Customer Reviews

The Infidelity Pact

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I had a so-so reaction to this book. I didn't hate it but didn't love it either.

The main thing I found missing in the book is a sense of who these women are as people and why they are friends. They are completely different types -- and without more substance they wind up being closer to stereotypes than believable characters.

In order to become invested in the story, I needed to care about the women. But two of them are unpleasant and one is just vague. Only Eliza is sympathetic. These women are supposed to be such good friends they would enter into this pact and share their secrets, but I never felt a strong bond among them.

I wish Ms. Karasyov's editor had sent her draft back with instructions to flesh out the characters and their friendship. Provide a reason for the women to act and feel the way they do. Because without that, the reader doesn't have a reason to care what happens to them. I didn't.

There is one benefit from reading the book, however. Desperate housewives will know to turn off the baby monitor before sharing secrets they wouldn't want the world to find out!

I can understand that it is a likeable book but I think it's weird that everyone on here is raving like it's the best book out there. It seems a little suspicious. I started it and liked it and then about 60 pages in, I couldn't read anymore. I was starting to get really annoyed with Victoria's character. She was such a snot and seemed to look down at and complain about every single one of her friends. Which just really annoyed me. Then it started with the flashbacks and I just didn't care. I liked her friend's Jill Kargman's book much better!

Victoria, Eliza, Helen and Leelee are well-to-do L.A. housewives who feel that something is missing in their respective lives. Victoria convinces them that they need to have an affair in order to spice things up. What makes this book interesting is that each woman has her own backstory and secrets, and deals with her goal and embraces the challenge in different ways.

Victoria has a lot of anger, having married a man she seduced away from another woman, not realizing that she never did love Justin to begin with. The feelings were mutual. Except for her two sons, she sees that nothing good has come from this marriage, and right now she would do anything to get back at her husband, who spends his days wooing actors, enticing them so he can represent them. When he enters a crowded room, all he cares about is finding who he needs to kiss up to at that moment.

Eliza is having the hardest time following through with the pact, because she is happy with her marriage and does not see any reason to rock the boat. She admits that things could be better, but they're not that bad. However, she may need a little more spice in her sex life with Declan. While Eliza appears to be the most conservative of the four women, she has a past that she is still embarrassed to confront. She once had an affair in high school with her teacher, Mr. Matthews, and he is the one man she still thinks about.

Helen isn't sure if her husband even loves her. Wesley is 20 years her senior, a typical stodgy Brit with parents who aren't too crazy about her. But she and Wesley share an awful secret that could get them into trouble with the law. She embraces the pact with abandon, going from one person to another, and has a good time.

Leelee already had someone in mind to have an affair with, a man she should have married years ago but lost out to another woman. She never got over it and thinks she's still in love with Jack, despite her husband Brad's devotion to her. She can't get Jack out of her mind and is now determined to bring him back in her life.

There is a lot of anger and other strong emotions felt by each character, as they live out their fantasies. Readers looking for women's fiction that makes them feel warm and fuzzy won't find it here. They may even be overwhelmed by these feelings of animosity, especially from Victoria, who appears to be angry at the world. It's "Desperate Housewives" and "Dynasty" all rolled into one. In fact, THE INFIDELITY PACT reads like "Desperate Housewives" on steroids and will keep you hooked until the end. The characters are very well drawn; while at first it took me a while to get to know each woman, I started to notice the differences and see each of them as unique.

The character who ties them together is a fifth person, a columnist for a tabloid newspaper. I imagined Anson Larrabee to look like a version of Truman Capote. He is effeminate, nosy, and has a mean streak that would scare anyone regularly found in the society papers. He has something on these women --- the secret infidelity pact they thought no one knew about.

While I did not approve of what they were all trying to do, I did sympathize with them. Carrie Karasyov does a good job creating characters who feel real in an exaggerated sense. I was entertained and at the same time felt connected to them; what's more, I even cared about the outcome to each of their stories.

--- Reviewed by Marie Hashima Lofton (Ratmammy@lofton.org)

Finished the book in 1 day...a great read,you can't put it down!
The plot twists and turns with a surprising end. You will loathe some characters and love others but you will never be bored. Just don't try this pact at home!!

THE INFIDELITY PACT by Carrie Karasyov
July 17, 2007

Amazon Rating: 4/5 stars

THE INFIDELITY PACT turned out to be a much better book than I had originally expected. The title and the theme both pointed, to me, to a beach read, something akin to chick lit, something light-hearted but juicy. Instead, this story of four married wealthy women is an intense edgy novel that I felt was a notch above some of the other books that are similar in tone and subject-matter.

Without giving too much away, these four friends (Victoria, Eliza, Helen and LeeLee) make an unconventional pact, agreeing to pursue love affairs in order to spice up their lives. But it's much more complicated than just that. There's a lot going on with each of the four women, each of them motivated to have these affairs for different reasons. The results of their actions are beyond what any of them had expected. And when a tabloid columnist begins to threaten them with what he knows about their pact, things begin to fall apart for the women.

Not to make any comparisons, I think fans of Jackie Collins would definitely enjoy THE INFIDELITY PACT, and while not to put down Collins' books, I think THE INFIDELITY PACT is a much smarter, edgier novel. Definitely a book that one will not be able to put down, I'm highly recommending THE INFIDELITY PACT.

Loved this book. It really made my weekend! Such fun and well-written. Looking forward to a movie script.

This is a fast read. I enjoyed reading this book, it is a great book to read in the summer on the beach. The story did have some twists to it, but I didn't find it too surprising. I found the main characters difficult to distinguish from each other. I think of this book as a chick lit book. I think this book is worth picking up, but I didn't think it was phenominal like some of the other people that reviewed it.

This has got to be my favorite book of the summer. I expected to be entertained by the whole concept of a book written about infidelity--especially a pact made between friends. It held my interest & had a surprise ending. I think alot of women will enjoy this book! Another great job by Carrie Karasyov.

The Infidelity Pact was a fun, entertaining and rewarding book to read. The fun part was the humor Karasyov writes with. The entertainment came from the plot that I could not predict. The reward was that the writing was sophisticated and smart. This is a good book that won't make you feel like you wasted your time when you finish it, but you will be upset that it's over. I certainly was.

I read this book, but wish I hadn't! I can't believe all the positive reviews it has received. The story is okay, but I couldn't get past the mean, shallow characters and spoiled, over-done lifestyle.

The four main characters all have children they love (supposedly) and husbands they're hostile or indifferent towards. They don't spend any time with these children, however, thanks to nannies and babysitters, however motherhood and all its trappings are so grueling for these four women. The husbands are blamed for every imperfection in their lives and are expected to be perfect at everything. So, the answer is an affair, right? Victoria claims that if they each have an affair no one has to know and their husbands will then be happy. That might be the dumbest thing I've ever heard.

They're all rich and flaunt it in such a wasteful way, I could hardly stand it! I don't know anyone who lives like that and I found it to be seriously distracting from the only mediocre plot. The constant references to high end brands and businesses was a major filler in this book where it could have used real content.

I do not recommend this book to anyone. Reader beware.