Special thanks to Harlequin for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.

I really enjoyed this one. I loved How To Hack a Heartbreak by Kristin Rockaway & I've been looking forward to this one! Instantly. I connected with the main character, Bree. She's going through a huge transition in her life. She hasn't made the best decisions this far & finds herself at a dead-end job with no car & the future is unknown.

I love the relationship Bree has with her older sister, Natasha. They communicate effectively & are open & honest with one another. Natasha has Bree's back through it all. I wish I had a sister relationship like this.

At Natasha's urging, Bree attempts to manifest her future. She does this through an Instagram account. Hitting up hashtags, sunsets, locations, beach shots & more she becomes a small scale influencer.

Throughout the story, we see Bree try to succeed. She's trying to figure out her life's path. I find it so easy to root for Bree because she's honest about her missteps. For me, this is a novel about second chances, finding your purpose & the bond of family.

While there is a hint of romance to the story, the romance is a very small piece. I just devoured this book in less than 24 hrs. I really enjoyed it!

Thank you for the opportunity to be an early reader.

I read Kristin Rockaway’s How to Hack a Heartbreak last summer and I absolutely adored it. Kristin Rockaway is becoming an auto-buy/request author for me! Her writing is spectacular in She’s Faking It! If you’re looking for a quick, fun summer read, definitely pick this one up.

Bree, a 25-year old college drop out, is completely over delivering food to people’s houses through a service called GrubGetter. After a run in with an old professor who made her feel insecure in her choices in life, Bree decides it’s time for a change. Bree decides that she is going to become an influencer on social media to make a living after reading a book about “faking it until she makes it”. She finds out that faking it is unfortunately not that easy.

This story is a testament to today’s society. It’s about how the world sees people on Instagram with the Photoshopped backgrounds and beautiful scenery. It shows that even though things online might be happy and cheery on their page, you have zero idea what their life is truly like behind the pictures. Kristin Rockaway did such a fantastic job writing this because I was able to relate to it so much with how technologically the world is running today.

Next, I loved the fact that this was a very feel-good story. It was motivational, watching this woman try to turn her life around after going through what she did with dropping out of school. It really is like that nowadays where there’s the question of what you’re going to do with your life if you don’t have a direction or degree. I love that Kristin Rockaway turned this into a “you can do whatever you want” story instead of making it seem like people can’t make it unless they have some sort of certification or degree. I especially loved the sisterly bond in this story. Sisters fight and sometimes have a hard time with relationships, but at the end of the day, there’s a protective feeling that I was able to share with Bree and Natasha. It was easy to see the love that they shared.

Finally, I loved the fact that this was a romance novel, but it didn’t take over the entire story. This was more of a feel-good/fiction/self-help story over being a romance. I am a romance fanatic, but I loved that it wasn’t overbearing and didn’t take away from the original message.

Overall, I will always pick up a Kristin Rockaway novel. Her stories are fantastic and her writing is impeccable. I’m always able to relate and her characters are always developed in the best kind of way. Definitely pick this one up this summer! Put it next on your TBR!

She’s Faking It was an interesting read. It involves 25 year old Bree who is adrift in her life. She quit college and makes a very meager living driving for a food delivery service. She reads a "self-help" book and that starts her on a journey of becoming an Influencer on Instagram. I did enjoy the overall commentary about social media, but I did not love the main character.

I thought this was an excellent look at the pitfalls of social media and how one can get wrapped up in the very unreality of Instagram and twitter influence. I also liked the exploration of cancel culture as one of the characters experiences that aspect because of a tweet. What I did not like and had a hard time connecting with was Bree herself. She kept harping on her stoner ex-boyfriend as a loser when she kind of needed to look in the mirror herself. It was all excuses. She did show some growth in the end, but her ending was a bit too convenient for me. So, I did like it overall, I just didn’t love the story as much as a wanted to. Give it a shot and see for yourself.

I really enjoyed the spirit and positive vibes of this book. A total Girl Power read for sure! At least I think that's what I am trying to say? LOL

The author has quite a bit to say about things, social media etc and she does it with a smart entertaining touch.

Bree is a great heroine except for a little point that irked me concerning her relationship with Trey, who is a bit of an ass but that's okay.

I give it 3.5 hearts (out of 5).

