Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Abbey thought that she was about to have the best night of her life. Her boyfriend, who was also her childhood friend, asks her to dinner and she thinks wedding bells are coming. She is shocked to find that instead of a proposal he actually wants to break up and he's been cheating on her with someone else. To make matters worse, she then quickly loses her job. Abbey decides to turn things around by spending all of her savings on 6 months rent in her dream luxury apartment building. While there, she runs into her ex, who is now dating someone who lives in her building. She's saved from embarrassment by her suave star baseball playing neighbor Mike, who has been bugging her since she moved in. When Abbey and her ex are both invited to her parent's vow renewal in Canada, Abbey decides that she needs a fake boyfriend to bring. Mike volunteers. What Abbey doesn't know is that "Mike Thomas" is actually Ted Thomas, Mike's brother who has been hiding in his brother's penthouse ever since his fiancée cheated on him with his business partner. After Abbey mistakes Ted for his brother, he decides to pretend to be him, fooling Abbey and everyone else.

I had high hopes for this one. I love a good fake dating story. Unfortunately, this one was just not for me.
Pros:
Fake dating is always a must read for me. Literally. Tell me a story has fake dating and I'm all in. I love the romantic potential of dating someone you normalize wouldn't in a low stakes way. Even better if the characters initially can't stand each other. How else will they learn to get along? I think this trope is so fun, even if it doesn't really happen nearly as much in real life as media would make us think.
Dual POV: I love getting both characters' perspectives in a story. The great thing about books as opposed to real life, is that you can know exactly what another person is thinking. Especially with how this story goes, I think Ted would have been pretty irredeemable if we hadn't gotten his POV.
Interesting settings: I enjoyed the diversion to Canada. This book was set in New York, which I think is having its moment right now. The author didn't really explore that setting much, so I appreciated that she moved the characters to a different location, so we could at least explore that.


Cons: (Unfortunately, there are more of these than pros for me)
Mistaken identity- I really hate mistaken identity. I honestly wish I had known going in that it would be a part of this book, as I may not have read it. I included it in my summary but the official one for the book only describes Mike/Ted as a "hot neighbor". I would have forgiven the mistaken identity if it had been corrected quickly, but he doesn't come clean (read: get found out) until nearly the end of the book, which made me anxious and frustrated for most of the story. I didn't buy his reasons for keeping up the ruse to Abbey.
Too many Britishisms: I understand that Boldwood Books is U.K. based, so this may be nit-picky and not an actual issue. I would maybe buy that Canadians might have similar ways of speaking to British people and many characters were Canadian, so perhaps those instances were normal. That's all fine, but when the same phrases were coming out of an American character's mouth, it took me out of the story. The American born Ted said things such as "feck" and "join the queue" and "a kilo of strawberry jelly" to name a few. I feel like an editor could have caught this (or hope that one will now!)
Ted was very superficial. He spent a lot of time rationalizing that he wasn't this shallow guy but the brother he was pretending to be is, so he must also act this way to be him. He spends so much time focusing on the looks of the Abbey and his ex and using this as a way to judge them. Ted also spends much of his initial interactions with Abbey deciding that she is superficial for doing really normal things, which felt very hypocritical. He's supposed to be the nerdy, shy guy but he just came off as a jerk. He also repeatedly mocks Abbey's period underwear that she accidentally dropped in front of him, which made me kind of hate him.
The book felt somewhat incomplete. There were story lines that started but didn't go anywhere. For example, Abbey desperately needed a job. A legitimate company wants to offer one and tells Ted to have her contact them, but he never tells her about it. The book also ends pretty quickly. I would have appreciated an epilogue to know how it ends.

Neutral?
I think that my ultimate issue is that this felt like a mid 90s-early 2000s chick lit/romance. The characters fell into a lot of the boxes of this time: the guy is a jerk, the girl is in distress, there's lots of talk of shopping and a glamorous life. This kind of book was incredibly popular and I'm sure that plenty of people will appreciate it. I think there was a lot of potential in this book, but it just wasn't my cup of tea.

Absolutely love this book! It was so well written and had me swiping to the next page on my Kindle! It was such a cute romantic story. It's not the usual cheesy mistaken identity book as the main trope in this book is fake dating. I love how it ended and it brings me so much joy! I wish it had a sequel for whats next in life for Ted and Abbey. I love the ending and how it all tied together. I really wish we saw more of the happily ever after romance ending more but I'll take what I can get. I also love the family dynamic that she has and I think the ending was exactly what Abbey needed. Highly recommend this book!

