Reviewed by Cheryl
TITLE: The Professor’s Green Card Marriage
SERIES: Dreamspun Desires
AUTHOR: Heidi Cullinan
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 228 pages
RELEASE DATE: February 18, 2020
BLURB:
I’ll marry you.
Professor Valentyn Shevchenko isn’t sure how to react when, after months of ineffective flirting, the cute barista’s first words to him are a proposal. In many ways, Peter Grunberg is the solution to all his problems. With his work visa inexplicably denied, Valentyn is running out of options to keep from being deported. But is a green card marriage really the answer? Is it still a marriage of convenience when he’s this attracted to his potential spouse.
Peter came to his uncle’s coffee shop in Boulder, Colorado, to reset his life after his struggles with selective mutism returned with a vengeance. He never meant his first words to the handsome ecology professor to be an offer of marriage, but he’s not backing out now. It doesn’t matter that Peter struggles to find words. He can say everything he needs to with his body.
Though this relationship may have started out back-to-front, Valentyn and Peter are determined to make their fake marriage real. But one misstep in their immigration interview could bring everything crashing down. They’ll have to hope that their love is enough to overcome all their obstacles and give them the prize they’ve both been dreaming of: a certified happy ever after.
REVIEW:
I was first hooked on Heidi Cullinan, after reading her book about an autistic boy, Carry the Ocean. It was the first book I had read giving an accurate depiction. As my family are autistic, it was an important book for us, as was the follow up Shelter the Sea was equally as good, and since then I’ve read many of her books, none of which have disappointed.
The Professor’s Green Card Marriage is a strange name for a book, and I think if it had been by a different author I wouldn’t have given it a second glance. That would have been a mistake.
As its title suggests an Ukrainian professor, Valentyn, is facing deportation, and it seems the only way he can stay in the US is by marrying a citizen. Peter, a barista at a coffee shop, whom incidentally Valentyn has had his eye on for some time, blurts out a proposal after overhearing a conversation.
At first reluctant, Valentyn and Peter agree to get to know each other and take it from there. Matters are complicated as Peter suffers from selective mutism and he can’t actually speak to Valentyn. They come up with various ways to circumvent Peter’s rules through text and emails.
As with Carry the Ocean the author manages to walk us patiently and kindly through the growth of a character with potentially very serious issues. At ever stage, it feels as if we are travelling alongside Peter and Valentyn, sharing their frustrations, failures and triumphs.
As with all her other books, the authors writing is flawless and carries the reader forward through the story at just the right pace. There are so many little details that make the experience rich and rewarding. It’s one of those books that you close with a smile and remember fondly when little things remind you of a scene or something one of the characters say.
There are sex scenes, and they are important in the progression of the story and development of the characters and their relationship, but they are not overwhelming, and they are not what the book is about.
Even though the book is about some serious matters it’s not in any way heavy reading. The tone is optimistic and warm throughout, and although there are tense moments and real obstacles to overcome, the overall feel is light and I would recommend it to anyone who likes their characters real and flawed. It’s a superb book and ensures I will continue to read this author whenever I can.
RATING: 
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