Tempting Fate: A Novel

Gabby is a woman in her 40s who has, on paper, a wonderful life: a marriage to a successful doctor, a large home in the suburbs, two precocious teenage daughters and a gaggle of girlfriends with whom she regularly spends time. But, in reality, Gabby is a woman who would like to find a little excitement; nothing too dangerous, nothing to promiscuous, just something to help her feel a little more alive. She goes on a "girls' night" with her friends to a local dive bar and experiences the thrill of the chase; "she isn't the slightest bit interested in actually doing anything, but what fun to play at being the sort of woman other men want. What would be the harm?" Well, for Gabby, the devil is in the details; she becomes completely addicted to the feelings that are brought forth in her burgeoning flirtation with the young man she meets and she cannot seem to talk her way out of it. It was interesting to me that, early in the novel, Gabby speaks very confidently about having a "choice, and you do the right thing; you don't act on it." Later on, she reframes her charge, stating, "It is very easy to say things like that when temptation has never crossed your path." Green, as always, does a superb job of connecting readers to Gabby's dilemma as well as to the other people affected by the decisions she makes; the story line had its moments of predictability, but it was certainly not without surprises. In an online chat via Redbook Magazine and Goodreads, Green stated that, "even the best of marriages become pots and pans;" she said that with email and social networking making new connections possible, "people's fantasy lives can collide with reality in a way that didn't exist a generation ago." This was an intriguing, thought-provoking work by Jane Green and I highly recommend it; I lost many hours of sleep trying to find a stopping point. Not only was I drawn in by the drama between Gabby, her husband and her daughters, but there is also an interesting turn with Gabby's best friend, Claire...but I don't want to spoil that for you.

Gabby and Elliot are happily married with two daughters. When Gabby's friend announced she was pregnant, Gabby knew if she wanted another child now was the time since she was already past forty. Elliot vetoed another child and scheduled a vasectomy without telling Gabby. Her friends were going out for drinks and she decided to say yes this time. She was shocked that her friends were flirting with the middle aged guys that approached them. Thinking it must be nice to be looked at as desirable she began talking to the young man who asked if he could buy her a drink. Gabby never planned on doing anything other than chitchat but Matt started to flirt and one thing led to another and they began texting one another. This goes on so long I was ready to quit reading about a married woman and a young man getting emotionally involved. In the next few pages Gabby made the biggest mistake in her life and had sex with Matt. She immediately felt horrible about her behavior and told Matt she couldn't see him anymore. He was a gentleman about her decision and they said goodbye. The writing is very good and I'm glad I continued to read. The characters have depth and show believable feelings. It was easy to understand the emotions behind the behaviors. One theme that came up time and again was there are always consequences for behaviors. The rest of the story explored those consequences. Without telling you how the story ends, I will say I found the ending very satisfying. If you enjoy the writing of Nora Roberts and Nicholas Sparks, this is a book you will like.

This book has strong writing and sympathetic memorable characters. But what seemingly starts out as a cautionary tale, ends as a fairy tale. And I'm not sure the social implications of said fairy tale are positive. In the old days, true feminists had disdain for fairy tales because they didn't believe it was helpful for girls to dream of being saved by knights in armor. This isn't that kind of fairy tale, but to me it is as implausible as any of those and maybe, possibly, as harmful to women. I'm sorry to say that because I am sure that that was not this author's objective. But, although the writing and story telling are great, the book left me feeling a little sick and messed up. It might be a good book club read and produce lively discussions.

