“Mad Love” is a romantic comedy that is long on the comedy, if a bit short on the romance. Adam and Jessica both entered a dating website competition on a whim–only to discover that they’ve signed up, not for a blind date, but a blind marriage. Feeling fairly desperate about their housing situations, they agree to go through with this sight-unseen marriage in exchange for a nice flat in London and thirty thousand pounds. Only neither of them entered their information into the website all that carefully, or even truthfully, and they may be the match made in hell, not heaven. Or are they?

The book’s biggest strength is its comedy. I found myself laughing out loud on multiple occasions, especially from Adam’s wry asides. Great comedy, however, doesn’t necessarily equal great romance, and I found the love story between Jessica and Adam a little less compelling, mainly because they spend most of their time rowing in ways that, if they were to happen in real life to me, I wouldn’t be able to look past (could YOU forgive a husband who mocks and humiliates you on live tv?). However, because this is fiction (and outrageous comedy), they do eventually come to their senses and start treating each other more sensibly, keeping this lighthearted laugh fest in the realm of upbeat romantic fantasy.

My thanks to NetGalley for providing a review copy of this book. All opinions are my own.