I have loved all previous Shari Low books, so although I enjoyed it, it was much less humorous than her other books, although there are still some slight references to previous characters. This is the story of four sisters, and centres around Zoe who has been married less than a month and believes one of her sisters has slept with her husband. This was an enjoyable read, and I was interested to get to the end to she whodit!, but the humour of previous books would have made me love the book more.

2* Too messy, too busy with too many characters, and too many things going on. Flashbacks didn't help!

Tbh, I wanted to DNF this a couple of times as there was so much happening that it was a confusing read. We got a glossary of the main players, and then we got introduced to the sisters, one by one, with their present and pasts. I actually at times forgot who was who and a very serious part of their pasts, which I think was there to explain how their personalities formed, was downplayed, as was its impact on the girls. This review from this point on will contain slight spoilers.




I couldn't bring myself to like Zoe, as she came across as flighty and hard-nosed. The oldest and only married sister came across as too Stepford Wives - and, this tale is set in Glasgow, which is one of the poorer parts of the UK, and yet they all had great jobs, all had money, pretty much all were followers of fashion, and yet not one Scottish accent was seen between them? Yes, there was an 'Och' or two from Tom, who frankly, didn't need to be in the tale and his own backstory and future story felt planted and inorganic.

Why we needed to learn of the hotelier and his wife, of Tom and his ex and their wedding, why the groom turned out to be such a gross character, and yet seemingly managed to keep it all under wraps and had everyone wrapped round his little finger, didn't ring true. The tale felt like it needed a good editor to weed out all the dross, cut away at least one non-essential sister, drop the mother and her succession of BFs, make the characters likable, and maybe I might have enjoyed it. It needed at least an soupcon of RL, as this really was no UK as I know it, and I'm from London, where at least some of what supposedly transpired might have been relatable.

As it was, I was pretty bored, as I couldn't connect with even one character. And the title is such a misnomer that it might qualify for being done under some misrepresentation clause of something somewhere.

ARC courtesy of Boldwood Books and NetGalley, for my reading pleasure.

There may be few certainties in life, but here’s one I’m slowly learning to count on: if Shari Low rights a book? I will enjoy it. And My One Month Marriage proves it.


The story
You know that ‘till death do us part’ bit in the wedding vows? Well Zoe Dalton believed it. She walked up the aisle thinking that she was strolling to her happy ever after.

One month later, her heart is in pieces, she’s returning the wedding gifts and there’s a husband-shaped space next to her in bed. He’s gone, after Zoe discovered a devastating secret.

But Zoe has lost so much more than her marriage. Her three sisters are not only her siblings, they’re her best friends too.

Now she’s discovered that one of them may have been the reason her husband betrayed her.

She’s lost her happy ever after, but has she lost a sister too?

The opinion
First of all – the description of this book is a bit confusing – some might even go as far as to say: misleading. As is usually the case with Shari Low’s books, My One Month Marriage focuses on several characters, who’s stories are linked together in ways that are sometimes more, and sometimes less obvious.

For example, if you read Low’s Another Day in Winter, you will remember Tom – who is, in a way, the instigator for a lot of the happenings in this book. Those glimpses into the “happily ever after” of characters I already fell in love with? That might have been enough to make me like this book.

Shari Low, though, goes above and beyond. I’m not quite sure how she manages to keep track of so many parallel time lines, of so many twists and turns (although I’m imagining something like a master spread sheets and a lot of post-its could have something to do with it?). However, she manages to interweave the four (and a bit) storylines beautifully, unveiling exactly who the four sisters are and what they stand for in the perfect way.

Those sisters are probably one of the biggest reasons I really enjoyed this book. Are they always likeable? No! Absolutely not, even. But as you get to see their reflections, their insecurities, their relationships, both individually and as a group… It’d be rather hard not to root for them. Taking into account that last, final twist? Well – it had me kinda shook. And wanting to reread the entire thing immediately!

The rating: 4/5
If you’re in the mood for a romantic story with just that little bit more, My One Day Marriage is your thing. Perfectly paced, interesting characters – and of course: at least three more books in the same universe, to check out afterwards!

