Actual rating: 3.5 stars

A huge thank you to Harlequin Romance for giving me a free digital copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I can’t quite remember when I first picked up a Harlequin romance novel. I remember seeing them on my aunt’s bookshelf when I was younger, but just looking at the covers made me really embarrassed. (Hello, yes, I was an innocent child.) But with this wave of new adult romance, I’m very much into reading the romance novels that interest so of course I had a keen eye on this book!

If you’re looking for a quick read with a fairly surface level plot, this may be the book for you. I can’t give this book a full four stars because everything happened so fast! I feel like we barely know the characters before they’re rushing into this marriage (okay, fine, whatever), but time also seems to pass by really quickly, not enough to build meaning into Garrett and Natalie’s relationship. We get that they are attracted to one another on a physical level, but sometimes it was hard to connect with them on a deeper and more personal level. They both have their reasons for entering this “fake marriage” (yes, a fake marriage trope and “there’s only one bed!” trope are in this book!), but again, things progress so quickly that I felt a little lost.

I did enjoy Garrett and Natalie’s interactions though. You can tell they are both caring people, who are protecting their hearts due to personal and past events in their life.

What’s not to love about Natalie and Garrett though? Not only do they have good chemistry, but they seem to genuinely respect one another, their family, and what each have gone through in order to be where they are today. I thought I wouldn’t care for Garrett’s grandmother, and she came off as being the cliche, overbearing matriarch of the family. But she has good intentions as well, and see that she will fiercely defend her family but demand loyalty from them as well. I also liked Adelaide and how open and accepting she was of Natalie, seeing how Garrett acted with her. They’re a close-knit family and the two siblings came to rely on each other under sad circumstances.

As I said earlier, this is a quick and easy read. I wish there was a bit more though. It’s not that the writing is bad, but I’m the type of reader who loves a decent amount of description and I felt like details were skimmed over. Again, for me this stems from the plot progressing really quickly and feeling like there wasn’t a lot of time to breathe between one situation to the next.

While I don’t think I’ll add Temporary Wife Temptation to my personal library, I was happy to know there’s a sequel and will definitely keep the book on my radar.

***ARC Provided by the Publisher***

3.5 Stars

Garrett and Natalie need one another, and a marriage of convenience will seemingly solve both of their problems. Garrett needs to get out of an arranged marriage and Natalie is trying to look better to the courts to get custody of her niece. So, both of them have good reasons for needing the relationship and for the rest of the world to think that they are married.

But, as often happens in fake marriage romances, both of them get more than they bargained for. the story itself is predictable, but I liked the characters and the connection, and I believed the attraction.

I also loved that the characters are Korean, but in a way that feels authentic, it's part of who they are, and the lives they live, but it's not tossed around in a way that made me feel that the author was trying to "be diverse" which made it not only feel authentic but also enjoyable.

I enjoyed and recommend this title.

The marriage of convenience trope is one of my favorite tropes to read about so I was super excited to get my hands on this. This was a decent debut and I loved that our couple were POC.

The chemistry between Natalie and Garrett was explosive from the first time they met and it kept building through this short book. I was begging them to act on their feelings so many times. They also balanced each other out with their personalities. It was a good time reading about Garrett, who was so opposed to thoughts of love realize that he was falling in love with Natalie.

Now, I did have some issues. There were time jumps where I was left confused as to what was going on. I know this book is a short one and maybe they cut it down for size, but I would have loved a bit more information or some page breaks. Also, the plot was pretty typical and I grew annoyed with Garrett and how he decided to handle his growing feelings for Natalie. Don’t push someone away just because you are starting to feel.

Overall, it was a decent short story and I’m open to reading more of this series. His sister Adelaide is next and I hope she gets her HEA.

Perfect mix of steam, romance, and focus on family and tradition. I really enjoyed reading a classic fake-fiance turned forever love trope. Looking forward to more from this author.

Oh man I really liked this. It’s that “oh noes we can’t have sex….ok well maybe once...ok lets have lots of sex but no love….damnit! I’m in love and I can’t tell you!” push and pull that I dig because you know it’s going to pay off. Yes, there’s a comfort to this type of storytelling, one I enjoy greatly.

I have such a soft spot for fake marriage turns real trope and this ticked several boxes for me. The Firsts? Great. With a touch of angst, but not too much, Garrett and Natalie’s romance had instant chemistry but their relationship builds slowly. There’s oodles and oodles of unresolved sexual tension that drives a good part of the book, but when the fireworks kick in, it doesn’t lose that momentum because you know they’re desperately in love but not wanting to show it.

On the flip side, the cultural diversity worked for me, but admittedly I’m not in a position to speak to the accuracy of the Korean representation. I thought Garrett’s family was well drawn, and I only wished there was more time spent building Natalie’s family beyond the minimum. I know there are certain constraints with a category romance, and they were definitely felt here. The passage of time especially, and not getting to see certain beats play out for sake of page constraints stood out to me. But it’s what I expect for category romances, so I didn’t really hold it against the overall tale.

