Research into Marriage (Harlequin Presents, No 994)

Rating:
Summary: Not enough substance
Review: After putting down "Reseach Into Marriage" by Penny Jordan, I had the feeling that I had just sit through a 15 minute movie and had been expected to completely understand each character and why they do what they do. I didn't feel like I had REALLY gotten to know each character fully and to tell you the truth, I wasn't too impressed with the ending. The book sort of began and ended with one quick flash, leaving you with only tidbits of what happened in between. Let me explain:

Meet Jessica, an up and coming psychologist/author, perfectly content on leading a single life. Jessica, growing weary of her brother-in-law David's advances decides to prove that it IS possible to marry someone without romance and in some cases successful ones are built without love. She hopes to research the theory and write a book, proving those around her wrong. She also hopes to thwart David's advances so her pregnant sister Andrea will stop worrying that her sister and husband are having an affair. So Jessica writes an ad searching for a husband, and it ends up landing in the lap of a very handsome doctor named Lyle Garnett. He is a widowed father to two young boys and this is exactly the kind of stability he's hoping to give his children. He's never home with them and he thinks having a female presence in the house will be good for the rascals. So Jessica and Lyle marry agreeing that this is just business and that no personal interactions will ever occur between them. This, of course, doesn't last long and starts to put a strain on the two of them. And on top of that, David's advances towards Jessica seem to be growing and at a very vicious rate. This prompts Lyle to believe that Jessica and David are in fact having an affair right under the nose of poor, pregnant Amanda.

Now, I'm not one to give the ending of a book away, and I won't do that here, but I do have a small complaint. David never really gets his come-uppance. I mean, the man's a vial, disturbing creature who deserves to get the boot and does he? Well, not really,at least not in my opinion anyways. That is one reason why I didn't really get into "Research Into Marriage". The book contains only 217 pages. In my opinion, Penny Jordan could've made this into an entertaining novel had she extended the pages by half. There just isn't enough information for the reader to really feel the characters. There are so many things left unsaid and undone that you almost throw your hands up in the air screaming "What??? No, it can't end like this!". I've been a fan of Penny's for a while now and I can assure you that the rest of her work is great, but I really don't suggest this one at all. There's just not enough substance for me.

Gennie Bailey-Rogers

Rating:
Summary: Not enough substance
Review: After putting down "Reseach Into Marriage" by Penny Jordan, I had the feeling that I had just sit through a 15 minute movie and had been expected to completely understand each character and why they do what they do. I didn't feel like I had REALLY gotten to know each character fully and to tell you the truth, I wasn't too impressed with the ending. The book sort of began and ended with one quick flash, leaving you with only tidbits of what happened in between. Let me explain:

Meet Jessica, an up and coming psychologist/author, perfectly content on leading a single life. Jessica, growing weary of her brother-in-law David's advances decides to prove that it IS possible to marry someone without romance and in some cases successful ones are built without love. She hopes to research the theory and write a book, proving those around her wrong. She also hopes to thwart David's advances so her pregnant sister Andrea will stop worrying that her sister and husband are having an affair. So Jessica writes an ad searching for a husband, and it ends up landing in the lap of a very handsome doctor named Lyle Garnett. He is a widowed father to two young boys and this is exactly the kind of stability he's hoping to give his children. He's never home with them and he thinks having a female presence in the house will be good for the rascals. So Jessica and Lyle marry agreeing that this is just business and that no personal interactions will ever occur between them. This, of course, doesn't last long and starts to put a strain on the two of them. And on top of that, David's advances towards Jessica seem to be growing and at a very vicious rate. This prompts Lyle to believe that Jessica and David are in fact having an affair right under the nose of poor, pregnant Amanda.

Now, I'm not one to give the ending of a book away, and I won't do that here, but I do have a small complaint. David never really gets his come-uppance. I mean, the man's a vial, disturbing creature who deserves to get the boot and does he? Well, not really,at least not in my opinion anyways. That is one reason why I didn't really get into "Research Into Marriage". The book contains only 217 pages. In my opinion, Penny Jordan could've made this into an entertaining novel had she extended the pages by half. There just isn't enough information for the reader to really feel the characters. There are so many things left unsaid and undone that you almost throw your hands up in the air screaming "What??? No, it can't end like this!". I've been a fan of Penny's for a while now and I can assure you that the rest of her work is great, but I really don't suggest this one at all. There's just not enough substance for me.

Gennie Bailey-Rogers