My Rating - 4/5
**borrowed from a friend**
Jack and I, we did everything backward. The day he lured me into his office-which was also the first day we met-he proposed. You'd think a guy who looked like him-a bit cold maybe, but still striking and very unattainable-would only ask the love of his life to marry him, right? You'd think he must be madly in love.Nope. It was me he asked. A complete stranger who had never even heard of him. A stranger who had been dumped by her fiancé only weeks before. You'd think I'd laugh in his face, call him insane-and a few other names-then walk away as quickly as possible. Well…I did all those things except the walking away part.It took him only minutes to talk me into a business deal…erm, I mean marriage, and only days for us to officially tie the knot. Happiest day of my life. Magical. Pop the champagne… Not. It was the worst day. Jack Hawthorne was nothing like what I'd imagined for myself.I blamed him for my lapse in judgment. I blamed his eyes, the ocean blue eyes that looked straight into mine unapologetically, and that frown on his face I had no idea I would become so fascinated with in time.It wasn't long after he said I was the biggest mistake of his life that things started to change. No, he still didn't talk much, but anyone can string a few words together. His actions spoke the loudest to me. And day after day my heart started to get a mind of its own.One second he was no one. The next he became everything.One second he was unattainable. The next he seemed to be completely mine.One second I thought we were in love. The next it was still nothing but a lie.After all, I was Rose and he was Jack. We were doomed from the very beginning with those names. Did you expect anything else?
A slow burn romance can create a delicious tension that makes the reader desperately want to keep reading. Marriage For One is the kind of slow burn romance that accomplishes exactly this. A slowest of slow burns it makes the most out of every little moment and provides a very swoon worthy love story.
This book will not be for everyone. There are readers who lose interest if the book is too slow paced. They need the romance to happen a little quicker. I would advise those people to skip this one. They'll be missing out on an incredible read, but it's not meant for them. Those who appreciate the elements I mentioned will be very into what this book has to offer. It's meant for a specific audience and those who find it will be very happy they did.
The book reads deceptively fast given its page length of over five hundred pages. The book isn't plot heavy. It revolves around the feelings of the characters instead of what is happening outside of them. It's a basic, straight forward plot that is made into something more because of the characters and their connection. This is exactly why it reads the way it does and what makes this as good as it is. The characters go on an emotional journey that makes it feel like so much has happened and that is where the satisfaction at the end of reading this comes from. It allows the reader to take that journey and I think that is why I become as invested as I did while reading.
Jack is exactly the kind of love interest that I like reading about. He is supportive, helpful, kind but aloof. It takes a lot for him to open up but he is incredibly loyal once he does. His surly demeanor masks his caring nature and the reader, just like Rose, cannot help falling for him. He isn't perfect, some may not even like him, but I found him very redeemable and charming.
My favourite element of the romance were the little gestures that both Rose and Jack do to show they care about each other. Everyone loves a grand gesture but real love is in the small moments and those are plentiful here. Helping without even being asked, baking your loved one's favourite treat, holding their hand when you know they need it. This all speaks volumes and in this case made the romance for me.
Communication is, once again, the main conflict in this romance novel. I am sure we would all love for the couple to communicate more effectively but that would stop the story before it started. This felt like a well done version of that familiar trope that is given the space to breath with its slower pace.
If you like reading romances where the connection is slowly built I highly recommend this one. It is a romance read that offers exactly what you expect, and hope, it will. It's a satisfying fake to real romance that feels earned and therefore all the more satisfying in the end.
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