I liked this way more than I expected. The first couple chapters were okay, but then it got so good!
The social dynamics and the sneaky bullying were presented really well.
I loved Vimal! At first he got on my nerves because he was so easy focused on Kerry-a woman that left him. I get it, but I wanted him to move on! Oh and watching him realize Kelly and that crew
wasn't worth his energy was great.
Niro was equally fabulous, but I liked her right away and she did not get on my nerves :) I loved the bits where the reader gets to see the world the way she does, the little details that make her art so special.

thank you to netgalley for providing me with an arc!

this story follows niro, a photographer who, after a messy breakup, has lost her passion for photography, and vimal, a quantitative analyst still hung up on his ex-girlfriend. after being invited to an exclusive holiday by a colleague, vimal, after hearing that his ex is coming with her new boyfriend, enlists niro to be his fake girlfriend to save face (and try to get his ex back). what could possibly go wrong?

this was such a cute book! i loved the way that niro and vimal's personalities complimented each other without having to change themselves for the other person and i always appreciate people of colour being main characters. on that note, i liked the fact that charika showcased both vimal and niro being immersed in their culture and the way that problems such as fatphobia and colourism were tackled. it was brilliant reading about a plus-sized, dark-skinned south asian woman being unapologetically herself as well as desired in a romantic way. the epilogue was also so sweet and i think it was a sweet ending to a sweet book!

Just meh. Slow paced fake dating romance. I didn't feel much reading this and put it down a few times before I could finish it.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

It was a well written story about fake dating! I like the overall story but I think it needed some more to the story. An enjoyable read nevertheless.

This is the second book of Jeevanis that I read and I can say that with every book, she improves.
This story captured perfectly the essence of the fake-dating trope with funny banter along the way. Both of the main characters were interesting and had so much development at their own pace which was refreshing to see.
Although the story had a slow start it was really enjoyable and fun. Perfect for the winter holidays!

I thought this book sounded interesting and right up my alley. However, I didn’t like it. The whole idea of the book was interesting to me but the way that it was executed let me down.

I didn’t want to have another DNF under my belt so I continued to read it and although it was a cute story, I just couldn’t get into it. To be honest, I didn’t like any of the characters. I was almost rooting for Vimal, the male main character, to get back with his ex-girlfriend because I thought that might be more interesting. I mean Niro’s whole personality was based on the fact that people thought she was fat.

Also, I felt like a lot of the parts in the book were just unnecessary. Two scenes, in particular, are ones that I thought could be cut entirely because they didn’t add any value to the book. One was where everyone was at a dinner party and they were just talking about work. Nothing important happened in that scene at all. Nothing. It was useless. The last chapter of the book was about getting revenge on someone who said something racist to Niro and Vimal. I also felt like this was unneeded because it didn’t add anything of value to the book.

Niro and Vimal both grew throughout the book though. They both seemed to mature and feel more confident in themselves. That was about the only thing that had some meaning to me. All in all, I didn’t like this book but I wouldn’t be against recommending it to someone.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'Picture Perfect' by Jeevani Charika.

I must admit, I'm a smidge disappointed with 'Picture Perfect'
The tropes and the whole concept was exciting to me but I felt like the slow paced aspect of it made me feel like I was going into a slump. Which sucks because this book wasn't that big of a book - page wise.

I had two reasons to think that this book would be perfect for me: "fake relationship" is one of my favourite romance tropes, and I loved all of the author's previous novels. I'm now glad to confirm that this one is no exception.
The fake relationship is really well done, with good reasons for both Niro and Vimal to get past the "it's a crazy idea" stage, and the people they aim to deceive are only acquaintances and complete strangers, so it's not at all like lying to family or close friends. I also enjoyed seeing Niro starting to regain confidence in her skills as a photographer, and found Vimal's lack of social skills very relatable. He's also super kind and geeky (but not as boring as his ex thought), so basically my favourite kind of romance hero.
Although Niro appeared in Playing for Love as the heroine's cousin/best friend/flatmate, it's not necessary to have read that book before starting this one... but of course I recommend both.

Having read a couple of Jeevani Charkica's books before, I was excited to start this one, and I'm so glad I read it!
Niro is a photographer who has lost her mojo. setbacks in the forms of broken relationships and constant derogatory comments have worn her down.
Vimal is a hard-working guy who tries his hardest to win back his girlfriend of four years after being told he is simply boring.
Through the meddling of the Sri-Lankan Aunties, they are introduced and somehow end up on holiday together with a mutually beneficial deal in place; she gets her photography mojo back and he wins back the girl.
Is anything ever so simple?
I absolutely loved this story with kudos to Charika for her POC heroine, who is not only overweight but dark-skinned too. The issues brought about by constant remarks about those two attributes weigh heavy on Niro's heart and mind and have huge, detrimental effects on her confidence.
And the best thing is that this story embraced both facts and showed that it is possible, and fine, to look beyond these two factors, and love the person within.
And, sorry to say this but shame on the Aunties for making Niro feel so low with their constant comments about her appearance! Beauty is in everything, and the most beautiful shine from within, not outwardly.
Vimal is a person I feel I know. He is intelligent and capable but so unconfident because he thinks he will never 'fit in' with many of the people he works with. Yet he wants to change himself to win back the love of his life.
The side characters' cast was also great, with Sam, Niro's cousin and cheerleader, and the new friends she makes on this 'working' holiday. Felicity was one who helps to break other stereotypes. Not all young beautiful, and rich people are the shallow, selfish people some think they are. loved how she became another of Niro's cheerleaders!
I honestly wanted to slap Lucien. What a pompous, institutionally racist piece of rubbish! But, again, there are people like that, unfortunately, and good on the author for calling him out!
I raced through this book and loved it, especially the ending. READ IT!
Many thanks to NetGalley and HQ Digital for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Picture Perfect is the perfect fake dating novel! It packed emotion, tension and all the feels that a fake dating book should have! I loved the characters and as a aspiring photographer myself I connected with Niro and her want to emerge herself again in her craft!
I loved the character development for both protagonists and their respective POVS.
Although I enjoyed everything, I would have liked for the book to be a bit longer, so that the ending wouldn't feel so rushed.
Thank you again to NetGalley for an ARC of 'Picture Perfect'.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

