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The Marriage Act  By  cover art

The Marriage Act

By: John Marrs
Narrated by: John Marrs, Clare Corbett, Nathalie Buscombe, David Monteith, Dugald Bruce-Lockhart, Joshua Riley
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Publisher's summary

What if marriage was the law? Dare you disobey? Black Mirror meets thriller with a dash of Naomi Alderman’s The Power in this dark, high-concept novel by the bestselling author of The One.

Britain. The near-future. A right-wing government believes it has the answer to society’s ills—the Sanctity of Marriage Act, which actively encourages marriage as the norm, punishing those who choose to remain single.

But four couples are about to discover just how impossible relationships can be when the government is monitoring every aspect of our personal lives—monitoring every word, every minor disagreement…and will use every tool in its arsenal to ensure everyone will love, honor and obey.

“The king of near-future what-ifs is back with a smart and chilling page-turner. Twisty, unsettling, scarily believable and thought provoking, this is his best yet.”—Ellery Lloyd, author of The Club

“Clever, compelling and terrifyingly plausible. A near future nightmare that grips from the first page and never lets go. THE MARRIAGE ACT is a brilliant examination of relationships and the power we let others have over us. And talk about a page-turner. This one will leave you with paper cuts!”—C. J. Tudor, author of The Chalk Man

Don't miss other suspenseful works from John Marrs (you'll never see the twists coming!):

  • The One
  • The Vacation
  • The Family Experiment (coming soon!)
©2023 John Marrs (P)2023 Harlequin Enterprises, Limited

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What listeners say about The Marriage Act

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Not So Fictitious

This book is great. Too similar to themes happening today or plausible for the future to be a comfortable read. And yet I couldn’t stop listening.

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To close to home

This is scary close to where our world is going. Please read / listen to this book if you want a wonderful twist and also an eye opener.

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My first John Marrs, but definitely not my last!

This story gives futuristic Handmaid’s Tale vibes in the best way. No, the stories aren’t the same, but listen and you’ll see what I mean. You’ll be left wondering if your Dad was right and you should unplug Alexa when you’re not using her. You’ll distrust the government. You’ll evaluate your life and wonder what it would be like in this world in the most terrifying way. If I could give it 6 stars, I would. Well done.

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Thank you!!

I have only one thing to say. Never ever stop writing! I just finished The Marriage Act and can’t wait for the one!

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Sadly, realistic for the future

This is the first book I read by this author. Well done. Loved all the different characters. Immediately was drawn in. One of the best reads in a while!

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Kept me up at night

This story was so unbelievably believable that it made me take pause. The role of technology in our everyday lives is already more than ever imagined. This book takes it to a whole new level. Excellent writing, excellent performances.

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Loved it!

Loved this addition to the series, if you liked his previous books especially The One then you will definitely enjoy this. Narrators all did a great job and I found it easy to keep the many characters separate because the narrators were all distinctly different.

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Such an amazing dystopian novel!

This book was far beyond expected!
I fell in love with so many couples and their lives. This has been an inspiring novel and a tool to make me reflect upon a huge variety of topics in my life.


⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

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Loved this

I loved how he intertwined the passengers and the one, I was sad finishing this one because I’m thinking I want moreeeee that’s intertwined. Every book I’ve read so far has been a 5 star read. Also I appreciate him actually using a person of color for the voiceover for the st Lucia characters. I loved that touch!

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Outside the box. Keeps you thinking and the future stuff is already here!

I really enjoyed this book. Very enlightening and entertaining. I would definitely recommend to anyone interested in thrillers.

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