The title intrigued me, and soon got me hooked in. It was refreshing to have the story told by one person as it seems popular to jump time frames and characters in a lot of books these days. It also left you guessing as to the motives of the other characters in the book. Thought i had guessed what would happen in the end, but was totally wrong.

I can honestly say this is a totally different book to any other I’ve read – and I’ve read a lot! It reminds me both of the Stepford Lives and a Michael Douglas film titled The Game. Although quite dissimilar to both of these, it’s in that strange ‘removed from real life’ category.

Alice & Jake, newly wed, receive a one-off wedding gift which turns out to be an invitation to join a secret group of people with the aim of conducting their marriage by a set of rules and regulations set out by the founder of ‘The Pact’. Followed up by a personal visit they sign on the dotted line – and I spent much of the book asking myself why? I wouldn’t have signed it – I don’t think many would, at least not without doing full research into what they were signing up to – but they did and here the story begins.

I don’t think enjoyment is a word I would use in relation to this novel, but it is a strangely compelling read. Creepy, weird and quite shocking at times but once you begin you have to keep going to see what happens next. The end arrives quite abruptly and I wonder if the author planned it that way or just ran out of ideas? Either way, if you are looking for a very different kind of novel to absorb you, don’t pass this one by.

My thanks to publishers Penguin for approving me to read this one via NetGalley. This is my honest, original and unbiased review.

I really enjoyed this one. Jake and Alice are about to get married and are invited to join The Pact. This appears to be a club of middle class married couples who like to socialise, hold dinner parties and work hard to keep their marriages alive. Thinking this might be good fun, Jake and Alice decide to join, although Jake soon starts to have reservations about the true motives of the group. Of course, things start to turn into a nightmare for them....
If you look too closely into the premise of this story, it does seem implausible that a well educated person would comply with the demands of the Pact but it becomes clear that it isn't easy to escape! There is a creeping sense of doom as the book goes on and some of the scenes are straight out of a horror movie! The perspex sheets, omg I actually had nightmares about these! The ending was a slight disappointment in my opinion but I would certainly recommend this book.

There were times when this book had me hanging on every word, and times when I wandered off in my head to avoid it.
It was too 1984 ish...only theze were intelligent, articulate people who made the decision to enter the Pact.
They were not brainwashed, they were punished and humiliated. I thought about what would happen if someone in employment took off with no warning as often as they did. The only answer would be a total bollocking followed by termination of employment.
Even Jake's partners could not be that laissez faire.
As for the denouement...if I start I will drop it totwo stars.
Not my favourite book of the year but thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read it.

Enjoyed the book and the characters. Well written but a bit slow at times. However, It was mostly a page turner and one I couldnt put down . Did find the end a let down though.

Jake and Alice are given a mysterious gift for a wedding present, which they must to decide keep or not. Curiosity gets the better of them and they accept it with excitement. I raced through this book, and found myself questioning if I would have made the same decisions as Alice and Jake. What’s interesting about The Marriage Pact is that it discusses what marriage means as a legal binding contract and what we may take for granted in our partners. A great one to read over the holidays season.

2 stars.

I'm just going to say it, this was boring. There's so many 5-star reviews that I was excited, the blurb made it sound better than it was.

Alice (a freaking lawyer) and her husband get a mysterious box and just out of curiosity they decide to enter the pact. The Pact wants to ensure that every marriage on their little cult is forever secure and blah blah blah. So Alice, a lawyer, and her husband, decide why the hell not, let's sign this thing without reading it, what could possibly go wrong. That was the moment the book lost me, having a lawyer blindingly sign anything let alone something that's supposed to be for life? If the book had a different couple, this would be a lot more interesting to read for me, but these two just didn't do it for me.

A really different story which was very engaging. Following a newly married couple and their journey through a secret club designed to promote a strong marriage, yet they find themselves caught up in something they wish they weren’t but can they escape?

Recently married Jake and Alice are invited to join 'The Pact', an organisation that seeks to promote a route to a happy and successful marriage. However, the penalties for not following the guidelines in the manual are severe!
The unusual concept of the book was intriguing, and although at times I was frustrated with some of the decisions made by Jake and Alice and shocked by their punishments, this was a book I had to read to the end.

This was a strange book as at times I was really gripped and devoured page after page but sometimes I found myself drifting off thinking of other things.
The concept of an organisation monitoring your marriage is a bizarre one and the punishments for not following the manual are at times, terrifying.
Whilst this is a good psychological thriller, I just did not believe this could really happen.
I suppose it’s an interesting concept but all the theories about marriage that are mentioned in the book did not interest me.
At times this was a good book so give it a go.
Thanks to NetGalley and Bantam Books for sending me a copy to Read and review.

Newlyweds Alice and Jake are a picture-perfect couple. Alice was once a singer in a well-known rock band, is now a lawyer. Jake is a partner in a physchology practice. They received an enticing wedding gift from one of Alice's prominent clients,. They decide to join an exclusive and mysterious group known only as The Pact.

The rules are simple, stick thoroughly to The Pacts rules. There can be devastating consequences if the rules are broken. This is a suspense thriller that touches on creepiness. The story is told from Jakes perpective. Although I have given this book 4* I could not quite believe that a lawyer would not read all the contract and still sign it.. It's not as if the couple were young and stupid!

