A Delightful and Heartfelt Rom-Com

"D’Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding" is a charming and hilarious romance that delivers on every front. The premise of two women planning a fake wedding for a reality TV show is instantly engaging, and the execution is even better. Kris Zavala and D’Vaughn Miller make for a captivating duo making it easy to root for them as they navigate the challenges of the competition and their blossoming relationship.

What sets this novel apart is its blend of humor, heart, and authentic representation. The supporting cast of friends and family adds depth and richness, enhancing the story without overshadowing the central romance. This book is a delightful read for anyone looking for a fresh, fun, and heartfelt romantic comedy.

A witty romantic comedy featuring one of my favorite tropes (fake relationship) and favorite settings (reality television).

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for giving me free access to the advanced copy of this book to read.

Absolutely kicking myself for not reading this one sooner. D'Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding was laugh out loud funny, sweet, and beyond romantic. I was giggling and kicking my feet throughout the whole thing. Plus, as someone who loves a good reality tv dating show, this really scratched the itch!

The plot is the absolute perfect set-up for this love story–the characters get paired up on a reality television show called Instant I Do, where the goal is to convince their respective families they're madly in love and getting married within six weeks. The couple that makes it all the way to the altar can either take the money and run, or actually get married...not that anyone would actually fall in love, right?

This book was SO CUTE. UGH.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for my honest review.

I had high hopes for this book and it was good, but not my favorite. I do love the cover and the storyline, though.

To me, this was a very fast read. A bit to predictable for my taste. Also. I'm not a reality show fan at all, so it didn't hook me from the start. Great character development, very likeable.
Thanks to netgalley, the publisher and author for the chance to read this advanced copy.

This book was amazing! Incredibly steeped in the rich culture of both the mcs, from their Black and Latino identities, to their lesbianism and fatness and everything in between! The romance was unique, and swoony, and sooo hot — but not in a way that was unbelievable! I will be keeping an eye out for this author in the future

When I think of romance, I think of books just like this one, that gives all the feels and satisfies every romance junkies' heart. This is a perfect book to snuggle up with on any day.

Heat Factor: The making out is hot and heavy (plus there’s some sex, too)

Character Chemistry: Their families believe it instantly, but there’s no way this can be anything but fake. Right?

Plot: Kris and D’Vaughn are on a reality show where they have to convince their families that they’re in love—and then plan a wedding together

Overall: Utterly charming

So there’s this reality show where couples are randomly paired together and have to fake being in love so that their families believe that they’re getting married. And with the help of their families, they plan a wedding. If you and your partner make it to the altar, you can choose to get married—or walk home with a huge cash prize. (The premise of this show makes absolutely zero sense to me. Like, how do the logistics even work? But I don’t watch any reality TV that doesn’t involve British people making cakes, so I decided to go with it.)

Anyway, here we are on Season 3, and the show has decided to queer it up! Enter D’Vaughn and Kris. D’Vaughn is 30 years old, a nice Christian lesbian, who is not out to her (very religious) family. She might have mentioned that fact on her audition tape, and you know producers love the possibility of drama. In fact, D’Vaughn is counting on the presence of cameras to ensure that her mother doesn’t respond too negatively to her coming out. Kris is a minor influencer who is looking for love. Say what? Going on a fake-relationship show to find true love? Her sister keeps telling her it’s a back-assward idea, but Kris just has a really good feeling about this plan.

You know they’re going to be paired together because the first time D’Vaughn sees Kris, she chokes on her drink because she finds Kris so unbelievably hot. As she tells the “Jitter Cam”:

"Kris is…fine as hell. That’s it. Just sexy as all get-out for no damn reason. Like…good luck to whoever is paired up with her, because you’re going to need the strength of the gods to keep from drooling whenever you look at her."

Speaking of the Jitter Cam, the structure of the book is really fun. We’ve got alternating first-person chapters told in the past tense, with Jitter Cam interstitials where we get their immediate reactions (as told to the camera) to the events just described. This allows the characters’ voices to shine through. Higgins nails giving her characters distinct voices that feel fresh and contemporary without getting too into the weeds of contemporary pop culture which might date the story.

But back to the plot! Obviously, what we’ve got here is a fake relationship story, where D’Vaughn and Kris are faking for everyone—their families, friends, and, by extension, the producers who decide who gets to stay on the show as the contestants jump through the hoops of wedding planning to get to the altar and the cash prize. Luckily for these two, they have instant attraction and combustible chemistry, and are also so caring with each other that their respective families are so so happy that they’ve each found someone to love them. As with any fake relationship, the tension comes from the question of whether the outward affection is real or just for show. Here, that issue is compounded because Kris has been open about going on the show to find true love.

"“But if it wasn’t me, you’d still be trying to make someone your future something-serious. I’m not a Lego. You can’t just put me into a slot because I fit.”

