I have read many rom coms with fake relationships. This one, though, sets itself apart from the rest by getting Emily and Mark together quicker, allowing for an enjoyable story. Emily has heard so much about Mark Chang from her mom that she has many preconceived notions about him, none of them good. To get her mom off her case, they start fake dating. Much to her surprise, feelings turn real, only no one believes them. Sprinkled with a funny cat, dreams of cherry pie, and a large meddling family, this is one rom com that was fun from start to finish.

3.5 stars rounded up. In the spirit of complete honesty, I struggled with the first half of this book, but I’m glad I kept reading. I really enjoyed the second half a lot.

Emily is a published writer who feels like she’s a disappointment to her family — most of all because she’s still single in her 30s. Her mother’s attempts at matchmaking include a constant refrain of “Mark Chan this” and “Mark Chan that” every chance she gets despite Emily’s certainty that he is not her type. Finally, out of desperation to make it stop, Emily convinces Mark to fake date and sell the lie to their parents. The more she gets to know him though, he may not be as far from her type as she thought.

First half Emily was frustrating for me to read. She came across as pretty bitter about life despite forging her own career based on her wants rather than her parents. Also, as someone five years older than her character, her internal monologue about basically falling apart and feeling ancient at the ripe old age of 33 was not appealing. All that said, once she started spending real time with Mark and softening her edges a bit, I grew to like her and understand her a bit more. Culturally, I don’t have the same lived experience and don’t know the kind of pressure she experienced and had internalized from her parents, particularly her mom. The relationship between them appeared to be one way on the surface from the beginning, but there’s a really beautiful shift between them later in the book as motivations are revealed. The conversation they share was one of my favorite moments in the book.

The relationship between Mark and Emily was interesting. Mark had a lot more patience in the face of Emily’s unwarranted judgements and attitude toward him that I think a lot of people would have. Lucky for her because he turned out to be a supportive partner who appreciated the ways they were different in their approach to life. He viewed it as a complementary balance between them, and I think he was right. I enjoyed their transition from faking it to real feelings.

There were a lot of complex family dynamics at play throughout this book. In line with Emily’s relationship with her mom, things weren’t always as they appeared. It was nice to see everyone find their maturity to really talk to each other about what they were experiencing and feeling.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Vibes: fake dating, modern P&P, family marital pressures, writer heroine

Heat Index: 6/10

At thirty-three, writer and barista Emily Hung is facing more pressure about marriage than ever before. More than anything, her mother is pushing her towards Mark Chan, who definitely thinks he's above Emily. (Does he, though?) But Emily really wants her mom off her back. And Mark's willing to go along with the charade... So what's the harm in a few fake dates? And if family happens to catch them on one date, I guess they'll have to plan another one! And another, and another...

I think that with romcoms, there's always a careful balance of sweetness (happy moments, some humor) and savory (sexual tension, the sense of ohmygodisitgonnahappenforthem?). Some people prefer romcoms that lean more sweet, sometimes they prefer romcoms that lean more savory. I am a "make sure it's got the sweetness it needs, but lean a little more savory" reader. And I know that's kind of ridiculous, but I'm saying this to lead to: this is a sweeter romcom. (Although it does have solid sex scenes!) A lot of people love a sweeter romcom, so there's no flaw in the system here. It just may have been too sweet for me.

However, it's well-written and engaging, and couches a kind of normal "fake dating to keep Mom off my back" setup in lovely descriptions and dialogue and dynamics. I recently saw a discussion surrounding fake dating that was like "Are you tired of the fake dating trope, or are you tired of the fake dating trope written by and about straight white people?"

And... that's a concept. I think that fake dating honestly lends itself much better to leads who have more traditional cultural pressure pushing them towards marriage. That pressure? Is not nearly as great for the vast majority of white Americans as romance wants us to think it is, let's be real. (Those for whom it is often come from more conservative religious backgrounds, and THEN we have something else to discuss.) When Jackie Lau writes this marriage-minded mama in the twenty-first century, I believe her because of the way she sets up and describes this mom. I believe that Emily is so over it, and I believe that she would resort to fake dating. It works here.

Was it just a little too on the side of nice for me? Maybe. But I really respected what she was going for.

