Discussion: Forgivable Infidelity?

This Week’s Topic:

FORGIVABLE INFIDELITY?

I read a YA book, not too long ago, which received lots of scathing reviews. Why? Because, the female main character engaged in a relationship with another young man, while she and her boyfriend were spending the summer apart. The character confessed her infidelity, and the boyfriend broke up with her, but people felt she wasn't punished enough. 

So, why am I bringing this up? I started seeing lots of reviews for Elin Hilderbrand's new release, 28 Summers. This book is one of those one-weekend-per-year affairs, which spans decades. It's about a couple, who cheat on their spouses on a schedule, and I have seen multiple books (and movies), which are built on this same premise. I guess I am wondering why readers are ok with this arrangement, but find a single indiscretion a dealbreaker. 

For me, cheating on your spouse over and over again seems like a bigger crime, than a single incident. It's not only that it happens multiple times, and for many many years, but there are usually real emotional attachments in these situations too. Yet, I read reviews for these books, and people seem ok with it. 

I don't tend to find cheating a dealbreaker, but I was surprised by how OK I was with The Day We Met. The book was about a couple, who carry on an emotional and physical relationship over ten years. They repeatedly cheated on their spouses, but the author wrote their situations in such a way, that I understood why they needed each other. I would have preferred, that they divorce their spouses first, but there again, the author put them in such a situation, that they felt they couldn't leave. 

What's your opinion of stories like this? What makes the infidelity OK for you? 

Now it's your turn!

Do you forgive infidelities in books? 
Let us know in the comments!