Thank you Berkley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I'm a big fan of Lana's works, and this wasn't a let down. Admittedly it wasn't my *favorite* of her published works, but it's still a solid 4 star read and it made me a little misty eyed towards the end.

(I really hope Jack gets his own book)

For me, my preferences don't love the term Brat as a term of endearment so that would pull me out occasionally but in the context of the story it does make sense, so it wasn't an ill placed or ill-suited word usage.

I loved seeing Ian come into his realization of who Lila has the potential to be to him, and frankly loved how easily the convo came about between Jack and Lila on the topic of Ian and her getting together - I do not like miscommunication and Lana writes her characters as real adults who would have these convo in real life.

Would have loved to see more of Kevin honestly and I will be picturing my own epilogue of '5 years from now' where they get married and adopt (lol but also im not kidding).

Again, really hopeful to some day see Jack and Abby get their own book - it's very clearly set up and they deserve it - dear god does Abby deserve it.

Hockey romance, brother’s best friend/childhood crush. A slow burn that I got bored with this one. I found myself skimming. Sadly, I can’t recommend this one.

I received this book from the publisher & NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are solely my own.

Arc review: 4.5 stars
Oh well this was just a swoon fest. I Lana Ferguson had become an auto bug for me- and I love that she had been able to hop around romance sub-genres and give me variety for my mood reader heart!
Tropes:
-Brothers best friend
-Hockey romance
-Fake dating
-Childhood friends

Things I loved:
-trust and communication in relationships!! God communication makes me swoooooon.
-SPOICY- GOOD SPOICE
-Ginger MMC
-Golden retriever goofball brother
-releasing of guilt/self forgiveness

This is such ag good book, I love a brother's best friend book. Ahh...I love that she naked with on her TV show and she goes to his games. I just can't say enough for things about this book

Lana Ferguson's books seem to be a hit or a miss for me I really didn't like The Nanny, really enjoyed The Fake Mate and felt somewhere in the middle about The Game Changer. My main issue was that I didn't love the couple, Lila and Ian. They were cute at times, but I wasn't wrapped up in their romance the way I am with 4 or 5-star romance books. This made the book drag along because I didn't really care. I wasn't particularly interested in the subplotline with Abigail either, so there wasn't much pushing me through this book.

Lana Ferguson's writing has become stronger with each book she releases, and this book was no exception. I am really looking forward to her fourth book Under Loch and Key which will be published on December 3rd, 2024. It is another paranormal romance, which I believe is Fergusons's strongest subgenre. If you're a fan of hockey romances, The Game Changer might be for you, but otherwise, I would recommend skipping it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the e-arc of The Fake Mate by Lana Ferguson in exchange for an honest review.

Lana Ferguson, please stick to omegaverse because what was this even. I’ll admit it, I freaking devoured The Fake Mate. I hated how much I liked it.

I was hooked for the first half, the pacing was great, and a lot felt like it was happening. Once I hit about 50%, I was just so bored. Lila and Ian were just so vanilla. Even the boinking. The book was just so much longer than it needed to be and for absolutely nothing interesting to ever happen to them? Absolutely zero relevant plot points. The best part of this book was Jack, and he had about 15 lines.

This was the opposite of messy. I would say this was like a cozy rom-com. No stakes, just smooth sailing. I was looking for drama and unfortunately did not find any. This is for readers who are looking to read about crushes, boundary respecting, and communication.

A cute and (very) steamy sports romance that's well-written and fast-paced. Makes good use of the "fake-dating" trope. I would recommend it to fans of Ali Hazelwood and Emily Henry.

This book was a breathe of fresh air. I love the opposites between these two characters and the way they complimented each other so well. Delilah and Ian were so much fun from start to finish. I love the secret pining between the two of them with the touch of forbidden ness. The bake show aspect of this gave this story something extra sweet and every time Ian guest starred u feel in love with their relationship even more. I love the way Lana Ferguson sucks you into a book by the first page and you want to savor every last bit of it so it never ends. She has truly mastered the spicy romcoms where you don’t know if you need a fan blowing on you to cool you down or how to not squeal like a school girl at 10am. Truly such a joy to read these two and their relationship. Watching them explore each other and their friendship first and foremost was one of my favorite parts.

