A Happy Catastrophe continues Patrick and Marnie's story from Matchmaking for Beginners. Patrick and Marnie are living together in Brooklyn with their cat and dog. While Marnie is planning their future together, Patrick is still stuck dwelling on mistakes he's made in the past.

After reading Matchmaking for Beginners I was so excited to read this. Unfortunately A Happy Catastrophe seemed to lose a lot of magic from the previous books. Marnie and Patrick seem to be on totally different pages about their future, which made it seem unrealistic that they would've made it so far as a couple. And while I could relate to Marnie's wants, her character started to get annoying pushing so hard for things to happen.

A Happy Catastrophe by Maddie Dawson
Source: NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing
Rating: 4/5 stars

*MINI-REVIEW*

The Bottom Line: From time to time, I come across a story that just makes me angry and this story certainly did just that. Outside of Marni, there isn’t an adult in this book that deserves the awesomeness known as Fritzie Peach Delaney, a wildly intelligent (probably too smart for her own good!) eight-year-old whose mother has dropped her into the hands of two strangers so she can run off for a year with her lover. Fritizie’s bio-dad, Patrick, had no idea of her existence until the moment she shows up in his living room and he has less than zero interest in her or her existence. Only Marni, Patrick’s long-suffering girlfriend has any real interest in Fritzie and her happiness. The entirety of this book is the story of Fritzie and how a young child has more sense, more love, more compassion, more care, and more intelligence than most of the adults in her life. I found Fritzie to be the hero of this read while the adults (outside of Marnie) were generally pathetic humans without the sense that God gave a goose. With that being said, I still liked this book because of Fritzie and Marnie. Between those two, the world seems to swivel back onto its axis as they right their own lives and knock some sense into the other adults in their respective lives. Fritzie is such a spectacular personality that even when she isn’t in a scene, her personality is still shining through and that brought me so much pleasure. It isn’t often that I am mad at so many characters yet still completely enjoy a book, but that is exactly what has happened here. I see this book as a challenge and find it one I can solidly recommend.

Really enjoyed this book. Steady paced, great characters, I was absorbed throughout. Will be reading more books by the author in the future!

I loved Match Makers for Beginners so I knew I would love this book also. I really needed a light hearted, make you feel good book to read and I am so glad this was it. I love Maddie Dawson’s writing style. I loved the character Marnie she was the happy go lucky that I needed to read. I highly suggest picking up both books because they are the perfect summer read.

Picking up years after "Matchmaking for Beginners" left off, we see Marnie and Patrick in love, but each wanting different things. Throw in a couple of surprises, and their lives turn upside down.

The characters each have their challenges and strengths, and I enjoyed reading how they worked through their own personal journeys, working through past trauma, and dealing with the messiness that is real life.

Another great read from Maddie Dawson!

This book is a tricky one to review. For the most part, it was a quick and enjoyable read for me. However, I'd be remiss if I didn't factor the few negatives I felt about this book into my (still fairly positive) review. I actually took a few days to think it over before I decided whether I should round up or down and eventually... I went with down. I didn't read "Matchmaking for beginners" and now I feel like that might've helped make this follow-up a little more favorable. I have a couple of main gripes with this story, mainly Patrick and Fritzie's mother (can't recall her name now for the life of me.) Marnie is such a likable character and I was constantly frustrated by the way Patrick treated her. It seemed pretty clear that Marnie AND Patrick both knew for the majority of the book that he was suffering from mental health issues pretty severely. I somewhat understand how Marnie could be nervous to push him to seek help, but I sure wish she had tried. Especially since she was busy pushing Fritzie and the idea of a baby onto him so hard!! It was the one really UNlikable thing about her, the baby stuff. She was pretty obnoxious and *very* insensitive about Patrick's feelings around having a baby. She basically just shoved it down his throat as hard as she could. It seemed extra callous when she clearly saw that he was struggling and she continually focused her attention elsewhere. Fritzie's mother is just one big WHAAAA....? to me. I am a mother of two young girls, one particularly wild and carefree, like Fritzie. On the absolute darkest day, I could NEVER imagine leaving her with strangers for a YEAR. What?! That was absolute madness. It would've been a much better plot device if she had been involved in a tragic accident that sent Fritzie whirling into their household instead. I just couldn't get past how truly monstrous the mother was, especially after deciding to keep her on her own and raising her for so many years before the events of this book.

I also really wanted more uplifting matchmaking stories! I'm definitely going to look up the first book in the hopes of that. It's such a cool idea and I felt like it was pretty under-utilized in this story. My *final* gripe was the perfectly wrapped up ending, with a giant shiny bow on top. This is probably my number one complaint of this book (and many books, to be fair.) When the girl went into labor on their wedding day, I rolled my eyes so hard.. it was the final straw. Between Fritzie's mom just giving her up entirely, Patrick getting better with zero professional help, a local teen needing someone to adopt her baby, Marnie's parents being just fine after all, etc. it was just too much perfect for the last 5% of the book. I wish the author had not dragged out the Marnie-Patrick conflict for quite so long (sidenote, why was Marnie so set on hating Patrick towards the end? It was rough, sure, but everything about her personality points to being quick to forgive. It felt pretty forced after a while, especially after he sent her that string of nice texts.) and had spent a little longer on the happy ending, it was just too rushed.

Anyway, I think this falls in the 3.5 range. Not a masterpiece, but again, it was definitely an enjoyable and quick read overall.


Thank you to #netgalley and #lakeunionpublishing for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Marnie MacGraw and Patrick Delaney's story continue with more funny and crazy situations that will have your stomach hurt after so much laughter.

Many new scenarios and characters will show in A Happy Catastrophe that will make this story more enjoyable.. if you love Matchmaking for beginners this book is for you.

Marnie is having a great life with Patrick until somethings happened that change their lives forever, making them even have tenser and without any answers feeling more confused, especially Patrick. It is time for Patrick to finally face his fears and insecurities to be able to move forward and continue his happy love life with Marnie.

Marnie is not so convinced, she was really trying to help and make everything way easier for Patrick so that they can continue their regular schedule but this new situation was nothing planned and way too scary for both of them. love and life have many ways to change and bring out things in people and this is the case.. soon Marnie and Patrick will find the solution to any "problem" that is stopping them to be fully happy

So many great new characters that will bring so much more to this story. I really enjoy A Happy Catastrophe I really dont know what else to say without giving too much away.. just that it is a very enjoyable story, something light for these types of days.

A Happy Catastrophe was a story filled with a multitude of different storylines. I appreciated how the different characters were introduced into the story in a descriptive way, and not all introduced at once. I was able to follow the story and remember the importance of all the characters from chapter to chapter without looking back. Marnie's character was magical and lovable. I enjoyed how she always saw the good in everything and seemed to take in every stray heart. Patrick was a complex hurt man who suffered through a tragedy but was able to find a way to overcome his demons. The combination of their two hearts made this book a delightful read.

This sequel to Matchmaking for Beginners was perhaps even better than the first book. This is a lovely character-driven novel with a fairly lighthearted story line dealing with parenthood and families. This book is perfect for anyone who embraces a little magical realism and is looking for something to make you smile.

I loved this book! It's the sequel to Matchmaking for Beginners, which was another outstanding read. The main characters, Marnie, Patrick, and Fritzie are memorable and so well-written I felt like I knew them personally. Marnie especially is such a quirky fun character and a joy to read about. I highly recommend both this book and Maddie Dawson's first book. 5 stars.

Thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

OMG! So good! So good, sooo good! After four years of being together Marni wants to have children. Patrick isn't sure he's ready. So, one happy catastrophe after another brings us to a happy conclusion. Sorry if happy conclusion was a spoiler. If it really was, do you understand this genre? The main character could die and in the end it'll be a happy conclusion. HAPPY CATASTROPHE!

Patrick is late meeting Marnie for dinner. Marnie is a match maker which I was a little put off by. Marnie is ready to have a baby. I liked the different points of view. I thought some parts were boring .

A Happy Catastrophe by Maddie Dawson is a ray of sunshine! Is it a little predictable? Sure. But, who doesn’t love that every once in awhile. Now don’t confuse predictable with boring. Marnie and Patrick are two of the most quirky characters. I love quirky characters.

Marnie and Patrick have been in love, dating and living together for a few years. They are imperfectly, perfect together. A true opposites attract couple. Marnie owns a floral shop, is cheerful and full energy. Patrick is a grumpy artist scarred both physically and mentally.

Marnie wants to get married and start a family and Patrick is stuck in his painful past, when out of the blue a surprise piece of his past comes knocking on his door. Fritzie, his eight year daughter comes cartwheeling into his life and turns everything upside down!

