“Beauman has uncovered a treasure trove of fascinating detail. Matrimony Inc is the ultimate proof that we humans are fools for love. But also desperate, courageous, and occasionally lucky."

– Amanda Foreman, New York Times bestselling author of Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire and A World on Fire

“A fascinating, hilarious, and occasionally heartbreaking work of history. With wry wit and a trained eye for the absurd, Beauman takes a cultural artifact that seems so perishable and rescues it from the scrap heap. These lonely-heart epistles tell a larger story about social life in America, homesteads, cities, newspapers, gender relations, and the enduring appeal of ‘a good set of teeth.’”

– Patrick Radden Keefe, author of SAY NOTHING, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award

“A gorgeous book. It turns out that the search for love actually was always funny, sad, weird and wonderful.”

– Richard Curtis, writer of, Love Actually, Notting Hill, and Four Weddings and a Funeral

"Francesca Beauman writes with elegance, wit and profound intelligence. Matrimony, Inc. is a wonderful book full of impressive original research which charts how personal ads shaped the course of American history. A joyous and clever read.”

– Elizabeth Day, author of The Party and How to Fail

“Who among us hasn’t been a voyeur of the personal ad? Beauman’s deep historical dive into a person’s most naked ask into the universe is hilarious and maddening and heartbreaking, and reveals through these incredible finds how the needs and expectations of what we look for in a mate have evolved, and what has stubbornly remained the same. You won’t be able to hear the phrase ‘swipe right’ quite the same way again."

– Kathryn Hahn, actor

“Fascinating. Ever since there were newspapers there were personal ads. Reading them is a peek into the romantic hopes and dreams of people who felt the desire to reach out in this public way. Beauman’s book gives us a window into the history of the U.S. and the politics of how marriage shaped this country."

– Joey Soloway, creator of “Transparent”

“Francesca Beauman’s “Matrimony, Inc.” is a lively history of America’s commercialized hunt for romance, from the quaint personals in 18th century gazettes to the crude come-ons of the internet age. Though the specifics change, the challenges remain constant.”

 

– New York Daily News

"Advertising for a partner was, in 1778, pretty radical. But according to historian Francesca Beauman’s t wouldn’t be long before men and women from all over the new country would embrace this unconventional, optimistic and deeply American way of finding a mate.”

– The New York Post

"Beauman is a companionable and witty narrator and an excellent curator of primary source material. History buffs will be entertained."

– Publishers Weekly