This is a small town (WTF is a Wackernagel?! As an Illinois native, I am confused and offended by this town), fake dating, closed door, dual 3rd POV novel that, unfortunately, just wasn't for me as a reader. I ultimately DNF'd this book and didn't even really care enough to skim to the end. I searched the book for a few key words to be able to write out the tropes for this review.

It starts off slowly. The author does a good job building up the backstory and opening with the Engtangled Special of a slice-of-life couple of chapters for each character. Unfortunately, it didn't work this time for me, and it took me probably two weeks to finally get into the story. But by that time, it was a little too late, and I wasn't super interested or invested in the characters. It takes until almost 20% for the plot to pick up with the fake dating even being proposed, and even then, it takes a bit for it to get off the ground.

I describe Emily Henry's books as Women's Fiction with Heavy Romance. I'd describe this book as Romance with Heavy Women's Fiction vibes. I think the 3rd person with a lot of side characters doesn't help. But the cast of side characters really take away from it being more of a traditional Romance book for me. There's an ex-husband and his new girlfriend now expecting a baby together, there's family drama with the MMC that probably could've been it's own WF-type book, there's the small town law practice characters the FMC works with, and then there's the actual romance between the FMC and the MMC.

The FMC is a huge mess, the MMC is only in town temporarily until he can get out again, and they start a friendship/fake dating scheme, so the reader really knows where the drama is headed. But, at least in the beginning, the MMC doesn't seem too itching to leave town in his chapters. Like, he does, but he also doesn't. I wish he'd been a little less of a passive type character in that regard. It was mostly an internal desire he had to leave--he's with his whole family so I guess he doesn't really want to talk about it with them? I don't know. I was the high schooler who was dying to get out of my (also Illinois) hometown and never look back, and I feel like most people knew that about me, so I guess that aspect of Jake was just hard for me to connect to.

Bryce being a huge mess was refreshing but also got a little stale because she's a mess for the entire first 20+% of the book, in which she just buries her head in the sand (or throws her problems in the basement to forget about them) until this random stranger that she's told her ex she's dating comes over. And then it's almost like he swoops in to save her. It seemed inconsistent with what her character was going to be: strong, independent, no holds bars kind of lawyer. I don't know. Again, I guess it was just hard for me to connect with that aspect of Bryce and the story.

I think this would be a good book to take to the beach for the day. Like, it takes a bit to get drawn into the story, but you're at the beach for eight plus hours so who cares because what else are you going to do? It just wasn't for me, right now. That being said, it absolutely could be for me at some other point in the future when I'm ready to sit down and read a Romance with Heavy Women's Fiction vibes--which is a genre I enjoy and love reading as much as a straight up Romance. Normally DNFs are a 1 star for me, but I just can't bring myself to say that this was a 1 star book, so I'm going with 2 stars "this wasn't for me as a reader."

This book is definitely worth picking up a sample (or getting it at your library or on KU, if available) to check out and see if it's for you!!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher, Entangled Publishing for providing me with an advance copy of this book in return for my honest opinions.

Synopsis:
The mother, Bryce Barrett, has disappeared off the face of the earth. Well, technically she is just temporarily hiding out in a teeny Midwest town, away from her ruined marriage and professional demise at least until she can figure out her next steps. She bumps into her ex and she panics. What does she do? She pretends the cute security guard on the scene is her new boyfriend!

Jake Warner the security guard, is compelled by Bryce to play the part of her fake boyfriend, Jake against his best judgement, for some reason he can't explain goes along with it.

The two are temporary allies against a town filled with happy, normal, and annoyingly stable people. Fake dating keeps everyone off their back while they plot their escapes. But nothing botches a plan more than unexpected chemistry.

Loved the characters, story was a bit slow moving in spots, didn't particularly like the book cover. The cover didn't correspond with the story Liked the story line and plot. Felt it could have not been as rambling in spots.

Funny, witty and worth the read.

Overall a 3-4 rating for me.

