a fun autumn fake engagement romance read set in the rainy city of Seattle.

the one thing i can never get over in romances with a CEO is why does the newspaper care about their love life? I know it’s a trope, but I promise the Seattle Times is not writing about the CEO of a company that sells baby products.

other than this issue it was a fun read. personally, as someone from Seattle this made it such to read but also a little cringy (i’m unsure how to feel).

This is such a wholesome and swoon inducing story! I really enjoyed the storyline and for the most part it was executed well. There were a few points where I questioned if I wasn't paying attention enough or if there were some plot holes- but odds it was me are high.

Will was a dream. I loved how soft and loving he was towards Lexi from the very beginning. Lexi was a good character but there were a few moments in the story where my admiration of her was really tested. Because Will was nearly perfect the entire time, the moments where Lexi struggled were hard to accept because she was running from the absolute ideal man. WHY? (I know why but still WHY).

Side characters added so much to the story too! Will's sisters, Ethan, and Maisie were great additions. Will's parents were not. Some of their actions almost seemed unforgivable to me, so it was hard seeing them brushed over so easily.

The one tipping point that made me iffy on Lexi was the big heartbreaking lie she told Will towards the end. Will seemed to laugh it off when they reconciled but to me, more conversation was needed.

This was a very easy, cute, Hallmark-like read. Heavy topics were covered in as much of a lighthearted way as possible. I enjoyed my time reading it!

3.75 rounded up to 4

Thank you to Sophie and St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

This was a cute and cozy read! I enjoyed the fake engagement trope and felt the connection Will and Lexi had. I didn’t feel super drawn into the story but the pacing was good and I never felt bored. There was a good amount of tension and romance. (No spice) This is the perfect read for Hallmark movie lovers!

I wasn’t expecting to get emotional reading this but Sophie did a beautiful job writing about something I’m sure we’ve all struggled with at some point. Especially in the age of social media, where everyone is constantly posting their wins and not their setbacks. Lexi’s feelings of not being as far ahead as she wished she was, and constantly comparing herself to those around her, were highly relatable.

I enjoyed Lexi and Will’s love story a lot. Something that stood out to me was, in a lot of fake dating/fake fiancé tropes we see the, “I like him/her but he/she probably doesn’t feel the same because it’s fake”, inner monologues. Sure it works, but it’s a little played out. I appreciate that this specific conflict wasn’t one of the main plot points in this story and instead focused on other issues like Lexi’s journey to believing in herself, Will’s family journey and Lexi’s mom’s grief and mental health journey.

I found every character to be well developed, useful pieces of the story and even though I did think Will and Lexi’s journey to the altar might have been a little fast…I won’t judge, because as a romance novel reader, I love LOVE… and I do believe that sometimes, you just know. <3

Thank you NetGalley for giving me an ARC.

This was my first Sophie Sullivan book and I definitely enjoyed it! It was a very easy, cute, fun read. At times, it reminded me of Hallmark movies and I don't mean that in a bad way.
Marriage of convenience/fake dating will always be one of my favorite tropes when in comes to romance books.
I really liked the characters, even the side ones! I do have a soft spot for her mom, Gwen, my heart broke a little bit reading about her grief.
It did feel like it was too insta-lovey at times. Also, 95% of this book was conflict free, only one or two things happen and they get solved fairly quick, which I'm not usually used to. These are just personal preferences though.

Sophie if you see this, I'd love to read a book about Maisie.

DNF at 16%. I'm so sorry but I tried on 3 separate days to get into it but I don't think the author's writing style is for me. It moved along at a much slower pace than expected. I appreciate the ARC.

Sophie Sullivan does it again! she is truly becoming an auto buy author for me. Fake dating is one of my favorite tropes and it was done very well. I truly loved Will and Lexi together and their connection. everyone also needs a friend like Maisie and hoping we see more from her (& Ethan!) in the future. This was a fun cozy fall read that I can’t wait to reread in the cooler months.

This book is a cozy read about a fake romance that turns into the real deal, with a story that unfolds at its own sweet pace. The guy falls for the girl first. The main character is easy to love, even with her imperfections, and she learns to love herself a little more with each chapter. Life's not always smooth, and this book doesn't shy away from the tough stuff like family drama, loss, and feeling unsure of yourself. It's a down-to-earth story that shows how love and life can get messy, but that's all part of the journey.

I loved everything about this book!

Can’t Help Falling in Love is a fake dating/engagement, he falls first, emotional story with so many layers. It follows Lexi and Will as they are thrust together in an adorable meet cute and continues as they figure out family challenges, their feelings for each other and the future. It was relatable, sweet, deep and just a great feel good story. I couldn’t put it down!

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martins Griffin for the ARC!

this story will forever remain so precious to me! i’m super excited for its release so i can buy a physical copy to read over and over and over again! i fear its become my new comfort story!

I think this may be my most favorite Sophie Sullivan book to date! I am already itching to reread it!

Can’t Help Falling In Love follows Alexandria (Lexi) Danby, former track star, whose life has had a rough few years. While at her second job as a waitress, she meets Will Grand, heir to his family’s prominent company, in an encounter straight out of a Hallmark movie. Soon after, a mixup leads to rumors of their “engagement”, and as the two navigate their fake engagement, they learn that falling in love, sometimes, cannot be helped.

With every book of Sophie’s I read, I fall more in love with her writing! I will admit that her books are generally slower paced, but sometimes that’s exactly what I am looking for. I really loved Lexi and Will’s meet cute and could feel their chemistry leaping off the page. I think what I loved the most about this book was the lesson imbedded into the story about learning to love each new version of oneself.

As always, Sophie’s books give me all the cutesy, Hallmark movie vibes, and I am here for it. If you are too, consider preordering or requesting from your library!

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for the ARC!

This may be Sullivan’s best work yet! I will admit, I had my doubts when I started the book, thinking it was playing a bit too hard into the tropes. But, it surprised me in the best way possible. Lexi is a flawed but lovable character, one that I emphasized so strongly with. The book is poignant and while it remains in the romcom category for the most part, it doesn’t shy away from the messiness of life that includes family issues, grief, and insecurity. I truly loved this book and I think it’ll stick with me for a long time.

Can't Help Falling in Love is based off twenty-five year old Alexandria Danny, or Lexi, and Willam Grand, CFO and Seattle's most eligible bachelor.

Alexandria Danby (Alexandria the Great) was once a track star during her high school years and partially through college. She's a part time waitress also working at a dress shop, trying to make ends meet for both her mother and herself. On a pure circumstance, she comes across Will Grand, a stranger who isn't a stranger to the world.

William Grand is known as Seattle's most eligible bachelor and the CFO of their family company, Grand Babies.

Things take a turn when rumors and lies begin to spread. Now they find themselves in a faux relationship. A fake engagement. It all got out of their hands. Now the world knows about the two. It was a beneficial agreement for William. It gets his mother off his back and some dates with the woman who is trying to keep her world together.

It's a heartfelt story, where he begins to fall for her in a short amount of time, and she doesn't want to fall in love at all. Not after witnessing how falling in love hurts really bad when you lose that person. There's family drama, internal and external obstacles to overcome, and two hilarious sisters ready to tease their brother.
Will is honest about his feelings towards Lexi and no matter how much Lexi wants to push him away, not wanting to drag him into her down falling life, she can't help how she feels about him.
There are moments where you'll laugh with the characters over a dumb joke or over their silly actions. You'll find yourself smiling simply because of the romantic energy flowing between Lexi and Will. You can feel the emotions running through them both even though Lexi doesn't want to succumb to the fact that she is surely falling in love.

There are a couple of ups and downs, self-doubt, insecurities, but most of all, pure and absolute love and adoration.

I give this book a 5/5 because of the things it covered. Though some moments seemed unrealistic, a majority of it felt pretty dang real.

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read this sweet and heartwarming romance. It was very charming and had a great collection of lovable characters.
The book centers on Lexi, a hardworking and struggling young woman who is trying to get by, take care of her grieving mother, and to get her business degree. She meets Will a a charming and successful executive at hid family's company while she is his waitress at a restaurant. After a string of mixups occur everyone believes the two are engaged. They both like each other so the decide to not deny it while they date.
The book itself felt light but has characters going through complex situations. The settings sounded cozy and picturesque. The dates and events they go on were romantic.
I think my only complaint was Lexi's mother in relation to their finances and selling their house. I understand grief but it didn't feel as resolved as I hoped in the end. Also, the book made her mom sound like a wonderful person but I couldn't understand how she let Lexi take on the finances alone for years and support the two of them. I wished either her mom had agreed to start her business to help and/or finally agree to move soon.
I loved Will and Lexi together. They were sweet and I enjoyed the insta-spark between the two. Overall I really enjoyed the book and I can't wait to read more by this author.

Can't Help Falling in Love as relatable characters facing realistic concerns with utmost care. This captivating love story delves into complex family dynamics, the depths of grief, and the challenges of self-discovery. Sullivan's poignant exploration of these themes makes for a compelling and emotionally resonant read. Can't Help Falling in Love stayed with me long after reading.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for an arc of this book which I voluntarily read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I adored this book. It was sweet, fun, light and fluffy goodness. It is the engagement of convenience trope done well.

I really enjoyed getting to know Will and Lexi together and apart. They plenty of page time without the other - this helped flesh out who they were, their wants, needs, and more. The scenes when Will and Lexi were having fun, without the stresses in their lives at the forefront of their minds, were my favorite of the couple. Oh, and they had the best meet cute I’ve read in a while.

Their friends and family were - for the most part - characters who you would love to have supporting you through the real struggles portrayed in this story.

Will’s sisters shined when they were around, and even when they weren’t. Ethan, Will’s best friend was hilarious and just discombobulated enough with all of his life stuff to make his mark in the book too. Maisie, Lexi’s best friend, was the support system we all wish we had. This book was made upon the shoulders of these side characters.

Oh, and I even learned a new color! (And definitely not a color.)

CW: death of parent (off page), grief, financial struggles.

“Can’t Help Falling in Love” is a fake dating, he falls first romcom set in the fall in Seattle. Lexi is a struggling waitress that was once a record setting track star but after her dad died, she quit to take care of her mom and deal with the fall out. Lexi meets Will, Seattle‘s most eligible bachelor and heir to a large company while totally failing at her waitressing job. Their first date leads to a misunderstanding that they are engaged, so to keeps Will’s mom from bothering him and save face in front of Lexi’s former friends, they decide to fake the engagement while they actually start dating and getting to know each other. Lexi soon needs to decide if she will stay still or take a leap of faith and actually let Will in.

“Can’t Help Falling in Love” was such a fun and emotional read. Sophie Sullivan does a great job describing the scenes to really make you feel like you are there. The book is set in the fall and you really feel all the apple picking and leaf changing vibes.

There is a great cast of characters that surrounds Lexi and Will. They really add depth to the story without taking away from the main characters. The book deals with depression and grief in the form of Lexi’s mom and it’s done in a sensitive loving way that adds a lot of emotion to the book.

Lexi and Will’s love story is definitely quick but believable. The characters really hit it off and you can tell from the dual POV that they really hold a lot of the same morals, so the foundation is there. Will did such a good job helping Lexi with her confidence and just making sure she wasn’t putting herself down and that she is proud of her accomplishments.

This book is a cozy heart warming read that is going to be perfect to pick up and enjoy.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this digital advance readers copy.

I really liked Can’t Help Falling in Love. Thank you for the ARC! This is the third Sophie Sullivan romance I have read and my favorite.
The book was sweet and I enjoyed both main characters both Lexi and Alexandria. I enjoyed the message the book was conveying and like that rhe book focused some on her parents’t love story. There was not any parts of the novel I did not enjoy. Solid four stars.

Super cute love story ❤️ very fun and exciting. I loved our main characters and the chemistry they had with each other. The story was well written and I couldn’t put down the book. It was like watching a hallmark movie in writing ❤️

Long review coming because this was my first NetGalley arc and I couldn’t be happier!! In complete honesty, this book had a really slow start for me, but once I got past the first few chapters I couldn’t put it down. I feel like all the conflict was handled really well, and the writing was very mature for this kind of trope (which I love btw). This could’ve easily been so cheesy but it wasn’t!!! I really loved the rawness of all the characters’ emotions—I truly felt what the characters were going through at times. When you get that pang in your chest, that’s when you know the writing is good. Everything that happened was explained so well and nothing was glossed over. This was such a cute read, and I’ll definitely check out other books by this author!!