I usually don't go in for modern romances but this book was an actual game changer for me. It had just the right amount of sweet and spicy ingredients. This book can get HOT and descriptive. When I recommend it to my library patrons I will definitely need to keep it in mind for my regulars who like extra fire in their romance reads.

Delilah is the perfect sassy and genuine feminine protagonist. For anyone who has a fantasy about having your teenage crush falling for you, then you need this book. This is also for every woman who thought they weren't "enough" for their crush and that second chances can happen.

Once upon a time in the world of romance there was a sub genre called sports romance. Unlike all the other sub genres this one is focused on one character being basically obsessed with a sport. In Lana Fergusons’s new book The Game Changer the sport of choice is hockey.
This hot story follows two people. Ian Chase, the hockey player with a past and Delilah Baker who actually is a baker. Ian is finally coming home to retire from the hockey world. Being a PR nightmare, he and his team need to figure out how to get him some good press. Enter super cute baker Delilah. Delilah’s baking show has hit a wall and she needs some more views or she could get canceled. In a last stitch attempt to help both of their problems Ian joins Delilah in the kitchen. After some steamy moment in the kitchen the internet goes crazy thinking that they are an item. So they decide to enter into a fake relationship for the sake of positive PR. Little does Ian know that Delilah has been crushing on him since she was twelve years old. Ian however has never seen her more than a little sister. Can they keep their feelings at bay while they navigate this relationship or is everything going to come crashing down?
I never thought I would see the day that Lana would write a sports romance but here we are. I loved her two other books, the fake mate and the nanny. So when I found out that she was writing another one. I couldn’t wait. I had to pick it up. Now I’m a girl who likes spicy sports romance even though I know nothing of sports. Yep, that’s me. I also knew that I would love this book because of the author. I will still give her credit for writing books that I can’t put down and when I have too I get mad. I just have to keep reading. I can’t help it. I love the way she writes and how real the characters feel. You can’t help but be sucked in.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Tropes: friends to lovers, sports romance, best friends little sister, “fake dating”, spice

Spice: 🌶️🌶️.5



Let it be known that Lana Ferguson is a new favorite author of mine and I believe every book she writes will be my favorite. I loved her previous books and this one was just as amazing.

This book follows a hockey player who has been scrutinized for the past years and looking to just move on with his life and a baker who has her own local cable TV show. Needing to have his name in a better light, Ian Chase is offered the opportunity to go on a local TV show to work along side “the darling of baking”. Which happens to be Delilah Baker, his best friend and teammates sister.

Delilah is such an amazing character. I loved her personality so much! With her TV show views dropping, she needs to come up with a plan that will make people want to watch. She immediately thinks of having one of the hockey players on her brother’s team come on the show. But she never expected her long-time teenage crush that never exactly went away, Ian Chase to be the one coming onto her show.

Ian is such a SWEETHEART. This man is so protective, considerate, sweet—absolute perfection. He’s had to deal with so much ever since he separated from his wife (who is SO AMAZING AS WELL) and having to deal with his name being run through the dirt. Wanting to finish his final years of hockey in his hometown, he moves in with his best friend and teammate who he has known for years. What he doesn’t expect is his best friend’s little sister being all grown up. And his not so innocent feelings towards her.

This book was so good! I love the funny moments, the angst, the drama, the spice!!! All of it! It’s such a quick read because you won’t be able to put the book down.

I can’t wait for this book to release and everyone to get their copy. I highly recommend this book!

Ok cue the fake dating and hockey romance vibes! I am here for it!

The storyline for the book was so cute and there were definitely some laugh out loud moments. I adored the main characters but they felt younger than they’re portrayed. I’m not a big fan of “dumb guy” vibes or where the characters sound so immature but are supposed to be older. Jacks banter and immature use of language got annoying real quick. But this could just be me and my utter annoyance with characters that remind me of the guys I’d meet when I lived in Dallas, because they all have that vibe and I hate it. I will say that I did appreciate Jack not being mean about the whole BBF thing. He was actually so respectful to Lila in a good big brotherly kind of way. I enjoyed seeing a good sibling relationship portrayed in the book.