I recommend this book to those who love:
- HEA
- Dual POV
- Mistaken Identity
- Fake Dating
- Hidden Identity
- Personal Growth

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for gifting me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was so slow. And that’s part of the 3 star rating. It was so slow paced and kinda repetitive. I would’ve been better if it was shorter. It was funny (also why I rated it 3) I’ve had some laugh out loud moments and it was a cute rom com.

Oh how much I loved reading this one. You can truly call this story a hot mess and I enjoyed every bit of it. The best part was I could relate to Abbey and her personality. She and her sister and her best friend together were the funniest parts.
Now to Ted. Boy was he a mess. I was a bundle of nerves for him when his lies were piling high. And I was on edge, curious to know how all will work out for him and Abbey. My only problem with this book was that the ending was cut short. We didn't get to know about thier career decisions and I was invested in that. But other then that. Definitely a must read if you like ROM COMS

Can you fake a relationship? Abby returns from a work trip and is out with her boyfriend, she thinks he is going to propose to her but he drops a bombshell and tells her the relationship is over and he has met someone else. With her parents wedding anniversary vow renewable approaching and her ex is invited she has to find herself a date. Abby asks her hot neighbour to be her date. Can they fake the whole weekend as a couple? A good laugh out loud romance read.
Overall rating 3 1/2 stars

2.5⭐️

-fake dating
-forced proximity
-Closed door romance ish

Very cute and quick read! Abbey and Ted needed to stop faking it and be themselves!

Ending felt rushed

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC

I really enjoyed this book overall. I just wish that Laura and Ted came clean much sooner and we were able to see how their relationship worked with them being their true selves. I would have even been happy with an epilogue that gave more insight into their future. But in any case, I loved the natural chemistry that the two characters had with each other and I would still recommend!

This is an entertaining read. Ted and Abby are relatable, intriguing, interesting, entertaining, complex characters. I enjoyed their romance with its many twists and turns. The secondary characters added to the fabric of the story and my enjoyment. I wish we had gotten more from the ending of the story – as I feel like some of the threads were left incomplete. The story is easy to read and get into.

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

I really loved this book but the whole lying thing just went on way too long. I would have loved to get to know the characters as a (fake) couple without the mistaken identity part. A lot to love about this book but definitely some things that bothered the shit outta me and lessened my enjoyment.

Laura Carter constructs a Shakespearean-inspired mistaken identify and fake dating caper. After Abbey and Ted's personal and professional lives come crashing down they both find themselves neighbours. Abbey thinks Ted is his pro-baseball player brother Mike, while Ted mistakenly believes Abbey is a shallow actress. Yet he can't help be drawn to her and offers to be Abbey's fake date at her parent's anniversary that her ex-boyfriend is also invited.

I enjoyed the bit of double 'fakery', however by the 60% mark I wanted both come clean to each other about who they really are as it was starting to drag on. It was really frustrating, even after one person reveals who they are that the other keeps hiding the truth from the other. This made the pace dragged on too long before the reveal at the 80% mark before everything got wrapped up too quickly. I also didn't like that once Abbey and Ted finally got together there was no real resolution for Abbey's job prospects. I enjoy reading about character's professional lives as much as the romance, especially given Abbey was talented at her job, so if someone's job and skills are going to be introduced in the book then its only fair to give that a proper resolution.

Overall, this book was a fun and easy read and I breezed through it.

Thanks to Boldwood and NetGalley for the ARC.

Fake it ’til you make it was an overall fun romance read. It was a mixture of fake dating and assumed identities.

Some of the things I liked: Dual Pov, also when the main characters were themselves and had nice conversations. Abbey and Ted are both very smart and have similar interests despite trying to be other people, they had some cute and funny interactions.

Now some of the stuff that kinda took from the story: I get that they were both a bit self conscious after being cheated on but that made them try be who they weren’t. Ted was constantly thinking about how no one would pick a tech guy over an athlete like his brother or a flirty guy like his partner Roman. He also made a lot of assumptions abut Abbey being stuck up just because she lived in a nice place and wore expensive clothes.

With Abbey there were a lot of instances in a conversation when she wanted to say a lot but because she didn’t want to upset anyone she ended up not saying anything and that was the end of it, no more explanation. For that some scenes felt incomplete. Like the ending too felt abrupt , it would have been nice to have an epilogue.