Full disclosure: I could not completely relate to any characters in this book. But I still really enjoyed the story. I could totally get behind the “hitting rock bottom to rebuild” setting that propels Bree. I also did feel for her at times. The social media aspect is where I just couldn’t relate. Of any of the characters, I think I could probably identify with Trey most, especially his attitude toward commercialism and social media. I think the author captures the whole movement perfectly from start to finish. And that’s why I ultimately enjoyed this book…it’s almost more of a cautionary tale. For a detailed review, please visit Fireflies and Free Kicks. Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for a digital ARC of the book.

Bree Bozeman is, to put it bluntly, a flake. A college dropout who’s scraping by in the gig economy, making food deliveries in a junk old car and living in an apartment that’s definitely not up to code, she has no plan and no direction… but what makes her different from a lot of twentysomethings is that she’s aware she has a problem. One which is brought into sharp focus when her car dies, leaving her jobless and desperate.

Bree’s sister Natasha comes to her rescue. Natasha’s a professional organiser and obviously doesn’t understand Bree at all, but she tries to help; giving her a self-help book by influencer Demi DiPalma to try and encourage Bree to find what she’s passionate about. Bree starts an Instagram trying to figure things out - posting images of what she wants her life to be like in an attempt to actualize it - and ends up becoming a ‘nano-influencer’. She soon realises the shallowness of it, though, shilling products she’d never spend money on just because they’re free. And then there’s the new man in her life, former pro surfer Trey, whose ex-girlfriend is not only a major Instagram influencer but used social media to trash his reputation.

This is, at its heart, a coming of age story, and one of the things I really liked about it was both Bree and Natasha finding their paths forward weren’t quite what they thought they’d be. There’s some subtle (and not so subtle) commentary about self-help gurus and influencers and how you really shouldn’t buy into the glossy images you see on social media, or put people you don’t know on any kind of pedestal. The romance is really something of a side plot to Bree’s own journey to figuring out who she is and what she wants. Trey’s already been through the process and they’re not really a match until Bree gets out the other side, so realistically he’s actually another source of conflict for Bree for much of the book. The author didn’t fall into the trap of making Bree use her desire to be with Trey as her reasons for change, which I really liked.

Overall, this is a nice and quite light-hearted read, with a bit of searing social commentary about the perils of lusting after a picture-perfect life and getting sucked into the heavily curated world of social media. I thoroughly enjoyed it and am happy to give it five stars.

HOWEVER. When I went to look up the link for this book, I discovered that the ebook is $9.99 on Amazon US and a completely bonkers $24.43 on Amazon AU. Do you WANT to sell ebooks? Because this is not how you sell ebooks. This is a great read, but don’t buy it at that price. Ask your library for it or something.

I lived in the San Diego area for just under 10 years while my husband was in the U.S. Navy. The author does a beautiful job of describing the area of Pacific Beach. She also made me crave a Roberto’s chimichanga…which isn’t hard since I feel as though I’ve been craving a good chimichanga since I moved away from southern California. Anyway, while reading this story I had the feeling of visiting a beloved place and I really enjoyed that aspect of the book.

Bree is a very likable character. She doesn’t have her life together, yet I never felt as though she wasn’t trying. She sometimes went about things in the wrong way, but more often than not she seemed to want to succeed. Her problem was that she wanted to do it her way only, even though she didn’t know what that was. Her sister could have easily become a one-note annoying side character, but she was kept from that by her obvious caring for Bree. Sure, she harped on her about her life. There was also always an undercurrent of acceptance from her even when she wasn’t thrilled with Bree’s choices.

My favorite parts of this story were anything that had to do with Trey. I’m an avid romance reader so I guess that could be expected. But I don’t think that’s the only reason. In the scenes with Trey, Bree seemed to be more herself. She was able to forget about her rent, student loans, car issues, etc. That’s not a realistic way to live life, I know that. But Bree deserved some down time and the reader got to see how Bree could be if she would let down all of her guards.

When it came to the Instagram part of the story, it was easy to see where this story was going. I was fine with watching it play out. Add in the self-help guru, and I got a bit bored. Although Bree and her sister are both very bright people, I do understand how even the smartest among us can get swept up into the mob mentality of being a “tribe” of women with positive aspirations. But, as the reader of this book, I didn’t want to read the self-help book. I short passage here and there, a thought from Bree on the contents of the self-help book, some bullet points on the main ideas of that book…all that would have been fine. Not full pages of the text. I kept waiting for that part to end! Now, it’s not chapters or anything like that. It was still too much for me, though.

Again, the reader pretty much knows how this story is going to play out. Some of it I loved, some of it I didn’t. The connection between Bree and Trey was amazing, not so much the connection Bree had with others in her life. Oddly, I felt her sister’s connection to her, but not her connection to her sister.

