This book felt very reminiscent of the 90's movie while you were sleeping however instead of falling for the brother Ellie fell for the guy with the head injury 😍. This book was very cute and I enjoyed getting watching Ellie find true love while also finding herself. The only thing I missed was an epilogue about the future of the couple but it still ended well enough for me to give it ⭐⭐⭐⭐!

This was a DNF for me. I couldn't really sit through it any longer. I just didn't care for the characters and had a hard time connecting to them.

Thank you @dellromance for the gifted ARC!

💚 𝙈𝙮 𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 💚
This was such a fun storyline to dive into! Ellie feels stuck in her hometown running her family’s deli. A local property management company might threaten her family’s business if they rent to a large department store, so Ellie goes to reason with a high school colleague Theo about it.

Ellie and Theo have a disastrous meeting that ends with an accident, and Theo in the hospital with amnesia! Not a meet cute but when Ellie wants more time to talk to him, she claims to be his fiance to get into his hospital room.

Things continue to spiral in this funny storyline. They may be opposites but it was fun to see Ellie and Theo have more in common than meets the eye! Also, I enjoyed seeing sparks fly and Theo’s protectiveness of Ellie come out!

The last part of this book really sucked me in when Ellie is confronted by Theo’s ex, who wants her help with something that will benefit them both! It added a fun plot twist!!

I enjoyed seeing Ellie embark on new friendships in this story too! The end result of everything in the book was nicely tied up too!

🎧 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚:
🩷 Fake Dating
💚 Business Rivalries
💛 Opposites Attract
💙 Amnesia

This was a very cute, very quick read. It fulfilled exactly what I wanted at the time (sweet, predictable, comforting) and when I finished it I felt like I do when I finish a Hallmark movie: warm inside and ready for the next one.,

I enjoyed it! It was giving me the all angsty + cutesy enemies to lovers vibes that I depend on 🖤 Didn’t care for the ex girlfriend showing up though! But overall, it was a quick + fun read

Love You, Mean It by Jilly Gagnon is a delightful romantic comedy that captures the spirit of 90s rom-coms. The story follows Ellie Greco, who returns home to manage her family's deli, only to find herself embroiled in a scheme involving a fake engagement with Theo, who has his own motives for wanting to protect the deli from a corporate takeover. While Ellie starts off as a somewhat unlikable character, she grows throughout the book, making her eventual romance with Theo all the more satisfying. With charming chemistry, humorous situations, and a dose of heartfelt moments, this book is a light and enjoyable read perfect for fans of the genre.

This book was fine. I have found I have a heard time with books where one of the main characters are lying about who they are. While that is not a trope I love I still enjoyed this book.

This has all the tropes I usually love, but I really struggled to get into this and ended up having to DNF it. I would love to come back and reread this sometime,

this was my first from the author and I was pleasantly surprised! I went in pretty blind, but overall, had a really fun time reading this! it had some of my favorite trips and I would definitely read more from this author!

The cover of this book looked so cute and I have to admit I went in blind. It started off cute and it was holding my attention ...until it wasn't. I found the main character kinda annoying. The plot was so reminiscent of the movie While You Were Sleeping. Maybe that's what ruined it for me. I kept putting it down and saying to myself that I would pick it back up. Sadly I did not. This was a DNF for me. Rating it 3 stars because while this wasn't the book for me it might be the perfect book for someone else.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the E-ARC.

All thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.

Cute read !! I forgot to put in my review after I read it. This was my first by the author , and really enjoyed the style of reading

I’m very picky with rom-cons and I found this plot “unique-ish” — while at its core, broken down, it was a similar formula but different enough that it held my attention throughout. Funny at the right moments and the relationship was built organically from a comical start. A couple of misunderstanding tropes but not long-enough for me to want to chuck the book🤣 I had fun!

Thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for a review.

It was cute, spicy, fake dating, and grumpy/sunshine romance; it was made for me.
Ellie and Theo both had to grow on me a bit before I was able to get into the story entirely, but once I did the story felt too short.

Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for this arc, in exchange for an honest review.

I'll give this a 3.5.

