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Just a Normal Marriage
Shauna McCoy's mother can't seem to stay married -- at least to the same man! -- and she's making life hell for Shauna's young half-sister Mandy. In order to create a stable home for Mandy, Shauna proposes marriage to the child's pediatrician, Rob Stevens. She envisions a sensible business arrangement -- but Rob intends a much more normal marriage.
195 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 1989
3 people are currently reading
94 people want to read
About the author
Leigh Michaels
351 books173 followersLeigh Michaels is the pseudonym used by LeAnn Lemberger (b. July 27 in Iowa, United States), a popular United States writer of over 85 romance novels. She has published with Harlequin, Sourcebooks, Montlake Romance, Writers Digest Books, and Arcadia Publishing. She teaches romance writing at Gotham Writers' Workshop (www.writingclasses.com) She is the author of On Writing Romance.
When Leigh was fifteen she wrote her first romance novel and burned it. She burned five more complete manuscripts before submitting to a publisher. The first submission was accepted by Harlequin, the only publisher to look at it, and was published in 1984.
Michaels was born in Iowa, United States. She received a Bachelor of Arts in journalism from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, after three years of study and maintained a 3.93 grade-point average. She received the Robert Bliss Award as top-ranking senior in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, and won a national William Randolph Hearst Award for feature-writing as an undergraduate.
She is married to Michael W. Lemberger, an artist-photographer.
When Leigh was fifteen she wrote her first romance novel and burned it. She burned five more complete manuscripts before submitting to a publisher. The first submission was accepted by Harlequin, the only publisher to look at it, and was published in 1984.
Michaels was born in Iowa, United States. She received a Bachelor of Arts in journalism from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, after three years of study and maintained a 3.93 grade-point average. She received the Robert Bliss Award as top-ranking senior in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, and won a national William Randolph Hearst Award for feature-writing as an undergraduate.
She is married to Michael W. Lemberger, an artist-photographer.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
May 31, 2017
This story was plagued with bitchy women. Yes, I am judging.
The h needs to get married in order to protect her little sister from the self-absorbed mother from hell who wants to ship her off to boarding school and is so insensitive and cold it borders on emotional abuse. The h ends up picking the nice guy beta pediatrician as her MOC partner. He' been treating her half-sister for stomach aches due to mama's emotional neglect. She's pretty judgmental when she offers him the position: she'll pay his medical school bills for the MOC to gain her little sis.
Sounds like the heroine is a real winner, right? Nope, she's one cranky, judgmental bitch and her best friend is not a whole lot better.
H and h get married, and she's such a low energy snarker I can only think the hero has low esteem as why would he fall in love with her EVER.
Case in point: she knows how involved he is with his patients, and she has a persnickety fit because he's late to her gross mother's party. Yes, he should have called, but there was an emergency. You know, pediatrician! When he arrives he finds her in an awkward situation where he ex-fiance slime ball is putting the moves on her. She's such a wet blanket dweeb she doesn't even fight back. The H understandably jumps to the wrong conclusion. He's had it with her sniping and closed down crap and shuts down her explanation.
Why I read this a second time, I do not know.
The h needs to get married in order to protect her little sister from the self-absorbed mother from hell who wants to ship her off to boarding school and is so insensitive and cold it borders on emotional abuse. The h ends up picking the nice guy beta pediatrician as her MOC partner. He' been treating her half-sister for stomach aches due to mama's emotional neglect. She's pretty judgmental when she offers him the position: she'll pay his medical school bills for the MOC to gain her little sis.
Sounds like the heroine is a real winner, right? Nope, she's one cranky, judgmental bitch and her best friend is not a whole lot better.
H and h get married, and she's such a low energy snarker I can only think the hero has low esteem as why would he fall in love with her EVER.
Case in point: she knows how involved he is with his patients, and she has a persnickety fit because he's late to her gross mother's party. Yes, he should have called, but there was an emergency. You know, pediatrician! When he arrives he finds her in an awkward situation where he ex-fiance slime ball is putting the moves on her. She's such a wet blanket dweeb she doesn't even fight back. The H understandably jumps to the wrong conclusion. He's had it with her sniping and closed down crap and shuts down her explanation.
Why I read this a second time, I do not know.
June 1, 2017
LMAO!
This was a nice swap of places!
Heroine pays hero to marry her! Heh heh!
Hero was besotted!
He was the one hurt! It was hilarious!
Would have been nicer and a 5 star if he ACTUALLY let her speak and explain near the end!
The idiot almost left her! Then again she'd have totally deserved it!
This was a nice swap of places!
Heroine pays hero to marry her! Heh heh!
Hero was besotted!
He was the one hurt! It was hilarious!
Would have been nicer and a 5 star if he ACTUALLY let her speak and explain near the end!