"Oh. Oh. It hit me then what her argument was. She didn’t want to feel like she was just filling a role. To her, I would have “fallen for” whoever I’d been paired up with, so anything I did was taken with a grain of salt. That also meant that she didn’t believe that I was being authentic with any of the affection I showed her."

This is quite the conundrum, and allows for some meaty angst between the characters, especially as they had toward the home stretch of wedding planning.

While I would call this book, overall, a comedy—it’s pretty light-hearted, has solid banter, and includes some ludicrous wedding-planning scenes—it does deal with the pain and fear of not being loved for who you are. I thought the family dynamics were particularly well done. D’Vaughn has a complicated relationship with her mom and sister that holds both a lot of love and a lot of hurt, and it was handled beautifully; there is pain there, but also hope.

And if that doesn’t sum up why I read romance novels, I don’t know what does.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report.

D’Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding is a slow burn, steamy, fake dating to lovers sapphic romance.

D’Vaughn Miller and Kris Zavala both find themselves on a dating reality show where they could each win $100,000 as long as they plan a fake wedding in six weeks with their families on board. No pressure.

I really enjoyed the chemistry between D’Vaughn and Kris because both women really brought out something in each other, and the loaded banter between the two of them was flirtatious and even super steamy at times.

I don’t normally enjoy coming out stories because they can be filled with so much trauma, but I really enjoyed how Kris navigated D’Vaughn not initially being out and stepping up in the supportive department when the time came.

There’s also a really fantastic conversation that takes place between Kris and D’Vaughn’s mother in regards to Afro-Latinx folks being a part of the Black diaspora that needs to happen more often.

Oh, and lastly, the steamy scenes in this were *chef’s kiss*.

This instant love on purpose plotline made for such a fun take on a trope I normally struggle with falling for and made D’VAUGHN AND KRIS PLAN A WEDDING such a unique read for me. I’m not a huge tv watcher, but I do enjoy reading about reality shows similar to The Bachelor like in recent reads The Charm Offensive and If The Shoe Fits, and loved that like those two titles Higgins brings an added diversity element to the story that I wish we saw more of in books today.

Not only are D’Vaughn and Kris gay, but as women of color, these characters have a lot of adversity to face in their lives, even within their own families. So when D’Vaughn has the idea of using the show to come out to hers, and Kris hoping to fall in love and stay married instead of collecting the hundred thousand dollar prize for fooling everyone around them — instantly I was cheering the couple on to fall in love!

From the moment these characters met, it was obvious these ladies had chemistry and I really enjoyed the pacing and point of view Higgins wrote for each of our characters. I felt their personalities come alive in their actions and dialogue with each chapter and I was immediately pulled in by the story. Supporting one another from the very beginning, and standing up for one another when telling their families about the engagement made this relationship so believable, and easy to see why love at first sight could be possible, at least in my books!

The family members and best friends were such a welcome, wonderful addition to the story. Each member brought something unique to the book, and made me feel included as I read — I want a Cinta in my life! & Niesha! & to be a part of the family and their celebrations, who wouldn’t?! This dynamic gave me all the feels, and I really enjoyed how Higgins wrote these relationships in a way that made it so easy to believe their banter and love.

As a past event planner myself, I had such love for this book, and how the events were laid out in the setting of this show. From where the tapings and meet-ups took place, to how the stress of a fast-paced engagement played a part in their love story, Higgins captivated me with relatable moments and plenty of fun. I look forward to other books that bring a cast of characters so diverse, that gives me all the warm fuzzy feelings of this story!

Oh man, I loved this book SO much. I think that one thing I enjoyed the most about it was the low angst. Like, there was no big misunderstanding at the last third of the book. There were red herrings thrown in to make it seem like it would derail their relationship but they were false. Honestly, their biggest hurdle was their own self-doubts that they were enough for the other and if they could convince their partner of their love. Which smacks of so much truth and reality it almost hurt...but in a good way.

I also think that the author did a good job differentiating between the two narrators. Each character had a distinct tone and personality that was all their own and came out in the writing. I was kind of sad to finish it because it meant that the story was over but of course I can always re-read it!

I was given an eARC of this book for an honest review.

3.25 I think this would have been better for me, but given that D'Vaughn and Kris have such different personalities, I expected them to sound different from each other in their dialog. I also didn't quite like the premise - the reality show aspect was fine (Some of my favorite rom-coms are centered in reality shows), but the show itself really stretched the concept thin for me. Because it doesn't just involve the contestants, but their families as well.

D'Vaughn is a bit shy and is having trouble coming out to her family, mostly because she doesn't know how to express her queerness. So she signs up for a reality show that pairs up contestants and has them convince their families that they are planning for a wedding. Kris is an influencer who is looking to gain some more followers, so she decides to go on the show to prove that she can not only convince her family that she's getting married, but show that she's not quite the Casanova type she portrays on her socials.

