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Washington Wolves #3

The Marriage Effect

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Logan Ward doesn’t want any more women in his life.

Being a football player and legal guardian to his four younger sisters means his playbook is full. However, one of them just landed in the hospital, which gives his brother the shot he needs to challenge Logan for custody.

Legal counsel says there’s only one thing Logan can do—find himself a wife.

Paige McKinney doesn’t always think things through.

Like walking away from her modeling career without a thought of what might come next. She really doesn’t think it through when she proclaims herself Logan’s fiancé at the hospital, simply because the sexy—albeit grumpy—football player forgot his cell phone at a party and security won’t let her pass. It’s not her fault it was overheard by the worst possible person.

A bargain is struck, and a fake marriage is the perfect solution. But the simple solution creates a whole new problem: they’re not as different as they seem. The reluctant groom has fire inside him, and his impetuous bride is about to light the match.

266 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 12, 2019

3804 people are currently reading
13459 people want to read

About the author

Karla Sorensen

46 books5,013 followers

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5 stars
8,045 (37%)
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3 stars
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152 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,633 reviews
Profile Image for Val ⚓️ Shameless Handmaiden ⚓️.
2,088 reviews36.1k followers
dnf
August 2, 2021
DNF @ 75%

I had high hopes for this…the blurb sounded like one of my favorite jam combos (marriage of convenience AND sports), it had high ratings, and it was from an author unknown to me (meaning huge backlist potential).

But alas, I was bored out of my mind.

The writing didn’t grip me at all and the hero was basically running away from the heroine the whole time, despite the fact that there were allusions to previous fox in the henhouse behavior, if you catch my drift. In fact, there was specific mention of him trying to kiss the heroine of a previous series installment…not my favorite thing.

Next. .
Profile Image for Arini.
857 reviews2,148 followers
April 20, 2023
#1 The Bombshell Effect — 3.25 stars
#2 The Ex Effect — 2.75 stars
#3 The Marriage Effect — 2.5 stars


the way the heroine kept chasing and throwing herself at the hero while him running away . . .



was giving me secondhand embarrassment. but we gotta love her tenacity—especially because . . . i could never. 🙈 that said, i didnt really see the love blooming between these characters apart from the physical aspect of it because i feel like their objective (at least the heroine’s) was merely to reach sexual gratification. after they finally did the business, then it was HEA. i mean, so why . . . when . . . how . . . did they fall in love?? it felt like an insta-love/attraction being drawn out to get to the steamy scenes.

i wasnt so keen on the kids either mostly because they were at the age where they were no longer cute but borderline annoying. not a fan of the heroine as you can tell. cmon, an ex supermodel who’s been living off her (married) friend?? seriously, she was just too brazen, opportunist, and shameless for my taste. wasnt impressed with the prankings. adored the hero tho, his grumpy arse and his protective nature towards his sisters. also, i dug the fact that it was the heroine doing the grand gesture.

(read as an audiobook)
Profile Image for Jessica .
2,622 reviews16k followers
August 19, 2021
After reading the Ward Sister's series, I HAD to go back and read Logan's story. I loved how this was a marriage of convenience and Logan was this cold, hardened football player who was just trying to raise his sisters. He agrees to marry Paige so that he can keep guardianship over his sisters, but he is determined to keep things platonic. I love a good single parent romance, so I was swooning over his relationship with his sisters and how close Paige grew to them as she lived with them. Then, there was a slow burn, undeniable attraction between Paige and Logan that I just loved. Logan's story was everything that I wanted it to be and now I can't wait to go back and read the first two books in this series!
Profile Image for Melanie (mells_view).
1,929 reviews395 followers
June 12, 2019
I can’t quite remember who recommended the first book in this series (The Bombshell Effect) to me, but I want to thank them, because without them I wouldn’t have been blessed with Karla’s magical ability to make me feel all the feelings while reading a flipping sports romance. The Marriage Effect was everything I was anticipating and so much more. A perfect combo of swoon-y, steamy, real, and emotional. Logan and Paige were just two people who needed the same thing at the same time, so they decided to help each other out. What they didn’t account for was the undeniable spark between them, and the perfect balance they brought to each other. They bring out the real sides of each other that they keep from most of the world. Logan and Paige are... everything. Add in four sweet sassy sisters, an irritating brother, and a whole team of Wolves and this story is a tasty recipe for sweet sports romance, that you won’t regret breaking your diet for!!

https://instagram.com/p/BynHR2tgpl4/
https://instagram.com/p/ByRWMQwgjYr/
^fan teaser on IG!