If fake relationship that inevitably turns real sounds like it’s your jam, I’d recommend it. Garrett’s sister, Adelaide, is next up and I say sign me up for this bit of soapy goodness. I can’t wait.

I do love a good fake relationship story and I love this cover, so I was thrilled to read this one.

I really liked Natalie and Garrett. They’re both driven and a little people dumb and it’s amusing to see them try to figure out how a relationship works. I loved Garrett’s family and the culture that came with them. I especially loved his sister and I’m really hoping for a companion book there.

Plot wise, I was left wanting more. The chemistry is nearly instantaneous and thankfully they do spend some time getting to know a bit about each other. However, I could have easily done with 100 more pages of them talking and learning about each other. The blow up was sort of what I expected and while the grand gesture was great, I definitely would have liked an epilogue.

Overall, it was a quick read with characters I really enjoyed. I look forward to reading more from Jayci.

**Huge thanks to Harlequin for providing the arc free of charge**

This book was great! Natalie and Garrett were such a good pair and when they pretended to be married they were a strong, happy couple. I absolutely loved how Garrett was so caring towards Natalie’s niece, especially the night the social worker had come over. Warmed my heart! I also loved that Natalie was so willing to meet Garrett’s grandmother even though it was the last thing he wanted her to do. It was sort of annoying to have such a controlling grandmother, I could not imagine my life with a grandparent like that. If you enjoy love stories and happy endings, then this is definitely the book for you! I really enjoyed it!

<i>Temporary Wife Temptation</i> is Jayci Lee's debut, which is wild and I can't wait to see where she goes from here because she brings to life emotions and the chemistry between characters so well. I could have read this book in one sitting with ease, except for the part where I started it during some down time at work and then had to actually, like, do my job. It was aggressively rude. But anyway, this book about Garrett and Natalie falling into a marriage of convenience with each other was compelling and such a quick read.

I felt like I was missing a few scenes that I think would have benefited the story and more fully fleshed out the characters, but even without that, you could tell the depth of the characters. I think others would argue the scenes I missed could be considered filler, but... Anyway, the book inside this gorgeous cover mostly lives up to the promise of said gorgeous cover so I'm not mad about it. I'm really looking forward to the next book in the series!

Solid execution of the marriage of the convenience trope with plenty of steam, but the Asian American rep is a bit of a mixed bag for me.

It's good progress to see two Asian faces on the cover of a Harlequin and have the content (mostly) back it up. Garrett's familial expectations and cultural mores really drive the story.

I just wish I didn't feel like Natalie was effectively a stand-in for a white heroine. She has little connection to her Korean heritage since she doesn't really remember her mother, and her dad was white. Ideally, Natalie would be written that way to represent and recognize the varied experiences multi-racial people have based on where and with whom we grew up. But it didn't feel that way. It felt like hedging a bet.

As someone who is half Japanese-half white, I may be reading more into it. But bottom line, it's more complicated (and nuanced) than you can really go into in a NetGalley review.

All in all, Temporary Wife Temptation ranks a, "It's fine." As I said, solid execution on the marriage of convenience trope, excellent grovel late in the book. I'm really interested in reading Jayci Lee's rom-com later this year to see what her work looks like in the hands of another editor/ publisher.

3/3.5 stars

a nice debut romance. there's some plot holes here, and the author makes some interesting choices about bypassing scenes and leaving them unwritten, and then just referring to the fact that they happened. In order to move the timeline forward, there's some sacrificing of the emotional build up of the couple. The plot with the baby is classic plot moppet and the ending (although i do love a grovel) literally doesn't make much sense -- how does he not find her? That being said, I like that he had to sweat it out after being such a jerk. I think this is an author with promise, but sewing up that plot and characters needs some work.

Great 👍 book. This was a FABULOUS story of people who didn't know they need each other. Introducing Garrett Song, heir to Hansol Incorporated and Natalie Sobol Interim VP of Human Resources @ Hansol. Garrett need a wife to secure the CEO position and Natalie need a husband to gain custody of her niece and from their life happens. 👍 book, characters, plot, and cultural information. By the way, Garrett if Korean and Natalie is half Korean and both characters lost their mothers early in life.

This book is the debut for Jayci Lee, the series is The Heirs of Hansol, the second installment in September 2020.

#temporarywifetemptation #jaycilee

I received an advance copy of this book and This is my unbiased and voluntary review for NetGalley and the publisher.

There’s nothing wrong with the plot of Temporary Wife Temptation, which is probably why it’s been used by a lot of other authors in a lot of similar books.

