Fake dating is absolutely my favorite romance trope. I was always going to be happy here. Fun, quick, with likable main characters. Sure the premise is a bit weird, but we're here for the happily ever after, not a firm grounding in reality. I really appreciate how honest the two leads are with each other, even while they lie to most of the people around them. Makes me root for them.

The Fiancée Farce was my first read by Alexandria Bellefleur and it won’t be my last! I really enjoyed the heart of this story and at times it felt like a love letter to romance novels.

I did struggle with the sheer volume of side characters in the story. There are a LOT of friends and family members to keep track of and my brain couldn’t keep up with the mild similarities between names (for example, Katherine and Kat are two different people). I can usually overlook things like this but the family members played a pretty big role in the story and I hate feeling confused when I’m reading something fun!

While I liked Tansy and Gemma’s relationship, it did feel a bit insta-lovey and left me wanting a bit more connection. I loved Gemma’s sarcastic and blunt personality and how that contrasted with Tansy’s more reserved demeanor. The banter was also really cute!

Overall, this was a fun one but I could go without hearing the phrase “pray tell” for awhile.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book; all opinions are my own. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to be an early reader.

Alexandria Bellefleur writes love stories that are so easy to read. Every single one has sucked me in and left me swooning by the end.

Tansy invented a girlfriend to help her get out of family dinners for the last six months. At her cousin’s wedding? Gemma West - romance novel cover model and Tansy’s fantasy girl - shows up and instantly starts playing into Tansy’s tall tale. Turns out Gemma needs to be married to inherit her grandfather’s company so this arrangement is mutually beneficial to both women.

I loved the lust turned friendship turned love between Tansy and Gemma. It was sweet and tender how they brought out the best in each other. The side characters and their stories were also very endearing. My biggest complaint is this book is about 50-75 pages too long particularly in the second act.

Content warnings: Tansy’s parents are both dead and her stepmother is a bit antagonistic to start. Gemma’s family is awful - manipulative, unkind, all awful. There’s a subplot involving revenge porn when Tansy was a teenager.

I voluntarily read an early copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

I love every book I've read from Alexandria Bellefleur, so of course I was super excited to read this one!

TW: death of a parent, revenge photos, alcohol use

I was immediately hooked on the fake fiancee situation. Gemma has to marry to inherit her grandfather's company, and Tansy needs to save her family's bookshop so she's going to need some money quickly. Gemma comes from a very wealthy family, so this is a mutually beneficial idea for them.

Unfortunately, Gemma's cousin has a past with Tansy and is out to expose their fake relationship which jeopardizes everything their marriage would bring them in terms of inheritance and saving the bookshop. Plus, Gemma and Tansy realize that this isn't fake (ahhh my fave part of the fake fiancee trope!).

There are some good steamy scenes in here including A MIRROR SCENE! I can't resist those.

I think we all know I'm not a Taylor Swift fan, so the continued references in contemporary romance as of late are really a bit much for me. I knew there'd be some in here because I'm familiar with the author's previous works. The ones in here weren't too bad, so I let them slide because I really did love this book. Sometimes the references can pull me out, but I found these to be fine.

Overall, I loved reading this book. It's very much in the same vein as her other books - steamy, funny banter, book lovers, romance references(!!!!)

Thank you to Avon Books for the eARC copy. This is in no way influenced my review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Marriage of convenience and fake dating can be very hit or miss for me, but this was a big hit. Alexandria Bellefleur managed to keep all the aspects that make these tropes fun, like the humor as they try not to get caught, while putting her own spin on them. I appreciated that Tansy and Gemma quickly developed a partnership where they enjoyed each other's company and communicated while letting the pressure of their fake engagement provide tension. I also really enjoyed the setting and extended cast of characters, many of whom had a fun Gossip-Girl quality.

I've noticed a trend in romance lately where characters are more upfront about their feelings, fight less, and admit their attraction early. These are all cool to see, but sometimes it seems like the characters are making all the "right" choices rather than being real people. This is not the case in The Fiancee Farce. Gemma and Tansy make mistakes and hurt each other's feelings, and they feel like real, flawed characters, but their fights are not for the sake of generating conflict alone.

I did think the third act breakup felt a little unearned since the characters had been communicating so openly, but the payoff was really dramatic and enjoyable. Some sub-plots and characters seemed like they were going to be important but then were kind of dropped. But overall, this was a very fun, slightly soapy, adorable romance.

Great story and love that it was not your typical romance story. I would love to read more by this author.

thank you for my advance copy in exchange for a fair review.

