What do you get when a reality star meets and fake dates a famous football player cupcake baker? A sweet fun rom com to brighten your day!

Fake it Till You Bake is a contemporary rom com that will keep you smiling. These characters were fun to read and take the journey with them with fun banter and their growing realization of their feelings. This is a great beach read for this summer to get yourself lost in something entertaining. Just be prepared the descriptions of the cupcakes will make your mouth water while you are reading. Hope to read more from this author in the future.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Fake dating is quickly becoming one of my favorite tropes. And as the title implies, Fake It Till You Bake It has that and then some. Donovan is a football player that has opened a cupcake shop, Sugar Blitz, with his two best friends, who are also his teammates. Jada was a contestant on a show similar to The Bachelor. She won but turned down the proposal. She returns home to find some anonymity after the online backlash.

After their meet cute, complete with Jada insulting his bakery, they are thrown together again when Donovan’s boss and Jada’s grandmother arranges for Jada to work at Sugar Blitz - to help her find some direction in her life. Once a fan of the show recognizes her, Jada and Donovan find themselves in a situation that can only be solved by fake dating. ❤️

I enjoyed their story, and we get both Jada and Donovan’s point of views. Both feeling the insta-attraction, the slow burn as they try to fight it while working together, and finally they get together. Based on the way this ended and a line earlier in the book, I am hoping that this is the first in a series about the guys of Sugar Blitz.

Take a copy of this book to the beach or the pool if you like:
🧁 Fake Dating
🧁 Forced Proximity
🧁 Slow Burns
🧁 Workplace Romance
🧁 Sports Romance

Fake It Till You Bake It is coming out on June 21. Thank you to St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the advance readers copy. All thoughts are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
The premise of the book drew me in but once I started reading it, I just couldn’t get into it at all.
I wish the author, publisher and all those promoting the book much success and connections with the right readers.

Copy received via Netgalley for an honest review

Fake dating books are a favourite of mine. You just know that the couple are going to fall violently in love, but they just can't see it, while we are on the sidelines cheering them on.

Jade and Donovan's story is nothing less than cute and sweet - oh, and you will be dreaming of cupcakes so will probably put on a few pounds whilst you are reading.

I liked that Jade, even though everyone hates her, stand by her decisions. I liked Donovan (eventually) giving an supports her, even if it is for selfish reasons at first.

I also adored Donovan's business partners, and I am soooo hoping they get their stories told in the future.

Rating: 4 stars

A little bit of a slow start that launched into pages full of quick wit, humor, and lovable characters! Fake It Till You Bake It is a true light-hearted romcom that brings together Donovan Dell and Jada Townsend-Matthews. Donovan, an NFL player who is the owner of a Sugar Blitz, and Jada, a reality TV star hiding from the negatives of social media, learn to bond over something as sweet as cupcakes! A fake romance turns into anything but all while navigating complex family dynamics, crowds of camera waving fans, self-doubt, and learning disability. While I didn't love the ending, it did reach a destination that I was happy to read.

Unfortunately this didn’t work for me. I really wanted to love it because it has fake dating and cupcakes. It just wasn’t for me. It might be for someone else who enjoys the fake dating trope like I do.

Fake It Till You Bake It by Jamie Wesley is such a cute and fun read. This book features Donovan Dell, an NFL player and a co-owner of sugar blitz (a cupcake bakery), and Jada Townsend-Matthews, who works at sugar blitz after her downfall from the reality dating show. When a reporter shows up and mistakes them as a couple they receive the answers to their prayers. Entering in a fake relationship will help Donovan’s business and restore Jada’s image. The chemistry between Jada and Donovan jumps off the page. This is a cute book with some laugh out loud moments while also dealing with themes of gambling addiction, the impact of social media, and the pressure to live up to your parents expectations. I gave this book four stars for its hilarious banter, the chemistry, the character development, and for some surprisingly pleasant spicy scenes. It was slow in the beginning and it felt like it dragged on but by the halfway mark I was hooked in. Everyone should read this when it comes out on June 21, 2022.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an e-arc of Fake It Till You Bake It in exchange for an honest review.

Reality tv star. Football pro. Cupcakes. Fake dating. BURNT cupcakes. ❤️❤️❤️ All the hearts!

