Quotes and Reviews
Heart of the Matter
“In HEART OF THE MATTER, [Giffin] again uses her great wit and gift of storytelling to weave a tale that’s nuanced, empathetic and, at times, heartbreaking. Matters of the heart are always complicated, and Giffin deftly shows you why.”
—Associated Press
“Giffin’s latest opens with one of the more haunting scenes in recent memory [and] towards the end things are so tense that the pages pop with each turn.”
—People
“With [an] adulterous path outlined, Giffin could easily take sides. But she doesn't. Instead, she alternates between Tessa's and Valerie's points of view, dissecting the feelings and insecurities that can dismantle even the most intelligent people… Amid all the angst, Giffin displays her trademark ability to capture the complexities of human emotions while telling a rip-roaring tale.”
—Washington Post
“Giffin’s calling card has always been her ability to delve into the workings of relationships. But in her latest book the best- selling novelist probes deeper than ever… With intelligence, humor and piercing insight, Giffin shows that in matters of love, it is possible to be right and yet so wrong.”
—Family Circle
“With realistic dialogue and a sharp depiction of relationships, Giffin crafts an emotional, effortless read.”
—More
“Giffin beautifully shows how quickly need becomes love…[and her] chronicle of fluid, almost casual marital disconnect is a powerful cautionary tale.”
—Boston Globe
“In HEART OF THE MATTER, Giffin delivers her best book yet. [W]hat makes this novel special are the emotional depths to which Giffin takes her readers…”
—Dallas Morning News
“There are no easy answers here, in a novel that is consistently engrossing right to the surprising finish.”
—Seattle Times
“Giffin’s latest novel delves deep into the all-too-tricky matters of the heart…this juicy read will make you feel like you’re sneaking a peek into your best friend’s diary.”
—Redbook
“Giffin's books are fast-moving, emotionally absorbing stories about female friendships, marriage and childbirth.”
—Chicago Tribune
“Even as you steel yourself for [the book’s pivotal moment], it's hard to read when it happens, which is what sets this book a step above so many others...[Giffin] creates characters in Tessa, Valerie and Nick who are believable and mostly well-intentioned even as they make obviously bad choices.”
—St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“As HEART OF THE MATTER takes its time documenting the inexorable slide toward an affair, the slow-moving sequence of events rings true.”
—Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Emily Giffin’s newest novel is a little painful to read. OK, a lot painful to read. As a reader, you find yourself in the oddly painful position of rooting for two women who can't both get what they want. Your heart breaks for both of them [but] you'll know that feeling this kind of emotional torture with and about characters is a good thing. It's simply cathartic.”
—Ft. Worth Star-Telegram
“Unfolding from Tessa and Valerie’s alternating viewpoints, [HEART OF THE MATTER] will draw you in with beautifully complex characters who come across as nuanced and as flawed as people in real life. Giffin avoids victimizing Tessa while allowing empathy for Valerie, underscoring that all of us are capable of making mistakes that hurt those we love most – and that it’s how we deal with this universal truth that matters. Ditch the tabloid stories…and pick this up instead if you really want to get inside the mind of the other woman.”
—VIV magazine
“[A] brutally honest book in that it never falters in its depiction of hope and heartache. Emily Giffin is a talented writer who re-gifts her talent in the books she creates…With HEART OF THE MATTER she turns up the heat and gives us her best novel yet.”
—Huffington Post
“Giffin punctures suburban trophy mothers and private school privilege, rising above the often-shallow chick fray with a gimlet-eyed skepticism for the traps modern women fall into.”
—The Atlantan
“Giffin’s talent lies in making her characters believable and relatable, and readers will be enthralled by this layered, absorbing novel.”
—Booklist ("Starred Review")
“Emily Giffin continues her streak of penning summer must-reads with HEART OF THE MATTER.”
—New York Metro
“HEART OF THE MATTER is a messy, complicated, often uncomfortable portrait of a marriage—and two families—in crisis. But it has everything readers love about Emily Giffin’s books: the heart, the empathy, the truth.”
—Bookpage
“Emily Giffin continues her streak of penning summer must-reads with HEART OF THE MATTER.”
—New York Metro
“A touching story about marriage, fidelity and two mothers who find themselves inextricably linked.”
—New York Family
“Though Emily Giffin has examined relationships in all of her novels, she reaches a new level of intensity with HEART OF THE MATTER. With characters who are older and wiser than those in her past books, she is able to examine the more serious topics that present themselves within long-term relationships and parenthood. Her characteristic flowing style of writing makes this book no different from her others: one you won’t want to put down.”
—Woodbury magazine
“Best-selling author Giffin's fifth novel is fast paced and well written.”
–Library Journal
Love the One You're With
“Giffin is a dependably down-to-earth, girlfriendly storyteller.”