All together It was a fun read that kept me interested and the pages turning. There was drama around a scandal and I love a good drama, even if it was kinda of predictable in the end. There were some absolute swoon worthy moments and just downright smutty moments thrown in at all the right places. I’ve always been a fan of the fake dating trope when done right. I loved that Lila had this childhood crush years ago and that now she could live out her teenage dreams of having a chance with him even just for fun and for a PR thing at first. And then to see him fall for her was really fun. Ian is a total cinnamon roll MMC and I adored it.

Where I felt this was lacking a bit was with how they fell so quickly. There was some introspection… the “I see you”s to each other and then BAM! They’re together. It just needed a liiiittttle more build for that relationship. I would have loved to see them learn more about each other and who they are since they’ve been apart so long as friends, and then have their quick fall moment. Another thing that just didn’t do it for me was the cupcake pet name. It was funny the first couple times because of the ties to it from the past. But I found it more like a teasing joke than anything else. And the constant repetitive use of it drove me nuts.

Regardless of the latter, I would still recommend this to other romance readers. It’s a light hearted easy read and a perfect palette cleanser when you need it.

**Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Romance for the ARC!**

I really enjoyed reading Lana Ferguson’s “The Game Changer.” I was a big fan of “The Nanny” and was excited to see that I was approved to read her newest book. This book was the perfect Happily Ever After that I needed. Ian and Lila’s romance was so sweet to read and the spice was perfect! I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed the Nanny and was looking for their next Happily Ever After.

I enjoyed Lana Ferguson's "The Nanny" and was looking forward to reading this book, but unfortunately it fell flat for me. It felt predictable and somewhat forced at times. The relationship between the MC wasn't believable to me and the emphasis on Delilah's "growing-up" felt redundant and unnecessary. There were some cute moments, but overall it just didn't click for me. I didn't like how obviously "together" Delilah and Ian are as a couple, yet she constantly references them not being a couple. Actions didn't align with words. Overall it's a cute summer read, but not one that I would re-read. Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group | Berkley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I was highly anticipating "The Game Changer" due to its combination of fake dating and hockey themes. However, my excitement quickly turned to disappointment as I found the writing to be lackluster. The dialogue felt forced and robotic, causing me to feel disconnected from the story and its characters. Ultimately, I was unable to develop any real emotions towards the characters, leaving me unsatisfied with the overall reading experience.

I'm happy the hockey player romance books are making a resurgence because they are just too good! This will leave you with a book hangover!

This book unfortunately fell very flat for me. The connection wasn’t believable and it felt like any other hockey romance.

Thank you to the author for an ARC

I would recommend if you're looking for (SPOILERS)

-m/f contemporary romance
-brother's best friend
-childhood crush
-hockey romance
-fake dating
-pinnning

What could be better than Lana Ferguson writing my favorite tropes? The answer is nothing. Lila has pined for Ian since they were kids, but she has only been his best friend's kid sister. Until he comes back in town years later, with a bit of scandal. What could go wrong fake dating to help both their relationships?

This book had such a sweetness and was absolutely a treat to read (pun intended). I adored the dynamic and lack of unnecessary angst. Ian was just falling hard and fast for Lila who just was not going to waste this opportunity to be with her dream guy at every opportunity (THAT LOCKER ROOM SCENE I MEAN OMG).

Lila's brother Jack was awesome, I loved his sibling dynamic with Lila, and his friendship with Ian. Ian was just a beta cinnamon roll hero that had me swooning. You must read this one lying down.

But also holding out hope that Jack and Abby get their story.

I wanted to love this book and have been waiting for it since the author announced it but... it fell flat for me. I like the idea of the best friend's brother, but it needed something else. For me, there were some major errors with just basic hockey knowledge like calling the stands bleachers for example.

Sweet & spicy brother's best friend hockey romance is a page turner!

I've enjoyed Lana Ferguson's previous works so I was excited to get my hands on an early copy of her latest, The Game Changer. This is a charming book that's full of humor (I might have even laughed out loud at some point). Overall, it was a quick, enjoyable read. The majority of the drama came from outside characters, which makes sense because the two main characters had no flaws. Zero. Delilah is a sunshiney baker who can do no wrong and Ian is a self-sacrificing hockey player. The book contains next to no self-growth which was a bit disappointing to me but otherwise I did really enjoy! There is another couple hinted at in this book so I'd love a sequel (or even a series ;) ).