*disclaimer: I received this arc on netgalley. All opinions are mine and genuine**

This book was cute and cozy. 4/5! Recommend

Thank you to NetGalley, Kobo Originals and Jackie Lau for this ARC!

This was an entertaining short story! It started really great and, although I really enjoyed it, I can’t say that it was not a bit predictable. This story is about Helen, who has never been a person to date much, so she decides to ask her friend to be her fake boyfriend and, of course, he says yes! This is the old fake dating troupe that I really enjoy, but it didn’t get me much excited. It felt like Helen was in love with the idea of someone liking her and giving her the attention she was craving instead of really being in love with him. I felt that she could have been more focused instead we have her thoughts all over the place! I really did like her interactions with her family!

I got this arc from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review. The story starts off quick with how Helen’s boyfriend broke up with her in public and how she needs a fake boyfriend to prove to people she isn’t a pathetic mess they think she is. She asks her long time friend, Taylor to act as her fake boyfriend. Taylor is the epitome of sunshine, he loves Valentine’s Day, she doesn’t. It was quick short read. But it was definitely a cute one at that.

3/5 🌟

The only reason I was able to make myself finish this is because this is an ARC. This book solidifies the fact that Jackie Lau's writing and I don't go well together. Helen is so annoying with her constant whining about hearts and Valentine's Day every chapter and her hating Valentine's Day as personality trait. The love interest, Taylor, who even is he? Like genuinely, who is he? He can be anybody and we wouldn't even know because of his lack of personality and depth. He was just there to serve a purpose, I guess. This is going to be the last book for me from this author.

This was super cute. I love a good novella! I felt like I could totally relate to Helen’s personality so I loved that.

Reading this made me realize I need to read more books by this author because I love her writing style.

This book is very short and fast-paced, which makes me ( a busy, depressed college student) pleased, considering I don't have enough time to read lately.

This book's concept was solid, but the execution fell flat. Although the fake dating element is usually a nice touch, this book had more of an instant love vibe. They may be pretending to date, but even before she asked him, she began to develop these feelings for him, and I don't think everything fits together.

Also, I don't think she truly loved him; it was lust. That's unfortunate because Taylor has a good character but is sadly never displayed. Helen, though, is simply a bad character. To me, she honestly felt so uptight.

It's a decent book but only partially captures my interest; therefore, I'm not in love with it.

A quick, easy, and cute read. With a fake dating, and friends to lovers tropes. Overall it was a bit underwhelming I didn't fall in love with the characters and I felt Helen was a bit annoying in time and because it was so short I couldn't connect to the characters, they didn't have much depth. For a quick read it was okay but I don't think I would read it again.

3.5 Stars

A quick, easy, and cute read. This novella features grumpy x sunshine, fake dating, and friends to lovers tropes. Overall, I enjoyed this but almost wish it was a little longer as I felt it was lacking depth in terms of the characters and the overall story. It was also a little cliché at times but that doesn't really bother me.

Thanks to NetGalley & Kobo Originals for the ARC!

"Not Your Valentine" by Jackie Lau is an age old story of a faked relationship turned real. This story is incredibly frustrating in a good way. From "Don't go in there" moments while reading horror, to "Just kiss them already" during a romance, readers love knowing something the main characters don't know.

The good: The characters in this story are well developed and I really enjoyed watching their story unfold. It would do well as a chick flick and was easy to read in one sitting. I found myself thinking about the characters like I would a friend going through relationship drama and that was kind of fun.

The not as good: I don't really have a bad. The story was a nice package and well rounded. I was just a little underwhelmed. That, in and of its self, is not exactly bad. During a beach vacation, or while traveling (like I am today) this would be a great book to read and fall into. I read this book sandwiched between some emotionally heavy books and when reading this book with that state of mind I was less engaged.

Final thoughts: If you are going on vacation, or on a stay-cation, and you imagine yourself curled up by a fireplace or lounging by the ocean, this book would be great. If you are looking for a book club book where you want to have some deep discourse, perhaps pick something else and leave this in your TBR pile.

Once I got into this it was a little joy, less than 200 pages and able to be read in two sittings. There was spice, there was love... but there was far too much mention of Instagram. I feel like this is a complete personal preference but new YA/Romance books that focus on social media can often feel rather overbearing at times, this was unfortunately one of those times.

The writing style wasn't fully to my taste, it felt a little more like reading a group chat or sitting for coffee catching up with an old friend than a novel. Again, some people really like that but I just took a little longer to get into the style.

If you want a little romance book to read in a day then go ahead and pick this up, just don't expect it to be something that will be raved over!

