Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing me with an Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Donovan, along with his two best friends and fellow teammates for the San Diego Knights, own operate a cupcake business called Sugar Blitz.

Jada Townsend-Matthews, is a woman currently hiding from the public eye after the fallout of declining a proposal on television dating show.

After a disastrous first encounter, Jada finds herself working at Sugar Blitz alongside Donovan. After a reporter mistakenly believes that Jada and Donovan are together, they use this misunderstanding to help the struggling bakery and fix Jada's public image.

I really enjoyed this hate to love turned fake dating book. I love the dynamic between the two main characters and their banter was my favorite part. I did find the beginning a little bit slow but it picked up for me when they began fake dating. The side characters in this story were fantastic and I am hoping for a new book in this series in the future.

This was such a great, easy read. It was extremely light-hearted and made me super happy. In a fake relationship, Donovan, an NFL player and cupcake shop owner, and Jada, who is fresh out of a reality dating show, start developing actual chemistry. The book makes this actually adorable! It was full of fluff.
However, it was extremely predictable, but that’s what you get when you read romance like this:)
Thanks NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my review :)

Synopsis:
Jada Townsend-Matthews is the most reviled woman in America after turning down a proposal on a reality dating show. When she comes home to lick her wounds, Jada finds herself working at San Diego's newest cupcake bakery, Sugar Blitz, alongside the uptight owner and professional football player Donovan Dell.

When a reporter mistakenly believes Jada and Donovan are an item, they realize they can use the misunderstanding to their advantage to help the struggling bakery and rehabilitate Jada's image. Faking a relationship should be simple, but sometimes love is the most unexpected ingredient.

REVIEW:
Fake It Till You Bake It was a sugary sweet romance that had me craving cupcakes the entire time I was reading it 😂 I loved the representation here with both main characters being Black, and the fake dating trope is always one of my favorites to read. However, the book dragged a lot for me especially in the beginning. It wasn’t until the last 30% or so that things started happening more quickly. I also thought the steam was a bit lacking with there only being one scene that I’d consider moderately steamy (i.e. open door). The ending definitely left it open for it to be a series about Donovan’s business partners (also football players). Overall, it was a quick, satisfying read!

This was a super cute idea for a story. I loved both Jada and Donovan and I think they ended up being such a great couple. I do wish we saw a bit more of the build-up to their relationship, I felt like it kind of went from zero to one hundred with their love for each other. I wish there was just a little more insight into their regular days and how they got to know each other and how they really fell for each other. I loved how they both seemed to help each other through hard times and were really both acting like a rock for each other. I would love to read another story with Nicholas or August or Olivia. Both Donovan and Jada have such interesting friends and I think they could have really great love stories.

I really enjoyed the premise for this book, and the fake dating trope is one of my favourites. But I had a hard time loving this book.

I found it often difficult to follow, as it felt quick and didn’t give time to developing the scenes. It would often take me a few paragraphs to realize that the story had jumped again.

Because of this, I couldn’t root for the characters. I didn’t feel that I got to know them as much as I would have liked.

The premise and title are the makings of an excellent rom com, but for me it was just lacking some in the execution.

ARC has been provided by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

I was very pleasantly surprised by this read. First of all, the book gave me a craving for cupcakes in the worst way. Second of all, I thought this was a very sweet love story. It's the classic fake relationship among people who really don't care much for each other and then, naturally they catch feelings f0r each other. I really enjoyed the character of Jada and her determination to not let the haters get to her and she had fantastic chemistry with Donovan. Great read and I would definitely read more by this author.

This was a cute and light hearted book. I have recommended this book so much because it was just perfection.

Our main characters are Jada and Donovan. Jada just came off of a dating reality tv show and she didn't have the best outcome. We have Donovan who is a NFL player and is one of three owners of a cupcake shop. What would make them any better... oh ya they are having a fake relationship. The comedic moments and the cute scenes are too die for. The characters make you feel like you are apart of the story, and believe me once you've read it you would want to too. It was a fun read and you can't simply put the book down.

This is the first in a series which leaves me very excited and I can't wait to see what's next.

