REVIEW: THE FIRST AFFAIR BY EMMA MCLAUGHLIN & NICOLA KRAUS

Jamie McAlister has resigned herself to the fact that in this job market, her painfully expensive degree might only get her a position at Starbucks, when she suddenly lands a prestigious internship at the White House. Although she doesn’t hit it off with the other interns—lockjaws who come from so much money that ten weeks without a paycheck doesn’t faze them—she is eager to work hard and make the best of the opportunity while it lasts.

An unexpected encounter late one evening with the charismatic President Gregory Rutland seems like just a fleeting flirtation, but when he orchestrates clandestine meetings and late-night phone calls, their relationship quickly escalates. Jamie knows what she is doing is wrong: he’s married, he has kids, he’s the President. Yet each time she tries to extricate herself, Greg pulls her back in.

With the conflicted desires of the most powerful man in the world driving her to her breaking point, Jamie can’t help but divulge intimate details to those closest to her. But she must have confided in the wrong person, because she soon finds herself, and everyone she cares about, facing calculated public destruction at the hands of Greg’s political enemies, and—perhaps no matter how much he cares about her—at the hands of Greg himself.

*eBook received from publisher for review via NetGalley

256 pages

Published August 27th 2013 by Atria Books

Where to find The First Affair:

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

Where to find Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus:
Goodreads | Website

~Our Review~

So...mostly right now I feel that this book is oddly prophetic, with our nation's current state of affairs in Washington D.C. and that might actually prove to be a non-selling point for some people with this book. And really, me being a reader that is anti-cheating plotlines, I am moderately surprised as to how much I liked this book. I'm actually surprised that you liked it too...for exactly that reason!

Isn't it so weird that we were reading this as our government decided to shut down!? Crazy. I thought it was interesting to read the 'behind the scenes' aspect of what these writers saw as happening in the White House as politicians are wasting our time and money.

Jamie is the narrator, and the obvious is going to happen when the blurb tells us this intern (who is 21) goes on to have an affair with the President. It's all very Bill Clinton a la Monica Lewinsky for a while (and yes, even though I'm only 24 I do actually know all about that..lol)....but the undertones of her life that is a lost love, a non-feeling family and being separated from anyone she knows that really point to no wonder she turns to a married man when he offers up affections. Just...that man being the sitting President might not have been a great idea! 

Courtney...I found her naivety so cringeworthy. It's not that I was super sophisticated at 21 or 22..or ever...but I just wanted to constantly tell her to take her head out of her ass and look at the big picture. I MEAN. GAH! What married President, during and election year, is going to leave his wife for you? I'm thinking not one. Not only is she clueless about where his loyalties lie...it seems that she's unable to keep this affair secret...and so my frustration level with her continued to rise.

This story holds a lot of deceit, but not all in the places that you would think. Someone that Jamie confided something so huge in told all her dirty deets...and seeing that utter train wreck crash and burn was painful! I felt bad for her, but on the other hand was thinking "What an idiot! What did she expect?" I felt your pain, Court.

The last 20% of this novel moved in warp speed and it made me pause to think about the Monica Lewinsky's of the world--not only the loss of reputation, but of funds, of friends and family, of a career...of so much. I hate what she did but it made me realize that her male counterpart had just as much to do with it and lost a lot less from it. Anywho...there was a lot of plot crammed in these last pages and I was happy to see many of my questions answered but I found that I still had a few that I'd love to have answers to.

The writing really made up for the wild and outrageous happenings and thought processes of our heroine, and that I very much enjoyed. But...there were a few threads left hanging for me that I would have liked to seen resolved more than they were. More conversations and resolutions...but I guess lies such as these are something that are one true part of high stakes politics! 

Courtney: 3 Stars
Shelley: 3 1/2 Stars