Love You, Mean It is a charming, small town romance featuring Italian food, amnesia, and a fake engagement. WHAT'S NOT TO LIKE?! It also contains my favorite trope - when a woman (who swears she doesn't love him) ardently defends the MMC to his shitty family. It always makes me want to stand up and cheer! (And swoon).

Thanks to Ballantine, the author, and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my review.

Ellie will do anything to save her family’s deli when the threat off a big box store, Mangia, may be moving in around the corner from her busy little shop.
She hooks up with the son of creepy businessman who owns the large building and they fake an engagement to save her family’s legacy.
A few twists and turns, back stabbing and sex and off you go. Enjoy this fun read!

Love You, Mean It by Jilly Gagnon took me awhile to get into, but I did enjoy it when I had finished it.

I had a hard time getting into the first few chapters because Ellie was incredibly negative about her customers and everything in general, but I guess I got used to her, because I liked her at the end. When she meets up with her former high school classmate, Theo, to discuss the property issues the story really starts and it has major overtones of (aging myself here) While You Were Sleeping - the movie with Sandra Bullock and Bill Pullman.

I won't give spoilers away, but Ellie does some semi-shady things that would be absolute deal breakers for me if I were Theo, but they resolve them and everyone gets their happily ever after.

This book was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher for an honest opinion. The review is entirely my own.

Love You, Mean It was such a fun rom-com read. I've read other rom-coms before where amnesia was a trope, but what I liked about this one was that both characters ended up being in on the plan. Usually only one of the couple is in it on, but having having Theo getting over his brief memory loss so quick was such a fun spin on it! I loved the shenangins that allowed for, and how it lead to Theo and Ellie's relationship developing. I also loved all the characters in this book, from the main couple to the secondary characters! The chemistry between the main couple was fantastic, and their friends/family really added to the narrative. Once I started Love You, Mean It I could not put it down. I will definitely be recommending it to my friends.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group and Netgalley for the ARC so I could read this book!

This was a cute, quick beach read. The characters were likable.
It stayed true to the Hallmark movie type of formula, so it was very predictable throughout. That was the main problem with the book - there were no unexpected twists and turns. I could have told you who would end up together from the first page the characters were introduced.
Throwing in the amnesia angle just seemed trite and tired.
There were moments that broke the mold - the sewing angle - but they were dropped.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I am so incredibly picky with rom com novels because they usually feel too formulaic. Not this one. In fact it had me guessing about a few people until the end. Gagnon’s writing is so spectacular that you can’t stop reading. I could see everything she was describing and Ellie Greco’s inner dialogue is hilarious and worthy of many a cute sassy t-shirt-isms. In addition I need a Mimi in my life, just saying. I also have never wanted to beat the crap out of any character with a link of cured salami like I did with Ted. His personality just oozed with the perfect amount of asshole-ness. Enough so that I completely hated him without making it turn him into some 1%er caricature.

I absolutely loved this. Spicy rating would be 🌶🌶🌶/5 but for anyone not into that you can easily skip past it. It will be released in April 2024 so be sure to add it to next summer’s TBR list now!!!

A fun read that kept my attention. I got a bit tired of some descriptions of building/housing interiors, especially descriptions of furniture.

A decent rom-com, which is a genre I am exploring.

This was not my favorite romance but I do see why others may love it. Some of the tropes that it included were just not for me, but I understand why it may be a favorite for different people.

title: Love You, Mean It

author: Jilly Gagnon

publisher: Dell

publication date: April 30, 2024

pages: 304

peppers: 3 (on this scale)

warnings: dead sibling from violent accident

summary: Ellie, who runs her family's deli, is upset to learn that a rich boy she knew in high school is working to bring a giant Italian food emporium to town. She ends up in a fake relationship with the rich boy to try to prevent his family's real estate empire from moving ahead with that plan.

tropes:

big business threatens small business
family businesses
fake engagement
the one that got away
great friends
family means everything
rich man with horrible, controlling father
dead sibling and parent
temporary amnesia

enemies-to-lovers
we're not right for each other

cousin is best friend

what I liked: This trope-heavy book delivered a lot of fun in the fake-engagement-turns-into-real-love category. I liked the scenes of family and food.

what I didn’t like:

their dark moment is pretty dark, as they both say extremely harsh things.
I'd want her, in particular, to figure out her feelings quicker, as she tells the same lies too herself too many times

overall rating: 4 (of 5 stars)

I enjoyed reading this book and finished it pretty quickly. The characters showed real growth and experienced changes in their perspectives that indicated real growth as individuals. I appreciated that they were two people who had very different life experiences and yet ended up on similar life paths. It was their similarities that allowed them to really impact each other. That said, I am not especially fond of either of the main characters and didn't really relate to them. That's me personally; however, I am sure many would.

Jilly Gagnon creates strong believable characters in Love You, Mean It who immediately draw the readers into the story. Ellie’s flimsy claim to be Theo’s fiancé bumps along weakly, but gradually gains acceptance with the appearance of a uniquely untrustworthy character, Sam. Sam adds depth and unease to what might have been a simple girl-meets-boy romance. Maybe Ellie distrusts the wrong people. Definitely a fun read.

Such a cute love story! Fans of 90s rom-coms will enjoy this one. It’s funny, heard warming, and relatable. Highly recommend!

Ellie moved back home to run her family deli when her dad died. Theo is running his family real estate business and is about to bring in a big competitor that will put Elli's deli out of business. Ellie is bound and determined to keep her deli afloat at any cost, including a fake engagement to Theo after he is injured on the job and has amnesia. Loved the sparks between these two, as well as the supporting characters and interesting plot.

