Adaline Bishop owns the local bakery, Cherry on Top, where she sells pies, cakes, and other sweet treats. Twice a week, she takes her Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Fuzzy, to the senior living center as part of the volunteer group, Comfort Paws. On their route, they visit Mr. Martin, a grumpy old man with no Christmas spirit. One day, Adaline runs into his great-nephew, Jace—who she quickly realizes is the same boy who tormented her in fifth grade. Jace, meanwhile, is trying to figure out why Adaline is so cold toward him.

Things get worse when Jace sets up a Christmas Tree Lot in the county square, ruining Adaline’s plan to hold a holiday fundraiser for Comfort Paws. Tensions rise, and Jace goes out of his way to make it up to her, even though he did nothing wrong. Soon, Jace overhears Adaline telling her Gram about a fake boyfriend, and he steps in to fill the role.

This book delivers all the Christmas feels, from fake relationships to family bonds. It’s easy to get lost in the sweet, small-town charm, but I couldn’t help wondering: how is it that Fuzzy is always in the bakery? Isn’t that a health code violation? Anyway, you’ll root for Adaline and Jace, and love the side plot with Uncle Gus. Romance readers who love Christmas, fake relationships, and small-town vibes will find this book delightful. Five stars.

Thank you to Harlequin Books for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

FA-LA-LA-LA- FAKING IT – Teri Wilson
Comfort Paws, Book 2
Harlequin Special Edition
ISBN: 978-1335402066
October 22, 2024
Contemporary Series Romance

Bluebonnet, Texas – Present Day

Adaline Bishop runs a bakery in town, and in her spare time, is part of a group that brings rescue dogs to visit the residents of a senior living center where her grandmother lives. One of the residents is Gus Martin, who is grouchy and continually rebuffs Adaline when she brings her beloved Cavalier King Charles spaniel puppy, Fuzzy. One day while making another attempt to engage with Gus, a man speaks up behind her. It is Jace Martin, a menace from her school days who mercilessly teased her. He left the town while in high school after spending a year with his Uncle Gus. He is now back and temporarily living on Gus’s ranch.

Adaline vows to ignore Jace while he is in town, but she can’t after he outbids her for the use of a prime town outdoor space that she and her friends at Comfort Paws planned to use for an animal rescue fundraiser. Instead, Jace is selling Christmas trees. After he learns what happened, he offers to let them use space on his lot to sell hot chocolate. While the offer is generous, she worries that she won’t be able to hide her growing attraction to him. As it turns out, they do continually run into each other. Then one day, her grandmother gifts her a matchmaking gift card. Adaline announces to her grandmother that she won’t need it because she is seeing someone. While she is trying to figure out how to get out of her lie, Jace appears and announces that he is her boyfriend. A fake romance is born!

FA-LA-LA-LA- FAKING IT is one of these pleasant romances that leave you feeling good and happy, knowing a happily-ever-after is in the cards. Adaline is devoted to her grandmother who is slowly being lost to dementia. She will do anything to keep her grandmother happy—but agreeing to a date through a matchmaking service? No way! Luckily, Jace steps in and helps out. Well, at first Adaline isn’t sure about the offer but he will come in handy as a plus one at her brother’s upcoming wedding to her best friend. As they get to know one another, Adaline and Jace begin to see each other in a different light and are soon falling in love. But his business and life are actually not in Bluebonnet. Will their romance end after the holidays when he returns to his ranch?

Readers will fall in love with Adaline and Jace, plus by the end, learn why Gus hates Christmas and dogs. As a bonus, her friends and their dogs help provide for an adorable tale. Love is in the air and readers are in for a treat as a couple start out faking their relationship and soon find it’s the real thing. Don’t miss the joyful fun by grabbing a copy of FA-LA-LA-LA- FAKING IT.

Patti Fischer

Adaline Bishop, who loves baking and training therapy dogs, often visits her grandmother at a senior center and tries to cheer up the grumpy Mr. Martin. When Jace Martin returns to town to care for his dying uncle, Adaline is reminded of how he embarrassed her in fifth grade. Despite their past, she reluctantly asks Jace to be her fake boyfriend for her brother’s wedding.

Set during the Christmas season, this romance blends the enemies-to-lovers and fake relationship tropes, with therapy dogs adding charm to the story. Adaline’s vibrant personality and her bond with her grandmother, along with Jace’s redemption, make for a fun and heartwarming read.

