It was supposed to be just a job. For months April had a plan but it backfired and now she has to rely on Theo. By all counts he is perfect but the thing is Lauren Blakely doesn't make this is an easy fall in love story. We have two people who are playing a game yet when the heart gets in the way one must choose. I loved that these two are funny, shy and afraid to really go into it. Another great hit by Lauren Blakely creating a beautiful book of the possibilities in just believing.

"I received an eBook copy from the publisher for the purpose of an honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own."

4.5 Stars

'I’ve had many clients. Keeping it platonic has never been an issue since I’ve never been attracted to a customer. Until now. Looks like I’ll be getting familiar with how to resist temptation. '

When April is set to visit her hometown for a big family reunion she knows she’s going to need a buffer. Her family can’t understand why she’s wasting her time in NYC when she can settle down with a nice young man in her small hometown. When her friend has to bail on her at the last minute he refers her to a Craigslist ad that his friend posted advertising his fake boyfriend for hire services. His ad is both entertaining and intriguing and April figures she’s got nothing to lose. Sparks fly the first time she meets Theo but they’ve committed to adhering to his strict rules about keeping their arrangement platonic. They give it a valiant effort but the more time they spend together partaking in her family’s silly activities the harder it becomes to deny the chemistry between them. Has April found the real deal with Theo or has everything that’s happened between them just been part of the ruse?

'It’s only been a few days with her, and I should not feel this way, but my heart pounds harder, my bones hum, and I can’t get enough of her. '

The Real Deal is another winner from Lauren Blakely! I loved the fresh spin on the fake relationship trope, having Theo be, more or less, a professional fake boyfriend. His Craigslist ad was clever and funny and I loved how it wove its way all the way to the end of the book. Theo and April were great characters, realistic and people you can picture being friends with. The dialogue was witty, charming, and full of humor and great little insights. I thought they had great chemistry and the story was steamy and romantic. The backdrop of April’s family reunion added an extra element of fun and a whole host of great secondary characters. This book was fun from start to finish and I am totally in love with the epilogue, such a perfect and fitting conclusion to this sweet story! If you’re a fan of Lauren Blakely you won’t want to miss this one and if you’re new to her, I think this is a perfect introduction to her work and a highly enjoyable summer read!

'Maybe this started as a ruse, but it’s turning into something else.'

I can’t think of another author who is more prolific than Lauren Blakely! While most of her books stand alone, I love the fact that I get to read a new book of hers on a quarterly basis and they’re all absolutely fabulous! In The Real Deal we meet an unlikely hero with a checkered past who is playing by the book without involving his heart, until he meets a woman who is the real deal. April loves her family but she hates when they try to set her up with single guys, hoping she’ll fall in love and move home to their little town in Connecticut, which is why she needs Theo as a buffer. Little does she know that this year’s family reunion will be filled with fun, games and love because Theo is the real deal too! A fun, flirty, sexy new standalone that grabbed me by the heart and wouldn’t let go. I read an early copy of this book through NetGalley and all opinions expressed in my voluntary review are completely my own.

I am so in love with Lauren Blakely's books and when I read this blurb I was mad to read the book. I love books with fake dating and even more if it's a light, fast and fun romantic comedy.

Theo is a struggling boy who needs to pay off a debt of the past and offers to accompany girls in situations where they need a man.

April is tired of her family arranging dates for her in the hope that she will return to her small hometown while she only wants to pursue her career after several frustrated dates.

When the day comes to see her family and participate in a competition and she ends up losing her friend Xavier to be her fake boyfriend, she agrees to hire Theo and that's where our adventure begins.

The attraction between the two of them is fulminant and as each one opens their heart to the other the connection increases and we become more and more addicted and in love with the couple.

I loved the plot made in the ideal dose for me, I loved the point of unexpected conflict and I especially loved April's family and the end.

Lauren Blakely does it again with the Real Deal. Her flair for storytelling, character development, and fantastic locations shine through in her new standalone romance.

Theo Banks (love this name!) needs money and working as a bartender just doesnt cut it. On the side, he offers his services as a fake boyfriend but he has very specific rules that must be followed. No touching being the biggest. Being an actor and taking each situation as a chance to develop a character has worked well for him in the past - that is until he meets April Hamilton. Attending her family reunion and sharing a room and pretending to share her life changes everything. Now Theo has to let down his guard and trust that April will understand his deception.

April needs help and a fake boyfriend is just what she needs. This will satisfy her family and she doesn't have to worry about feelings being involved. When her friend backs out of the week and recommends Theo she knows she is in trouble - because the feelings she is having and the tingling every time he touches her cant all be fake. But having real feelings is not part of the deal.