AVAILABLE NOW!!
*ARC

*prior to reading*
LOGAN IS MINE!
I know our love story will be 5 stars, but clearly like the sane person I am, I will wait to review it.

Oh I can’t wait to see how we fall in love. 😂


Yasmin don’t even start with me on goodreads!

Also I don’t think it’s a coincidence that this book is coming out 3 days before my birthday. Clearly it’s my gift!
Profile Image for Syndi.
3,710 reviews1,038 followers
September 25, 2019
From all the books in this series, I like The Marriage Effect the best. Mostly due to Logan. He is that perfect hero who always done the right thing, always putting other needs first before his. He is also burn out emotionally taking care his 4 sisters plus managing his career. The story is marriage convenience. Between an athlete and super model.

I do like the characters development and characters chemistry between Logan and his bride, Paige. I am very impress with how Logan and Paige fits each other perfectly. This book is character driven. It focus more on the banter and conversation between Logan and Paige. The 4 sisters are bonus. I have a trouble connecting with Logan's mother. The reason she left Logan as a legal guardian to 4 sisters are not convincing. It's weird actually.

Overall I do enjoy this book very much.

4 stars
Profile Image for Dilek VT.
1,548 reviews1,725 followers
nope
June 12, 2021
The heroine keeps throwing herself at the hero although he pushes her away. Nope, not my type of romance.
Profile Image for Christy.
4,542 reviews35.9k followers
October 7, 2021
4 stars

The Marriage Effecet was a marriage of convince romance that was not only fun, but gave me feels.

I met Logan Ward when I read ‘Focused’ last month and I was intrigued. Focused is about Logan’s sister Molly and takes place years after this book. Logan is a NFL player but his most important job is being the guardian to his four younger half sisters. He would do anything for those girls, including getting married.

Paige McKinney has her reasons for needed to get married, and Logan Ward seems like the perfect candidate. She already knows him, and she knows he needs the help so they do it. They get married. Logan tries to keep his distance from Paige, but the attempts are futile. These two have way too much chemistry to stay away from each other for long.

The romance between Paige and Logan was quick, but it also felt like a bit of a slow burn watching them fall for each other. I love love loved the family dynamic between the girls and Logan and the girls and Paige. I’m even more excited to jump back into the sisters’ books!

Audio book source: Hoopla
Story Rating: 4 stars
Narrators: Stephen Dexter & Isabelle Ruther
Narration Rating: 4 stars
Genre: Contemporary Romance (Sports/Marriage of Convenience)
Length: 8h 23m
Profile Image for Ainhoa.
591 reviews17 followers
October 23, 2021
Another football sports romance? I hear you asking.

Well, yeah. Because when good, they’re the best and this was so good, with four little sisters I want for myself 🥺
Profile Image for Angie - Angie's Dreamy Reads.
689 reviews13.8k followers
January 12, 2020
4.5 Stars!

THIS BOOK SWEPT ME OFF MY FEET! I absolutely loved Logan and Paige’s story! I don’t know what it is about a hard-ass, broody, moody hero (who’s a bit of a jerk), but GAHHHHHHHHH! Logan RUINED me! I’m so obsessed with that man! So obsessed with the dynamic between him and Paige! I really adored this story! Read it in one sitting. And now that it’s done I’m just a puddle of swoony, mushy, feel good emotions. So sooooooooo sooooooo good! An absolute must read!

