This is such an extremely adorable romance! I love how Lexi and Will click in the beginning of the book it was beautiful. I enjoyed reading about their relationship blossoming throughout the book.

If I'm being completely honest.. this book made me cry. The mom's trauma, the pure rawness of love, and how messy it can be. Expectations and how high society views people. Let's not forget the judgment we place on ourselves at the end of the day. I'm glad this book shows that normal people regardless of how successful they are.. aren't always perfect, and we all have bad days and rough starts.

DNF

Wanted to love this one but couldn't force myself to keep going.
Found this to be incredibly slow and the characters to be half baked. Didn't buy into the chemistry and their fake engagement made no sense.

I read Sophie Sullivan's book: "How to Love your Neighbor" and since then I always wanted to read more from her. I think that her writing is stunning, it flows easily and her characters have been pretty relatable to me.

"Can't Help Falling in Love" is a cozy, friends to lovers with one of the most adorable meet cute I have ever read about. That whole sequence at the beginning was so fun and made it even more easy to connect and care for both of our main characters.

I also appreciate the attention to detail when it came to the setting because I was able to picture almost every single description. This was a great fall romance read with a mix of humor, friends to lovers, marriage of convenience and kind of "insta-love" but not in a bad way. I think that Sullivan did a wonderful job balancing that initial spark between Lexi and Will, without making it seem like it was just attraction between them but rather genuinely care and love for each other. It was so sweet seeing them taking the time to know each other.

Overall, I throughly enjoyed this!! It was very cute.

“You can’t become who you’re meant to be if you stand still.”

Can’t Help Falling In Love was a fun, sweetly emotional story with well-developed characters and an original storyline. Lexi and Will’s meet-cute was absolutely adorable and I loved watching them fall for each other. I loved the interesting twist on the fake dating trope and how this author made it completely her own.

“I think you’re so much more than you see yourself as.”

Lexi was such a relatable character. Her life fell apart after her dad’s death and it sent her on an unexpected life path. She’s struggling to pull her life together and without even realizing it, she’s stuck in the past and too focused on other people’s expectations and thoughts about her. I loved how being with Will slowly brought her back to life and had her facing her fears.

“He hadn’t realized he was missing anything in his life until she sat down with him. Maybe the best things in life weren’t planned down to the minute.”

I loved Will. He was so funny and encouraging. Basically, an all-around good guy who was all about his family. His kindness and heart was absolutely swoonworthy.

“Us. I want it all to be real. The engagement. A life together. It’s not pretend for me. Any of it. It’s not a misunderstanding. It’s the most real thing I’ve ever known.”

Can’t Help Falling In Love was a beautiful, emotional story that was full of humor and heart. The character growth was stunning and it gave me all the feels. Sweet, funny and heartfelt, it is definitely worth a read.

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!
#crazybooknerd
#netgalley
#bookstagram
#sophiesullivan
#stmartinspress
#can'thelpfallinginlove

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)
Read
My rating:
1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars[ 5 of 5 stars ]
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.