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A Fake Marriage #1

The Marriage with the Cowboy

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Librarian's Note: An alternate cover and title for this ASIN can be found here.

When a fake marriage with a cowboy turns real.

Previously, Marrying a Cowboy

Emma seems destined to be the perpetual bridesmaid. Especially when her one potential groom dumped her on her birthday a year ago.

Austin must fulfill his grandmother’s marriage stipulation in order to inherit his grandfather’s ranch. After a broken heart, he decided that love isn’t going to be a requirement for marriage anymore.

Both are at the mercy of every do-gooder matchmaker, so they concoct a plan. A fake marriage between the two of them would be beneficial for both.

What could go wrong?

When they fly to Austin’s Montana ranch, they’re optimistic that they’ve come up with the greatest arrangement. When the relationship is fake, no feelings get hurt.

Until it’s no longer fake.

A fake marriage love story for the romantic in all of us.

176 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 11, 2018

1179 people are currently reading
1142 people want to read

About the author

Anne-Marie Meyer

102 books3,576 followers
Anne-Marie Meyer is a USA Today Bestselling author who lives south of the Twin Cities in MN. She spends her days with her knight in shining armor, four princes, and a baby princess.

When she's not running after her kids, she's dreaming up romantic stories. She loves to take her favorite moments in the books and movies she loves and tries to figure out a way to make them new and fresh.

Join her newsletter at anne-mariemeyer.com

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5 stars
323 (32%)
4 stars
325 (32%)
3 stars
248 (24%)
2 stars
73 (7%)
1 star
24 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 93 reviews
Profile Image for B. D. Mann.
664 reviews22 followers
June 29, 2018
I am no stranger to this author having read a few of her other works. I was attracted to the premise that two people would calculatingly marry for reasons other than romance, only to find that romance later. This concept has been around for as long as humans have walked this earth. Emma and Austin’s story proved to be a cute, clean reading experience. The author did a great job of developing the characters in this novella. I especially enjoyed Grandma Maverick. I loved the way we were led to believe she could be the story’s villain but proves to be an actual guide toward the HEA ending. The plot and the pace are right on the mark. It seems Ms. Meyer should be on track for an award of five stars for “Marrying a Cowboy.”

The real villain is not a character in the story. The villain in this offering is within the text itself. Editing errors, grammar mistakes, and punctuation errors are abundant. Ms. Meyer is in dire need of a competent copy editor. Also, the tension building boilerplate technique of having Austin go on and on about Emma deserving someone better than he and that he loved her too much to keep her was way overdone. It was so ineffective that it was a complete turn-off for me. Nevertheless, Anne-Marie Meyer is a skilled author, and I recommend her as an author worth reading.
Profile Image for Kathy.
2,741 reviews5,975 followers
March 23, 2018
There was potential here for this to be a 5-star book but it felt like this was rushed to print. A beta reader or two and a good editor and this would have been fabulous. Instead, we got a story that wasn't fleshed out as well as it could have been.

This was still a good book with a fun storyline. I enjoyed it and would still read another book by this author in the future. I was just disappointed because this could have been so much better than it actually was.
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Content: Clean
Profile Image for Isha Coleman.
9,019 reviews173 followers
July 30, 2018

Audiobook Review: Marrying a Cowboy (A Fake Marriage Series #1) by: Anne-Marie Meyer (Author), Kristen S. Osborne (Narrator)

Unlucky in love, is the start of happily ever after for Emma and Austin. Meyer makes sweet a sexy asset. Marrying A Cowboy takes romance back to a simpler time with a complicated twist. Love doesn't always follow the rules. Emma and Austin are proof of that. Yet it's the last one to the finish line that appreciates it all the more.
Profile Image for Vania Nunes.
2,355 reviews52 followers
June 26, 2018
Emma George was seeing her friends, one by one, getting married and being happy. Of course, they and everyone who knew her wanted Emma to have the same result, but fate did not seem to think so.
Emma was tired of the questions and jokes about her maiden status.
At the wedding of her friend Shannon, Emma is set to pair up with a handsome but rude cowboy, Austin Maverick. Not to mention that three years ago, when the two first met, Austin spilled beer down on her dress.

Austin was doing a favor to his longtime friend, the groom, but he was not in his best mood.
He worked hard on the farm he should have inherited from his grandfather, but his grandmother insisted that for Austin to be considered the heir, he should first get married.

It's Austin who got the idea at the wedding party that he and Emma should get married and stay there only until they got what they wanted: he would inherit the farm; she would not be bothered by her family.