PS: you can read this as a total standalone!
Profile Image for Malene.
1,341 reviews758 followers
August 20, 2019
The Marriage Effect is a quick and cute marriage of convenience romance. Paige and Logan were great and so were his four sisters he was taking care of. The story itself wasn’t unique and nothing much happened beside Paige trying to convince Logan to let go of the control and just give in to his desires. The four kids played pranks on Paige which was sweet. The chemistry between Paige and Logan wasn’t quite there for me and maybe it’s because of the lack of intimacy between them for more than half of the story. A lovely epilogue to end The Marriage Effect which made this an okay book.
Profile Image for stingslikehell.
101 reviews
February 1, 2020
tbh, this was a bit disappointing for me. i felt like paige gave so much of herself to logan and the girls, but logan really only gave in to her, and mostly just for the physical. he kept waxing on about how he’s either indifferent to you or all in, but once he decided to finally be all in for paige, all we got was that they had a lot of sex. and at the first sign of trouble as a family, he wrote her right off as less important than his sisters and threw it all on her face; we didn’t see him fight for her at all and only apologized after paige’s grand gesture. all of the work fell squarely on paige’s shoulders— on getting logan to like her, on getting the girls to like her with zero help from logan, on asking everyone else for forgiveness. half the story was paige, but it felt like she disappeared because she was so busy attending to the needs of everyone else. and that made me sad. i wanted someone to fight for paige and understand her like how she was able to read the truth in logan even when he didn’t want her to see. i wanted someone to be passionate for her and about her, and instead we got... logan and this lukewarm barely-there romance. meh.
Profile Image for Rochelle ♡.
445 reviews354 followers
June 23, 2019


When Karla Sorensen releases a sports romance, I know a sure, beautifully written narrative full of belly-aching humour, delightfully sweet moments, heated chemistry and heartfelt emotions is guaranteed. The Marriage Effect doesn’t fail to ensure your mind is enamoured; your heart bursting with so much warmth and enchantment from this faultless marriage of convenience between two seeming opposites.

Paige and I were the same. Whatever fire burned inside her, I had it in me too. I’d just never met anyone who made me want to let the flames consume me. Who made me want to see how hot they could burn, what heights they could reach, what we could reach together.


Irresistible and enigmatic, Logan Ward is an obsession waiting to happen—a man who broods and quietens, but behind the facade harbours a secretive characteristic: a loving sweetheart with an unwavering affection for his sisters. Full of sass, ferocity and unrivalled feistiness, Paige McKinney can’t be ruffled by anyone or anything, but she’s unsettled and the unforeseen weakness in this woman creates a complex, realistic character.

Despite coming across as opposites, this couple is bound together by an irrefutable connection that manifests itself through their marriage of convenience. It is filled with a combination of passionate chemistry, sexual tension and affectionate endearment, you won’t even realise this is slow burn as every moment shared is an enchanting intoxication that’ll ensure you remain invested in this couple.

There was a time in my life when falling in love felt impossible and unattainable, and now I was in love with five people in different ways.


Packed with so much heat, tender moments and genuine emotions, this will become your newest sports romance obsession. But, no matter the sweetness, The Marriage Effect is also about bonds we share and sacrifices we make to protect our family that will fill your heart with many sensations.



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Profile Image for Pavlina Read more sleep less blog  .
2,434 reviews5,103 followers
June 10, 2019
❤❤ 4 STARS ❤❤

I love this series and this characters a lot!I can't hide that the first book is my favorite
but still I enjoyed this one a lot!What I loved in this story is how realistic it was!It has one of my favorite tropes marriage of convenience and the romance was the best part!

I adored Logan and Paige. They just fit together and I loved every minute they have together.I loved the dynamic between these two, they have an amazing connection.Also their relationship was full of emotions and sometimes I had the need to cry.

I loved the writing a lot and the pace was great too.I'm looking forward to see what other has for us Karla Sorensen.

 


  
Profile Image for Halle Reads.
996 reviews184 followers
August 8, 2020
4 Stars 🌟

This is probably my favourite book in this series. I loved Logan & Paige 😍❤ so much fun and super easy to read. I love me a grumpy Hero and I love me a sassy Heroine add in a marriage of convenience and this was just right up my alley. I absolutely loved all the scenes with the Ward sisters also.
Profile Image for Viri.
1,306 reviews460 followers
September 15, 2020
Pues después de meses sin poder leer nada este libro me sorprendió y me ayudó demasiado.

