Degrees of Engagement by Jennifer Hennessy is a nuanced romance that delves into love, personal growth, and the choices that shape our lives. The protagonist faces challenging decisions about career, relationships, and self-discovery, creating a relatable journey for readers. The writing balances heartfelt moments with introspective themes, making this more than just a simple love story. It’s a thoughtful and engaging read for those who enjoy romances that explore deeper emotional layers and the intricacies of modern relationships.
Although it was a great read, it leans heavily into introspection, which may slow the pace for some readers. While the protagonist’s journey of self-discovery and growth is compelling, certain plot points can feel predictable, especially in the romance arc. Additionally, the introspective tone might occasionally overshadow the chemistry between the characters, leaving some readers wanting a bit more spark in the romantic moments.

First of all thank you for approving my request!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The authors writing style had me hooked throughout this book.

I didn't want it to end, a book I really couldn't put down.

This is for all of us girlies who aren't fitting in the "marriage, house, 2.5 kids" bracket and find ourselves on the fringes - never being celebrated because our accomplishments don't quite fit into "societal norm." I'm sure we've all thought of a perfect little revenge moment like our main squeeze falls into. And the tropes! They're rivals, but they're friends ... and now a fake engagement?! Sign me up for all of this delight. One bed is sure to make an appearance because how could it not in any good fake-engagement scenario.

But what else do I love? We get dual perspectives. And friendships that are so relatable where we love, hate, and can tell you exactly which of our friends is her friend. And how can we say no to a hot academic, Indiana Jones type? Yes, please!

But you know what I missed? Our hot guy...who obviously reads ... finishing her favorite series and connecting some dots! I needed that loop to be closed but I was left in suspense as we dealt with all of the tension and resolving it. Hated that. Not enough to stop reading or tell you not to read it.

Recommend? Yes, absolutely. If you like Ali Hazelwood for her academics, this is right up your alley. Get after it!

I am the type who always likes to give a book a chance. however, I felt this book would not be one for me right off the bat. I was kind of confused with how this book started I think this book should have started a bit differently. she is sitting in a bar and this guy comes up to her I felt like his introduction was non-existent and then she finds out she is now a doctor. I didn't read much because I didn't want to waste my time reading a book that I wouldn't enjoy.

A Delightful Tale of Love, Revenge, and Self-Discovery

Bianca Dimitriou's story is a refreshing and heartwarming exploration of love, friendship, and personal validation. Here's why this book deserves four stars:

Engaging Plot with a Unique Twist

Bianca, a brilliant PhD candidate, stages a fake engagement with her classmate Xavier Byrne after her friends and family fail to celebrate her achievement. This ingenious and relatable plot is filled with unexpected twists that kept me hooked.

Complex and Relatable Characters

Bianca's anger, sadness, and vulnerability are portrayed with authenticity, making her a relatable protagonist. Xavier's brooding demeanor and hidden depths perfectly complement her, and their evolving relationship from a ruse to something real is both satisfying and heartwarming.

Realistic Depiction of Emotions

The book delves into the intricacies of human relationships, showcasing the highs and lows of friendship and love. The reactions of Bianca's loved ones to her fake engagement are both illuminating and thought-provoking.

A Bit Too Much Angst

While the story is engaging, the level of angst felt overwhelming at times. Bianca's constant emotional turmoil could have been toned down slightly to maintain a better balance.

Bianca Dimitriou's story is a delightful and thought-provoking read that will resonate with anyone who has ever felt undervalued. The blend of humor, emotion, and romance makes it a standout novel, despite the high level of angst. I highly recommend it for a heartfelt and engaging read. Four stars well deserved!

I loved this! Fake dating perfection! Bianca has just completed her PHD, the greatest accomplishment of her life, and none of her close friends and family turn up to the part she organised to celebrate. But Xavier does - her academic rival/friend. She is furious as she is always there for their many big life events with bells on and she’s angry and drunk enough to agree to Xavier’s suggestion that she teaches them a lesson and proves her point that they don’t view her academic career seriously - get engaged and watch them be all in to celebrate that. So they fake an engagement and sure enough, everyone can make time for that. As the lie grows out of control their relationship begins to feel real and they must acknowledge the very different directions their lives are going despite their feelings.

I so enjoyed the premise of the fake dating trope in this. It felt like it made sense and wasn’t contrived. And I enjoyed the early revelation that Xavier has always been gone for her anyway. I also enjoyed the family and friend drama element of the plot as much as the romance! It was pretty impressive that there were so many secondary characters that I felt invested in and was able to follow their situations. So worth a read, with an adorable epilogue. A smouldering romance full of longing, spice and tender moments.