Quick Takes:

--This sounds insane to say, but I loved reading a contemporary romance heroine who's thirty-three and doesn't have her life all figured out. I mean... that should be normal, but it's not in romance.

--One thing that I do think would've made this work a little more for me is faster pacing. Mark isn't in the book for the first chunk all that much; in some ways I get it, because this builds up Emily's idea of him. But you also don't have his perspective until later in the book, and I just wanted a little more, a little faster.

--There is a really great sense of family in the book, and I feel like that gave me P&P vibes the most. You have this overbearing mom, all of these people (including little nieces) dying for Emily to get with someone. It felt very true to life and also VERY classic romcom.

The Sex:

The sex comes a little late in the book, with a few scenes that are... not less than explicit, per se, but definitely edited in an interesting way. Exciting things are being done (there is face-sitting) but it cuts to another action, not another scene, so quickly? I think we could've lingered on the detail a little more.

However, there is a good buildup, and a strong chemistry between Mark and Emily. I liked what we got, I just wanted more... luxuriating.

So, while I can't say this was a slam dunk for me, I do believe it will appeal to romcom readers who prefer a little sugar. Perhaps... cherry pie?

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for providing me with a copy this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A Pride & Prejudice style fake dating w/ a Mr. Darcy character with a cat named and. Muffins? I’m sold.

This book was my favorite of Jackie Lau’s so far! The main character Emily was so relatable & funny and I loved that we got to have an MC in her 30s!

The author did a wonderful job with the pacing of this romance and the build up to the slow burn, but I have to say some of my favorite parts were just the banter between Emily and Mark. As well as the commentary about what it’s like to be trying to settle down and have a house and a good job in our economy today. It made me feel very seen but it wasn’t so heavy that it took you out of the romance.

Another surprising favorite in this story is the family and their growth by the end. I was crying I loved the resolution to the family conflict so much.

Just all around a great read! :)

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the ARC copy. Reviews are my own

You can never go wrong with a Jackie Lau book. Her characters are delightful, engaging, funny and sexy. This book does not disappoint

Emily is a writer working part-time at a coffee shop. She is the last in her family to not be married and she does not mind. What she does mind is her mother's constant nagging to find a husband . So when her mother sets her sights on Mark Chan, son of a family friend, Emily decides the only way to get her mother off her back is to fake date Mark. Except it turns into something more, of course . But will it last ? Will Emily's mother figure out what's going on? Will Emily take a chance on love? Pick up this book and find out,

Also reviewed on Goodreads, Bookbub and Amazon

Oh this was a cute realistic fake dating romance between Emily the fmc and Mark the guy that Emily’s mom was trying to match make. It’s mainly told in Emily’s pov until 50% through when it becomes dual pov! We see the fmc navigate being an author while trying to please her immigrant parents and find a man. I loved all the publishing stuff and also liked seeing the characters fall in love and navigate fake dating. There is a bit of miscommunication and avoidable relationship issue but overall I liked this one! Thank you to the publisher for this arc for an honest review.

Read if you like:
- Fake dating
- Diverse characters
- A bit of spice
- Author fmc
- Matchmaking parents
- Miscommunication

The book was cute, a fake dating situation to appease parents. I thought the second half was more fun and fast paced than the first..
Thank you Atria/Emily Bestler Books and NetGalley for the ARC ebook.

I was really looking forward to LOVE, LIES, AND CHERRY PIE by Jackie Lau - pleasing Chinese parents with fake dating the person they are setting you up with?

However, this book really failed to hook me. Let me compare this book to a Mariana Zapata book, but it's shorter. If you know me, that is not a good comparison, except for the it's shorter part.

The whole first half of the book is single first person POV via the FMC. Emily. All Emily seems to do is complain. If not about her mom's matchmaking attempts, or her life as an author and how no one seems to understand. Maybe I see too many authors in my social media feeds bemoaning the business of being an author that seeing it in a book was just too much. Add to that Lau's FMCs questioning on whether or not they want to be mothers/have children. Plus for a dash of variety, the high cost of housing in the area.

