Goodreads Synopsis: Darcy Rhone has always been able to rely on a few things: her beauty and charm. Her fiance, Dex. Her lifelong best friend, Rachel. She never needed anything else. Or so she thinks until Dex calls off their dream wedding and she uncovers the ultimate betrayal. Blaming everyone but herself, Darcy flees to London and attempts to re-create her glamorous life on a new continent. But to her dismay, she discovers that her tried-and-true tricks no longer apply--and that her luck has finally expired. It is only then that she can begin her journey toward redemption, forgiveness, and true love.
My Confession: I've said many times over that Something Borrowed is one of my favorite books of all time. (I even have the movie on DVD now and watch it a little too often.) Because I stood so firmly behind Rachel and Dex, despite their indiscretion, I avoided reading this sequel. Frankly, I really disliked Darcy and didn't care what happened to her after the final page of Borrowed. I assumed (and was correct in doing so) that Rachel and Dex wouldn't make much of an appearance in this book, and I didn't think there was a way that Giffin could make Darcy a likable character.
I'm happy to say that I was wrong.
When I finally caved and picked this book up, and I was pleased to find the last few events of the prequel (mainly, Darcy discovering the affair between Dex and Rachel as well as how her own affair with Marcus began) told from Darcy's perspective. It made any doubts I'd had about Rachel exaggerating her best friend's personality a moot point. Darcy was, clearly and simply, a bitch. And Giffin pulls no punches making that known. Darcy is selfish, lazy, self-absorbed,, and childish. She really doesn't see her relationship with Rachel--or Dex, or Marcus!--clearly. She wants to be the center of attention at all times, no matter who she's with or what they want. It's why, ultimately, her relationship with Marcus fails and she moves to London. She lives with good-natured FOR (friend of Rachel) Ethan, who takes Darcy in despite a barely-concealed disdain.
I really enjoyed the development of their relationship and how Ethan's goodness seems to rub off on Darcy. Alone and pregnant in a foreign country, she comes as close to rock bottom as she ever has in her charmed life. And that's when she turns something of a corner. I don't know when exactly it happened, but I went from suffering through Darcy's innermost thoughts and skewed perspective to genuinely being interested in what was happening in this story. It was a subtle shift, but I can appreciate the way it happened. We're not hit over the head with some huge, momentous "change" in Darcy's behavior or attitude. The change comes through the reader, who realizes with a slow wonder that they do in fact care about what happens to Darcy. Just as our opinion about a particular person can change, so can a person.
Recommendation: I really wish there had been more Rachel/Dex action--I still found myself very interested in how their relationship progressed and evolved (even though, at the end, we do find out what has happened with them). I'm still on Team Rachel, but I don't hate Darcy anymore. The adage of "people can change" borderlines on cliche, but I really respect how Giffin managed to craft this novel without turning Darcy into a fake or unbelievable character. There was something innately genuine about Something Blue. That's why it's worth reading.
Rating: 4.5/5
338 pages, published by St. Martin's Griffin (June 1, 2005)
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