Waters of Versailles

I really, really liked this story (it was on my Hugo nomination ballot). The main character starts out a stupid, self-absorbed, self-destructive jerk -- and in the course of the story, starts to grow up and realize the difference between real friends and users.

I read several stories last year which frustrated me immensely because the protagonist, by the end of the book, had not gained wisdom or "grown the hell up" at all. This story was so refreshing in its portrayal of a flawed character who was able to learn and grow in the course of the narrative. (And the little dose of schadenfreude at the end was a bonus.)