Book Review: The First Affair

Authors: Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus
Publication Date: August 27, 2013
Publisher: Atria Books

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.

Her hands crossed over her chest before clenching mine. “You’ll totally find a job, too. No doubt. Just take it on like a rattlesnake on fire.”

“Good night, Jamie.”

“Good night, Greg.”
It had begun.

Someone thought I was special and I wasn’t ready to let that go.

“Enough. You know what’s wrong with you girls?” His eyes darkened flat. “You think the rules don’t apply to you.”

The First Affair is the latest novel from the duo author writing team, Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus! This novel follows Jamie McAlister as she lands an intern position at the White House, where she then becomes romantically attached to the President of the United States. Yes, I said President! Jamie first stubbles upon the President when she finds him in his office having a panic attack. She has experience with this type of attack and she rushes to calm him down. They later share a kiss and then everything spirals downhill from there. Before Jamie can blink her eyes, she has gotten herself into a world of trouble and is tangled in a web of lies and deceit.

The first half of this book lacked character and interest for me. At first I found Jamie to be extremely naïve and immature. She just jumped right into an affair, with possibly the most powerful man in the United States, without a care in the world. However, the second half of the book does get a little more interesting and enjoyable. The affair gets racy and Jamie starts looking over her shoulder around every turn. The FBI and paparazzi get involved and everything becomes really fast-paced and I, as the reader, was even starting to fear for Jamie’s life.

I was very interested in the setting, as I am finding myself reading more and more books that take place in Washington, D.C. Jamie’s position as an intern fit her character and played into the affair quite nicely. I loved some of secondary characters that Jamie worked with at the White House. I am reading a lot of reviews that comment on how similar this book is to the Monica Lewinsky and Bill Clinton affair. And while they are right, I still enjoyed the drama and the sauciness of the characters and the affair. I mean how can you read a book about an affair between a girl and the President and not at least be interested in the drama and hot, racy scenes?!

Not the best work by these two authors, but I have not given up on them because parts of this book did make me move to the edge of my seat!

***A copy of this book was provided to me by the publishers at Atria Books in exchange for my honest review***