Okay folks, it’s almost June. Bring it on in here!
Matchmaking for Beginners by Maddie Dawson is definitely a warm hug kind of book. A warm, super-awkward, cringe-worthy hug, to be more accurate, but a literary hug, nonetheless!
Thaaaaat’s more like it
Blix is an aging matchmaker, who can see the sparkles that surround people and match them to their true loves (and, if there’s one thing we love here at TN, it’s people sparkles – amirite?). She’s also dying of cancer, but has matchmaking work yet to do! When Marnie bumbles her way into a family Christmas gathering, Blix instantly recognizes a kindred spirit. Marnie’s engaged to Blix’s great-nephew, but the sparkles aren’t looking so good for them.
But Marnie is on a mission. She wants her husband, her kids, her 2-car garage, and nothing will derail her, not even her fiance’s increasingly bro-ish behavior and Defcon 1 wedding-morning freak out. SHE WILL BE MARRIED GOTDAMMIT, EVEN IF IT MEANS THE GROOM IS HALF-DRESSED, WEARING JEANS AT THE ALTER, AND MUMBLING INCOHERENTLY ABOUT LAWNMOWERS!
When Marnie’s marriage hilariously/painfully/predictably disintegrates a week later, Blix sees a way to lure Marnie away from comfortable suburban Florida to a new life in Brooklyn, toward her calling as a matchmaker, and to the reclusive man whose sparkles are meant for Marnie.
Sparkles, motherfucker
Marnie, functioning in delusional crisis mode, takes the bait. But her Brooklyn life unfolds in a series of disasters: contested wills, ill-advised ex-hookups, and matchmaking fails, culminating in a spectacularly unfortunate, turkey-grease slip-n-slide of a Thanksgiving dinner. Along the way she collects a menagerie of weirdos she loves, while also catastrophically driving away her broken sparkle twin. Is Blix’s plan crazy genius, or just plain crazy?
Although the ending is pretty-much foretold by the matchmaking thing, I still devoured this book. It has all the laughs and the cries and the hugs. And as much as I love YA, I praise the gods that there are not only adult love stories in this book, but even OLD PEOPLE love stories. ‘Cause, if we’re lucky, we’ll all get there some day, and it’s nice to know there are options other than shriveling up in front a never-ending Price is Right marathon. Just be warned that products are involved.
Yes, let’s don’t
You may be thinking: “It’s not even June yet. There’s probably still snow on the ground in some godforsaken state like Michigan. How can we possibly be thinking about summer reads now?” I’ll tell you: Because for a limited time (up until the full release date of June 1st) Matchmaking for Beginners is FREE for members of Amazon Prime!!!!
So what are you waiting for? Grab a pool chair and towel, pop a tropical beach screen saver up on you flat screen TV, and get reading! (Just remember to keep a corner of your towel close for discreet eye dabbing.)
Get Matchmaking for Beginners here!
*HAHAHAHAHA! You will pry those books out of my cold, dead hands!
