I really enjoyed this book. Our FMC, Rory, was relatable and complex. Our MMC, Mike, is caring and fierce. And let’s not forget about Mike’s daughter, Olivia, who is witty, strong, and also dealing with her own shit.

The author did an excellent job balancing romance, comedy, and heavy topics. This book deals with some heavy elements, such as anxiety, disordered eating, and grief/death of a loved one. I really loved how the therapy sessions were integrated into the book and how the importance of therapy and coping mechanisms were presented. I also love seeing Canadian representation!

The chapters in this book are longer than I usually like, but they’re laid out well. I found it kind of off how Rory always referred to Mike by his full name in her inner monologue as opposed to just “Mike”.

Overall a great read, and I am super excited to read more Jenny Holiday books!

The first page of this book told me it was going to rip my heart out. I’m not usually a fan of heart-ripping-out romances but I love and trust Jenny Holiday so I stuck with her. And I am SO GLAD I DID.
The story starts with a flashback to young Rory, aspiring professional ballerina, high schooler, and Caribou Coffee employee at Mall of America. A hockey player with green eyes named Mike orders a drink from her and her fake Canadian boyfriend is born. Rory doesn’t have many friends so she uses her Canadian boyfriend as an excuse to miss events and writes him long letters.
In the present, Rory is a dance teacher and one of her students has a single dad with green eyes who plays professional hockey. It couldn’t possibly be the same person, right??
I loved the main characters in this book, but I often judge books by the quality of the secondary characters. Luckily Jenny Holiday gives us Gretchen, Rory’s best friend, Olivia, Mike’s tweenager, Mike’s wonderful parents, Rory’s mom, the villain, and Ivan and Lauren. I loved this story and am so excited that Gretchen will get her own!

I absolutely love Jenny Holiday; she is one of my auto-order authors. I enjoyed the story of this book, but the main character's dance sayings were annoying. I enjoyed the hockey player aspect of the book. I will tell my romance reader friends who like hockey to read this book.

First and foremost, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for providing me with this free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

From the moment I delved into ‘Canadian Boyfriend,’ I found myself deeply immersed in a story that resonated with me on such a profound level. It’s rare to encounter a book that touches the depths of one’s soul, but Jenny Holiday’s narrative did just that. It had me completely engrossed from start to finish. It’s a heartwarming story that skillfully intertwines the complexities of life, love, and personal growth.

Aurora’s character resonated with me on a profound level. Her journey through the book mirrored parts of my own hopes and dreams, leaving me feeling emotionally and mentally seen. Jenny Holiday’s portrayal of Aurora’s growth throughout the story not only made me proud but also inspired a sense of optimism within me. It’s rare to encounter a character that feels so relatable yet aspirational at the same time.

Olivia’s struggles were poignant and deeply empathetic. I found myself rooting for her, understanding her vulnerabilities, and empathizing with her journey.

Mike Martin, oh, where do I even begin? His character had me feeling a whole range of emotions. He’s the kind of man who makes you wish for your very own Mike Martin. His emotional awareness and depth made him an incredibly compelling character, leaving me longing for someone as understanding and compassionate.

What struck me most was how ‘Canadian Boyfriend’ handled heavy themes like grief, mental health, and body image issues. Jenny Holiday’s narrative skillfully balanced the emotional depth and accuracy of these topics, making it incredibly relevant and poignant. It’s an important portrayal for anyone navigating similar challenges, offering both authenticity and sensitivity.

The supporting characters were equally remarkable. Gretchen, the honest and genuine friend everyone needs; Ivan, the observant and understanding bro; and Lauren, the epitome of a supportive ‘girl’s girl’—each one added a layer of authenticity and depth to the story, creating a rich tapestry of relationships.

In a nutshell, ‘Canadian Boyfriend’ isn’t just a romance; it’s a deeply moving and beautifully nuanced exploration of life’s complexities. Jenny Holiday’s storytelling prowess shines brilliantly, leaving an indelible mark long after the final page is turned.

I'm a huge fan of Jenny Holiday and love that all of her books are different because it shows her range as an author. This one touches on more serious issues than the others I've read, including eating disorders, loss of a spouse/mother, panic attacks etc., but enough humor and lightness was infused throughout that I found myself smiling the entire time. A sweet romance with extremely likeable characters (he's Canadian, so obviously!)! Highly recommend.

When Aurora Lake is in high school, she briefly meets a guy passing through her town named Mike Martin. All she knows about him is that he's Canadian and plays hockey. She turns him into her fake/imaginary boyfriend and writes him letters to combat her loneliness. Fast forward to thirteen years later when she sees him again, although at first she's not sure if it's the same person. His daughter is in Aurora's dance class and they are still grieving the loss of his wife/her mom. Aurora and Mike form an unlikely friendship and he hires her to be his live-in sort of nanny, too. A bit complicated! 😅 But it's a beautiful love story and I absolutely loved reading about this fated pair...(Trio if you count his tween daughter!)