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books for the opportunity to read this ARC and share my honest review.

Who doesn't love the fake dating trope?! I was totally rooting for Ted/Mike and Abbey from the get go. Watching their playful banter turn to deeper feelings had me swooning! I definitely yelled at the book a few times because I just wanted them to communicate, but alas, isn't that par for the course in a rom-com?

Great characters, fun story and a HEA! What more can you ask for? Can't wait to read more by Laura Carter!

📖 ARC REVIEW 📖

Thank you @theboldbookclub for an early copy of Fake It 'til You Make It by Laura Carter. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. 🤍

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐/5
Release date: April 8th, 2024

Blurb: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/203745980-fake-it-til-you-make-it

🛑Read on with caution; review may contain spoilers🛑

Fake It 'til You Make It is a funny, light and easy read. The main characters Ted and Abbey had a lot in common, and their banter was amusing although quite predictable. The supporting characters Shernette and Dee were a delight though, I loved their friendship with Abbey and how they were just very supportive of her in hilariously trash talking her cheating ex, Andrew.

While this was an overall okay and quick read, there were some things I wasn’t a fan of, like how majority of their relationship’s foundation were based on lies, especially on Ted’s part pretending to be his brother Mike in front of Abbey for majority of the story. There’s also Ted and Abbey’s typecasting and judging of each other’s characters, and how insecure they are of themselves that they had to even pretend to be someone they’re not that I didn’t think was even fully resolved with the rushed ending.

I would recommend this novel if you’re into slow-burn and fake-dating romances, and it’s also a good palette cleanser with hilarious banter.

This was fake dating done pretty well! The characters had very good chemistry throughout. The character growth in both Ted and Abbey was very fun to read.

Dee and Shernette were very fun side characters and their friendship with Abbey reminds me a lot of my own friends, and because of that I loved them!

The plot was very well done. I loved the setting and the descriptions of their lives in the city. It was very well written and I thoroughly enjoyed the majority of this book.

However, it was very predictable. I liked the cliché to an extent but it was very clear how this was going to turn out and I found it slower at some points because of this. I felt that while the ending was a little abrupt, it wasn't unexpected to me.

Overall, I enjoyed this book! It was a very easy read and a good palette cleanser, but it could've been just a little better.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for providing me with an eARC of Fake It 'til You Make It in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Abbey and Ted are neighbors whose most recent relationships blew up due to their respective partners' infidelities. They pretend to be in a relationship for her parents' vow renewal so that it looks like Abbey has moved on from her previous relationship in front of her family and Abbey's ex. Here's the catch: they both happen to assume fake identities based on misunderstandings and honestly, self-pity (Abbey thinks Ted is his brother, Mike, who is a pro-baseball player; Ted thinks Abbey is an actress after seeing her Tinder profile). (We can already guess where this plot is barreling towards.)

Tropes:
Fake dating (one of my top favorite romance tropes!)
Relationship of convenience

Unfortunately, I did not connect with the main characters; it didn't really go too deep into their characters despite the fact that they both were cheated on. There was also a weird focus on the comparison between Fleur (MMC's ex) and Abbey (the FMC) (especially on how "unnatural" Fleur's lips were with lip fillers - this was mentioned many times for some reason - and how she had on fake eyelashes). I feel like the author was trying to paint Fleur as being more superficial and into her looks, but sometimes, it made the MMC seem superficial as well. I was irked by the MMC's massive self-pity, specifically his inferiority complex to his brother, best friend, those he considers "alpha males" and what he assumes is the type of men women prefer as the basis for continuing to pretend to be his brother.

Also, I wasn't impressed with how it ended and felt that the ending was very abrupt - I was like, "oh is that it?" Felt like there should have been more.

Overall, a cute but predictable read with Rom-com vibes.

Normally, I don't really care for epilogues, but with this book, OH MY GOD, I needed one! That may be the only thing I have to say negative about the entire book. It's a great book to read if you're in a slump because it moves along quickly. But I do wish the storyline had focused a little more on their romance as opposed to their miscommunication. This was a great enjoyable book, and I really recommend reading it when it's out!

Thank you so much to netgalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC.

My Grade: C+ ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 I think this was a fun read, the slow burn was nice. Needs an epilogue!
Spice Level: 🌶️/5 Just some light kissing and thinking of sexy stuff.

