Arranged ~ Book Review

I recently reviewed a book by Catherine McKenzie titled Spin, and I really enjoyed it.

So it was no surprise that when I picked up the newly received copy of her latest release, Arranged, that I found myself flying through the story.

I connected with Anne, the primary character, and I felt for her. This was not your typical chick-lit read, although I suppose McKenzie could be considered one of the newer generation of strong chick-lit authors.  She's definitely been added to my list of writers I enjoy.

I often find myself struggling with the old skool chick-lit, because I am far from the days of my early 20s. Far from the single life where all I had to focus on was my job, happy hour and getting some sleep. So I sometimes hesitate to read this kind of book for fear of falling into that trap. The trap of the single girl who has love troubles and wants to find the right man.

As I started reading I came up with some predictable endings for Anne.

Don't laugh at me - you know you do that, too!

She could wind up with the man of her dreams. He could break her heart and she could wind up single. Or she could find herself in love with the predictable and adorable male best friend.

When a reader thinks that way and feels they might know how the book ends it is extremely important that the in-between is unexpected.

I won't tell you whether or not Anne ends up with the so-called man of her dreams. I would never want to spoil the read for you. I'll just say that this was an interesting story. It was an odd and often frustrating tale of a woman who felt like she needed to find the right man for her through an unconventional method (I'm not giving anything away, it's on the back cover!). The way the story played out confused me some, but the more it fell into place the more I got where the author was going. The more I figured that out the more annoyed I got, and yet I also was able to better feel and understand Anne's relationships. Those with her family members. Her best friend (who I loved!) and her colleagues.

Many a woman would recognize parts of themselves in Anne. Many might question her sanity. And others might just feel for her. Page after page we learn more about her and understand her better.

This book is one I enjoyed reading. It was a quick and easy to fly through story. I didn't find myself bored, despite my various guesses as to how it would end. If you're interested in giving it a shot you should pick yourself up a copy and then let me know what you think. Would you have done what Anne did? Would you have ended the story the same way?

*As indicated, I reviewed a copy of the author's earlier release, and because of that I received a copy of this book from William Morrow Paperbacks. I am under no obligation to post a review of this book, but decided to do so and all opinions expressed are entirely my own. You'll find affiliate links throughout this post. 

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