"Love the one you're with" by Emily Giffin

An audio book.

A 100 days after marrying Andy (brother of best friend - ex-flatmate - Margot), photographer Ellen, living in NY, bumps into dishy Leo, the man who had broken her heart. Leo is going to interview Drake, a celeb, and gets Ellen the photography job.

Ellen's mother died at 41. Her sister Suzanne is a flight attendant with partner Vince who's wary of marriage. Andy's mother Stella runs the family. Andy wants to move back to work in his father's law family. Margot's pregnant - her husband's Webb, a sporty man.

Ellen and Leo sleep in the same LA hotel during the Drake assignment. She could easily sleep with Leo - she has a graphic dream. He manages to get the seat next to her on the journey back. They talk. She'd thought he'd dumped her but he doesn't remember it that way. She become unsure too - perhaps she'd made herself difficult to be with. He's in a 2 year old relationship with a medical researcher.

Ellen and Andy suddenly move to Atlanta. She compares it with the death of her mother and splitting it with Leo. She doesn't think about the consequences to her job, or the loss of friends. She thinks back to her wedding arrangements and finds things to be guilty about. She hasn't told Andy about her meeting Leo. When Margot finds out that Ellen and Leo have met she seems initially grumpy, then suggests to Ellen that they should keep it a secret. Among her new social contacts is Geeny, who, before Ellen, was Margot's best friend. Ellen doesn't like her new set of contacts. Andy at first defends them. She at last reads Leo's article and mail him to say it's good. He phones to tell her that he'd dropped into her flat after the break-up buut only Margot was there. Margot hadn't ever told Ellen about this. He now offers her another photo shoot - in NY this time. She tells Andy about the job but not about Leo. Margot overhears her talking to Leo and is outraged. Ellen meets Andy's ex, Lucy, at an event. She talks to Andy about Lucy, and tells him (on the eve of her departure) about Leo. They have a discussion where he uses his legal skills and she reveals what's been on her mind for a while (one of the few dialogues in the book when I felt that both parties were authentic). He tells her that if she goes, she shouldn't return. She goes. She has a good day with Leo on Coney Island (his partner broke up with him on hearing that he was seeing her ex) them goes to his flat. Her sister phones her to remind her what she's putting at risk. She kisses Leo then gets a taxi to her old flat. A taxi turns up with Andy in it!

A year later, she and Andy have residencies in both NY and Atlanta. She's happier and he's more understanding.

I thought for a moment that her strengths/weaknesses as a photographer would be used as analogies for her ways of dealing with the world - but it's not that type of book. The author tries to keep the final outcome in the balance, but Ellen's choices lack emotional weight. She repeatedly revisits the same dilemma, yo-yoing rather than analysing ever deeper. She makes commital actions without first considering the pros and cons, blown around by events. The consequences seem to surprise her.

Other reviews

• seriesousbookreviews (I really couldn’t care less what happened and that was because the characters were dull. I didn’t really like anyone and I just never connected with them. ... I’m tired of reading Chick Lit books with selfish heroines who don’t think clearly in anything that they do.)
• kara.reviews (she serves up a story devoid of real controversy or conflict, filled instead with stereotypical characters and a pre-packaged plot that has been microwaved to room temperature. Ellen is one of the most bland narrators I have encountered in a long time. ... like the main character, this book suffers from an incurable case of blandness.)
• thegrammariansreviews (The characters are at best a collection of clichés. Ellen, billed as our protagonist, often feels like a wet blanket ... Throughout the novel, I couldn’t shake the feeling that she was designed more as a vessel for themes than as a compelling character in her own right. ... Despite its flaws, Love the One You’re With has moments where you can clearly see a glimmer of insight; it just feels buried beneath an avalanche of familiar tropes.)