Manila Marriage App

What a sweet, adorable novella! Likable characters, interesting and unique plot, and a lush background setting, all make for an enjoyable, clean faith-based romance!

Manila Marriage App

Passport to Romance Series by Jan Elder

Pelican Book Group

You Are Auto-Approved

White Rose Publishing Christian, Romance

Pub Date 17 Apr 2015

I was given a copy of Manila Marriage App through the publisher and their parnership with Netgalley in exchange for my honest review which is as follows:

Shay Callahan goes to Manila where she is going to meet her potential husband.

Shay is not sure that she is making a good impression on Timothy though, not even sure if he likes them.

But soon Shay's ex boy friend Blaine shows up and tries to win her back but she makes it clear she's interested in Timothy and not him, but then she comes down with Dengue Fever and Timothy nearly looses her but she starts to recover and he admits that he loves her and wants her to stay.

I give this book five out of five Stars

Happy Reading

Jan Elder is a wonderful writer who had me hooked from the very beginning and laughing out loud within the first two pages. She expertly wove the early scenes so needed information naturally flowed and it was so engaging, I didn't even notice.
While the premise of the whole book is a little out there (finding love across the world through a marriage application), the characters are very believable and relatable. I especially loved Shay's sassy comebacks in her head because we all have those moments where we have great zingers in our mind but think better of actually saying them. Not to mention that she's clumsy. It makes me love her all the more. The descriptions of Manila had you feeling the anxiety of being in crazy traffic and some of the ache and compassion for those in temporary shanty housing, not to mention the oppressive heat and humidity. It may be short, but it moved quickly and kept my attention. From a mother's perspective, it's a very clean read. The main characters kiss a couple of times, but there is nothing overly detailed or concerning. Shay does drink a rum and coke and mentions she wishes she had more rum, but that's about the only mention of drinking.
As for the faith aspect of it, Jan wove this nicely in as well. Shay knows how to talk the talk, but she isn't interested in walking the walk until a crisis happens; which is often how things go in life and it was all very believable, yet not harping on any one point.
I loved it and highly recommend it for a quick, light, fun read.

Wonderful story. This author takes you on a journey that has interesting full bodied characters, wonderful storylines that pull you in and you just dont want it to end.

by Andrea Renee Cox

This book nearly lost me in the first chapter, because it was a little "in your face," overly sarcastic, and pushing the comedic moments way too hard. However, the second half of this brief story calmed down significantly and became quite enjoyable. It included several twists I didn't see coming, quirky characters, and the setting of Manila, Philippines, came alive beautifully. The setting was actually my favorite part about Manila Marriage App.

The title was deceiving. I thought by "App" it was going to be an application on a smart phone, as per today's saturation of technology, but it did not.

I was disappointed to be left wondering, "What happened about the traffic light?" I thought this was going to be a major plot thread, but it ended up being a tiny blip on the book's radar.

If you want a quick read that takes you far from your current place of residence (unless you live in the Philippines, of course), then Manila Marriage App is the book for you.

I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, authors, and sites like Netgalley, Litfuse Publicity Group, and Blogging for Books. They do not require me to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.