What to expect:

- fake dating
- academic rivals to lovers
- friends to lovers
- he falls first
- spicy

This was such a fun read. It was everything I look for in a romance.

The plot was a 10/10. There was a lot of it, but it wasn't overwhelming where I got confused or it felt like it all mushed together.

I really loved Bianca. She's such a relatable character and fun. Not to mention Xavier basically worships the ground she walks on, as he should.

Degrees of Engagement started off promising, and though it dragged slightly in the middle, I ended up having a fun read. I loved the characters and the overall storyline combinded all of my favourite tropes and elements of romance, my only real gripe was that the twists were predictable. While the authors writing was easy to read, it did miss the emotional punch I was hoping for.

Saying that, I LOVED the cover and pitch!! How gorgeous.

This was a really sweet and lovely read with delightful characters who had incredible chemistry. I really enjoyed this premise and would highly recommend!

i loved bianca and xaviers dynamic, the banter drove me crazy but in a good way! I was laughing with them and feeling all the emotions. Xavier worshipped bianca so much and never took her for granted. what a heartwarming and lovely read!
Thank you to NetGalley and Headline Eternal for this ARC.

Degrees of Engagement is a fast-paced read with a spicy romance centred about a bit of a revenge fake engagement plot that was entertaining, but casts off into a whirlwind romance that neither the main characters, Bianca Dimitriou and Xavier Byrne, can control. Well-written and engaging with some enjoyable funny moments and heart-warming romantic scenes to make your toes curl.

The premise is a bit absurd, but I rolled with it because it sounded fun. I’ve been in Bianca’s shoes in my life more than I can count with friends and family focusing on more traditional big life events to celebrate like marriages, births and buying houses. My heart twisted for Bianca when her family and friends failed to be there for her biggest achievement of her life getting her PhD. Her pain over this was something readers in similar boats will connect to and vibe with.

Bianca and Xavier’s characters are nicely developed, relatable with some insightful characters arcs helping build their feelings for each other. Their chemistry is a nice sweet and spicy balance with fun banter in their fake revenge engagement ploy, which quickly turns the tables on them both with both of them secretly harbouring feelings for each other.

The miscommunication trope felt like the only conflict in this story - Bianca seem incapable of speak to anyone about how she felt or how they made her feel with their actions. It gets a little old by the midpoint of the book; especially when the same problem creeps with regard to her feelings with Xavier. Communication isn’t everyone’s strong point – but in this world of digital communication writing it down has never been easier – send a text or an email. Over use of the miscommunication trope cost this book some rating points from me as I nearly DNF twice, I pushed through and things did improve but I felt there could have been some better plot points explored to remove the need to rely on the miscommunication to carry the plot.

A nice rom-com with wild card plot with a sweet and spicy romance that will keep you turning the page with Jennifer Hennessy easy to read writing style. I keep my eye out for more books by her in the future, hopefully we’ll see a little less of the miscommunication trope in the next book.

I had this book recommended to me a while back, and I was really intrigued by the concept, so I was excited to get approved for an advance copy. I love me a fake engagement/marriage of convenience/fake dating situation! However, I felt like DEGREES OF ENGAGEMENT didn't quite have the execution to keep me engaged throughout the story and satisfied by the end.

It started off strong, and I really felt for Bianca as she accomplishes the greatest milestone of her career -- only to have none of her friends or family be there to celebrate with her. OUCH. I really liked the commentary of this storyline, showing what in society we value as praiseworthy and important. I loved the delicious tension between Bianca and Xavier and all their from-afar pining. But as the story went on, I honestly became bored. I felt like the plot slowed and there wasn't a lot of action to keep me engaged. The characters felt boring and bland, and needed less surface level stereotyping and more rich and well-rounded development.

Also, I majorly got the ick with how much the author mentions Bianca's curves. I absolutely, completely champion plus size heroes and the representation of different size bodies, but "curves" was used so often (nearly 30 times!), it almost felt like the author was throwing it in there just to force representation and it really started to grate on me. And it almost felt like it had the opposite effect. We don't have to detail characters' bodies constantly! Also double ick: the male love interest wearing cargo shorts. :(

Overall, it felt promising, but ultimately forgettable.

Thank you to Headline Eternal and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest, unbiased review. DEGREES OF ENGAGEMENT is out now.

