Customer Reviews

Married to a Stranger

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This excellent book starts off quickly and doesn't slow down until the last page. It will keep you guessing until the very end. Married to a Stranger is one of the best books I've read all summer. It has all the elements of a top-notch whodunnit, including a surprising finale. Patricia MacDonald is at the top of her game in this exhilarating thriller. The characters are interesting, the plot is well-paced and thorough, and the dialogue is realistic. If you are looking for an exciting read this summer I would highly recommend this book. Appropriate for all ages.

Imagine you're on a first date with someone. As the date progresses, you find yourself enthralled by this person, really enjoying yourself, having a great time - and then towards the end of the date, he or she says or does something that totally disappoints you, something that is totally out of character for the person you thought he or she was. That is exactly how I felt when I came to the contrived, unbelievable ending.
Up to then, this book was a real page turner with lots of suspense (true, the characterizations were shallow but hey, that's to be expected in thrillers) but the ending was illogical and left several questions unanswered.

I did like this book, it kept me guessing who the killer was but
I was very disappointed with the ending maybe because in real life I
don't think things would have worked out quite that way! But thats why this is fiction. Still, I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a mystery. I like Patricia MacDonalds books because they are suspenseful and there is also romance without all the graphic
details. I just want a good story, suspense,mystery and some romance...

This book is much better than many of the other reviews are stating. It is a quick read and manages to provide a lot of fun suspense. I found all the characters to be believable except the husband (wonder if he did it or not...) His reactions and comments always seemed over the top.

I also believed that the main character was a social worker and that her actions followed suit. The novel builds to an exciting conclusion and leaves many red herrings along the way.

Recommend this novel for a fun, sunspenseful escape.

In Patricia MacDonald's new thriller, "Married to a Stranger," psychologist Emma Hollis falls deeply in love with a handsome writer named David Webster. After a whirlwind affair, Emma becomes pregnant with David's child and the two become engaged. However, Emma has an enormous trust fund and she refuses to sign a prenuptial agreement. The question is, does David love Emma for herself or for the wealth he would inherit upon her death?

This is not idle speculation, as it turns out. Emma is severely injured by an ax-wielding assailant and nearly killed on her honeymoon in a remote New Jersey cabin. The police focus on David as their prime suspect, and soon Emma's doubts about David's truthfulness begin to drive a wedge between the newlyweds. However, there is another suspect in the case. Lyle Devlin, the angry father of Emma's former patient, detests Emma and has repeatedly berated and threatened her. Could he be the attacker?

MacDonald sets up the story with flair, and Emma is an attractive and vulnerable heroine who quickly gains our sympathy. As the plot unfolds, there are a number of red herrings that throw the reader off the scent. Unfortunately, the author's preposterous and far-fetched conclusion undermines the novel's credibility. Too many writers jump through hoops to provide unexpected twists and turns, even if doing so means dispensing with logic and realism. Memo to mystery writers: Please be more concerned with character development and coherent plotting and less obsessed with "surprise endings."

Emma has everything that she could ever want....she has a wonderful new husband (David), a career (Psychologist in a halfway house), great friends and a baby on the way. So imagine her confusion when someone attacks her, with an ax on her honeymoon. As the story unfolds, we see that everything is not what it seems and her husband appears to be full of secrets, and don't believe the obvious.

My criticism of this book was although the husband appears to be "reasonable" suspect...he was always missing when she was attacked....it is a little too obvious and I immediately discounted him. However, Emma seemed to always doubt him and constantly whine about "how she knew it could not be David and she was confused about who it could be....but of course it had to be David...blah blah blah". Her endless pages of whining made you only cheer for David and wish (at times) that whomever was trying to kill her WOULD. But, as a reader, you are compelled to continue reading (although in the background of your mind, you hear her irritating whining) to see just who is responsible for the attacks. I thought that the writer was extremely good at giving us clues all along, that you don't realize are clues, and then when the attacker is revealed you say "I should have guessed". Of course part of the mystery I had guessed, but the bigger part was a pleasant surprise. So if for no other reason, ignore the whining, so that you can enjoy the actual revelations at the end.

"Married to a Stranger" is the best thriller I have read in a long time. It was very well-written, and truly suspensful. How well do any of us really know our loved ones? When Emma is attacked by a masked man with an ax while on her honeymoon in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, her new husband is the primary suspect. They haven't known each other long, and Emma has a large trust fund. The terror and stalking continue. I really liked Emma. While not a macho, action-hero type character, she is intelligent, sensible, and willing to protect herself. This is a great thriller to curl up with on a cold rainy night. I definitely plan on reading all of Patricia MacDonald's books based on how much I liked this one.

Emma's life is a fairy tale. She works as a counselor for troubled teens, and it's a job she loves; she's marrying David Webster, the man of her dreams; and she's pregnant with his child. MARRIED TO A STRANGER begins on the day before Emma and David's impromptu yet perfect wedding, which comes at the end of a six-month whirlwind romance Emma never imagined would culminate at the altar.

But it turns out that six months may not have been nearly enough time for her to get to know the man she's now calling her husband. On their honeymoon in a remote cabin in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, Emma is attacked with an ax by an unknown assailant...and strangely, David is nowhere to be found when she screams for help. The only man who does hear her cries and comes to her rescue is promptly killed by the intruder.

Throughout the investigation that ensues, Emma adamantly defends her husband when the police name him as their prime suspect. But she can't deny that David is always mysteriously absent whenever she's in trouble. The daughter of an heiress, Emma stands to inherit a lot of money--but she and David didn't sign a pre-nup. At the time, she didn't think it was necessary...but now, as the police's accusations continue to drive a wedge between Emma and her new husband, she begins to wonder if David may be trying to kill her--and their unborn child--so he can get his hands on her fortune.

If you like Lifetime movies, you'll really enjoy MARRIED TO A STRANGER. It has the same melodrama, the same characterizations, as a classic made-for-TV suspense movie. You can almost hear the cheesy score, portending an important development in the plot. That's not a bad thing, though (at least for me)--I can't get enough of those movies.

Similarities to TV cinema aside, though, Patricia MacDonald has created a sympathetic, vulnerable heroine in Emma. MARRIED TO A STRANGER is fast-paced, suspenseful, and atmospheric, and it kept me guessing until the end.

What made this novel a less-than-stellar read for me was the wacky ending. The twist at the end was way too "out there" to even be believable. It seemed like MacDonald was so set on surprising us with the "whodunit" that she sacrificed all logic. It almost would have been better if the bad guy was someone more obvious; it would have made for a better, more credible ending than the one she wrote for this novel, which just left me thinking, "Huh?"

MARRIED TO A STRANGER is pretty typical as far as plot and prose are concerned, but it does offer up a likeable heroine, some pretty good suspense, and a few decent twists--except, of course, for the one at the end. I'd recommend it for a weekend read, as an alternative to the Sunday afternoon Lifetime movie (they're equally as entertaining).

I do agree with many of the reviewers of this book that the
first part of the book really keeps your attention then you
get to the ending which is supposed to be so shocking-it
is but the various things entailed in it just dont make sense.

The story is good enough but far-fetched for a 200 stitch injured person. I know you'll do anything to survive but I think not even "The Bionic Woman" could survive this ordeal.
On the other hand you'll learn that you can think wrong of a person you love because of the circumstances and maybe, just maybe, you could be wrong.