Running in Heels

by Anna Maxted

"To say that Babs has been my closest friend for sixteen years is rather like saying that Einstein was good at sums. We were blood sisters from the age of eleven (before my mother prized the razor out of Babs's hand)." But now Babs, noisy and as fun as a day at the beach, is getting married. And Natalie Miller, twenty-seven, senior press officer for the London Ballet, panics. What happens when your best friend pledges everlasting love to someone else? It doesn't help that Nat is dating a guy named Saul Bowcock. As the confetti flutters, her good-girl veneer cracks, and she falls into an alluringly unsuitable affair that spins her crazily out of control. Nat is on the rebound and allergic to the truth—about Babs's relationship, her boyfriend's ambition, her parents' divorce, and her golden-boy brother's little Australian secret. Her mother's lasagna and her roommate Andy's fuzzy slippers are also monstrous affronts. But what Nat really needs to face is the mirror—and herself . . . . Wickedly witty and refreshingly honest, Running in Heels is a hilarious look at the lies we tell ourselves—and the unwanted truths that only our best friends can tell us.

Genres: Chick Lit, Fiction, Romance, Contemporary, Humor, Novels, Beach Reads

432 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Anna Maxted is a bestselling author based in North London, England. Born in 1969, she is married to fellow author and journalist Philip Robinson and they have three young sons. She writes female contemporary fiction which is viewed to be at the high end of the chick lit market. Anna Maxted read English Literature at Girton College, Cambridge, before becoming a journalist. She is former Assistant Editor of Cosmopolitan, and has freelanced for most national newspapers and magazines, including The Independent on Sunday, The Daily Telegraph, The Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror, The Times, Daily Express, FHM, Esquire and Living Etc.
...
As well as being rich in humour, Anna's novels invariably deal with some of the deeper and more complicated issues facing women, such as grief, abandonment, rejection, motherhood, and sibling rivalry.

Her first novel Getting Over It, was semi-autobiographical and based very much around her experience of the death of her own father.


(wikipedia)

Reviews

[Meg Marie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book contained:
-a wedding
-a divorce
-several fist fights
-several eating disorders
-the main character getting fired from her job
-three different boyfriends, including two breakups
-a storyline about an illegitimate daughter
-various fights between family members
-food being thrown at the wall
-people moving in and out of each other's flats
-several dance sequences
-some hot sex

AND WAS STILL BORING, STUPID AND POINTLESS. Anna Maxted, you make me want to punch myself in the face.

[Obsidian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book years ago. But since I was on a chick lit diet of books at the beginning of the year, I went and found this book on my shelf. I do love re-reads just because you find out more about the book and also your tastes in books over time. I initially loved this book. I mean ridiculously loved this book when it came out. I thought it was smartly written and I also felt sad for the main character Natalie. Now almost more than a decade after I bought and read this book I realize that the main character is so far up her own butt you wonder how she gets anything done. That her very real eating disorder was not addressed by professionals and that most of the people in this book are pretty horrible.

Told in the first person, the main character is Natalie Miller. Natalie is at the wedding of her childhood and continued best friend Babs. We wonder at why Natalie is so shaken by her best friend getting married. It becomes all too clear after the first few pages that Natalie is unhealthy in her obsession with all things Babs and hates that anyone could come before her. Yeah a little too Single White Female for me too.

It becomes quickly obviously that Natalie resents her mother, brother, Bab's husband Simon, Bab's other friend Frannie, and heck she even resents Babs. Due to her feeling left alone she proceeds to blow up her life spectacularly by cheating on her long time boyfriend and getting involved with a cocaine sniffing supposed band manager. Yeah I can't make this stuff up.

Here's the thing. I have said it time and time again. You have to root for the main character. You end up getting really sick of Natalie before the first half of the book is even done. By the end you may want to shake her. I think what got me was that Anna Maxted throws in a little twist in the book and you find out that Natalie has a serious eating problem and that her family and friends have realized it, but no one has tried to address it before now. And once that is out in the open, the book becomes a different thing. It's no longer a funny and kind of mean book about Natalie dealing with being regulated lower on her best friend's list. Instead we know she has a serious issue that she needs to deal with and it kind of gets hand-waved away by the author.

The other characters in this book don't feel real at all. We have Natalie's gay somewhat best friend Matt, Babs, Frannie, Bab's brother Andy, Natalie's brother, mother, and her father. I think that because we were force fitting in so many of Natalie's issues it was hard to keep a handle on everyone. I can say that I was thoroughly disgusted by Natalie's brother Tony. There is a big reveal about him and ugh, he sucked. I also though was sick of Natalie still acting out because her father and mother split when she was younger and it was so beyond childish I rolled my eyes repeatedly.