What I loved:
• Unputdownable from the first page. I just loved the writing style and voice!
• Dual perspective with loveable main characters who are working through their own hefty baggage. You cannot help but root for them from the start.
• Having a MC whose wife recently died (within the past year) felt like a risky timeline to me, but the pace and believability of their relationship worked just fine. I thought it would be too sad and the grief too raw, but it was okay in this scenario. The friendship is solidly built and the the book takes place over a long(ish) period of time.
• The MMC is a hockey player but this didn't have the same vibe as many hockey romances. He's a single dad first and foremost and we don't see a lot of the team or game dynamics. This was preferable to me!
• Disordered eating topic. There is a CW at the start of the book (a trend I fully support!). I really appreciate this topic in romance novels and this was written in such an inspiring way.
• Huge mental health focus and gorgeous emotional intelligence from both MCs.
• In some ways, it was more like women's fiction than romance. I found it to be unputdownable, but sexual tension wasn't jumping off the page through the first half. The emotional journey is what I was hooked on. They have tons of chemistry and work so well together, but the focus was so much more on their emotional/friendship connection at first. And it was the absolute right choice in a romance with a recently widowed, single dad. I wouldn't want it any other way.
• Usually I have to just suspend disbelief in single parent romances. The kids are miraculously never around and the parent has tons of time for dating. I often feel like the kid and their parent's love interest become too close too fast. Or the love interest tries to parent the kid in a way that makes me cringe. Anyway, none of that happened here and while I'm not sure every single moment was realistic for a famous hockey player single dad, this book got closer to showing daily time commitment, emotional labor, and dedication to parenting. Even when it didn't show the full day, you were left with the impression that this character was a present father.
• I already can't wait for the sequel, which will be about Aurora's friend Gretchen!

Tiny complaints:
• I got so used to the emotional intelligence, I started hoping we wouldn't have a third act conflict! I was definitely annoyed with the MMC during the third act conflict. It was brief though, so I tried not to let it affect my rating overall.
• I wanted the conflict to be wrapped up a lot more neatly. It felt a little rushed. I wanted some clear communication *on page* before the epilogue smoothed the rest of it over.

Thank you so much Netgalley and Forever for early access to this eARC

I wish I could have read this in one sitting because I did not want to put it down.

The chemistry between the MCs was off the charts. Communication / banter is top notch, the characters feel very human and relatable. The mental health portrayal was fantastic and the MCs treated each other with kindness while they both worked through their own mental health.

Read if you like:
- hockey romance
- great mental health rep
- found family
- single dad / nanny

Highly recommend this one.
Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for allowing me to be an early reader! All opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this read, with its new take on the fake relationship trope! I appreciated the representation of mental health struggles and grief journey. I liked the slow organic buildup of Aurora and Mike's relationship over the course of the story. The eventual spice was on page but not explicit. My only criticism was why Aurora kept calling him "Mike Martin" which seemed to reinforce the celebrity status he wasn't comfortable with, as opposed to just being "Mike". Olivia was a wonderful character with realistic reactions and I can't wait to see more of Gretchen in her book!

I wanted to really enjoy this book, but just couldn't. What started out as a interesting premise just dissolved into what felt like nothing. This book takes a really long time to build up, only to really ruin things just near the end. It felt like there was just so much unnecessary content and got very wordy at points. Mike and Aurora are so boring and lack personality. I was ready to DNF about halfway through but I pushed until the end. I expected so much more based on the synopsis and was left very disappointed. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this ARC in exchange for a honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was a cute book, I really liked yh concept behind it, of creating a fake boyfriend (based on a real person) and actually meeting/falling in love with him years later. I like romance books that are about moving on after the death of a spouse, idk why I guess because it's something that seems so awful it can be cathartic to read about people getting through it and coming out the other side. I also really liked Olivia and Rory's relationship with her. I do feel that the stuff with Rory's mom and just her overall growth as an individual could've been fleshed out a bit more but overall I enjoyed this book and would recommend it.

Unfortunately this book was not for me, but I definitely thought that the idea for the plot was very inventive!

Poignant and engaging, Canadian Boyfriend is perfect for fans of Abby Jimenez or Carley Fortune. Both Aurora and Mike have demons to face, but they find ways to laugh together and with Mike's daughter Olivia. Readers are sure to love this gentle love story.

It's hard to put into words how much I enjoyed this book! Mike and Aurora are characters that were so easy to love on their own, and their relationship together was so caring that it would be hard not to root for them! Their chemistry was well written and so sweet. The way the intimate portion of their relationship started with just kissing-and how they both felt about it- was so innocent and refreshing to read!
I often shy away from books that deal so explicitly with grief, but I'm glad it didn't stop me in this situation. I love the normalization of therapy, the reality of the oddness of grief, and the support and grace that all the characters gave each other in the midst of grief. I simply cannot wait for Gretchen's book!

1.75/5

Thank you NetGalley and Forever for an ARC of Canadian Boyfriend!

