This was one of the more believable enemies to lovers books that I've read, with a gradually growing relationship that made sense with the characters. I did find the FMC to be a little frustrating - how did she make it so very far on a reality TV show with her apparent tendency to say anything that came to mind and then never back down? The characters were definitely multi-faceted and very dynamic, and I appreciated that this book was about a sports star but didn't make me read through a game.

Basic plot: Donovan Dell is a professional American football player who opened a bakery with two of him teammates. Jada Townsend-Matthew’s is a wannabe reality TV starlet. They meet on chance, and then are set up for a work venture by someone special in both of their lives. How does it turn out? You will have to read to find out!

Rating: 5/5

What I have to say: I very much enjoyed “Fake It Till You Bake It”. I was attached to the characters right away. This book was a quick read for me, finished in two days. I CANNOT wait for follow up stories from the two business partners (please, please, please)!

Thank you to NetGalley for granting me permission for an advanced copy of this book!

Beginning: ‎️‍3/4 Hooked immediately.
Tropes: ‎️‍2/4 Fake dating doesn't actually start until a quarter of the way into the book.
Spiciness: ‎️‍1/4 Slow burn. No sex until almost 3/4 of the way through the book.
Ending: ‎️‍1/4 Dragged on and on with no believable obstacles.

I was also disappointed by the lack of detail related to baking, reality TV or football. There is some head-hopping, as well, that I hope will be fixed before the final release.

This book is wonderful in so many ways and one thing I loved the most about this book was the characters.
The characters are charming, sweet people who I grew to absolutely adore.
I've been getting more and more into the fake dating tropes.
And Fake It Till You Bake It did not disappoint.
It kept me rooted until the very end
I loved everything about this book. The main characters, the romance, the side characters, the setting, just everything was amazing.
One of my top favorites.

St. Martin Press,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review closer to pub date.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC for an honest review.

I never do this, but I would rate this a 3.5 than a 3. The story was cute, the characters were great, and the cupcakes were sweet. I liked Donovan and Jada a lot. I liked how Jada came into her own throughout the novel, finding what she loved and learning to love herself. I felt that this book was more about Jada's journey than Donovan's, and I think that did Donovan a disservice. He was a great guy, but he felt very flat to me. This super serious and logical guy who lives by his statistics and spreadsheets who enjoys baking. The thing, though, is we never actually see him bake except twice. Yeah, Nicholas was the mastermind behind all the cool snazzy flavors, but I'd have loved to see something Donovan do something that supposedly brings him joy. We see Jada flourish in this novel, and I felt that although Donovan had some semblance of growth, it wasn't enough for me. I felt that the same Donovan we had at the beginning was the same Donovan we had at the end, except now he knows how to have "fun" because Jada showed him how. Okay, sure.

There was definitely insta-love in this, but the author used a whole "break up" and time jump to make it not seem so instant. Yeah, no. Donovan was in love with Jada after two weeks, or in less than a month it seems. The timeline was a little fuzzy honestly. Very vague so it was hard to keep up with how long these two actually knew each other. They themselves felt it was too fast, that it was just a matter of weeks, so the love was certainly instant. The chemistry was there, simmering in the background, but I would have liked to see more.

Honestly, this book could have been all about Jada's story and I would have loved it. I wanna give her 5 stars for just being awesome.

This is a fun read with an easy set-up to a future sequel/series. The juxtaposition of football players running a cupcake shop is original and quirky! The characters and setting are both great. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I finished this book so fast because it was one of the highly anticipated books I had been looking forward to read in 2022. An ex football player?As a baker? Fake dating? A snooty reality star? Sign me up. It was a touch slow in parts, but I absolutely loved the banter between Jada and Donovan. It had the right amount of heat and I love Jamie Wesley's voice.

I really liked the plot of this one. It is a great romcom no doubt but I liked the baking and sports components it made it feel fresh. It was a tad slow in parts but overall a good read.

4./5 stars for Fake It Till You Bake It by Jamie Wesley

The first thing that caught my attention is football player owning a cupcake shop. That was the most ridiculous thing I had heard, I mean REALLY, think about seeing a 6ft man getting your cupcake order 😂. The thing that KEPT my attention was Jada and Donovan's banter. Not only were the burning with chemistry and a bit of hate, they were also very sweet with each other. I enjoyed Jada being badass and standing up to herself, even if she is public enemy #1. Donovan being over-protective was the cherry on top.

