Can't Help Falling in Love follows Lexi, a (not very good) waitress/shop manager/part-time college student/former track start, who is also trying to get her mom and herself back on their feet after her father's unexpected death. During one of her waitressing shifts, Will ends up in her section and, after some of Lexi's old friends show up, smoothly gets her out of an awkward situation. Lexi really can't add anything else to her already full plate, but Will is cute and charming and she could really use something fun. As it turns out, Will is considered Seattle's most eligible bachelor so when a misunderstanding means that people believe he's engaged to Lexi, it at least gets his mother off his back.

The characters in this book are really enjoyable! Lexi's reasons for walling off her heart make sense and her determination to fix things for her family without help means that she's gripping so tightly things are bound to pop out of her grasp. Will is an absolute sweetheart and his relationship with his sisters is so endearing. Will, who is older and more settled, does a great job of pointing out to Lexi when she's brushing off compliments or selling herself short which I found to be very refreshing. Their relationship is adorable and I really enjoyed this story. I've read a few other books by this author but this was my favorite. I'm hoping to see the characters in another book soon!

Can't Help Falling In Love by Sophie Sullivan

Thank you so much to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for this early copy to read!

I absolutely adored this book and read in a day and a half. That silly thing called work got in the way or it would have been less.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Lexi is waiting tables as a second job and really not doing it well. She isn't used to failure. She was a track star and had to quit school just a little shy of graduation when her father died unexpectedly. This second job is allowing her to finish school, while living with her mother and trying to pull her from the depths of her grief. Her mother won't leave the house.
Waitressing she meets Will , her customer who comes to her rescue, when girls from her past sit down. Lexi is embarrassed that she hasn't made anything of her life and somehow, she ends up dating Will, her customer. They go to an engagement party for the high school friend, and somehow end up fake engaged themselves.
Lexi doesn't know that Will is heir to a major company and the city's most eligible bachelor.
As these two get to know each other, you know they begin to fall head over heels. Will she be able to cut it in his world, or fall short because she's too scared to try!
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Caty Ordonez | Catysreads07 rated a book it was amazing
Can't Help Falling in Love by Sophie SullivanCan't Help Falling in Love
by Sophie Sullivan (Goodreads Author)
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My rating:
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This is the first book I've read from this author but I loved it a lot. I'll definitely be reading more of her books and this was such a fun read. I would recommend it to anyone who wants a cute fall read that has great banter. Oh my goodness, it's just so cute.

This was my second marriage of convenience and I loved the way this was done. It's just adorable.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC. (this is a closed door romance, adorable meet cute, fake engagement, he falls first, and opposites attract

The story blends a few different tropes (friends-to-lovers, fake dating) and sets it up with a meet cute. Lexi is the tough, determined main character who always puts others first and never wants to ask for help. When Lexi has to drop out of college, her dreams of becoming a track star seemed to vanish. Lexi meets Will ask she is waitressing, him as charming as ever. Will helps Lexi out by pretending to be her boyfriend, but a misunderstanding ends with Lexi "engaged" to one of Seattles A-listers. This book left me giggling and wanting more. It was a heartwarming romance that defied expectations.

I loved this book. I could really relate to Lexi feeling like she isn’t good enough. I also loved that Will knew what he wanted and never waivered from it when there were people telling him Lexi wasn’t from the right type of family or upbringing.

I’m forever in awe of how Sullivan, dives deep into the hearts of their characters, exploring their vulnerabilities and desires with raw honesty. The writing is beautifully evocative, capturing the complexities of love in every sentence. A poignant and unforgettable read that tugs at your heartstrings long after you finish.

I love this author, but for some reason, I just couldn't get into this book. I think I would have been able to sink my teeth in if the story had been told in the first person. However, I found myself a little bored in the first few chapters of this.

I love a good fake dating/ fake engagement trope in a book and this one was done so incredibly well. The characters not only stand out but are so well developed and fully real.

Lexi and will come from vastly different backgrounds So naturally they clash over many things. But the communication in this book was so good. Many times I've read a book and you feel like if they just had a simple conversation so many things could be avoided in this book did not do that and I loved it!

I can't, however give this a full five stars because there were some moments through the book that I was really not a fan of. Specifically the way The whole third act sort of plays out. There were moments that felt almost unnecessary and some of the family drama was incredibly annoying! Without spoiling things, I will just say that the mom made some decisions that were so wrong and continued to stand behind those decisions.

With that being said, I would still highly recommend this book. It's so much of an enjoyable read. If you have ever read and loved a Sophie Sullivan book then pick this one up because it's no different. You will definitely enjoy the journey.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great romance! I needed this people. I had some duds this year and some days I really didn't want to pick up a book. But this past weekend I needed some books to get me through and somehow finished I think 6 of them. This was one of the 6 and it was great. Fake romance that leads to real romance is one of my favorite sub-genres in romances.