When they get married and travel to Montana, for Emma to be introduced to his grandmother, strange things begin to happen and the two begin to feel for each other more than just camaraderie.

After Emma suffers an accident helping him on the farm, Austin realizes that she is more important to him than he would like to think, and so he prefers to send her away.
Days later, Austin sees the stupidity he committed and promises himself that this time he would propose to Emma in the right way.
4 stars

Profile Image for Elizabeth Edwards.
5,552 reviews9 followers
December 11, 2018
5 books in this series, can't wait to read more!! fast paced story, I just love this idea. great writing style. these characters are so fun! Austin and Emma ... chemistry to the nines. bridesmaids stories .. i am sure we all have some ... don't we? r groommen's story more entertaining or what??! i wonder??!
Profile Image for Lisa Swinton.
Author 27 books197 followers
March 29, 2018
I'm a growing fan of Ms. Anne-Marie Meyer. This book was a lovely romantic comedy.

Poor Emma is the last single woman standing. Naturally everyone wants to marry her off, especially her mother. There's nothing wrong with being single and Emma is fine with her status, but to get the matchmakers off her back she agrees to a fake marriage with Austin, who she barely knows, to help him get his ranch. His matchmaking grandmother won't given to him unless he gets hitched. Hilarity ensues as Emma and Austin try to prove their marriage is real (which it legally is) and try to convince themselves they aren't falling in love while they act like they are.

Lots of miscommunication and second guessing if their spouse has feelings for them provides the necessary tension to drive the story along. Clean writing, swoon worthy kisses, and good storytelling make this a good read and a great start to a series. I'm looking forward to the next one.

And I like the cover.
Profile Image for Madhellena.
636 reviews19 followers
November 17, 2018
I managed to listen a a third of this book, but I gave up because I wanted to punch the narrator. And the heroine. And the hero... Anyway, it's so rare that a romance novel gets me this frustrated I had to write the review.
First the narrator is TERRIBLE. She sounds like she's talking in her sleep. Her voice is boring and lacks emotion.
Second, the story starts with "poor me, I am the the only single woman in my group of friends" and a bunch of busybodies putting the heroine down for being single. It's an offense to all women all over the world - and I am not a feminist.
Third, the "hero" is supposed to be a lawyer that was dumped at the altar by a chick. And he refuses to tell his current wife the story, even if their marriage is about to be inspected by the grandmother that holds the keys to his ranch.
Fourth, the entire thing with people telling them they make a great couple and will have cute kids is completely superfluous.
Fifth, I gave up on the book when the heroine's ex messaged her trying to get her back a few hours after he found out she got married. And the first thing she wonders is "why does he want me back now since he was the one who dumped me?". It was too much for my frayed nerves... DNF.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Melissa.
1,191 reviews15 followers
September 18, 2019
While I would never enter into one myself, I really enjoy reading about marriages of convenience or fake marriages turning into more. I always get frustrated that they can't be honest with each other about their feelings, but I love reading about how the feelings change and see their relationship grow. This book did it beautifully. I went through all the emotions reading this book, but I loved it. Austin and Emma are two broken people who don't believe they can or will be loved. They are great together. I really enjoyed this book.
Profile Image for Nari.
1,255 reviews11 followers
March 19, 2018
This is a sweet clean romance about a marriage of convince. Austin needs to be married to get his Grandma to sign the ranch over to him. Emma wants to get all the well meaning matchmakers to leave her alone. Will Emma actually fall for her fake husband as the true convince others that theirs is a real marriage?
Profile Image for ✰♥✰ ↠Dominique↞ ✰♥✰ .
270 reviews5 followers
October 9, 2021
Thank god this was a short one.

There was so many wrong things with this book I barely made it through it. I can also see that this is getting pretty good ratings in general, and I can't help thinking that that is because there is something seriously wrong with our society.

What.Is.The.Obsession.With.Marriage!?

First off - if you are surrounded by friends and family that have nothing better to do than to rub your face in the fact that you're the only one standing out about something, they just don't deserve you. That shit is hella toxic.

So this Ashton guy that Emma ends up meeting at her friend's wedding was ONLY invited because something happened and one of the groomsmen could not show up, last minute.

Waiiiit a minute....

1. The guy was NOT invited to the wedding initially.
2. This 'friend' has not seen the groom for several years yet drops everything and flies so he can stand in as a groomsmen - yet, was not initially invited to the wedding...
3. This guy lives in MONTANA, and flies to NEW YORK to do this - YET, was not initially invited to the wedding...

This makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. None. Plus once he comes up with this great 'fake wedding' plan, Emma drops everything (hello... job????) and just flies to Montana to help this guy, that she does not know, out.

Listen, I watch a lot of True Crime stuff on Youtube - and lemme tell you, a lot of fucked up shit happens with women all over without them taking a plane to unknown places with some unknown guy.

PLUS : When she goes BACK to the airport to get back home once she was finished helping this dude out, SHE PAID FOR HER RETURN TICKET!!!!

What. The. What?

There was no depth to the story, no true sparks.

It kinda sucked to tell you the truth.

Will not read from this author again, and girls, if you find this stuff romantic... get your life in order... lol. Just kidding, to each their own ;)
Profile Image for Deborah Layne.
76 reviews3 followers
Read
February 20, 2021
Love idea and characters

There is a cultural dynamic - writing culture- that demands following but yields little results. Repetition of wrong conclusions based upon self absorption, self doubt and a sudden complete loss of the ability to read or understand each other poisons these books. It's not a genuine conflict. It's a systematic idea that influences the developmental process of these books and persons who are so accustomed to this way of writing keep giving five stars for books that no more than three stars.

What's exceptional? The genuine chemistry and care between the characters illustrated by the writer. Sean. Electric upon introduction. Bert. People need friends like Bert from the beginning of book and not its conclusion. What's missing? The getting to know you sessions promised. But that's also a pattern in these books. But the characters are memorable and the fact that these characters don't have to be the best looking, the richest to be worthy of front stage. Thank you.


113 reviews
October 2, 2018
It was ok.

I liked the idea of this book and really wanted to like it more than I did. I like that it ended with happily ever after. There were a few inconsistencies in the book. Like Emma wondering how she it would feel to kiss Austen when she already had in the court house. Then some sentences that didn't quite make sense to me. I also got really tired of the constant flip flop of feelings, the miscommunication, lying, questioning every feeling etc. It was just too much for me. It went overboard for me to the point that it didn't make a lot of sense. I wanted them to get together really I did it was just really frustrating what a mess they both seemed to be then suddenly they just seemed to tie everything up with a nice little bow. It had potential. Everything worked out so that was good I just didn't love this book. Others might really enjoy it. Just wasn't for me I suppose.
Profile Image for Rachael Bromley.
1,668 reviews17 followers
April 5, 2018
I loved this book. Emma is always destined to be a bridesmaid after all her friends are now married. She wants to walk down the isle and have a family but she needs a man for that and it's not for looking. Being fed up with people constantly going on about her singleness she tries to look for the next best thing. Austin was left his ranch by his grandfather but his grandmother puts a stipulation on it before he can receive it all, find someone to settle down with or I will sell it all. He has to get married.

As Austin proposes an arrangement with Emma and they get married they start to have feeling for each other but whilst Emma is true to her feelings, Austin lie not only to himself but to Emma as well. Will his grandmother out them? Will Austin dog deep for then truth and what will the outcome be? A great read. I received an advanced reader copy of this book
Profile Image for ANNBOOKSHELF.
1,111 reviews14 followers
April 13, 2018
The silliest idea ever - being the last two single friends at a wedding can turn some decisions a miss, a must read!

Austin is a rancher for generations it's in his heart and soul. A girl that married him is stuck with small town living and a teacher's wife. He has his ranch as risk marry stipulation of he could loose the ranch. He not worried the girl he is dating Georgia he will marry. They decide to go to Vegas but she leaves him at the alter but worse drains his bank account - yep love sucks! Emma the last of 5 best friends still single...the worse ever. Desperate times there is a fake marriage pack. Elope,marriage and convince grandma that is when it head up. Violence1 (injured animal, it's a farm), sex1 romance

More reviews check out the best book reviews & opinion blog: my2centsbookreviews.com Thanks!
Profile Image for Frances Hernandez.
744 reviews5 followers
October 13, 2021
Fake to real love

This book was about a couple, who decide to pretend marry, so that he can inherit ownership of the family ranch, and she can be married, because she is tired of being the only single woman in her girlfriend group.
It’s a spontaneous marriage, and they go to live on the ranch in Montana. Feelings are there between the couple, but they both have insecurities holding them back. Slowly their feelings increase, but an accident on the ranch cause him to send her back home to New York for her safety.
They suffer separately, until he decides that he can’t live without her, and he goes to New York, to get her back. They express their love for each other, and they return to the ranch with an HEA ending.
This is a new-to-me author, but I enjoyed the story, and emotions in the story. I recommend this sweet love story.
Profile Image for Connie.
1,671 reviews6 followers
April 4, 2018
I received a complimentary copy of this book and I am voluntarily reviewing it.