I love Ms Blakely's writing style and have over the course of her library. The last few books she has written though seem to go deeper and have evoked more than ever before and I am so happy to say that the Real Deal does this and so much more. The story is well thought out and told in dual POV's the audience gets to see both Theo and April's journey which I love. The secondary characters are just as fantastic - especially April's BFF and parents and Theo's brother. They bring another layer to the story and I couldn't image the story without them. Ms Lauren has done it again and the Real Deal is worthy of one of my favorite books in 2018.

Theo Banks is IRRESISTIBLE!

I’m so in love with this book! Theo is my new favorite hero! He’s not perfect, but he’s pretty darn close. From his sexy swagger to his good heart, from his charming personality to his witty humor, this man will steal your heart and you aren’t getting it back. His past might have been rocky to say the least, but that past helped to create the man he’s become. Like I said...irresistible.

April is girl-crush worthy! I loved her! She’s smart, witty, and insanely talented. She’s also independent and marches to the beat of her own drum, much to the dismay of her family. She’s got her life all figured out. Now if she can just convince them of that. But I’m glad she didn’t, because then how would she have ever met Theo?

These two together are PERFECT! From funny banter to heated sexual innuendo, Theo and April will have you wrapped up in their magic. I fell in love with them the minute they met. This book is packed full of feels! Sweet, steamy, sexy, and everything in between - this book is fantastic! A definite must-read for any Lauren Blakely fan.

Before diving into this novel, I knew I was going to enjoy it because of the fake dating trope. April is going home for a family reunion, but doesn't want to deal with her family trying to set her up with anyone, so she hires Theo to be her fake boyfriend for the weekend.

Overall this was a funny, light hearted book. I enjoyed the characters, their chemistry seemed believable, and the speed of their relationship also seemed believable. I loved the setting of the book, at April's family reunion, where there's plenty of family stuff going on.

I definitely think the first half of the book was way better than the second half. There were some things that happened that felt really unbelievable, and would not have occurred with two people that only knew each other for two or three days. Because of the events that did not fit in with the rest of the story, I had to lower my rating.

Theo has a past. One he isn't proud of but he was young and he and his brother did what they had to survive and go to college. But he has also learned people are very judgmental. He is a bartender who on the side gets paid to be a pretend boyfriend, no sex is include. He is a great con man.
April loves the big city and loves her job painting on humans. She does elaborate work and is so good she is hoping to win a job at a prestigious magazine. He family don't get it and want he home. So they are always trying to set he up with men back home. When her family reunion coming up she hears about Theo who plays any part you need him to play. So she hires him to be her fake boyfriend.
Right from the start these two characters connect. Their connection is real. They have witty little conversations making up their past dating. It's actually really sweet, and funny. I loved April's family and the fun reunion games.
But as most romances go something always happens and the truth comes out... I actually hurt for Theo. Very little angst in this story and a really sweet ending.

April Hamilton is sick of her family butting into her personal life, so she hires Theo Banks to be her pretend boyfriend during a family reunion. Neither of them expect to have their feelings turn around and start to feel like the real thing.
This was a great romantic comedy and Lauren Blakely always does a wonderful job of including the tiniest details in her characters, which draws you in as a reader, and makes the story even more believable.

Lauren Blakely never fails to bring us a sweet, funny, steamy romance that you will be engaged with from the first page. I love her spin on the fake-boyfriend-for-hire trope

She has given us great characters in Theo and April. These two together are witty, sweet and oozing lots of chemistry. I loved how they instantly jumped into impromptu storylines. This just showed how in-sink and perfect for each other they were.

This is one hell of a must read!

My 4.5 star review is posted on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2066958171

It will be posted on blog and social media upon release and links will be updated at that time. LINKS UPDATED July 10

4.5 stars
April Hamilton is heading home to her family reunion on Wistful, Connecticut. But she needs a buffer to keep her matchmaking family from setting her up and attempting to woo her back home from Manhattan. She loves living in the city and pursuing her untraditional career that she has become successful at. When her male best friend bails on her, she has no choice but to hire a ringer.

Theo Banks comes recommended by her friend. He is a bartender and man-for-hire. He will gladly play any type of boyfriend she needs for a small fee. He has his reasons for needing to earn money and this job can certainly help him get free of his debts.

He is not a gigolo, and he has rules not to get involved with clients. And April is not in the market for a real boyfriend as she has her own trust issues and is on a "man break". But from the beginning they have a spark, a connection, and fun rapport. They can improv stories of their fake relationship, fantasies, and they get along well. And as they spend more time together, the physical attraction keeps growing. But they are in the middle of a reunion full of nosy family members.

