoyed revisiting. All that was great.

.....and yet.....

These are not very likable characters.

At first, I overlooked their flaws thinking that part of a well-written narrative involves making the reader feel slightly superior to the characters, who after all, are there to grow, right? Flawed characters are interesting. Initially, I appreciated how, for example, she illustrated that Meredith was a negative control freak and Josie was a self-involved drama queen. It reminded me a bit of Jennifer Weiner's "In Her Shoes" and I was excited to bite off a juicy read. I wanted to see Giffin's take on two clearly spoiled children and was excited to see their arc.

Only they did not grow all that much......and if anything, they morphed into even less likable versions of themselves. By the end, I thought of these two women as people I would not want in my life for a myriad of reasons--spoiled, whiny and not particularly concerned about anyone other than themselves.

The male characters are also thinly drawn...... Nolan, the husband, is not anyone I could recognize beyond just the whole "great husband" gig. He was the best drawn character of the bunch.

Pete, Gabe---all mirages whose actions I could identify but whose motivations remained hidden and poorly understood throughout. While I realize it's hard to write about other characters when you are writing from first person POV, the failure of the development of these characters is a direct result of shallow female protagonists with shallow motivations. Putting it another way, if you are writing in the first person about two narcissistic beyotches, chances are you are never going to get any depth of insight into anyone in their world. Which we didn't.

I think this was supposed to be an exploration of grief and it's lingering effects, but it did not work. I get the premise of the book--I am friends with a family that had such a loss, and the impact irrevocably changed their relationships, outlooks and dynamic--and not for the best. I thought this book was going there, but instead, it bypassed it. Instead of addressing the insights about grief--that it can make you stingy, protective, bitter etc--the author used a "not-that-meaningful secret" as a foible and it just missed the mark. It would have been easily forgivable, as a reader, if these characters had then not proceeded to leave the book with two acts of, well, self absorption. If you like the characters, (which I did not) you'd be alarmed at their final acts of self-sabotage. The book literally ends with two bad choices--train-wrecks in the making. Neither character inspires much admiration and if anything, one can't help but feel for their existing and future progeny. If this is their "you go girl" moments, we are in deep doo-doo as women. Their choices are for and about them and the impact of said choices are never explored. It is assumed that if it benefits these two women, then the hell with everyone else.

Finally, I noted something this time around that I realize has been a hallmark of Giffin books and this time it bothered me. Giffin has a hidden bias for "all that is pretty"---her characters are pretty, her setting are pretty. All fine and good as we are reading her books to escape, right?

Except for the fact that as I read, her observations about people reflected a worldview that is rapidly expiring that the well-ordered life, the thin lulu-mom women "look" is desirable above all else. Now before you tell me I am being picky, let me say this. The world is changing. More and more women are throwing off the shackles of the "put together, affluent" window dressing of the last decade. People recognize that social media is a facade and while a few years ago, Pinterest and Instagram might have haunted more women, these days we are more apt to laugh at the expectations of perfection. We are more realistic about what is window dressing and its importance. Also, after years of financial excesses, 2008 changed us. Parents buying homes for their kids as a means to "keep up appearances" is simply passé and to note it as a "family choice" is loopy.

If you are going to write about women throwing off the shackles and getting divorces or pursuing single parenthood, but still keep in a subtle (but ever present) bias towards keeping up appearances, or insinuate that looking a certain way or having ample money or being a certain weight is a given--well, there is a disconnect there..... and it rang hollow. Writing about spoiled, materialistic, shallow women without ever calling them out on it is very 2006. There are various points when it becomes clear that it's not the characters who have a shallow world view, but rather the author.

First Comes Love is, I think, suppose to denote self-love? If that is the case, the characters have loads of that---what they needed to work on was loving other people and being appreciative for their incredible privilege in living such guilded lives.

So that's my review. A little harsh, yes. I enjoyed the book, read it in a day, and that says a lot. I will buy her next book but my hope is that Ms. Giffin takes some advice from her own characters. I hope she can escape Atlanta society for a jaunt outside her well manicured world so she can write with a bit more depth and self reflection. She is a great writer but the effects of her insular world are showing.....

Even so, I look forward to next summer's read. Compelling, readable......but a drama for and about the 1%.