This was, unfortunately, a dnf.
I had a tough time with the dynamics between Xavier and Bianca, bc we are told that they are academic rivals and maybe crushed on each other int he recent past, but we are not SHOWN that. And so it felt like they got fake-engaged just like that. No thinking about it, no great discussions. Which would maybe feel better if I had more background information on them?
Lots of telling instead of showing, which is one of my least favorite things.

Thank you to Headline Eternal for the ARC via etgalley UK. All opinions are my own.

I reached for this book because I cannot pass up any academic-themed book ever.
It has all the workings to be a fantastic book:
Fake dating? Check
Academic rivals? Check
Women in academia? Check

But unfortunately it just fell flat.
I think mostly the issues stemmed from the first chapter, it has an almost compelling hook of starting with the FMC at her PHD graduation celebration where none of her friends and family show up, which then hatches the fake dating scheme; but unfortunately this set up led to further issues. FMC and MMC are meant to have had a previous relationship (friendly? Flirty? Rivals? Honestly it wasn’t explained well so I don’t have an answer) that leads to some sort of distance (falling out? Who’s to say) where they then rekindle their relationship (and create a fake engagement) at the celebration. This is all well and good but you don’t see their previous relationship at all, so much so that (as can be seen already) you don’t really know what’s going on with them. Their current fake relationships tension is entirely built on this past unrequited crushes (I think?) but without seeing it you’re more so being told that there is tension rather than feeling it.
Another issue with the beginning hook scene is the excuses FMCs friends and family gave for bailing. I feel like the author couldn’t decide whether to lean completely into the ‘my friends actually suck and there is no reason why they should’ve bailed’ or ‘these are valid reasons to bail but they all involve choosing their own stuff over what’s important to me’ which COULD have worked if the writing was just a little better and these were a bit more fleshed out. It just ended up with a constant flip flop between empathizing with the MC and being like…uhhhhh???

Overall I’m just a bit disappointed and this book will not be filling the Hazelwood-shaped hole in my heart.

Giving it a 2/5 because there is def SOMETHING there, but not enough to compel me to read the whole book

Also for Headline team: The pdf published on here does not translate well to an Epub format that can be read on a kindle

Degrees of Engagement by Jennifer Hennessy 3.75/5✨

This needs to be turned into a movie immediately. Degrees of Engagement was a fun take on the fake engagement/acquaintances to lovers that I wasn’t expecting!
I really enjoyed the dynamic between Bianca and Xavier and the will they or won’t they dynamic.

Like the rom coms I love from the 90s, this felt like watching a good rom com. I do think that there could have been more development with the dynamic between Bianca and Xavier, but overall their vibe worked.

My main ick for the book is that Xavier used “boss” way too much for my taste. I loved when he called Bianca “B”.

Thank you to Netgalley and Headline Books for the ARC!

Degrees of Engagement" by Jennifer Hennessy is a whirlwind of emotions and romance that you won't want to put down. Bianca's frustration with societal expectations leads her to fake an engagement with Xavier, her brooding classmate. What starts as revenge soon turns into something more as their chemistry ignites. With Xavier's impending departure, the stakes are high, and the tension between them is palpable. Hennessy crafts a story filled with humor, heart, and steamy moments that keep you hooked from beginning to end. The dual point of view adds depth to the characters, and their banter is delightful. Fans of Ali Hazelwood will find much to love in this book, which offers a fresh perspective on romance and the pressures of adulthood.
“Degrees of Engagement" is a fast-paced, entertaining read that delivers all the feels.

Very grateful to the publisher for this copy, opinions are my own.

*Sigh

Getting into this, I was super excited because HELLO, I thought I was gonna get a well written academically achiever couple and, of course, the plot and the romance.

Well, well, well. If my previous read was boring, this one, on the other hand, went overboard in the sense that it bypassed character developments and went straight in one of the most irritating romance developments.

2⭐️ for the premise and that 10% intriguing parts.

4⭐️ - my guilty pleasure is academia🤭

If you love Ali Hazelwood for the academia vibes, then this book is for you!!!

For two doctors, Bianca and Xavier are both incredibly stupid. Did I still enjoy their dynamic? Absolutely, I did.

The banter between these two drove me crazyyy to the point where I was laughing with them. Not once did Xavier take Bianca for granted, and it was the sweetest thing to read about. I don’t want to say too much and spoil it, but it was such a heartwarming read🥰

Thank you to NetGalley and Headline Eternal for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

I really enjoyed this book, the characters were intriguing and the story was engaging. I'll look out for more by this author.

I loved this book!!! It was so cute & a quick read! I wish they would have communicated better about their feelings towards each other, but alas a HEA it was!! I do think B’s family and friends don’t deserve her.