I bought this book almost 20 years ago, and I used to love it. Even though the situation between Carolyn, Val and Paul never happened to me, I could relate to the women and their coming-out process. But now that I've had a girlfriend who cheated on me, and I've experienced the utter devastation and heartbreak that goes along with it, my feelings about this book have completely changed. I have nothing but sympathy for Paul, and nothing but contempt for his wife Carolyn for cheating on him and rubbing it in his face, even before she and Val's relationship turned sexual. I have zero tolerance for infidelity, whether straight or gay. So many gays and lesbians make excuses for that kind of behavior because they're "following their heart" or "being true to themselves". Yeah well, get out of your existing relationship/marriage first and THEN you can follow your heart. I lost a huge amount of respect for Ms. Forrest, reading this book this time. Also, I'm so sick of how she portrays most of the men in her books as villains. Her hatred for men is so glaringly obvious, it's laughable. The way she wrote Paul's character is so unrealistic and so cartoonish, it makes me wonder if she actually knows any men in real life. The rape scene, while horrific, was also a little silly in a few places. Where Paul thought he would make her "feel him" inside her? Give me a break. That was just dumb.Sorry, but Forrest is slipping from the top spot of my list of favorite lesbian authors.
