Tag: the lies that bind book

Book Review: The Lies That Bind {Emily Giffin}

I had been waiting for MONTHS to read and review The Lies That Bind by Emily Giffin and was obsessively checking my status at the library DAILY to see when I would finally be able to get my hands on this popular book.

I had heard from not 1, not 2 but 3 friends who told me that they read this book over the course of 1-2 days because they couldn’t put it down and gave such glowing reviews. I couldn’t WAIT to start reading and knew that our lake house getaway would be the perfect time. I decided about a month ago that if the library wasn’t going to provide me with a copy for my vacation, Amazon would! When the library called the week before we were leaving to tell me that my copy was waiting for me, it truly felt so meant to be. You can read about our wonderful Labor Day weekend lake house vacation HERE.

Goodreads Synopsis of The Lies That Bind {Emily Giffin}:

It’s 2 A.M. on a Saturday night in the spring of 2001, and twenty-eight-year-old Cecily Gardner sits alone in a dive bar in New York’s East Village, questioning her life. Feeling lonesome and homesick for the Midwest, she wonders if she’ll ever make it as a reporter in the big city–and whether she made a terrible mistake in breaking up with her longtime boyfriend, Matthew.

As Cecily reaches for the phone to call him, she hears a guy on the barstool next to her say, “Don’t do it–you’ll regret it.” Something tells her to listen, and over the next several hours–and shots of tequila–the two forge an unlikely connection. That should be it, they both decide the next morning, as Cecily reminds herself of the perils of a rebound relationship. Moreover, their timing couldn’t be worse–Grant is preparing to quit his job and move overseas. Yet despite all their obstacles, they can’t seem to say goodbye, and for the first time in her carefully constructed life, Cecily follows her heart instead of her head.

Then Grant disappears in the chaos of 9/11. Fearing the worst, Cecily spots his face on a missing-person poster, and realizes she is not the only one searching for him. Her investigative reporting instincts kick into action as she vows to discover the truth. But the questions pile up fast: How well did she really know Grant? Did he ever really love her? And is it possible to love a man who wasn’t who he seemed to be?

My Review of The Lies That Bind {Emily Giffin}:

I brought it to Michigan and read bits and pieces whenever I could. Lakeside? Check. In bed at night? Check. In bed first thing in the morning? Check. Sitting on the couch drinking coffee whilst gazing out at the gorgeous lake? Check. I read little bits each day throughout the 5 days and finished about 2 hours before we left to come home.

I interrupt this review to bring you this amazingness…

EMILY GIFFIN THINKS I’M PRETTY. I REPEAT…EMILY GIFFIN THINKS I’M PRETTY.

MIND. BLOWN.

So…I liked this book.  I did.  But did I LOVE it like my friends did?  I did not.

I pretty much loathed all of the characters at varying times while reading. Just when I would start to like a character, something would happen to make me not like that character…and this continued throughout the book. Where this was supposed to make the reader feel engaged, it actually made me feel DISengaged because I felt each character and each relationship wasn’t given enough detail for me to even be able to form an opinion and once I did, that opinion was instantly changed. And not in a twisty, fun way! In more of a…this character is awful…JUST KIDDING…now THIS character is AWFUL…JUST KIDDING…and that first character…NOT AWFUL AFTERALL…JUST KIDDING! Eventually all of this back and forth just got annoying and I gave up on trying to like anybody.

Without giving away any spoilers, I felt the author’s use of 9/11 in this story was disrespectful. The actual writing and details of the events were brilliantly written but the fictitious storyline based around 9/11 felt weird and so wrong to me. I can’t even imagine reading this as someone who lost a loved one during that time. I would imagine they would feel infuriated at how this story unfolded.

This book was just eh for me. Kept me interested enough to keep reading….but I honestly don’t think I would have continued if not for the high accolades from my friends. Parts felt so long, parts felt like they could have been longer, overall just eh.

And I HATED the ending.

I was so confused because my friends LOVED IT!  So I went on Goodreads and confirmed that I was indeed not alone….MANY other people out there did not. 

I definately liked it! I did! It was a great book to bring on vacation as I was able to easily put it down and read bits and pieces here and there. And as much as I loved that…it was absolutely one of it’s biggest flaws as I wanted to not be able to put it down. My friends felt that “unputdownable” feeling with this book…I easily kept putting this one down. Eh.

This was my first Emily Giffin book.  Would I read another?  I would!  Am I racing to?  I’m not.  Do I hope she still thinks I’m pretty even if I didn’t love her book?  I REALLY, REALLY DO!

Bottom Line:

Eh.