The love interests that Natalie has in this book make no sense. The one love interest was horrible to her and for her and the second one excuse me for saying it, was too good for her. And I wondered why he was even interested in her. She was a mess and was not at all nice, loving, or seemed to be smart at all about life in general. We hear from others about how attractive she is, but that's about it.

I will say that the writing was funny and Anna Maxted can thrown out some funny metaphors and asides while Natalie is being yelled at or thinking about something. I do wish that there had been more dialogue between characters. Most of this book is just Natalie thinking about what someone is doing/saying and her reacting to it in her head but not out loud.

The setting of the book taking place in London was great. The city and just everything about London was nicely showcased.

I did kind of roll my eyes at the ending. I had a whole host of questions that were never answered at all.

[Alissa Altman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It read like a fun, lightweight chick book (think Shopaholic series), but with a more serious backbone. Natalie is another main character who has man/job/parent issues, but in this case, there are deeper reasons for the events that happen rather than her just being a flake who needs to take herself more seriously.



POSSIBLE SPOILER UNLESS YOU'VE READ EVERY OTHER REVIEW:


My one real complaint is Natalie never gets counseling for her anorexia, not is she encouraged to by anyone. She doesn't join a help group, she doesn't seek a nutritionist. I would think someone as far gone as her character would need more help than her own willpower.

Oh, and also, I think Babs is a bit of a bitch :)

[Britt Lovelady · Rating 3 out of 5]

I ended up enjoying this book a lot more than I anticipated. It started with some characters that I didn’t particularly like and then all of a sudden it was revealed that the main character, Natalie, was anorexic and the book was about her struggle with that as well as her relationships. I didn’t really like or believe the supposedly wonderful, close relationship with her best friend, Babs, before she got married. Anyway, I actually thought that her struggle with the ordeal was very accurate and made me wonder if Maxted herself had an eating disorder. The whole plot ended a little too neatly and a little too quickly, but all in all I ended up liking it. I give it a B-.

[Ellie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I bought this book many years ago, when it first came out, and, as with many books in my life - to my shame - has languished on a bookshelf for years whilst other books and indeed other things in life have come and gone. In a bid to reduce the clutter, I am trying to get through some of these older books, and ended up grabbing this one at random. And I have to admit to wondering what it was about this book that ever appealed to me in the first place? I can only assume that I was going through a chick-lit phase, and thought this would be a nice feelgood story with a happy ending. After all, according to the blurb on the back, it was 'witty and clever', 'a brilliant debut' and 'warm, poignant and very funny'. I have learnt, as I've got older, never to trust the quotes on the back of a book.

Anna Maxted's Running in Heels is a 450-page book, the story in which could have been dealt with in about 250 pages. There's way too much unnecessary descriptions and random asides that bear no relation to the story whatsoever - Maxted's editor should have told her to cut the dross!

This book also tries to be too many things. It appears to want to be taken seriously as an insight in to the thought-process of someone with an eating disorder, at the same time as being a light and frothy chick-lit girl-meets-boy-girl-loses-boy-girl-wins-back-boy happy-ending novel at the same time; the two don't mix well and the book is poorer for it. It doesn't help that the big reveal that the protagonist, Natalie, is anorexic and developing bulimia comes halfway through the book, by which time I had already concluded that Natalie was an annoying simpering misery who needed a good slapping. So when the big reveal came, I had no sympathy for Natalie. In fact, none of the characters in this book are likeable. Maybe the provincial 2017 me just can't understand 2001 London life!

Not that not liking a character should have any bearing on whether I like a book - I've read books where I have hated the characters, but the quality of the writing has transcended that. Maxted is, or at least was, no such writer (I've not read anything else by her so can't comment on whether she's improved).

With two exceptions (one being the bible), I always finish a book I start, no matter how bad. It's such a relief to finish this one; I pray that the next work I read is more worthwhile.

[Maria · Rating 1 out of 5]

Jaha, här smålovade jag mig själv två saker inför det nya året. Dels att bli bättre på att DNF:a men också att skriva om böckerna jag läste.

Och i ärlighetens namn vet jag inte vad jag ska säga om den här boken. Vilket dravel. Hade jag tyckt bättre om den om jag läst den närmare när den kom ut 2001? Antagligen, men jag tycker inte att den åldrats något vidare och jag har blivit äldre och förhoppningsvis i alla fall lite visare.