I’m sure I’ll try this author again. I enjoyed the read, even if it didn’t blow me away. I may look to see if she’s written romance since those were the parts of the story I felt were the best written and gave me the most insight into the main character.

Social Media is a new trope in romance and women's fiction. It is very current, but I don't think it has the potential to hold up over time. In *She's Faking It* the main character finds direction and success through social media and this leaves the reader questioning the reality vs. the filter of social media.

It was a cute, quick read, but I won't be making room for it on my bookshelf.

This review was commissioned by Harper Collins.

From the moment I met Bree, striving hard to maintain excellence at a job with zero growth potential or future, I identified with everything she was going through. Struggling to pay her bills, always? Check. Battling a mile wide bad luck streak that doesn't even sound real when you're explaining it to others? Oh, CHECK. Bree is goodhearted and easily discouraged and struggling in her mid-twenties to find her way.

Bree is everyone.

What ensues, and how Rockaway relates the dangers of Instagram and feeling inferior when, in fact, most people are highly exaggerating the greatness of their lives, is nothing short of brilliant and moving and hilarious.

The relevance of that feeling, of the "how I wish my life/home/dinner were more Instagram-worthy" makes us all feel like maybe our real lives are Instagram-worthy after all; wilted flowers and in progress changes included.

She’s Faking It takes on the world of social media. Kristin Rockaway gives lucky readers an ambitious “nano-influencer”, her OCD sister who enjoys organizing drawers and thorough house cleaning, her barista friend and YouTube wannabe star, a self help guru who seems to channel Gwyneth Paltrow, and a totally hot professional surfer. This is a laugh out loud quick read but the issues raised will stay with you.

Bree Bozeman is the nano-influencer. She’s also delivered food for restaurant app GrubGetter and been a handyman for service app Minion. A college dropout, she’s getting by on minimum wage and living in an illegal rental when she discovers the world of instagram. Her account, @breebythesea, slowly picks up followers until sister Natasha introduces her to paid followers. It turns out that Natasha is using her social media to get a book deal. And then Bree meets surfer Trey who is trying to take a break from insta fame. Meanwhile, barista Mimi can’t break through with YouTube until she takes on Demi DiPalma, famous author of a self help book who advises people to “Choose Happy!” And charges exorbitant rates for her desert retreats, selfies and branded products. The retreat that Bree and Natasha attend brings this funny, quirky book to its conclusion.

These issues do stay with you. Bree arranges her plate for a photo before she eats. Natasha thinks a peppy slogan can change lives. Trey has learned the perils of fame. And Mimi’s breakthrough go-viral video should make us all think. This book, and especially the character of Demi DiPalma, are definitely worth all 5 stars. Choose Happy, people!

Thanks to NetGalley, Harlequin Trade and Kristin Rockaway for this ARC.

Honestly, I for the life of me cannot remember why I picked this book. The description seems like something I would totally read. It came to me in the spring releases of books from Harlequin. I picked this one and one other. I am always looking for new authors to add to my lists of ones that I read. I however knew that it was going to be a good book and I couldn’t wait to read it.

Bree is kind of at a dead end with her life. Yes, she made be succeeding in her job. But as a GrubGetter delivery driver with 5 stars on yelp that is as good as she is going to get. She lives in a probably illegal apartment above someones’ garage. In talking to her sister she decides to read a self-help book and start her virtual vision board on Instagram. Her life takes a left turn when that happens. This book was adorable. It had some romance but the author kept it to implied sleeping together and didn’t go into detail at all. They did kiss but that was clean as well. Yes, there were some adult situations like dealing with their life and things like that but I personally think this would be appropriate for older high school students or something like that if they wanted an older romance novel, not a YA one.

I gave this book 4 stars because I just felt so bad for Bree. Like everything that would happen. Her car breaks down, her mom died years prior, she dropped out of school after a professor told her she was mediocre. It just seemed like a lot for one person. I know that people do have bad luck and I am sure there are people where everything bad seems to happen to them. I did feel the same with her on her thinking that her sister is put together and has everything going for her. I feel like that with my brother. He is the golden child. His life is perfect. He has a degree from the University of Notre Dame. He has a well-paying job etc etc etc. So on that level, I could see eye to eye with her. I think in the end I will certainly be keeping an eye out for more books by this author. I really did like this book.

A huge thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Bree's life is spiralling out of control. She lost her job, her car is a goner, and the rent on her tiny, not quite legit studio is due. She's been the queen of one-off Internet gigs and minimum wage fiascos. Case in point - her five star rating on Grubhub. But her car is toast - and it's her perfect life, put=together sister Natasha who swoops in to rescue her.