The premise is super fun. A dilettante heiress named Jada bumps into a handsome NFL player named Donovan at a cupcake shop that he happens to own. Their relationship gets off to a rocky start. Through a series of coincidences, the heiress is forced to work at the shop and the NFL player starts to change his mind about her.

Despite the fun premise, I found myself struggling to finish this book. First, there were way too many tropes. Enemies to Lovers: Jada accidentally insults Donovan when she meets him (more on this later). Forced proximity: Her grandma forces her to work at the shop to earn her trust fund. Fake dating: Jada pretends that Donovan's her boyfriend to avoid embarrassment. Just one or two of these tropes would have been enough. All of the tropes together take the book from being a fun escape to feeling totally implausible.

More on Implausibility: I don't mind a little implausibility in a Romance book. Creativity can be fun. However, Jada, who is a former contestant on a Bachelor type show, is forced to work at the cupcake shop by her, presumably, billionaire grandmother who owns Donovan's team. It doesn't make a lot of sense for the owner of a football team ask her star player to employ her problem granddaughter. Also, in what world would a popular former reality TV contestant not be fielding offers to work in media or as an influencer? Why would Jada have to work at the cupcake shop to earn her trust fund rather than, for example, at a nepotism job with the team? I think book would have still worked if the characters could've been pushed together with less force.

Jada is supposed to be a lovable screw up but sometimes her chaos feels, frankly, a bit too chaotic. I found her most charming when she was leaning into her competence. She would have still been believable as a character who was a little indecisive and unsure of her next step even if she were less ditzy. Also, she was REALLY rude to Donovan when they first meet for no reason. There was no misunderstanding. I have a personal pet peeve around genuine unkindness in an enemies to lovers story.

Donovan isn't the most developed character. He's handsome and comfortable enough in his masculinity to own a cupcake shop. Despite this, I enjoyed Donovan. He's extremely patient with Jada which I personally love in a lead.

In all, I think this is the perfect beach book if you're a reader who doesn't mind a few inconsistencies. I loved the bake shop setting and I thought the male lead was *no pun intended* very sweet.



Thank you to NetGalley and the Publishers for a free copy of this book for my honest review.

This is a story about Jada who has been in the public eye recently for some choices she made on a reality tv show and Donovan, a professional football player who also owns and runs a cupcakery shop with two of his best friends. The plot tells about how the two of them start a "fake dating" relationship and all that evolves from that.

What worked for me:
- cute story, good chemistry between the two leads
- Jade has dyslexia and I enjoyed reading about how she handled that
- Donovan's best friends have minor rolls in the story but I liked the relationships between them.
- Jada's best friend, Olivia, also has a minor roll but I enjoyed their friendship
- Loved the character of Jada's grandmother.

What didn't work for me:
- I wasn't a fan of the writing style. The dialogue just didn't seem natural in a lot of cases. It seemed simplistic to me. However, it did make for a quick, easy read.

Diverse characters, enemies to lovers, fake dating, a fun rom-com-- what's not to love?! Jada and Donovan were well imagined characters, and their chemistry was excellent. I loved seeing them come together as Jada starts to work for Donovan and their faking dating begins. I found this book to be enjoyable and heartwarming while also full of sizzle. Highly recommend!
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Thanks so much to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for sending me an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Oh, man, this book....this book was absolutely everything I needed right now to start to pull me out of a horrific reading slump. Funny? Check. Steamy? Check. Loveable characters? Double check. Phenomenal, miscommunication-free plot-line with adults that handles issues that come their way in mature, adult ways? CHECK.

Listen, I'm all for drama in a romance novel, but right now, what I needed was two people who love each other and stand up for one another and handle their problems by TALKING about them. Can I just say how refreshing that was? Any time something came up that I thought might lead to one of them not saying something important to the other for stupid, miscommunication plot reasons, they just....talked. It was glorious. Apparently my bar is actually that low.

If that wasn't enough to convince you to read it, both of the main characters are insanely hot, dealing with their own baggage from their pasts, but adorable and loveable and sweet and just....yeah. This was what I needed to read right now lol. Jamie Wesley won me over with this book, and I'll keep an eye out for anything they put out in the future (August's book, right? RIGHT????). This got a full five stars from me and I absolutely loved it!

Jada Townsend-Matthews is a public enemy after turning down a proposal on a reality TV dating show. She wants nothing more than to hide out at home, but she ends up working at Sugar Biltz. This new bakery in San Diego is owned by a professional football player, Donovan Dell. After being mistaken as a couple by a reporter, these two try to use the media to their advantage. Their goals are to save the bakery from going out of business and recover Jada’s image.

I had high hopes for this book since it covers fake dating, one of my favorite tropes, and seeing the captivating cover. It’s vibrant and I love the representation of black love! It’s not common for romance books to start with a male perspective, but it really adds some extra flair. I liked Donovan as a character and that this book didn’t portray him as a stereotypical dumb jock. He’s business-minded, intelligent, and a caring individual. Plus, it was super cute that he owned a cupcake shop.

As for the female POV, I did not enjoy it. Jada was not a likable character, and I felt that her speaking her mind came off sometimes as careless and abrasive. After building up their relationship, she disregarded Donovan’s feelings completely at one point and it came out of the left field. This made me want to wash my hands of the entire story. I think Jada needed more depth and should have taken more accountability for her actions. Donovan, being the bigger person and putting himself out there, made me like him even more. I do not think they match as a love interest, and I would have loved to see Donovan fall for someone else.

Overall, I do not think this story flowed well, which was disappointing. I expected to love it but it fell flat. Adding more context or length to this story could have improved the fake dating trope. The timeline of events seemed to jump around and made things really choppy. Although, I did not enjoy this story as much as I thought there were some highlights: the representation of individuals with dyslexia and the ending. I liked how the epilogue set a foundation for getting to know August, one of Donovan’s teammates, co-owner of Sugar Blitz, and a close friend. The brotherhood between Donovan and his friends was so sweet! It made me want to dive into their perspectives and retract Jada’s POV altogether. If this story would have been a compilation of male perspectives, it would have been so much better!

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC!

Review link on my blog and Goodreads will be active after release week and are scheduled to publish on June 30th.

Disclaimer: I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review, but it doesn’t influence my opinion of the book nor the contents of this review in any way. 

Hey there!! I received Fake it Till You Bake It as an ARC... and somehow managed to read it on time!!! Totally on accident by the way, but I'm still celebrating :) I read this specifically for my Netgalley Warriors reading initiative I'm running on my blog this year. When I requested it, and again when I was selecting something to read this week, I was pulled in by the blurb's headline: "A reality star and a cupcake-baking football player pretend to be a couple in order to save his bakery in this sweet and sexy romance." 

I love bakery romances!!! I really love bakery romances. But this one... I really struggled with. Despite the fact that it was set in San Diego, the city of my birth And despite the fact that it had another of my favorite tropes: forced proximity + workplace romance tropes!  That said, I was getting very similar vibes to a book I've read before... but cannot for the life of me remember what that book is! I've read a book with a reality star in it recently, but my head is completely empty. So is my list of read books, which is highly concerning. Maybe I dreamt it. Anyway...

Things I Liked ("however...")
- The premise. I love a football player who owns a cupcakery! This is so exciting to me. (But did we ever actually see him as a football player.... no. We never went with him to workout or do football player things).
- Dyslexia representation - I love that we got a woman with learning disability who was confident about it and acknowledged it in a healthy way. However, there were those little moments around the good rep where she referred to herself as "dumb" because of it and that never got resolved. 
- However, I had to laugh when Jada says twelve dozen cupcakes it "almost a hundred fifty," and then goes into detail about how, while "coping with being dyslexic," she had to do a lot of rote memorizations and "could do multiplication tables in her head like nobody's business." Why not just say 144 then???
- This quote (between our football-playing hero and reality star heroine):
"'You've got to be kidding me. People actually give a shit about what happens on reality shows?' She shrugged. 'I mean, sports are the biggest reality shows out there, so yeah.'" 
- The hero and heroine RECREATED a clinch cover!!!!!! Woot- WOOT!!
- Loved that Donovan actually read the book club book for the meeting that he attended
- Also loved that Donovan gathered his besties and forced them to watch the reality show Jada was in, with him.
- The trio of football playing besties that run the cupcakery. I'm assume the other two will get their books in the sequels? I love them, I wish we got more in ways that didn't directly refer to the relationship. It felt like they were props instead of genuine friends
- Grams! She was a real hoot

Basically I only liked a few things about this book that didn't come with qualifiers and things that could have been better. Hence the 2-star rating. It's also why (even though I read this book in time), I did not publish my review during release week. That would have been cruel, I'm not in the business of raining on a book launch. I'm also clearly in the minority, so far, for disliking this book so much.




