Something Borrowed [Abridged, Audiobook, CD] [Audio CD]

Emily Giffin (Author), Jennifer Wiltsie (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 28, 2009

Rachel has always been a good girl--until her thirtieth birthday, when her best friend Darcy throws her a party. That night, after too many drinks, Rachel ends up in bed with Darcy's fiancé Dex. Rachel is horrified to discover that she has genuine feelings for Dex. She prays for fate to intervene, but when she makes a choice she discovers that the lines between right and wrong are blurry, endings aren't always neat, and you have to risk all to win true happiness.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Product Description

The smash-hit debut novel for every woman who has ever had a complicated love-hate friendship.

 

Rachel White is the consummate good girl. A hard-working attorney at a large Manhattan law firm and a diligent maid of honor to her charmed best friend Darcy, Rachel has always played by all the rules. Since grade school, she has watched Darcy shine, quietly accepting the sidekick role in their lopsided friendship. But that suddenly changes the night of her thirtieth birthday when Rachel finally confesses her feelings to Darcy's fiance, and is both horrified and thrilled to discover that he feels the same way. As the wedding date draws near, events spiral out of control, and Rachel knows she must make a choice between her heart and conscience. In so doing, she discovers that the lines between right and wrong can be blurry, endings aren't always neat, and sometimes you have to risk everything to be true to yourself.

 

This new tie-in edition will coincide with the release of the film, starring Kate Hudson, Ginnifer Goodwin and John Krasinski.

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Amazon Exclusive: A Conversation Between Kristin Hannah and Emily Giffin

Emily Giffin (left) is the author of five New York Times bestselling novels, including Something Borrowed, which has been adapted as a major motion picture that will be in theaters in summer 2011. A graduate of Wake Forest University and the University of Virginia School of Law, she lives in Atlanta with her family.

Kristin Hannah (right) is the New York Times bestselling author of eighteen novels, including Winter Garden. She is a former lawyer turned writer and the mother of one son. She and her husband live in the Pacific Northwest and Hawaii.

Kristin Hannah: Well, first, I have to say, Emily, that I am just the tiniest bit irritated with you. When I got the call to do this interview, I was thrilled, to say the least. It came at a really busy time for me--right after the holidays and we all know how crazy that is--and my work in progress was giving me fits. Then I picked up Heart of the Matter, and lost myself. No more writing, no more cooking, no getting my hair done or reading my email. Once I started the story I literally couldn't put it down. Brava, girlfriend, I say. Your characters are so real and compelling, and they always say exactly the right thing. With so much honest emotion, I just have to ask how much of your work comes from your own life?

Emily Giffin: It never fails to thrill me when someone responds to one of my novels--especially when it's another writer. Writers understand the alchemy involved in making up something from nothing. And I just finished your book, Night Road, and I found it so emotional, so moving, and so terrifying--especially since I have three young children who will someday be teenagers. In terms of how much does my work come from my own life, I would say that I'm absolutely inspired by people, places, conversations, relationships, and issues that I observe, and that the "what if" part of my novel is very much inspired by these things in my life. But the details of my plots and the specifics of my characters come from my own head. How about you, Kristin? I'll ask you the million-dollar question that every author gets asked: where do you get your ideas?

Kristin: Ah, the idea question. I don't want to sound coy, but the truth is, I don't quite know. It's the most magical part of the process for me. I'm a pretty analytical gal, and I approach writing in the same just-the-facts-ma'am way I approach most things. I need to find an issue that engages me on an intellectual level, and then I need to marry that curiosity with a kind of passion. I need to feel genuinely passionate about each story before I ever write a word, and I have to actually have something to say. It takes me at least a year to research and write a novel, and so I have to really adore each part of it--the characters, setting, story. Most of all, it has to make me feel something genuine. That's really the most important component. Usually it begins with a single "what if" question--what if you discovered your mother had a whole secret life about which you knew nothing (Winter Garden) or what if your husband were accused of a crime you believed he hadn't committed (True Colors)--and then I write and re-write until the characters seem as real to me as old friends.

