Anne Blythe is a 36-year-old journalist, living in New York, who realizes she needs to analyze her choice in men after she breaks up with her cheating boyfriend.  She arrives at the decision that she hasn’t been lucky in love, so she may as well try her luck at an arranged marriage service.  A number of therapy sessions and psychological tests convince her that a good marriage is based on friendship anyway.

She buys a husband for $15,000 (before seeing a picture of him), meets him and marries him the next day.  The novel then explores how they manage a life together while living in New York.

According to a review of the novel, McKenzie does a very plausible job in explaining what would drive a woman to take this measure.  This allows readers to take the plotline seriously and enjoy the quirks of the story - especially Anne’s mother.  She named her daughter Anne Blythe because of her enthusiasm for Anne of Green Gables and love of the two main characters.

To read more about the novel, which is believed will draw fans of authors Helen Fielding (Bridget Jones’s Diary), Sophie Kinsella (Shopaholic series), Emily Giffin (Something Borrowed, Something Blue), click here.

Update:

In a recent Q & A on the blog Lavender Lines, the author explains why she incorporated Anne into her novel.  Here's a direct excerpt!

Q: Anne’s mom is pretty much obsessed with Anne of Green Gables (which I loved, being from PEI). I take it that you yourself are a fan of the red-headed heroine?

A: I am a huge fan of Anne of Green Gables and have read the Anne series of books more times that I can count. Having red hair and green eyes myself (and a tendency to gab a bit too much), Anne is someone I’ve always related to. If you haven’t read these books, please do so!

Source: Winnipeg Free Press