Then there was the fake dating, where Emily seemed to dictate to Mark all the places they were pretending to go. I guess this was a spin on the whole fake dating aspect - making up the dates without actually going on them. But not why I go for fake dating - I want to see the couple in action, I want the tension. The build up in feelings. If you aren't going on real fake dates, why not just make up an imaginary person? Especially since she still was dating other people - fair, they never talked about fake dating exclusively, but it still felt wrong that she was dating others.

The second half of the book got better, once Mark's POV was introduced, and the two started to go on real dates. It was a bit repetitive, because his first chapter was a regurgitation of what happened in the first half from his POV - luckily it was quick, since he wasn't in many of those scenes.

I think the book would have been fine at that point...but then we get to the reason that Emily's mom has been trying to matchmake Emily. That just made this story too much.

I'm just sad that I didn't like this novel, especially since I recently enjoyed the novellas in her Chu's Restaurant series.

Thank you to Atria and Emily Bestler Books for the eARC via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

I loved Emily and Mark’s dynamic! Mark was the sweetest male lead ever and I am in love with his cat Mrs. Margaret Muffins (I genuinely out-of-context texted my friends about how much I loved Mrs. Muffins) and I am in love with the fact that he talks to Mrs. Muffins about how much he likes Emily.

I gotta preface this part by saying that I loved the second half of the book a million times more than the first half, because when I say that this book is a “slowburn,” I mean that they aren’t in the same room for, like, most of the first act of the book. The tension was like a rubber band, and fluctuated from being tense to the point of breaking, to just completely sad and limp. On a similar note, the chemistry in the beginning was sort of non-existent? (Incoming second metaphor) It felt like watching two elements that you know would cause an explosion, but you’re forced to sort of just sit and stare at them in their separate vials (…or is it test-tubes? I don’t know, I’m not a stem girlie) waiting for something to happen.

But, huzzah! The second half of the book (once they actually start hanging out and having real conversations) you get all the adorable interactions and fun fake-dates you could ever dream of. Fluff galore!

I loved the writing style, I loved the humor, I loved the mother-daughter dynamic, and I loved the cat. I also have a sudden urge to learn how to bake a pie.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Atria Books for this eARC!

This is a fun, light romance clearly intended for a millennial audience. It also provides insight into the publishing industry itself, which was very interesting. The family dynamics ended up being more compelling than the actual romance that's at the core of the story, but I enjoyed reading it and wanted to find out what would happen in the end.

Jackie Lau has quickly become an auto add author for me. I love that her books have a good romcom vibe, but have a nice Women's Fiction tilt to them.

In her newest book, she takes on one of my favorite tropes - the fake relationship trope. Our FMC, is 33 and the last unmarried daughter of her family - something that makes her mother feel an urgent need to play matchmaker. After another forced ‘date’, Emily asks her surprise date, Mark, to help her out by feigning a relationship to get their parents off their respective backs.

As I mentioned this is a favorite trope for me, and I really enjoyed that our MCs were in their 30s. I feel like I don’t see that age group nearly enough. I liked that this was a slow burn romance and rather than love it was more dislike at first sight 😅

I always love to see a story that explores various family dynamics, which was definitely present here. And I appreciate a story that feels authentic because the characters feel realistic- in their problems, aspirations, reactions, etc. I also really enjoyed the fact that in part two of the story we got a dual pov — I loved getting to see things from both Mark and Emily.

For readers looking for a fun, easy romcom read this is definitely one I’d recommend. I myself read across the spectrum, but tend to prefer a closed door romance read — easier to share / recommend to anyone, I will warn that while the first part of the story is spice free with the slow burn. The second part does have some spice present.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to try an early copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own and freely offered.

Love, Lies & Cherry Pies by Jackie Lau was a sweet story featuring Emily, an accomplished writer and her family’s last single woman. Her mother insists on setting her up with Mark Chan and sets up their meet cute. Mark and Emily pursue a fake dating arrangement to please Emily’s mom and get her off her back. Their story continues from there.

