"Funny how a single tantalizing kiss can destroy the brain cells responsible for my short-term memory"

A construction workplace romcom that will have you squealing and giggling in bed.

SUMMARY
As one of the five female employees at the power tool company, Nuts and Bolts, Emmie Eschavarre has had to learn to fake it. From nine-to-five she slips on her "Boss-Bitch" face and "take-no-shit" attitude. The only person she doesn't have to fake it with is Tate Rasumussen, her hostile-but-hot office neighbor.
When Nuts and Bolts embarks on a construction charity project, Emmie and Tate are paired up to head the social media publicity and marketing. But how can they be expected to work side-by-side when they haven't even set foot in one another's office for eleven months?

REVIEW
Faker took me by surprise in the best way possible. This book had me laughing out loud and clutching the book to my heart during the flirty scenes. I devoured this book in two days and was genuinely made when I had to put it down.

In the beginning Emmie did annoy me a little because I was frustrated at her attitude. But she quickly grew on me and I adored the heck out of her. Her romantic insecurities were ones that I also personally have, so I felt very connected to her character. Watching her deal with them alone and the learn to open-up to those around her really hit a cord inside me. Also, Emmie is Hawaiian-Filipino, which is own voices representation from the author. I loved all the Ilocano words sprinkled throughout and cultural references. They never felt forced, which was appreciated.

Tate truly is a soft-boy with a tough-boy exterior. It was clear as day for me to see just how head-over-heels he was for Emmie. I adored learning more about his backstory and childhood struggles, I fell for him alongside Emmie. Sure, he is an extremely jealous human being, but it didn't really hinder my enjoyment of the book or his character.

Okay, onto Emmie and Tate's relationship. Even though the root of their disdain was due to blatant miscommunication, it didn't really bother me because everything else was so much fun. I loved watching Emmie and Tate open up and trust one another, it was a beautifully paced progression. There were also a lot of cute and flirty scenes that had me squealing on my couch, so how could I not give this a 5-stars?

Finally, what I really appreciated about this was that despite that it was a coworker relationship, there was never the trope or "issue" of one of them having to potentially give up their job or an opportunity for the other. Nor was the an imbalance of workplace power dynamic. What a breath of fresh air!

Overall, I am keeping an eye out on more books by Sarah Smith. Her debut romance was a hit for me!

I love the enemies-to-lovers trope, so I will always try out a book based on that trope. Faker started out good, but at some point something went...wrong. I didn't quite believe the sexual chemistry between Emmie and Tate, I was annoyed with Emmie's obsession with how white Tate was, and I absolutely hated the reasons behind Tate's behavior towards Emmie when they first met. I still enjoyed reading this book, which is why I'm giving it 3 stars.

I really wanted to like this book and in fact quite enjoyed it, but found that the similarities to the Hating Game too numerous and it detracted.

Typical love hate relationship. I wasn't too drawn into this story. To me there wasn't really anything to set it apart.

I am a huge fan of the enemies to lovers trope ( hello Well Met, Kulti, THG, and Sieze the Night!) but I didnt completely buy into Tate's redemption arc. I would have like to see him do more for Emmie given his rudeness for most of the book. I have to put of with a lot of sexist BS at my job and I dont not enjoy reading about it unless there is one helluva reckoning or apology. That being said I loved Emmie!

** spoiler alert ** Someone read The Hating Game too much and thought she could do it too.

Spoiler: she couldn’t.

Faker was such a great read! I fan of the enemies to lovers trope, this one was incredibly well done. Add in the workplace romance and biting banter? Yes, please! Emmie and Tate are a great match. I loved the cultural references and foods woven through the story. A completely satisfying read with the perfect amount of steam and heart.

This was a cute quick read. I enjoyed the banter and angst. It was obvious the characters had chemistry from the jump and I was all in with them. Strong willed female and broody male are my go-tos for great characters. I personally felt like the romance in it was subpar for the personality types of the characters, but that is 100% my opinion. The final conflict between the two characters kind of turned me off the whole read. I just do not see that interaction being realistic and it bugged me a lot. The concept was interesting and I would have enjoyed it more if the conflict and resolution had been different.