It really is just that. Our two leads get paired with each other and work to convince their respective families about their love, and in the process actually fall for each other. For a coming out story, D'Vaughn's is more about now convincing her family that she could fall for a character like Kris. I think it avoids the angst a bit because the pressure is more about winning the prize (a fully paid for dream wedding and honeymoon) than most of the issues with coming out. Don't get me wrong, there are some very sweet moments, but I didn't connect with them as much as I hoped.

It's tough to explain my issues with Kris's and D'vaughn's dialog feels a little too samey. Kris felt to be the bolder of the two, but her word choices and such just felt the same as the less bold D'Vaughn. There were some great passages when they were talking with their friends and family, but when together, they felt too much alike.

Other than that, and the premise of the reality show I had some fun with the book. I think people who enjoy warm and fuzzy comfort romances with low angst, they'd have a great time with it.

*I received this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Triumphantly Black, queer and contemporary, it’s as far from Heyerland as you can get, but the effervescent humor and outright swooning are pure rom-com.

Our title couple are contestants on a high-concept reality show, where for a wodge of cash they have to convince their families that they’re getting married in a matter of weeks. Shy but sharp D’Vaughn is using the show as motivation to finally come out to her religious family; bold, butch Kris is looking for One True Love.

The combination is magic. D’Vaughn’s overthinking is beautifully balanced by Kris’s self-described “all-in” personality, and the dialogue snaps and shimmers. The emotional twist of the knife, as the fake wedding looms ever closer? Exquisite. While this is her debut with a traditional press, Higgins has self-published her work for years and is only getting better. What are publishers for, if not to elevate strong, fresh voices to a wider platform?

DNF. I really liked the premise but the writing did not work for me at all. It wouldn't be fair to the book if I finished reading and gave it a low rating.

A fun and charming read. Great characters.
Many thanks to Carina and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was so good. It had the tropes that I love along with a reality show. I am looking forward recommending this book at an upcoming podcast episode.

First of all, can I just say this is one of my favorite book covers to ever grace the planet? It’s just so unapologetically queer and THAT CAKE is what dreams are made of! (I’m mildly disappointed that the cake and cake toppers aren’t mentioned in the book, but...it’s all good 😅).

I really enjoyed this one! It’s lighthearted and wholesome and I definitely LOLed a few times! The book centers the reality show Instant I Do, in which two people have to convince their friends and families that they’re planning a wedding in six weeks. D’Vaughn Miller (30, Black, lesbian, fat) has been scared to come out to her mom for years, and she wants to use the show as an excuse to do so. Kris Zavala (28, Afro-Latina, butch lesbian) is an Instagram influencer who wants to use the show for exposure and to fall in love in an unexpected way.

Sparks fly instantly between D’Vaughn and Kris, and the lines between fake and real quickly start to blur. Their relationship is heavy on the insta-love by design, but I didn’t even mind much?? The two women fit in perfectly with each other’s families and they quickly realize that they don’t want the whole being-in-love thing to end, which honestly, good for them! Maybe insta-love is more believable to me in the context of a fake relationship .

D’Vaughn and Kris are both so wonderful! I loved D’Vaughn’s endearing shyness in some situations and her suave confidence in others, and I loved how Kris could be equal parts charismatic, romantic, and supportive. The women face relationship obstacles due to the show’s pacing and design, but these things are talked about and settled in a mature manner.

The supporting cast is part of what makes this book great. Kris’ whole family is an absolute delight, and D’Vaughn’s mother is a well-rounded character who learns a lot throughout the course of the book. D’Vaughn pointed out some things to her mom that I’d never thought about before, so I ended up learning a lot from the book! The other contestants were entertaining, but I wished we had more of them, especially Diamond.

I do think there were a few weird word choices (for example, “dark brown pupils” and something x-rated that killed the mood), and some sentences felt too wordy. But mostly, the writing flowed well and was a joy to read.

I’d recommend this book if you’re in the mood for a fake dating rom-com filled Black queer joy, lovable side characters, and open communication.

content warnings: graphic sex, racism, colorism, homophobia

I received an ARC from Carina Adores via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

The pure joy I felt reading this book. I mean, wow.
Chencia was able to make me laugh out loud the entire time. This story was not only funny but heartwarming, from D'vaughn's coming out experience to Kris's search for her forever love. Both D'vaughn and Kris deserve their happily ever after with each other. I appreciated how well Chencia showcased both of their cultures, such as D'vaughn's relationship with her best friend and Kris' extensive family gatherings. All of the side characters added something unique to the story. This book is one of my favorites of the year.

Great plot idea. Nice to see a diverse cast of characters. Some of the language felt problematic though.