Tropes: Fake dating, enemies to lovers, very slow burn.

The Good and The Meh:
-I love it when authors do a Dual POV. Nicely done!
-The first half of the book was pretty slow with not much happenings, but when the plot moved to Canada then the story got much more fun to read and interesting.
-It was awesome to see Abbey finally find her voice! It was starting to get to me, but the payoff was good.
-Some characters personalities were inconsistent.
-Dee was a pretty awful character. There were some things she did and said that had me shaking my head.
-I am not a fan of the commonly used 3rd act breakup. I do think they are important, but so often they bring nothing positive to the story and make no sense. I wish this book didn't have it, especially since it contradicts some other events.
-The ending was so abrupt! What happened?

Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the read!

Ok I’m stilling crying at the ending 🥺
I loved this !!! It’s such a sweet funny clean romance. I adored abbey and Ted I don’t think you could find 2 people who are so made for each other. I cried I smiled I laughed it was a lovely emotion roll coaster and I’m so sad it’s over. I liked how refreshing different they both are I loved how they are both playing a part their lies matched as well as they did.

Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the ARC of Fake It 'til You Make It in exchange for an honest and independent review.

In a matter of hours, Abbey's entire world comes crashing down. Not only does she find out that her long time significant other, Andrew, has been cheating on her, she also loses her job in New York City, leaving her lonely, homeless, and unemployed. Abbey's best friend and sister encourage her to reinvent herself and start fresh. That means a new apartment in the building of her dreams, new wardrobe, and new outlook on life to help turn a fresh page. Abbey blows her entire wedding savings on doing just that.

On the flip side, Ted has escaped to NYC in the wake of discovering his fiancé has been having an affair with his best friend and business partner. His brother, Mike, who is a MBL player for the San Francisco Giants, offers up his apartment in NYC as a temporary respite to give him time to formulate a game plan in order to move forward.

In a case of mistaken identity, Abbey runs into Ted in their new apartment complex, literally. Ted comes off as arrogant and sarcastic to Abbey and just so happens to live directly above her in the penthouse. He's also incredibly self assured and quite possibly the noisiest neighbor EVER. When Abbey picks up a piece of Ted's dropped mail, she see's that it's addressed to his brother 'Mike.' Enter the case of mistaken identity. While Abbey discovers Mike is a professional athlete, Ted does nothing to correct her assumptions that he personally is NOT Mike, basking in the new identity he's taken on in order to help him overcome his recent troubles. Living under the name of his brother may help him get his confidence back, after all.

Meanwhile, Abbey hasn't been entirely honest either on her Tinder profile (but who is?), which Ted happens to stumble across. When Ted's noises coming from his apartment become too much, Abbey decides to confront him, which then opens the door to a wonderfully hilarious relationship built on both deceit and honest truth. Abbey and "Mike' begin to form a bond that is both supportive and comforting. Abbey helps 'Mike' with some issues related to his business and in return he decides to join Abbey on a trip to her parent's vow renewal to play yet another role of 'fake famous boyfriend' in order to help Abbey save face when she learns Andrew will be attending the same event.

The attraction they feel to each other is visceral, despite the disguises they both try so hard to wear. As walls slowly crumble, will their relationship survive the mistruths, or will this be another reason not to trust in relationships and chalk it up to people just suck?

I honestly loved this book. The slow build of the relationship between Abbey and Ted is swoon worthy and I loved reading his perspective on his feelings and his justifications he makes for not being entirely forthcoming. My ONLY complaint here is that it all ended so abruptly. SO ABRUPTLY. I wanted, needed, craved more of a wrap up. I thought for sure I'd turn the page and see an Epilogue, but there was nothing and I was CRUSHED. Honestly, I would love a sequel to this one because there are still so many things unresolved from a reader standpoint and these characters are honestly 10/10. I still fully believe in my 5 star rating, but I most definitely was left wanting more.

“They’re pretending, but the sparks are real” This is a cute, low-spice, slow-burn, fake-dating rom-com that will have you giggling at the wit and banter between Abbey and Ted. Both MCs find themselves single after being cheated on by someone they thought they were going to marry, they unintentionally find solace in pretending to be each other’s significant other. But both of them are keeping secrets. Will they fall for each other or will the lies and pretending blow up in their faces? If you don’t like a lot of spice (or enjoy adding low-spice books with your spicy ones) and enjoy fun banter then this is the book for you!