There’s nothing better than a romantic tale packed full of wit, sass and sarcasm. At least for me there’s not. Now I love a good love story as much as the next girl but if you can barrel me over laughing then you have hit the tri-factor.

The Dating Game by Sandy Barker is a quick, energetic read full of laughs that can put anyone in a good mood. It is full of sarcasm and queen-b humour as it follows our gossip columnist on a journey of her dreams. Abby Jones dreams of being a real journalist, as much as she loves sharing her banter and thoughts on The Stags and owning the gossip scene, she dreams for more. The book follows her growth and adventure as love appears on the most unlikely of shows.

Sandy has a way with writing, her characters become real personalities living their own lives, whilst the writing is easy and entertaining. The book itself also holds alot of enjoyment for any fans of the Batchelor, it will keep you entertained and dying to go back for a series binge. I really enjoyed reading this novel and feel in love with the sass and fierceness of Abby. She was quick-witted, fiesty and full of fire. She was so much fun and really made the story one to remember.

To any mean girl or hidden gossip lover, this book was written for you. It is the perfect tale to end the Summer with a smile.

OK this book was so fun and really spoke to my soul as a hardcore bachelor nation fan! It was a blast to read and felt like I was sometimes watching an episode of the show! This is my first book read by Sandy Barker and I loved her writing style! I cracked up multiple times during the dating game! I loved Abbey and her quips and thoughts. This book was an adorable and fun read and I really enjoyed it!!

Super cute take on The Bachelor type of TV show but with an Australian twist. I really enjoyed the funny banter and the sass of Abby. This was a fast past read and made me laugh out loud a few times. I will telling my friends who all love reality TV to pick up this read.

Thank you NetGalley, author Sandy Barker, and One More Chapter publishing for giving me a free arc of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
4 stars
If you are a fan of dating reality shows with a splash of comedy this book is for you.
I loved the characters from the on set. Each was well developed and entertaining. The dating scenarios made for some serious laugh-out-loud moments as well as heartfelt. The writing and the pacing kept the story moving and interesting. The ending was very satisfying! I can't wait to read more books by this author in the future.

The dating game is a fictionalised version of the bachelor referred to as the stag. Abby is a columnist who writes a funny recap of every episode under the pseudonym of Anastasia, her column is so funny that the producers of the show asked her to be an undercover doe on the show the next season. Mortified at first Abby can think of anything worse however she doesn't really have a choice and appears on the upcoming season of the stag and is to write her column undercover during her time there. A fun witty story with love laughter and friendship.

I find this rom com to be surprising as the journey of self discovery seems to take precedence to most of the obvious romance that will blossom. Abby is so used to referring to her column South as Anastasia she has managed to separate her personalities as different people entirely. She further does this when appearing on the show by referring to herself as doe Abby rather than it just being herself. Abby is fun, loving, caring, compassionate and a really great friendsl it makes the book an easy read in my eyes. To not spoil the entire plot I will say expect the unexpected although technically from earlier on it is expected but yeah you might end up reading something different than suspected from the get go.

The author is quick witted and clearly has a very keen sense of female empowerment this becomes more evident the more you read the book it’s more about the doe’s rather van the stag and that is what makes the book such a fun an easy read. I find myself routing for Abby rather than routing for love as she is very insecure like many of us women are and is very easy to compare herself to others when she is perfect just the way she is.

The key theme throughout this book his friendship that is shown in all of the different friendships that Abby has either previously had or new friends that she makes on the show. It’s also really illustrates the insecurities that each and every girl has even though to others they may appear to have everything and be perfect.

It’s not all life lessons and moral dilemma’s i must admit it was a really fun read finding myself laughing out loud at several points during the book and those points tended to be when Daniel the stag, was around he is quite possibly the most pompous character the author could write and I loved every second of it. Also there’s a chapter involving meet the parents let me say be prepared to laugh non stop I could not stop laughing it was so funny and so cringe worthy you can imagine it playing out in an episode of the bachelor.

Would I recommend the dating game? Yes I would recommend the dating game. It’s a really easy fun book to read. it almost shines a light on the fakeness of reality TV and that is something I always find quite interesting. There was another book I read last year which had a very similar baseline to it and I really enjoyed that book as well I cannot remember the name but if you know the book I’m on about then you will enjoy this book also. I rate this book 3 ½ stars out of five it was easy going, funny to read, had a great storyline and I look forward to reading further works by the author.