But Bree knows that she needs to climb off the treadmill that has consumed her life. A chance encounter with a hot neighbor and a random Google search convince her that she has found the solution to her problems. And she finds HandyMinions to tide her over until her new star is launched.

This was a hilarious, snarky story about finding yourself in a world that wants to lure you in with promises of instant fame and positive karma.

Title: She’s Faking It
Author: Kristin Rockaway
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4 out of 5

Bree Bozeman isn’t exactly pursuing the life of her dreams. Then again, she isn’t too sure what those dreams are. After dropping out of college, she’s living a pretty chill life in the surf community of Pacific Beach, San Diego…if “chill” means delivering food as a GrubGetter, and if it means “uneventful”.

But when Bree starts a new Instagram account — @breebythesea — one of her posts gets a signal boost from none other than wildly popular self-help guru Demi DiPalma, owner of a lifestyle brand empire. Suddenly, Bree just might be a rising star in the world of Instagram influencing. Is this the direction her life has been lacking? It’s not a career choice she’d ever seriously considered, but maybe it’s a sign from the universe. After all, Demi’s the real deal… right?

Everything is lining up for Bree: life goals, career, and even a blossoming romance with the chiseled guy next door, surf star Trey Cantu. But things are about to go sideways fast, and even the perfect filter’s not gonna fix it. Instagram might be free, but when your life looks flawless on camera, what’s the cost?

This book made me laugh! Bree is the very definition of failing at adulting…except, what if “adulting” isn’t what you want to be or do? Bree just needs to figure out what she wants to do. She is such a relatable character. Her very relatableness made this an immersive read.

It reminded me of Flirting with Forty, in a very tenuous way (At heart, both books are about figuring out what you want and pursing that dream.). I laughed at Bree, I cringed, I hoped she would not make the bad decisions I saw looming…but I was fully invested in her story from the first page.

Kristin Rockaway is a former software engineer. She’s Faking It is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/Graydon House in exchange for an honest review.)

My initial impression was that Bree was an absolute train wreck in the most hilarious way! Then as I kept reading I was able to start see past her flippant exterior and see more into her character. I loved the theme of the book, as I feel anything social media centered is extremely relatable to the majority. I know that it definitely hit home for me, and made me think about my intention with what I post and focus on with my social media accounts. I've never been one to care about follower count, although I do know some people who are obsessed with it. Watching Bree on her bumpy journey was a treat, and the ending made me so very happy. Corny, I know, but that's the purpose of these cute romance stories! This was a fantastic read, meaningful with a great touch of humor. I highly recommend this read to anyone in their mid 20s to mid 30s as it will be more relatable to that age range, but enjoyable to any reader regardless.

Thank you so much to Harlequin/Harper Collins for inviting me to be a part of the blog tour for this book and giving me a free copy of the book to read early! It's even more exciting because it comes out today, so y'all should go check it out right after reading my review ;)

She's Faking It 4/5 Stars

Summary from Goodreads: You can’t put a filter on reality.
Bree Bozeman isn’t exactly pursuing the life of her dreams. Then again, she isn’t too sure what those dreams are. After dropping out of college, she’s living a pretty chill life in the surf community of Pacific Beach, San Diego…if “chill” means delivering food as a GrubGetter, and if it means “uneventful”.
But when Bree starts a new Instagram account — @breebythesea — one of her posts gets a signal boost from none other than wildly popular self-help guru Demi DiPalma, owner of a lifestyle brand empire. Suddenly, Bree just might be a rising star in the world of Instagram influencing. Is this the direction her life has been lacking? It’s not a career choice she’d ever seriously considered, but maybe it’s a sign from the universe. After all, Demi’s the real deal… right?
Everything is lining up for Bree: life goals, career, and even a blossoming romance with the chiseled guy next door, surf star Trey Cantu. But things are about to go sideways fast, and even the perfect filter’s not gonna fix it. Instagram might be free, but when your life looks flawless on camera, what’s the cost?