Things I Didn't Like

- THE CHARACTERS THEMSELVES + RELATIONSHIP

I just struggled to believe and to care about the characters. I didn't connect with them, I didn't feel the chemistry, and I honestly got icked by them several times throughout the story

I just hated Jada. What do I know about her? She's "IMPULSIVE." My god, they told us over 25 times. I can't tell you how much I began to hate this word. It felt like an excuse. I pegged her as a spoiled, privileged rich girl who only thought of herself. Was it really impulsive, or just selfish? I was judge-y about her, I'll admit. I didn't get "good times/life of the party" vibes like I was clearly supposed to.

I also don't think I ever got a satisfactory answer as to what she did with herself if she's almost 26 years old and never held a job or an idea about what she wants? The Jada we came to know is creative, personable and a problem-solver. I don't see that personality doing literally nothing for years before the reality show. She wasn't an influencer, a content creator, something with fashion, or volunteer her time somewhere? I would have liked it better if she had one little thing, even if it wasn't something her grandma deemed "fulfilling" enough. Even if it was volunteering at the local dog shelter once a week.

Donovan wasn't much better. He was basically there to support Jada. He's a "logical, numbers" guy who occasionally had a sincere, soft side to reassure her, or to compliment her. His whole personality was made to be a worrier, sappy in love and uninformed about social media/reality TV. His sudden morph into a possessive man who growls at other men who talk to Jada? Full Stop. It's ugly. He was a cardboard character, too perfect and #bookboyfriend-esque.

It felt less like a sexy dislike-to-lust forced proximity romance and more like two employees who were uncomfortably horny in the workplace all the time. Blech.

- VERY TELL-NOT-SHOW

This brings me to my biggest grip with this book: it was so 2-dimensional. We only knew things that both characters were aware of. So if Donovan has something in his life causing him stress, we find out about it when he tells Jada (and vice versa). These characters only existed with each other, and we never saw them outside of the workplace and/or together. As soon as Jada was placed in a uniform, her love and adoration of fashion evaporated and we didn't see that back until the last couple chapters.

This whole book is very tell not show. The number of times we were told Donovan was a logical, numbers guy, and Jada was impulsive got to be a bit much. Also apparently Donovan's other passion is surfing?? Which he just threw out there at the end?? Seems fake. Can we get surfing scenes, please? That would have been hot.

Continuing, I have genuinely no idea what these characters look like. I didn't have hair color or eye color for most of the book, I just knew that Donovan was large and Jada was stunning. Imagine my surprise at 75% of the book when I was told basically everyone in this book was Black. When writing my review, this was confirmed when I saw the cover for the first time. I had to go back and delete all my notes about Jada being a stereotypical privileged, spoiler white girl rich-bitch. This, of course, also speaks to the subtle racism in this statement and in society, where when race is not provided, I assume white (and I recognize that). I love that this book has a mostly-Black cast, written by a Black author. I just had no idea, because there were never any character descriptions.

- MORALLY, IT WAS WRONG

The entire fake-dating premise started in front of a crowd, filming, when Jada calls Donovan her boyfriend and kisses him in front of them. Literally hours into the job, she had no idea if he had a significant other, and basically did so knowing it was going to be published on social media, blowing his life up to scrutiny. It felt like a huge line was crossed in terms of consent. You can't just drag people into the limelight with you because YOU can't cope with it, or because YOU need someone to back up your lies. Making out with someone when you're not aware of their relationship status is bad enough, but especially when you may be landing him in hot water as your boss.

Jada went through all this because she denied a marriage proposal from Dr. John on live television and the public basically turned on her. And then when Dr. John came sauntering in, she was like "damn, did I make the right decision?" and then a few minutes later went to Donovan and told him not to worry about Dr. John, because "The whole time he was talking to me, I couldn't stop thinking about you." That's... a lie. We were in her head while she was chatting with Dr. John, and that's not what she was thinking. It felt like the author kept trying to throw twists our way and they were so fake and transparent, please just don't bother.

- THE FRIENDS WERE ALL PROPS

Donovan owns the cupcakery with his two other football besties. But do they ever actually hang out? the only time we see them is so they can make digs about how Donovan is "so in love" or in some way to move the relationship forward. We never saw Jada with her bestie, either.

- THE CONFLICT WAS SO FAKE

The whole book Donovan is worried about the cupcakery's sales, and Jada makes a sarcastic comment when they first meet, criticizing the store. He continues to worry all through the book... and then the conclusion at the end is basically him listening to the very first thing she said to him months ago, and it solves all their problems. Whoopty-do. He'd been focusing on other things instead of the real, valid criticism one of his customers offered.

There was another moment that escalated to three sentences of trauma explained to Jada... that had been building up the whole book. Clearly this was supposed to be a huge twist, but it just fizzled out as I laughed at that was what all the secret calls were built up to be. Pshaw. If you're going to do shock and awe, do shock and awe. Otherwise, it was just a pathetic attempt at a "twist." Know your books identity. This is a lighthearted romance where the progression was so linear it was boring. It could have worked and been so sweet, if only the characters had been interesting.

And the big conflict at the end? Literally shut up. That was so forced and out of character for both of them, especially at that point in time.

Donovan is a pro football player who opened a cupcake shop with his best friends.

Jada is the most unpopular woman in America after turning down a proposal on a dating reality show.

It’s annoyance at first sight, but when Jada gets a job at the cupcake shop, sparks fly.

This SWEET (sorry, I couldn’t help myself) romance has it all: fake dating, steamy hook-ups, and supremely likable characters.

I loved how Donovan’s friends were the supporting characters. It was fun twist on the “supportive bff” trope.

Check out this book if you want a fun, sexy read.

Fake It Till You Bake It by Jamie Wesley
4/5 Stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

•••Spoiler free review below•••

After turning down a proposal on a popular reality tv show, Jada becomes public enemy number one. To make matters worse, she is suddenly cut off by her wealthy parents. Her grandmother will allow her access to her trust fund on her 26th birthday but first she must prove her work ethic and convince her grandmother that she deserves the money.

In steps Donovan Dell, famous NFL player and part time baker. When Jada reluctantly takes a job at his bakery and accidently implies her and Donovan are dating to a tabloid reporter, she is thrown into a flurry of events she didn't anticipate when coming back to her hometown.

Fake It Till You Bake It is the SWEET fake dating romance book of your dreams and will leave you wanting your own Donovan (and a cupcake). It will be released June 21st, and if it's not already on your tbr, it should be!
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Special thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for sharing an arc with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

I was given this ARC by NetGalley for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Book: 4/5
Spice:2/5
Tropes: fake dating, grumpy/sunshine, opposites attract, matchmaker, slow burn, business arrangement to lovers
CW/TW: Sexual Content, Bullying

I really enjoyed this book. I was first drew in because it was a Black romance and I'm so happy I was able to read this. I like the disability representation as well with our FMC. I don't particularly like slow burns and this book is definitely one. I did feel that the story did drag at places and need to pick up the pace. I did find the entitled attitude of the FMC off-putting at times. Also I do not like the harassing nature that some characters had towards the FMC. I would love for there to be more spice. We wait so long for it and it's still lacking in heat. I feel their attraction and energy did not fully transfer to their behavior. It tackles so many topics like black sheep of family, internet bullying, invasion of privacy, and boundaries. All and all, it was a very cute and sweet book, like the sweets made in the shop.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an eARC of Fake It Till You Bake It in exchange for an honest review.

Jada Townsend-Matthews is a reality tv star who has become vilified by social media following the finale of Donovan Dell is a professional football player that loves to bake and owns a cupcake shop with two of his teammates/best friends.

He is a meticulous planner and she is impulsive chaos personified! Their worlds collide in a fake dating scheme for her to save face in the public eye and for him to keep the doors of Sugar Blitz open.

Jada and Donovan’s “meet cute” happens when she comes into Sugar Blitz with her bestie and proceeds to criticize the cupcakes and decor without realizing the Donovan is standing right behind her. Oops!!! 😅😂

Fake It Til You Bake It has mutual pining, fake dating and slow burn romance. I usually like my romance novels with a little more steam but that’s just a personal preference. The slow burn felt very slowwww though. We don’t get a real kiss until about halfway through.

This book features a great cast of side characters: Grams aka Mrs. T, Nicholas, and August. August was a man of few words but when he did say something it was necessary and important for Donovan’s growth. Both J & D were trying to overcome some childhood trauma (learning disability and gambling addicted father). Wesley does an excellent job of handling both topics without make the book feel heavy.

I enjoyed the witty and sarcastic banter between Jada and Donovan throughout the book. I also loved how after knowing each other a short amount of time, they just understood how to be there for each other emotionally. On paper Jada and Donovan seem like they wouldn’t be a good fit but they each have qualities the other is lacking.

Throughout the novel, Jada had to learn to take back her power and accept herself despite internet trolls and her parents who disapproved of her choices simply because they didn’t align with what they expected of her. Donavon had to learn that it’s okay to not be in control in every single situation. Sometimes chaos is exactly what you need to shake things up and find the people and opportunities meant for you.

Jamie Wesley knocked it out of the park! Fake It Till You Bake It is the perfect start to a new series of football players who open a cupcake bakery together. This first book has comedic moments, swoony scenes, and two characters who I wanted to befriend so badly! You also fall easily for the community surrounding them. This book was so much fun, I literally couldn't stop reading them. Perfect as a beach read me thinks.

Reality TV star villain meets cupcake shop owner in this magnificent rom-com. Jada is the most villify woman in America; she just turned down the proposal of America's hottest bachelor in this hit dating show she appeared in. She's also a heiress!!! Her grandma is owner of this billionaire football team. Before she hands Jada her trust fund, she talks to one of her players, Donovan, to let Jada work for him for a few months in order for grandma to see she is commited to something.

They don't really start in the right way because when they first meet, Jada is saying his cupcake shop is boring and he's listening to her lmao he confronts her and they get on it, bickering non-stop! She's such a fashionista, wearing pumps at every moment, Gucci suits and so. I love Jada so very much. She also feels like she is never enough, mainly because of her upbringing, her parents always letting her know she was a disappointment to them because she wasn't a scientist or working in STEM like them. She also has a learning disability, dyslexia, so her parents also made her feel bad about it throughout her whole life.

On the other side you have Donovan, who needs a little bit of help with his cupcake shop. It's suffering! He isn't getting as many costumers as he thought he would, so he needs a plan and PRONTO. Good thing he starts fake dating Jada, because the free publicity they create? By just being together? OOOF. Now they have to appear on talk shows, create viral moments, to help Donovan's bakery. They work together so well and I love that they constantly bicker around like that never disappears. Jada is always teasing him and right back Donovan lmao. I loved their dynamic so much and I didn't want to stop reading.

Two scenes I loved:
1) Donovan and Jada have to recreate a clinch romance cover for the book club they invited to the shop! There's a photo shoot and *screams* they've been dating for 2 days at that point but THERE'S SO MUCH CHEMISTRY IT'S INSANE
2) Donovan inviting his two football-playing best friends to watch Jada's season of the dating show lmao AND THEN getting angry and growling whenever the bachelor came on screen!!! He's so cute and hilarious. They are commited to the show at one point and cannot stop watching YES DATING TV SHOWS ARE SO ENTERTAINING THAT'S RIGHT.

I'm excited about the next book? It hasn't been announced BUT I HOPE THERE'S A NEXT BOOK AND POSSIBLY A THIRD BOOK? That ending left me wanting so much more for the future couples omg. I'm ready!

This book was a fun treat! I loved it! It was a good reset after I read a heavier book. It kept me flipping pages well past my bedtime!!

This was an ok romcom. I didn’t care for either character. I appreciate the dual POV but at times it jumped without warning. It took too long for chemistry to develop between them. Jada always seemed rude to me. Also the writing it self felt too relaxed. For example the handsomest as an adjective just seems like lazy writing.