The fake dating trope gets me everytime! After Jada rejects the proposal of the leading man on a Bachelor-esque reality show, she gets a job at 🏈 Donovan Dell’s cupcake shop. They don’t hit it off at first as she not impressed by Donovan’s business so we get a quick dash of enemies to lovers. The two start up a fake dating ruse that quickly turns into the real thing! It was sweet, fun and made me crave more cupcake romance and a big ol cupcake. Lucky for me Donovan Dell has two equally swoonworthy business partners that potentially could have books of their own, and I have a cupcake shop not too far away! But dang I wish it was Donovan Dell who was serving me!

A misunderstanding leads to fake dating in a bid save Donovan’s bakery and repair Jada’s image. When fiction becomes reality, Jada and Donovan find themselves changing in the best ways.

You know what the best part of every fake dating book is? When the couple falls for each other, of course. I absolutely delighted in watching these two fall in love and reveled in the way their growing affection changed them. Because this story was on the low-drama side, I could sit back and fully enjoy the sweetness between Jada and Donovan, and it was a beautiful thing.

Both had some baggage to deal with in order to build a solid connection with each other, and I found so much joy in the fact that they were able to conquer their pasts and fears together. There was one scene where Donovan really stepped up the support that had me applauding because Jada deserved better. She may have had some missteps in her career path, but her heart was huge and the woman was sharp. She just needed to find her place. Donovan understood that and walked alongside her as she sought her path.

I was totally obsessed with the concept for this book, too. Cupcake baking pro football players? Yes, please! And, it seemed like Wesley was planting a seed for a sequel too. I, for one, would love to read books for all three of these bakers and really hope I get the opportunity to return to this world.

Overall, I loved seeing this fauxmauce become real and hope to see each football baker get his HEA.

DNF at 13%

I was excited for this book, but alas it wasn't a book for me. I love a baking romance and this one sounded intriguing with a sexy football player as the bakery owner. The writing of the book, that I read, felt very clunky and flat. I didn't care for Jada, the female protagonist, as she very quickly came off as a spoiled, rich brat and rubbed me the wrong way. I gave it a few chapter to see if the writing and book in general would work for me, but it didn't.

This was a very sweet romance, literally and figuratively. It was the perfect light read with low drama.

Donovan is sweet to Jada’s sassy. They’re opposites, but balance each other out. I love how supportive he is of her when she really doesn’t get a lot from her family and I loved that she brought some impulsivity into his life.
There was a lot of banter, which I love.

Their friends all play a fun role and I love some meddling sisters.

You’ll probably get hungry from all the cupcake talk.

Overall, I enjoyed it. I loved that it took place in San Diego, which is where I’m from. I feel like it may be setting up for more books, maybe with Donovan’s team mates, so that’s something to look forward to.

4 Stars

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley. I voluntarily reviewed an early copy of this book.

This book is literally so sweet and delicious! Highly recommend for fans or Jasmine Guillory and romance books.

This book has been absolutely adorable with lots of charm and cute scenes. Although I was not familiar with its technical aspects of the book that didn't stop my enjoyment at all! I 100% recommend because you'll end up shipping these characters together!! I can't wait to be able to buy a physical copy!! Thank you so much for allowing me to read this book in advance in exchange for a review.

Book Review: Fake It Till You Bake It
 
This was my first read from Jamie Wesley, courtesy of @netgalley & @stmartinspress, and I read it almost in one sitting! Though I received an ARC of this book for free, this is my honest review:
 
This reader is 100% a #JaDon fan!
 
This book follows main characters, Jada and Donovan, as they grow into their relationship.

Beginning with the opening meet-cute scene, which is set in downtown San Diego at Donovan’s bakery, Sugar Blitz, and through to the final chapter, Wesley’s protagonists are fun, relatable, and authentic.

Jada comes from a background of wealth and privilege, though it’s never been a supportive or productive space for her. Donovan has wielded the single-minded focus and drive which he learned at a young age into 2 successful careers—football and small-business ownership.

~
‘Jada nodded. “People judging and underestimating you. I totally understand that.” She met his eyes. He did understand what she’d gone through. Warmth spread from her heart through her veins.’
~

Though there are some spicy scenes later in the book, this is a slow-burn romance and a romantic comedy. The dialogue and narrative pace are engaging & Wesley sets up a number of humorous situations in which her protagonists have to quickly adapt to and navigate. Readers watch as Jada learns to become more self-confident, self-reliant, and social-media savvy; while Donovan learns to loosen control a little, become more spontaneous, and welcome the unexpected.

Through it all, the initially ‘fake’ relationship progressively grows into a deep connection between the two and, despite a brief period of separation, they find their way back to one another.

