3.5⭐️ this was a cute and enjoyable read. I enjoyed the MCs, just wish I'd had more time with them, because it's hard to feel invested in such a short number of pages.

I enjoyed this story. It was a nice story between two colleagues who are now friends. It was nicely packed – from the asking to the wedding to them admitting their feelings for each other and sleeping together. I did miss more heat. I do like my novellas more heated.

This one seemed like it dragged at times. I’m still not sure why Sebastian was even needed for this wedding, Trevor could go alone and for someone who is so over his ex, he sure harbors a lot of feeling for her and her new wife. He is jealous of her which again, for someone over this relationship just doesn’t suit right.

Sebastian is more calculated and reserved toward his actions may be too reserved at times. I would say I would never pick him as a love interest because he never looked at him with stars in his eyes other than the said wedding. Maybe it’s also because this book is completely from Trevor’s POV.

So yeah, I was disappointed. I thought this book will pack heat ad smut and all in between but the main star of this show was the wedding itself and not so much their relationship.

3 stars.

I absolutely loved this MM romance.

Such a great book with a solid storyline and great characters.

I eagerly look forward to reading more from this author.

A definite recommend!

I enjoyed this so much - I can really struggle with short stories as I always feel I'm left wanting a lot more than they give but this was different! I loved how the fake dating trope was executed here and it wsa done so well. Nothing felt forced and I enjoyed the little bit of backs tory that we did get to see!

The fake date trope is so-so for me, but this was very well done. Asking made sense and the characters reactions and reasons made sense. That's something often lacking in the trope and I appreciated seeing it done semi-logically.

Thank you to NetGalley and NineStar Press for an eARC of this title.

Oh, how I adored this sweet and short little story. This is where fake dating feels so real and honest. These two professional friends go to a wedding together and pretend to be dating and oh the drama. I adored this. Let’s be honest, these short little stories don’t have a lot of plot or character development, but they are the most comforting and wholesome books I have ever read. This one was no different. It was soft and sweet and just filled me with the warmest feels.

If you like fake dating, some pining, and weddings this is the book for you!

Rating: 4/5

I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
A very quick and sweet romance. I would have liked to get to know Sebastian a bit better but other than that I really enjoyed it.

I received an ARC through Netgalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

Trevor is out for drinks with his ex-boss, and now friend Sebastian, when he notices an email from a past girlfriend asking him if he's going to her wedding. After grumbling to Sebastian about the difficulty to find a date for this event, he blurts out an invitation. Sebastian agrees to be his plus-one.

Trevor's best friend Cam insists this will be trouble. Trevor has been hung up on Sebastian all these years and now they are going to a wedding, and pretending to be dating!? The chance for heartache seems high. And though Trevor agrees with the sentiment, he cannot make himself rescind the invitation.

And so Trevor and Sebastian go to the wedding.

This novella was short but ever so sweet. Yes, I think this as a full length book with extra angst, longing, and love would also be exquisite, but this novella had all these things as well. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

Trevor is dateless for his ex's wedding. Sebastian is his friend and former boss, and he asks him to accompany him on impulse. There's just one problem: Trevor has been in love with Sebastian for years.

Ok, even just the premise was everything I wanted. I love the fake dating trope, and this was set up in a way that was believable. There is plenty of romantic and sexual tension right from the get go. I really liked Trevor straight away, and Sebastian was slightly mysterious and I wanted to know more about him. Also, the tension! I don't want to spoil anything but I really liked the way Sebastian's motivations and reasons were written.

In fact, my only complaint about this book is that it was very short, and I wanted to spend more time with Trevor and Sebastian! Even though it was short, I still had time to get to know the characters and really care about them. And the ending was perfect.

Basically, this story is really sweet and cute, and I loved it.

What does a single man need when attending his ex’s wedding? A fake boyfriend!

Lawyer Trevor is the single man in question, and he immediately regrets it when he impulsively asks Sebastian—the judge he used to clerk for, now his friend, and, oh yeah, the guy he’s been in love with for years—to go with him. When Sebastian shockingly says yes, Trevor expects to have to pick up the pieces of his heart after one night playing “what if” with Sebastian. Of course, what Trevor’s forgetting it that a date doesn’t involve just one heart.

It’s a common scenario, and it plays out about how you might expect, but it’s really cute. Communication—and the lack of it—is the key to this short romance. Trevor may be an excellent lawyer in the courtroom, but he’s kind of an adorably awkward mess in social situations, and that includes his interactions with Sebastian. Sebastian is older and much more socially adept, but maybe he’s not always wiser, given how the storyline unfolds. When the two of them finally are forced into talking honestly to each other at the wedding, the story becomes extremely sweet before it all wraps up relatively quickly.

Readers who prefer their romances on the longer side might want more, but fans of the fake boyfriend trope who are looking for a quick read should give this one a try.

