Review: Arranged by Catherine McKenzie

from goodreads

Anne Blythe has a great life: a good job, good friends, and a potential book deal for her first novel. When it comes to finding someone to share it with, however, she just can't seem to get it right.

After yet another relationship ends, Anne comes across a business card for what she thinks is a dating service, and she pockets it just in case. When her best friend, Sarah, announces she's engaged, Anne can't help feeling envious. On an impulse, she decides to give the service a try because maybe she could use a little assistance in finding the right man. But Anne soon discovers the company isn't a dating service; it's an exclusive, and pricey, arranged marriage service. She initially rejects the idea, but the more she thinks about it-and the company's success rate-the more it appeals to her. After all, arranged marriages are the norm for millions of women around the world, so why wouldn't it work for her?

A few months later, Anne is travelling to a Mexican resort, where in one short weekend she will meet and marry Jack. And against all odds, it seems to be working out-until Anne learns that Jack, and the company that arranged their marriage, are not what they seem at all.

review

Arranged was easily the most fun book I've read this summer: it was cute, charming and swept me off my feet! As someone who adored Anne of Green Gables, as someone who crushed on Gilbert Blythe while growing up and as someone who is constantly spoiled by fictional hotties that real life can never match up to, I could relate to the main character, Anne and her predicament.

After a string of relationships that all ended the same disastrous way, a business card that Anne finds lying on the road leads her to Blythe and Company. She approaches them thinking they are a dating service but as it turns out, they are a little more than that. Blythe and Company is an arranged marriage service and after a lot of thought and research Anne asks herself, why not enter into an arranged marriage? She is tired of dating and failed relationships and while pricey, Blythe and Company has an impressive success rate. And that is how Anne meets Jack and marriage is just the beginning of their relationship.

I'm from India and arranged marriages are pretty much the norm here though not necessarily the only option.  It's how my parents and grandparents and great grandparents got married and when it works out, it's pretty amazing; when marriage is a mixture of friendship, adjustments and gradually, maybe even love. It was interesting to read about a fresh perspective on arranged marriage, when it takes place in an environment where it's not the norm at all. I loved how Anne didn't just jump into it: she did the research and tried to make an informed decision.

Jack, Anne's match/husband, was a surprise. I loved how he was flawed, down to earth and yet so charming. Even when he was sarcastic to the point of being intimidating and made some pretty bad decisions, he was so open and real, he made me smile so much! I could feel the chemistry between Anne and Jack and it was amazing how we got to see their relationship grow and develop.They both had issues of their own and there were a lot of twists and rude surprises thrown into the mix but there was no doubt that they were made for each other!

But Arranged wouldn't have been half as awesome without Anne's Anne of Green Gables-crazy mother and the rest of her really fun and supportive family. Anne's brother was called -wait for it- Gilbert Blythe and I absolutely loved their banter and that he jokingly calls her Cordelia. It made me nostalgic for Anne of Green Gables (and made me want to pick up the other books of L. M. Montgomery's series, save the two other Anne books I'd read out of sequence). The book was filled with so many Anne references, I loved it and if you are high on the Anne of Green Gables love, I'm sure you'll be charmed by it too!

Though I liked Catherine McKenzie's debut Spin a tiny bit more, Arranged was a fresh, fun and thought provoking read. After Spin and Arranged, I'm sure I'll read anything by this author! I love that her books always deal with real issues with a unique spin to it and are so heartwarming! I think it goes without saying that I wholeheartedly recommend reading Arranged and anything written by Catherine McKenzie, really.

Publication date: 15th May, 2012
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Source: ARC obtained from publisher
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | The Book Depository

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars