July '07 pick: FRENEMIES by Megan Crane

29-year-old Augusta "Gus" Curtis is a librarian on the edge of 30 . . . and also on the edge of a breakdown. When she walks in on her boyfriend, Nate, making out with her good friend Helen, she feels like the world is coming apart at the seams. She's angry at Nate (an anger that's tempered by the fact that she's desperate to win him back!), but she's furious at Helen. How could a friend stab her in the back that way?

Around the same time, she has a blowup involving two other close friends, Amy Lee and Georgia, and all of a sudden, she feels more alone than she's ever felt in her life. Now, Gus needs to learn to grow up and take a good look in the mirror. After all, maybe her friends aren't the only ones capable of treating people unfairly.

"It's inspired so many interesting conversations with readers," says author Megan Crane, whose English as a Second Language (Warner Books) was also a delightful read. "Why do we allow toxic relationships into our lives? Do we cause them? Are we 'frenemies' ourselves? One of the things that really came clear to me while I was writing it was that despite the many ways in which I thought I was a great friend, I could also be a bad one. I think that's true of everyone, and I hope the book serves as a gateway to talk about all these complicated female friendships."

Indeed, friendship is at the core of this fast-paced, entertaining read. Sure, there are guys in the picture for Gus to deal with (cheating Nate, for example, and an ill-advised hook-up guy), but it's the twists and turns of female relationships that make this book tick. For anyone who's ever been hurt by the actions of a friend, this book will strike a chord. It's a coming-of-age novel that deals with some of the most influential relationships of our lives: the relationships we have with our female friends. A perfect summer read.

READING QUESTIONS:

1. Have you ever taken advantage of a friend or betrayed a friend's trust? Or has a friend ever done this to you? What lesson did you learn from this?
2. One of the questions Gus must face in this novel is whether she has been a good friend to Helen, Amy Lee and Georgia. What do you think? Why or why not?
3. Gus desperately wants Nate back, even though he cheated on her. Why do you think this is?
4. How do Gus's relationships with her female friends differ from her relationships with the guys in her life? And in your life, how are your friendships similar to and different from your romantic relationships?

Check out Megan Crane's web site at www.megancrane.com.

And check out my latest novel, THE BLONDE THEORY, in stores everywhere, here!





****