Book Review: The Marriage Trap

So when I go book shopping, I usually get a few thought-provoking, insightful, and meaningful novels, and a few light, romantic, fluff novels that I can quickly read while biking away at the gym. "The Marriage Trap" definitely fell under the "light, romantic" reads category, and I was not at all impressed by the story-line, the writing, or the characters. The book was given 4.5/5 stars on both Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and so I went in with high hopes, but was unfortunately disappointed.

"The Marriage Trap" features two main characters; Maggie Ryan, the strong-willed, independent, male-underwear model photographer and Michael Conte, the sexy and single Italian billionaire. The story line follows that of a typical Harlequinn romance novel: hot billionaire is being pressured to marry for some non-negotiable reason (dying father's last wish, in this case) and blackmails the gorgeous, but seemingly uninterested girl to be his fake and/or temporary bride. In this particular story, Maggie is convinced that Michael is seducing her sister-in-law (whom he has no illicit intentions towards, but views in a brotherly way), and thus "sacrifices" herself by agreeing to be his temporary bride in order to appease his mother and abide by his father's last wish that he be the first to marry in his family. Maggie and Michael fly to Italy, and as Maggie gets to know his family, she starts to see him in a different light. Eventually, their clashing personalities and inevitable chemistry lead them to fall to physical temptation. However, whether or not they can each overcome their differences and the other's challenging personality in order to develop a true relationship is the real question.

As I mentioned earlier, I wasn't particularly impressed with "The Marriage Trap". Everything was so ridiculously predictable that it left me unchallenged and dissatisfied. There was no sudden turn of events, no unique personality, and no vibrant touch to the story-line. I guess it would do for a one-time read, whilst sweating away at the gym, but I wouldn't recommend it for anything besides that.