I liked the dynamics of Elle and August. It started a little slow because you had to read into who August was. Elle is a great character. I loved the backdrop of the children’s books.

Nicole Snow delivers a delightful grumpy-sunshine romance in "Almost Pretend." The story follows Elle, an upbeat illustrator with unruly hair and a passion for a children's book series, and August, a stonehearted billionaire married to his work. Their paths collide during a cross-country flight, leading to a surprising proposal from August to marry him, all in an effort to quell a media frenzy. Despite initial reservations, Elle agrees, setting the stage for a pretend engagement that sparks real emotions. The book explores the dynamics of their relationship as they navigate the unexpected twists and turns of fake romance. While initially concerned about the potential age gap, readers will find relief in the manageable 10-year difference. The story skillfully addresses the challenges of migraines, adding depth to Elle's character. A minor confusion arises with the use of both Merrick and Rick for a character's name, but the overall handling of the romance, humor, and warmth makes "Almost Pretend" a thoroughly enjoyable read.

I loved this book! The main characters had the witty banter that I’m a sucker for and the pace of the book worked great.

Elle was a ray of pure sunshine paired off with the grumpiest of grumps made for an entertaining story time.

2.5 / 2.0 DNF 26%

Almost Pretend by Nicole Snow is a fake dating/engagement, grumpy and sunshine, billionaire romance. The FMC has a debilitating chronicle medical condition that causes her to be rescued by a complete stranger who is mysteriously kind but extremely rude. They meet on a plane, a Delta flight, in business class. Okay, I can bite.

We get two POV, from August (MMC) and Elle (FMC), but they are like two sides of the same coin. He is supposed to be late thirties and she is early twenties, so there is a considerable age gap. He is supposed to be reserved and knowledgeable, but almost immediately engages in an outstanding display of contrived circumstances and bribes/strong-arms her into being his fiancée. There was mention of him being a widower but I didn’t read far enough to see if that was a plot hole or used as a miscommunication trope later in the book. It is all very messy and convoluted.

Overall, one thing I couldn’t swallow is why a billionaire (yes, with a B) is flying red-eye from NYC to Seattle in Delta Business Class. Nope. Right out the gate, just no. So that made me realize I wasn’t reading even a moderately researched book, just someone’s self-insertion rich-Daddy romance with all the popular tropes mashed together. It’s not good, there’s no chemistry because the characters are shallow and stupid, and there’s no reason to even skip through for the “good” parts.

Until Next Time,
MC

Thank you to NetGalley for access to this eARC.

Ms Snow has done it again. Perfection as always. She has a knack for bringing so much to all characters, even side characters. I loved seeing how much Elle and August grew and opened up to each other. Ms Snow as always does such a great job with the little twists that make the book that much better. Epilogue was perfection.

A great grumpy/sunshine read with fake dating which was the perfect combo. It was a speedy read that I didn't want to put down. The multiple POVs was great and loved reading each of the perspectives. Definitely will read again.

This book was *chef kiss* 🥲 so good! start to finish, it made me laugh, smile, & cry. The story line was amazing, and well written. the perfect balance of storyline & spice.

A quick, easy read for when you're craving grumpy/sunshine!

This was a grumpy/sunshine engagement of convenience done pretty well, it was fun to read and the spice was steamy

Also loved the migraine rep as someone who suffers from migraines.

Elle is a recent college graduate who aspires to be like her childhood hero, author and illustrator. She boards a plane to go back home to Seattle to help with her grandmother and while boarding the plane she is struck with a massive migraine. August is a somber billionaire who is married to his work. August and Elle are sitting together on a cross country flight fighting over the arm rest. After the plane lands Elle collapses in the airport and August is there to catch her. Unbeknownst to them someone photographed the innocent interaction between them. Now Seattle’s most eligible billionaire bachelor is getting engaged to an unemployed illustrator, and they don’t even know anything about each other. Can Elle’s sparkling personality pull the grump out of his gruffykin self.

I almost stopped reading this book because August said that Elle was too young and she was 23. It made me wonder if this was going to be one of those creepy 50 year old men getting together with a 20 year old. Luckily it’s not. There is only a 10 year age difference.

When they have their first kiss after the press conference I wondered why he would do that considering she was in the midst of a migraine and that is not the first thing on her mind. I felt that move was a little manipulative. I was confused a bit when the name Merrick came up since the name Rick was used most of the time. I would like to applaud the author on how they handled how debilitating migraines can get.

Overall this is a fun sparkling sunshine and gruffkins romance that makes your smile and feel the warm fuzzies.

Almost Pretend....

