Marriage Is a Shore Thing: A Small Town, Accidental Marriage Sweet RomCom

by Laura Langa, Rylee Kuberra (Narrator), John Joseph Rogers (Narrator)

She’s tough. He’s golden. One dare later, they’re hitched.

I’ve sworn off love, so accidentally marrying a stranger after a friendly game of Truth or Dare? Worst. Case. Scenario. Never mind that Evander Young is a brilliant ER doctor with a dimpled smile that makes my heart race.

News of our nuptials spreads through my small beach town like wildfire—only everyone thinks it’s real after a long-distance romance. With my mom ecstatic that her grumpy, boxing-instructor daughter has finally found love, it looks like we’re stuck playing house—at least for now.

The thing is, happily-ever-afters aren’t for people who avoid feelings like they’re a knockout punch. But Van’s golden-retriever energy keeps chipping at my well-forged armor, and the sizzling chemistry between us? Definitely not fake.

When a family heirloom goes missing, Van and I team up for a midnight heist—sneaking through shadows, racing against time, and dodging a few close calls. Turns out, the real risk isn’t the heist—it’s falling for my accidental husband.

Enjoy the playful banter and sizzling tension of this accidental marriage, black cat/golden retriever, small beach town, closed-door/kisses-only romance by grabbing your copy TODAY!

This is the second audiobook in the Wilks Beach Series, but can be enjoyed as a standalone.

Audible Audio

Expected publication January 2, 2026

About the author

Laura Langa is an award-winning sweet romance author. She strives to write stories that pull at her readers’ heartstrings and create relatable characters you can’t help but root for. Laura loves trees and all things green, hates flossing but forces herself to do it every night, drinks tea—not coffee, and believes that salt air can often cure a bad mood.

Visit her website at www.LauraLanga.com
Subscribe to her newsletter at https://lauralanga.com/newsletter
Instagram @LauraLangaWrites
Facebook @LauraLangaWrites

Reviews

[Jennifer Wycech · Rating 4 out of 5]

Accidentally married
Forced proximity
Romcom
Small town
He falls first
Clean romance *kisses only*
Dual POV - 1st person

Duet narration - Rylee Kuberra & John Joseph Rogers
Both new to me narrators and I really enjoyed their performance. Good narration.

This sweet and cute romcom is set in a small town after one night in Vegas.

Geneva has sworn off love and is definitely the grumpy one in this romcom. Van is dealing with grief of loosing a loved one. A drunken night in Vegas these two get “married”

Van is not the type to just fluff it off and get it annulled he wants to give it time to see if he can win her heart. Geneva is reluctant but does give into Van’s plea to stay married.

Overall, a very cute and fun story. Despite there being no explicit scenes I found myself loving the story and the characters. This was well written and preformed.

[Carmen M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and @WestEastPublishing for this ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Marriage is a Shore Thing was such a fun and cozy audiobook. It has that perfect rom com energy with a small beach town setting, playful banter, and an accidental marriage that goes all crazy in the most entertaining way.

The dynamic between the grumpy, guarded FMC and Van’s total golden retriever charm was easily my favorite part. Their fake marriage feels ridiculous at first, but the way it slowly turns into something real was handled so well. The chemistry is obvious, the moments are sweet, and the tension builds in a way that keeps you smiling the whole time.

I also loved the little mystery element with the missing family heirloom. The late night sneaking around added a fun twist and gave them even more chances to connect. It never overpowered the romance but added just enough excitement to keep things moving.

The audiobook narration really brought the story to life. Both narrators did a fantastic job capturing the humor, warmth, and emotional moments. Their performances made the characters feel real and made the banter even better to listen to.

This was a light, charming, and very enjoyable audiobook. If you love fake relationships, black cat and golden retriever energy, and small town romances that leave you in a good mood, this is the audiobook for you.

3.75 Stars!!!

#MarriageIsaShoreThing, #LauraLanga, #SmallTownRomance, #WilksBeach, #NetGalley

[Barbara Schultz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Title: Marriage is a Shore Thing
Series: Wilks Beach Book 2
Author: Laura Langa
Format: 🎧
Narrators: Rylee Kuberra and John Joseph Rogers
Publisher: Dreamscape Select
Genre: Rom Com
My Rating: 3+ fun stars
Pub Date: January 2 2026
Page: 240

Geneva has sworn off love, and is in Las Vegas for a girl’s trip. However finds herself accidentally married to a stranger after a friendly game of Truth or Dare.
Okay Evander (Van) Young is a brilliant ER doctor with a dimpled smile that makes Geneva’s heart race. However, now married they have very different expectations. Geneva was ready for a quick divorce. She never planned to get married, especially not to a stranger. But Van made a promise to his late sister that when he did marry, he would do everything to please his wife and stay married.
Hmmm, Geneva understands, so they agree to give the marriage a chance and will live together for three months.

I am a big audiobook fan but very picky about the narration. I just didn’t love John Joseph Roger’s performance- but I did like Rylee Kuberra performance and enjoyed the story and the ending.

Want to thank NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for this audiobook.
Publishing Release Date is schedule for January 2, 2026.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a charming, small island town accidental marriage, dual POV romance between a black cat boxing instructor and the golden retriever doctor she meets and marries on a bet in Vegas. Not thinking their marriage was real, Geneva went home to live her grumpy, reclusive life, only for her husband to show up and throw her world out of orbit when he demands they give things a real shot and moves in with her temporarily.

Full of excellent banter, a bit of magic/whimsy and fun secondary characters. It was also good on audio for the most part (I wasn't a huge fan of the male narrator - his voice sounded a bit smarmy to me). While this is the second book in the Wilks Beach series it can be read as a standalone. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

CW: grief over loss of loved ones

[Ashley]

ALC Review

Both narrators chosen for this audiobook were an excellent choice. Not only did they bring each character to life, but I enjoyed that they filled in their parts when it wasn't their chapter/POV. I love when audiobooks do this and I have experienced more this past year.

This story includes:

FMC - grumpy
MMC - sunshine
He falls first
Fake marriage
Jewelry Heist

The chemistry for the main character comes through from the beginning of the story. They have great banter and we see them slowly start to care and take care of one another. The side characters are great too.

Overall this is a sweet story, cute story. A great choice if you want a clean romance.

I didn't realize it was the second on a series, but it truly reads as a standalone.

Thank you Dreamscape Select and NetGalley for the ALC.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Evander Young is an ER doctor when he meets Genieva at a bar in Las Vagas when on a dare they decide to get married by Elvis. Three months later Van shows up at Wilks Beach to let Gen know that their fake marriage is not so fake. Van wants to stay and get to know Gen better and maybe by the end of the three months they agree upon they will be more than a fake couple. This was a cute book about love, trust, and loss and moving forward in life. While it is book two in the Wilks Beach series you can read it as a stand alone. I would like to thank both NetGalley and West East Publishing for letting me listen to an advance copy of this audiobook.

[Anni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really disliked the male narrator.
Full review coming soon.
3.5 stars at best…