Fue una lectura ligera, tranquila y muy bonita. Me gustó mucho ella y él también.

Además los niños eran de lo mejor.

Tiene todo lo que me gusta, romance fingido, deportistas y niños.

¿Qué más puedo pedir?
Profile Image for NMmomof4.
1,785 reviews5,039 followers
May 12, 2024
3 Stars

Opinion Breakdown
The Good: The premise and the family aspect.

The Not-So-Good: Their conflict resolution was a little cringey corney IMO.

The Bad: The lack of connection I felt towards the characters and their connection.

Overall: This was alright. I always tend to enjoy the arranged marriage theme and also the guardian/parent theme, so I thought this for sure would be a winner. Sadly, I think I was expecting a little too much. It was alright. I didn't hate it or anything. I feel apathetic towards it. I'm sure others would like this, but it was a 3 star "just okay" read for me.

Brief Summary of the Storyline: This is Paige and Logan's story. They know each other because Paige's best friend owns the professional football team that Logan is a player for. When Paige realizes that Logan has been struggling to remain the guardian of his 4 younger sisters and needs a wife, she decides she is the woman for the job. She recently had a significant amount of money left her by her aunt but only in the condition that she was married, so it's perfect for her too. They fight their attraction, there's some pranking done by the sisters, some emotional baggage they have to work through, and some sexy times...and they get a HEA ending.

Point Of View (POV): This alternated between Paige and Logan's POV.

Overall Pace of Story: Good for the most part, it did feel slow at times but I never skimmed.

Instalove: No, instant attraction, but they take a while to develop stronger feelings.

H (Hero) rating: 3 stars. Logan. He was okay. I liked how he was so loyal to his sisters, but otherwise I just thought he was meh

h (heroine) rating: 3.5 stars. Paige. I liked her. I appreciated how she was with the H and his sisters.

Sadness level: Low, no tissues needed

Push/Pull: Yes

Heat level: Hot. They have some hot tension, chemistry, and scenes -- but not so much it takes away from the story. Definitely a slow burn as they are not intimate until ~77% in my kindle app.

Descriptive sex: Yes

OW (Other Woman)/OM (Other Man) drama: No

Sex scene with OW or OM: No

Cheating: No

Separation: Not really

Possible Triggers: Yes

Closure: This ends with a few jump ahead epilogues and what I would call a HEA ending

Safety: This one should be Safe for most safety gang readers
Profile Image for Crystal's Bookish Life.
1,026 reviews1,783 followers
July 9, 2021
This was adorable. Modern day marriage of convenience sports romance with a beautiful found family aspect. Low angst, sweet, funny, and swoony. If you're looking for a fast, happy comfort read this is it.
Profile Image for Rachael*Caribbean*girl*bibliophile.
2,255 reviews517 followers
January 23, 2025
Spoilers ahead




Reread
I like this author's writing style but she seems to havea recurrent theme in some of these books that are pissing me off.....

Here Paige was the one pushing for more, Logan just kept stepping back. Down to the bitter end SHE was the one to make the grand gesture after their very brief separation. I hate that.

Molly needed reigning in, her misleading Noah about her age and going to his room was so damn wrong. Logan's reaction was shit too. And we don't see any corrections about that behaviour. Just promise she won't do it again 😑

All in all I enjoyed this mostly but I hate my h being the chaser, Logan needed to find his balls 🙄😒 nevertheless I loved how he loved his sisters and stepped up for them.

******
No cheating
Non manwhore H
Single parent as he was the guardian for his 4 sisters
Marriage of convenience







Original review

Reread in preparation for Molly's book, just as good as the first time!




4.5*



My favorite the series so far!


First of all kudos to this author for delivering NON manwhore heroes. These guys are football stars worth millions but not a single manwhore so far! (I think I'm in love!!) Sports romance author's please take note!



I liked the first, unfortunately the second book didn't work for me but I adored this one. Logan and Paige were both likeable mcs, I loved his relationship with his sisters he truly went all out for them. He did a lot of pushing away but honestly it worked really well here. Paige was an awesome h, she had her own personal growth by the end as they settled into family life. Her interaction with his sisters were Hilarious and sweet. For me personally I'd have liked to see Molly get a sterner punishment because her actions were scary but in my head she gets her own book with Noah who didn't turn into a manwhore either(hint hint dear author).All in all I enjoyed this one!