Kristin: I'm amazed by how much we have in common. We're both moms, both lawyers, both lived in London for a time. You're like a younger, cooler version of me. How did you make the transition from lawyer to writer, and do you think you'll ever practice law again?

Emily: I would hardly say I'm cooler than you, Kristin! I hear you live in Hawaii part time! What is cooler than that? I made the transition from lawyer to writer because I was so miserable being a lawyer that I needed some escape from the day-to-day of it. And inventing stories was that escape. I can say, without hesitation, that I will never practice law again. Would you? What kind of law did you practice, and for how long? What did you find appealing (or discouraging) about law? Did you find that it gave you fodder for any of your novels?

Kristin: Honestly, I have met very few lawyers who don't say that what they really want to do is write. Like you, I can say with certainty that I will never practice law again. Not that anyone would want me to. But I still keep my Bar membership up...just in case this whole writing thing doesn't work out. And yes, in the past few years, I have finally begun to put some of that law school education to work for me. I find that I'm really enjoying adding legal issues to my work. Of course, I have to talk to real lawyers to make sure I'm getting it right...

Read more of the conversation between Emily Giffin and Kristin Hannah

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--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From Publishers Weekly

Jennifer Wiltsie's warm, emotionally expressive voice immediately draws listeners into Giffin's story and makes them sympathize with Rachel, whose growing attraction to her best friend's fiancé eventually develops into a guilt-ridden affair. Wiltsie handles the other characters deftly; Rachel's best friend, Darcy, is especially vivid (and hilariously shallow and self-centered), and Rachel and Dex's romance is portrayed with exceptional sensitivity. This is definitely one to bring along in the beach bag this summer. A St. Martin's hardcover. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Macmillan Audio; Abridged edition (April 28, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1427206988
• ISBN-13: 978-1427206985
• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (781 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,011,748 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Emily Giffin is the New York Times bestselling author of Something Borrowed, Something Blue, Baby Proof and Love The One You're With. She lives in Atlanta with her husband and three young children.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

151 of 176 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Book!!!, January 28, 2005

By 

Mercedes L. Johnmeyer "The Most Happy" (Summerville, SC) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Something Borrowed (Hardcover)

OK, I normally HATE chick-lit books, and that was what I was expecting when I picked this up, but actually, I loved it! I read all the reviews before starting this, and seeing as how everyone raved about it, I gave it a shot. So glad I did.

Rachel and Darcy have been best friends since their childhood in Indiana. Now they are both living in NYC and Rachel has just turned 30...and also just slept with Darcy's fiance. When I first started reading peoples reviews, I couldn't believe how they all rooted for Rachel and Dex...but after getting deeper and deeper into the book, I was doing the same thing! I actually grew to despise Darcy. She was so incredibly immature for a woman of 29 yrs. How Rachel managed to stay friends with her all that time was beyond me, but I loved the character of Rachel.

She's so down-to-earth, and I found myself saying a bunch of times, 'I know EXACTLY what she means!!', or, 'I've been there, and that's just what I was thinking to'. The ending was also really good. Half of it was a complete surprise, and I was very satisfied with the other half. I'm really looking forward to 'Something Blue' coming out this summer. Hopefully it will continue the saga of this very entertaining group of people. I definitely recommend!!

94 of 112 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Awful Ending, March 19, 2009

By 

J. Bigornia - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Something Borrowed (Paperback)

*SPOILERS*

I knew that I was getting into a book about disloyalty and infidelity when I decided to read it. However, I found the author trying to pass off Dexter as a romantic hero with Rachel and her friends gushing at how courageous he was when he broke off his engagement with the best friend of the girl he's sleeping with as an obvious misnomer and a little manipulative on the author's behalf. Because really, their reaction should have been "Finally!"