I would like to thank netgalley, the author, and the publishers for the digital advanced copy of the dating game in exchange for my fair and honest opinions.

The Dating Game is a fun Rom-Com about a dating show but with a twist. One of the contestants is really a crew member.

The dynamic between Abby and Jack is fun and full of chemistry.

This book is a fun, light romacne that is perfect for a beach read or a sitting on the couch read.



***Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for my digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

So cute. Young readers will definitely enjoy it. At first I wasn't into the plot, but eventually I fell in love with these characters.

I really had issues with the entire plot of this - the more it went on the more problematic it become. Its just a story of lying and stringing people along for your own personal gain. The romance in this is practically non existent, when we did get a romantic moment they were a carbon copy of the same scene! I was really bored by the end, the characters weren't rememberable at all and i didnt really like any of them, the plot became super repetative.
The best part of this would of probably been the close friendships between the contestants if it wasn't interwoven with all the lies. This was a massive miss for me unfortunately

I found this book really cute and entertaining! I thought Abby was hilarious, but also had her flaws, which makes for a more realistic main character. I loved seeing the friendships develop between the women in the house, and the “true” villains getting their dues.

Pick up this book if you are wanting something to just get caught up in and not have to think much. It’s an easy and light read with not much depth.

Thank you so much to @netgalley and @onemorechapterhc for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

The Dating Game released on Sept. 10th (I’m very much behind the ball!) but the good news is that you can get your hands on it now!! 🥳

Thank you to NetGalley and One More Chapter ARC!

As the author, Sandy Barker, who is a new author to me, says in the ‘authors note’ in the beginning: “There are many characters” and damn, she definitely is right. The characters were too much for me, but it was without a doubt entertaining. The dialogues were funny & cocky and helped me finishing it.
The main character… so… the main character was okay. She was relatable at some points, but then completely different in other situations. Good thing: she was not annoying. So, it was bearable.

I have to admit, i was not a big fan of the romance. So if you are looking for a good romance (and only for that), i’d not recommend it.

Moreover, the story was really easy to follow. My favourite part was undoubtedly the whole “behind the scene” stuff. It was interesting reading about these shows and how they work. Unfortunately, there was no real drama, no hooks, so i wasn’t really into it. I couldn’t feel *the* tingling under the skin.

Yes, i’d recommend it but not as a romance book but more as a “behind the scene in trash TV + a little romance” book.
And i want travel to Sydney.

Tried twice to read this book but being French Canadian, I just couldn’t relate to the Britain language. This is the first time it happens. I am a fan of reality tv but this one was written in a fashion I could not follow through.

This was such a fun and quick book to read. I literally powered through it in a couple of sittings.
Abby Jones is a hilarious character and to be honest, gave me Gracie-Lou from Miss Congeniality vibes in terms of the fact that she did not believe she was the sort of person who would ever be chosen to go on some dating TV show.
Our love interest is simply adorable and I loved everything about him. I’ve read so many books with unhealthy infatuations but I didn’t get that from this book at all.
I mean, was it predictable? Yes. Aren’t most romance books though? I would argue yes. We’re there to watch the characters fall in love.
I enjoyed the overall relationship and how it progressed.

ve never watched any of the dating shows that this book is based on but we all know how they work. A bunch of women compete for the attention of a man. The women are pitted against each other for the enjoyment of the people watching at home. Why do they do this to themselves? How much of it is real and how much is scripted?

These are the answers that Abigail is sent to find when she goes undercover on the set of The Stag. She hopes that she’ll be able to balance being on the show, writing the recaps for the website that sent her, and keeping notes for her own project – a tell-all about what really happens on a reality TV show. But keeping all of these identities secret is harder than she expected.

This book was a light and fun read. I appreciated the overall theme of women helping each other and standing up for each other. It wasn’t what you may expect to read in a book about women being in competition with each other. The author did a good job of making most of the contestant distinct enough that you could keep them straight. That’s hard with such a large cast of characters coming together with no back stories.

Even if you don’t like reality television, you might enjoy this book.