—New York Times
“A modern day Jane Austen.”
—Cincinnati Enquirer
“Giffin excels at creating complex characters and quick-to-read stories that ask us to explore what we really want from our lives. Love the One You’re With skillfully explores the secret workings of a young woman's heart, and the often painful consequences of one's actions.”
—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"Giffin's talent lies in taking relatable situations and injecting enough wit and suspense to make them feel fresh. The cat-and-mouse game between Ellen and Leo lights up these pages, their flirtation as dangerously addictive as a high-speed car chase. The ending isn't explosive, but what Ellen learns is quietly thrilling: Sometimes, you have to do whatever it takes to be with the one you love."
—People
"Giffin’s fluid storytelling and appealing characters give her novels a warm, inviting air, and her fourth is no exception. Giffin’s snappy prose makes Ellen’s dilemma compelling, once again proving she’s at the top of the pack."
—Booklist
"Giffin delivers another relatable and multifaceted heroine who may behave unexpectedly but will ultimately find her true path.”
—Library Journal
"Though it's easy to resent Ellen for taking her ideal life for granted, Giffin's vivid depictions of Ellen's steamy past with Leo help you commiserate with this realistically insecure woman."
—Entertainment Weekly
“Giffin’s books are funny, sensitive and truthful depictions of female friendships and the complexities of marriage and motherhood.”
—Atlanta Peach
“Ellen's conflicting thoughts and emotions ring true from page one through the book's teary (well, at least for this reader) conclusion.”
—Ft. Worth Star-Telegram
“Giffin’s book is instantly relatable. Few don't wonder how their lives would be different if they had turned left rather than right at life's big forks. Her writing is realistic and entertaining. There are unexpected plot twists and measured jabs at materialism and Southern societal norms, and Giffin's funny, honest voice lends credence to this modern riff on the old adage that the grass appears greener on the other side of the fence.”
—Charlotte Observer
“I so loved Emily Giffin's last three books that I almost didn't want to crack her latest effort, for fear it would be the Superman IV of the author's literary opus. Mercifully, the new book not only lives up to its elegantly constructed predecessors, it arguably surpasses them in style, maturity, emotion and overall relatability. Treading the fuzzy line between loyalty and obligation, self-interest and self-preservation, contentment and passion, Love the One You're With is an achingly honest look at the notion of love as the sum of our choices as opposed to the contents of our vows.”
—Edmonton Journal
“Giffin’s books are smart, sad and witty . . . Giffin is bold enough to allow a mainstream heroine to be happily married while still maintaining her curiosity about the road (or the guy) not taken, let alone considering infidelity. And she’s able to show the strains that these considerations take on family, friends and husband . . . It’s the difference between appealing to a mass audience and a reader who wants her ideals challenged rather than affirmed, often intentionally ending in ambiguity and compromise. It’s the stuff of real life, stripped of literary pretensions.”
—National Post
“Who hasn't fantasized about what might have happened if? Giffin does an excellent job of letting us live that one out vicariously while telling us a story that is so modern, multi-layered and moving that you'll feel a little sad when it comes to a close.”
—Gentry magazine
“Giffin is a masterful storyteller and manages to infuse energy, freshness and suspense into what could have been yet another predictable ‘woman-at-a-crossroads’ story. (Giffin could, in fact, teach some literary authors a few things about how to write compelling plots with strong motors.) The best thing about this book is Giffin doesn't play it safe or shy away from allowing her heroine to explore lust, infidelity and the road not taken. The dichotomy of passion and comfort, lust and security, is nothing new to literature, and yet in Giffin's deft hands, I really had no idea who Ellen would wind up with until the very last page, and more important, I actually cared.”
—The Globe and Mail
“This sweet tale satisfies through well-drawn characters who are forced to make some tough real-life decisions.”
—Star
“Love that’s clouded by the memory of an old romantic relationship is the subject of Emily Giffin’s aptly titled Love the One You’re With. Readers will follow Ellen with fascination and trepidation as she enters the dangerous waters of what might have been—or still could be.”
—Hartford Courant
“As Giffin takes readers back and forth between Ellen’s frustrating memories of Leo and her storybook life with Andy, each detail highlights the severe contrasts of her past and present . . . Love the One You’re With is a delicious novel for anyone ever caught between what is right and what is irresistible.”
—Bookpage
“Anyone who has been through a painful breakup will relate to Ellen’s dilemma: Should she stay or should she go? And with whom?”
—Boston Common
“Giffin’s fourth novel demonstrate much depth as she explores the conflicts that arise between passion and common sense.”
—Kansas City Star
“For anyone who has wondered about the path not taken. Thought-provoking . . . and perfect for an afternoon in the sun.”