I really enjoyed this book. Elle was such a bright light, she made you laugh and made you smile. You couldn't help but love her. Then there is August, even though he comes off as the hugest grump, you know underneath he has a huge heart just for Elle. There isn't to much of an age gap in my opinion, 11 years isn't much to me. Poor Elle has horrible migraines that wipe her out completely, that is how she ended up in the arms of August and on every cover of every magazine/tabloid. That is where the fake engagement comes into play. Along the way we meet Aunt Clara, Elle's childhood hero, Gram, and Lena. All characters are so good besides Marissa. But she even comes around at the end. The ending did have some weird twists but all in all we get a happy ending.

I loved this book. Billionaire romances are one of my favorites and this book was amazing. The writing was very good and the romance was very good!

This was a definite opposites-attract with very stuffy and uptight August drawn to sunny Elle. The book is a little bit bonkers with an undercurrent of mystery with the copywriting of a cartoon book in play as well as various family skeletons that come out of cupboards. The book kept my interest and it covered a lot of ground as the couple got closer to each other and Elle smoothed out the gruppy edges of August. The baby language of 'grumpikins' grated a bit and took the edge off my enjoyment, but overall a good afternoon read.

Really enjoyed this one. A bit long, but probably needed to be. Not sure if August at the end could really be real, but it made for a good story. Pretty good twists and turns.

Enjoyable story

“Almost Pretend” by Nicole Snow? It's like this perfect combo of grumpy meets sunshine with a side of fake dating. I was all in right from the start! 😍

Elle Lark, the sunshine, is just the right amount of positive vibes. She cracks jokes, radiates warmth, but she's not some unreal, constantly-happy robot. She's human, has gloomy days, and I totally love that balance. You'll be hooked reading her POV. I'm practically attached to her now.

Now, August Marshall, aka “Jet Daddy,” is your classic grump. But guess what? He's not a jerk. Nicole snow nails the balance. He's stubborn, grumpy, but not a total a-hole, especially to Elle. Okay, maybe one time because of a little misunderstanding, but hey, who's perfect? August is healing from his past and buries himself in work until Elle turns his world upside down. The obsession level? Through the roof! Male MC’s obsessed with the female MC? Sign me up!

The book's a speedy read, around 400 pages. Perfect for a sweet one-sit read if you're into fake dating and grumpy x sunshine stuff. Spice rating? A solid 3/5—vanilla and delicious. Heads up, there are some Pop Culture/Gen Z references, but even if you're not a fan (like me), it doesn't ruin the awesome story. Big thanks for the ARC hookup. You gotta read this once it's out!

What more could you ask for in a novel? Romance, mystery, steam and sex all bottled up into one great read! I thoroughly enjoyed it!.

Oh man. I don't even know where to begin! First of all, I love a fake fiance/boyfriend trope. That will get me everytime.

I related so much to Elle the FMC. The way that she experiences her migraines and it's kind of a key part of the story was written so well. I personally suffer from intense migraines so seeing how well written that part of her character was was so lovely. The way that she's a huge people pleaser but such a ray of sunshine was great and did not feel overdone at all.
August was exactly what I picture in a broody, grumpy man. He had his own issues and the way he approached things between him and Elle were definitely based off of some trauma but he really did try to change his way of doing things for Elle. They brought out the best in each other even if it took them forever to admit their true feelings.

The story of their relationship developing and the secondary story fit so well together and I almost cried while reading this book. His grandmother was a well known children's book author but something had happened to make her stop. Elle had grown up reading her books and even wrote in to the main character of the book through a pen pal program. She learned that August's grandmother is the one who took the time to write back to every kid who wrote in and my soul was just weeping in joy for that.

There's a lot going on throughout the story between multiple characters but all in all, the story was well put together and really was such a fun, wonderful read. It absolutely takes you on a journey and it was nice to watch how everyone in the story went through their issues and finally gave acceptance and forgiveness to even the villain of the story.

This is an opposites attract type of romance. I love any aspect of hero/heroine type of love. When the MMC catches the FMC in the midst of passing out, I’m hooked. Swoon. Kinda on the longer side but definitely worth it.

Very cute book, some spicy but not over the top. Great story line and romance! Definitely would recommend. The characters are likable and the book is witty.

I loved this book! As a fan of grumpy x sunshine I loved the dynamic between Elle and August with her ability to brighten his day even as he stubbornly fought against it. The chemistry and build up is well written and has a good storyline alongside it and with some spice thrown in too. All in all this was a great feel good read and I loved the journey throughout and getting a little insight into the future at the end too. I would highly recommend reading this book it does not disappoint.

I absolutely fell in love with the dynamic between sunshiny, bubbly Elle with her eternal optimism and broody, brusque August. He tried so hard not to be swayed by Elle's personality, but how can you not be affected when you're surrounded by that kind of energy? This story had enough momentum in the plot to keep the story moving and enough spice to keep it interesting! A few unexpected twists and turns had me gasping and eagerly finishing another chapter. I'd give it 2/5 for vanilla spice but 5/5 for story and character dynamic. Well worth the read!!