Cheating to Survive (Fix it Or Get Out) is a well-written book about three women struggling with failing marriages and low self-esteem. As a woman I cringed as I recognized what many women go through at work and on the home front when there is no love or respect left. However, the three realize their lives have to change, and their longing for love and to be seen again lead them into affairs that lead to revelations and inevitable changes in their lives. The characters are well-drawn and it was easy to sympathize with their struggles. The writing flowed well and was easy to read. I did question one thing; why they put up with their vile boss for so long without confrontation? ( )

Heather, Catherine, and Victoria are nursing dieticians at a local hospital that have found themselves facing the stress of an overbearing boss and serious relationship issues with their husbands at home. For Heather, three lovely young daughters cannot hide the emptiness of a self-absorbed lawyer of a husband, who treats his family as decorations to his greatness. Catherine feels that she has become insignificant and distant from her husband in the bedroom and while dealing with her two sons and daughter. With a son in college and a daughter about to graduate high school, Victoria has spent her thirty years of marriage working hard in her career and supporting her family at home, while her currently unemployed handyman of a husband still feels she does not do enough to cater to him. When Heather is approached and finds a sexual relationship with a doctor in the hospital, her actions shock her two friends, but they soon begin to wonder if Heather’s solution is the answer to their own relationship issues. The author has found an interesting exploration into the frustrations that I imagine women have had to deal with in their careers, marriages, and families, and how infidelity may be more of a cure in resolving the unfair imbalances imposed upon them. I can see many a woman reader empathizing with the challenges these main characters face and the journey they take to resolve them. However, I felt, not just from a male view, but from an overall view, that there was a general imbalance in all the characters in the story, as very few demonstrated favorable characteristics. For most of the story, it seems that nearly all men projected narcissistic insensitivity, with only a handful proving worthy, one through redemptive misunderstanding near the end. But this lack of positive characters even extended into other aspects of our main characters’ life. Throughout the book, our characters profess how they love the positive aspect of helping patients through difficult times, but the only patient interactions the reader sees with our characters are those patients who display petty, angry rejections of our characters’ aid. A fellow sensitive doctor in a loving marriage or some patients with grateful responses would help in providing some contrast to the nightmares mainly dealt with in this tale. ( )

Christine Ardigo's first book is fabulous. I will be watching for all of her books. You will be lost in this book the second you hit page 1.

In Cheating to Survive, Christine masterfully intertwines the lives and loves of three co-workers/sometimes friends as they each struggle and try to master the trials of marriage. This story is true to life and while you may not agree with some of the actions with the characters, that is exactly what true life is all about.
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