—New York Resident
“Giffin has a remarkable gift for taking banal relationship issues and infusing them with life through her characters. Ellen’s introspective narrative allows readers to become her as she tackles the problems every marriage faces. Her amusing thoughts make people and places tangible . . . Love the One You’re With is Giffin’s most moving book yet. The romantic tension hangs off the pages like webs, trapping the characters as they attempt to live conventional lives. As always, Giffin’s writing will leave you fully satiated.”
—Woodbury magazine
“Emily Giffin delivers the characters and stories we love in her fourth novel.”
—OK! Weekly
“Giffin's characters are all quite likable, and this book is full of fun New York details and musings on the human condition that are more insightful than many books.”
—Minneapolis Star-Tribune
Baby Proof
“Giffin's writing is true, smart, and heartfelt. Claudia is both flawed and achingly real.”
—Entertainment Weekly
“When it comes to writing stories that resonate with real women, best-selling author Emily Giffin has hit her stride. Baby Proof examines the great lengths people go for each other, and is filled with great female characters.”
—San Francisco Chronicle
“A wry twist on the classic relationship deal-breaker.”
—New York Times
“Smart, snappy, and sure to provoke discussion.”
—People
“Thoughtful . . . The idea that someone, especially a woman, might sincerely just not want to have children is a stubborn taboo. Giffin carefully navigates its implications, drawing Claudia as both painfully self-aware and prone to bouts of romantic naiveté . . . and paints her heartbreak at losing Ben with sensitivity and grace.”
—Chicago Sun-Times
“The characters are funny and flawed, ambitious and insecure, relatable enough to feel like a good friend while enduring dramatic crises enough for a dozen women.”
—Elle
“One of the sharpest writers out there . . . profound, humorous, and reveals layers about a woman's deepest desires.”
—Arizona Republic
“Thought-provoking meditation on our culture's focus on parenthood and family.”
—Washington Post
“Giffin’s easy flow lets you relate immediately to her characters, and even if you can’t identify with the parenthood question, Claudia’s crisis resonates. Giffin captures the experience of being thirty-something particularly well—as she did with the twenty-somethings of her last two novels.”
—Miami Herald
“Baby Proof is by turns a funny and serious exploration of how difficult it can be, even in this age of choice, to choose the childless path.”
—Hartford Courant
“By avoiding easy answers, Giffin once again proves she's one of the best in this thoughtful, layered, and wholly original story of a woman facing a major choice in her life.”
—Booklist
“Immensely refreshing . . . challenging and thought-provoking.”
—Pages magazine
“Emily Giffin keeps you in suspense until the last possible moments, which makes for a page-turning read. If you’ve ever had doubts about having children or have decided not to have them, you should see some part of yourself reflected in this novel.”
—Richmond Times-Dispatch
“Smart, witty. Makes an intriguing story . . . a cut above.”
—Seattle Times
“Emily Giffin is the creator of characters so real and so enthrallingly flawed that people sometimes forget they are fictional. Baby Proof is complicated and unexpected.”
—Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“This take on contemporary relationships asks whether a childless-by-choice marriage is selfish, then moves on to fallout for philandering spouses, infertility, problem parents and the challenge of seemingly irredeemable mistakes. Thought-provoking . . . this is a book that both hens and roosters might enjoy together.”
—Dallas Morning News
“What if it was decided—way before the first vow was ever exchanged—that the marriage wouldn’t include children? And then one of the partners has a change of heart? That’s the compelling topic that Emily Giffin explores wonderfully. The publisher is promoting the novel as ‘at its core, a love story.’ But it is so much more . . . one with a weighty topic that deserves its due in a society that all too often assumes sanctimoniously that every woman must do it all.”
—Columbus Dispatch
“Emily Giffin explores the awesome power of a love too real to give up. Wonderful characters and unbeatable prose.”
—Oakland Tribune
“What are the nonnegotiable issues in a relationship? Giffin’s novel is funny, smart, and offers a fresh take on what is worth sacrificing for the one you love.”
—Knoxville News-Sentinel
“Giffin’s introspective and moving love story is an ode to those who take the road less traveled.”
—The Atlantan
“Emily Giffin delivers a warm, witty story about a perfect couple who suddenly finds themselves at odds over the decision to have children. A must-read for any woman, mother or not.”
—Jezebel magazine
“Emily Giffin has proven herself as a master storyteller and writer. Though Baby Proof entertains with its relationship drama, it also digs deep into the more serious issue of exactly what it means to choose not to have children. It raises important questions about how we, as women, define ourselves. More importantly, Giffin’s heartfelt novel forces people to contemplate the reality of making sacrifices for the ones we love most.”
—Woodbury magazine
“Bestselling author Emily Giffin is a savant of unsympathetic situations, effortlessly bringing depth and humanity to flawed heroines. There are no easy answers in this achingly honest exploration of whether there's such thing as a ‘deal-breaker’ in true love. What you do get are dynamic characters, organic, layered storytelling and an ending guaranteed to have Giffin's legions of female fans talking.”
