What starts as a fake-engagement (one of my favorite troupes) turns serious - but there is always a complication to overcome first. I love that this mixes the fake-engagement with a billionaire-type troupe too! I love that Lexi isn't exactly "down on her luck" even thought she's trying to make ends meet. This isn't a new story, but it warmed my heart just the same.

Just finished reading an advanced copy of a book that was just released on September 17th called, Can't Help Falling in Love. This was such a a sweet, cozy fall read! It covers some difficult topics, losing people you love, being afraid of change, accepting yourself and where you are in life, as well as loving yourself and being kind to yourself even if your life hasn't turned out how you intended it to. These characters were beautiful, the life lessons were beautiful, this story was just beautiful. And it was a fun read too! I read this in less than a day, I really enjoyed it! 🧡📚

“It’s okay to live your life. You don’t have to feel guilty about letting things go and moving forward. Sometimes the next step means leaving a few things behind. That doesn’t mean they’re gone. Everything you go through is part of you. Makes you who you are. But you can’t become who you’re meant to be if you stand still." -Bitsy talking to the main character, Lexi. 🫶

Thank you to the author and to the publisher for this ARC of Can't Help Falling in Love, in exchange for an honest review.

𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐟𝐮𝐧, 𝐚𝐰𝐤𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭-𝐜𝐮𝐭𝐞, 𝑪𝒂𝒏’𝒕 𝑯𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝑭𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏 𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐦! 𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐫𝐨𝐦-𝐜𝐨𝐦: 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬, 𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬, 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬. 𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐚 𝐟𝐮𝐧 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐚𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐫 𝐚𝐬 𝐫𝐨𝐦-𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐬 𝐠𝐨 (𝐧𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐝, 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐞 𝐞𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫).

𝐀𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐋𝐞𝐱𝐢 (𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝟐𝟎-𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐣𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐣𝐨𝐛𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐫𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫) 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥 (𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐣𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞’𝐬 “𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐬”) 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐝. 𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲’𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥.

𝒯𝒽𝒶𝓃𝓀 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓉𝑜 𝒮𝑜𝓅𝒽𝒾𝑒 𝒮𝓊𝓁𝓁𝒾𝓋𝒶𝓃, 𝒮𝓉. 𝑀𝒶𝓇𝓉𝒾𝓃’𝓈 𝒫𝓇𝑒𝓈𝓈, & 𝒩𝑒𝓉𝒢𝒶𝓁𝓁𝑒𝓎 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒜𝑅𝒞! 𝒜𝓁𝓁 𝑜𝓅𝒾𝓃𝒾𝑜𝓃𝓈 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓂𝓎 𝑜𝓌𝓃.

Can't Help Falling in Love is an engagement-of-convenience story. Lexi and Will have a meet cute and then stay in each other's orbit as they each navigate personal and professional bumps in the road. I enjoyed the story but the pacing felt slow and I struggled to stay in the story. The concept of this book was really interesting and I think it will be a winner with people who enjoy fall vibes, celebrity-ish stories, and endearing characters you feel good rooting for.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for gifting me with an ARC to review! All opinions are my own.

This had a cute beginning that jumped right in to the story. However, it just fell flat for me from there. The fake-dating started on page 2 and then took forever to go anywhere real. I feel like giving more time at the beginning of the story would have helped the pacing, but I understand why the author started it the way she did. I just feel like it was too long after that beginning.

I loved everything about this story! I loved how they met and he was interested in her since the beginning. Fake engagement, real feelings. The growth that Lexi shows is relatable. Grief is difficult and moving forward looks differently for everyone. I liked that after meeting Will she started taking care of herself and her mother also started moving forward. Great read!

Sophie Sullivan always writes the sweetest characters, and this book was no different!

A fake engagement that leads to real dating? sign me up!! Lexi, the FMC who is extremely relatable, is someone who continues to work hard as life keeps trying to beat her down. When an awkward encounter leads her to Will, one of Seattle’s top eligible bachelors, she now finds herself with a fake fiancé, putting on a front for old friends and Will’s very influence family.