This is a solid debut romance novel from Sarah Smith. I really liked the characters and there were some really cute and funny parts throughout. The book really held my interest. I was a little unsure based on the description with the plot being about someone who works for a construction/tool company but there really isn't a whole lot of mention of that - it more so focuses on the relationships of the main characters who work together. The only thing I didn't super love about the book was that I felt like the two main characters went from hate to love way too quickly and it felt a little unrealistic for me because of that. Overall though I was pleased with the book and looking forward to Sarah Smith's next book!

I had to DNF this one. I started it a couple of months ago and just haven't made any progress. While I love the idea of a workplace romance (especially one with a mixed main character), I just wasn't connecting with any of the characters, The writing style also seemed very "debut novel" to me, so maybe I'll enjoy her next book better.

I DNF'd this pretty early on so I'm giving this 2 stars just in case it got better later on. I just don't have time to waste on books that don't immediately grab me, and this one just didn't have that spark. The main characters are just...bland, and so is the writing. I was so excited by the premise, but the beginning of the book didn't capture that premise's energy as well as I had hoped. Given how stellar the romance releases have been this year, this one just doesn't hold up against the rest of the field in the way that it needs to, and I couldn't bring myself to keep reading in case the writing style improved or the characters got suddenly more interesting.

My favourite moment in any enemies-to-lovers romance is when the switch flips and the two characters find themselves in the unfamiliar position of have feelings for the other. They're so used to being hateful that they're thrown off and don't know how to behave anymore. That's what happens here when Emmie without warning, is reconsidering her long-held opinion of her mortal enemy, Tate.

It would be easy to ignore Tate were it not for the inconvenient fact that he works across the the tiny hallway from Emmie. She has to see him every single day and when they do have to interact it's minimal at best which always leaves her raging anew at him. She can't fathom why he's always given her the cold shoulder, answering in clipped sentences, reacting as if she's ruining his day, and generally trying to pretend she's not there. But she's taken aback when he suggests at a meeting with their boss that they work together on a social media project for their company. This should be interesting. It could change things around for them but it feels like more of the same just that now she has to speak to him. Then she's involved in an accident and overnight she's seeing an entirely different side to Tate that she never imagined possible. The change in their dynamics is confusing.

So what is it about Faker? The little things. When Emmie is laid up Tate steps in to offer her support and comfort in his own Tate way. She realizes how much he has noticed about her -- her interests, her likes and dislikes, her temperament and most impressively, details about her culture. It's a big part of who she is and he takes the time and opportunity to show her that he pays attention to what's important to her. Can we please take a brief moment to swoon here? Emmie also notices how much she's picked up on him all along. How cute is that when someone shows you that they think about you and get you? On a deeper level, Tate knows how much of a show Emmie puts on at work because she works with mostly men who'd seek to undermine her. He doesn't try to fix things outright for her but does look for ways to have her back. I've been leaning away from the alpha-hero types because I can only take so much of the possessive and quick-to-react personas. Tate is the antithesis of that. He's the kind of guy who would rather stay under the radar and can surprise you when you give him the opportunity. He gets what matters.

On a more personal note, I've never before felt such solidarity with a character. Various details in Emmie's family and school life hit so close to home for me. It's clear from her recollections how events and incidents shaped her life and attitude, and I truly understood her. It felt as if a bit of my life was lifted and inserted into this story, and I can't begin to explain how good it felt to see those words on paper that echoed so many of my own experiences. It was cathartic and affirming.

Emmie and Tate's relationship journey is a little different from some of the romances I've read recently and I liked how theirs evolved. As I said, I felt a special kinship with Emmie and seeing her get her happily ever after with someone who is just as amazing as she is, makes Faker an absolute joy to read!

~ Bel

Emmie Echavarre is a professional faker. She has to be to survive as one of the few female employees at a power tool company staffed predominantly by men. One thing she doesn't have to fake? Her disdain for coworker Tate Rasmussen. When they are forced to work together on a charity project, things get heated.

There were many things about this book that had some real potential, the cover, the blurb the trope - all things I love and adore. Unfortunately when it comes down to it, this book was forgettable, repetitive and nothing special. I truly wished that wasn't the case, especially since it's a debut novel. I hope the author doesn't let this discourage her from writing more, sometime practice is all that's needed.

You know how in most genre people use the phrase “predictable” as a criticism? To me the best part about contemporary romance is that it is predictable in the best way possible. Sometimes a girl just needs a happily ever after!!!

Sarah Smith’s debut novel Faker is an enemies-to-lovers co-worker romance novel that just hit the sweet spot of steamy, funny, and heart-melting. Wonderful!

