Search
Log in
  • Home

  • Categories

  • Audiobooks

  • E-books

  • For kids

  • Top lists

  • Help

  • Download app

  • Use campaign code

  • Redeem gift card

  • Try free now
  • Log in
  • Language

    🇫🇮 Suomi

    • FI
    • EN

    🇧🇪 Belgique

    • FR
    • EN

    🇩🇰 Danmark

    • DK
    • EN

    🇩🇪 Deutschland

    • DE
    • EN

    🇪🇸 España

    • ES
    • EN

    🇫🇷 France

    • FR
    • EN

    🇳🇱 Nederland

    • NL
    • EN

    🇳🇴 Norge

    • NO
    • EN

    🇦🇹 Österreich

    • AT
    • EN

    🇨🇭 Schweiz

    • DE
    • EN

    🇸🇪 Sverige

    • SE
    • EN
  1. Books
  2. Fiction
  3. Contemporary fiction

Read and listen for free for 14 days!

Cancel anytime

Try free now
3.9(57)

The Marriage Act : The unmissable speculative thriller from the author of The One

From John Marrs, the bestselling author of The One. Set in the same world, and narrated by a full cast, The Marriage Act is a dark, high-concept thriller.

‘One of the most exciting original thriller writers’ - Simon Kernick, author of Good Cop Bad Cop

What if marriage was the law? Dare you disobey?

Britain. The near-future. A right-wing government believes it has the answer to society’s ills – the Sanctity of Marriage Act, which actively encourages marriage as the norm, punishing those who choose to remain single.

But four couples are about to discover just how impossible relationships can be when the government is monitoring every aspect of our personal lives, tracking every word, every minor disagreement . . . and will use every tool in its arsenal to ensure everyone will love, honour and obey.

Black Mirror meets thriller with a dash of Naomi Alderman’s The Power.

Praise for John Marrs:

'A page-turning and thought-provoking read' - Daily Mirror

'A socially aware novel packed with thought-provoking questions' - SFX Magazine

'Clever, compelling and terrifyingly plausible. A near future nightmare that grips from the first page and never let’s go . . . talk about a page-turner. This one will leave you with paper cuts! – C. J. Tudor, bestselling author of The Chalk Man

'A smart, gripping and scarily believable story from the master of the speculative thriller'— T.M. Logan, author of The Catch

'John’s creative, high-concept thrillers never fail to keep me furiously turning the pages and The Marriage Act is no exception . . . dark, immersive speculative fiction at its very best!' – Sarah Pearse, author of The Retreat

'A scarily plausible alternative future with a truly twisted narrative. Tensely plotted and terrifyingly imagined! - Harriet Tyce, author of Blood Orange


Author:

  • John Marrs

Narrators:

  • Clare Corbett
  • David Monteith
  • Dugald Bruce-Lockhart
  • John Marrs
  • Joshua Riley
  • Nathalie Buscombe

Format:

  • Audiobook

Duration:

  • 12 h 25 min

Language:

English

Categories:

  • Fiction
  • Contemporary fiction
  • Sci-Fi
  • Contemporary science fiction
  • Sci-Fi
  • Utopias and dystopias

More by John Marrs

Skip the list
  1. The Family Experiment : A dark twisty near future page-turner from the 'master of the speculative thriller'

    John Marrs

    audiobook
  2. The Vacation

    John Marrs

    audiobook

Others have also read

Skip the list
  1. She's Not Sorry

    Mary Kubica

    audiobook
  2. Like A Sister

    Kellye Garrett

    audiobookbook
  3. The Perfect Girl : A Novel

    Gilly Macmillan

    audiobook
  4. The Last Tycoon : The Authorized Text

    F. Scott Fitzgerald

    book
  5. The World After

    Sonador Snow

    book
  6. Not a River : A Novel

    Selva Almada

    audiobook
  7. IT CAN'T HAPPEN HERE (Political Dystopia) : Foreseeing America's Grim and Totalitarian Presidential Future

    Sinclair Lewis

    book
  8. The Caliphate

    Anna Erishkigal

    book
  9. Braking Day

    Adam Oyebanji

    audiobook
  10. The Mountain King: A Novel

    Anders de la Motte

    audiobook
  11. Battle of the Linguist Mages

    Scotto Moore

    audiobook
  12. Man of the Year

    Caroline Louise Walker

    audiobookbook

  • 3 books

    John Marrs

    John Marrs is the author of The Good Samaritan, When You Disappeared, and Welcome to Wherever You Are. A freelance journalist based in London, England, he has spent the past 20 years interviewing celebrities from the world of television, film and music for national newspapers and magazines. He has written for publications including the Guardian’s Guide and Guardian Online, Total Film, Huffington Post, Empire, Q, GT, the Independent, S Magazine and Company.

    Read more

Help and contact


About us

  • Our story
  • Career
  • Press
  • Accessibility
  • Partner with us
  • Investor relations
  • Instagram
  • Facebook

Explore

  • Categories
  • Audiobooks
  • E-books
  • Magazines
  • For kids
  • Top lists

Popular categories

  • Crime
  • Biographies and reportage
  • Fiction
  • Feel-good and romance
  • Personal development
  • Children's books
  • True stories
  • Sleep and relaxation

Nextory

Copyright © 2025 Nextory AB

Privacy Policy · Terms ·
Excellent4.3 out of 5