I adored the parts with Lexi’s mom, loved loved loved Will’s relationships with his sisters, and thought the family dynamic made this book even better! If you are looking for a cute, closed door romance, look no further!!! Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC.

Can't Help Falling in Love Sophie Sullivan 🍃
Overall Rating: 3.5/5

I enjoyed this cute and quick fall romance!

I liked the premise and the meet cute and thought it was a well written story! I love a good fake engagement story and this was a fun take on that trope.

Some parts of the story and characters felt a bit boring, and the ending felt a bit underwhelming, but overall it was a solid read to add to your fall TBR list.

Thank you @netgallery and Sophie Sullivan for allowing me early access to this book to read and review!

This is the perfect story for hopeless romantics out there!! There's a meet cute, insta-love, lots of pining, and a sweet MMC! Lexi and Will couldn't be any more different - especially with their families and background. As they get to know each other and spend more time together, their attraction and chemistry is undeniable! There are discussions about love, grief, career and everything about adulting which makes this book so relatable. By the end of the story, they have created their own found family which is so heartfelt.

This was a cutesy romance that takes place in Seattle during the fall season. It felt like the perfect book to introduce the fall vibes.

I enjoyed the beginning scenes and it was very entertaining and roped me in. I loved that both characters knew they liked each other and that there wasn't a bunch of unnecessary drama.

I could relate to the feelings around grief and I teared up more than once when we hear about how much her father's death got in the way of her mom living her life without her soulmate. I can understand why Lexi was so closed off to falling fully in love.

Part of the story started to feel repetitive when it came to Lexi's insecurities, but it also made sense that she wasn't ready to accept the way her life course had turned out. There were a couple moments in the book that threw me off, and that was the way Will reacted to Lexi's insecurities. I felt some of his reactions were harsh and toxic.

I didn't realize the spice was closed doors and I actually didn't mind, but I would have preferred some lead up into those moments with more chemistry.

Other than those small things, I did enjoy their love story and the way things finished off. Will Gregory and Gwen get together?

Title: Can’t Help Falling In Love
By: Sophie Sullivan
Pub. Date: September 17, 2024

*Slow Burn
*Fake Relationship
*Meet-Cute

Genre:
Fiction, Romance, Contemporary, Chick-lit

Trigger Warnings:
Loss, Grief, Depression, Lack of Self-Confidence
(Scene Situation - Mild Content Chapter 23)

Favorite Quotes:
“Focus on what you can control.”

“Sometimes our own self-doubt colors how we think others see us.”

“Therapy is for everyone. Broken, glues back together, sagging in the middle, whatever.

“Finding this place was something that just happened at a time in my life when I thought I knew what I wanted, but it turned out not to be what I needed.”

Summary:
Lexi Danby’s life was nothing like she expected it to be…she was known for her speed as a track athlete, was skillfully competing, when her life quickly shifted, and she felt internally defeated. Her heart was shattered in a million pieces, and she didn’t know how to make a comeback. She manages to get a job waiting tables, although she is only subpar for the job. While trying to save face at the restaurant, after a complete disaster, Lexi meets Will.

Will is beneficiary of his family company, and very affluent. While reading at the restaurant, he is distracted by his waitress, Lexi. Will knows she is terrible at her job, but he finds her charming and attractive. Together, they are mistaken as a couple and to their benefit a fake romance begins…

Review:
Sophie Sullivan’s writing is engaging, empathetic, and thought provoking. Her storyline is fast paced, plot driven, and has complex characters. I love that Sullivan’s writing creates thought provoking questions for the reader to think about… How do you come back from tragedy? How do you pick up the pieces of your broken heart while trying to support others with their own grief? How do you diminish self-doubt and gain self-confidence back? These are the types of internal questions this novel provoked in me. These contemplative and absorbing questions are unique to the romance genre. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about them in Sullivan’s writing. I am anxiously awaiting her next novel!

