Friday, June 1, 2012

Arranged.

I'm going to tell you right now that I am in full on girl crush with Catherine McKenzie because is like me. But she actually gets paid to write whereas I'm a famous author in my head. I read Catherine's other book Spin and absolutely loved it. As soon as this book came out I bought it, and then I got an email asking if I want to review it and I got myself all over it. Then I mailed one of the copies of the book I had to my friend Amy because I knew she would appreciate it as she goes through the perils of dating. So if you are single, dating a string of losers, or can't keep a relationship to save your life but maybe don't know why, check this book out. Or, if you are married and thinking about divorcing so you can date, you might want to read this.

Arranged- Catherine McKenzie
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Anne Blythe has a great life: a good job, close friends, and a potential book deal for her first novel. When it comes to finding someone to share her life with, however, she just can’t seem to get it right. When her latest relationship implodes, and her best friend announces she’s engaged, Anne impulsively calls what she thinks is a dating service—only to discover that it’s actually an exclusive, and pricey, arranged marriage service. Anne initially rejects the idea, but the more she learns about the service, the more she thinks: Why not?After all, arranged marriages are the norm for millions of women around the world; maybe it could work for her.
A few months later, Anne is traveling to a Mexican resort, where, over the course of a weekend, she meets and then marries Jack. And initially, everything seems to be working out. . . .
OK, so what makes this book so funny is that Catherine is practical and funny. The characters in this book are realistic and you can immediately relate. You know exactly how you would feel if you were just dumped and your best friend gets engaged. Take a minute and picture it. Then read it because Catherine portrays it perfectly. 
But what makes this an interesting story is that it asks you the question- would you consider an arranged marriage? If you knew that professionals were matching you up with someone who is apparently your perfect match. One line from the book pretty much hit home for me, "..if things change, you remember how they used to be and you're disappointed. If you don't have any expectations going in, you can't be let down." 
And isn't that the truth, though? For all of you who are married you can think back to when you were dating your future spouse and you know what it used to be. Fast forward a few years, kids, stress, all of the regular life stuff that gets in the way and you think, "Jesus. Is this as good as it gets? Damn." But what if you were matched up with someone and you just knew you weren't meant to be with them because hello- you're compatible because someone has said with certainty that you are. It would give you a sense of, that really is as good as it gets and stop being greedy, bitch. Right? 
Back to the book though, hilarious. I really liked Anne even though she really fails at life in a lot of way. And so does Jack. Jacks fails at life hard core and you get angry at him towards the end. But then... the story turns and you don't know where you'll end up but you know where you hope it ends because the match making company just can't be wrong. 
So if you need a really fun summer read, a good book to discuss at a book club, or need to add to your chick lit favorites, definitely check this book out. Check out Catherine's Facebook, Twitter and website. Seriously, you'll love her like I do. 
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4 comments:

Anna said...

Well, I'd totally go for an arranged marriage. Christ, it's been effing AGES since I've even been on a date!

Sounds like a good book - I'll have to check it out =)

Ryan Adair said...

It's funny because before I came over to read blights I was creeping on Facebook and saw a picture of an old friend and her mother, who is in an arranged marriage ( for over 30 years now) and I wondered If my friend and her brother would go that route too ( since they don't seem to date) anyway interesting stuff. Sounds like a cute book ;)

trish said...

Your comment in the beginning of your review cracked me up: if you're thinking about divorcing so you can go out on date... HAHA! Yeah, no. If anything happens to my husband, I'm just going to stay single because dating is so...difficult.

This sounds like such a fun read! I'd love to talk to my book club about arranged marriages -- I think it would spark great discussion!

Thanks for being on the tour!

Life Love & High Heels said...

I haven't quite gotten through the book yet, but I will! I'm too busy with my "perils of dating" right now. HAHA. Which you can read allll about soon, as I will be posting about my latest adventure of my coffee shop date Sunday afternoon. Stay tuned! ;)