The Marriage Pact is well-written and sure to creep out the majority of its readers. The idea that a marriage can best succeed if one belongs to a marriage cult is looked at in depth. The creepiness comes from the methods the cult uses to keep its members in line. The author take this so far that one finds it a strain to believe, and at that point it is read more as a cartoon than anything that might happen. It does serve a valuable task- the reader is invited to look into his or her own relationships and study motive, selfishness, and generosity. Even friends can be looked at differently, not to mention a spouse. Ultimately, despite some of its far-fetched ideas, the married reader is going to find it hard to resist taking a close up evaluation of that relationship.

"Alice grasps my hand, and in that moment I know. For better or worse, she is with me."

While a bit over the top....I thought this well written and a page turner.
A few quotes:
"I unwrap my sandwich-ham and swiss-and take a bite. Shit. My jaw hurts too much to chew. Someone must have punched me in the face after I hit the ground. Are we going home? I ask the pilot. Depends on what you call home. We're headed to Half Moon Bay."

"But you are a member, right? Sure, he says, his tone unreadable. Fidelity to the Spouse, Loyalty to The Pact. Till death do us part. He turns back just long enough to give me a look that warns me not to ask any more questions. I've never seen him before. "

Set in Cali in the Bay Area ,Alice and Jake are in love and get married. They are given a very special present as a wedding gift. If they choose to take advantage of the offering, they can join an exclusive community known as The Pact. Spouses that are part of the pact truly love and care for one another above all else. There are rules, but they seem reasonable and serve a purpose: which is to keep the marriage stable and faithful. At first, it seems too good to be true! The couple does decide to join and feel "the rules" will only be of great help in keeping their marriage happy and committed for the rest of their lives. They are deeply in love, so why wouldn't they want that??? Plus- it offers a great community to be a part of. Great "Friends" and parties and all good things to be had. Beautiful people, beautiful world. People call you "friend" and seem to want the best for you and your spouse. They will stop at nothing to help you to be faithful to the rules and The Pact.

Problems arise. The rules are not quite as easy to follow as they seem. Consequences are pretty severe. As with most cults...someone pays a price. A rather large one!

At some point in this evolving story, Jake and Alice have to decide if they can remain part of The Pact. But, can they really get out??? No one actually is allowed to leave the society. People may go missing. They may die (all with very good explanation); but no one just leaves because they want to.

It gets pretty intense in places. And there is some cruelty involved and some scenes involving torture that some readers may not care for.

I enjoyed this when I decided to just go with it and forget that it's pretty extreme and I don't know a single couple that would fit into the Jake and Alice mold. I had some issues with their characters. But, this was really inventive and suspenseful.

I do recommend it for those who like thrillers, with a caution to keep in mind it is likely an R rating for some graphic scenes that involve punishment if "The Rules" are not followed.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for an ARC to read in exchange for a review. Thank you Michelle Richmond, who is a native of Alabama's Gulf Coast. I am too!!!! I will absolutely check out more of your books to read!

Jake and Alice are newly weds with the world before them when they receive an unexpected gift. The gift, called The Marriage Pact, promises to strengthen their wedding vows even more, and seems like the perfect opportunity to solidify their union. Encouraged that that it was sent from a trusted friend of Alice's, they agree to sign on the dotted line. As they begin attending parties and social occasions with other couples who are also part of the Pact, they realize that something is definitely not right. No one who joins the Pact ever divorces, but some couples do disappear...

Most people start their marriage expecting it to last forever. That tends to be a given. We stand before God, or at least a state sanctioned judge and make our vows. We promise to love honor and cherish forsaking all others until the end of our days. What if there were consequences for not strictly adhering to the ideals set forth by such a union? Well there already are, divorce for one.. but what if there were actual punishments? prisons? torture tactics? Therein lies "The Pact"
Jake and Alice receive an invitation to join the pact as a wedding gift. It seems silly at first, and then it seems fun, so they decide to join, not realizing how serious the members take this way of life. When Jake begins to suspect this cheery façade of like minded happily married couples is actually something far more sinister it may already be too late!
I enjoyed this thriller, and found it straddled the fence between psychological suspense and horror quite well.

I'm thinking this may be another 'Gone Girl''. Really enjoyed the book!

This was a really interesting book. I definitely didn't expect the ending. It kept me really interested throughout and I didn't want to put it down.

Interspersed with marriage and counseling factoids, this is an interesting and twisting story of forced dedication to marriage and it's effects on the psychology of companionship. The plot is sinister throughout and doesn't disappoint with its secret society styling and unforeseeable consequences. Who would think having a happy marriage could be so dangerous? A page-turner with twists and turns that keep you wanting more.

This is a very intense novel about a newly married couple that gets invited to join a sort of marriage club called The Pact. The couple, Jake and Alice, thinks the premise and mission of the club is sound: to provide ways for a couple to enhance and built a marriage and be in community with like-minded others. The catch is the adherence and the consequences of the lack there of. The scary thing about the novel is not so much the telling consequences but the strange feeling that something like The Pact could be a reality somewhere.