The idiot almost left her! Then again she'd have totally deserved it!
June 7, 2010
Good old school Harlequin romance with a marriage of convenience between an orderly accountant and a disorderly pediatrician, all for the sake of Shauna's younger sister, who is not doing well living with their self-absorbed mother (currently on her fifth husband). Shauna meets Rob when she takes her sister Mandy to the pediatrician for stomach aches that are due to the stress of living with their mother. She decides that it would be best for Mandy to live with her, and her mother says no. When her mother and her current husband are going to move to Mexico for a year to film a movie, Shauna intervenes in her mother's plans to place Mandy in a boarding school. She makes a deal with Rob that they will marry for a year, and she'll pay off his medical school debts, if he'll be her husband in order to provide a stable home for Mandy. It sounds really good on paper, but the feelings of attraction between the couple will grow when they are living in close quarters, making their convenient marriage into an inconvenient love match.
Shauna gave me some heartburn with her emotional ups and downs, and her mood changes towards Rob. I understand why, with her insecurities after having a father who walked out of her life after her parents divorced, and an ex-fiance who turned out to be a 'Baby Daddy' and a deadbeat dad out for her money. Rob was such a good guy, and it was frustrating to see how she always wanted to assume the worst about him. Thankfully Harlequin delivers a happy ending for this couple, and the final scene shows them coming clean with each other, admitting their love (from nearly the beginning) for each other. Just a Normal Marriage was a quick, sometimes fun/sometimes angsty read, taking me back to the Harlequin Golden Age.
Shauna gave me some heartburn with her emotional ups and downs, and her mood changes towards Rob. I understand why, with her insecurities after having a father who walked out of her life after her parents divorced, and an ex-fiance who turned out to be a 'Baby Daddy' and a deadbeat dad out for her money. Rob was such a good guy, and it was frustrating to see how she always wanted to assume the worst about him. Thankfully Harlequin delivers a happy ending for this couple, and the final scene shows them coming clean with each other, admitting their love (from nearly the beginning) for each other. Just a Normal Marriage was a quick, sometimes fun/sometimes angsty read, taking me back to the Harlequin Golden Age.
November 15, 2011
Marriage-of-convenience between a high-strung/Type-A accountant and an easy-going/Type B pediatrician. The heroine needed a temporary husband so her half-sister would be permitted by their self-centered mom to live with her. In typical high-handed fashion, the heroine proposed marriage to her sister’s pediatrician in exchange for restitution of his medical school debts. He insisted however that he would not waive his rights to the conjugal bed in their MOC and she consented.
The thing I don’t like about role-reversal plots, where the heroine is richer than the hero, is exactly that -- that she wields undue power over the guy that he becomes beholden to her. Doormat heroes have no place in a romance story.
Thank goodness then, that Dr. Rob, the hero in this book, proved that he was no push-over. From the first encounter, when he told her to leave the examining room, he established that he was his own man. Although he was financially strapped, he kept his sense of dignity. I thought it was funny the way he insisted that he wasn’t a gigolo so he wasn't going to be paid for whatever services he rendered.
I also liked that while Shauna and her lawyer were tackily going through the prenuptial contract with a fine-tooth comb, he chose instead to zero in on the crux of the matter and demanded that he be granted custody of any child from their union. Given Shauna’s abandonment issues, this could only have raised him in her esteem. Furthermore, his intensity on the job shows that he was no light-weight and sponge. His playfulness brought the right amount of levity to her rigid world but beneath his informal and tender ways, he hid his vulnerability from loving the heroine in secret.
Old-fashioned romance.
The thing I don’t like about role-reversal plots, where the heroine is richer than the hero, is exactly that -- that she wields undue power over the guy that he becomes beholden to her. Doormat heroes have no place in a romance story.
Thank goodness then, that Dr. Rob, the hero in this book, proved that he was no push-over. From the first encounter, when he told her to leave the examining room, he established that he was his own man. Although he was financially strapped, he kept his sense of dignity. I thought it was funny the way he insisted that he wasn’t a gigolo so he wasn't going to be paid for whatever services he rendered.
I also liked that while Shauna and her lawyer were tackily going through the prenuptial contract with a fine-tooth comb, he chose instead to zero in on the crux of the matter and demanded that he be granted custody of any child from their union. Given Shauna’s abandonment issues, this could only have raised him in her esteem. Furthermore, his intensity on the job shows that he was no light-weight and sponge. His playfulness brought the right amount of levity to her rigid world but beneath his informal and tender ways, he hid his vulnerability from loving the heroine in secret.
Old-fashioned romance.
