Jennifer Johnson Is Sick of Being Married

August 20, 2012
In McElhatton's ineffectual follow-up to Jennifer Johnson Is Sick of Being Single, Jennifer's longed-for marriage gives her more than she had bargained for. Jennifer's likeable wit and sass are lost for most of the book as she morphs into a submissive, Stepford-esque Midwestern housewife, complete with dyed blonde hair, $7,000 spa treatments, and sorbet-colored, country club designer attire. The story begins with tales of Jennifer and her tycoon husband Brad's botched honeymoon ("...illness, injury, and the unrelenting soundtrack of severe gastric distress..."), then trails into their farcical marriage. Brad's domineering parents give the newlyweds the mansion next door, which Jennifer is soon sharing with her new three-legged rescue dog and a ramshackle family of Asian housekeepers. Brad is rarely home, and when he is, he insults Jennifer's competence as a wife, leading to Jennifer's jarringly snarky lists and charts that fall throughout the book. The abrupt conclusion, when Jennifer's true personality starts to shine through the plastic shell, seems little more than a desperate ploy for the reader's sympathy. Where was that spark while Jennifer was being mistreated by Brad and his mother? Agent: Elizabeth Sheinkman, Curtis Brown.

September 15, 2012
Bawdy, occasionally lewd and often funny, this follow-up to Jennifer Johnson is Sick of Being Single (2009) returns us to the screwball adventures of a likable screw-up. Jennifer has landed her man, handsome Brad Keller, heir to a Midwestern department store. The novel opens as the happy couple leaves for their honeymoon on St. Johns, where everything goes wrong. Flight delays, luggage lost and food poisoning, all in the first 24 hours, set the tone for the rest of their marriage. When they arrive home in Minnesota, Ma and Pa Keller have a surprise for the young couple--they bought them the McMansion right next door--and Mother Keller has thoughtfully decorated the whole thing in pastels and ceramic figurines. She also hired them a maid, Bi'ch, an elderly Hmong woman who lives in the guesthouse with her entire extended family. Jennifer is livid, Brad could care less, but in the end, how could she turn down a $3 million lakefront home? Then, Brad breaks the news: He and his sister, Sarah, are to compete to inherit Keller's when their father retires. Brad and Jennifer must become the perfect church-attending, Republican-voting, golf-playing, pastel-wearing (Jennifer only) couple. With the help of her best friend, Christopher, Jennifer (a once aspiring writer, sweatshirt-wearing Everywoman) is transformed into someone who could've starred on Dynasty. Alas, everything always goes wrong (for a variety of reasons, not least of which is sabotage at the hands of the evil Mother Keller). Dinner guests are poisoned, bodily fluids run rampant and her $10,000 refrigerator won't stop belittling her in Japanese. And to top it off, she and Brad don't seem to love each other anymore, if they ever did. Next up: Operation Break the Prenup. Some of McElhatton's conventions--the gay best friend, the endless shopping and makeover scenes--are happily redeemed by her wicked sense of slapstick comedy. A cross between chick-lit fare and Bridesmaids.

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October 15, 2012
When we last saw Jennifer Johnson (in Jennifer Johnson Is Sick of Being Single), she was dubiously embracing her happily-ever-after with department-store-heir Brad Keller. Well, married life is as bad as she feared: her honeymoon is a gastrointestinal disaster, and her mother-in-law buys (and decorates) the mansion next door for the newlyweds. Brad is determined to become the next president of Keller's, and Jennifer is desperate to be the trophy wife who makes that happen for him. Unfortunately, she is not the trophy-wife type, and as she spoils investor dinners and runs up astronomical credit-card bills, she and Brad grow even farther apartalthough were they ever very close to begin with? This feels more subversive than the usual chick lit, despite the familiar trappings. The sharp, funny writing masks a dark skewering of a megachurch, Real Housewives, and mass-consuming luxury culture. Readers who missed book one might have trouble sympathizing with Jennifer, especially as she chases the sexy Stepford ideal. Fortunately, McElhatton crafts an explosive ending, where, finally, after two books, cosmic justice prevails.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)