Hade det inte varit för att den slumpades fram som månadens bok ur hyllan och att jag inte ville ge upp på första boken för året, då hade den inte ens lästs ut. Den är så full av kroppshets, kroppshat, otrohet, orimliga familjer, orimlig vänskap och huvudkaraktären har inte ens ett litet drag jag tycker om. Inte heller tycker jag att hon blir bättre genom boken och knappt nån annan runt henne heller.

450 sidor, och jag ska absolut erkänna att jag snabbläste stora delar av boken. Det hade kunnat vara färdigt på 250 sidor, men icke.

Nu har jag alltså en bok till av samma författare i hyllan, och kanske tar jag den på en gång bara för att kolla om det är mer av samma, för då kommer den gladeligen också att rensas ut.

Hoppas bara att det här inte är en indikation på hur läsningen kommer vara under resten av året.

[Ella · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh. That’s all I have to say. The only reason I finished this book is because I bet my friends five bucks that I could read a book faster than her, and she chose this book for me. It revolves around the central character Natalie’s seemingly horrible life. Her best friend “abandons” her by getting married, she uses men and then hates being single, and whines most of the novel. What does she whine about? Well, besides the ENTIRE WORLD, she has to deal with anorexia/bulimia, poor self esteem, an emotionally abusive boyfriend, an absent father and unloving mother and being the second child to the “perfect” child.

Natalie is one of the most unappealing characters I have ever “met.” She is so mean, rude, and annoying to most everyone in her life and she wonders why no one likes her. I felt like slapping her in the face on numerous occasions. She isn’t developed fully (all the characters are pretty much flat as pancakes) and the relationship she shares with her “best friend” has none of the humor one would expect to find. Just tension and pointless arguing. The ending seems like the author just woke up and said , “Well, this book hasn’t been going anywhere for the past 300 pages or so. Let’s just end it now.” Bam. The end. Would not recommend it. :(

[Stephanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

ok i finished it. almost threw it aside a few times, but i got sucked in at the end. tried to squeeze way to much in- family issues, relationship troubles (3 different boyfriends in one book), friendships. and then the main character all of the sudden has an eating disorder that was revealed half way through the book and hardly was foreshadowed at all. to top it off it was talked about by the characters pretty lightly in the book but the behaviors described were VERY SERIOUS. like go to the hospital type of serious. not cool.

i'm bummed because i really love maxted's other books. hopefully the rest are better. we shall see!

***************************************************************

7/31/07- i'm less than halfway through this book and so far i am unimpressed. it's not nearly as good as the later Anna Maxted books i have read. i'm trying to stick with it but it's tough!

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anna Maxted’s second novel is even better than her first. Once again, you will laugh and cry with the main character, Natalie, who is struggling with a whole list of issues, and anorexia is just the tip of the iceberg. Join her on her journey to become healthy and beautiful – both outside and in. It’s a feel-good book with a real-time message. It’s a great story and a great read.

[MJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

At first I did not like this book it was not what I expected. I thought it was a light fun chick-lit/romance. When I read it the for the 2nd time I found the book to be very insightful into the world of eating disorders.

[Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are loking for something kind of Birdget Jonesy but with a slightly deeper meaning then Anna Maxteds books will do the trick...I read her books when I don't want completely sily but something not too heavy

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book, but I picked it up to be my first "fluff" read of the summer (a la Shopaholic series) because the cover was very chick-lit. It was really good, but not fluff. It dealt with serious issues.

[Christyne]

I thought this book was going to be a chiclette book and found it to address a very sensitive topic. I really respect the author.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun read and entirely engrossing!

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good. Not fluffy at all.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

Silly and frustrating. I give it 2 stars instead of 1 because at least I finished it (although, that might be because it was written at a 3rd grade reading level).

SPOILERS
This book can't decide if it wants to be a goofy chick lit romance, a serious novel about eating disorders, or a scary book about one woman's unhealthy obsession with her best friend. Even if it had decided, none of the elements are done well. One of the characters moves in and out of the apartment every time they have a spat. Have you ever moved? It is not something one would do on a whim three times in one month!

Sloppy writing sample: Although we spend every minute of every day with the main character, and witness 2 bulimic episodes, when she starts to realize she has an eating disorder, or when the author decides to make it a severe eating disorder late in the book, the main character says to the readers, "There were a lot more purging sessions than I told you about." What?! We've been with you THE WHOLE TIME.

Don't waste your time on this one.

