I want to give it 5 stars so bad but I literally just told someone I only give 5 stars for when something changes my life…4.9 stars? ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. I feel like I am being dramatic by loving this book, but I just read two books that agitated me, one I did not finish, and another book that was good but just not my style. I decided to take a peek at what was next on my list and read the first chapter, I would put it down and pick it up this weekend. Within the first chapter, I was hooked. Lau’s writing style is what I love soooo much and after not enjoying books the last week I was so happy to see a writing style I was familiar with and loved. This is a short book, or maybe it’s normal and I have been reading long books, but I read this in 2.5 hours and I made every facial expression as I read it. I could not put it down, and I mean, I had a very full bladder at one point and I had to rip myself away from the kindle. Is this going to be everyone’s cup of tea? No, but you should give it a shot because it's so cute and fun. It followed a romance novel plan but wasn’t so cookie-cutter that it was unbearable. The one complaint I have is it made me hungry. Hungry! They kept going out to all these restaurants and talking about their family foods and here I am waiting for my husband to get home so I can cook. Cake was mentioned in almost every chapter and damn it do I want some cake! Do I have cake? No! And it’s too late to buy some!

The characters were also so refreshing. They weren’t perfect in looks or personality. I find so often romance novels have the same blonde blue-eyed woman who sure, gets a little cranky, but she is perfect. There’s her perfect love interest with a defined jaw, a ripped body, and he needs to duck in every doorway. Taylor is 5’5. Helen is asymmetrical. Taylor’s hair is longer than Helen’s and he is a skinny man. They’re also both Chinese and Helen’s friends have an array of ethnic names, no John Smiths and Ashley Johnsons here (please no offense if you choose those character names). How often do we get Asian leads? Follow-up question - how often do we get Asian leads that aren’t fetishizing? This being an important topic Lau brings up in this novel.

The gradual falling in love that we see is so fun, I laughed and squealed my way through this whole book. I so hope it’s a hit by Valentine's day.

A fresh and fun take on the 'fake boyfriend' theme, that is definitely worth the read. Great characters that you care about and feel comfortable with and engaging storyline that moves at a fast pace.

She needs the others to stop asking her about her love life after she broke up a year ago . She is having an idea of fake dating her best friend of highschool . When he accept they start spent time pretenting as real couple and her feelings for him are no more friendly . When everything started she asked him for two months of pretend dating . Now that the date is finally here will she tell him that she want him to be her real boyfriend ?
I received this book from netgalley and the publicer as an ARC . Thank you . All thoughts and opinions are my own .

Thanks to Netgalley and Kobo Originals for the ARC of this!

This was a short, sweet, friends to fake dating to lovers story. The main characters were adorable together, and I totally see why she would've taken so long to try to start dating again after being publicly humiliated. Perfect holiday read for February!

Are you someone that hates Valentine's Day? If you are, you can relate to Helen Tsang. Last Valentine's Day, Helen's boyfriend broke up with her, and she became the subject of a viral video. Ever since that day, she has given up on finding love and dating. She's tired of her family and friends questioning why she doesn't want to put herself out there and try again.

As Valentine's Day approaches again, Helen comes up with a great idea: she will convince her high school friend, Taylor, to pretend to be her boyfriend. For some reason, he says yes and the two set out on dates to convince Helen's family and friends that they are in a real relationship. Suddenly, Helen starts to see Taylor in a different way. She starts to find herself having wild dreams about him and thinking about what it would be like to be more than friends with him.

Will Helen risk her heart and take a chance to share her feelings with Taylor? Does Taylor feel the same way about her?

Tropes: fake dating and grumpy/sunshine (Helen is grumpy and Taylor is sunshine)

This is a quick read, and it just might convince you to try a heart shaped cake with your valentine this year!

Thanks to NetGalley and Kobo Originals for an ARC of this book.