That epilogue was all the damn things

I'm hopeful that the sisters get their own books and the other teammates and.......... ahhhh I just want more!
Profile Image for Michal.
766 reviews64 followers
September 20, 2019
Somewhere along the way I stopped writing reviews. Everything is the same. Another rant and another dnf.

Grumpy silent asshole hero.
In this case he wasn't a whore but in most books he is. Boring again and again 😴

Heroine mooning and drooling over the hero and does all the chasing while the hero shows a lot of of restraining and stubbornness and zero chemistry towords her.
Make it an apic love story doesn't it??

Most of the heroines needs a backbone transplant. They always meant to be strong but mostly just pathetic.

Slow burn to death. Killing the romance. The climatic peak is far away towards the end so we have a lot of unnecessary sexual struggling to create a WHO THE FUCK CARES??? drama.

And I just stopped bothering.
Profile Image for Inna.
1,678 reviews372 followers
June 15, 2021
3 stars.

The story would have been better if the heroine hadn’t acted totally pathetic and thrown herself at the hero non-stop for approximately half of the book. Her behavior towards him felt super non-consensual at times, it was cringe inducing.

Then the ending? Oh man. No. No no no. NOPE. Her “grand gesture” was over the top, ridiculous, and just made me wish I had quit reading while the book was still decent. It ruined the ending for me, because frankly, the hero should have been the one groveling. He said some really awful things to the heroine and he barely had to apologize. Pfft.

Safe
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Madison.
454 reviews5,964 followers
May 8, 2022
This is a TOP TIER grumpy sunshine, marriage of convenience, sports romance. Logan and Paige had me smiling my booty off and I wish I could read this for the again first time!

Karla is an author who knows how to write heroines after my own heart—seriously, Paige and Allie both speak so deeply to my soul and who I am as a person, it means the absolute world to me.

I loved Paige’s sunshine to Logan’s grump, but also that Paige wasn’t perfect, she had her fears and flaws but still came out strong and wasn’t afraid to accept when she messed up. She is such an admirable character and one i won’t forget. Logan, that man tried to have a will of steel, but man did it bend under Paige. And who doesn’t love a man who is so deeply devoted to his little sisters? Let’s be real, it’s too swoony.

(I do recommend reading this series in order but you don’t haaaaave to)

I cannot wait to read the Ward sisters next especially after meeting them all here! I’m so glad i read this series first.

To end, here’s a fun quote:
“I swear, if you don’t kiss me, I will die,” she pleaded, settling her fingers on my skin in curved claws. I swallowed roughly and laid my forehead against hers. “Don’t be so dramatic.”
Profile Image for Aviva’s Library.
282 reviews3,894 followers
May 27, 2022
I absolutely loved every second of reading this book. It was the perfect recipe for my favorite type of story - single parent (basicly) to a bunch of devil children, marriage of convenience, pro football payer, slow burn, tension, angst and a grumpy sunshine - literally what more could I have asked for? Nothing.

Don’t ask me why I’ve read all of the books about the Ward family completely out of order but this is my third book that involves this family and it’s the third 5 star I’m giving out. Idk what drug @karla_sorensen put in these books but they’re all super addicting.

Highy recommend this for the next time you need a good pick me up book or need help out of a reading slump
Profile Image for Anto M..
1,231 reviews97 followers
December 14, 2021
4+

Galeotto fu un matrimonio di convenienza. Nulla di nuovo, storia già letta e sentita, ma quest'ultimo capitolo è, a mio avviso, il più carino della serie perché vira più sul lato commedia romantica, pur mantenendo di base sentimenti buoni, sani, come possono esserlo la famiglia e l'amore incondizionato. I due protagonisti fanno scintille, ma chi dà quel tocco in più al romanzo sono quattro simpatiche ragazzine che, a quanto capito, saranno le protagoniste dello spin-off della serie e, porco cavolo, si allunga la lista dei libri da leggere.
Profile Image for ana clara.
280 reviews123 followers
February 1, 2024
“Whatever fire burned inside her, I had it in me too. I’d just never met anyone who made me want to let the flames consume me. Who made me want to see how hot they could burn, what heights they could reach, what we could reach together.”