I think enemies-to-lovers is probably my favorite romance trope, and I also love a steamy romance between co-workers, so Faker was a hit in my opinion. The setting was really fun and not one that I have seen much of.

Emmie works for a power tool company called Nuts & Bolts located in Omaha, NE, and is one of only a handful of females and minorities to work for the company. As a result, she has developed a tougher persona than she feels, to help her stand up to what (let’s be frank about this), is sexual harassment at work. Cat calls, whistles, unwanted attention—these are the norm. But Emmie has a way of shutting it down and executing her job as a copywriter without too much trouble.

Until the new social media manager Tate starts across the hall from her. From day one, Tate is dismissive and cold towards Emmie, and she quickly marks him as her adversary. But when they are forced to work on a long-term project together, they can’t deny their attraction. And let’s just say, things steam up!

I found the enemies-to-lovers trope in this book to be one of the more realistic in terms of feelings and evolution. Their disconnect made sense, and their attraction and feelings developed organically. But since this is a book, I did want a bit more of the enemies part. It felt like once the wall broke down fairly early on, we didn’t really get the tension of that fine line between love and hate that I wanted. I did really enjoy them as a couple and how they learned more about one another. The sequence of events that leads them to develop feelings was so sweet, and I liked that for once the feelings developed before (or at least in tandem with) the heat between them.

I also really loved the setting in Omaha, as someone who used to live there! I instantly recognized Three Happiness and eCreamery, as well as a number of other locations in the book. That was a fun surprise!

Fans of contemporary romance will truly adore this book—it is such a great blend of love, fun, and steam. Wonderful work by Sarah Smith!! I’m excited to read more from her.

Thank you to Berkley for my copy. Opinions are my own.

I was originally loving this book from the first 100 pages. It actually mirrors my life really similarly, and I was enjoying seeing a main character whose shoes I could step into so fittingly. From her workplace situation to her state of mind, I really embraced the way she navigated conflict.

However, this book took a steep downhill when the romance began. I didn’t mind the love interest—in fact, I only wish I’d read on so that I could learn more about him. The main character just becomes intolerable around him because she starts to completely contradict herself. Whereas she is typically super disgusted by the men at her job who judge her and are bossy and comment on her appearance/body, it’s somehow miraculously okay when Tate does it. The pacing of enemies to lovers was ruined by instalove and the main character’s attraction to Tate overpowering her “badass” vibes she tries to have at the office.

Also, the plot of this book becomes unbearingly unrealistic. The main character falls and hits her head and gets a minor concussion, then the hospital wants to keep her overnight for that? There were just a lot of small bits of plot in this that don’t make sense and could have been edited out in the first draft, but somehow I was expected to suspend my disbelief.

It probably wouldn’t have hurt me to finish this, but I just wasn’t enjoying it and wasn’t interested in how it ended because the writing and characters became so cheesy and hard to believe in.

One of my absolute favorite romances for this year. Debut author Sarah Smith has created a romance that is fun, intriguing, and oh so swoony. I could not get enough of this story and it’s engaging characters. And I cannot wait to read more from this author in the future.

Sadly, this really didn't work for me. I could not get over the male lead's toxicity and treatment of the female lead.

This contemporary romance novel is ... a lot like The Hating Game. Except with most of the wit and humor sucked out.

26 year old Emmie Echavarre is a copywriter at a power tool distributor called Nuts & Bolts. She's surrounded by men in the workplace, so she acts a lot tougher than she really is to make sure she gets respected ... and it works, mostly. But the hardest person for her to get along with is handsome Tate Rasmussen, who's in charge of the company's social media and treats her with unrelenting hostility. Until he doesn't, but by that time Emmie's got a LOT of residual resentment to work off.

A soft 3 stars for me. I enjoyed it well enough while I was reading it, but it's derivative and forgettable. I never completely bought into the relationship here, especially Tate's initial meanness, which felt really unwarranted and inexcusable in a work setting. Again, The Hating Game did a lot better job of making you understand the guy's point of view when he was acting rude, and I had issues with it even there.

On the plus side: diversity representation. Okay then! That's great, but not enough to bump this up to a "recommend" rating.

This enemies to lovers/office romance was so much fun! With it’s fun banter, hilarious cast of characters and quirky heroine I’d definitely recommend this book. Can’t wait to read more from this author!