4.25 stars

I'm gonna have to sit on it, but I think this might be my favourite book by Bellefleur so far - she really keeps getting better and better. My only criticism is really that I found the ending to be a bit too over the top for me personally, and it isn't as steamy as some of her other books, so it's not quite in that 4.5-5 star range for me, but it's very close.

One thing that I always appreciate about Bellefleur's romances are that the third act conflict/breakup never really feels forced. The characters' motivations and reasons for having this conflict feel realistic and logical given their circumstances, and it isn't just thrown in there just for the sake of having one.

Another thing I really love about this book in particular is the communication. Adults who ACTUALLY speak to each other and communicate their issues and feelings?? Often times when I read romances, I get really frustrated at how the characters behave given their age/life experience and how they just simply have zero communication skills, but this isn't the case here. Tansy and Gemma are constantly communicating with each other regarding their feelings and concerns, and when outside threats happen, they don't keep it to themselves. They're open and honest with each other, and I love that.

As for my favourite thing about this book, it's definitely Tansy. She is a girl after my own heart, and perhaps I'm biased because she's just so similar to me on paper, but I was really invested in her from the get-go.

I do want to put a bit of a disclaimer in that I don't think this book is really a traditional fake dating/marriage of convenience trope because the characters actually do develop feelings very early on, and like I mentioned earlier, do communicate these feelings very early on. So it's really just a romance, but the way they meet is because of this fake marriage, but it lacks some of the elements that I'd expect from the fake marriage trope (like the whole will they or won't they aspect). I am not personally bothered by this at all, but just wanted to put that out there so that you can go into the book with the right expectations.

A side note on the cover though - I'm slightly irritated at the fact that throughout the book, Tansy is described as at least mid-sized, if not plus-sized, and the cover doesn't reflect this in my opinion. Obviously this is not the author's fault nor is it a mark against the book itself, but just something that I really want publishers to stop doing.

All in all, The Fiancee Farce lived up to all of my expectations - Alexandria Bellefleur has solidified herself as one of my go-to romance authors, especially when it comes to rom coms. I had a really great time with this one, and would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone looking for a really great, feel-good sapphic romance. I also super recommend it to anyone who is looking for a sapphic take on a Cinderella type story - I'm gonna need someone to make another A Cinderella Story movie based on this book ASAP.

This is a perfect example of a book whose cover beautifully illustrates the main character’s’ personalities. Tansy could not be a sweeter or more sensitive soul to Gemma’s over the top snarky sensibility. I seriously kept flipping back to look at them together as I read various scenes, so bravo! for the cover art, it’s gorgeous! This was yet another enjoyable book by Bellefleur; the writing was effortless, the dialogue everything you’d want out of a romantic comedy, the characters fully fleshed out, and the storytelling (if occasionally predictable) engaging. I’m always happy when I read a book and enjoy both MCs equally.

In order to satisfy her family’s nagging, Tansy fabricates a girlfriend named Gemma (for romance reasons) that just so happens to be a real woman that shows up at the same wedding she attends. The real Gemma of course, needs someone to marry by the next shareholders meeting of her grandfather’s newspaper company, or she will lose the multimillion company to her scheming cousin. Seeing the opportunity presented before her, Gemma asks Tansy if she would do the her the honors with promises to benefit them both.

For a marriage-of-convenience trope, this book focuses so much on the communication aspect of the relationship. The MCs are always checking in with one another because 1) they actually really like each other, and 2) neither of them are under any illusions that they don’t need one another. Neither character is what she seems and we find Gemma is a big softie under that hard exterior and Tansy has gumption when it comes to speaking up for who she loves. I enjoyed the ride and whole cast of characters, but perhaps there were a few too many (step-mother Katherine and coworker Kat confused me initially).

Things you can expect from this book:
🎀 Loyal heroines that will do anything for each other
🎀 Realistic MCs that are messy but lovable
🎀 Prankster Hijinks
🎀 🌶️ Bookshelf antics
🎀 Dual grand gestures

CW: toxic family members, deceased parents, teenage nude photo shaming, alcohol use

Thank you to Avon Books and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 3.75 ⭐️

The Fiancée Farce was an enjoyable sapphic romance book.

It’s dual POVs of the main characters, Tansy and Gemma, and has some great tropes like the found family, fake dating, and a slight marriage of convenience. I would recommend checking the content and trigger warnings before reading just in case.

The overall premise was entertaining, there were definitely some laugh out loud, cheesy, and heartwarming moments. The first couple of chapters were also great as all the drama and planning start right away, which I liked. However, the pacing did slow down significantly half-way into the story. There were also a few subplots that felt quite rushed at the end.

