The story was cute. If you aren't a fan of smut this one has very little. The characters could've been expanded on more because I couldn't tell them apart.
Overall, a very cute and fluffy read.

Fake it Till You Bake It is a cute romantic comedy. Jada and Donavon's worlds collide when she steps into his Cupcake Shop with a friend. She instantly starts talking trash about the place and he overhears her, and instantly falls in love. Donavon is a stuffy cupcake shop owning football player, and Jada is an obnoxious reality star socialite. I disliked them both at first, but then they both grew in personality and maturity. Jada caused upheaval in Donavon's world making him open up more and his calm demeanor helped settle her at times. Jada helped his business and heart grow and Donavon emotionally supported her in ways to help her grow. Cute love story, reccomend to anyone needing lightness.

Now romance novels really aren't my choice of reading at all but as I was provided with a free copy of this in exchange for an honest review here goes:-

Did I enjoy this, well yes. Was it well written, again yes and it was easy to read and flowed along nicely.

Would I like to see what happens to a few of the other characters in the book, hmm whilst not too worried I felt there's an opening to develop both Nicholas and August as there were a few tiny hints in this and wouldn't be at all surprised if either or both of them were the focus of future tales.

Overall a pleasant tale and if this boy meets girl and falls in love is the type of story you read and like then I suspect you won't be disappointed.

What a lovely story!!! This author is new to me and k certainly look forward to reading more by her. I was hooked from the start and I devoured it in 2 evenings

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC of this title in exchange for my honest review.

This story is cute! The characters were very easy to fall in love with, and the chemistry was perfect. I enjoyed the reality TV/sports world aspect and the way it affected everything in Jada and Donovan’s relationship.

Donovan + Jada meet at a cupcake shop. Jada is commenting on how unamused she is by the place, Donovan (the owner of said cupcake shop) overhears. It’s the cutest banter. And it doesn’t end there. Donovan’s also an NFL player and the owner is… Jada’s grandma. Yep, crazy coincidence and
forced proximity (I won’t tell you why)!

Fast forward through the rest of the book and you get dual POV, fake dating, reality tv drama, gossip galore, and baking. All the makings of a solid rom com.

Several areas of the plot seemed unrealistic (NFL player/cupcake shop owner + a reality tv dating show star), but honestly, that was part of the charm. I really enjoyed this story, and that ending… it’s set up for a sequel which I am SO here for.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for providing me with an e-arc of this book!

Fake It Till You Bake It was a delight! The story follows Jada a reality TV star turned villain and Donovan an all-star football player and bakery owner. They cross paths one day when Jada openly insults Donovan’s business and, well, it’s dislike at first sight.

This isn’t quite a hate to love romance but it definitely goes from foe to friend to lover. The pacing of the book was good though I found the timeline unrealistic in terms of some of the sequence of events. Some of the activities and moments simply would have taken more time than the author was allotting in the book. There were other moments and descriptions that were inaccurate or unrealistic which would take me out of the story. These were minor and I ultimately was able to ignore them.

I found the characters likeable enough and the relationships were believable. I didn’t fall head over heals for any of them in particular but was invested and engaged in the story. I wished for more tension between the main characters but they had good chemistry and their love story was believable. I liked seeing some good, mature, healthy conflict resolution and supportive partners. The writing was direct and clear. I was pleased to see dyslexia and gambling addiction addressed as themes in this story too.

My only real dislike of the book was the way the author introduced the third act conflict. I understand what the point of that plot line was and I absolutely love that Jada was given that space. I just felt like it came out of nowhere and was a bit clunky. If this had been a conflict she was more actively wrestling with throughout the story, I would have been less surprised and confused by the sudden change of direction things took. Overall this was a solid book! Looking forward to to the next one.

I'm trying to read as many romance novels as possible in February, and after being given access to this arc, I added it to my romance month list! I am beyond pleased to say that, for the most part, I enjoyed myself and recommend this book to anyone who loves a good rom-com, especially ones that follow the perspectives of both male and female characters.

