A good story. A little long, though. I’d be interested in reading more by this author in the future.

Fake dating and billionaire are two of my favorite tropes, so I was excited to read this. Nicole Snow is a new-to-me-author, so I wasn’t sure what to expect.

August was a grumpy billionaire, and Elle was an illustrator who ended up on next to him on a flight. He ended up saving her, and when people saw him with a “random” woman, he asked her to be his fake fiancée to save his image.

Elle, despite having a sometimes debilitating medical clothing, was always happy and positive. And she was great with August, no matter how grumpy he was.

It took me a while to like August. He was just an a**hole, almost the entire story. He did get a little better at the end, though. And his interactions with the kids? So dang cute.

The banter between August and Elle was great. And some parts were funny.

Overall, this was a cute story with some angst, spice, and drama.

Oh boy, I really wanted to like this and the first majority of the book had me there- then it took a turn. I could not buy into the MMC, i thought he was a jerk and couldn’t find redemption in his character as the story went on. The spicy was there, but it almost overshadowed the plot (that was loosely there) and made it difficult to look past.

Absolutely love Nicole Snow & her books! Highly recommend this book & series. From the first page to the last, I was captivated and you will be too!

I voluntarily reviewed this book.

I was able to read an ebook arc of this thanks to NetGalley. A fun romance. Great read. Would read more by this author.

Rating: 4⭐
Spice: 2🌶️

I haven't read a Nicole book in a long while and reading this reminded me how great her writing is! I really enjoyed this book and wow, the meaning behind the story itself was beautiful 😍❤️

Elle is flying to Seattle with a migraine threatening to rear it's ugly head. She tries to make light conversation with her new travel companion i.e. guy in the next seat to her, but he ignores her in favour of working on his laptop.

On arrival, Elle ends up collapsing in the terminals due to the intensity of her migraine, but is caught in the arms of August - her new travel companion! He looks after her whilst she comes around and eventually drops her off at her grandma's place. Thinking he's wiped his hands clean, August appears on Elle's (Grandma's) doorstep the next day, with a ring in tow. The tabloids have fabricated a story about them, painting them in a bad light and the only way to turn the story around is if they pretend that they're in fact, newly ENGAGED!! 💍

I honestly love the marriage of convenience, grumpy x sunshine tropes and this book had it in spades! Elle is such a bright burst of energy, who always sees the positive side. Paired with August, who is grumpy and closed off, they shouldn't make sense, but the just DID! Despite their rocky start, they soon became fast friends (whether August had a choice or not 😂)... But the banter, sarcasm and mainly Elle's efforts to rile the stoic August were the moments to live for 🤭 Elle sees August for who he really is, and as a result he wants to become a better man for her. I adored their overall chemistry and together, they were just so good for one another 💖

I absolutely adore this book. The writing style, story, repartee and characters make this book such an enjoyable read. That the author brings in The Pokey Little Puppy, one of my grandson's favorite books, into the story is a bonus. Tropes are fake fiancee, billionaire bachelor, grumpy/sunshine and orphans brought up by single female relative.

Elle is a rose colored glasses, glass half full, optimistic artistic woman, raised mostly be her grandmother, because her parents couldn't handle her chronic illnesses from birth. August on the other hand is a billionaire, called "the Fixer", because he is called in by failing companies to fix them. His family also owns a children's publishing house and he and his sister were raised by the aunt. They meet on a plane heading to Seattle, where he is working away on his computer and she is suffering from a major migraine. He ignores her as much as possible, but ends up rescuing her when she faints in the terminal. To avoid a scandal, he proposes a fake engagement, but offers her the chance to work with his aunt, Elle's idol. She loves picking at him as she sees through his walls, while he sees her as no one else does. Lovely story.

I read an Advanced Reader's Copy that I was gifted by the publisher via NetGalley.com. This is my unbiased, honest and voluntary review.

Hello, as an introduction i would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher's team for approving me of this book. Though i am 4 months late i have finished reading this book a couple months back and just a year ago i finished another book from this author. I don't remember what the title was but i remember the MMC are willing to pay 500 bucks to buy a pastry from the FMC and she had been the last one to buy it.

Okay i'm deviating a bit from the topic but what more can i say Nicole's Snow book has always been an escapism for me whenever i wanted to read something light but with a good plot. Her writing styles are great too. Nothing too repetitive and not overly description, Overall the read was fun!!

This is a good book. The two main characters are Elle and August. Elle is going to her grandmother’s house by airplane. Her seatmate is August. There is an attraction. She has a migraine and is sick. August notices she is having problems getting a taxi. He takes her to her grandmother’s house. Photographers take their pictures. The pictures are over the internet. August comes the next day and ask Elle is be his fake fiancé. She agrees to. They start dating. They each have issues but together they work it out and fall in love.

I’ve enjoyed many books by Nicole Snow and I can add Almost Pretend to that list. He’s a grumpy billionaire and she’s a ray of sunshine with a medical condition. When Elle passes out in August’s arms at the airport, they find themselves front page news. He proposes a fake engagement and you know what happens then…they eventually fall for each other. A cute story with great character banter.

Thank you NetGalley, Montlake and Nicole Snow for this ARC of Almost Pretend. I enjoyed the few tropes in this book - grumpy/sunshine, pretend fiancé, opposites attract, billionaire romance.

Overall I enjoyed it however i felt that the chemistry at times was a bit lacking as well as the depth of the plot. It wasn’t my favourite book of Nicoles.

please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
HEA: HEA
POV: dual 1st person POV
spice: a couple moderately open-door spicy scenes
TWs: addiction and drug overdose, alcoholism, anemia, bribery, bullying (recounted), cheating, death of family member (recounted), death of a spouse (recounted), manipulation, severe migraines, stalking
standalone: yes
final thoughts: this was a very fast-paced, slowburn romance. The plot moved fast and was really enjoyable to read. There were a lot of elements, but nothing got lost or overlooked. There were darker elements (stalking, bribery, etc) without it being a dark (or even grey) romance which I think was mostly due to the banter between the MCs. It was a great way to keep levity in the story as well as show the evolution of their relationship through their jokes, nicknames, and digs at each other.
I wish August wasn’t such a man-baby with his outbursts toward Elle when she was the only person consistently in his corner. I wish he was made to grovel more after his constant outburst but I always feel like there’s never enough groveling in books 😅

read this book if you love
😬 angst
🔢 age gap (23/34)
🫡 big MMC
💵 billionaire
🍿 celebrity
💏 fake engagement
🎣 fish out of water
🏝️ forced proximity
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 great side characters
😡 grumpy/sunshine
🤫 hidden secrets
🩹 hurt/comfort
💞 mutual pining
❓ mystery
🥰 nicknames
🔀 opposites attract
🌀 plot twists
💓 slowburn

I have to be honest.... I got halfway through with this book, and then I started skimming the rest to get to the end because my mood started to change from this type of book to more fantasy romance. I do plan to pick this book back up and *actually" spend time reading it like it should be read because what I did read and retain, I loved. I just have to get back into the mood for this type of book, which I hope is soon, because I know that when I actually sit down and take the time to read this, I will love the book a whole lot more!

Oh my gosh ... I’m still swooning over August and Elle’s story!
August tops all the grumps that Miss Snow has brought to life so far. His initial constant annoyance is so amusing that it made me giggle non-stop, something I don't normally do all the time.
Elle, on the other hand, comes across as a delicate helpless bird whose wings have been clipped ... at least at the beginning of this wonderful, humorous and sooo sexy story. In reality, she is a tough, resilient young woman who drives the ever-grumpy billionaire August batshit crazy ... How? You'll have to read it for yourself!

The characters are so warm-hearted, so down-to-earth, so authentic that you really feel like you could meet them on the next street corner. The plot alternates between the highest highs and the lowest lows, sending you on an emotional journey that leaves you in a daze and makes a tropical cyclone seem like a balmy summer breeze. To give readers a little relief in this emotional chaos, this ingenious author has added equally authentic supporting characters to the main characters, whose quirkiness and hilarious banter ensure that some of this emotional tension is relieved by peals of laughter.
Once again, I wonder how Miss Snow is able to top her stories time and time again.
This book deserves not just five, not ten, but at least a hundred glittering stars.

