I received a complimentary copy of Love Under Contract in exchange for an honest review. This exactly what I expected from the date for hire theme. Rebecca and Hudson were both very likeable and kept the story going with their bantering. Overall, it's a good read that I would recommend.

This one had me at Fake Dating. One of my favourite tropes and this book does it well. I also enjoyed this take on Grumpy vs Sunshine. A quick and easy read with a fair bit of spice. Perfect if you want some open door romance with your holiday reads!

This story was a bit of a surprising delight for me. I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect but I quite enjoyed it. It’s got some heat to it so be prepared for open door scenes.

Thanks to NetGalley and Publishers for the eARC

I was looking forward to reading Love Under Contract as it sounded like your typical rom com.
However I felt a little let down with it.
The author is great at creating a scene and boy does she know how to write a sex scene, though I just didn't connect to the characters.
The story concept itself was interesting and if you like the fake-dating trope along with spice then this book could be for you

I love fake dating and this was so perfect! Love Under Contract had me hooked to the pages and I didn’t want to put it down!

Rebecca is a lawyer, and a good one at that. She’s planning to go home to New York for Thanksgiving, when her sister calls to tell her she’s engaged, to Becca’s ex. Now, Becca is completely over her ex, but as she’s single, she is not ready and doesn’t want to suffer the endless questions about why she’s single and the pitying looks thinking she’s jealous of her sister. After an amazing one night stand with Hudson. a guy she met in the bar, which is totally out of character for Becca, she ends up producing a contract for Hudson. The contract states she will give him the money he needs for his business, if he pretends to be her boyfriend on her Thanksgiving trip home. Hudson says yes (I mean who would pass up the free trip to New York) and the tension does not stop there!

‘I’ve fallen in love with you. I do need you but my life won’t stop if you’re not around. It just won’t be as good.’

Becca is a workaholic, her job comes before everything. At times, she was an extremely frustrating character as she would put her job before her potential happiness. She goes through a lot of growth and development over the course of this book, which I loved. Hudson was the perfect love interest, he was swoon-worthy and I couldn’t help but fall in love with him immediately. I couldn’t put this one down and read it in one sitting.

If you’re looking for a cute fake dating romance, with an added bit of spice, this is definitely the read for you!

I loved this book. I really liked the chemistry between the characters and enjoyed the fake dating toupe.

Rebecca is a lawyer in a company full of older men and has just found out that her sister has got engaged to her ex boyfriend. She has a one night stand with a carpenter, Hudson, who she met in an airport bar. Then she makes a deal with him to pretend to be her boyfriend during thanksgiving and her sister’s engagement party in NYC.

Rebecca is so buttoned up and Hudson brings out another side of her. These two are opposites but the chemistry was brilliant. I loved seeing the tourist things they did but also the interactions with Rebecca’s family.

TLDR; if you enjoy fake dating or grumpy/sunshine in your romances with steaminess this could be right up your street. Especially, when you enjoy the MMC being the more positive ‘sunshine’ one.

I was in the mood for a holiday romance and this really hit the spot.

Rebecca is a hotshot corporate lawyer who meets fun-loving furniture designer Hudson (golden retriever energy) at a bar one night. They end up having a little one night stand that turns into him being her fake date for her sisters engagement.

Things I loved about this book: grumpy x sunshine, Hudson's sisters, the NYC and England settings.
Things I did not love about this book: Rebecca's sister and her fiancé.

If you're a fan of The Spanish Love Deception, you should pick up this book.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for the ARC!

Completely adorable. Finished in a weekend and loved every second. This is a book I’ll be telling friends to look for at a bookstore and when I go to a bookstore making sure they have on a featured table.

I thought this book was a fresh new take on “grumpy, sunshine”. I love how unapologetic Hudson is about living life happily and wants Becs to do the same. This book was cozy and shows the importance of life in a fun, loving way. I look forward to seeing this book on shelves.

I wanted to like this book so much. Rebecca is a lawyer. A really good lawyer with a reputation for ironclad contracts and putting her work before everything else. After a one night stand with Hudson Strong she develops a plan to bring him home for the holidays to get her family off her back while they celebrate the engagement of her ex boyfriend to her sister. The fake dating had so much potential. But the little bit of tension the characters developed was let go almost instantly multiple times.

It might just be the writing style but I feel like somethings happened twice. Like I’m pretty sure the contract was signed twice. Without going back and reading though I couldn’t say for sure. It might just be how it was written. Then sometimes the wording of sentences had me going back to read them a second time before I understood them. The writing overall just seemed a bit clunky to me.