It was slow going, and I know I only read 50 pages, but it was 50 pages of feeling meh about Picture Perfect.

I had such high hopes for this, too; I don't normally get to read romances with brown main characters, and this was perfect, but it fell flat. I wasn't hooked from the beginning, and to be honest, it didn't feel like it would get any better... but not that it was bad it just wasn't interesting like I don't mind slow burn or fake dating, they're usually my favourite tropes, but this wasn't it. The conversations felt artificial, and also, it was very short, like I was 50 pages in out of what 293? like it isn't long enough, and my biggest fear was that it was going to end up rushed. I get it fake dating is a popular bandwagon, but I just felt this was missing something, which was a shame because the plot had potential.

[No rating cause it wasn't finished.]

Thanks to Netgalley, HQ, and HQ Digital, as I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

NB: Gave a 3-star review to submit but will remove it once the review is posted on GoodReads so as not to affect the overall rating.

Picture Perfect by Jeevani Charika was a fun book to read.
A very entertaining fake-dating romance novel. I found it to be a fresh and enjoyable read.
This was a total binge-worthy, adorable rom-com story.
I really rooted for Niro and Vimal. Their roles here were amazing.
Also I enjoyed the photography aspect it's nice for something different and I love snapping photos. So that was a win for me too.
I loved both characters progression and growth throughout the novel, but also their imperfections and flaws. It made them both extremely likable and relatable and I couldn’t help but cheer them on.
Picture Perfect is a great contemporary fiction that has it all: life, love, friendship, laughter, and finding happiness amongst it all.

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

HQ Digital,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my blog, platforms, BookBub, B&N, Kobo and Waterstone closer to pub date.

I adored this story! I was excited by the cute cover but when I found out it was also fake dating?! i was thrilled. I loved Niro and VImals relationship throughout the story. The landscape and photography element was also so much fun. Highly recommend!

This was a nice enough read, however I think for the story to have felt truly genuine, I think it would need to be longer. I loved the characters and the setting, but I think the switch in Vimal's feelings was just a little too sudden and quick for me to feel that rush of warmness that romance novels usually give me. However, as I said, great characters, setting and the writing was fantastic.

This was a sweet rendition of the fake dating trope. Sometimes I find this can be overdone or just feel too artificial, but this was fun and I really loved Niro and Vimal's character development throughout the novel. Their perspectives felt well fleshed out and distinctive from one another.
My one critique perhaps would be the ending felt a bit longwinded - the back and forth diluted some of the tension for me, but nonetheless I still loved it.

Than you to Netgalley and the publishers for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A fake relationhip to true love story. A photographer who pretends to be Vimal's gf on a trip so she can take amazing photos. Vimal just wants to win back his ex-gf... Can they find love?

Love how romantic the story is. It's witty and sweet too. Both main characters are terrific. They are amazing together. Really enjoy it.

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.

I love these types of books! Full review to follow! I can’t wait to see how Nito and animals relationship plays out. I love a good fake dating troupe and this one looks like a lot of fun!




Don’t miss this funny and uplifting fake-dating romance from the author of Playing for Love!

Niro is a photographer who’s lost the joy of taking photos. Burned by a bad break-up, she’s in desperate need of inspiration.

Vimal is determined to win back his ex-girlfriend. When he hears she’s bringing her new boyfriend on a group holiday, he impulsively declares that he’s bringing a plus one too.

Their mutual friends have the perfect solution: Niro can pretend to be Vimal’s new girlfriend and join the holiday. Imagine the incredible photographs she could take in the Swiss alps…

She’s not thinking about love. He’s thinking about someone else. Can they fake a picture-perfect relationship – or will real feelings get in the way?

Niro is a photographer who’s lost the joy of taking photos. Burned by a bad break-up, she’s in desperate need of inspiration.
Vimal is determined to win back his ex-girlfriend. When he hears she’s bringing her new boyfriend on a group holiday, he impulsively declares that he’s bringing a plus one too.
Their mutual friends have the perfect solution: Niro can pretend to be Vimal’s new girlfriend and join the holiday. Imagine the incredible photographs she could take in the Swiss alps…
She’s not thinking about love. He’s thinking about someone else. Can they fake a picture-perfect relationship or will real feelings get in the way?
Totally recommend this book really enjoyed it
Thank You NetGalley and HQ
I just reviewed Picture Perfect by Jeevani Charika. #PicturePerfect #NetGalley