I know that cheating happens, and their immorality was not the problem I had with the book. However, let's just call things as they are. It's one thing for Rachel to think of Dex as courageous, but her level-headed friends realistically would have said "Thank goodness he came to his senses" rather than being impressed. I hate it when authors throw little things like that in to get the reader to still like and side with the main characters. I thought this book was supposed to be about there being a gray area.

But to make matters worse, in case the reader had any remorse for Darcy - Rachel's best friend of 25 years and Dexter's fiance - the author made sure to rid the guilt completely by having Darcy admit that not only is she also having an affair, but with Mark, Dexter's friend from college and Darcy's two-time substitute for when she needed someone to take Dexter off her mind. But because Darcy & Mark's affair happened a month into Dexter and Rachel's relationship, when they were already exchanging I Love Yous, the author decides that maybe she allowed too much gray area for the audience to still feel sorry for Darcy...after all, Darcy's affair happened around the time she felt insecure because Dexter had been distant and not having sex with her anymore. So just in case the readers turn on her, the author revealed that not only has Darcy been sleeping with Mark, but she's pregnant with his child!

I was a little offended that the author felt the need to go that far...and though some may say it was her need to please the audience, I felt like it was more her way of trying to fool us into siding with Rachel and Dexter. It would have been a much more interesting book if Darcy had found out the truth and Rachel just had to deal with the fact that she hurt her best friend. Despite all the built up jealousy and resentment Rachel has towards Darcy for always being self-centered and the prettier and more confident of the two, she still had no right to sleep with Darcy's fiance. I found the "Oh well! Darcy not only did what I did, but she's worse because she's pregnant!" ending sloppy and shallow. I especially hated that Rachel felt Darcy's infidelity was harsher because Rachel had only deceived Darcy...whereas Darcy deceived both Rachel and Dexter. Oh please! Rachel's nothing relationship with Mark is HARDLY comparable to the ten year relationship Darcy had with her fiance Dexter.

And to all the reviewers who said it's a realistic portrayal of infidelity are merely mistaken. If everyone who cheated with their best friend's fiance was "rewarded" with the fact that their best friend was doing the same and pregnant...well, then these same reviewers wouldn't have complimented the author's "great" twist ending.

By the way, was I the only one rooting for Rachel to be with Ethan? I found his sense of humor charming and his friendship with Rachel endearing. Dexter, on the other hand, I found positively boring. His descriptions were always surrounded by narrations of how he handsome he was. Are the readers supposed to be impressed by that? Oh well.

53 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Conflicted, July 13, 2009

By 

Joyful (Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Something Borrowed (Paperback)

There were many aspects of this book I did not like, and I agree with most of the negative reviews. Rachel is not a heroine in any sense of the word. She was an incredibly unsympathetic character, as was Dexter. Cheating on his fiance, with her best friend, made me dislike him from the very beginning. The fact that he continues the relationship with Rachel, and got jealous when she was just kissing other people (never mind he's engaged to someone else!) made him seem very immature and manipulative. Rachel was a heroine that the reader never really gets to know. If anything, you feel pity for her because she is so pathetic.

The ending was not only predictable, but I felt cheated after reading it. I would have much preferred Rachel and Dexter ending up together and having to deal with the fact that their affair made them not-so-nice people and having Rachel realize that maybe she is the bad friend, not Darcy. I did not like that the author tried to prevent you from feeling any empathy for Darcy by making her the "worst" of the bunch with her own cheating. However, I did not feel bad for Rachel or Dexter after Darcy's revelation. Rachel seems very holier-than-thou since Darcy deceived her and Dexter, but I did not see any blameless party in the situation.

The only "bright spot" in the book that I found remotely realistic was the portrayal of toxic friendships that are so common in women today. I could relate to their high school days and even later in their friendship when it was always an unspoken competition. That aspect of the story was something I found real and interesting. However, that never excuses one for stealing someone's fiance. That proves that Rachel is the real frenemy, not Darcy.