The Good Things
1. The cover and title are both adorable and a perfect fit for the book. I always like to point out the books that nail these two things.
2. Enemies to lovers and fake dating seem to be two tropes I really like lately. This book fit both boxes and did it pretty well!
3. I loved the characters, and I LOVE the addition of Tyler's best friends. Most rom-coms focus on the female character's friends, so it was a nice change of pace and was expected really well.
4. A lot of people prefer romances and rom-coms to be written in the first person, but I enjoy both the third person and the first-person points of view. This book is third person, and I think it was fitting. 


The Bad Things
1. Jada's character was really hard to relate to, and I had a hard time empathizing with her in certain situations.
2. I really enjoyed this book. However, there is an event that happens toward the end of the book that really didn’t fit in with the rest of the book. It came out of nowhere, and it irritated me to no end. However, it may not irritate everyone (maybe you like this type of cliche), given that a majority of the book was good.



Note: Thank you to Netgalley & publishers for allowing me access to this arc in exchange for an honest review! Please note that all opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Rating: Really Enjoyed It, 4 stars

This book was a fantastic read and super enjoyable. It has some of my favorite things within romance: fake dating, sports, reality competitions, and baking. Several of these things were very much in the background and not super focused on, but overall lots to love about this setup!

We follow Jada and Donavan in this story. He is a professional football player who owns a cupcake shop, and she is the villain of a reality dating show after refusing a proposal in the finale. I thought that the romance was done well in this one. I liked both the main characters and thought that it was believable. I think that the reason this didn't hit 5 star range for me was because while handled better than a lot that I've seen, the third act issue was kind of dumb and made me roll my eyes. There also was just a lot of cheesy/cliche language, especially towards the end., that made me cringe at times. I was also surprised because for a book with baking in the forefront, it wasn't really described as well as I would have hoped. The steamy scenes were alright, not super spicy, but not closed door. I feel like they were just fine,

That all being said, I did really enjoy this book and it was a great read for Valentine's week. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for an advance eARC of this book. Fake it Til you Bake It releases on 6/21/22.

This rom com was cute, fun, and very sweet (pun intended). I liked Jada and Donovan a lot - and I definitely plan to read the future books from Nicholas and August’s perspectives. This book also definitely left me
craving cupcakes LOL.

I DNF'd this, which made me really, really sad. I wanted so desperately to like this book, but I just had a really hard time getting into it and staying in it.

Dual, 3rd Person POV makes me sort of disconnected from these characters, I'm afraid. I got 20% in and they still hadn't started the fake dating plot, and I feel like the plot moved at too slow of a pace for me. Not as in a slow-burn pace, but just like a painfully, slow, "when does this plot get going?" kind of slow.

It was also incredibly flowy, beautifully, over-written. Heavy descriptors when, in this reader's opinion, it just wasn't necessary and was honestly distracting. Especially given the slow start and disconnect I felt from the characters.

I thought the MCs had great chemistry, and I loved their banter. I really wish I'd loved more of it to stick it out.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC of this in exchange for an honest review.

This is a sweet story that flows well and is very readable. I enjoyed the characters of Jada and Donovan, and the secondary characters were varied and charming as well, especially Gram. Jada's troubled relationship with her exacting parents is well-developed and adds tension to the narrative. The only quibble I have is that the final crisis that Jada and Donovan face seems a bit rushed, and the solution comes before Jada pulls away, full of doubt that she'd be good for him. It seems to me that might happen before the crisis is averted, rather than after they've found a solution to it, and that the suspense of the threat might build more before the damage is finally averted. All in all, though, this is a fun romantic comedy with light touches of humor that avoid becoming too slapstick.