-Saar

Unfortunately, I found that this book's blend of chick lit and mystery just didn't gel for me. The first few chapters introduce multiple narrators, the main character and her three sisters, and unfolds into a not very compelling mystery - which of the sisters has betrayed the main character with her husband. Frankly reader, I just didn't care. And switching between narrators was just too tedious for me. I like chick lit as a genre and mysteries as a genre, but not in this blend. Perhaps it will be to someone else's liking.
(I don't post negative reviews to GoodReads or social media, so I will not be able to provide a link.)

First and foremost I need to thank Megan at Boldwood Books for the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication. It's a fun read with a serious message at its core.

The Danton sisters are a diverse bunch but despite their differences they are what matters most at heart: family. Their dad left home when they were at very impressionable ages and they made a pact back then that nothing would break up the sisterhood. The book looks at how the break up of their family affected each of them and how it helped mould their personalities as they grew into adulthood.

Marina: the organiser, stay at home mum of 2 who controls every aspect of her family's life.
Yvie: the carer. Nurse by profession who gives far more of herself to her job than perhaps is healthy for her.
Zoe: ambitious, career girl with no end to her talents in PR.
Verity: Stressy and uptight, she is a teacher at the same school as Zoe's husband Ned.

I very much enjoyed this look at how a group of sisters can be so different from one another yet still have the same values underneath their individual veneer. The ugly question of what happens when more than one sister takes a shine to the same guy is the main focus of the book with Verity's crush, colleague Ned, taking centre stage in more than one of the ladies' lives. How they each deal with the situation - or the assumptions they have made about the situation - throws up some great comedy moments along the way to Zoe's impromptu wedding ceremony. Unfortunately for her, only a few weeks after the wedding Zoe finds herself sitting on the floor of her flat asking her sisters who slept with her husband.

The book flips between the various sisters' points of view and time frames, which could have been confusing but somehow works beautifully. The story shows just how easily lack of communication between the sisters has led to misunderstandings of how the sisters see one another, and how by taking the time to sit and really talk between themselves they can be so much more supportive as a family. Don't think that this is a preachy self-help book though, it's far from that. More of an easy to read, fun look at a dysfunctional family which many will be able to relate to.

The one character who I really wanted to throttle - I thought it was going to be Ned, but surprisingly he came a very close second - was the girls' mother. Totally self-absorbed I found her annoying virtually every time she featured in the book. On the flip side I loved Yvie's work colleague and good friend Kay who is a proper giggle of a character, who I was rooting for a happy ending for.
You'll have to read the book to find out how that works out for her and the Danton girls.

*This review will be posted on my blog and social media as part of the blog tour on 21st January*

Well, I was pleasantly surprised when I started reading this latest book by Shari Low to find that it was set in the same world as the books I have recently read by her. She does a fantastic job of keeping all of her books just ever so slightly intertwined and allowing characters to make small cameos that we have met before.
This time we are following Zoe, who we met very briefly in ‘One Day in Winter’ when Tom, a main character, was breaking her heart to follow his. We even pick up directly on this plot thread and everything that happened in this book is a direct fallout from what happened here.
Zoe has three sisters, and they are also the stars of this book. We start off with Zoe’s marriage break down, we don’t know who it is to, and it is a little confusing once we know her connection to Tom and his past story. We then skip back in time, and in true Shari Low fashion, the book is split up into sections following the four characters through the time leading up to the marriage fallout. We get to see each perspective to the events that are happening.
Zoe is overcoming the heartbreak that Tom has caused while still having to remain a professional friendship with him for the sake of her career.
Verity, a schoolteacher, is madly in love but her feelings aren’t reciprocated. She has to find a way to come to terms with who the love of her life has chosen to spend the rest of his life with.
Yvie, is the happy, smiling, keeping everything together nurse. But is she? On the surface she seems to have everything together and even manages to help sort everyone else’s lives out, she is the one everyone turns to for help, but on the inside, she is crumbling so fast, and she has no one to help catch her when she falls.
Marina is the patriarchal sister. She has her entire life mapped out, and those of her children’s and husband’s. Her life is a well-oiled machine until the day she doesn’t want it to be anymore, and she starts to strive and crave a little bit of excitement.
All of the sisters have a sorrowful past which is what has made them who they are today. I’m not sure this part of the story really leant much to the book as a whole, especially the chapters set in 1999. I know it was supposed to show how it had shaped them, but it did seem very disjointed and unnecessary.
The intrigue as to who had slept with Zoe’s husband was very well done. These tiny snippets building up the finale were interspersed after every nine chapters. So you really did have a build-up of anticipation waiting to find out what was going on.
I didn’t think this book had the usual Shari Low’ hit you in the gut’ with emotional feelings that I am used to from her. It had some laugh out loud moments, but I am usually emotionally wrecked when I finish one of her books, and I didn’t feel that way this time.
This is a pleasant read. It didn’t blow me away, but it was nice to be back in the world of her characters and the odd mention of a few that we have seen before or shops that we have frequented. It makes you feel as if you are visiting old friends or you are getting to know a friend of a friend.
Overall, not a bad read and a solid four stars!