I enjoyed this book. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

DNF at 35%

Main character is completely unlikeable. She is dismissive of everybody and constantly shutting down conversations or cutting people off ‘if sentence. Mark has no depth or opportunity to show depth yet somehow she is sensing a little spark. Yet at the same time has barely had more than one full conversation with him. I don’t buy into it and don’t care to read further

Emily's mother has been pushing her to get married for years. And now that she's the only unmarried daughter, it's only getting worse. After Emily's mother introduces her to Mark, the man she's been trying to set Emily up with, Emily is convinced Mark is not the right man for her. And she's even more convinced after her mother tricks her into a date with him. But she hatches a plan to get her mother off her back: pretend to date Mark.
I honestly wasn't really a fan of Emily at the beginning, but I actually kind of liked that--I usually need to really love the main character in a romance to get into it, but I didn't mind that I initially found Emily annoying and overly-judgmental; I still wanted her to get her happy ending. Jackie Lau struck the perfect balance of making me root for a character I wasn't always sure I liked--and by the end, I did like her quite a bit! I also really appreciated her anxiety around people finding out the relationship was fake, and her self-sabotaging that felt ridiculous and kind of over the top but in an incredibly realistic, relatable way.
I really loved Mark, and was rooting for them the whole time, even when Emily was unfairly judging him at the beginning. Their relationship was sweet (the scene where Emily kicks him in the shin made me literally giggle out loud) and I loved them together.
Overall, I really liked this book and would love to read more by Jackie Lau.

Captivating from start to finish, this sweet fake dating romance is a delightful journey into the world of charming characters and heartwarming connections. The chemistry between the protagonists is palpable, creating a storyline that is both endearing and entertaining. With each page, the author skillfully weaves a tale of love, humor, and self-discovery, making it impossible to put down. The characters feel like old friends, and the fake dating trope is executed with finesse, adding layers of intrigue and emotion. A perfect blend of sweetness and authenticity, this romance novel is a joyous escape into a world where love blossoms unexpectedly and leaves you with a warm, satisfied glow.

Love, Lies, and Cherry Pies is a fun fake dating romance story. Emily’s mom keeps pushing her toward different men and has her eyes set on Mark being the perfect one for Emily. Tired of the pressure from her mom, Emily convinces her and the rest of her family that she and Mark are dating and even gets Mark to go along with the plan, leading to all sorts of problems. I thoroughly enjoyed the characters and their distinct personalities. I did enjoy the first half of the book more, but I liked the way the story wrapped up.
This book was the first I’ve read by Jackie Lau, and I’m looking forward to reading more!
Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

The newest book from Jackie Lau introduces you to the FMC who most millennials can relate to. She’s in her thirties and struggling to feel like she’s “made it” among her very successful siblings. Emily is a writer, working three jobs who is constantly
set up, by her matchmaker mother, on terrible dates. She’s finally had enough and decides that fake dating her mom’s most recent recommendation Mark is the best way to get her mom off her back. We can all imagine how that will turn out!

I found myself deeply rooting for the the FMC and MMC to acknowledge the chemistry the whole first half of the book. The second part switch of POV was a delightful view into Mark’s head. During the second half I had a harder time connecting with Emily’s character because of the ways in which she assumed the worst about most people in her life. I felt like Mark was too easy to accept Emily’s actions later on in the book in a way that I wanted him to investigate
more. Justice for Mark.

I wanted so much more from the spice in this book and that is directly tied to Mark’s use of words during sex. Again, Justice for Mark!

This was a cute fake dating story set in an Asian-Canadian community. Some laughs, some family drama, and a lot of fun.

Overall, I found this a cute romcom. I live for a fake dating trope, and this delivers! I wasn't crazy about how meta it was about writing/publishing, but perhaps that's simply because I have a lot of friends in the industry. Overall, very fun and made me feel as though I was wondering around Toronto with our protagonist.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨/5
Spice: .5🌶️/5

This book was so sweet and fun! It definitely had that realistic feel of dating in your late 20s/early 30s that unfortunately I know too well. 🙄 All of the pieces about being a writer were very sweet and witty! It got to have a meta moment without being too much. I wanted more chapters from Mark’s perspective so we got a little more attached to him, but I wasn’t upset about it either because I loved Emily so much.

The best part of this book was the mom trying to find a rich and supportive husband for her daughter. When I tell you I started SOBBING at project pen!!

Overall, it was a very sweet and fun read!

Five Emojis to Describe This Book: 🥹🎨📝🍨🐈‍⬛