I did really like the friendships throughout the story though. All the support and love the side characters had from Tansy and Gemma was amazing.

The romance between Tansy and Gemma was good. Their banter was perfectly written and I just loved how different but compatible they were. The spice was really great as well. I will say though, I wanted a bit more tension or angst between them as their shift between friends to lovers felt quite sudden.

The fake dating/fake fiancée aspect was also quite minimal to be honest, as they in fact start dating for real half-way into the story.

The ending was nice and I liked how everything wrapped up. The epilogue was really sweet as well. Overall, just an amusing and cute read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙖𝙣𝙘é𝙚 𝙁𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙚 𝙗𝙮 𝘼𝙡𝙚𝙭𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙧𝒊𝙖 𝘽𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙛𝙡𝙚𝙪𝙧 🌸

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Pub. 4/18/23

I adore Alexandria Bellefleur’s other books, so when I got approved for this ARC, I may have squealed loud enough to wake the baby 🙈

Tansy Adams loves books, and hates socializing with her stepcousin, who is engaged to Tucker van Dalen, her high school tormentor. So, to avoid social engagements, Tansy does what any normal person would do: she invents a girlfriend - Gemma West - who just so happens to be the cover model of one of her romance books. And that’s all fine and dandy until Madison and Tucker’s wedding, where Tansy runs into none other than Gemma! But Gemma is Gemma van Dalen, the black sheep of the van Dalen family and Tucker’s cousin.

While crashing Tucker’s wedding, Gemma never expected to be called the girlfriend of the delightful woman who shuns the spotlight, a woman she’s never met before. But as it turns out, Gemma needs to marry by the end of the year in order to inherit her families, publishing company; and so, she quickly and publicly upgrades Tansy from girlfriend to fiancée.

What ensues is an absolutely lovely sapphic romantic comedy as Tansy and Gemma wrangle family, feelings, hormones (🌶️!) and secrets , while trying to get to the altar before their families figure out that their engagement is a sham, a farce… or is it?

This was absolutely charming (even though I do wish we’d gotten some cameos!)🥰 it’s cute, sexy, witty, with LOL moments (Brooks and Teddy, I’m looking at you!).

Thank you to @a.m.bellefleur , @netgalley and @avonbooks for the #gifted e-ARC!

I adored this book! As in all of her books top notch :) I think brooks was my favorite character (can we get his own love story haha) and I loved his little espionage. I mean of course when any fake fiance trope it’s a tad outlandish, but it was well done and loved how honest they were with each other (loved it wasn’t a miscommunation trope issue for our two girls). I can’t wait to read more by her !

Dislikes:
I wanted more steam hehe

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.
Every time I give a sapphic romance a low rating, it physically pains me. Especially when it is the book of one of the most popular sapphic writers of this generation.
One of my guilty bookish pleasures is marriage of convenience/fake dating. I had such high hopes for this book, but perhaps that was my first mistake.
This book was really not a marriage of convince/fake dating. The characters meet, establish their fiancée farce, and sparks fly. Despite Gemma being more hesitant to give her heart to Tansy, their relationship was 100% insta-love. The lack of relationship building made it hard for me to connect with the characters and root for their relationship. I feel like the characters didn't have much in common, which isn't always a bad thing. I just feel like it didn't work for me in this scenario. The sexual tension was there... kinda? Overall, it didn't feel like the characters had to put much effort into their fake relationship-rather, it was more like they were dating from the start.
Another aspect of the story I really didn't click with were all of the side characters. Gemma and Tansy were surrounded by a bunch of assholes, who all seemed to blur together to me. Even Gemma's massive friend group seemed like a blur. I think this story would have benefit from more world building at the beginning of the story.
Bellefleur has the habit of writing characters with the vocabulary of a 1800s-era duke in a historical fiction romance novel. I understand this likely comes from a place of wanting to establish that the character is educated and grew up wealthy, but it feels so unrealistic to me. It literally drives me crazy and leaves me with a deep dislike of the character(s).
I'm notorious for harshly rating queer romance, so do not let my single review sway your interest in this book. While The Fiancée Farce wasn't for me, it may be for you!

My two favorite parts of this book were the setting and the small commentary on the romance novel industry. The Seattle described in the book matches my best memories of the city. The commentary about the romance novel industry -- namely that it is often looked down upon despite being one of the top selling genres consistently -- is well placed. There are a few romance-novel trope jokes in here as well, which I appreciated.