[Claire · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank the lord I am FINALLY done with this book! I had the hardest time getting through this. The beginning started off well enough and kept my attention, but something happened about halfway through. I began to despise Natalie, the main character. Her unhealthy relationship with food and exercise, her judgmental look on the people around her, how she always played the victim, and her outright disrespect for her family and those she is supposed to love and care about really made her less of an endearing person in my eyes. I simply did not care if she found her way and cleaned up the mess of her life. I wanted to know more about what happened to those around her - her sometimes roommate Andy, I wanted him to be with the person that the author clearly did not what the reader to want him to be with. Her brother and his secret Australian family - I wanted to meet them so badly! But I didn't get to know their fates. I had to settle for Natalie, whom I despised.

[Suzy S · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a reread. I really liked it when I read it initially (when it was published). Admittedly, I was younger then. I still really enjoyed it. Detailed characters that are worth knowing. Realistic friend, family and dating drama and true-to-life emotions.

The mid-level rating is because of the treatment of the main character’s struggle with anorexia. While the root cause and emotions are well done, she self-treats and that seems to make everything fine. Anorexia is a serious disease needing professional treatment and often hospitalization. The book would have been much stronger if that had been accurately dealt with.

[Sarah Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ll be honest, I’d probably read Anna Maxted’s shopping list if she published it! The books are ageing well in my opinion and I love how she writes about flawed main characters who’s lives descend into chaos as it is so relatable. A lot of the humour and lines written are things I would say or do or think and and that’s what I love about her books. This one has a trigger warning for eating disorders. It’s very insightful and I love the depth of the character’s personalities and issues. For me the vibes are immaculate in this and the previous two books I’ve read by her - behaving like adults and getting over it.

[Sharon Falduto]

Kind of...chick lit...I guess. From England, written 2001 (so it doesn't have the post-911 ennui that everything else seems to). Somewhat unreliable narrator; it's not until 100 pages in that we discover, from other characters, that she may be anorexic. I'm not sure I felt this book totally resolved, which I guess is okay, things don't always resolve in real life, either, but...I didn't get out of it what I was looking for, whatever that was.

[Alyx Libby · Rating 1 out of 5]

Let me preface this by saying I LOVE reading. I tried multiple times to get into this book, I left it on my bedside table so it would be right there to pick up…instead I realized it just made me lose my passion for reading all summer. Maybe there’s a disconnect with the British “humour” or maybe this author just doesn’t make me care about any of the characters but I wouldn’t waste my time when there are so many actually entertaining books out there. Just my .02.

[Wendy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is one of those books that has been sitting on my bookshelf for 20 years, unread. I finally got around to it! I had a hard time reading this. It was a bit of a slog, the main character was totally unlikealbe, filled with a million issues and ran through men (in this 300 page book) like crazy. She was a bit of a lost soul, which can make a good story, but she was so annoying that it kept taking me out of it.

[Melissa Hodgins · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of this book killed me. Everything goes wrong for this woman and she won't just speak her mind. It drove me crazy. She finally gets a hold of herself and sees her life falling part and decides to make some changes, yay! It was a tough book for me to get through but in the end I'm glad I did.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really enjoyable novel which concerns a young woman getting her life together, including an insightful description of what it feels like to struggle with anorexia. Also an interesting behind-the-scenes look at the ballet world. Despite some difficult topics, the style remains upbeat with good humor. I'll be reading more of this author.

[Bracha Simcha · Rating 5 out of 5]

The jacket blip is entirely misleading. This was about Natalie's inner struggle not about her friendship with Babs. I could not not read this, much like you can't look away from a slow motion trainwreck. She's me, she's you, she is anyone who has ever had an eating disorder. This is not a fluff read but well worth it.

[Marianna Sharktooth · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of the book is a bit chaotic, and frankly I found myself refraining from finishing it. However, persistence made me reach the part where finally Nat's thoughts fell into place, and I can say that I do not regret it.
Nat is most of us at 27: trying to figure out why, who and where she is, breaking bad habits and making a life of her own.

[Rebecca Ohler · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a bit long and meandering but the character development is good, it stays interesting and mostly avoids cliches. I thought it would be a light read but it mostly centers on the main characters transformation through an eating disorder and thus has a bit more depth than I had anticipated. Overall a pretty good read.

[lex · Rating 4 out of 5]

read twice because I forgot that I read it in the first place. tbh the twist was unexpected but only because there were little to no hints (maybe I'm not reading into stuff enough but it seemed very out of the blue). tbh not the greatest depiction of eating disorders but I enjoyed the premise; the prospect of losing one's best friend to a scumbag loser is tooooo real

[LeLe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liked that in the first pages are clues about the disorder, but when you read further, you understand.. The struggle and progress are well written. Didn't found the book funny, more dramatic then funny.

[Trudy Nye · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is really way too long and tries to cover too many topics. The focus tends to change suddenly, making the reader feel she must have picked up a different book from the one she started. In a word: scattered.