"Can't Help Falling in Love" follows Lexi Danby and Will Grand. Lexi used to be a high school/college superstar in track. Then her father died and everything changed. Years later she is working two jobs trying to dig herself and her mother out of the hole her father left them in. Will Grand is one of the heirs to the Grand company based in Seattle. Will is tired of his mother setting him up with dates with women he would happily run away from. When he meets Lexi while she's waitressing he finds himself drawn to her. And Lexi who has sworn off love, likes Will. When people get the wrong idea they are engaged, they go with it because they both do want to date and see where things may lead...

And that's why the above works for me. Fake romances where the two go in denying they like each other or find each other hot does not work for me. But when the fake romances go in saying, yep, I like you, and using the fake romance to 'real date' each other, shennigans and happy hears exploding continues.

I really loved Lexi and Will. They were both right about things and wrong about them in equal measure. I thought that Sullivan did a great job developing the other characters in this one so no one came across as a caricature too.

The flow worked from beginning to end and thought that Sullivan did a great job of incorporating Seattle and some of the fictional places/things that the two were doing into the book.

I also get a slight hint this may be part of a larger series, but time will tell.

Five enthusiastic stars!

This book was a nice fake engagement read. It was a little bit slow but I did really like it. The characters were likable.

Thank You, NetGalley
🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

Publish Date: September 17th 2024

From the beginning, it keeps you turning the page, to wanting to know more! very enjoyable read

Lexi Danby isn't seeking a casual relationship. Formerly a track star, she stopped competing after her father's death. Now, she's trying to finish school while caring for her grieving mother and her poor waitressing job throws her into the path of an attractive stranger named Will. Their first date holds promise, but a series of misunderstandings ensue. A fake engagement they can't seem to escape from arises, and it turns out Will is a member of Seattle's Royalty.

Will Grand is Seattle's most bachelor. But he’s been tasked with overseeing a crucial merger with a company that prioritizes family values. To convince them that he's settled, he needs to present a facade of stability. While a fake engagement might benefit his business dealings, it complicates his budding relationship with a woman hesitant about commitment—especially since Will is starting to care for her far more than he ever expected.

As the season progresses, Lexi understands that perhaps the most frightening aspect is accepting and embracing love. and maybe finding herself in the midst of it all.

This is an entertaining, fun, good read. Will and Lexi are interesting, strong, complex, relatable, wounded, intriguing, entertaining, captivating characters. The path to their HEA is full of twist and turns and is entertaining to read. I enjoyed these them as a couple and individuals. The secondary characters added to the fabric of the story and my enjoyment. This story is beautifully written and captures the read from the very betting. The subplots deal with heavier topics in a sensitive and realistic way, that is relatable. I enjoyed the family drama as much as I did the romance. The story is easy to read and get into.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley, Sophie Sullivan, and St. Martin’s Griffin for early access to this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was a sweet, very light hearted, read. I enjoyed the characters and how they both have a little self discovery in themselves but also how their journey brings them together. A slow start but once I got going, it was a sweet read.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC! I really liked this book and read it in one sitting. Sullivan does a great job of writing a fake dating trope -- but in a new way.

I appreciated that the characters both were learning about themselves and others throughout the book, plus Lexi and Will had great chemistry.

I have already downloaded another of Sullivan's books to read!

CAN'T HELP FALLING IN LOVE is a completely delectable romantic comedy! Ms. Sullivan's new story is utterly captivating as a clumsy, pretty waitress, Lexi, lands at a table with an eligible, hunkalicioius, rich bachelor named Will. Lexi is a part-time waitress, earning money for her degree, while caring for her ailing mother.

Lexi sits at Will's table pretending he is her date, when her high school friends come in for lunch and sit at a table nearby. Will happily plays along pretending she's his date. They also attend a party together and their actions are misread, when it's mentioned to Will's parents that he is engaged. Will is struggling with issues at his famous family's company. Will and Lexi cautiously resume their fake roles to keep up media appearances after word of their engagement is made public.

Lexi is scared of commitment. However, Will and Lexi flirt with each other as their attraction heats up. Will their relationship turn into something more? Is fate trying to tell them how perfect they are together?

What a charming, deceptive love story filled with warmth, laughter and romance! Ms. Sullivan has penned another brilliant romantic comedy that will melt your heart. The chemistry is spot on, the one-liners never stop, and the slow burn romance sparkles with electricity. Loved every minute of this divine novel! I highly recommend CAN'T HELP FALLING IN LOVE. It is indulgent, irresistible, funny fare!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC of Can't Help Falling in Love in exchange for an honest and independent review.