The premise of the book was great. The characters were good. I completely understood the characters' emotions and thoughts. I felt there were times when the story needed a something extra. It seemed rushed at times. I liked the dual POVs. The copy that I received had a lot of editing errors. Now I know that ARCs can and sometimes do have them on purpose but this one had a lot. There were times when I had to re-read a section several times to make sure I understood what the author intended. This story has promise though.
Profile Image for Kelly Fountain.
996 reviews5 followers
September 26, 2020
Yeah this wasn’t for me. I finished it though. It had good bones and could have been much better. This was supposed to be a love story right? I didn’t feel the connection at all. Yeah they were attracted to each other but that’s all I got. For someone who spent 3 years with an ex, it sure seemed like he didn’t know how to act around a woman. They spent time together but it seemed to focus on more of their individual reasons why they would never work than the two of them actually making a connection, or even friendship so that at the end it would make sense when they did work out. I didn’t believe it at all. Not for me.
Profile Image for Hopeless Romantic.
33 reviews
October 12, 2021
4.5 stars, I really liked this book, but there were certain points were I was figuratively CHOCKED by second-hand embarrassment. I loved the topic and the way it was carried out. I also kind of liked that even though both characters had hurtful pasts, they don't act like moody teenagers. Besides a little bit of speak of sex at the end of the book, and one scene were the characters sleep in the same bed (to keep up the illusion that they are married), this book is, what I would say, 13+. TOTALLY RECOMMEND!
Profile Image for Cherye Elliott.
3,397 reviews23 followers
November 24, 2018
Ugh

I am sorry. I did not like this book. The plot is fine....the characters are fine...

What is fake is the tone and connotation of speaking. Austin is a rancher from Montana...not a cowboy from brokeback mountain. The "feelings" are another thing that was fake. There are no whiny, millennial people in Montana unless they are passing through.

Also if I hear them say it is a fake marriage one more time I am going to scream.
Profile Image for Rhonda Campbell.
571 reviews1 follower
April 23, 2019
Great story

Great story. Emma and Austin make a really good couple. They seem to have a natural connection allowing them to share their stories with each other. They have fun together and their sense of humor is perfectly inline. I can't imagine Austin being stuck up and snooty at the retreat. It just seems like a complete opposite of who he is now. Georgia must have had a very bad effect on him.. Losing her was the best thing that ever happened to him.
2,285 reviews28 followers
March 14, 2018
Emma and Austin start out in a fake marriage but sparks begin flying and emotions start emerging. They have both sworn off love but really want to find the "love of their lives". Such a sweet story and a clean romance but you can see and feel their attraction and them really falling for each other. Love this author's work and can't wait for her next book. beautiful cover
Profile Image for Pascale’s*ARC,Unwind,Read,Review.
2,375 reviews31 followers
March 14, 2018
Fake Marriage

One needs a wife so he can inherit a ranch, the other needs a husband so everyone can get off her back about not being married. A marriage of convenience. But can they convince everyone that their “fake” marriage isn’t pretend and both get what they want? Or will they both end up hurt in the end?
A cute, clean story. I liked it.
70 reviews
March 24, 2018
Great story...

...but way, way, waaay too many spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors! This author has a gift but is in dire need of a copy editor. My Kindle Fire doesn't keep count like my Paperwhite does, but the count is way too high. (He spook under his breath...she gazed at the random build boards...The house had gray shudders...and so on and so forth.)
1,124 reviews3 followers
June 25, 2018
CUTE ROMANCE

Cute and entertaining fake marriage dilemma. Two people meet at a wedding. Both are very single and are suffering from bad relationship drama. We needs a wide to inherit the ranch and she agrees to help him. Once they get together, their past insecurities and pain get in the way of a possible happy ever after.
151 reviews1 follower
October 22, 2018
Enjoyable read

What a happy flirty love story. From the very start you, the readers, are pulled into the characters lives and are pulling that they both find true love. It was a very believable story not just something the author made up. It gives hope to those who have not met "the one".
1,751 reviews9 followers
September 3, 2020
Frustrating read

This was a frustratingly read. Even though their relationship was supposed to be temporary, there had to be a certain level of openness and trust between them to have even a hope of making their ruse work, yet neither on them would open up about their issues or their feelings to one another.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 93 reviews

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