A review by dlrosebyh
Marriage for One by Ella Maise

emotional lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Sweet Rose has aspirations of finding love and starting her own tiny coffee business. Being a romantic, Rose marrying the icy Jack is completely out of character, but sometimes you have to make a radical decision because of circumstances. Jack is an absolute perfectionist with a promising future. He never makes errors. And being married to Rose—even solely for business purposes—might be a bad decision. Jack doesn't have emotions, but over time he begins to fall in love with Rose and can't stop thinking about her. As long as she can, Rose clings to the idea that "it's just a contract," but her feelings for Jack also shift.

Given the intriguing idea, I completely did not expect a character-driven narrative like this. The story started out moving pretty slowly. The personalities struck me as dull and shallow. Rose would frequently weep about how jack never smiled and was a miserable asshole. 

But as the narrative progressed, I began to feel a connection to the people and the plot. I was unable to put it down. The conflict was the sole reason I gave it 3.75 stars instead of 4 or 5. I felt the conflict was very ridiculous and didn't enjoy it.

Instead of reading a novel, it feels more like reading a journal that has all the tropes blended into one. It had advantages and disadvantages. I wasn't a big fan of the prose, but I wasn't completely against it either. I simply believe it might be better.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings