I enjoyed this book. It’s got a very diverse group of youngish adults that the story wraps around. Since this is a book review and not a book report, I don’t want to give away too much of the story. Dara is the main female figure and Austin is the main male character. They are getting married ~ or are they? The story kept me interested. I will definitely be recommending this book to others and I will be watching to read more from this author. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advanced copy for my honest review.

A Great Marriage by Frances Mayes is a beautifully crafted family novel that delves into the complexities of love and commitment. The story follows a couple who experience love at first sight, but as their relationship deepens, it raises poignant questions about what truly makes a good marriage. Mayes’ lyrical prose and insightful exploration of relationships make this novel a compelling read. Fans of Ann Napolitano will find much to admire in this introspective and emotionally resonant tale.

I'm going to be an outlier on this romantic novel that sags under the weight of so many words. At root it's the story of Dara and Austin who are about to be married when Austin gets a call from a woman he with whom he had a one night interlude. You can guess what happens next but there is a twist. It's also partly the story of Dara's parents and her grandmother as well as a young artist friend of Dara's. It's all very lush, layered with privilege and told in the first and third person within the same chapter (and by and about the same person) which can be a bit confusing at first, when it might feel like an editing issue. My bigger issue is that Dara feels remarkably immature, the situations even when dire too rosy (I know that's a contradiction but you'll see), and I struggled at the 60 percent mark to care about anyone because of, well so many words. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I appreciate that others will greatly enjoy it -especially fans of Mayes-but I found it frustrating right down to the ending.

Frances Mayes is one of my mom's favorite writers. She's read Under the Tuscan Sun numerous times and loves the movie version so much that I once woke up during an overseas night-flight and she was watching the movie without headphones and just whispering the lines.

All of that said, Frances Mayes may become one of my favorite writers as well. "A Great Marriage" is the story of a few months in 1995 when a wedding is called off suddenly and the former bride goes on an exploration of who she wants to be vs who she REALLY wants to be, and the groom moves back to London after upsetting news.

The relationships depicted in A Great Marriage are all discussed and explored. Rich and Lee, Dara's parents, have a loving and supportive marriage, where they both are free to be creative in their careers. Charlotte aka Mimi, is Lee's mother and has literally written the book on marriage. She's had two marriages - one with a prominent Senator who died on his front porch. She now lives in a cottage and is having a love affair with an old sailor.

While Austin is dealing with the repercussions of one drunken night, he's also dealing with an unimaginable tragedy, all while nursing his heartache. Dara, our bride, goes to California to visit friends and then spends the summer helping restore a historic hotel. Their hearts pull for each other, they yearn for each other, but they both need the time to see how much they truly need each other.

This is a beautiful book and the writing is the typical Mayes format of humor, warmth and intimate.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

A Great Marriage is an interesting look at how our past can truly affect not only our present life but those that we love too. By Frances Mayes this novel is has a soap opera approach to a couple that end up calling off their wedding because the past comes calling. However, it is just as much about their parents and those relationships too.

I expected drama and angst of which there is plenty. A story of family, and of course, the mystery of a great marriage. Sure to be a hit.

This is not Frances Mayes's best, but remained an interesting story about two relationships, one newer and younger, one longterm between an older generation. Interesting family dynamics (and great use of mealtime scenes) but this fell short of her best work.

Shortly after their engagement party, Dara Willcox is given some troublesome news from her fiancé, Austin Clarke. The news causes Dara to call off the wedding and go in search of what she’ll do now that her heart has been broken. Can she ever forgive Austin? She can’t stop thinking about him. Her family and friends rally around her, but they all leave her to figure out her problems on her own without any interference.

It was a little hard to understand who was talking at times, but I enjoyed the story.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A Great Marriage as a whole is a wonderful story. But I think for me, it became a bit too overzealous with getting all the different 3rd person POVs. I appreciate that Frances Mayes allows the reader to glean how an unfortunate night could set off a chain of events that change not only the lives of Dara and Austin but those they care for most but I suppose for me I simply wanted them to find their way back to one another sooner. Not that I didn't enjoy getting to know all the loved ones who took the news of Austin and Dara's broken engagement quite hard. Especially since Dara kept most of the whys of the breakup to herself until she didn't. But I found myself skimming much of the extraneous details, zeroing on what I deemed most important.

The characters of Dara and Austin are good ones, however. As are the rest of their crew who only want the best for them. This is despite what Austin caused with his indiscretion one drunken night and all that follows which surprised everyone involved. There are great moments between family members who are always there to lend a hand, have a shoulder to cry on or offer up a good meal. It's just that I'm not sure I needed to get everyone and their mother's thoughts with how everything went belly-up once Austin confessed to Dara.

I will say the last 20 percent or so brought me back to reading almost every word as worlds collide and a path to reconciliation is finally within reach. There are plenty of sweet moments. Moments of despair. Times of true crisis. But, overall, everyone manages what they can and with the full support of those who knew them best, I was happy to see Dara, in particular, find her way back to what I would hope would be an even better outcome than she could've imagined.

And surprisingly enough, or not, I could see this book turned into a movie with all the various cities explored and the vast array of secondary characters who touched Austin and Dara in the best ways possible.

Dara and Austin a a beautiful, engaged couple madly in loved. They celebrate their engagement with Dara's charming family. Soon after, Austin receives some devasting news and shares it with Dara. She then cancels the wedding and sets off for California to lick her wounds with dear friends. The family is at a loss as to why the wedding was canceled. The characters are well-drawn, and I was sorry to say goodbye to them as I finished the last page. This is the story of true love and forgiveness. Frances Mayes is one of my favorite authors who never disappoints me.

"When a perfect wedding is called off just days before the big event, it sends two people - and their families - reeling, in this poignant novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Under the Tuscan Sun and Women in Sunlight.

A great marriage is an elusive thing, and only a few know the secret to making one.

Dara Willcox, in New York for a weekend, meets Austin Clarke at an art gallery. If love at first sight can happen, it happens to them. These two vivid, ambitious people are on different courses - he's British, working temporarily in New York. She's from North Carolina, set on law school. They don't care. They will make their lives together happen. At their April engagement dinner at Dara's family home, her mother, Lee, sets a beautiful table, and the family and close friends gather to celebrate. Rich, Dara's father, raises a toast. Suddenly, Lee spills the wine, a brilliant red stain splashing onto the tablecloth and onto Austin.

Days later, Austin hears unsettling news from London that wrecks their plans. Dara abruptly cancels the wedding. She refuses to reveal the reason, not even to her best friends or her parents or grandmother, disrupting their family tradition of openness. As everyone knows, Lee and Rich have a great marriage, and Charlotte, her grandmother, had a colossal one, to the late Senator Mann. Charlotte literally wrote the book on the subject: She's the author of international bestsellers on what makes a good or possibly a great marriage.

While Dara escapes to California and Indigo Island, South Carolina, Austin, back in London, faces a major tragedy, the consequences of which are life-altering. But it's Lee, Dara's mother, whose impulsive visit to London alters their fate.

With her signature warmth, humor, and incisive style, beloved author Frances Mayes creates a multigenerational probe into the complexity of love and the great mystery ride of marriage. A novel of casual choices and fateful consequences, A Great Marriage introduces two unforgettable families and the arrival of a stranger who rearranges their futures."

Come on, like me, I know you need to know what they broke up!

This is a many faceted and beautifully told romantic story that explores the true meaning of what it takes to sustain love and overcome obstacles. Dara and Austin are deeply in love, and about to marry, when they receive devastating news. Will they proceed? Family and friends are at a loss. Frances Mayes has written an engaging story that follows not only Dara and Austin, as they deal with the news and struggle to find a way back to the love they share, but also the love and relationships of their family and friends, and how all have changed over time. Both the characters she has created and the story itself are engaging and multi-faceted, with a few surprising twists throughout. It is a book that made me pause and reflect on life. I thoroughly enjoyed the book! Thank you to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy. The opinions of this review are my own.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Dara Wilcox and Austin Clarke met and fell head over heels. At an engagement party with Dara's family, Austin receives some distressing news that derails their engagement and wedding. Dara flees to California to visit friends and then to South Carolina to help restore an Inn. Austin returns to London to face what he must. Ultimately, it’s Dara’s parents and grandmother who take a trip to London to try and resolve the relationship.

If you love the Hallmark channel, this is the perfect read for you. Its a story of a relationship with a problem that gets resolved and tied up with a bow. No one really has to work or they have a super cushy jobs that pay very well. While I am not a huge fan of Hallmark movies, I did enjoy the story. This is a good romantic, beach read.

3 stars

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the advanced reader copy.

I really wanted to like this book. I love this kind of "rich people problems" + "things explode (emotionally) at a wedding" story, similar to Maggie Shipstead's Seating Arrangements. But, A Great Marriage had such a slow and unengaging start that I couldn't get into it and couldn't find my way to caring about any of the characters. A true disappointment for me as a reader.

