I have to admit that I’m reading this series in the wrong order. (Matchmaking for Beginners is on my TBR shelf still.) But after reading this book, I can’t wait to read that one. And I still really liked this one.
“Whatever happens, love that.” This is the mantra bequeathed to Marnie — along with a Brooklyn brownstone and a matchmaking business — by Blix, her ex-husband’s late great-aunt. Marnie is 33, in love with a very troubled artist Patrick, and has a biological clock with a timer that has just gone off, much to Patrick’s horror. Also to Patrick’s horror, surprise, it’s a girl! A former one-night-stand shows up on their front porch with his previously unheard of 8-year-old daughter and leaves her there. Throw in an art show, and Patrick is on his way to a complete breakdown, which Marnie is a bit too preoccupied to see coming in time to stop it.
From the first chapter of this book, I was hooked. I really wish I had a friend like Marnie in my life. Someone who is good at letting go (usually) and letting the universe work its magic. Someone who sees the good in everyone around them. Even with her flaws — being so obsessed with having a baby she misses the warning signs from Patrick — I was still really rooting for her. And I was even rooting for the extremely flawed Patrick, since he still seemed to be an inherently good person even underneath the damage. And I always like when a book in this genre ends with an epilogue of sorts that helps wrap up the loose ends.
Disclaimer: I received an e-galley from NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing in exchange for my honest review. It has not influenced my opinion.