For an extended review of this book and more, please visit http://fortheloveoftheread.blogspot.com As a long-standing fan of Jane Green, it's no surprise that I picked this one up. This is one of her most recent novels and definitely the newest one of hers that I have read. I loved this book. When thinking about this review, I was trying to pinpoint exactly what it was that I loved so much about this one that made it stand out from her others. All I could come up with was maturity. There is a certain level of emotional maturity that Green reaches in this novel that really stood out from her earlier novels. This maturity shows that, over her years of writing, she has really grown as an author. During the entire book, Gabby goes through so much, has so many experiences, and Green really captured an emotional realism for each situation. I had thought this book was going to lead up to the climax of Gabby and Matt's affair, but a lot of the book focused on the lead up and the aftermath, with little emphasis placed on the actual affair. I was surprised by this take on the story, but I appreciated it. I think the exploration of what can come from such a big decision is worth spending more time on than the action of the affair. I also thought that Green did a fantastic job of making Matt appealing, without making Elliott seem less so. Throughout the book, it was hard to root for any one person to be with Gabby because they were both so wonderful and human. I also thought Green did well with the reactions of friends of Gabby and Elliott, and the two daughters. Everyone had their role to play, and Green did well giving them all that role. Overall, I really just adored this book. I loved the emotional aspects of it and the fact that the focus was mostly on the aftermath of an affair and the process of trying to recover from making such a choice. This is a great example of Jane Green's work.

Dear Jane, The challenges, of marriage, children, getting older, and life could not have been more sensitively presented with strong insights to life's daily realities. How much work it takes to deal with this reality further complicated by individual circumstances. I cannot imagine anyone not relating to many of your characters, seeing themselves, or someone they know in their lives. Nor could family dynamics been better presented, It was a wonderful read filled with insight, sensitivity and a cast of characters we all know. It certainly hits home. You caught me in the first page and kept me engaged to the very end. Found myself often reminded of personal circumstance, though my outcome was not a story book solution, it could certainly have been an option as you demonstrated. Thank you. A good read.

I am at the beach, just finished a delightful story, for fiction is just a story, but this book involves midlife crisis, a husband making a decision on his own, and all the consequences of real lives when they get messy. Great main character, not an airhead but not a rocket scientist, creative, loves being a mother although it is the most complicated, frustrating occupation in the world. One giant mistake by the mom affects the whole family. Read it, wonderful author, writes great stories, you will find traces of your life throughout the book. Okie Reading Specialist

One night of ill-judged passion changes a young mother’s life forever. Tempting Fate explores infidelity through the prelude to the affair and the devastating consequences. Gabby is sliding into middle age, feeling unattractive and invisible. So when Matt, a younger, handsome out-of-town business man shows her attention she is easily swept up in a flirtation. What begins as an innocent phone text affair – not much more than friendship - it becomes something more when her husband and family are away and she invites Matt to her home. Though Gabby convinces herself nothing will happen, it does. Her passion is all consuming but short lived. As soon as it is over she knows she’s made a dreadful mistake – one that results in a longed-for baby that she cannot possibly pass off as her husband's. Tempting Fate is a novel that grew on me. Green does a wonderful job of creating a middle class world of mothers whose children are growing up, whose husbands are ageing and for whom life has become predictable but unsettling. Gabby is likable but perhaps a little too ordinary to be interesting. Green rounds out her character more in the latter chapters, but in the early chapters the texts she sends Matt and her conversations with her children did little to add interest to her character or the plot. As a consequence these were easy to skim. The set up for her brief encounter is perhaps too long and doesn’t necessarily build sympathy for Gabby. Yet once she discovers she is pregnant the story becomes much richer. The deterioration and break up of her marriage, and the introduction of her husband’s point of view, gives the story a new depth as Gabby begins to realise what she has lost – and what she has gained. In many ways Tempting Fate is a mid-life coming-of-age story. Green explores how women perceive themselves and how this is refracted by those around them. Initially, I gave this three stars but I found myself thinking of Gabby and some of Green’s insightful revelations about marriage and fidelity long after I’d finished. As that's a story doing its job, I figured that alone was worth another star.

Tempting Fate is the next step in the evolution of Jane Green's writing. Each book tackles a new subject matter and weaves a story that the reader can't put down. Tempting Fate is not exception to that trend. I was sucked in from the first page until the last. The characters are so masterfully crafted and developed that I felt like I was there present in their lives. I sympathized with a few of the characters which made it impossible to decide which way I wanted them to go. Even though her books are not connected this one just makes me look forward to what Jane comes up with next.