In this closed door romance, Lexi Danby is doing everything she can to hold herself and her mother together after the sudden passing of her father, which left them horribly in debt. As a former track star with a full ride scholarship to college, she never in a million years imagined that she'd be working at a dress barn and failing miserably as a waitress in order to pay off her father's debts to keep her and her mother afloat and continue her online marketing classes.

Lexi's world takes a radical turn when she is suddenly thrust into the dining table of Will Grand, Seattle royalty, while working at the diner one day in order to escape an awkward run in with friends of Lexi's past. Will is immediately captivated by this force of a woman who is intriguing, driven, and incredibly funny. In a stroke of genius (or stupidity), Lexi leads her friends to believe she is on a date with Will, her fiancé, in order to avoid having to explain to her old friends what an epic failure her life has been.

From this point forward, Lexi and Will enter into a engagement ruse in order keep Will's family off his back about his dating life, and allow Lexi to not feel like such a failure as she begins her journey to self discovery. Lexi and Will embark on a series of real dates, under the cloak of their fake engagement, all the while falling harder for each other than they could have ever have expected, despite Lexi's crippling fear of commitment and attachment. Lexi will need to decide if love is worth the risk and if these feelings she has for Will are beyond what is to be expected from their fake engagement.

I have to say I was pulled into Lexi and Will's love story from the moment I started this book. The banter between the two of them is so effortless and their desire for each other is palpable is this slow build romance. While entering into a fake engagement seems a bit extreme, Sophie did an amazing job at building the main characters' backstories as well as a superb supporting cast. The relationship that Lexi has with her grief stricken mother is heart wrenching, but the way in which Lexi helps her grow and emerge was honestly so beautiful to read. Will's sisters are honestly 10 out of 10 when it comes to comic relief and they help you fall in love with Will and their family dynamic all that much more.

The one thing I wish for this book would have maybe been that this wasn't a closed door romance. With the attraction being palpable between Will and Lexi, and being that the slow build romance was executed perfectly, I can only imagine what could have been conveyed if this weren't a closed door romance. In some ways, that just felt like a bit of a let down because everything was so well crafted that when you get to their first night together and it fast forwards to the next day, you're left screaming "WHAT THE HECK JUST HAPPENED THERE?". Also, a very very small point, but one that seemed to just annoy me was that Will's company name (named after his family's name) was called "Grand Babies," which I just hated the sound of for some reason. But that just may be a me issue and not an actual issue for anyone else. However, in complete honesty, I just had to put that out there.

In all seriousness, this is one adorable romance novel that I really wish would be translated onto screen. I think this would be an adorable movie adaptation and I can't think back to any other book I've read where I feel like the conversion would be effortless, given the right actors. Overall, a really well done Cinderella style love story that had so many real life struggles and elements. 4.75/5 stars for this one! Run out and grab this one September 17th, just in time for an adorable fall romance.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for giving me an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, I DNFed this book at 50%. However, I have read enough of it to provide appropriate feedback.

This book follows our two main characters, Lexi and Will, who find themselves in an awkward situation. Everyone thinks they're engaged! While Lexi works her second job as a waitress, a group of her old high school friends stop by. After seeing them for the first time in years, Lexi doesn't want them to think she has led an unsuccessful life. But after her friends mistake Will, a patron of the restaurant, for her hunky boyfriend, things spiral from there. With neither Will nor Lexi being in a place where they can have a long-term relationship, will these two crazy kids end up together or just as a one-time fling?

Let me start with the things I liked about the book.

-It's set in Seattle. That's cool. I, too, am a PNW girly, and I love Seattle. It's always fun to see it represented.
-I like Will's friends. They seem nice.

And that's it. I wish it wasn't, but there just was not enough in this book to keep my interest.

Moving into the dislikes.

-It was crazy to know that Lexi is in her late 20s and still obsessed with high school. Why would she care what these people think? There is literally a line in the book that says, "Maybe there is life after high school and heartbreak." I cackled when I read that because it is an insane thing for someone close to 30 to think. Lexi has been out of High school for almost a decade. I'm pretty sure most people stop thinking about it as soon as they graduate. This immediately makes her feel very childish and unsympathetic to me.

-When describing this book to people, I often say it feels like something I would read in High school and be super excited about. It just matches what a 16-year-old thinks about people in their late 20s. There's even a moment where one of her old friends talks about making partner at her law firm. PARTNER. OF A LAW FIRM. BEFORE 30. That's crazy and so unrealistic. A quick Google search confirms that making a partner happens much later. I know this is a small detail, but it really threw me.