Rebecca’s inner monologue was frustrating to read. She constantly would say how much she’s falling in love and then in the next breath say too bad it has to end like she’s not the one calling the shots. At one point she says to herself “I didn’t lead him on, did I?” Yes Rebecca, you definitely did. Faking dating is one of my favourite tropes but nothing about this seemed like fake dating. The contract was drawn and broken so many times. As a lawyer Rebecca would never do such a things. None of this was honest to the character. I got so tired of future contracts too. Enough with the contracts!

Like I said before, this book had so much potential and I’m so sad it didn’t deliver.

Oh my goodness, the cover is the first thing that you see of a book and this one was so cute. I am so loving that the latest trend is cartoon book covers for romance books. This one gives all the right vibes. Now for the book, i loved that as well! Fake dating, and lots of spicy scenes. I would recommend! Just need to caution about the slightly insta-love vibe which I am not too keen on.

The best way to describe this book might be to compare it to fast food. You know you're not getting a Michelin-star meal, you might feel a bit bad about your decision later on, but GOD it does hit the spot sometimes.

Wildly successful but single Rebecca is dreading going home for Thanksgiving: her sister just got engaged to her ex-boyfriend and her mother is a constant source of not-so-helpful comments on every aspect of Rebecca's life. Enter the very dreamy Hudson, a talented carpenter in need of some cash. After a wonderful one-night-stand, Rebecca comes up with a plan: she'll pay Hudson to play her fake boyfriend for a few days. They sign a contract: no kissing and no sex, no matter how great their one-night-stand was. But miles and miles away from home, a carefully written contract is easily forgotten.

There wasn't a whole lot of plot in this. Eternally single woman has one-night-stand, a convenient reason for fake dating arises, woman falls for man despite trying her best not to fall for him, and they live happily ever after. That's it, nothing more to the story than that. And it doesn't really need more, if I'm being completely honest. It's not an epic romance, it's a story about lust, simple as that. Rebecca and Hudson want to jump each other's bones every chance they get, and I'm just over here applauding the fact they ever manage to get dressed and leave the bedroom.

The one thing that bothered me? The ending. Per their contract, Rebecca and Hudson had broken up, despite both of them catching feelings. But Rebecca is determined to win him back, so she goes to seek him out. And he's kissing some random person. It all works out in the end, but they both seem to conveniently forget about the other woman. It felt weird to include that element in the final part of the story if it wasn't going to get mentioned during their big reunion moment.

Cute, quirky and light hearted. The perfect holiday read for this time of year. Rebecca and Hudson had the perfect chemistry mixed with banter. Def will pick up her next novel!

I loved this story! The characters had depth and I loved their banter. I will be looking forward to more from this author!

A cute, mostly smut, romcom that grips you from the start!
I LOVED Hudson, he was the sweetest, hottest character. Rebecca was hard to love but that's how it was supposed to be I just wish she came back down to earth a little more so we could relate better.
Perfect holiday pick!

I thoroughly enjoyed this delightful, sweet read! The story had me hooked from the start. Loved the characters in the book. Five stars!

Cassie Connor's debut novel, Love Under Contract, has everything I want in a romantic comedy. There are quirky and lovable characters, there is the grumpy vs. sunshine trope along with the fake dating premise. Wonderful banter, amazing chemistry, and bringing the spice just round out the reasons that this book fell solidly into my wheelhouse.

I absolutely our mail characer, Rebecca for so many reasons, but her focus and drive really made me resonnate with her. Hudson was the complete opposite, and made their relationship that much more fun to watch. The banter between the two of them was everything i want in an opposites attract kind of relationship.

I realy enjoyed this book, and am looking forward to reading more by Cassie Connor!

Oh my! Don’t let this cutesy, cartoon cover fool you because this novel was hella steamy!! Steamy Christmas novels don’t usually work for me as I usually prefer that Hallmark-esque sweetness to my holiday reads but I really can see how this would be a winner for many!

Such a funny and quick read. I couldn't put this down! Everything felt realistic and I especially loved how Hudson was able to help Rebecca become closer to her family.

I do feel like there may have been a plot that was scrapped but the hints still left. Hudson seemed to not want to share where the wood he used was from and he seemed uncomfortable with where Rebecca's sister wanted to have her wedding. I expected his family to run that manor and for them to reunite at the wedding. It didn't go that way at all, but that is where the foreshadowing that I picked up on was guiding me.