This was definitely a tear jerker for me! It gave me all the feels! Adaline and Jace were just perfect. I loved Jace. And I loved Adaline. She had the biggest heart around. She loved with all her heart, right along with her puppy! I love stories about dogs so this was perfect. Her Gram and Jace Uncle Gus are perfect additions to the story as well. It was a sweet and emotional story! But fast paced as well. Don’t miss out on this sweet Christmas story!

Something right off the Hallmark channel. I could imagine the scents of Christmas trees and cookies reading this book. This was a sweet reuniting of childhood enemies that agree to partner up together to create the magic of Christmas for their elderly family members, friends and their fur babies! A great read to put you in the Christmas spirit! Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Romance for this free advanced copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily

Fa La La La Faking it by Teri Wilson is a delightful Christmas story.

Adaline Bishop loves to bake. she is also involved with training puppies as therapy dogs. When she visits her grandmother at the Senior center she stops by room 212. There isn't a single decoration in the room. Plus Mr. Martin is cranky, a real grinch. But she pastes on a smile and tries to bring a little sunshine into the elderly mans day. As much as she tries, he growls at her to leave,

Jace Martin has returned to Bluebonnet to care for his dying uncle. But when Adaline realizes who Jace is, she burns with fury. The fifth grade comes marching back to her memory of how Jace had embarrassed her in front of the whole school.

This was a fun read. Enemies to lovers was a slow process with a fake relationship along the way. Jace tries to make up for what had happened years ago. I loved the characters and the puppies. There was good clean dialogue. A cute entertaining holiday romance.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received via NetGalley. All views expressed are my honest opinion.

Adaline isn’t exactly thrilled when Jace shows up in town, especially since she’s still reeling from something that happened between them during their childhood. To make matters worse, Jace unintentionally derails a fundraiser event for Comfort Paws, the therapy dog venture she co-owns with her three best friends. Despite her frustration, Adaline finds herself in need of a date for her brother’s wedding, and Jace seems like the ideal choice for a pretend boyfriend.
The book brings together two beloved romance themes: enemies-to-lovers and the fake dating scenario. The holiday atmosphere is ever-present, with Jace working as a Christmas tree farmer, making it a festive and cheerful read. The therapy dogs, especially Fuzzy, play an important role in the plot without overwhelming it.
Adaline is a lively character with a love for baking, and her bond with her grandmother adds warmth to the story. Jace, on the other hand, steps in as a charming hero, while his grumpy uncle, reminiscent of the Grinch, provides an additional layer of tension.
I found the world of this book so delightful that I went ahead and bought the first installment in the Comfort Paws series, Dog Days of Summer, which centers around Adaline’s brother and her friend, another business partner in Comfort Paws.

Many thanks to Harlequin Enterprises ULC and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

This was a cute holiday Hallmark type read and had all the warm fuzzy feelings that you are looking for in a holiday book. Cute dogs, a bakery and a Christmas tree farmer! While it was on the shorter side, the story felt like it moved pretty fast from zero to 100 and that was a bit challenging for me, but all in all it gave off all the vibes I was looking for out of a holiday romance.

This story features two of my favorite romance tropes, enemies to lovers and fake relationship. It is a fun holiday read. This story makes me want to read the other books in the series.

Adaline doesn’t trust Jace when he turns up in town because she’s still hurting over an incident that happened when they were kids. It doesn’t help that Jace unknowingly ruins the fundraiser for Comfort Paws, the therapy dog business she runs with her three best friends. But Adaline needs a date for her brother’s wedding, and Jace makes the perfect fake boyfriend.

This story features two of my favorite romance tropes, enemies to lovers and fake relationship. The story heavily focuses on Christmas, for example Jace is an actual Christmas tree farmer, making it a fun holiday read. Fuzzy and the other therapy dogs are well integrated into the story without stealing the show.

I like Adaline’s big personality, her obsession with baking, and her close relationship with her grandmother. Jace makes a great hero. His grumpy, Grinch-like uncle nicely contributes to the conflict.

I enjoyed this world so much, I purchased the first book in the Comfort Paws series DOG DAYS OF SUMMER, which features Adelaide’s brother and her best friend, who is a partner in Comfort Paws.

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

Thanks to Harlequin Enterprises ULC for providing an Advance Reader Copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.