Wesley is a great author. Not only was the book well-written, but it also flowed very well. Flow is the number one thing that annoys me, but fear not with this book! The plot, though not over-reaching in anyway, was good. This is a familiar trope for avid romance readers (me), however, sometimes books like these are needed for a comfort/palette cleaners read. :)

definitely a unique romcom set up with my favourite trope, fake dating. i liked the banter and jada and donovan as characters. but the dialogues fell flat and the conflict was super rushed which reduced my enjoyment drastically.

"𝑰 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒖𝒍 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝑰'𝒅 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒏."

"𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏, 𝑰'𝒗𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆."
_____________________________________

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice: 🔥🔥
Tropes: Fake dating, sports romance, slow burn, boss/employee, slight enemies to lovers
Triggers: Gambling addiction

I. Love. This. Book. I am 100% obsessed with everything about this book. The story was good, I love the couple, and even the slow burn was deliciously wonderful, which says a lot because that is not one of my favorite tropes. I wish I could share my notes that I took while reading this book (they're full of spoilers) because I was living for every moment of this story.

Jada and Donovan are perfection together. Their banter was I M M A C U L A T E. I could not get over how good it was. Something I enjoyed was that their banter continued throughout the story and was perfectly balanced. I felt their connection from the moment they met. They are strong individuals, but even stronger together, which I loved.

Jada stole my heart in this story. I felt connected to her impulsiveness (I'm an Aries so I understand), yet I can be indecisive at the same time. Jada had similar qualities and I loved watching her growth. I also connected to her parental dynamic. The pressures from parents and wanting to make them proud are real. Jada had me cheering her on the entire time. Her growth is wonderful and I loved watching her find her passion. She was a great support to Donovan throughout the story, defending him when necessary, and helping him grow, too. She showed him how to be a little impulsive in his own way, which I adored.

Donovan Dell is the perfect man. He is the best example of men written by women being far superior to men in real life. The emotional intelligence he showed throughout the story had me swooning. He is the kind of partner women dream of having in real life. He was smart, supportive, emotionally available (love to see it), owned up to any mistakes, and was full of mistakes. I adored that a pro football player had a passion for baking. And baby Donovan helping his mom made me cry. The way he loved and supported Jada was the definition of being a wonderful partner. I love this man.

Another thing I loved about this story was the side characters. Donovan's two best friends, and teammates, Nicholas and August, were wonderful. Nicholas had me laughing so many times and I am obsessed with him. He was my favorite of all of the side characters. I hope we get his story because I have a feeling it'll having me cracking up in the best way. I NEED a second chance romance with August and Sloane. The ending has me wondering if he's next, so I hope Sloane is his love interest!

I couldn't recommend this book enough and hope everyone reads it! Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the amazing Jamie Wesley for providing me with an ARC.

Fake It Till You Bake It is a cute little RomCom book. It combines some of my favorite topics and tropes.

- Fake dating, turning into real romance
- cupcakes
- football players (Any sports star)
- Bachelor/Bachelorette like Reality stars
- wise old sage (Grandma in this case)

The chemistry between the two stars is sizzling from their initial meet cute on. I enjoyed that we had a Sports star thinking about his future, after sports career was over as well. The rich FMC is trying to make it on her own without familial help (for various reasons). Then there is the ever wise grandma as well! This book didn't read fast for me. Maybe it was the font or the reader program, or maybe it was just longer than it needed to be. It wasn't a page burner flipper, but very enjoyable still.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this book early for an honest review.

I AM A SUCKER FOR A FAKE DATING TROPE AND THIS DID NOT DISAPPOINT!

As soon as I read this synopsis I was SOLD! Who doesn't love a fake dating trope featuring a pro football player and a reality tv star!?

Especially when that footballer is a BAKER! *swoon*

I did want a bit more spice but reading our MC's fall in love was absolutely adorable! I love them.

Fake dating? Enemies to lovers? Opposites attract? What more could you want from a romance book?

Jada, having just come off of a reality tv show where she rejected a proposal from a handsome doctor has been facing backlash from the whole world on social media AND in public (and you thought your breakups were bad). While trying to find her way in life she ends up working for Donovan- a football player who runs the cupcake shop Sugar Blitz that is doing poorly financially at the moment. They begin to start up a fake relationship as they realize it's the solution to both their problems, but what happens when the lines blur between real and fake?

As someone who is usually not an avid romance reader- this book was adorable! A great read for enjoyers of the romance genre as well as those trying to get into it. Dual points of view is always the key to an amazing romance, in my opinion- what's the fun of not getting both sides? Jada is very easy to connect to, she feels real and relatable- you're always rooting for her while she's trying to figure out life and love. Donovan is also a great character, the absolute definition of a man written by a woman, but it felt harder to connect to him. I feel as though this book did lack in its inability to develop separate voices for these characters, besides the obvious switch in perspective I usually could not differentiate who was narrating. That being said, the characters are really the star of this story, including the many lovable side characters.

