cover image Put a Ring on It

Put a Ring on It

Beth Kendrick. NAL, $15 (320p) ISBN 978-0-451-47418-6

Kendrick (New Uses for Old Boyfriends) opens her quirky, charming contemporary with cleverly mismatched lovers marrying each other within hours of meeting. Uptight actuary and jewelry hobbyist Brighton Smith visits a friend in Black Dog Bay, Del., a resort town with heartbreak-themed retailers,. She's grieving her very recent broken engagement, made worse by her ex-fianc%C3%A9 spontaneously marrying someone else, Brighton tells her troubles to the Black Dog Bay wine bar's most captivating, gorgeous seducer of the brokenhearted, "rebound guy" Jake Sorenson. Before long, Brighton and the absurdly wealthy Jake have traveled to Las Vegas in his private jet and married at a drive-in chapel. Brighton wants to play the revenge rebound game, but Jake's intentions are a mystery. When they sober up, Brighton and Jake talk divorce, but their attraction to each other is intoxicating, prompting the emotionally unavailable, low-key Jake to finally confront his past. Animated and witty characters and a highly original setting make this light, feel-good romance a winner. (Nov.)