I have enjoyed every Nicole Snow book I’ve read, but this one has been my favorite by far. August and Elle were super sweet together. I loved Elle’s sunshine and resilience, in spite of everything she had been through. August was the quintessential tortured hero, with a heart of gold. This story was unique and the twist was well done. It was a beautiful story.

2.75 🌟

With tropes and spice aplenty, this has all the makings of a good read but sadly it just didn't do it for me. I just couldn't connect with Elle & August and that made it hard to really care what they were doing. I did enjoy the dual pov and the spicy bits but the romance and character development was lacking for me.

With thanks to Montlake & Netgalley for the ARC.

Almost Pretend is another amazing book by Nicole Snow. This book is a grumpy/sunshine billionaire book. This book is about August and Eleanor (Elle) and is told from both of their points of view.

Elle and August meet when they are seated next to each other on an airplane. After departing the airplane Elle blacks out and August catches her.

They meet again when August shows up at her house and proposes they get married for a year until the trouble that the media frenzy has caught goes away. Elle thinks he's crazy at first, but decides to go along with it.

However, the more they spend together the more they start to like each other. What happens when their time frame is up. Will they continue to be together? Or will they go on their own ways?

I enjoyed this book, and am excited to see what's next from this author.

Ugh. I wanted to like this one so bad, but August is a grade A asshole. I expected him to turn it around, treat Elle better as their relationship grew and I was immediately disappointed.

I really wanted to like this book. But something felt off about it from the beginning. Like, why is a millionaire/billionaire flying business class on Delta? And it just kind of went downhill from there.

We start off with Elle, suffering from a blistering migraine, making her way back to the west coast. She just happens to be seated next to “The Fixer” August. She passes out, he feels compelled to take care of her, and someone splashes pictures of them all over the internet. In a bid to repair his reputation, August proposes. I’m kind of foggy on the reasons why he needs to, but apparently it was important.

Then he offers her a job at his company. A children’s book publishing house. And woah, hold your horses, Elle JUST HAPPENS to be a children’s book illustration. WHAT A COINCIDENCE! Then is gets even crazier when his aunt also turns out to be a famous illustrator that Elle has looked up to and admired her whole like. It just seems like everything works out too perfectly.

I enjoyed the story itself, and the hot scenes were…hotttttttt. But I had a hard time connecting with the characters and finding them and the situations believable. There is a ton of spice and open-door sexy time, so this is a red hot read for sure.

Overall it was a quick read with a meh story line with characters who just didn’t do it for me. It felt like the whole book was trying too hard. Almost as if they were trying to hit every popular trope. Also it was long for a book that didn’t have much to offer plot wise.

If you’re looking for lots of sexy time with minimal plot and character development, this book is for you.

I’m pretty sure that this review perfectly sums up how I feel.


Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t love it either. But as always, I encourage you to read for yourself and see what you think.

RED HOT READ ALERT: RED HOT READ ALERT: this book is a sexy sexy red hot read that might jusy leave you blushing.

💖 Fake dating

💖 Fake engagement

💖 Grumpy vs sunshine

💖 Age gap

💖 Billionaire Romance

💖 Boss-Employee

Almost Pretend is available now in KU. Grab your copy here

Thanks to Netgalley and Montelake for the ARC copy of this book.

This was a first time read for me by this author so I didn't have any particular expectations going into it. I found it to be an entertaining read. August is a grumpy billionaire and he meets Elle when they are both on the same flight. August is a sourpuss while Elle is all sunshine and positive energy. He wants nothing to do with her, but it turns out to be a matter of being at the right place at the right time when he catches her after she faints from a migraine. Being the hero, though, may cost him his reputation when the media has a field day snapping pictures of him carrying her. He then does some damage control and asks Elle to be his fake fiance to protect his reputation. Elle is way out of her element when she agrees. But as they spend more time together, they both begin to have a hard time remembering that this is all supposed to be pretend.
I am such a sucker for a fake relationship trope, and this was definitely my cup of tea! I enjoyed seeing Elle and August get closer and the banter between them was such fun to read. These two were polar opposites, but they couldn't have been more perfect for each other. Definitely a fun read!
I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.