Is this the instant family for Marnie? How will Patrick handle this surprise? This book is the sequel to Matchmakers for Beginners.

This was a fun follow up to matchmaking for beginners! It wasn’t quite as magical as the first but I loved being back with this crew and I just love them so much.

I was really hoping to enjoy this one more than I did. Maddie Dawson is so great with magical realism and giving unexpected details to make characters shine. I was hoping that this sequel would feature a side character finding love in a different way (more of a traditional romance series), but this all felt off-kilter to me. I liked the conclusion of Marnie and Patrick's story, and though I was still drawn in by the magic of this, it fell short for me.

The sequel to "Matchmaking for Beginners", the book enables us to revisit Marnie and Patrick a few years on in their relationship. The book was a little different from what I expected - less whimsical and quirky than the first book, though not entirely bereft of it, this had a darker element as the couple face issues in their relationship.
That said, Dawson's great strength is in creating a cast of very real, endearing characters and it was good to be reintroduced to them, as well as meeting some new characters. Add to that a heartwarming conclusion and overall this was an enjoyable, charming read about life and all its challenges, and the ultimate power of love.

After reading the Matchmakers for Beginners and being so happy for Marnie and Patrick I couldn't wait to see how their story ends. I devoured this book. It's a quick read, and it's easy to get sucked into the characters and to care about them. I love that it shows romance and parenthood in a natural light, it is real and raw and wonderful. The book is an amusing, heartwarming tale...the prose is effortless and polished. The characterization is spot on with a cast of characters that are quirky, fun-loving, wary and supportive. And the plot is an irresistible blend of humour, heart, hope, tender moments, family, friendship, tension, attraction, chemistry, self-discovery, happiness, taking chances, and the healing power of love. Overall, A Happy Catastrophe is pure magic.

Marnie MacGraw is the woman you want to know if you want to find your perfect match. She can spot the perfect couple in the most unique places. A bathroom, on the street and pretty much everywhere. Marnie also has a boyfriend she loves and adores. There is only one problem. He doesn't want kids. Patrick was disfigured in a fire while trying to save his girlfriend, but he wasn't able to save her. Kids in the park are scared of him, and moms keep him away from their children. So Patrick stands firm on his decision. Unfortunately the condom breaks, and Marnie couldn't be more happy and Patrick couldn't be more nauseous.
When an 8 year old girl shows up turning Patrick's world upside down, life will never be the same. Can Marnie and Patrick's love survive something he wanted.

A delightful sequel to Matchmaking for Beginners, the story of Marnie and Patrick builds into an imperfectly perfect relationship as they live together in the brownstone Marnie inherited from the eccentric Blix in Brooklyn, NY. Marnie owns a flower shop and has the unusual talent of seeing sparkles around those destined to fall in love. Patrick was a media-noted sculptor before a horrendous gas explosion, years past, that killed his then girlfriend and rendered his body with pain and disfiguring scars. Tension sets off an intricate, consuming domino-effect when Marnie's hormones want a baby. Patrick does not. The downhill speed increases when an eight year old girl and her mother shows up at their door to announced the child is Patrick's. The intense, emotional adventures of heartbreak and discovery made this book riveting and page-turning.

🎈BOOK REVIEW: A HAPPY CATASTROPHE BY MADDIE DAWSON🎈

Overall rating: ⭐️⭐️
Writing style: ⭐️⭐️
Plot: ⭐️⭐️
Would I recommend buying? Borrow (or read/listen for free on Kindle Unlimited)
Drink rec: Champagne

I really wanted to love this one because I really adored the first book, Matchmaking for Beginners. This sequel picked right back up where the first book left off and while the beginning of this one started off strong, this book just wasn’t for me.

.What worked for me: the quirky characters, idea of ✨magic✨ and matchmaking, an interesting plot twist in the beginning, and the promise of a rom-com feeling book. What didn’t work for me: the plot felt like it was DRAGGING on after I got about 1/4 of the way into the book. Fritzie and Marnie’s characters got really annoying to me and I found Patrick’s storyline to be depressing and drawn out.

I really liked Matchmaking for Beginners and was hoping for another cutesy, quirky, magical story about love and I was disappointed. I really missed Blix’s character and think she added a lot to the first book. While this one didn’t hit the mark for me, I encourage you to read it if you liked the first book and are interested. Thank you @netgalley for the eARC or this one!

See full review on my Instagram page @tipsybookreviews