I absolutely loved this. Shari low is becoming a favourite of mine. I love her writing style & the fact this book referred back to characters that have been in previous books. I really hope she does another book with these characters I really liked them.

I really wanted to love this book but I just couldn't. The flashbacks left me somewhat confused, but that could have been due to editing. It was not up-lifting at all, as it is marketed through NetGalley. I appreciated to opportunity to give this one a try.

Zoe has been married for a month before her marriage falls apart.
The book flits between the present day and the past, and it told from the points of view of Zoe and her three sisters.

An enjoyable read, but I would have liked more of an epilogue to see what happened to them all - but maybe there will be more books in this series?

I actually enjoyed this,made me laugh out loud at times and also wanting to shout to the characters!! Thank you netgalley for the arc. I hope to read more from this author!!

I could not get into this book. I felt like the flashbacks didn't help me all that much when all I really wanted was the juicy stuff right up front. I prefer faster-paced books.

Zoe Dalton has been married for one month, and now it’s over. A close friend has told her something and now she is left wondering if one of her three sisters has betrayed her.

This is a story about four sisters, we learn about them growing up together and their current lives. Each sister is different and is struggling with something while still trying to get along with each other. I really enjoyed this story about families, tragedies, secrets and lies. It is exceptionally well written, easy to follow and was a really good read. I’m looking forward to reading more by this author.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher Boldwood Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

It initially took me a bit of getting used to which sister was who. But my god! I could read this book over and over. For what is actually quite a sad storyline, you will not stop laughing throughout! There is undoubtably a trait in each of the sisters you can relate too! Would highly recommend to anyone!

I would like to thank the author, the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of this book. I have read other books by this author and I always enjoy them and this was no exception. At times I found myself laughing out loud but there were also some sad moments too. I would definitely recommend this book.

A fun read from the very beginning with some laugh out loud moments. This is a very entertaining enjoyable story

Four teenage sisters pledge to look out for each other when their parents divorce. Now in their thirties they all have their own problems and struggle to share them. As with other Shari Low books, this one is also set in Glasgow. I loved the tenuous links she she makes to her other books, enough to satisfy her regular readers but nothing that new readers would not understand. I changed my mind several times about the characters, but then the6 are sisters and sisters are supposed to fall out sometimes!
I5 took a couple of chapters to hook me in, but it was worth persevering. Read and enjoy

Thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.
I loved this book. The sisters are dysfunctional but still love each other. They all put their happiness and emotional we'll bring on the back burner so they don't hurt each. In the end they all figure it out and come together as sisters should. I wish I could have had this kind of relationship with my sisters.
Cute, fun and funny. Could be a great beach read if it wasn't winter! Couldn't put it down.

Admittedly I love Shari Lows books and this one is no exception. It took a bit of time to get to grips with the 4 sisters and their stories but once I did, I really enjoyed it. An good story of how one event can change people very differently.

When you have a group of sisters, there is one guarantee, meddling and possibly love. This was entertaining and well written.

Absolutely enjoyed this novel by an extremely talented writer. She weaves a twisted net and the reader immediately gets wrapped up in it. Can’t recommend it enough