—Edmonton Journal
“To every narcissistic or self-serving impulse presented as a reason to have children, Claudia has a rational, well-thought-out reason not to. Giffin does a good job of showing that it's ridiculous to try to convince anyone who chooses not to have children that she should . . .We want to find out what happens to Claudia, which options she takes and which she eliminates, or worse, which options pass her by because of her indecision. Baby Proof re-examine the choices traditionally presented as inevitable and leading to utter happiness, the situations that, when undertaken blindly, often lead to misery.
—Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
“A sometimes funny, always thoughtful exploration about how life sometimes has other plans for us than the ones we make for ourselves.”
—Library Journal
“Offers multiple and complex perspectives on the crazy experiment that is parenting.”
—Daily Candy
“Impeccable writing . . . Giffin creates characters who are not only likeable and honest, but as vivid and real as your closest friends . . . Delightful and captivating.”
—Austin Fit magazine
“An entertaining and unpredictable quest.”
—Redbook
“A protagonist worth following.”
—OK! Weekly
Something Blue
“Highly entertaining . . . Despite a happy ending, Giffin raises thorny questions. A long friendship can (like marriage) turn claustrophobic or abusive. Is infidelity the solution? And why are pretty girls so easily taken in by scheming Plain Janes?”
—Boston Globe
“Witty and compelling, Something Blue reaffirms a lesson we all should have learned long ago: Love doesn’t need a fairy tale, fancy wrapping or a big price tag. Often, it’s better without.”
—Charlotte Observer
“Giffin's writing is warm and engaging; readers will find themselves cheering for Darcy as she proves people can change in this captivating tale. ”
—Booklist (“Starred Review”)
“Giffin’s plotting and prose are so engaging that she quickly becomes a fun, friendly presence in your reading life.”
—Chicago Sun-Times
“Darcy is Scarlett O’Hara set in modern [day] . . . Giffin orchestrates her gradual change ingeniously and successfully answers any Gone With the Wind fan who wondered if, after Rhett Butler decided he didn’t give a damn, Scarlett ever morphed into someone softer.”
—Newark Star-Ledger
“Smartly written. The dialogue is real with lightly rendered lessons about what really matters in life . . . Emily Giffin knows what she’s doing.”
—Winston-Salem Journal
“Emily Giffin's sophomore effort is a joy to read from start to finish, taking the egotistical villainess of her first novel and turning her into an unlikely heroine. Any woman who carries the scars of a broken friendship will appreciate this literary gem, which covers every emotional battleground possible—from rejection and betrayal to self-discovery and pregnancy.”
—CanWest
“A touching depiction of one woman's surprising discoveries about the true meaning of friendship and happily-ever after. Sometimes you can lose it all, only to find everything in the end.”
—The State (SC)
“The author’s impressive knack for intimacy and insight sparkles in this delightful novel.”
—Hamptons magazine
Something Borrowed
“This page-turning, heartbreakingly honest debut deftly depicts the hopeful hearts behind an unsympathetic situation.”
—Entertainment Weekly (Grade A)
“Something Borrowed is both hilarious and thoughtfully written, resisting the frequent tendency of first-time novelists to make their characters and situations a little too black-and-white. You may never think of friendships—their duties, the oblique dances of power and their give-and-take—quite the same way again.”
—The Seattle Times
“Delightful, winning, and real.”
—Glamour
“Something Borrowed captures what it’s like to be thirty and single in the city, when your life pretty much revolves around friendships and love and their attendant complexities.”
—San Francisco Chronicle
“Sharply observed and beautifully etched.”
–Newark Star-Ledger
“Giffin, a former lawyer turned debut novelist, infuses this romance with dead-on dialogue, real-life complexity, and genuine warmth.”
—Seattle Post-Intelligencer
“One of the hottest books of the summer . . . Giffin avoids what could have been a cliché-ridden tale by skillfully developing Rachel and her best friend Darcy into three-dimensional characters.”
—Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Giffin depicts the complex, shifting relationship of Rachel and Darcy, friends since grade school, into the five months between Darcy’s engagement and her wedding date. A thrill to read.”
—Washington Post
“Giffin's compelling debut truly stands out. It is as much about the meaning and value of friendship as it is about love, and it takes some risky chances that pay off . . . It's a gamble to cast her heroine in a potentially unsympathetic light, but Giffin manages to create empathy for her likable characters without cheapening the complexity of their situation, making for a genuinely wining tale.”
—Booklist (“Starred Review”)
“Something Borrowed surprisingly goes beyond a selfish quest for love to take a semi-critical look at female friendships.”
—Ripsaw Magazine