DIK Review: The Man Must Marry

The Man Must Marry
Janet Chapman
Contemporary Romance
Sinclair Brothers series/Book 1
Pocket Star Books/November 2008
Purchased

From the back cover ~

Trying to escape marriage, they are snared by love. When Sam Sinclair's self-made millionaire grandfather sends Willa Ken, a woman none of the three Sinclair brothers have even heard of, as his proxy to an ultra-important meeting of the Sinclair shipping company, most people would think they old man had lost his marbles. But Sam knows his grandfather too well. For some reason, the wily old man has decided that one of his three grandsons should marry Will, and this is his way of trying to force the issue...

So Will and Sam team up on what seems like a wild-goose to find some loophole in Grandfather Sinclair's crazy notion. But as Sam crews Willa's yacht en route to Maine, he finds to his surprise that his grandfather's offbeat scheme is growing more attractive by the moment. Willa is smart, beautiful... and has a wild streak that sends them soaring together above the clouds.

But Willa isn't about to let Sam fly away with her heart until she knows his true motives. If the man wants to marry for money, then the woman in her says that first he must fall in love.

My first Janet Chapman book and the blurb sums it up quite well. For some reason I thought Chapman wrote historicals - with highlanders. It turns out she does but this isn't one of them. :)

The three Sinclair brothers are in shock when they meet Willa Kent. She's not at all what they expected. Willa comes from a completely different world of the luxury and fine living that the Sinclair brother's are accustomed to. She's far happier at home in her small town in Maine than in the crowded and busy New York City. The brothers also want to send Willa back to Maine and keep her out of their business but their grandfather had other plans in mind for Willa and the brothers.

Sam Sinclair is the eldest of the three Sinclair brothers and by default seems to be the designated leader. He can't believe what his grandfather has done but is resigned to play out the farce that has sent this woman who he likens to a partridge into his world. Sam ends up spending time with Willa and quickly realizes how much courage it took for her to come to New York and take on the Sinclair brothers. She really is out of her element and her klutziness is at an all time high. The poor woman can't make it through one evening without loosing her purse, tripping, slipping and in general showing minimal coordination. At first it was cute but it did get to be a bit much after a while.

Willa Kent is a kind person who believes in helping others. That's what got her into the mess she's in now. She befriended Abram Sinclair when he rented the cottage on her property in Maine. It's because of that friendship that she agreed to act as his proxy for voting in the next CEO of Tidewater International. She has to choose between the three brothers but can't make a quick decision so she decides they must go out to dinner, allowing her to get to know them better.

Sam and Willa get to know each other a lot better. With them falling for each other really, really quick. Sam fell so fast I'm surprised he was able to take a breath and tell Willa how he felt. I didn't feel like it was genuine with Sam, it happened too quick. It was like one minute he's thinking of her as plain and clumsy and then he's so hot for her he can't think straight. I just had a hard time believing it.

Willa is portrayed as a strong woman that is used to taking care of everyone. She feels such responsibility for those she loves that she has a habit of sticking her nose in where it's not always wanted or needed. She's also sworn off marriage since her first marriage left her with the feeling that she and marriage just don't work. She's had some rough times in her past that have caused her to make some drastic decisions. I liked Willa but she did seem to cry a lot. At one point it's mentioned that she cried for three hours. Wow. It was after someone close to her had died but still, three hours? Otherwise I didn't get the impression that she was a crier.

The other two Sinclair brothers are not as involved in Sam and Willa's search to find a solution to who will lead Tidewater International. We do get to know them a little bit when Willa first arrives in New York and then later on. Ben is the middle brother and his book, Tempt Me If You Can, is out now. I'm guessing youngest brother Jesse will also get a book. What I did get to know of the Ben and Jesse, I liked Ben the least. He came across as very abrasive. Jesse came across as easy going and fun loving. But I'll just have to wait until I read their books to find out what they're really like. I do have a heroine in mind for Jesse but... I'll just have to wait for his book to come out.

The main problem I had with the story is the falling in love of Sam and Willa. Like I mentioned, Sam went too quick and Willa was in denial until "boom" she loves him. They just never seem to really fit together for me. And they played these games with Willa dating someone else and Sam pretending he didn't mind.

I did like the small town setting of Willa's home in Maine. The characters were colorful and typical of small towns, always wanting to know every one's business. Willa has a great and unique job that showed her creative side. I also liked that Willa didn't stay a klutz but while sailing she was sure-footed and a better sailor than Sam.

A few problems, mainly with the quick fall of the hero and the over done aspect of the klutzy heroine but overall a decent read. I do hope to read the stories of the other two Sinclair brothers and find out what happens to them.

Rating: B-