Almost-CEO Garrett Song needs to win the approval of the board of Hansol, Inc - including, most importantly, his grandmother - to get that final promotion. But his grandmother wants him to make a corporate and family alliance by marrying the daughter of a major Korean chaebol family (it’s spelled “jae-bul” in this book, but it’s usually written chaebol, and it means mega-corporation. Compare Garrett’s intended to a Walton of the Wal-Mart Waltons). But Garrett has no intention of making a marriage that never lets him off the clock. If Garrett has to marry to win the job, he’s going to do it on his own terms - and he picks Hansol HR executive Natalie Sobol.

After losing her sister and brother-in-law to a car accident, Natalie is battling her niece’s grandparents to win custody of the baby. She knows a settled, married family will look better to the court than a single businesswoman. So she agrees to a temporary marriage with Garrett: they’ll stay together for the year it should take for him to win his promotion and her to win custody.

Nothing is done badly in this book, but little stands out. The only new ground here is the Korean characters (Garrett is Korean-American; Natalie is half-Korean). It’s fun to read a wedding scene that includes Korean traditions, like wearing hanbok and catching jujubes in the bride’s skirt. And there’s an added dimension to the marriage the grandmother wants to arrange for Garrett, since families are at the core of chaebols in a way they aren’t in the vast majority of Western corporations. At the same time though, Garrett has the standard betrayal-by-past-fiancée trust issues, which culminate in the same oh-no-Natalie-betrayed-me-too plot point. Garrett and Natalie take to parenting like ducks to water, and have no trouble balancing two high-pressure careers with childcare. Natalie has a clucky older-lady Korean neighbor. It’s same old, same old.

Who should read this book? If you like Harlequin billionaire books, if the familiar rhythms of those plots suit you or are a comfort read for you, this will be exactly what you like. If you are as excited as I was to see a Korean couple on the cover of a Harlequin (especially looking THAT GOOD), you should buy this book. But while I love, love, love seeing less-represented faces making their way onto the covers of books from major publishers, as a reviewer, I have to focus on what’s behind the cover rather than what’s on it. And while the cover is special, the book itself is just more of the same.

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Hero’s grandmother wants to marry him off to a woman of her choice. Hero who is anti-marriage decides to enter in a fake marriage with heroine who is fighting to get custody of her niece.

The story was interesting in itself since I don’t think I ever read a Korean Hero/heroine before, but it fell flat for me and lost my interest when you get Hero’s POV of how heroine is not his type (aka not attractive enough, etc.). How can I believe in their attraction & love after those thoughts? For me, it ends up being more lust then love and “settling”.

Received an ARC courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley

3.5ish. While this book hard the blueprint with all my favorite things, something subtracted from the romance for me and Garret sometimes felt insincere because the I didn’t see much, outside of them faking it for others, that helped with the pacing of the romance, so it felt like the I Love Yous were rushed.

Natalie just wants to adopt her niece after her sister passed away, when a promotion at work comes up she knows she's perfect for the job and she's willing to do whatever it takes... even fake marrying her boss.

Garrett has sworn never to fall in love because he doesn't want to end up like his father. He just wants to be CEO of the company his grandparents built. But his grandmama has other plans when she tells him she has a wife picked out for him. He refuses, telling her he already has a fiancée... problem is he doesn't have one.

When Garrett and Natalie run into each other at a club, Garrett asks her to be his fake wife. The only catch, it's over when they both have what they want. It seems simple enough, right? But desire can be hard to ignore...

No secret baby trope!!!! I love Harlequin novels but they use the secret baby or pregnancy trope way too much. I hate those tropes with a passion! But this novel is clear of them! Thank God!

The writing is great, the story is wonderful, and I love the cover so much that I swoon just looking at it. I have nothing bad to say about this novel. NOTHING! It's a perfect little read that I will hold close to my heart. It's probably going to be a top read for me this year. That's how good it is! If you love romance and the trope of fake wedding/fake dating, this is for you!

*Thanks to NetGalley for this title in exchange for an honest review*

WIll go live on my blog: 1/8/2019

This book was amazing. This is my first book by Jayci Lee and it blew me away. This book is a Marriage of Convenience for both parties involved. The imagery this book provides is amazing and I can't wait to read more from this author.

This book is spectacular! From the cover to Garrett and Natalie, and then knowing there will be more books with his family...it's just the best! I love a fake engagement/marriage story and this one is done so very well. I can't wait to not only read more in the series, but more from this author as well!

Besides the amazing cover (the hero is so shockingly good looking, I mean jaw-dropping here, and the beautiful white clothes help this cover transcend the typical romance cover), the story is engrossing, the characters attractive and likable, well done, Jayci Lee, I will certainly look for your books in the future!

Natalie is trying to win custody of her orphaned baby niece. Garrett is desperate to avoid the arranged marriage his grandmother is trying to force him into for business reasons. So the two strike up a bargain: a marriage of convenience, lasting no more than a year, or until they both get what they need out of the fake relationship. But obviously no physical stuff or real emotions. Too bad that’s going to be the hardest part.

This was entertaining enough and held my attention for an afternoon. There’s a surprisingly emotional center wrapped up in the story.