Perfectly Undone: A Novel

Perfectly Undone starts out as an interesting concept: A woman, Dylan, in the prime of her career as a doctor grapples with her role in her sister’s death, struggles to get a research grant, and tries to find balance between her career and her relationship with her boyfriend, Cooper.

The story devolves into something of a soap opera when Cooper confesses to Dylan that he had a one-night stand with a female bartender. His reasoning is that Dylan was always working and never at home with him and could never find the time to spend with him. He tells Dylan that all of his friends were getting married and having children, and he didn’t want to be a first-time father at forty. Meanwhile, Cooper was also a doctor and met Dylan in medical school, so he should have been familiar with the sorts of grueling hours and hard work needed to be a doctor. His actions would have been more believable had he been an insurance salesman, a retail manager, or a realtor. I couldn’t suspend my disbelief for this, I’m afraid.

The flawed logic and bizarre character choices that buoyed the plot were further burdened by soapy subplots and cliches. The ending was less than empowering for women who work high-impact careers. This novel hit all the high points: Dramatic hospital scenes. Sexual tension with the gardener. Secondary characters spewing platitudes that are somehow exactly what the protagonist needs at the time. A pregnant woman going into labor at night during a storm, with the sun coming out the next day, and the rain metaphorically washing away all wrongs. Leave this one at the bookstore. You will only be frustrated.