DNF Review: Good in Bed

Title: Good in Bed (Fifteen Anniversary Edition)

Series: Cannie Shapiro

Author: Jennifer Weiner

Publisher: Atria Books

Publication Date: April 2, 2002 (first published in 2001)

Source: Atria Books via NetGalley for Review

#1 New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Weiner brings to life an irresistibly funny and relatable heroine in the novel The Boston Globe called “funny, fanciful, extremely poignant, and rich with insight.”

For twenty-eight years, things have been tripping along nicely for Cannie Shapiro. Sure, her mother has come charging out of the closet, and her father has long since dropped out of her world. But she loves her friends, her rat terrier, Nifkin, and her job as pop culture reporter for The Philadelphia Examiner. She’s even made a tenuous peace with her plus-size body.

But the day she opens up a national women’s magazine and sees the words “Loving a Larger Woman” above her ex-boyfriend’s byline, Cannie is plunged into misery…and the most amazing year of her life. From Philadelphia to Hollywood and back home again, she charts a new course for herself: mourning her losses, facing her past, and figuring out who she is and who she can become.

My Review

It's been awhile since I've read something by Jennifer Weiner, and to be honest, I wasn't exactly itching to read something by her at the moment. Yes, I enjoyed the last piece I read by her, but I just wasn't sure what of hers I wanted to read next. However, Good in Bed has been on my TBR for a while, so I jumped at the chance to read it when I saw it as a "Read it Now" option on NetGalley. 

Unfortunately, Good in Bed was not a hit for me, and sadly, I gave up reading after the first section, or around 21%, of the book. When something's not working, I feel that it's just best to walk away, so I did that with this book before I found myself getting too worked up and angry.

Okay... so it wasn't all bad with Weiner's Good in Bed, and to be honest, the plot is the first thing that grabbed my attention. I always love reading about women, especially about their careers, so reading about Cannie and seeing how she went from a reporter for a small Pennsylvania newspaper to a staff member for The Philadelphia Examiner was interesting. But then I started getting Bridget Jones flashbacks, and I found myself enjoying the book less and less. (Yes, I struggled with Bridget Jones. I'll admit it!)

While I was enjoying most of the plot and what Cannie did for a living, I found the fatal flaw of the novel - Cannie. As a woman with many of the same insecurities that Cannie has, I thought that I would find myself laughing and enjoying this book. Instead, the oppisite happened. I found myself detesting it because of Cannie. I couldn't get her whining and complaining out of the way, and it made reading this book a chore. Instead of sticking around to see what happens, I closed it and deleted it from my Kindle.

Who knows... Maybe one day I'll give Good in Bed a second chance because I'm a little curious about the ending and what happens to Cannie and Bruce, but for now, this book ends up in the list of DNFs I've had this year.

Jennifer Weiner is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twelve books, including Good in Bed, In Her Shoes, which was made into a major motion picture, and WHO DO YOU LOVE, published on August 11, 2015. A graduate of Princeton University, she lives with her family in Philadelphia. Visit her online at JenniferWeiner.com.