Straight Up and Dirty

Stephanie Klein
HarperCollins Publishers (2006)
ISBN 0060843276
Reviewed by Joanne Benham for Reader Views (7/06)

Stephanie Klein had it all.  She was young, attractive, artistic, had a wonderful job she loved, a great group of friends, a very special little dog and a husband who just happened to be a doctor.  What more could a girl want?

Well, Stephanie found out very soon that what she wanted was a new husband because her old husband checked out.  That meant she had to get back into the New York dating scene. 

Spoiled, whiny, an adult brat…all describes Stephanie.  But for some reason you find yourself falling a little in love with her.  Everyone has a friend like her in their life, and they’re richer for it.  She tells it like it is, both for herself and anyone who crosses her path, including her many dates…from the guy with the little, um, package to Oliver, who only wanted the best for her…which he felt meant getting her up at 6 a.m. to go running with him.  He was wrong.

In between dating horror stories are flashbacks to life with Gabe, the Wasband as she calls him, and his mother, who seems to be the prototype of all the evil mothers-in-law ever known.  From encouraging Gabe not to marry Stephanie, in front of Stephanie by the way, to redecorating their apartment, she truly is the nightmare-in-law from hell.

I felt great sympathy for some of the people who didn’t measure up to Stephanie’s exacting standards, but hey, she knows what she wants.  Maybe in the long run, truth is better.  No sense wasting your time on a project doomed to failure.

I really enjoyed this book, sitting down and reading it in one afternoon by flashlight as most of our city lost its power.  What a great way to spend an unexpected day off.

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