Every time I see Sandy Barker has released a new book I am filled with excitement, and this latest novel of hers is no exception. The dating game follows the story of Abby. She has been tasked with the job of reporting on the much loved, recently revived TV show The Stag, but not only has she been given the job of writing about all of the events that take place on the show, she is also expected to be one of the contestants.

This is obviously far from what Abby has initially been expecting, and she is certainly reluctant to be going undercover and reporting on all that takes place, but when the incredibly handsome Jack enters her life, she realises that this job might not be such a bad thing, as it will allow her to spend more time with him.

As the days pass her by and she finds herself becoming more enraptured by the world she has been thrown into, we get to see a whole new side to Abby as her confidence begins to grow and before long we get to witness the first sparks of romance begin to ignite in her life.

This is a story that is impossible to not find yourself head over heels in love with. The characters are engaging and have their own voices and detailed personalities, something which provides some truly hilarious dialogue at times. The storyline itself is well structured and is overflowing with humour and romance, something Sandy Barker manages to achieve wonderfully. A marvellous read!.

I'm a big fan of Sandy's work and have read a few of her books in the last year and this one didnt disappoint either.

As with Sandy's other books the characters are really relatable and well developed and it's a lovely easy read.

I love the way Sandy makes you feel like you are a character within her books and that is an incredible talent to have.

I'm looking forward to reading more of Sandy's books.
⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Bachelor in book form. Overall I enjoyed The Dating Game with our MC Abby giving us some witty dialogue, which *almost* made up for some of the major flaws in the plot.

The romance between the MC and love interest isn’t really the focal point of the book which did mean I didn’t feel an emotional connection and didn’t find myself rooting for the MC/love interest as much as I was emotionally invested in the MC’s female friendships. The development/outcome of these friendships were definitely much more interesting and enjoyable.

I was a bit nervous with the British/Australian crossover and mix of characters being British but living in Australia, a lot of books I have read just stick to cringey stereotypes. However I was pleasantly surprised that there wasn’t any of that. Both the British and Aussie characters read as very authentic.

Overall I enjoyed it The Dating Game and I rate it 3-3.5 stars. It is a nice, sometimes funny, easy to read rom com. I would definitely read any future books by this author.

If you love reality tv dating shows, this one is for you. This was a cute funny at times read about a writer going undercover on a reality dating show. The book has all the usual elements to make it a success - nice people, mean people and an abundance of romance. This was an enjoyable book. The concept was interesting and it was executed quite well. Jack and Abby were cute and I loved the development of their friendship alongside the romance.

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thank you to @netgalley @sandybarkerauthor & @harpercollinsuk for sending me an e-ARC of The Dating Game.
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I have found myself reading a lot of reality tv type books recently. I think this was my favourite one. I just really loved all the characters & the character development we got from each one. I also really loved Abby & Jack!! I thought they were super cute and who doesn’t love a good ol’ secret romance??
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Abby is a review writer of the popular dating show The Stag. When her agent gets her set up as an insider within the show, Abby is not for it. But, being on the reality show may be her big break into more journalistic and memoir writing! She agrees to go, not out of love but out of wanting something from the show. Is it possible to get both? She doesn’t seem to think so.
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I really loved how this book wasn’t based solely on romantic relationships. Yes Abby & Jack were cute but I also really loved the friendships that came between Abby and the other doe’s.
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I really recommend this to anyone who liked One to Watch, if the Shoe Fits & even the Charm Offensive.
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

I loved the concept of this book. It was so different to other Romance books I've ready, I've never watched any of The Bachelor but Sandy Barker's description of 'The Stag' may have converted me. Must find out how to watch in the UK!

Abby was a brilliant character and I loved how she wrote as Anastasia! I selfishly wish the book had been a bit longer but that's just because I wasn't quite finished hearing from the characters yet, I want to know more!

Can't wait to read more of Sandy Barker's books!

The novel was as promised fun.The characters are endearing and surprising from the start. I had a lot of fun reading the book. The author's writing is quite fluid. I got hooked on the plot right away. It was well thought out and original. For French speakers like me, the book should not be read as a first read, as it is slightly complicated, but if you like challenges, then it is perfect. I would love to read another book by the author.