I enjoyed the life-long friend turned lover dynamic, I did find the idea that they could grow up in families that were so close and Mark not know how to communicate properly to her pretty far-fetched. The characters all felt rather flat to me.

3.5

This book was extremely wholesome, some lovely themes throughout and some very lovable characters.

I loved the representation of hearing impairment (based on the author's own experiences, I believe), the ableism was handled really nicely and the way it was discussed was educational, without it being the only plot point that mattered. The male interest, Mark being an epidemiologist was a beautiful touch especially the dedication at the beginning, extremely lovely.

The spicy scenes were brief but they contained enough within them to be exciting and interesting, the consistent consent was beautiful, I love men written by women! Some nice demisexuality representation also.

It was hilarious in places (especially Shaina talking to her fish, and Mark with his cat, very accurate), but it also let me down in a few places...

For one, this book doesn't feel like an enemies-to-lovers, this is more based on the miscommunication / misunderstanding trope, there was no rivalry between the two if they barely spoke to one another in the first place... This would have probably been better if it was a friends-to-lovers... Once it came to the romance it because very insta-love-y which isn't my favourite trope in the whole world, especially with Mark's demisexuality, surely they needed to be connected on a personal level for longer before the lust set in.

******Spoiler in the next paragraph******
Another issue I had was the fact the competition carried over into the next wedding, I feel like the one wedding was enough, I understand why it was done that way, but I would've much preferred the middle bit at the beginning of the book, then move onto the wedding afterwards.
******No more spoilers******

I started losing interest towards the middle, but it soon picked back up, a very wholesome and lovely read

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Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing LLC for the advanced copy, all opinions are my own

Mark and Shaina have known each other since birth. Their mothers have been trying to match them up since they were toddlers (in bride and groom wedding outfits.) Due to a misunderstanding, the two quickly became enemies for life. At a family wedding, they decide to put their differences aside and team up to win a trip to Italy. They spend the week completing competitions and trying not to fall for each other.

I was so happy to see diverse main characters. Shaina has had a hearing impairment since childhood and wears hearing aids. Because of this, she has a hard time letting down her guard to be completely vulnerable. Mark has come out as being demisexual. He has a hard time connecting romantically unless they are emotionally connected first. I really enjoyed their interactions with each other. They had such a fun, competitive relationship. It was nice seeing the quiet interactions as well; like the simple interactions of watching tv together. The beginning part of the book did have much too slow of a pacing level for me but quickly picked up the second half of the book. The competitions were interesting and showed the growth in their relationship.

Thanks to NetGalley, Laura Brown, and Entangled Publishing for this eARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

They know each other for the moment they were born . She is ten days older than him and their mothers who were best friends always dreamed that they will get married . They fate each other but it is actually a misunderstanding . She as a hearing problem and aithough she wears hearing aids she can not hear 100 % of the other . He never understood that and he always talked to her with soft and calm voice . Now that he knows the truth he is trying very hard to be friends . While they are in his baby sister wedding they find themselves being a team so they can win a trip to Venice . What starts as to make their mothers stop talking about been together becomes truth .
I received this book from net galley and the publisher as an ARC. Thank you! All thoughts and opinions are my own

The Un-Arranged Marriage by Laura Brown is a fun exciting new romance novel.
Shaina and Mark are wonderful characters. The banter between the two is funny and cute.
A true funny, exciting new romance that blew me away upon reading the first chapter and I rushed through the entire novel in one fell swoop.

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

Entangled: Amara,

Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my platforms, blog, B&N and Waterstone closer to pub date.

Enemies to lovers is my favorite romance troupe. The Un-Arranged Marriage did not disappoint! Mark and Shaina have never gotten along, due to a long-standing misunderstanding. But a family wedding is forcing them to partner up in a weeklong competition for a trip to Italy. Is it possible they can put aside all the hurt and misunderstandings from their childhood and win the trip of a lifetime? The competition has Mark and Shaina dealing with their past and facing the electricity between them that is now apparent to everyone in the family.

I really enjoyed the fact that Shaina has a hearing problem and uses hearing aids. This is not something you typically see in a romcom, as well as Mark’s demisexuality. I must admit to not completely understanding what demisexual means so I had to look it up. Overall, the hearing loss, demisexuality and life coach therapy are all shown in a positive light. It is very refreshing to have MC who are not “perfect.”

Thank you to Net Galley and Entangled Publishing for this eArc. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Shaina and Mark had been fighting since they were born ten years apart and their mothers had tried to marry them forever. But they really hate each other or they need to really know each other and their issues in order to have a chance at happiness and love? Sweet, funny and sometimes sad journey for Shaina and Mark that you will enjoy reading.

Fan of Unhoneymooners and The Spanish Love Deception, NEED TO READ THIS BOOK. I absolutely loved the banter between the characters, and there story ti falling in love. This book is a MUST READ for romance readers!

The Un-Arranged Marriage by Laura Brown

Personal Rating: ★★★/5 Stars

Book Statistics:
Genre: Romance
Year of Publication: 2022
Pages: 150

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a fun and quick read!

The storyline in the book was also fun to read and it was something that we don't see often in books.

The chemistry between the protagonists was good and I liked the female main character more than her love interest.

Mark's conflict felt like a big issue but with the continuous mentions, it became repetitive and I was quite annoyed with that.

But I liked the self reflection he had to go through because of something that has to do with Shaina. (but I can't tell you, it's a Spoiler)

I really liked this and I will probably read more of the author's books in the future.

Cute premise with distinct bug likeable leads in Shaina and Mark. Enemies to lovers trope but with an interesting lessons learned in being compassionate and aware of others. Worth a read.

There are so many things that I enjoyed with this book.

The storyline was unique and fun to read.

The two main characters each had their own unique voices, which were well developed.

The writing was engaging and made it a great read.

Mark’s conflict felt forced at times, and repetitive. It perspective was fresh but I would have preferred for it to be more subtle at times with signposts for the reader to follow.

I like interfering parents who contrive and scheme to get their children together. Mark and Shaina do.not get along, but are thrown together during a wedding week of co,petition. I thought some of,the contests were funny and place both characters in interesting predicaments.
Mark is finally made aware of a disability Shaina has and that forced him to .examine his own behavior.
It’s a light hearted read about two people may have a future together, if they don’t Destroy each other first.