This is a perfect fit for readers who crave a lighthearted, humorous, and emotional romance with a touch of spontaneity and a strong, sassy heroine who takes risks and falls for a charming, successful man in a complicated situation.

I truly believe that Naima Simone can do no wrong, and while I did enjoy this book because of that, it was not my favourite Naima book. I struggled with the lying regarding Zora's job. And I think Cyrus was horrible to her when it came to light. I wish there had been a better conflict resolution between these two.

I couldn’t get into it unfortunately. The characters nor the story gripped me.

Much appreciated to the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to review.

I really enjoyed this! The author writes romances so well but the other sides of the plot really added to the story

Naima Simone is the master of heart and heat! These characters past hit me directly in the feels and I may never recover. But I will absolutely read again and highly recommend to others! This book kicked of my need to read all the fake dating subgenre I can! Thank you Naima Simone for blessing us all with your writing!

Was really looking forward for this, however I was greatly disappointed. I think the romance wasn't it for me. The chemistry of the leads were not that grounded, and could have been more.

First time reading from this author. I enjoyed reading this story especially since it's fake dating. I like how it's inter-racial relationship. It is a slow burn and the author does a great job.

Tropes: fake dating and slow burn

This book didn’t give me the closure I was looking for, I found the couple to be a little lacking in chemistry. However, this was a fast read and enjoyable. It just wasn’t a book I was obsessed with and will be thinking about again

Hello,

Apologies for the late notice, but I have decided not to review this title.

While I am certain it's obvious by now, I wanted to also clear this off NetGalley, so it's not showing as open for either of us.

I look forward to continuing to work with you in 2023 and beyond.

Laura

I really enjoyed this premise, and thought Zora was a very interesting character. Thanks to netgalley for the opportunity to review.

Naima Simone writes books about grown-ups who are living real lives, who have real wants and conflicts and shortcomings, so when she creates a premise as unique and interesting as this, it feels grounded and compelling.

I had to DNF this so out of fairness I am giving it 3 stars.

I really struggled to get into the story. I disliked Zora’s character and the way she came across in the book which also made it difficult to want to keep reading. And the description she gave of her brother was so weird – it made it seem like he was the love interest. The concept sounded promising but all of this put together just made it unenjoyable for me to start so I decided to DNF after the first few chapters.

Zora and Cyrus were perfection! Zora is paid to break up with Cyrus by his - now - ex-girlfriend. A relationship between them is off limits, completely..... right? I absolutely loved the premise behind this book and watching Zora and Cyrus fight against what they both want but are unwilling to surrender to was romance heaven!

Burned by BURNED!

Zora has been professionally hired by a client named Val to break up with her boyfriend Cyrus, who is a workaholic and doesn't give her enough adoration and attention. When Zora arrives at his door with the unexpected news, Cyrus is very unhappy, surprised and miffed. He falsely thinks Zora's a personal friend of Val's.

When they cross paths again, he wants someone to pay for upending his life and that someone is Zora. Of course, and rightfully so she's reluctant to continue to interact with Cyrus since that puts her in an awkward position and the reputation of her company at risk.

Mesmerized by Cyrus' charisma, and filled with guilt she agrees to a special request made by Cyrus. Rules are set! Plans are made! Ya' know what they say about the best laid plans and about rules, they're meant to be broken—over and over again. Recommended: Read it!

I loved it! 😁

An enjoyable forbidden relationship story, a great introduction to the series. The twists and turns will keep you hooked from start to finish!

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This book is well written and the characters are described well. I enjoyed the sibling characters in this book. This book is entertaining and it will keep you turning pages. This book is set in Colorado. The family relationships in this book is great. This book is in stores for $12.95 (USD).

Naima Simone is a new author for me. This was my first read from her. I read the blurb and was instantly riveted.

The story was a slow burn for me... I mostly just scanned through the pages. I'm sorry... I feel bad giving 3stars but it just did not hold my heart and mind.

I don't know... It just wasn't working for me. I should probably do a re-read. Maybe it will hit the spot the second time around.

***3 Stars***

This is one of those books that I was looking forward to reading but it just didn’t hit like I had hoped it would. I liked it, but didn’t love it. As much as I liked Zora and Cyrus and found them intriguing in their own right, I just didn’t feel a deep connection between them. Lust, like and a sense of more in the future? Sure, but they didn’t give me butterflies. As for the conflict, part of me got it, but it felt a bit drawn out and then the implosion happens and then the quick resolution and…I just needed more out it. But the bromance that started was awesome.

So it’s a full on, it’s not you, it’s me thing.

Does this mean I won’t be picking up the next book?

Nope.

I thoroughly enjoyed Miriam, Jordan, Levi and Deanna and am interested to see them all get their own HEA’s and see how Cyrus and Zora are doing since I do like them and hope that they are doing alright.

~ Copy provided by NetGalley & voluntarily reviewed ~

Thanks to NetGalley and Montlake for the advance read. This book was a late read for me but it was not a good one for me. I tried so many times to read it. I stopped so many times because it was not gripping for me. It was a very flat book and it just was not interesting. I kept reading but I ended up stopping at 75%. This was not for me.

Over the years I loved everything that Naima Simone has written and was looking forward to read this one as well.
It’s a great story with nice characters that grow steady and flawless in my opinion. It has her mark on some scenes and I couldn’t be more happier because we all know that trad pub stories are usually very different from the indie titles.
I’m looking forward to seeing where she’s taking us with this series because some of the secondary characters have drawn my attention quite a bit and will want to read their own book.

Very grateful to the publisher for my review copy