I would call this on a closed door romcom with a dash of small town for ya. I think I may have mixed feelings on this one I read it and finish it but I'm not too sure I would recommend this one. I could totally see this playing out on the Hallmark channel and that I would watch.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I really enjoyed this book. I honestly wasn’t expecting it to be so emotional and all serious trauma and issue but I enjoyed this, I read it in 3 days.

I loved this book! Fake dating… need I say more 😍…
The way the author handled difficult times and past trauma was top notch. The characters were relatable and had great banter. I was rooting for all of them, and that made me even happier to keep reading. I wanted to cuddle up in my oversized sweat pants and some slippers (unfortunately I don’t own any with beavers on them 🤣) and never put this down.
Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This novel was so much more than a romance plot, Playing For Keeps explores some hard hitting and emotional topics such as family, divorce and commitment. Both characters are experiencing life changing moments and they are both running away from their problems in their own way until they crash land into each other’s lives.

This is my first Julie Hammerle novel and although I felt I empathised with both the MMC and FMC I felt that their character arcs could have been explored in more detail. The fake dating trope however ensured a number of laugh out loud moments and I feel the serious issues were tackled respectably. I did enjoy reading this book and
I definitely recommend it to those looking to read a romance book that features realistic topics. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my ARC.

The main character was a perfect mess and I loved it! This book was such a good, quick read. I definitely recommend.

First of all thank you for the Arc of this book. I had a feeling when I requested this that it was right up my alley and omg.

First of all, for being a fake dating rom com this got very deep and touched veery close to home. It tackled how hard it is to get out of certain self distruttive patterns and how sometimes, we stop seeing the people for who they are but we only see our idea of them. People change, for the better and for the worst and when it comes to family it’s hard sometimes not to protect certain ideas on them and really listen to them. Understand them. Open a genuine line of communication.

Seeing Jake and Bryce overcoming their problems and boundaries was really inspiring.

I really liked this.

Set in the present time in a small town of Wackernagel in Illinois.
Bryce Barrett has hit rock bottom, has run out of money and does not care about herself. One day while trying to buy ice cream she comes face to face with her ex-husband and his new partner to save face Bryce pretends that Jake Warner is her boyfriend.
Jack Warner has spent ten years running away from his past to wherever a whim takes him. He returned to his hometown of Wackernagel because he needs financial assistance from his family. Jake’s father is a basketball coach and wants Jake to be his assistant coach, Jake has issues about basketball and wants to disappear again.
Jake pretends to date Bryce to get some space from his dominating family.
This was a fun story about two people who need help to get over their past and move forward. It was about family relationships and basketball coaching.

This book was such a quick and witty read for me. Bryce was such an independent person and she was all funny and unapologetic about who she was. Both her and Jack spent a lot of time running away from lots of things and each other. It was cute read in the end and I also loved the Jacks family and friends.

Playing for Keeps is a standalone read told from dual perspectives. It starts with a confrontational meet-hate between a mouthy ice cream-eating “vagrant” with beaver slippers and an out-of-his-realm, resort security guard making ends meet until he can skip town.

Bryce Barrett is a big-wig corporate lawyer from Chicago holed up in her house in the small town of Wackernagel, Illinois, licking her wounds, and every other kind of junk food known to man, after being skipped over for partner and leaving her firm with literally just the clothes on her back. She’s wallowing in her misery with garbage piling up, the pounds piling on, and her money dwindling down. After meeting the quiet and skittish Jake Warner who helps her get back on her feet and becomes her fake boyfriend to save face in front of her ex, she realizes it’s time to stop the pity party and get on with her life, but unfortunately, Jake is not sticking around.

Jake Warner is only home because of a bad tooth and he plans to pay off his dad by working off his debt. The heartache and pain of being around his family and friends is too hard and the sooner he leaves the better. However, things have changed and he didn’t expect to fall for a quirky, sassy lawyer who listened without judgment. Will he face his demons and open up to his family, or will he do what he does best and cut and run?

Bryce and Jake are a bit immature on their own, but together with new and old friends and loving family, they become the adults we know they can be. Some things are a bit far-fetched such as letting someone coach a college team because of nepotism and they played the game 10 years ago, and giving someone legal advice when the case is just suddenly dropped. Also, I thought the story wrapped up too quickly and neatly with the seriousness of the subject matter needing to be addressed.