This novel is a slow burn romance between Austin and Dara. It is my first book by this author, best known for her memoir Under the Tuscan Sun. It took me extra time to become invested in the various characters, but ultimately I wanted to find out how their stories ended. I didn’t enjoy the third person narrative as I wasn’t able to get clear insight into any of the characters. I also had trouble identifying with Dara who presents as young and immature, initially running from Austin’s moral dilemma instead of working through their issues. My favorite character was Dara’s grandmother, Charlotte, who is sassy and also offered wise marriage advice. I would recommend this novel to readers who enjoy dramatic romances with a happily ever after. 3/5⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own. Available 8/13/24

A Great Marriage by Frances Mayes
Story starts out with Dara and she's at her parents’ house along with her soon to be spouse.
There are a lot of festivities and the parents have paid for everything for the wedding of the century.
Years gone by from the mothers angle take up a bit of the book.
Couple is then heading to NY to have their before wedding parties and Dara is told something by Justin and she has to just walk away from it all.
She can't explain to her parents and she goes on traveling to find her niche, at a loss at times over the loss of Justin.
Story also follows Justin and how one woman ruined his whole life...
As the months go by we hear from them both and find out how to once again contact one another...
Love the RISD mention as it is in my home state and have seen their works.
Love the imagination and creativity the group have renovating a whole house...
Also follows how Justin is handling all he has hold of now.
So many secrets.
Received this review copy from Random House Group via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

I was immersed in this book, but honestly I never felt connected to any of the characters. There were several points of view in this story, which kept it interesting, but some POVs sort of felt “thrown in.”

Dara and Austin are set to wed when a past mistake changes everything. As much as this book ruminated on the deep love they had for each other, I never felt that - just read the words about it. That could just be me - but the relationship seemed more physical than anything.

I felt like the story veered off into several tangents - California, Indigo Island and others. I understood that each of these directions were Dara trying to find herself - but wasn’t she lucky that she could just take off and go to all these places without worrying about a job that she was walking away from - she just seemed to have an endless supply of funds.

And the ending - well, let’s just say I felt it was rushed and tied everything far too neatly into a bow. Some people love that and this will be the ending they want. I appreciated the layers of the story and the interconnectedness of the characters though. I felt pretty middle of the road after finishing this one. Liked it, didn’t love it. I wanted to feel more strongly about a situation that was so intense. I wanted to feel the hurt, I wanted to feel the desperation and the grief. I watched it all happening instead of feeling a part of it.

I recommend this one to the right reader. I think someone who enjoys romance books more than I do will really appreciation this one. Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the ARC to read and review.

I requested to read and review this book for free from Ballantine Books. This story has lots of drama, mystery, romance and suspense. What happens when you think you found the love of your life and think your going to get married but then a big mistake happens. Can love really conquer all? Can ypu truly forgive someone? And if a relationship doesn't work out can the ones around them truly make it work? Tradegy can either bring people together or tear them apart for maybe forever. Austin made a huge mistake and didn't think there would be any consequences. But there is consequences and can Dara truly forgive him or is the life they had gone? When Dara sees the great marriage her parents had and the one her grandma had will it strengthen her to forgive Austin. Or is what he did broke them for good. Dara needs to go on a journey will she find what she is looking for? This book is for a mature reader and can be read anywhere!

I would call this almost a stream-of-consciousness novel. It begins with a marriage on the horizon. We find out a great deal about the mother of the bride and her relationship to her own mother. They are opposite types. The bride is the daughter of one and the granddaughter of the other, but she favors her free-spirit grandmother.
Then we find out (almost listen in on) the British groom, an up-and-coming architect who has made some mistakes on the life side if not the career side.
The changing POVs make it a little hard for me to process. But I am finding that the more I read, the more interested I am in what's happening—no, better to say interested in who these people are. The grandmother, Charlotte, is definitely the most interesting character (but maybe that's because of my age).
There are many complications and many character timelines to follow. Suffice to say this novel will keep your mi d engaged.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Ballantine for an early copy of A Great Marriage. This was such a phenomenal book!!! I didn’t like the writing so much but the plot, characters, story line were FANTASTIC!!! I cried, smiled, laughed out loud and just LOVED it!!! I did not agree with Dara at all, I loved Michael and reading about the delivery was one of the saddest scenes I could picture in any book that I’ve read. I was wrong though about Dara’s decision, it turned out to be the BEST for everyone. You will devour this book, sooo Awesome. Thank you again.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Ballantine Books for providing me with an advance e-galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. Look for it in your local and online bookstores and libraries on August 13, 2024.