While I enjoyed the protagonists and dialogue in this book overall, their tropes dictated their actions and speech more than their character. I disliked the trope that structures the book, which I admit biases my review. However, the reason I don't like it in this book specifically is due to the flow of the story. The last 1./4 or so of the book are a jarring departure from the nice, more personal romance that filled the middle. I did enjoy the wrap up in the epilogue, though.

If you enjoy the trope this book is based on (fake fiance/fake relationship turned real), bisexual women loving women, and romance novels, you may like this one. If not, then you may not enjoy it.

This book opens with a bang! A very cute bang! Tansy and Gemma are so adorable! I love Tansy and how she deals with life, I feel like starting off with her was a really great way to make the book more relatable. This definitely has Cinderella undertones (which I wasn’t expecting, but did enjoy!) to some facets of the book, like stepmothers, stepsisters, absent father, etc etc. It almost felt like a Disney Princess movie. But make it sapphic.

And honestly the writing was very lovely. I was drawn into the story immediately. The banter between Gemma and Tansy felt natural, and I liked seeing how common tropes are incorporated into the book, but in a way that was fun and refreshing.

UGH. This book was just so darn cute. I was smiling so much while I was reading it. Even the third act couldn’t make me feel down because I knew it would be okay in the end.

This is such an exquistely written sapphic romance and I can’t say enough good things about it. It left a fizzy, bubbly sensation in my stomach and had me sighing in happiness.

I highly recommend this book!

First off, thank you (!!!!!) to NetGalley and HarperCollins for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have devoured all of Alexandria’s romances since discovering Written in the Stars last year. As soon as I found out of this book’s existence, I knew I couldn’t wait to fall into this world.

Gemma and Tansy fall into a courtship/marriage of convenience alongside a cast of fun, familiar-feeling characters. I loved their friendship dynamic, and I am hoping (please) for this little corner to continue so that I can read more adventures of these characters like with the last trilogy. Especially Teddy!

I love her world-building, her humor, her romance, her cast of colorful and diverse characters. This was a very fun read! Thank you again!

Every so often, I remember how much I LOVE romance. A book with well-done tropes, engaging characters, and a great plot really does the trick for me. And this ticked all my boxes! I loved how self-aware and playful the narrative was, Taylor Swift and romance stereotypes being referenced, poking a little fun while remaining true to the emotional heart of the writing. Gemma and Tansy were such lovely protagonists, their dynamic was so enjoyable, and the side characters brought so much life to their world. I also appreciated the care taken in the social dynamics of a classist, patriarchal, wealthy world - I usually expect to dislike rich characters and instead appreciated how they were portrayed, good and bad. My other favorite aspect was that the last third of the book was really well done. The ups and downs fit my expectations and surprised me at the same time. I'm really looking forward to seeing this book on shelves! (And reading Bellefleur's other works, since this was my first.)

Thank you for NetGalley for the digital ARC!

I love the “married for convenience” trope and the cover for this appealed to me in such a way that I was so excited to read this.

Gemma and Tansy didn’t fall prey to the usual miscommunication trope and every time I held my breath, thinking it was going to happen, I was quickly proven wrong. Their relationship felt genuine even before they realized they had actual feelings for each other. I also enjoyed (most) of Gemma’s friends, they weren’t too over the top and did things that reminded me of my own friends.

Any time there was something said or done that made me question how it would play out it was almost immediately addressed in the book (the one I found funniest was my vendetta against La Croix which was also vindicated by a character later in the book). I also really appreciated that there wasn’t really any homophobia, even in instances where people suspected or looked down on their marriage it came from a different kind of malcontent.

I am very surprised with how much I enjoyed this book (not because I had low expectations but because I’m personally very hit or miss with the genre). Apparently I just haven’t found too many of the right romance books for me, but I will definitely be reading more of Bellefleur’s work soon.

Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review.

A delicious and toe-curling read, even before the main points of the plot begin to develop and any contact is made besides some lingering glances and daydreaming.

Two bi cuties in a marriage of convenience? The entire story set in greater Seattle? Sign me up! Honestly, the best part about this whole book is how it largely modeled healthy communication even in a relationship that didn't start in the most conventional of ways. Only reason it's not 5⭐️ for me is pacing and I wished for a smidge more character development. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free advance copy.

This book was such a delight and I sped through it. I truly loved Gemma and Tansy and they had such palpable chemistry. Their banter was phenomenal and they had fantastic communication (something necessary for me to enjoy a romance novel). Brooks and Teddy were also such great characters that added so much to the story. This is now one of my all time favorite romances.