I thought this book was super interesting! My undergrad degree is in new media and within new media, I mainly focused on social media, so I always take anything an "influencer" posts on Instagram with a grain of salt, because I studied how that works. I also work in marketing, so I know all about influencer relations, BUT I've never read anything about the influencer side and it was super interesting to see how someone like Bree would get started and how many people are drawn into the world of quick fixes and "self help gurus" who promise success for $99.95. I also loved how there was the aspect of Bree and Natasha's bond as sisters and how that grew stronger as the book progressed, first through them doing Demi DiPalma's steps and methods and then just through hanging out. I loved how much they grew as characters and siblings and man, that's what I want to see in books! Rob was trash (and that's all I have to say about him) and Trey, while he seemed sweet and was supposed to be the great romance in the book seemed lacking and I didn't actually like him as much as I liked Bree's friendship with Mari and her relationship with her sister (and her general growth as a person)- when y'all read She's Faking It, let me know what you think about the Bree and Trey situationship. Overall, this was a super fun, great summer read, and I for sure think y'all should pick it up too!

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I was drawn to the premise of She’s Faking It and how it follows someone without any direction in life as she falls into a career as an Instagram influencer. While I’m not a big fan of some of the popular real life influencers, I’m not opposed to reading a story about one if the story is well done…and this one is, for the most part.

While I haven’t been in Bree’s precise situation, I can relate to the feeling she has of feeling like she has no idea what comes next in her life. I enjoyed seeing her take chances and work on improving her life, and it gave me some things to ponder about my own life.

I also really liked her personal relationships with family and friends, especially her sister, who has things more “together” than Bree, and gives her the book that starts her off on her journey.

I really enjoyed this book, and I like its insights into both the world of social media and the issue of not living up to the typical expectations for success. I recommend it to fans of contemporaries, especially those who are interested in stories focused on social media.

She's Faking It is exactly what I needed to read right now!! I was interested and invested from the get-go,

Bree appears to be the complete opposite of her sister, Natasha. Bree is a college dropout whose life just keeps suffering from one setback after another. She works as a food delivery driver and a handy woman who does random tasks, and lives in a not so legal apartment above a garage. Natasha, on the other hand, is living in a 4-bedroom house with her husband and daughter, and running her own business as an organizer and declutterer.

As Natasha attempts to help Bree get her life together, Bree stumbles across the world of Instagram and influencers, and as she’s scrolling through the aesthetically pleasing feeds, decides that’s what she wants her vision board to look like. Of course, this leads to some very eye-opening experiences for Bree and it was something that while we probably all KNOW, we may tend to forget. So, a huge thank you to Rockaway for reminding us about the truth behind so much of what we see on social media.

As for the romance, it was a little light, but I was okay with that since there was so much more going on in the story that I felt was more important. So if you're strictly looking for romance, this may not be for you.

I love how well Rockaway was able to describe the scenes of the PB area of San Diego, and the goings on of the area, the food, the sheer eccentricity of the area in general. I often felt transported to the scene myself, and that's always refreshing.

For me, this felt like a story about second chances, finding yourself and happiness, about love, friendship, and sisterhood, and so much more. I never like to say too much for fear of spoilers.

I think this would be a great beach read and good for discussing during a book club or buddy read, especially for people with a social media presence. I'd recommend this to those that enjoy contemporary

Many thanks to Netgalley and Graydon House for my DRC and the opportunity to provide my thoughts.

This book was not up my alley at all-- the whole idea of a social media influencer is beyond my scope of someone to be admired. Maybe I'm just too old to really enjoy these screwy "girl in her mid 20s trying to figure out her life" type of books anymore. Rockaway's writing was lovely though, even though the story didn't. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for this review.

A college drop out ... a Mary Kondo style sister ...a hot surf pro 🔥... instagram influencers .. a stingray sting ... burritos 🌯... the ocean

This is a cute beach read . I enjoyed the sisterly relationship in the book and the social media components .. the romance was ok but a bit lacking ..

Book rating : 3.5⭐️
Cover rating : 4 🌟


Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for this eARC

I know there are quite a few books out right now featuring social media influencers in some manner but I really liked the spin the author put on that trendy theme. Bree isn’t an established influencer by any means, she has an Instagram account but she rarely uses it until she decides to use it as her own personal vision board. Before she can get very far in her plan to visualize herself into a better life she stumbles into becoming a nano influencer and becomes super caught up into crafting a well maintained, if inauthentic online presence. It was a funny and all too relatable look at how SM impacts our lives and I couldn’t not like Bree even if she seemed a little too helpless at times.
Bree’s relationship with her sister plays a big role in the story and I always enjoy reading about the dynamics of a sister relationship. Trey was a swoon worthy hero for the most part though he did irritate me a little towards the end. The best part for me was seeing Bree push herself outside of her comfort zone and try and take action in her own life. Fake it until you make it is a saying for a reason and watching her take risks and try and better herself was uplifting. Definitely recommended as a fun, breezy summer read!