Have you read this book? What did you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

Click the image below to order the book through my Amazon affiliate link. When you order through this link, I receive a tiny commission. Thank you for your support, Xo

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Our Amazing Return Visit To Spring Lake, Michigan

2 months ago our family took the most lovely vacation to Spring Lake, Michigan. We rented a cottage literally on the lake and we spent a week frolicking in the water, playing in the sand, eating delicious food, and quarantining ourselves in the most wonderfully safe way. Before we even left, my husband had booked us a return visit over Labor Day weekend and we literally counted down the days from the second we got home until this last weekend. Read all about our first trip to Spring Lake HERE.

I mean…how could we NOT want to return when this was our backyard???

(For another video of this gorgeous view, check out my video on THIS POST)

I spent this last trip reading The Lies That Bind {Emily Giffin}(affiliate). It was the only book that I read while I was there and finished about 2 hours before we left to come home. I will have my full review posted later this week!

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I present to you…the best meal of the trip. Village Baker PERFECTION. We ate there not once, not twice, but THREE times over a 2 day span. IT’S SO DELICIOUS AND BEAUTIFUL THERE. One of the best restaurants I’ve ever been to. Absolutely love it there.

2 eggs, cheddar cheese, grilled Asiago cheese scone. And heaven. Little bits of heaven sprinkled in throughout. Omgggggg…..

We found a gorgeous bike trail in Hart, Michigan. Stunning bike ride AND every street sign has a heart on it?! My dream town 🙂

Back at our cottage, my husband and my kids spent hours fishing and caught so many fish! My choice: The Lies That Bind > squirming, bloody fish.

Meanwhile…

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My favorite Amazon product traveled with me!

Early morning reading by the lake while everyone else was still sleeping. THE BEST.

View from outside the kitchen window. So breathtaking, right? See that chair and table? Still set up from my reading scenario the previous day. LOVE.

Wouldn’t be a vacation without me noticing the local library as we drove past, lol.

I saw these earrings in a gorgeous beachside boutique and I think they might be the best thing I’ve ever seen. The Golden Girls! The Clintons! Donald Trump! Rebecca and Jack Pearson! Macaulay Culkin! Meghan and Harry! Justin Bieber! The cast of Friends! Justin Timberlake! Beyonce and Jay Z! Taylor Swift! Omgggggggggggg

Kim and Kayne! I WAS DYING.

Love this sign so, so much.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD. IT’S NOT HARD, PEOPLE.

This was actually our 6th visit to beautiful Michigan and each time we come, we fall more and more in love with the picturesque beach towns, the gorgeous water, the friendly people, and the delicious food. 2 years ago, Jon and I came for 4 days all alone while my parents watched our kids. It was quiet, relaxing, and lovely! You can read about that trip HERE.

During that trip 2 years ago, I came across the cutest coffee mug in one of the stores in Grand Haven. I even took a picture with it:

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I’m not sure why I didn’t buy it but that mug has literally haunted me for the past 2 years. When we were shopping in downtown Grand Haven this past July, I was determined to figure out which store I found it at and to see if by some miracle they still had it! I described the store to another shop owner in the area who immediately told me where the shop was located. I was so excited! I went straight there…and discovered that half of it is now a dog products store (??) and the other half is now a toy store…and although they DID randomly have tons of mugs, none were mine. I even sat there and went through EVERY. SINGLE. MUG. BOX. in search of my special mug. Nothing. The man working gave me the name of another store down the strip which had bought lots of the goods from the store when it was divided up. So….I dragged my family to yet ANOTHER store in search of my mug. Found the store, did not find the mug. I went into a bunch of other stores on the strip in hopes that THEY might have it and…nothing. I was brokenhearted but accepted that it just wasn’t meant to be.

Fast forward 2 months later and we were in the brand new to us town of Pentwater, Michigan (side note: LOVED THIS TOWN). My daughter and I were walking through an adorably cluttered store where you literally had to look evvvvvvvvverywhere because there was so much to look at. I spy old school trolls (the BEST) on the ceiling!

So her and I were walking along when suddenly…

I grabbed her arm and just stared. She followed my eyes and exclaimed, “CUP OF HAPPY!” This mug is even more beautiful than the original and so much more “me”. Totally meant to be. SOLD. I have happily used it every single day since we’ve been back.

Best, happiest souvenir. Literally brings me such joy when I use it! Totally worth the 2 year wait.

Thank you, Michigan, for once again providing our family with the very best memories. Already trying to figure out when we can return!

I hope you had a lovely long Labor Day weekend! I’ll have my review of The Lies That Bind posted later this week!

Xo,

Jenny

This blog is my favorite hobby and I would so love your support!  Here are ways you can help my blog to GROW:

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The ultimate list of my top book suggestions can be found HERE