ARC review

I am bursting with thoughts, so allow me to attempt to translate them all to page. Almost Pretend follows Elle, a sunshiney illustrator, and August, a stone-cold billionaire, in one of my favorite tropes - fake dating. In the first quarter of the novel, my attention was captured. Elle suffers from a chronic illness that I share, intense migraines, and after August displays his white knight behavior in helping her out, she is met with his mutually beneficial proposal to pretend an engagement.

I must say that I enjoyed the beginning of the book and the character's early banter and vulnerability over their dynamic as the book progressed. For fear of spoiling, I will vaguely leave it at that, but I desired better conflict resolution from the male main character. My parting note will be that the epilogue was absolutely adorable!

Thank you NetGalley and the publishing company for this arc!

I am a hugggggeeee Nicole Snow fan. I have read over 15 of her books this year alone. So I was so excited to get this ARC and that it was a part of the Seattle series. But it unfortunately didn’t give me all the feels like other books of hers. The storyline felt rushed yet didn’t follow through quickly. Don’t get me wrong, I will definitely be reading more of Nicole Snow’s books. This one was just not my favorite.

Thank you for sending me the ARC of Almost Pretend.

Engaging story about Elle, who ends up engaged to a billionaire who kindly rescued her from a plane during a bad migraine attack. Yeah, I get them, too- I just never had the billionaire (sigh).

Once the snide media publishes an incorrect version of events, August Marshall, the billionaire, proposes a fake engagement to make himself look better and to save Elle from embarrassment and harassment. Of course, we all know how that trope is going to play out. The question is—- how well did the author do it?

I give the book a 4 star rating. To me, that means I can recommend it without hesitation. Elle is a young 23-year-old. August is in his early 30s. The ten year gap is never discussed, never an issue. They have good chemistry together. Elle’s grandmother is a fantastic side character, and some of the others have great potential as side characters. I would like to see them have a stronger role, but what I did see was good.

I liked the book. I recommend this to readers who enjoy the trope and who also are looking for a humorous, light read. The sex scenes are pretty steamy. Four stars.

“Almost Pretend” is this dysfunctional love story where the protagonist, August, built this hard wall around him since he was a little boy. He just never encountered good examples in the human department. Elle, on the other hand, had more opportunities to learn, becoming this extremely positive person who sees good everywhere and in everyone.
This story is full of second and third chances among all the characters.

This book is a light reading. It’s definitely something you will expect in the romance category. There is not big plot to have you awake at night, just a book to unwind at the end of the day.

I personally enjoy this book. It was well written and the story had a nice rhythm that makes you relax and just appreciate a very happy ending.

Loved this story. August Marshall is probably the grumpiest MMC that I have ever seen. I love it when jerks fall and fall hard which is what happens in this story. Elle is such a strong spirited women who has such a lightness to her. In true Nicole fashion, there was to be some unexpected twists and I did NOT see this one coming either. Another well written piece by Nicole.

I liked the dynamics of Elle and August. It started a little slow because you had to read into who August was. Elle is a great character. I loved the backdrop of the children’s books.

Nicole Snow delivers a delightful grumpy-sunshine romance in "Almost Pretend." The story follows Elle, an upbeat illustrator with unruly hair and a passion for a children's book series, and August, a stonehearted billionaire married to his work. Their paths collide during a cross-country flight, leading to a surprising proposal from August to marry him, all in an effort to quell a media frenzy. Despite initial reservations, Elle agrees, setting the stage for a pretend engagement that sparks real emotions. The book explores the dynamics of their relationship as they navigate the unexpected twists and turns of fake romance. While initially concerned about the potential age gap, readers will find relief in the manageable 10-year difference. The story skillfully addresses the challenges of migraines, adding depth to Elle's character. A minor confusion arises with the use of both Merrick and Rick for a character's name, but the overall handling of the romance, humor, and warmth makes "Almost Pretend" a thoroughly enjoyable read.

I loved this book! The main characters had the witty banter that I’m a sucker for and the pace of the book worked great.

Elle was a ray of pure sunshine paired off with the grumpiest of grumps made for an entertaining story time.

2.5 / 2.0 DNF 26%

Almost Pretend by Nicole Snow is a fake dating/engagement, grumpy and sunshine, billionaire romance. The FMC has a debilitating chronicle medical condition that causes her to be rescued by a complete stranger who is mysteriously kind but extremely rude. They meet on a plane, a Delta flight, in business class. Okay, I can bite.

We get two POV, from August (MMC) and Elle (FMC), but they are like two sides of the same coin. He is supposed to be late thirties and she is early twenties, so there is a considerable age gap. He is supposed to be reserved and knowledgeable, but almost immediately engages in an outstanding display of contrived circumstances and bribes/strong-arms her into being his fiancée. There was mention of him being a widower but I didn’t read far enough to see if that was a plot hole or used as a miscommunication trope later in the book. It is all very messy and convoluted.

