Customer Reviews

Got You Back

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Jane Fallon's debut novel took a traditional chick-lit theme -- the scorned wife and the other woman -- and gave it a twist to create a lively read in Getting Rid of Matthew

Her second book, which I picked up in London after stumbling over the first book and greatly enjoying it as a 'beach read', comes as a massive disappointment. Everything -- the plot, dialogue, characters -- is heavy-handed and ham-handed, even trite. Gone is the wit and charm of the first novel, replaced with sarcasm, irony and even boring tirades. You simply don't care that James is lying to both his wife and mistress, and have little sympathy for any of the main characters -- a big no-no in this genre.

It's the kind of chick-lit novel that gives chick-lit a bad name.

I first discovered Jane Fallon when I read her best selling debut novel Getting Rid of Matthew and was very happy to discover her second!

Stephanie and James are comfortably married with a seven year son, Finn. James is a vet and divides his time and week between two practices, one in the city and one in a country village. Although the marriage is a bit 'settled', Stephanie has no reason to think there's trouble until she inadvertently see a text on her husband's phone - "I'm really missing you. K xxx". She's not sure if it means what she thinks it does. He can't be having an affair can he? Ummm, yes he is. Instead of confronting James, she decides to track down the other woman - Katie. Katie is just as stunned as Stephanie - she thought he was divorced. They decide that James should not get off lightly and 'Operation Get Revenge on the Two Timing S**t' is hatched. But how far should you take revenge?

I hesitate to slap a chick lit label on this book. as it is much more than that. Fallon has written a smart, witty novel that draws you in (and won't let you put down - I devoured it in a day!). Her characters are realistic, likable and believable. They had depth and evolved. Katie is an innocent at first and the change in her character is convincing. It was satisfying to watch Stephanie's self confidence and search for personal happiness evolve after the bottom has fallen out. But I think Fallon particularly excelled with James, the husband. He is egotistical, pompous and firmly believes that he can have his cake and eat it too. The change in this character as the revenge scheme plays out is not what you would expect. I particularly enjoyed the ending.

Fallon is a British author and the partner of Ricky Gervais. Bet that's a fun household!

This is my second Janne Fallon book. I liked Getting Rid of Matthew and was hoping that this second book would be as good. Unfortunately, this one is only okay.

What I like about Jane Fallon is that in both books she takes a tricky subject such as adultery and gives it a bit of a twist - the twist being that the guy always ends up being a huge loser - and, in the end, rejected by both his wife AND his mistress. I love this concept - and its no different in Got You Back.

Stephanie is the wife and Katie is the mistress and both are in love with James - who manages to create for himself a nice little cozy situation until both of the women in his life decide to unite in order to teach the letch a lesson he will never forget.

What does not work for me in this book is the writing style. It somehow felt cold and distant this time around - not as personal as in her first book. I loved the storyline and really, what kept be going to the end was my curiosity over whether the girls would really end up dumping the c cheating James. This book could have been much better considering the great, great set up.

Got You Back was a treat to read. From the hilarious plotting of Stephanie and Katie to Stephanie's clients being tricked into wearing a more flattering outfit Got You Back is full of laughs. But forget all the laughs, the book also deals with serious issues as well, people's lives being ruined and having to start over and having your life turned upside down when finding out your partner has been living a lie. Got You Back is a great book that covers a lot of ground.

My favorite parts of the book were when James was set up to be embarrassed in some way by Stephanie and Katie. The stories he told to try and keep himself on people's good sides where too great. But then after awhile I did start to feel bad for him and was rooting for him to pick up the pieces of his life. You could tell he was truly sorry for what he had done and was ready to start over again.

I really liked the character of Stephanie and how she handled the situation. Though, maybe it wasn't the best idea to work out a plan to humiliate her husband (though what fun would the story be without it!). I also liked Katie who brought a whole different set of cards to the table. At first she just sort of went along with whatever Stephanie said but eventually found her own self in this whole mess. I think all three of them, Stephanie, Katie, and James came out of the situation for the better.

The ending wasn't exactly what I had expected but after thinking about it a bit more it makes sense. Overall I thought this book was a great mix of things that came together to create a funny, interesting, emotional and layered book. Jane Fallon is very talented and I look forward to reading her other book, Getting Rid of Matthew!