October 5, 2020
I liked that the heroine proposed the marriage of convenience; I liked that the hero was basically a giant pile of medical school debt while the heroine came from money (and was a good and respected accountant). I didn’t like that the hero guilt-tripped the heroine on their wedding night when she awkwardly confessed her virginity and said she wasn’t ready to have sex with him yet (“whether a real lady would treat a man this way is open for discussion”), because apparently she was being a nervous twenty-six-year-old virgin AT him. Gross.
October 11, 2014
this was one strange read where i did not feel any connection between H and h. then suddenly, near the end it was obvious rob wanted shauna and the angst was unmistakable. as if i was in another book. the book was actually good then and only then it sounded like an HP book. i especially loved dat part when rob caught shauna kissing her ex.
September 19, 2015
Great mills n boon
Maybe 4.5 stars. A pleasant surprise of a mills n boon. The main characters didn't aggravate me - the hero wasn't arrogant and nasty, and the heroine wasn't tstl.
Maybe 4.5 stars. A pleasant surprise of a mills n boon. The main characters didn't aggravate me - the hero wasn't arrogant and nasty, and the heroine wasn't tstl.
November 4, 2024
"Just a Normal Marriage" is the story of Shauna and Rob.
Oh what a wonderful hero.
If you dont mind beta sweet heroes this is the book for you.
Heroine is a hotshot accountant from an extremely rich family. She has a half sibling and a flighty uncaring mother. When she realizes her sister is being neglected by her mother, things take a turn.
Our hero is an absent minded sweet doctor, who is overwhelmed by his workload and student loans. Safeguarding concerns for a repeat visitor (heroine's sister) leads him to be involved in their life.
After some drama, a marriage of convenience is proposed by the heroine and he accepts.
While the heroine wants it to be a business transaction, the hero wants it to be a passionate journey. Most of the book is the heroine treating him callously, behaving more like a rich, controlling sugar mommy and getting cross with him for doing his job, to a point that he even catches the heroine kissing her ex. He treats her with care, ie taking care of sister, respecting boundaries, brushing her hair daily but is usually met with anger.
I disliked the heroine's mood swings but the hero was an absolute sweetheart.
SWE
3.5/5
Oh what a wonderful hero.
If you dont mind beta sweet heroes this is the book for you.
Heroine is a hotshot accountant from an extremely rich family. She has a half sibling and a flighty uncaring mother. When she realizes her sister is being neglected by her mother, things take a turn.
Our hero is an absent minded sweet doctor, who is overwhelmed by his workload and student loans. Safeguarding concerns for a repeat visitor (heroine's sister) leads him to be involved in their life.
After some drama, a marriage of convenience is proposed by the heroine and he accepts.
While the heroine wants it to be a business transaction, the hero wants it to be a passionate journey. Most of the book is the heroine treating him callously, behaving more like a rich, controlling sugar mommy and getting cross with him for doing his job, to a point that he even catches the heroine kissing her ex. He treats her with care, ie taking care of sister, respecting boundaries, brushing her hair daily but is usually met with anger.
I disliked the heroine's mood swings but the hero was an absolute sweetheart.
SWE
3.5/5
October 7, 2017
This was the first Harlequin I ever read, when I was probably about 12. I need to do a re-read sometime soon!
September 4, 2025
Cringy marriage of convenience.
Not as bad as back blurb makes it out to be, but def a product of its time.
Not as bad as back blurb makes it out to be, but def a product of its time.
March 17, 2014
3,5 of 5
another MoC story,tp yg ini agak beda dikit,kalau biasanya yg tajir heronya,kali ini kebalikannya. Adik tiri Shauna,Mandy kurang kasih sayang dari ibu mereka yg tukang kawin cerai,demi mengambil hak asuh Mandy,Shauna menawarkan pernikahan sementara dengan dokter pribadi Mandy yaitu Rob,dokter berpotensi tapi sayangnya terlilit banyak hutang. Seperti biasa kalo cerita moc begini gampang ditebak,tapi nggak pernah bikin bosen.
another MoC story,tp yg ini agak beda dikit,kalau biasanya yg tajir heronya,kali ini kebalikannya. Adik tiri Shauna,Mandy kurang kasih sayang dari ibu mereka yg tukang kawin cerai,demi mengambil hak asuh Mandy,Shauna menawarkan pernikahan sementara dengan dokter pribadi Mandy yaitu Rob,dokter berpotensi tapi sayangnya terlilit banyak hutang. Seperti biasa kalo cerita moc begini gampang ditebak,tapi nggak pernah bikin bosen.
November 13, 2011
I love a short read love story because I read them for mostly fluff and escapism. However the characters here were so strong that I think this one was too short. This was so believable (as far as marriage of convenience to escape from your man-hungry mother story goes) so I wish the story elaborated more.
February 8, 2018
one of my fave book of hers....
been reading it many times, that the book is in fairly condition.
been reading it many times, that the book is in fairly condition.
May 6, 2014
My favorite Leigh Michaels book.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews