MARRIED AT FIRST SWIPE BY CLAIRE FROST | BOOK REVIEW

TITLE : Married At First Swipe

AUTHOR : Claire Frost

GENRE : Contemporary Fiction, Women’s Fiction, Chick-Lit, Romance

FR RATING : ⭐⭐⭐(3 Stars)

DATE OF PUBLISHING : 01 Mar 2021   

FR REVIEW

DISCLAIMER : Thank you, Netgalley, Simon and Schuster UK for providing me with an ARC of this book. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Married At First Swipe by Claire Frost is contemporary fiction. I saw the title and thought to myself, hmm.., that sounds very similar to the show Married At First Sight. While the concept is the same, and the plot is designed around the idea, I would recommend not going into the book expecting a romance or a love story between two people. This is more of a women’s fiction kind of a story than a straight-up romance.

The Story follows Jess and Hannah through their tumultuous lives. Jess is the owner of the dating app Save The Date, which focuses on people wanting to settle down quickly. When the app and the business takes a hit, Hannah Jess’s best friend and employee at Save The Date decides to offer herself as an experiment to bring the company back to success. Hannah’s idea is for Jess to find a guy for her to marry. The caveat is, Hannah will get to see her groom only on the day of the wedding. As Jess continues to work hard, trying to bring her business around – her relationship starts to crack. Can the two women find their happily ever after? Can the free-spirited settle down with a man she has never met??

The main characters are Hannah and Jess, and we follow both of their alternating POVs, which helps us figure out their story and their history as well. I found the characters to be OK. I didn’t feel much of a connection to either of the characters. The character arc was also not that great or satisfying as I would like it to be.

The plot was about the journey of the 2 women and how they adjust to their new realities. I enjoyed seeing them battle the new territory they were essentially dropped into, and how both women decide to solve the rising issues as well. Overall it’s not an exciting plot but one that was interesting to see regardless.

The pacing of the story was normal for the plot, and I wasn’t bored necessarily. But I did wish the plot moved at a faster pace as I was holding out hope for Hannah’s side of the story to take over. I think this is mainly my fault as I was expecting a Married At First Sight kind of storyline and hoping to see more of their journey towards their “Happily Ever After”.

Overall, I would say the story was good. I did like it, but sadly, I didn’t love it as much as I thought I would. If you are looking for a story that focuses on women’s journey through life, then this book will work for you. But if you are looking for an epic romance, this is not the one for you. I gave the book 3 stars, and I recommend checking it out to see if it fits your tastes. Married At First Swipe comes out on March 1st of 2021, and make sure to keep an eye out for it.

Which books would you recommend that fits the category of
fun, bantery, and rom-com style?

SYNOPSIS

The brand new novel from the author of acclaimed debut LIVING MY BEST LIFE. Perfect for fans of Helly Acton, Mhairi McFarlane and Laura Jane Williams.

Hannah lives life on the edge. Never one to pass up on a new adventure, she has truly been living her best life. But once the adrenaline wears off, she wishes she had someone to spend the quieter moments with too. Learning that her best friend’s online dating business has taken a hit, she comes up with an idea that just might solve both of their problems…

Jess has been with her husband for twenty years. They have a stable marriage, great kids and run their own businesses. But what looks like a perfect life from the outside has its own problems within, and with her business on the brink Jess can’t help but wonder where the spark has gone in her life, and whether settling down is all it’s cracked up to be.

When Hannah embarks upon her latest scheme: finding a man using Jess’s dating app and meeting him for the first time at the altar, both women start to realise the grass isn’t always greener. Can Hannah help her friend save her failing business or will Jess stop her from making what could be the biggest mistake of her life?

In the modern tech-fuelled world of dating, is it possible to find true love?