I thought the synopsis was very intriguing and the first 100 or so pages were to be truthful. But at some point the characters become stupid. I fell out of love with this book as fast as I fell in love with it at the beginning.

I could nitpick a few things about this book but that's not really my style. What you should know is that despite the things that bothered me and the suspension of belief they required, I was glued to this and stayed up to finish it.

Honest review in exchange for an ARC from Netgalley.

This is the kind of book that you think about long after you've finished it. I kept rolling over the pact in my mind to decide what parts of the pact were good and what was too far. The line is not always clear.

Suspenseful, well written. Could not put it down. Will recommend to friends. Can see a movie in its future!

This book was so much more than what I was thinking it would be. Jake and Alice are two newlyweds who are invited to join a group of married couples committed to keeping their marriages intact no matter what. What starts out as a great idea turns into a very creepy, cultish group that they can't escape. It was a book I couldn't put down as it is fast paced and you are always wondering what other horrors lay ahead. But where it went a little astray was the far fetched-ness that the plot went into. It's just got too brutal and out there to be a full five star book. Great plot and it will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat, but it is very wild!

This book is a must read if you like thriller books. I still can't get Jake and Alice out of my mind after finishing this book. Yes FRIEND, this is how the group calls each other. A high society cult with no way out for these characters. Highly recommend it.

Seems like a good premise but quickly becomes tedious & unbelievable. Will not be purchasing this title.

Thanks to Random House and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

What a great book!! I literally couldn't put this book down once I'd started it. Although some parts may have seem a little far-fetched, I came to the conclusion that such a thing as "The Pact" and all it encompasses could actually exist in 2017, with all it's positives and negatives. I know everyone might not agree, but what a concept. Many of the positive ideas in The Pact would help any marriage. I wonder whether my husband and I would have signed "The Pact" at the beginning of our marriage, not really understanding what we were getting into.

The Marriage Pact is about Jake and Alice, a newly married couple who receive "The Pact" as a wedding present, complete with a book of rules and regulations. He's a therapist, she's a lawyer and it all sounds great in the beginning - give each gifts, make sure to take trips together, always answer the phone when your spouse calls. Then there are the sections on misbehavior and punishment, which sound a little ambiguous but turn out to be a lot less vague and more black and white than they could ever have imagined.

The characters were fascinating. I watched the changes that Jake and Alice went through, always seemingly committed to one another and their marriage, with real interest. I was very satisfied with the ending, although I would have been fine if it had ended with the other choice (you have to read the book!).

The characters who made up the other members of The Pact were so interesting, and I think Michelle Richmond did a great job introducing them and telling their stories. She also drew me in with the plot, which moved quickly and left me gasping in places, especially at the end.

I highly recommend this book, and I think it will be a summer hit! It would make great television!

I was disappointed by this book! I was intrigued by the description. However, once starting it, the book seemed to drag on. There would be moments where it was building up to what you would expect to be a huge breakthrough in the story and it ended up being somewhat anticlimactic. After finishing the book, I had a lot of unanswered questions. There were several situations in the book then were never fully explained or resolved. I also had trouble connecting with any of the characters and I wasn't fond of any of them. Overall, the book wasn't the worst I have read. Maybe my expectations were just a little too high.

This seemed like something out of a Showtime conceptualization such as The Affair or maybe HBO since they’re doing the Big Little Lies series right now. Either way it’d make the perfect mini-series for a cable movie channel.

It’s a very intense and suspenseful story that can easily be read and finished within a day thanks to the fast pace and chapters that just seem to melt one into another. Each chapter will pull you into the next with no place where you feel safe putting it down. Richmond knows how to write dialogue, probably why I could see this being easily turned into a screenplay with few changes. Even though you’re reading it with your eyes her words flow so well you might as well have been listening to an audiobook; you can just hear the characters having these conversations in your head.

As far as the storyline goes I found it well-written, intriguing and an interesting take on relationships. I did find some of the subject matter and characterizations a little hard on the realism side because the main characters are supposed to be well-educated but somehow they fell into this odd Pact. Since the Pact seems to mirror Scientology in ways, something many others have picked up on, and we all know seemingly intelligent people who are involved in that it did help mend some of the confusion as to why smart people do dumb things.

Overall Richmond is an excellent and talented writer which shows through everything she does especially when she adds bits of pop culture to her books by name dropping bands and or songs and real places around the Bay area (I so want to go visit there now with this book in hand).

It’s one of those stories that draws you in and you want to keep reading if only to find out how this couple is going to fare through The Pact. Although some of the rules make sense, particularly if you’re newlyweds trying to avoid being part of the high American divorce rate, what will really make you curious is the cloud that hangs over their heads of what if you violate them???

The Marrage Pact was definitely a page turner,although the middle of the book was quite tedious and chilling,, I did want to see how it ended. I would read another book from this author.

Well-paced domestic thriller - fun for a book club discussion.