Books similar to:
Melissa Wiesner
Ally Carter
Sophie Cousens

Thank you Sophie Sullivan, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

#Can’tHelpFallingInLove
#SophieSullivan
#StMartinPress
#reluctantreaderreads
#advancedreadercopies
#NetGalley

3.5 ⭐️

Aww I loved it, it was so cute! Gave me fall Hallmark vibes. Lexi in the opening scene when she meets Will is so relatable when I’m a hot mess. Haha. I highly recommend if you’re looking for a feel good romcom. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

I enjoyed this one more than I expected to. Will and Lexi were great together and I thought it had a great balance of chemistry and heart and emotion and fun. It didn’t lean into the fall vibes quite as much as I was expecting but they’re definitley there, and I would highly reccomend this book.

Thank you to Sophie Sullivan, St. Martin’s Griffin, and NetGalley for an ARC of Can’t Help Falling in Love! All opinions are my own.

3.5 rounded up. Cute but just fell a bit flat. I really love a fake dating/fake engagement trope, but usually love when behind that, the couple’s real relationship is a bit of a slow burn. This one felt like everything happened super quick.

I would have loved more slow simmering tension! I also think that some of the wisdom Lexi was given - from her mom, her friends, and Bitsy - felt like it was a bit cookie-cutter self-help book. I’ve never seen real people talk the way they did 😅

Overall it was cute, just not phenomenal.

POV: dual third person

You can expect: fake dating, fake engagement, opposites attract, he falls first.

Rep: queer side, grief.

Spice: closed door

CW: death of a parent

This was sweet and fun. I really connected with the main character (I, too, would make a terrible waitress), and I thought the two love interests had amazing chemistry. I read through it pretty quickly and overall enjoyed myself, though at points the instalove got to be a bit too much for me and some of the writing toward the end got a bit trite and sentimental. Still, I had a good time getting immersed in the world and characters.

Thank you to SMP Romance and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. These opinions are my own.

This book is so much fun. It begins with an absolute catastrophe of a meet cute. Lexi is a waitress having a really tough time. And Will is one of her customers. I won't spoil the amazing scene, but they get to know each other, one thing leads to another, and suddenly, they are fake engaged.

She is exactly the kind of waitress I would be (horrible). And I kind of loved seeing the respect for just how hard serving is. She's rather down on herself and not where she expected to be in life. And I loved seeing her grow into greater belief in herself.

Fake dating and fake engagement are some of my favorite tropes when done right. And it was so well done here. I loved that both Lexi and Will were clear about which parts were pretend and so honest and authentic with each other.

This book also tackles some tough topics that I found especially meaningful relating to grief and familial expectations. It was just the book I needed to read. And it's a delight for the fall season.

I moderately enjoyed this read and it was certainly very quick and easy. It felt quite generic in its conflict and overall just felt a little bland.

I loved this one so much!! It was such a sweet story. Lexi's story really pulled at my heart strings and had my heart breaking for her. All the life that happened to her was so overwhelming. Meeting Will was such a blessing to her. Not only does he teach her how to love but he helps her to see how valuable she really is and that is just so priceless. I could not put this down. Thanks to the publisher and author for the ARC of this book!

"She might not be who you would have chosen for me. But she's who I choose for myself and I hope you'll accept that. Accept her. Because I'm in love with her and my world won't be right without her in it. I need to go".

Hehe, I'm not going to give any spoilers on this book because I've chosen a pretty long quote. But I'll tell you this: SOPHIE SULLIVAN HAS NEVER DISAPPOINTED ME.

This is the perfect book to read if you love fake-dating to lovers (or in this case: fake-fiancés to lovers), and if you love a romance between two people that come from two different worlds. In this case, a heir and a waitress.

This was an excellent use of the fake dating trope! If felt real, because neither character had anything to lose from the fake engagement. They just got caught in a lie and decided to let their feelings play out. I loved it.