The plot and conflicts were surprisingly good, when I read romance I expect those to be an afterthought but it really played well into what was happening in the romantic aspect and made this story feel more real! Tropes we all know and love are included, but they feel fresh and new in this novel. Also, a black love story that was written by a black woman? We absolutely love to see it. Overall, I found this book to be a good read- it has some trouble finding its voice and drags on at some points; however, the characters are great and thoroughly developed as a couple and separately.

This book definitely satisfies your sweet teeth, either because of how cute Jada and Donovan are or because you caved in and went to buy cupcakes while reading!

There were definitely things I liked about this story - the unique premise/hook of a group of football stars owning and operating a bakery, as well as the good writing. But overall, this story fell quite flat for me. I didn't connect with either of the characters because the pacing was off (I think their "fake dating scheme" only started around the 45-50% mark) and there was no real romantic tension that made me believe these two liked, let alone loved, one another.

Basically, it had a great cover/description to pull me in, but the execution fell quite short.

Overall: 4/5
Spice level: 2/5
Tropes: fake dating, boss's daughter, slow burn, opposites attract

This was another new to me author. I'd seen a lot of excitement about the book so I took a chance. While I enjoyed the tropes (minus slow burn because that's definitely not my favorite), I was hoping for more spice. Lots of these illustrated covers reel you in as something fun but tend to be lackluster in the spice department.

Now don't get me wrong, Donovan and Jada had chemistry. The banter was on point. I was actually waiting for them to hate fuck at some point because they knew how to push each other's buttons. He was a methodical and analytical person while she was more spontaneous and free-spirited. But it was pretty tame. And only happened once.

Now other things I loved were the character development and how they supported each other. By the end they'd almost switched places in a sense. Part of Jada's goal was to find her place in life, get her act together, figure out a career. And along the way her impulsive, free nature rubbed off on Donovan. Along the way, fake dating or not, Donovan supported what she wanted to do with his cupcake shop to help host sales, which helped find her calling.

I also loved their closest supporting characters. Her grandmother who also happened to be Donovan's boss of sorts as the team owner along with his friends/business partners/teammates Nicholas and August.

I enjoyed the story overall, just hoped for more spice.

I loved how this story had great representation and cantered on a male character who is portrayed as not conforming to toxic masculinity and doesn’t stop baking despite it being seen as feminine. The plot was well constructed and also addressed diversity when it came to learning disorders such as dyslexia. From start to finish I absolutely gobbled it up!

I can not tell you how excited I was once I read the blurb and saw this gorgeous cover! I immediately dived into this book with a giant smile on my face and although Jada kind of rubbed me the wrong way at first I over looked it.

What I loved, Donovan and Jada's backstories and their development, the setting, the fun banter between Donovan, Nic and August, (teammates and co owners of the bakery) the way Jada spoke about and represented her learning disability.

I had extremely high hopes but unfortunately it just doesn't work for me when an intimate scene doesn't happen until around 70%, the dialogue was lacking and then the end felt rushed.

Fake it till you make it had some cute and funny moments but unfortunately it just didn't hit like I thought it would.

This book was super sweet (in a good way!)

I loved watching Jada find herself after a failed stint on a reality TV show in Donovan's cupcake shop. She used her job as counter girl at the bakery to (1) raise awareness for her learning disability (2) find her passion for event planning (3) realize that she WAS enough as she was, despite the high expectations of her doctor parents. And who doesn't want a Donovan Dell as a partner?? What a cutie.

This was as light and fluffy as a good cupcake. Hoping that we are getting books about the shop's other co-owners, Austin and Nicholas, in the future!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Fake dating? A sports romance? POC? If you said yes to any of this, I’d definitely recommend picking this one up.

Fake It Til You Bake It is a story about a cupcake store. Ok, not really, but it follows Donovan (cupcake store owner and pro footballer) and Jada (ex reality tv star and current manager of previously mentioned cupcake store) as they trick the media into thinking they’re dating to save the cupcake store from its tanking sales and Jade’s social media status.

I found this read to be really sweet! Jada has a learning disability that’s hindered her relationship with her parents from ever truly blossoming while Donovan’s a stoic guy with a soft spot. While the relationship development was great, I found the conflict a bit rushed towards the end, considering it was introduced quite late. Other than that, this was a sweet read and addressed some pretty heavy issues.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC!