Fake engagement but real dating. A fun read with a lot of great secondary characters.

Lexi is working two jobs and trying to finish her degree. Will is busy with his family’s business (and avoiding his mother’s matchmaking attempts). The two go on a date and are mistaken for being engaged. So they roll with it for several different reasons. They continue to actually date though, so the feelings are definitely real.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Watch for Can’t Help Falling in Love to come out September 17, 2024.

Can't Help Falling in Love by S. Sullivan, published by St. Martin's Press is the perfect read to snuggle up on the couch under a warm blanket.
Lexi and Will's story is heartwarming, sweet, uplifting, just beautiful, 5 stars. And just what I needed at this time in my life.
Blurb:
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.

3.5 rounded up. This was a cute and fun read. The meet-cute is seriously adorable, and Will and Lexi have a lot of chemistry.

Some of the details of the book feel like they could use some more sketching out though. Will’s family is supposed to be a huge deal, with mergers, Forbes recognition, public events, but they only own what the paper describes as two local stores and mostly PNW name recognition? Is that enough to warrant multiple media outlets asking for comment on his engagement? Also kind of unbelievable that the Seattle Times (a real newspaper) would write things so gossipy? And the reason described in the book description as to why Will wants to fake the engagement isn’t his reason in the book, which was confusing.

I liked the book and I think it will appeal to a lot of readers! I think just for me, as a former journalist, some tweaks to those storylines would have elevated the book to the next level.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Sophie Sullivan is the author of many delightful and charming romances, and "Can't Help Falling in Love" is no exception! This particular book is centered around Lexi, a young woman who is finishing up her college degree while working several jobs to keep herself and her recently widowed mother afloat. While waitressing one day (and doing a particularly bad job at it), she meets a kind, handsome man named Will. When their meet-cute leads to them unexpectedly having to pretend to be engaged (due to running into old friends), they're thrown into a fake relationship. But not everything about their relationship is fake, as their feelings quickly begin to develop. Despite their very different backgrounds, Lexi and Will discover they have a lot in common. Will they continue their relationship ruse, or will they have the courage to give their relationship a real shot?

I really enjoyed this book! Lexi and Will were easy to root for, and I even enjoyed (most of) the side characters as well. I will certainly continue to read more books by Sophie Sullivan! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This was such a sweet and inspiring love story. It was so beautiful to see how this fake relationship turned into something wonderful for these two characters. This author never disappoints.

Another home run of a sweet romance from Sophie Sullivan. Much like her other novels, Sullivan does a fantastic job with character development - particularly with developing their motivations - something often missing in the genre. Although the ultimate plot conflict came later than expected, the story moved at a perfect pace.

If you're looking for a well written sweet fake-relationship-trope romance that will leave you with all the warm fuzzies, add this to your to read list!

Thank you to NetGalley, author, and publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

A delightfully cute and wonderful love story that the reader is rooting for the entire time. Lexi is a little bit insecure and Will is definitely a little bit blessed, so when a fake engagement comes to pass, the two need to navigate how to pretend to be in love. Then, they need to navigate the falling.

Thanks to NetGalley for the digital advance copy!