I really wanted to like this book, but something about it wasn’t enjoyable to me in the slightest. I couldn’t relate to the main characters and I felt like something was missing from each of them. The ultimate plot was also pretty strange… I mean having a crush on a guy that you meet once at Mall of America and telling everyone that he’s your fake boyfriend, only to grow up and be his “nanny” eventually? Then engaged to him of all things after showing him your journal of letters you wrote to him addressing him as your fake boyfriend? I also couldn’t understand why Aurora called Mike by his full name at every single point in the book. I’m not sure why this had to be a thing. Overall, it just wasn’t for me (and that’s okay).

Sadly with this one, I just couldn’t get into it. I get it, she had a ‘Canadian Boyfriend’ but it was repeated so much that it just annoyed me. I think it would’ve been better to just group the info about this ‘boyfriend’ instead of repeating ‘Canadian boyfriend’ so much.

Canadian Boyfriend is a solid read; it's my first Jenny Holiday, and will not be my last.

Early marketing leads you to believe that grilled cheese could be an additional star of the game, but it's not. If anything, bonus star goes to pie (or ice cream).

I like that hockey is just an occupation with a lot of work related travel, and giving the hockey player workaholic tendencies without actually being a workaholic. As the MMC is a single father, this works. Holiday is not forcing the actual game (or practices) into the book. Usually when the game isn't important in the novel, I'm usually bothered by it, but it works in this novel.

Plus one for the child in the novel for being present, but not precocious.

Another +1 for having epistolary elements - in this case not only are there texts, but actual letters. Which leads me to forgive a lot of things

Oddity: in internal monologue (this book is dual first person POV), the FMC refers to the MMC by first and last name. Rory always refers to him as Mike Martin. But luckily from what I can tell when in actual conversation, he's just Mike. Or she avoids using his name. The MMC always refers to her by her full first name, Aurora. While everyone else calls her Rory.

There's a third act breakup, but it's not one that really comes from nowhere - it fits based on the nature of their relationship. However, the act that leads to the breakup could use work. Like a brief explainer from the FMC and it would be good. Right now the reason though fitting comes from nowhere. (Hopefully I'll come back to edit).

And now because I read it so early, it's a long time until Gretchen's book.

This was an enjoyable romance story with a few heavier topics. Virtually no spice which was ok with me. We have our two main character Aurora (Rory) and Mike Martin. Both flawed, both with history and both with growth by the end of our journey with them.
He’s a pro hockey player in the NHL, single dad whose ex wife dies in an accident. She’s a dance teacher who teaches Mike Martin’s daughter. They spark a relationship which is sweet, challenging and in the end cute and we root for them to be together. All in all a sweet love story.

I love Jenny's books and when she adds hockey into the mix, I know it is going to be a favorite. Canadian Boyfriend was a sweet romance with a little bit of spice in it as well, and I'm glad this is going to turn into a series.

Aurora is a dance teacher who has Mike's daughter Olivia in her class. Mike is dealing with his grief over the sudden loss of his wife Sarah and going back to play in the NHL where he has been on an extended leave. With Aurora being one of the few people Olivia will open up to and Mike enjoys being in her company, he asks Aurora if she will help out on keeping an eye on Olivia while he is at away games. What Mike doesn't realize is that him and Aurora met briefly years ago when they were teenagers and when that secret comes to the surface it can change everything for them.

Canadian Boyfriend deals with a lot, the loss of a spouse and mom and how your life still is moving on even though there is a gapping hole in your heart. Aurora suffers from panic attacks and throughout the story, she confronts her past with her mother and how it was not a healthy situation for her to be raised in. I thought the way Jenny took her time on each of these topics throughout the story was really well done. Nothing was tied up perfectly with a bow and both Aurora and Mike did not shy away from conversations on these topics and what they needed in their life to learn how to work best through them.

While I did like their romance, I think I enjoyed their friendship more. They both also put Olivia first and made sure that her grief over the loss of her mother was not overlooked.

I got more emotional in this book than I had expected. I adored both main characters. Aurora Evans has just started living - finally leaving the ballet world, she can experience more than she ever has and be free, which includes her overbearing mother.

Mike Martin is trying to live without his wife and take care of his daughter - he is unfamiliar with a lot but also removed from the loss of his wife,

These two meet at Oliva's dance class - they become fast friends, and then Aurora starts helping to take Oliva back and forth to class.

I loved that a friendship blossomed for Auroa and Daniel first - it was beautiful to read, as well as the healing that they both went through
I appeared to the constant Therapy they all were doing through this book.
I love the whole thing and enjoyed the romance and supporting characters. I can't wait for more.

As a Canadian, I didn't love the constant explanation of Canadian terms, but that could be specific to me.

i was so looking forward to this one and i really liked it! hockey player x ballerina is such a good trope!! it does handle some heavy topics but i loved the mental health representation. This book was so sweet and i had a fun time reading it honestly. great plot and i love both mc;s. olivia was so cute and i love her father daughter relationship with mike. wasnt a fan of the conflict at the end but i really enjoyed this one!