Overall, one thing I couldn’t swallow is why a billionaire (yes, with a B) is flying red-eye from NYC to Seattle in Delta Business Class. Nope. Right out the gate, just no. So that made me realize I wasn’t reading even a moderately researched book, just someone’s self-insertion rich-Daddy romance with all the popular tropes mashed together. It’s not good, there’s no chemistry because the characters are shallow and stupid, and there’s no reason to even skip through for the “good” parts.

Until Next Time,
MC

Thank you to NetGalley for access to this eARC.

Ms Snow has done it again. Perfection as always. She has a knack for bringing so much to all characters, even side characters. I loved seeing how much Elle and August grew and opened up to each other. Ms Snow as always does such a great job with the little twists that make the book that much better. Epilogue was perfection.

A great grumpy/sunshine read with fake dating which was the perfect combo. It was a speedy read that I didn't want to put down. The multiple POVs was great and loved reading each of the perspectives. Definitely will read again.

This book was *chef kiss* 🥲 so good! start to finish, it made me laugh, smile, & cry. The story line was amazing, and well written. the perfect balance of storyline & spice.

A quick, easy read for when you're craving grumpy/sunshine!

This was a grumpy/sunshine engagement of convenience done pretty well, it was fun to read and the spice was steamy

Also loved the migraine rep as someone who suffers from migraines.

Elle is a recent college graduate who aspires to be like her childhood hero, author and illustrator. She boards a plane to go back home to Seattle to help with her grandmother and while boarding the plane she is struck with a massive migraine. August is a somber billionaire who is married to his work. August and Elle are sitting together on a cross country flight fighting over the arm rest. After the plane lands Elle collapses in the airport and August is there to catch her. Unbeknownst to them someone photographed the innocent interaction between them. Now Seattle’s most eligible billionaire bachelor is getting engaged to an unemployed illustrator, and they don’t even know anything about each other. Can Elle’s sparkling personality pull the grump out of his gruffykin self.

I almost stopped reading this book because August said that Elle was too young and she was 23. It made me wonder if this was going to be one of those creepy 50 year old men getting together with a 20 year old. Luckily it’s not. There is only a 10 year age difference.

When they have their first kiss after the press conference I wondered why he would do that considering she was in the midst of a migraine and that is not the first thing on her mind. I felt that move was a little manipulative. I was confused a bit when the name Merrick came up since the name Rick was used most of the time. I would like to applaud the author on how they handled how debilitating migraines can get.

Overall this is a fun sparkling sunshine and gruffkins romance that makes your smile and feel the warm fuzzies.

Almost Pretend....

I really enjoyed this book. Elle was such a bright light, she made you laugh and made you smile. You couldn't help but love her. Then there is August, even though he comes off as the hugest grump, you know underneath he has a huge heart just for Elle. There isn't to much of an age gap in my opinion, 11 years isn't much to me. Poor Elle has horrible migraines that wipe her out completely, that is how she ended up in the arms of August and on every cover of every magazine/tabloid. That is where the fake engagement comes into play. Along the way we meet Aunt Clara, Elle's childhood hero, Gram, and Lena. All characters are so good besides Marissa. But she even comes around at the end. The ending did have some weird twists but all in all we get a happy ending.

I loved this book. Billionaire romances are one of my favorites and this book was amazing. The writing was very good and the romance was very good!

This was a definite opposites-attract with very stuffy and uptight August drawn to sunny Elle. The book is a little bit bonkers with an undercurrent of mystery with the copywriting of a cartoon book in play as well as various family skeletons that come out of cupboards. The book kept my interest and it covered a lot of ground as the couple got closer to each other and Elle smoothed out the gruppy edges of August. The baby language of 'grumpikins' grated a bit and took the edge off my enjoyment, but overall a good afternoon read.

Really enjoyed this one. A bit long, but probably needed to be. Not sure if August at the end could really be real, but it made for a good story. Pretty good twists and turns.

Enjoyable story

“Almost Pretend” by Nicole Snow? It's like this perfect combo of grumpy meets sunshine with a side of fake dating. I was all in right from the start! 😍

Elle Lark, the sunshine, is just the right amount of positive vibes. She cracks jokes, radiates warmth, but she's not some unreal, constantly-happy robot. She's human, has gloomy days, and I totally love that balance. You'll be hooked reading her POV. I'm practically attached to her now.

Now, August Marshall, aka “Jet Daddy,” is your classic grump. But guess what? He's not a jerk. Nicole snow nails the balance. He's stubborn, grumpy, but not a total a-hole, especially to Elle. Okay, maybe one time because of a little misunderstanding, but hey, who's perfect? August is healing from his past and buries himself in work until Elle turns his world upside down. The obsession level? Through the roof! Male MC’s obsessed with the female MC? Sign me up!

The book's a speedy read, around 400 pages. Perfect for a sweet one-sit read if you're into fake dating and grumpy x sunshine stuff. Spice rating? A solid 3/5—vanilla and delicious. Heads up, there are some Pop Culture/Gen Z references, but even if you're not a fan (like me), it doesn't ruin the awesome story. Big thanks for the ARC hookup. You gotta read this once it's out!

What more could you ask for in a novel? Romance, mystery, steam and sex all bottled up into one great read! I thoroughly enjoyed it!.