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced readers copy
Oh my God, I loved this book so much, short and easy read, count me in. I love the grumpy X sunshine and fake dating tropevso much.
This book was a breath of fresh air, and I actually couldn't stop giggling 😂😂.
So cuteeee.
I love Taylor so much, he was such an amazing character to read and he was such a sweet guy too.
I posted a review on my Bookstagram on Valentine's day.
Just amazing 4.5 stars ♥️

I absolutely loved this book I thought it was super cute, I really loved the chemistry between Helen and Taylor and I just couldn’t wait for them to get past the fake dating so they could be happy. This book really got me out of a reading slump since it was a quick and fun read I really enjoy the authors writing style as well and will definitely be checking out more of her work.
Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

If you’re looking for a short romcom read, this 136 page book might be for you.

The storyline was predicable and I had a hard time finishing the book as well as connecting to the characters.

Thank you NetGalley for letting me read “Not Your Valentine” in exchange for an honest review.

this was good short book to read and it had it all. enjoyed this one and will read more of Jackie Lau books. I have to find more now.

Short, Romcom Novella

Helen is over dating and Valentine's Day after a very public breakup. While she isnt ready to start dating again she is tired of all the pity looks and decides to fake date her best friend.

It was realistic but at the same time predictable. Loved that the main characters were not the cliche roles and were actually pretty diverse. However, with it being such a short novel there was not a lot of character development.

Overall, a cute, sweet and spicy friends to lovers romance.

I thank Netgalley and Author Jackie Lau for an ARC of this book and I am voluntarily leaving a review. love that Helen and her friends get together to eat cheese and wine and commiserate. A salami charcuterie board? I'm in! After a disasterous break up last Valentine's day,the last thing that Helen wants is a relationship. To appease her mom and her friends,she decides to ask her old friend Taylor to be her fake boyfriend. Taylor agrees and as the two begin to spend more time together,Helen starts to enjoy herself a little too much. Does she want whats fake to become real? This was a fun read. I love Helen's friends and the banter between her and Taylor.

We follow Helen, who had a horrible Valentine’s day the past year due to a public breakup gone viral. All of her friends and family and colleagues, and basically everyone who recognizes her, give her pity looks. So this year Helen decides to ask his friend to be her fake boyfriend to stop the pity looks.

Fake date trope you know the drill. During the first half I found it a bit predictable, but I liked the fact that it was more realistic than other fake dating books, or at least more relatable to my reality. I also liked that she admitted the feelings she had to herself first instead of him. However I didn’t enjoy the constant self description of the protagonist. So I decided to take a break from the book and I couldn’t have taken a better decision.

When I came back for the second half of the book I was enjoying myself so much more with this book and I enjoyed that the character didn’t toy around too much with her feelings and was able from very early to admit she had feelings, at least that, not that she was in love. I also loved how her friends and family were supportive of her whole ruse because they understood where it came from. I always hate not supportive friends in books, so here having the opposite was refreshing to me.

I had already read Holidays with the Wongs from this author and I basically read the three first books of that in three days I think and I remembered enjoying this books. I enjoy her writing to be honest, it’s easy to read through and that makes her books a light read perfect for me in the summer Like the other books I’ve read from her it was cute, she really makes good romantic scenes in my opinion.

Not Your Valentine is a quick & cute friends-to-lovers romance that follows Helen Tsang trying to move on from the humiliation that came after a video of her public breakup went viral. To do this, she asks her longtime friend, Taylor to pretend to be her boyfriend. I’m sure you can guess what happens from here.

If you’re looking for a short but FUN read, this is a great one! However, because it’s so short, we didn’t get a lot of build up between our main characters.

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I did receive an advance copy of this book from @netgalley, @kobobooks, @jackielaubooks in exchange for a candid review but this book is now available!

Cute, steamier than I expected for a novella but a pretty standard fake dating plot.

Not one that’s going to be super memorable for me unfortunately, but a cute, quick read.

4 stars//

thank you netgalley & kobo originals for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

this little novella was such a sweet read!! the main characters are diverse and different from the usual stereotypes (mmc isn't tall and huge, no toxic masculinity + fmc is actually relatable) and i honestly wish the book was longer than it was, but it still was exactly what i needed to ease me out of my reading slump. taylor is the sweetest golden retriever bf and helen is just hilariously relatable i loved her. there is just the right amount of spice, cute romantic gestures, and banter. this book is perfect for anyone looking for a read during their reading slump or just a light and easy read in between heavier books. loved this <3