As the group plays games, Theo and April's games become more serious and the stakes keep rising. April is sweet, smart, funny, feisty, and kind. Theo is charming, intelligent, resourceful, and caring. There is real attraction, real liking, and jealousy all mixed up in their fake dating story. Pretend kisses are turning real. Lines are getting blurred. I loved seeing them get pushed out of their comfort zones, and realize that they might be getting a bit too attached than they are supposed to.

But they are really from two different worlds where she is from a happy privileged family and he is not. Theo has a past that he is not proud of, and is afraid of being vulnerable and risking both the job and losing April. But her biggest issue is being lied to, so the longer he keeps his mouth shut, the more he risks looking bad.

It is all a bit confusing especially for April to determine what is real and what is fake. Theo is great at thinking on his feet and making her feel special. But he is holding back and eventually it is all going to come out. Will she just see him as another male liar or will he be able to convince her of his real intentions?

This is a humorous, sweet, and swoony fake-to-real-relationship story with quirky characters, secrets, and a bit of mystery. It is told in dual points of view which is critical since Theo is slower to reveal his secrets. Their banter is witty, fast-paced, and fun. This couple is easy to like and relate to. I enjoyed the time spent with her family and all the crazy reunion shenanigans. But at the heart of this story were two people who really needed to find a true connection, but were both afraid of looking for it and not sure how to keep it once they did.

I loved this book. I thought it was such a cute love story. April and Theo are series relationship goals. I love the way they met. April needs to hire someone to go to a family function. I think most people can relate with meddling family members. Her parents and pretty much her whole family still lived in the small town she grew up in and wanted April to fall in love with someone who lived there so she'd move back. I liked how real the story was. It didn't seem like a novel it seemed like something that was happening to a friend. The author has an amazing writing style that just sucks you right in immediately! I loved how easy it was to love all of the characters in the book. I loved the little details too. I would highly recommend this book!

3.5 stars. Not an easy review, as I liked the beginning and the end, however, the story lagged IMO through the middle of the story. While potentially this could be my own issue, I just found that it was way to easy to put down the book and do something else. I can't say what needed to change in this area of the book, because I really can't pinpoint what it was. I liked the couple and the side characters and parts of the book were funny, yet the middle was rough, and I was close to not finishing but I did and I liked the ending. Overall, a good story. *I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and this is my voluntary and honest review.

I have read several Lauren Blakely books before but this one almost felt lighter and more of a summer/beach read to me. Lots of humor and silliness to keep me laughing but even amongst the pages of humor was a love story that was forming. I enjoy Love for hire reads and this one went to the top of my list for rereads in this trope. Loved the characters and how well they all meshed together. It was one of those in your face love stories but unless the characters were looking for love they didn't realize it was right in front of them. Theo and April had a chemistry that not many have together and it was felt page after page. Enjoyable read through and through.

3.75 stars--THE REAL DEAL by Lauren Blakely is a contemporary, adult, stand alone, romantic comedy story line focusing on body painter April Hamilton, and twenty eight year old bartender Theo Banks.

Told from dual first person perspectives (April and Theo) THE REAL DEAL follows the fake relationship between twenty-eight year olds body painter April Hamilton, and bartender Theo Banks. April Hamilton dreads the annual family reunion where she will knowingly become the target of her mother and aunt’s need to play matchmaker to her self-imposed singlehood. Hoping to avoid said matchmaking April answers a Craigslist ad offering a boyfriend-for-hire, the perfect foil to the family busybodies. Enter bartender and ‘actor’ Theo Banks, the man with whom April will fall in love. What ensues is the fake to real relationship between April and Theo, and the fall-out as Theo’s past reveals more than he had hoped to tell.

Theo Banks is in desperate need of a financial infusion when his brother’s past comes looking for payment. A boyfriend for hire as finds our hero coming face to race with his future, a future that will all but be destroyed when his brother unknowingly reveals the truth. Theo doesn’t do relationships, and lets April know that the boyfriend for hire is only a platonic arrangement, a platonic arrangement that turns into something more.

The relationship between Theo and April is fun and flirty; sexy and sassy that continues to push the boundaries of their platonic arrangement. Theo and April compliment one another; work together as though they have known one another for a lifetime, and in the end the palpable sexual attraction cannot denied. The $ex scenes are passionate and seductive, without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

THE REAL DEAL is a fake romance trope; a passionate and heart warming story line of family, friendship, forgiveness and love. The premise is entertaining, engaging and fun; the romance is intimate; the characters are colorful and sassy. THE REAL DEAL is an enjoyable, inspiring and uplifting story line.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

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Wow! I have never read a Lauren Blakely book I didn't enjoy immensely. Theo and April were such a well matched couple. April has a family reunion to go to and she is tired of her family always trying to set her up with a man as well as trying to get her to move back to her hometown. What's a woman to do? Well, seems Theo is able to offer his services as a boyfriend for hire. What starts out as a way for April not to have to deal with what appears to be her meddling family; soon turns into something more than just a boyfriend for hire when the two start falling for one another. In true Lauren Blakely style this a a wonderful rom com, with a bit of a cameo from a character mention from another of her fabulous books. You will have to read the book to find out who it is. I really enjoyed the way April and Theo bounced stories of their romance off one another when coming up with a background story for her family of how they met. I rally liked how those stories seemed to fuel the fire of the feelings they had for one another. Even though they knew that what they originally agreed upon neither could seem to help the bit of jealousy they felt at times. I found that so sweet. This is a really well written story and the ending was just perfect. wonderful HEA. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book. Provided by Netgalley.

The Real Deal
Lauren Blakely

April Hamilton needs a buffer for the annual Hamilton-Moore Family Reunion. Every time, April comes home, someone from her family sets her up on a blind date trying to lure her back home to Wistful, a small town community on the edge of Long Island Sound. Everyone knows everyone. But April loves her job as a body painter. She makes a comfortable living working on commercials, magazines, and movies. April is one of the best. Why would she want to leave New York City for the humdrum of small town living where she would be limited to face painting at the ice cream social. What's a girl to do? She bribes her gay best friend to pretend to be her boyfriend. But Xavier is a male model who gets a last minute modeling gig--two days before the reunion. Xavier doesn't leave her in a complete bind. His neighbor is a bartender with a side gig--boyfriend for hire.

Theo Banks is not the boy next door, but he can be if need be--for a price. His Craigslist ad lists a number of things that he can do. All of it is completely platonic. No, kissing which has never been a problem...well until April. The moment he meets her. He wants to throw all his rules out the window. He has to remain focused. He needs to pay off his brother's debts to ensure that Heath stays on the straight and narrow. Heath needs and deserves a second chance after spending the last two years in prison for fraud and bond scams. Theo hasn't always been a boy scout either. Both brothers have had to hustle their way through college. Life hasn't been kind to either of them. That's another reminder to Theo to keep his business deal with April completely professional. But the more time April and Theo spend together the more both of them develop true feelings for each other. How can they survive with so many lies and other people in their path?

"The Real Deal" by Lauren Blakely
What a wild ride !! I usually steer clear of stories with steam heat... but... maybe because of the way it was presented... it was okay, and, I was not totally turned off. For me I just enjoyed the meeting of two people who .... well,,, learn that sometimes other people are safe and will take really good care of you in all the ways that count. By the way I give this a 5-star review and am very grateful that I was gifted a copy of this story via NetGalley.

As successful as April’s career as an artist in NY is her relationships with men have been the exact opposite. After the latest in a line of debacles she has decided to embrace the single life as men aren’t worth the trouble they bring. The only problem with her plan is that she is supposed to be attending a family reunion and the last thing she wants is to be matched up with everyone in sight, so she decides to hire the “boyfriend experience” to share her pain.

Theo has almost paid off the debt he owes but he was finding that his career as a bartender wasn’t doing it fast enough, so he hires himself out part-time as a boyfriend with no benefits. He has perfected the skill of fitting in anywhere, but he wasn’t prepared for April.

They have an instant attraction to each other and the sparks flew both in and out of bed. What started out as a business arrangement soon developed into much more but is it enough to overcome his past?

I loved these two together as although they have totally different backgrounds they couldn’t be more perfect for each other. Humorous banter, hot chemistry and heartfelt emotion and great characters make this a book that you won’t want to put down. I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Lauren Blakely doesn't disappoint with The Real Deal! The fake boyfriend/fiancée/husband is a particular favorite of mine (when well done), so I was really looking forward to reading this one.

April is trying to avoid the matchmaking machinations of her well-intentioned family and hires Theo to be her fake boyfriend to get them off her back. April and Theo are adorable together right from the get-go. They have amazing chemistry and their connection is palpable. Although April's family is acting out of love, it's hard for April to have them continually think of her as a hapless artist struggling to make ends meet in the "big, bad city". This story was as much about the growth of her and Theo's relationship as it was about her finally feeling strong enough to speak up to her parents about her success.

And Theo certainly doesn't come into the story baggage-free. In fact, he's got a whole train full of oversized bags that need dealing with, and eventually is. Again, there's a lot of growth on Theo's part, separate and apart from his relationship with April.

You can't help but root for them and it's particularly sweet when they do get together in the end.