-Now, I don't mind fake dating I would even say I enjoy it. But we can all admit that the way the couple enters fake dating is always a little cringe and contrived. Because how could it not be, right? People don't find themselves in fake dating relationships this often. So my one rule for the 'fake dating inciting incident' is that even if it's cringe, it has to be kind of silly and fun. This book fails at that pretty hard. It is only cringey. I cannot fathom why Lexi would not correct these people nor why Will would have any interest in this charade. The whole scene is uncomfortable and deeply unbelievable. If Will weren't a random stranger and maybe a regular that she occasionally flirted with or had some kind of repertoire with, it would make this scene a little better and more believable. But he's a complete stranger who's had his order messed up, and a drink spilled on him. In what world is this man going to bat for this woman?

-The two main characters have absolutely no chemistry. The banter is stilted and rarely funny. And every conversation these two had was roughly the same thing. Both character's inner thoughts were wildly repetitive.

-The escalation from fake dating to fake engagement was crazy. It felt like whiplash, and I could not figure out why her friends would have made that mistake when they first showed up at that party. There was nothing from their first meeting to suggest that these two people were engaged. Why would they think that? Better yet, why would Lexi and Will go with it? And WHY would they repeat the lie later? I cannot understand the logic of this book.

-Lexi and Will are way too into each other for people who barely know each other. Lexi is weirdly possessive, and Will is way too into it.

Outside of the above-listed things, there were several inconsistencies that I will chalk up to being an ARC, but I'll still mention them in case some of them were on purpose.

-When Lexi takes a fry from Will's plate, she describes it as tasking like sawdust, yet everyone ever in this book says the food at this restaurant is good. So why does the fry taste bad?

-When we first meet Lexi's mom, she refers to her as both mom and Gwen. This was so confusing that I thought a third person was in the room. She does this later in the book as well and I would highly advise the author to pick one and not have them both.

-When Will has his little sister over to the house, he offers her a bottle of water, but a couple of paragraphs later, a sentence says he took a sip of his pop. He is not drinking pop.

Overall, this book feels half-baked and lacks all of the charm needed to be a fun fake dating rom-com.

Loved this fake-dating to true love story of lovable struggling waitress Lexi and cinnamon roll rich hero Will. Lots of interesting family dynamics and great supporting characters make this a must-read romance. Hope this is just a first in a series. Thanks to @Netgalley, @stmartinspress and @macmillanusa for this ARC. The opinions are all my own.

This was the first romance book I've actually finished and I loved it. Reading it made me feel giddy like having my first crush. The author did a great job with being descriptive of the scenes and characters- I could imagine everything clearly! I would recommend this book to anyone who is either starting in romance or wants something light and fun to read.

Here's your warning

This is a book you are going to be so upset about when you finish.

I really miss Lexi

As an avid "thriller/suspense" reader, I am extremely particular when it comes to stepping outside my preferred genre. Sophie Sullivan, is what I like to call a "no brainer". I know if Sullivan, is writing it, I will be reading it and never once has she failed me.

Can’t Help Falling in Love, is a book that needs to be purchased by all, never mind your "preferred" genre. This book is literary gold. I hung on Sullivan’s every word. I fell in love with ALL of the characters, especially Lexi, and this book brought me to my knees, bellied over laughing!!!

This is by far one of the best rom-com's I have ever read.

Check out this teaser :

A struggling waitress and the heir to a major Seattle company stumble into a high-profile fake engagement while simultaneously trying to keep up with their own love lives in this flirty fall rom-com!

Lexi Danby is looking for some no-strings, fall fun. Once a college track star, she was forced to drop out when her father passed away. Now she’s trying to make ends meet while putting herself through school and caring for her grieving mother. When her comically bad waitressing lands her directly in the path of a handsome, charming stranger named Will, Lexi may just have found the distraction she’s been looking for. Their first date looks promising until a misunderstanding at a party thrusts Lexi and Will into a fake engagement they can’t talk themselves out of. And Will turns out to be a member of Seattle royalty.

Will Grand is heir to a major company, and Seattle’s most eligible bachelor. But he’s been placed in charge of an important merger with a company that values family above all else, and needs to show them that he’s settled down. While a fake engagement is advantageous from a business standpoint, it’s not so great for a budding relationship with a woman who’s wary of commitment. With a woman who Will is beginning to care about much more than he could have anticipated.

As Lexi gets a taste of Will’s glamorous world and the pair keeps up the pretense of their fake engagement for the press, they decide to see where a more casual relationship takes them out of the spotlight. And amid apple picking in comfy flannels, outdoor breweries in the crisp air, and fun Halloween preparations, Lexi starts to realize the scariest part of the season might just be taking a chance on love.