I wish I liked this one more. It wasn't especially well-written, and lacked dramatic tension. It just didn't click for me.

Emmie's turn from hating Tate to kissing him seemed pretty unmotivated (except he's gorgeous, got that) considering how she felt about him in the beginning, and how she maintained a defensive stance at work.

That said, I did appreciate the portrayal of a woman's attitude in an all-male work environment, something I'd love to see in more romance literature. I've been in similar circumstances (and wasn't as tough as Emmie). Constant defensiveness and second-guessing is exhausting!

The easy comparison to make with this one is to The Hating Game, and I have to admit, this one falls flat in comparison. The switch from enemies to lovers happens kind of abruptly but I did enjoy Emmie and Tate’s chemistry. It definitely grew on me over time but it took well over a quarter of the book to get me there. Worth a read if you want something quick and mostly fun when it’s out in October but maybe borrow, not buy. Thanks to netgalley for the arc!

2 stars
I struggled with this book from page one. The writing wasn't my style. Then the plot had my head spinning. The cover is cute though.

Faker is such a funny and sweet rom-com! Working in a power tool company means Emmie has to be tough as nails to hold her own even though her true personality is much more easy-going. Working with Tate, who is hostile as can be to her, makes the charade so much harder. As they work more closely together, Emmie starts to see that Tate's hostility is not all it seems. A hater-to-lover story with the twists and turns of a modern romance, Faker is heartwarming and charming; This is one romance that I'll keep rereading over again!

Really enjoyed this book from debut author Sarah Smith. I appreciated that the make character was a decent guy...not all alpha and domineering. It was refreshing to read that in a romance.

Definitely a very cute and quick romance! But there was so much copied content from The Hating Game, this didn’t feel like an original story. It was definitely a different setting and there were some additional different portions. I love that Emmie was a girl boss. I think this book addressed sexual harassment and racism in a way THG didn’t, and that was empowering. However, all the major plot points and even lots of lines were paraphrased or had the same feel but in a different setting. I know romance uses lots of the same tropes, but this did make me question if THG was being used as a reference throughout the entire timeline of the book.

Love love loved this enemies-to-lovers work romance. The character growth was believable and you were rooting for the couple all the way through!

A thoroughly enjoyable enemies to lovers type story. Though it bears similarities to The Hating Game, Smith makes the story her own so you can’t help falling in love with Tate and Emmie. The relationship these two build feels so solid even after a fairly short amount of time. Great book when you need a feel good read to make you smile and your heart melt.

This was a fun quick read with two great main characters. Even though it starts as an enemies to lovers story there is minimal angst and they are honest and compassionate with eachother. For sure recommend this book.

The premise sounded fun, but this title ultimately fell short for me. I enjoyed the first third of the novel; I liked Emmie a lot and I appreciated that Smith took on workplace harassment and misogyny. However, once the love triangle then Emmie/Tate relationship began to form, the plot became predictable and boring. The enemies-to-lovers relationship happened instantaneously and I felt that it did not have enough time to develop. It was as if all the reasons the two quarreled with one other was brushed off with a "Actually, I've been obsessed with you all this time" and that was that. I also thought it was very weird and problematic that Tate kisses another Asian woman thinking it was Emmie and it's brushed off pretty quickly. What? I was also disappointed that it is Tate, not Emmie, who gets a harasser at the workplace fired. Sure, he was looking out for her, but it just seemed like Tate was suddenly doing everything for Emmie and, frequently, without really including her in the discussion.

However, I have never encountered the phrase "milky glow" to describe someone and that gave me a good laugh.

Read this if you need a reminder of how to become less guarded with people but also set boundaries, with a lot of romance thrown in!

"Faker" is a love story between Emmie and her once-hated coworker, Tate. Generally, this is my favorite trope but it fell flat with me in "Faker." The switch from enemies to lovers happens so fast and there is seemingly no problem with the way they treated each other before that point. Aside from that, the characters are cute and I did chuckle a few times to myself.

This was so fun!!! I love Tate so much. He was just a really interesting lead that you don't often see in books. Emmie was a great counter to Tate, as well! I love the slow burn, close proximity, enemies to lovers part of it. I just really had a wonderful time reading this! I look forward to more books by Sarah Smith.

This was a cute fun read keeping in line with the current trend of contemporary romance. The cover and title are eye catching and I would definitely read this author again.

I really liked this book. It is very well written, and I liked the fact that the H/H wasn't your normal extrovert/ type A personalities. This is a great book for all us introverts out there. It highlights just how hard it is for us to open up to other people and be in crowded situations. I love the sparks between Tate and Emmie. They may have seemed to move fast but it was believable in the context of the story. That this is Sarah Smith's debut book is amazing, if she continues on like this she will have an awesome career.

I loved Faker! Emmie was such a sweet character, and I adored her from the beginning. She has to put on a complete facade while working in a male-dominated field, and sadly, has to work with the insufferable Tate.

The plot reminded me of Sally Thorne's The Hating Game (hate-romance work place plot), but it was still a unique voice from Sarah Smith. Tate completely grew on me, and I can't wait to read what Sarah Smith comes out with next!

A satisfying debut novel from Sarah Smith. Faker started out with many similarities to one of my all time favorite books, The Hating Game. It was appearing to be too in step with that book, but as I continued reading I began to become thoroughly engaged with Emmie and Tate. Their relationship evolved slowly through shared experiences, lighthearted and deep conversations, and proximity….just like all good relationships, real or fictional.

Looking forward to more from Sarah Smith

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

Faker is a quick, fun workplace romance. After reading the description, I instantly thought of The Hating Game, which I loved, so I gave it a try. No, it wasn’t as good as The Hating Game, but I did enjoy Faker, especially since it is a debut novel. Emmie and Tate are co-workers that do not like each other. In my opinion, the beginning of their relationship didn’t really capture love-hate. The witty banter wasn’t really there. Once their relationship starts to develop more, I did think their chemistry became more apparent. Through Emmie’s experience being employed at a mostly all-male work place environment, important topics like workplace sexual harassment are discussed. This added a level of depth to a typical contemporary, romance novel. Faker is definitely worth reading if you’re in the mood for something easy going to read.

‘Faker’ surprised me much, in a good way, more so considering it’s Sarah Smith’s debut book with the enemies-to-lovers trope that I always dig.

Still, I couldn’t help but look at the many shades of Sally Thorne’s ‘The Hating Game’ colouring Emmie’s and Tate’s circumstances and relationship from the start: a love-hate relationship in the office underlaid with more conflicted and complicated emotions that both seem to harbour for each other, a holding pattern of sniping, arguments and clenched jaws (and lip-trembling, withheld tears) up until the point where something changes the dynamics of it, the slow-burn that follows the turnaround.

Written wholly in Emmie’s POV, the whole narrative is more introspective, more centred about her emotions and her changing perceptions—and her interpretations of Tate’s overreactions that the reader sees as something else other than hate and dislike. It all ends up quite endearing and buoyant in some ways, though the slow, slow burn and the multiple cock-blocking scenes made me impatient at parts.

In essence, apart from the exteriors that both Emmie and Tate wear, much of ‘Faker’ reads like the honeymoon phase of a relationship: the effusive optimism about falling in love (more so as Emmie turns into a stalwart fan of Tate), the thrill of seeing someone with fresh eyes, the yearning for constant physical closeness and all. It’s bubbly, and oddly heart-twinging in some bits, and past the last page, I find myself hoping that Emmie and Tate actually do last.

A fast and enjoyable read, but it was way too similar to The Hating Game for my comfort. The intense romantic and loving feelings by both characters seemed off to me, too. Something just didn't click for me.