"Love You, Mean It" was a charming romcom, earning a solid *4.5 stars*, featuring a determined young woman fighting to save her family's deli upon learning a big-box store might invade their town. The story is rich with elements like amnesia, a fake engagement, a disapproving wealthy family, found friendship, and contrasting personalities, adding delightful layers to the plot.

The author excelled in character development, bringing both main and supporting characters to life, making readers feel intimately connected to them. The chemistry between the love interests, complete with witty banter, added an enjoyable dynamic to the narrative.

My only negative is I craved more at the end—an epilogue would have been the perfect conclusion! Nonetheless, this book is undeniably adorable, and I'll gladly recommend it to fellow readers.

Thank you to NetGalley, Author, and Publisher for this ARC for my honest review!

First time reading Gagnon's work. What a fun rom-com type story. I felt invested in the outcome and now I want to read her previous book! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Four stars.

A good read. I liked how the main character grows throughout the book, sometimes kicking and screaming against the growth but growing just the same. The plot was good too. At first I thought it was just going to be formulaic and a matter of girl makes boy fall in love with her while he couldn't remember he wasn't supposed to be in love, but I'm so glad it's more than that.

This was an okay read of a girl trying to help her family business survive after learning of the threat of a large property developer bringing a franchise to town.
I almost quit after the first chapter as the main character, Ellie, is very hard to root for. She is very negative, seems to dislike herself, acts surprised when anyone likes her, and judges everyone she meets without looking past their status or clothing to get to know them as people. She also bases her self-worth on what she does rather than who she is - acting like a martyr when she does anything good - and pushes people away with her sarcasm rather than show any sort of warmth or kindness.
Suffice to say it's a huge surprise when a man she judges and is horrible to seems to find her lovely and wants to spend time with her. And it's the same with him - he does some nice things but he is very lacking in the warmth and kindness department too.
Overall, I think this could have been a decent read if I'd liked Ellie and Theo. Sadly, I did not.

Thanks to Random House and NetGalley I received an advanced electronic copy of the book to read and provide a review.

Love You, Mean It was a really entertaining read. It really takes you on a fake dating/engagement journey with Ellie and Theo. I was fully wrapped up in the story and couldn’t put the book down. The writing was smart, the characters felt emotionally authentic and the story was unique. I especially adored all the family background and character development around staying true to yourself while honoring family - there was something really comforting and home-y about how it was all woven together in what was ultimately about a business transaction. All in all, a really good time!

Side note: I LOVE reading a local author. Jilly Gagnon delivers!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for a review!

I was excited to read this book based on the description and I enjoyed it in the beginning but the romance fell short on multiple aspects.

The premise of the story is that Ellie runs her family deli and has been for the last five years since her dad died. Theo and his family are big business people and Ellie's grandmother just found out that he is planning to put in a big superstore around the corner from the deli that will run them out of business. Theo used to date Ellie's cousin in high school, and since he is only two years older than her they have known each other since high school. Ellie sets up a meeting with Theo, and at this meeting something falls from the ceiling in a construction zone and hits him in the head. He gets rushed to the hospital, but she thought she was convincing him not to got through with the superstore so she lies to the paramedics and says she is his fiancée so she can go with him. However, she is forced to keep up the lie when he wakes up having forgotten the last six years of his life.

She resolves to come clean the next morning, but realizes that his memory came back overnight. He confesses to her that he doesn't want that superstore deal to go through either, and while he is not close with his father, a family image is very important to him so if they keep up the engagement charade, they might be able to stop the deal since it would put his daughter-in-law out of business.

His ex Sam is also in the picture. She figures out that their engagement is fake and confronts Ellie about it. She is actually super nice and tells Ellie that she is interested in pursuing Theo again, but she is not 100% set on it and if there is anything at all between them, then she won't pursue him. Ellie is like "no there's not, I'll help you get him back" ??????????????? girl...... Ellie stays true to her word and at about the halfway mark point blank asks him "Would you ever get back with Sam?" basically and he emphatically denies this in about ten different ways and gives her multiple reasons. He tells her that he doesn't think any of his past relationships worked out because he wasn't with the right person, but he thinks that she is right for her. He confesses his love for her, basically, at the halfway point but she is still thinking herself that he doesn't have feelings for her which makes zero sense.

Instead of going to Sam and telling her that she asked and he said he is not interested, you known like a normal person, she for some reason still tries to set them up?????? Which at that point is directly going against his wishes, especially since he has expressed explicit interest in her. Her mindset is so "woe is me, I'm poor, we can never be together, we come from different worlds" which makes zero sense.

Maybe you can chalk that up to her not recognizing her feelings, but around the 80% mark Sam asks her again is she's sure there's nothing between them, because she will back off if there is. Ellie once again denies. At this point I had no excuse for her and it seemed like these resistant thoughts and feelings were only present for plot progression. After her denial of feelings toward Theo to Sam, her and Theo have sex in his car. And then she gets irrationally mad at him for a comment he made and in their argument she tells him that his dead brother would be disappointed in him..........girl..........................

She texts him that night apologizing and tries calling him the next day but he doesn't answer. She calls his assistant who tells him that he's in a meeting. Instead of waiting until he is not working, she decides to show up at the meeting and gets annoyed when he says he can't talk to her. He is literally on the clock girl. Instead of putting in a tiny bit of effort, she decides to give up on their relationship and lets her cousin make her a Bumble account. She gave up so easily so it made me not root for them.

They only end up together through his actions, when she should have been the one putting in the effort. When books have a central trope, like fake dating or technically fake engagement, it needs to be essential to the story. Everyone important to the main characters knew they weren't engaged, they were just trying to fool Theo's dad and all the random people that live where they live. The romance could have worked without the fake engagement, so the premise for the whole story is pretty shaky.

A cute story about a couple who come together and fake an engagement in order to save her family business. And then love sneaks in. Good characters