Topics tackled:
- Dyslexia & Neuro-Atypical Learning Styles
- Addiction (Gambling)
- Reality TV / Social Media
- Childhood Trauma

Overall, I enjoyed Fake It Till You Bake It and I look forward to reading more from Jamie Wesley—especially after that cliff-hanger ending!

I’m also now craving cupcakes!🧁

DNF @ 26%.

So far, a cute rom-com with so much potential, but I'm just not getting drawn into this book.

The writing style isn't my favorite; it's casual and can be fun to read, but I feel like there's too much tell-don't-show. The biggest reason I'm choosing to DNF is that I'm getting a sense of something off with the MMC, Donovan. My bully and manipulation sirens and are going off in my brain in Chapter 7 and I'm not about that. I don't relate to Jada and the chemistry/lack-of between her and Donovan doesn't work for me.

I may come back to it one day, but it's not for me at this time.

Some of the Tropes:
-Forced proximity
-Inheritance
-Athlete/Reality tv star
-Kinda grumpy/sunshine
-Fake dating? But I didn't get that far.

I am on a romance kick lately and this read was a very cute, light and overall enjoyable romance read. The whole premise I thought was unique. Jada, our fiery FMC, fresh off a realty dating show, has become enemy #1 when she shocked viewers by refusing the season finale proposal to the very popular Dr. John. When her best friend finally convinces her to venture outside of her sanctuary, she happens to meet a very grumpy and stern cupcake shop worker. Said cupcake shop worker happens to be Donovan Dell, a professional football star and owner of the shop, currently struggling to see his non-sports related dream take off. When Jada is spotted at the shop with Donovan, rumors begin circling of a possible romance. Business begins to soar as more and more curious patrons come to visit the shop in hopes of seeing the infamous heartbreaker and the pro ball player in person. And thus begins the ruse. But is there more chemistry between the two that either would like to admit?

This was very entertaining and would be a great beach read. I loved that this story featured diverse characters and depicts a beautiful and strong POC relationship. The pacing is a bit quick. There are themes I think could be detailed out more and I would have loved just a bit more character development. For example, I loved Jada’s growth and strength discovered within herself, I would have liked to see more of that highlighted but I’m sure we would end up with a 500+ read at that point so it’s a selfish want.

Also, there is a spicy scene but I would not classify this as a spicy book. This book isn’t marketed as a spicy read but sometimes readers can go into romance reads with unmatched expectations. So to be clear, this book has a good plot with a spice scene.

You can expect this book to deliver: Fake Dating, Grumpy Sunshine, diverse characters, Dual POV, opposites attract.

I received an eARC copy from St. Martin’s Press/St. Martin’s Griffin via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

This book was just too cute. I love 💕. I think it’s so nice to read books that have such a nice positive view with black love ! This was such a light and fun rom-com. So what I needed after reading dark romance I loved this. And boy was the writing so good.

Jada was on a reality TV show, Donovan owns a cupcake shop. Two sexy people together. I really like the chemistry they had together
, but the fake dating, enemies to lovers in this book is fantastic . I really enjoyed this book.

this is the type of romance book that you can't put down! i enjoyed all the characters and how the plot shaped out. would recommend this to anyone who wants a cute, fast romance read!

A huge thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!
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This book is only 336 pages long, and yet I somehow dragged it out for eight whole days. Maybe I just wasn't in the right headspace for it, or maybe the pacing dragged, but it wasn't my favorite without me truly being able to tell you why. I should have loved it. Fake dating is an excellent troupe and the circumstances that throw Donovan and Jada together felt earned and honest. Their chemistry is mentioned on every page, though I would have liked to see this more, rather than being continuously told that a zap of energy surged between their hands.
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August and Nicholas are interesting side characters, and with the ending as it is, I absolutely believe there will be spin off books for at least one of them. I could definitely see myself falling for one of those hard, as there is no doubt that Wesley is a strong writer and I can't wait to read more from her. Perhaps there will be novels about all of the Knights' Football players in the future. That is definitely a series I could get behind! This read in particular isn't the top for me, only because it felt slow and hard to get into, but the final 30% tries to make up for it by streaming by at lightspeed.

A really sweet story! And who can resist a book with a cupcake shop front & center?! Nice, light romance-a perfect escape read. I really can’t wait for August’s story! Please tell me it’s coming soon! This was my first Jamie Wesley book but its definitely not my last!