This book is filled with tough situations as well as humor and compassion. Jake’s past is very sad and it revolves around sports and mental health. I don’t want to give anything away, but I found the theme interesting and very important.

If you love romantic stories with noteworthy topics where the characters finally face their fears, repair relationships, and embrace change, give this book a try.

Did not finish at 46%. I can just tell from the way I am struggling to connect with main characters Bryce and Jake that I am not going to be able to finish this one, and if I do, I don't think I will be very kind about it, so I'm going to stop myself here. I love messy characters who have terrific character arcs in the end, but Bryce and Jake seem too selfish and self-absorbed to learn not to be that way. Even after they both experience personal tragedies, it's almost as if they don't learn from them, but use them as crutches to garner sympathy? To avoid living? To get bossed around by their families or to hide from reality? Both of these people need therapy in a big, big way. I disliked both of them individually, therefore, I do not care about them as a couple. It doesn't help that they have approximately zero chemistry with one another. I felt no sparks, no romance, no intrigue, and I do not foresee that changing. There is potential there with the premise, but honestly, the writing could use some work. Not my cup of tea.

Thank you to NetGalley, Julie Hammerle, and Entangled for the ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I was not compensated for my review.

This book was a cute fake dating to falling in love romcom. Jake just needs cash to get out of his home town and back to traveling the world and doing adventurous things again. Bruce his trying to get over her divorce and still live in the small town with her ex and his new girlfriend. Bryce needs to make herself look good to her ex and not crushed at all so she fake dares Jake. This works out for the both of them to get people off of their backs. There is a ton of funny dialogue and a quick paced book.

If you need a quick, fake dating romcom this book is for you,

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

This is my first Julie Hammerle and I loved that it spoke to my favorite trope -fake dating. The book was well executed and the title was not misleading which I loved. The book follows Bryce who is down on her luck and if rock bottom isn't enough she bumps into her ex not looking so glamorous. To mask her embarrassment she pretends the guy in her vicinity who happens to be a security guard is her man. I enjoyed how mismatched they were , the town, the banter and I look forward to more Julie Hammerle books.

I really enjoyed this one!

I thought that it had a good and solid storyline.

The book was a slow burn romance and I loved the way that the plot developed.

The characters were well developed and I loved the interaction between them and how things changed from them wanting nothing to do with relationships to the ending – it was a lovely read all round

It is 4 stars from me for this one – highly recommended!

What a hilarious and heartfelt romance story! I absolutely loved Bryce and Jake and the personal growth they both found in their lives while falling in love. The small town atmosphere and family dynamic was so funny and I found myself smiling a lot while reading. I think this would be a super fun summer read for anyone who loves love! ❤️

Bryce is a hot mess but I loved that about her. Took time for her to come to terms with the fact that she needed to wake up and deal with life. Good for her!
Jake constantly runs. Understandable with his trama. But it got a little bit much for me when he couldn't see his dad's point of view but then did butt then didn't. But it worked out.
I cringed a little, I cried a little. All in all I enjoyed this book and gave 5 stars. I'll be looking for more!

I enjoyed this read! It was a clean romance with a lot of drama but also a very quick read! I was laughing out loud at some points and also feeling emotional at others. I enjoy a title that is able to give me both emotions. Some part of the plot made me frustrated but I was able to look past and still really enjoy!

3.5 stars rounded to 4. The writing style was good but I found the actual story to be, well, kind of boring. I couldn't relate to either of the main characters and really couldn't understand the trash piling up in FMC's home. I understand this is most likely the result of a deep depression, but I didn't really like the way it was portrayed. Also, MMC's family was really annoying and I really hated reading the sister's parts. It all wrapped up well but I found myself skimming toward the end to reach the resolution.

This light and quick read is about two friends to lovers who are going through a pretty tough time each. Because of this, fake dating ensues and hijinks happen. While the story is pretty light, there are some more heavier topics that occur which definitely are dealt with respectfully and realistically