Enemies to lovers
Fake Dating/ Engagement

At the beginning I wasn't really a fan and it was hard to get into, but after the faking dating started I was enjoying myself. It was hard to root for Ellie half the time because she just kept complaining about everything and saying poor her. Theo was fun to read about and how he grew throughout the story. Him turning from a rich jerk that doesn't want to talk about his past and expects a lot from Ellie. To him being vulnerable and caring.
I love the fake dating and convenience trope, but I felt like something was missing. It was a cute read and I did enjoy most of it.

Love You, Mean It by Jilly Gagnon is a charming and light-hearted read with a delightful fake engagement twist. Ellie Greco, who had to forgo her dream career in theater costume design to manage her family's deli after her father's passing, faces a new challenge when a gourmet food store named Mangia threatens her business. In a desperate bid to save her deli, Ellie meets Theo Taylor, the landlord's son. Their first encounter goes awry when the ceiling collapses, leaving Theo with amnesia. In a panic, Ellie pretends to be Theo’s fiancée, and surprisingly, he believes her. As Theo’s memory begins to return, he proposes that they continue the ruse to combat Mangia. Despite her skepticism, Ellie agrees, but their scheme hits a snag when Theo's ex-fiancée, Sam, reappears, creating complications and forcing Ellie to navigate her loyalty to her family's business, a burgeoning new friendship, and an unexpected romance.

The novel brought to mind the movie While You Were Sleeping with its endearing fake engagement plot. I appreciated the small-town setting and the chemistry between Ellie and Theo, which added a lot of charm to the story. However, I felt the book could have benefited from deeper background on the main characters and more character development for Ellie. I was hoping to see Ellie grow more throughout the story. Overall, it's a light-hearted read that would be perfect for a beach vacation.

Single POV, Spicy, Fake Dating/Engagement, Opposites Attract, Grumpy x Sunshine

Ellie and Theo are hard to root for as characters as they are hard to get a read on. Ellie is always quick to cut herself down and constantly questions why anyone would like her or want to spend time with her. The plot is fast paced and there is so much going on leaving the romance second to all of the other drama going on.

I chose this book because it had the premise of a hallmark move but it fell short of my expectations. Maybe it was because both main characters were a little annoying? Idk

Ellie is determined to rescue her families gourmet deli/food store, even though the property manager has other ideas. Enter Theo Taylor, said property manager. Ellie is trying to convince him when the ceiling literally falls on Theo's head and in order for Ellie to ride along to the hospital and make sure he is okay she suddenly finds herself being his fiancée.

Once Theo wakes up and his memory returns, Theo proposes a mutually beneficial arrangement for him and Ellie. Ellie agrees because she wants to save her families deli/food store.

I enjoyed the book and liked to plot line.

Thank you Jilly Gagnon, Random Publishing Group/Ballantine/Dell, and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

TLDR: You've Got Mail vibes with delis instead of bookstores. Fake engagement and some light spice.

This book is a sleeper -- I haven't heard much about it, but as someone who has not been thoroughly impressed by romance novels this year Love You, Mean It help my interest. Mildly spicy (it kind of came out of nowhere!) but great You've Got Mail (insert family deli and Eataly-style corp deli competition for bookstores) vibes,

Ellie Greco returned home to run her family''s deli five years ago after the death of her father and has been struggling to keep things afloat ever since. When she learns that gourmet deli chain, Mangia, is coming to town Ellie knows that she has to come up with something to save her family's business. she turns to the family who owns the building Mangia is eyeing to try to convince them to put a stop to Mangia. Enter Theo, the son of the head of the property management firm who can save -- or kill -- Greco's Deli. After their initial meeting leads to an unfortunate fall and a case of temporary amnesia where Ellie is pegged as Theo's fiancée, the fate of Ellie's deli is wrapped up into an elaborate lie and potentially real feelings between Ellie and Theo.

4.5 upped to 5 for NetGalley. Thanks for the arc in exchange for my honest views.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dell for the ARC of Love You, Mean It. This was such a fun romance with just a touch of spice! The memory loss angle had me cracking up from the beginning! And I also loved Sam as a support character… maybe we need her story next? 😊