Courtship by Carsen Taite

Courtship
by Carsen Taite
Pages: 264
Date: November 17 2014
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Series: None

Review
Rating: 3
Read: September 15 to 16 2016

I have a certain issue with this book (actually more than one) that no one else seems to have either seen, or if seen, didn't have an issue with. So it is possible I'm reading things differently than everyone else. If so, then my rating probably should be, oh, 0.5 stars higher.

I'll mention my main issue in a spoiler.

Some notes:
1) For a book about the nomination of the first woman as chief justice of the supreme court, it sure took a really long time before that woman actually even got nominated (Was it 55% of the book or 72% of the book that went by before she got the nod?)
2) Addison's character was inconsistent. Certain things caused her to get all huffy and to immediately leave and never ever want anything to do with the person who annoyed them (Julia, the person who apparently annoyed her (Julia was hired to help a specific person get through the nomination process; Addison was immediately angered and deeply annoyed to find out that Julia didn't actually care that the guy was a moderate and probably a bad choice for the role of chief justice; and therefore she just had to sever all ties to Julia. Um. okay.), had no clue what the issue was - at the time). And then later Addison's character did a 180 and went in the other direction. (Things started off with Julia wanting to get close to Addison, though filled wiht fear and feeling that she probably shouldn't because of her role in Addison's life; that specific character trait continued. Addison, though, switched to wanting to be near Julia despite earlier not wanting anything to do with her because of . . . um . . 'reasons'.
3) There's a good chance I'd have ended up rating this book a lower rating, 2 stars?, if not for the 'tension' and 'heightened activities' that occurred near the end of the book that pulled everything up.

Main issue I had with the book that didn't seem to either be a real issue, or was something only I cared about: Addison is a lying cheating hypocrite.

Apparently, in her own mind, she may or may not have broken things off with Eva, her girlfriend (at the 45% mark there's a comment, in Addison's mind, about how Eva asked her out after they had broken up. Maybe I misread the section where they had argued. Maybe they had actually broken up there. Problem? Even if so, Eva was attempting to fix the relationship by directly 'attacking' the issues Addison had - namely that Eva didn't want to be public about their relationship. And - Addison accepted. They went out on a date.

Shortly thereafter, as far as I can tell while still in a relationship with Eva, Addison goes and fucks Julia.

Long after the fact, around the 72% mark, Eva rushes in all concerned about an issue. Makes comments that include the word 'girlfriend' - in regard to the relationship between Eva and Addison. And, as far as I can tell, the book ends with Addison still in a relationship with Eva (at least in the sense that she never actually broke up with her (nor did Eva break up with Addison)).

So, in my status updates I had written something:
While Eva does not have a POV in this book, we can 'imagine' things from her point of view. Namely - From Eva's POV: she's dating her college dean (and she, Eva, is a professor at this school), Addison has made some disgruntled comments about disliking how they never actually 'go out'. Eva isn't ashamed of being a lesbian or dating a woman, but is somewhat concerned about being out and about, dating wise, with her school's dean.

Despite this, Eva attempts to set up a public date, but Addison can't go. Eva attempts again, and this time Addison is available.

They go to a fancy hotel restaurant. They seem to be having a good time. Eva happens to notice the current Supreme Court nominee and makes mention of it. Addison spots that guy and the woman sitting with him, Julia.

At this point, since we are in Eva's point of view, we the readers would not know that Addison has already attempted to hump Julia at one point, but got annoyed by a comment Julia made and left in a huff (ETA: this is an important point, by the way - no matter if some kind of 'break up' actually occurred when Addison made disgruntled comments to Eva - the almost humping between Addison and Julia had occurred before those comments by Addison - and they had been one step away from going back to one or the other's places to fuck. When Addison got all huffy about a comment Julia made. There's no question Addison, at that point, was still dating Eva at the time).

Julia wanders over. Addison completely forgets that Eva's there as she talks with Julia, then finally remembers and introduces her. Then practically forces Eva to wander over and talk with the Supreme Court nominee.

Then Julia and Addison: a) point out how bad Eva's acting, not like a girlfriend (WTF?); b) flirt with each other (immediately after making bitchy catty comments about Eva). - Eva, of course, and since we are in pretending to be in her POV (recall that she doesn't have her own POV in the book), the reader do not know any of this. We are over talking with a loud mouth pompous ass - the nominee guy.

Later, Eva's girlfriend sleeps with another woman, though Eva does not know this yet - at the 72% mark.

From this angle, Addison is a massive bitchy slutty cheating . . um . . bitch.

From Addison's point of view? While she hasn't actually broken up with Eva in any official way, she kind of thinks of them as being separated . . . ish; and 'Eva should know' because of a few comments by Addison about how she'd prefer to actually head out on the town with her girlfriend. Oh, and she's kind of bored. Of Eva. And Eva should know that. Because. Reasons. Okay, from Addison's point of view? Even with that film of 'I'm not a bad person, really', Addison is a cheating bitch.

--
heh - and when she was flirting with Julia and on and off dating her? She kept getting all huffy and charging off. Because. From Julia's point of view: a) Addison is free to date (i.e., not currently dating anyone); b) has no fucking clue why Addison keeps getting all huffy (they have a few conversations, Julia notes she's been hired to attempt to push through a specific supreme court nominee; Addison is all huffy about how Julia obviously doesn't care about that nominee's politics and how'll he be horrible on the bench (or, maybe more, how he is too 'moderate' and 'safe'). WTF?
c) is confused when Addison gets angry with Julia when Julia, naturally, felt betrayed when she learns that Addison actually has a girlfriend named Eva.

Hate when they slip cheating in this way - this has to do with the part where I didn't even bloody notice until the 72% mark how bloody annoying Addison is re: dating, cheating, and fucking around. Because most of that was from Addison's POV (there are alternating POV's between Addison and Julia, but Julia knows nothing about Eva being Addison's girlfriend); and Addison was relaying things that seemed down right reasonable. To cheat on her girlfriend. Because, from her eyes, it's more of just a long-ish term fling.

I only really noticed now, at the 72% mark, because Eva's just burst into Addison's office all emotional because a reporter has contacted Eva about her relationship with Addison. In a 'I'm your girlfriend, but why'd you talk to a reporter about our relationship without first talking to me about it' kind of way.

That isn't the 'open eyes moment'. No, it was the part where a reporter did interrupt Addison's night last night. At a restaurant. Where Addison had been on a date with Julia. For fuck sake.

There was a moment in time when I was 'liking' Addison. That moment ended when I saw her personality around Eva and around Julia. I never particularly liked Julia. And I didn't like Eva, though that's not fair since nothing is from her point of view.

September 16 2016