I would like to thank NetGalley, Penguin UK - Michael Joseph and the author Michelle Richmond for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book used an interesting premise well and kept me hooked throughout. It keeps you guessing as to whether the characters are correct in their suspicions or whether they are paranoid, though I felt the conclusion to be slightly in satisfying

A very unusual premise for a book. Not my cup of tea,seemed very unrealistic.

The book itself is narrated throughout by Jake and it voiced all of his concerns for his wife and marriage. It was easy to read and understand, although as the story progressed things began to get ridiculous. Having said that I couldn't put the book down but I have to admit I was a little disappointed with the ending .

Found it hard to get into this book. Too far fetched for my liking. Well written but not for me. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review Three stars for being well written.

Interesting idea for a book. I just couldn’t get into it

I have not finished this story so it may get better but I suspect you'll either love for its weirdness or find too disturbing to want to finish. Unfortunately I am definitely in the later group. It started well with the history of a couple getting married. They receive a locked box from an acquaintance and this is followed up by an invitation to join The Pact, a very controlling and active group supposedly helping people focus on being married, working together for the good of the marriage. There are consequences to not following the rules . . . . You don't know who is watching (1984 style), who is judging you or what will happen next . . . .

The writing is mainly in the first person and the writing flows well. It is a creepily weird story, a psychological thriller that some will find enthralling but I, unfortunately, didn't and chose not to finish the book. Don't let that put you off trying it if this type of book appeals to you.

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley and chose to start reading it. This is - obviously! - my honest opinion after reading over 30% of it.

Possibly one of the most thought provoking books I've ever read. Jake and Alice's fresh marriage, filled with hope and a desire to remain intact becomes the focus of the book. Their agreement to join The Pact and uncover the rules and ideology of the organisation made me reflect on my own marriage and help me draw positives. The sinister undertones of the organisation made this book a real page turner and I was intrigued to find how it would evolve.

Wow. I’m a ball of knotted up feelings mixed with adrenaline right now. THE MARRIAGE PACT started as an innocuous, gentle introduction to a newly married couple and turned into a twisted, dark ride. If I could sum it up, I’d describe it as ‘big brother’s stepford wife body snatching cult’ and I mean 1984-esque big brother, not the reality show. I don’t read a lot of suspense these days and this one just compelled me from start to finish, through the good, the bad, the believable and slightly stretched.

Jake and Alice are an opposites attract kind of couple but a match that seems to work. As very newly-weds they’re invited to join The Pact. Alarm bells should have been ringing at 100 decibels but no, Jake and Alice signed up. There was an innocence about their walk into married life, believing the easy road but it was oh, so different. What ensued took my breath away as I got deeper and deeper. I read going to sleep but found myself pumped full of adrenaline and unsettled. The twisty dark nature was unexpected and not in my normal taste, but I couldn’t look away.

It isn’t a perfect read, there are occasional moments of ‘as if’ and the end could have been stronger but I know I am not going to forget this book in a hurry. I enjoyed it, my skin crawled with discomfort and unease, but I enjoyed it. The characters connected with one another and to me, the writing was like a magnet. The storyline was out of the box and I am definitely wanting to try this author again.

So, if you fancy the unusual, you like the bizarre, suspense and married couples, I give you THE MARRIAGE PACT.

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher through netgalley in return for a honest review.

Reviewed for Jo&IsaLoveBooks Blog.

3 1/2 stars - 'The marriage pact' by Michelle Richmond is a psychological thriller that will have your heart racing and you second guessing your own reality. Are the neighbours next door in the pact? Your boss? Your own mother and father?

I personally find movies and books with a plot that could actually happen the most terrifying and 'The marriage pact' is exactly that. I would not be surprised if this sort of thing is really happening somewhere in the world. Who doesn't love a conspiracy theory? That's the thing about Richmond's storytelling. She has you so reeled in that it feels like you are reading a true story. Even now after finishing the book yesterday I can't stop thinking about it and find myself wanting to say to my friends "OMG, have you heard about this marriage cult?" then I remember it didn't really happen or did it?

Alice and Jake are due to get married very soon when Alice plays a part in winning her first big case at the law firm. The client is so delighted that he asks to meet Alice and in the excitement of it all Alice invites the client.. Finnegan to her and Jake's wedding. Little do Alice and Jake know that for Finnegan, meeting Alice and being invited to their wedding was all part of his plan as he has a proposition for them, an invitation to join "the pact". A group of people who all believe in making their marriage last "till death do us part" no matter the consequences. At the beginning it sounds like a great suggestion. Who wouldn't want to go to grand parties with like minded couples, receive gifts every month from their partner and go on trips away together every few months, however, what Alice and Jake don't realise is, there is a darker undercurrent in "The pact" that comes to light when you don't follow the rules and even your wildest imagination will not prepare you for what those punishments involve.

There are a couple of things that stopped "The marriage pact" from being a 4 or 5 star for me. Firstly the beginning, I really thought I was going to DNF this book as I found the first 10% so boring and somewhat cliche. Then there was the ending. I don't know if it was a cliff hanger or if you were to decide the fate of Alice and Jake yourself but either way I like my stand alone novels to do all the work for me. If it becomes a sequel then I understand the ending but I don't feel like it will be. I feel the whole point is for you to use your imagination and that isn't what I enjoy. I feel when you invest so much time into reading a novel the ending especially should be given to you.

Thank you to netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.