See, I started reading Karla’s books in the reverse order, meaning all Ward sisters’ books first—meaning, never would’ve I imagined Paigen and Logan were a marriage of convenience. They’re just too good together, and make so much sense, I had to go back and read their story…and I loved it!
Logan Ward is a cold, hardened NFL football player, who always runs from any kind of attention and keeps it to himself. He’s a genius on the field, and behind closed doors, he is the brother of the century. Raising his four younger sisters alone, he’s stuck in a situation, fighting for their custody, and that’s when he meets and marries Paige.
Paige McKinney is a former model, who’s still figuring out what she wants for her life. She’s a badass woman who feels and loves wholeheartedly and knows what she wants. Now, in order to receive an inheritance left to her, she has to be married in less than six months, so when she accidentally engages herself (lol) to Logan, they quickly marry and everything’s solved…right?
When they get married, Logan’s determined to keep things platonic and uncomplicated—even if he’s deadly attracted to his new wife. But Paige, she’s willing, and wanting, to enjoy a good time with her attractive, new and hot husband. And I guess it says everything, but the pinning and banter between them? It is EVERYTHING. They have an insane chemistry from the beginning, and following them as their feelings shifted from just attraction to so much more, in such a smooth way, was really great.
And Logan really is the best brother out there. The fact that, as he was thriving in his career, stepped up and is since taking care of four teen girls all by himself, never complaining, is amazing. I loved seeing the relationship he has with his sisters from his POV, seeing how much he loves them from his eyes. I also loved seeing how Paige’s relationships with these girls, the ones she’d anything for, started. I caught myself more than once tearing up while reading their scenes, just because of how much I love them. And I don’t think I’ll ever be able to get over the fact that Paige was so afraid that Logan would steal her heart, just to a 14-years-old insecure, and afraid Isabel do it first. I really love how their relationship was developed. I love all the Wards so much, that’s it.
Profile Image for Miftahul.
376 reviews206 followers
May 14, 2020
Okay so this book just proved that i am what people call which is known as an idiot. I say that why? Because I read “Focused” before The marriage affect which is about molly who is Logan’s sister, and Logan is our hero for this book. And I realised that this book and Focused are connected after finishing reading. 🤦🏽‍♀️🤦🏽‍♀️ anyway, coming back to this book, it was fun and light but not for me i guess cuz the heroine is strong but she is wayyy to desperate. paige and logan gets married cuz Paige wants to inherit the money her aunt left but in order to do that, she needs a husband. Logan on the other hand needs a wife to get custody of his 4 sisters. They decide to get married, now Paige keeps forcing Logan to have sex with her. I mean his rejection was not like “i am so tired, or maybe later”, he literally said “NO” but Paige kept pushing him like a deso. At the end they have a oh-so-unnecessary fight where Logan yells at Paige and the next day she runs away. Here both behave like immature shits but I hated that Paige kept giving Logan chances. He didnt even regret shouting at Paige, and she just forgave him and apologised for nothing. The way they got together again was cringe af, like hella cringe.

there was no communication between the characters, i dont even know how the fuck they fell in love. idk what’s with the author’s hero who dont have any personality. They are just moody guys who likes football. But still Logan cant beat Noah from “focused” for being the most boring hero.
Profile Image for rach⭑.
703 reviews283 followers
July 17, 2025
4⭑

I love marriage of convenience books so much and this did not disappoint one bit.

Paige and Logan find themselves in a situation where they both need to get married asap. Paige has been left an inheritance by her aunt but there is a clause that she can’t access the money unless she is married whereas Logan has custody of his four younger sisters but his brother wants to remove Logan’s guardianship over the girls.

I loved every aspect of this except the girl doing the grovelling💀that shit always makes me cringe lmao

ALSO I just found out that the four sisters have their own series for when they are grown up so I will definitely be reading that.
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