I loved Jada and Donovan! Their chemistry was incredible. I thought this would be a fade to black type of story (the whole story had been written clean up to that point) so the sex scene felt completely out of place.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this book. It was a fun and easy read. I really love the two main characters. Donovan is a sweet pro footballer player that opens but a cupcake shop called ‘Sugar Blitz’. Jada is now famous for a reality show going bad. I loved the storyline. This story does end in a cliffhanger and I cannot wait to read the second book

Thanks so much NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press , and Jamie Wesley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

i really wanted to give this book a 5 star. it had all the things i love in a book, the fake dating trope, a mc with a disability, and a big group of side characters. this book just wasn't the best. a lot of it felt like it dragged on. over the halfway mark it got muchhh better, but still not good enough to redeem the book.

This is an enemies-to-lovers trope with a reality show angle thrown in. As I enjoy both, I was excited to read this book. However, it didn't quite meet my expectations. The pace, in many parts, was just too slow, which pulled me out of the story, and the dialogue was underdeveloped and, at times, cheesy. Overall, I did like Jada and Donovan and found them realistically crafted. If you're looking for a quick, fluff read, you may want to consider this book.

I really liked the concept for this book and most of the covered tropes, but I felt it was more dragging in places than slow burn. The first half of the book was hard to push through but I did like the ending. The characters were good and their banter/chemistry was on point. Mrs. T (the female protagonist’s grandmother) was by far my favorite character though. Donovan is a professional football player thinking of his longtime goals and opened a cupcake shop with his two best friends. Jada just did a reality tv show where she dumped the star when he proposed to her and is now hated by America. She walks into his cupcake shop and…is not impressed. They have some words and some nice sparks but their unknown common connection makes sure their paths cross again. Overall I would give it 3.5 for good concept and good characters.

This was a fun and cute read! I love the "starchy character gets unstarched" trope, so this was right up my alley. I really enjoyed Jada and Donovan's fiery opposites-attract chemistry, the cross-over between sports and cupcakes, and the portrayal of how women are treated by TV and social media.

I loveeeeed Jada's personality, especially her tenacity and persistence -- so many times in the story she would have setbacks, allow herself to be disappointed, and then pick herself back up again because she wanted to learn. Also, though she always spoke her mind, it rarely was in a rude way (as it often is when people are "honest"), I liked that Donovan's perspective showed how effortlessly charming she was, and how her kind bluntness enamoured everyone around her. The contrast between these sharper edges of her personality and her insecurities are what makes those insecurities feel so real -- it gives so much depth to Jada's character.

Donovan was so likeable too. An athlete running a cupcake shop -- who isn't going to swoon? Besides that, he was smart, patient, and determined to make his business work. Despite all their differences, it feels like what Jada and Donovan have in common is drive: once they have a goal, they both are willing to give their all. One of my favourite things about the book was Donovan's constant commentary on Jada's smile and how much he wanted to be its target... so cute!

Overall, this was such a nice and light read. I'm excited to see more of Jamie Wesley's work in the future!

I knew by the cover this would pull me in. Cupcakes? Yes. Fake dating? Yes. Football player? Yes, reminding me of Alexa Martin’s books! And it did start strong for me, but something happened and it felt like it was dragging. Then, everything’s happening in the last 10% of the book. Still, it was a cute novel, I did enjoy it, and I’d like to read more from this author.

This book took me about a week to finish. That’s a long time for me. There’s nothing wrong with the book or anything I just was never hooked. I kept getting distracted by TikTok and Instagram. I did like the book. Both Jada and Donovan were interesting characters. Based on the cover and character descriptions I feel like if they were real people and I saw them I would just be like stunned. They would make a beautiful power couple.
I love fake dating so that was a plus as well. I feel like it tried to be enemies to lovers too but like barely. They had one negative but sexually charged interaction and from then on they were clearly into each other. The inevitable romance book breakup happened so late in the book. I was underwhelmed by it. They just had solved their problem and then book she dumps him. He didn’t even fight her, dude was just like “okay”.
The book does have an open door scene. Nothing too wild so if you aren’t crazy about spice you could easily skip a few pages and avoid it here.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book! Release day is 6/21/22. I would recommend if fake dating and baking sounds fun to you!

This will be posted on my Instagram @katebrownreads