A copy of this book was provided through NetGalley for review; all opinions expressed are my own.

I wanted more! I read this in a couple hours and I loved Trevor and Sebastian so much I didn’t want to let them go. If you’ve read a sad lgbtq book recently, this is the one you want to read afterwards (Looking at you Song of Achilles readers). It is however, for adults only, this isn’t a book for young audiences. That being said, it left my heart feeling warm and happy.

Edit: I received this book through NetGalley to read for a fair review.
Already posted to Goodreads.

I received an advanced reader's copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this sweet novella! I love the fake-relationship but both people are actually attracted romance trope, and it's well done here. Trevor needs a date to his ex-girlfriend's wedding. He asks his boss from a previous job, Sebastian, if he will go as a pretend date on a whim and is completely shocked when he agrees. Trevor's best friend believes this will only leave him heartbroken, but Trevor's not willing to pass up the opportunity with Sebastian. The book is written from Trevor's POV, which works well because the story is fairly short. The interactions between the main characters made me smile, and I enjoyed the writing.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3912312650

This felt more like a lovely premise for a book rather than the complete thing. It was so short that it gave me no time to get to know the characters which meant that I had no investment in their fake relationship dynamic. It's such a shame because I am the ultimate sucker for this trope and really wanted to read a book that had it at the centre.

Both of the characters were sweet and fun, and I could tell this had such potential to be something great. If it were even a couple of hundred pages, it would have given them more room to be multi-dimensional people. There's also a great supporting cast of characters that had a lot of potential. The writing style and dialogue were also things I was totally on board with.

It really is set up to be my perfect kind of thing, I can still feel myself rooting so hard for it. If I'm frustrated, it's because there's so much good here but it just never quite made the leap from short, almost one-shot fanfiction to fully developed story.

Will this fake date lead to real love? Read this short, sweet story to find out if love is in the cards for Trevor and Sebastian.

I received a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this story. So I’m glad I picked it. It was a short and lovely love story between two former colleagues and now friends. I would have liked a longer ending since I felt it was a bit unfinished. Overall, it was a cute short story.

I received this ARC from the publisher and Netgalley for my honest review.

Something Borrowed is a typical, fluffy, romantic short story with lots of warm feels involved. Maybe a little too typical.

The bad: The characters are neither well defined, nor authentic. In fact, they sound very much like a man and woman lifted directly off the pages of the Great Heterosexual Romance Book, from which every book in the romance genre is apparently copied word for word.

The premise of the story is also quite weak and contrived. Also, why is Trevor feeling guilty about inviting Sebastian just because he has feelings for him? This isn’t manipulation. (We really should lay down some rules about trivializing terms of abuse like this.) This is an attempt to create conflict where there is none, and as such, falls decidedly flat.

The good: The romance, intimacy and erotic scenes are nicely written. The Squee Factor is real and strong and tends to eclipse the faulty premise and lame characters. You don’t care that they’re one dimensional – you just want these cardboard cut outs to KISS. (Seriously, it’s adorable. Romance books are adorable. This is why I read them.)

Something Borrowed cuts past the tired rationalizations of your conscious brain and overwhelms your subconscious with the power of squee, fluff, and sweet cinammon rolls too precious for the world. A pretty sweet way to while away a few hours in romantic fantasy land.

I couldn't get hooked. I had hard time getting interested in characters.. the descriptions was okay. I liked the dialogue.

I just wish this book was longer!

The writing is just too good; the characters (help!) Ppsst! Their slow burn romance. Damn.

The characters seem so real and their development is amazing for such a short book!

I am surprised with how the fake dating trope turned out so well.

Well, this book has raised the bar. Like s good level of high and higher.


And author, what's with the characters' names? Trevor and Sebastian! I fell in love with their names before even meeting them.

I am eagerly waiting for the next book by the author!

Thank you, publisher and the author for the advance reading copy.

This book made my weekend so sweet!

A very engaging and super-cute, quick read.

Yes - the plot is pretty far-fetched. No - the fake boyfriend trope isn't new. Yes - I knew from the outset exactly what was going to happen... But none of this reduced my enjoyment of this very sweet romance, which despite its foregone conclusions kept me turning the pages right up to the end.

The writing style was better than most books of this genre, and the characters were described well - although the length of the book (it's short!) means that you perhaps don't get to know them as deeply as you could in a longer novel. This isn't necessarily a problem, but rather an observation; the story was very enjoyable as it stands, and the length felt appropriate.

Thank you very much to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

An incredibly sweet and tender story about two older men pining after each other for years. The book is short, but I was incredibly invested and charmed by the relationship between the two characters. I would immediately read any other books about them! I appreciated the honesty and openness of the book, between how the characters discuss their relation to each other within their careers and what they expect from each other.

Thanks to NetGalley and Nine Star Press for the free eARC in exchange for my honest review.