There’s something about enemies to friends to lovers with a dash of fake dating that will never, ever, in my opinion miss. And romance friends, I am so so so happy to tell you Fake It Till You Bake It DOES 👏 NOT 👏 MISS. I am really pleased to be able to share my advance review of Jamie Wesley’s sweet, and fun romantic comedy with y’all today!

As always huge thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the advance copy, thoughts below are my own.

From the first moment, I knew I was going to love this book. I love Wesley’s writing style, and the life and humour she writes her characters JUMPS off the page without anyone feeling like a caricature. Donovan Dell NFL defensive end, is currently up to his eye balls cupcakes. The star DE and his fellow teammates started their bakery and he REFUSES to have it fail.

Pretty quickly Donovan has a wonderfully antagonistic meet-cute with our gal Jada. You knew right from the get-go these two were going to be that fighting is foreplay couple, and y’all I was here for it. Jada, coming off a disaster of reality show run, is trying to stop being America’s current villain. Some clever plotting has Jada (rich, directionless party girl) and Donovan (principal Dell) forced together to work at his bakery.

The auxiliary cast of characters (e.g. Donovan’s business partners) really adds to this DELIGHTFUL romance, so much so that I CAN’T wait for August’s book to head our way!!

But back to my babies. I loved the connection and friendship between Donovan and Jada. They connected, yes, but more than that they COMMUNICATED and trusted each other the entire time. Yes, there is a 3rd act break-up (no spoilers) but it has nothing to do with the oft-predictable miscommunication. These two BIG love each other and my lil romance loving heart was eating up every, single, moment.

This low-steam, low-angst, rom-com is the perfect sweet treat that your heart will love! Grab your copy of Fake It Till You Bake It, wherever you get your books when it lands in stores and online June 21st 2022.

Good romance. Thought more could have been done with a triangle to make it more interesting. Would have liked more Grams and football and the reality show.

Jada, after turning down a proposal on a reality TV show, is trying to keep herself out of the spotlight. She finds herself working at Sugar Blitz, a cupcake shop owned by three NFL players. Donovan Dell, one of the owners, is trying to figure out a way for his shop to succeed after the initial influx of customers died down. When a reporter assumes Jada turned down the TV proposal for Donovan, and business starts picking up, the two decide to fake their relationship to help both Jada's image and Donovan's cupcake shop.

I absolutely LOVE fake dating in romance novels (especially when it's enemies to lovers like this), and Fake It Till You Bake It was no exception. This book was delightful and such a quick, fun read. Jada and Donovan have great chemistry, I only wish there was more tension in the build-up! It looks like we might get books for the other two shop owners and I can't wait to read them.

Also, be prepared to crave cupcakes if you read this. I'm seriously about to bake some because of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review

It took me a long time to really get invested in this book, but eventually I did. The cupcake store setting was super cute, the overall premise was interesting, and the characters were likeable and pretty well developed by the end. I was definitely rooting for our couple. I liked, also, that this was relatively low drama.

My main issue comes from the writing itself. I felt like a lot of the dialogue was awkward and the spicy scenes had a bit of cringe factor. It just wasn’t my cup of tea, but I didn’t hate it.

Fake dating combined with a football cupcake baker! Great for fans of The Boyfriend project series by Farrah Rochon. Wasn't my personal favorite, I feel liked it moved slowly and took a while to get into.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the chance to read an advanced copy of Fake it till you bake it by Jamie Wesley. This is a cute Rom-Com that is a perfect summer read! What is more appealing than fake dating while baking yummy cupcakes? Jada finds herself heading home to hide after becoming the most hated woman in America after saying no to a proposal on a reality dating show. After being forced by her grandmother to work in Donovan's bakery, a reporter breaks a story they are dating which sets Jada and Donovan up to take advantage of the situation. But things don't always go the way you plan...
This was a quick, and fun read. 3.5 stars rounded up.

Very nice light read. We meet Jada, a reality TV star who is trying to find her way in life and out of the spot life when she meets Donavon, a pro football player and co-owner of a cupcake shop. I enjoyed their banter and chemistry.

The book had potential, and but the story moved too slow and the fake "relationship" didn't work for me.
Jada goes into Donovan's cupcake shop with a friend and makes a bunch of disparaging and "bougie" comments. She's pretentious, and she's trying to get access to her trust fund early. She has dyslexia, but here it felt like a ploy to humanize her or ger her some sympathy - it's shown as being a reason her scientist parents are disappointed in her.
Donovan is hard working and serious, and he's trying to be financially responsible, but his cupcake shop is losing money. Jada's grandma owns the football team he plays for, and she has Jada go work at the shop. They end up fake dating because the fans of a Bachelor-style TV show she was on flock to the cupcake store, and she blurts out a lie that they are together.
I didn't find it believable that Donovan would keep her working there after some of the things that happened. I appreciate Jada's personal growth, but found that a bit farfetched also. It feels like a considerable amount of time goes by while she's working in the shop, but the book mentions them falling in love in two weeks. The switch from fake to real all seems to be based on physical attractiveness. The characters overcame enough obstacles and issues that breaking them up almost at the end felt really abrupt and out of nowhere.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is such a perfect book for something light, new , and something to fill your soul with cupcake cuteness! It got a little steamy at times which I enjoyed quite a bit. The chemistry between the two characters felt real and I was rooting for them the entire time. This book is perfect if you want a light entertaining read for the summer!

Fake It Til You Bake It is a mix of two of my favorite activities-baking and sports! Add in some fake dating, a sunny California beach setting, and a touch of steam-and you have a perfect mix!

Yes, this romance has some steamy moments, but most of them are PG-13. There is one place that is a little steamier than others. But even then, it’s not excessively detailed.

Sugar Blitz is the kind of place I would love to have near me, a neighborhood cupcakery where people can gather and socialize. Oh, and have some delicious cupcakes! You can’t forget the cupcakes!

Reading a romance with more male characters than females was a bit unusual. August and Nicholas are Donovan’s friends, business partners, and teammates. They also appear quite a bit in the story, as most center around Sugar Blitz. Ella is the only other employee at Sugar Blitz. The only female other than Mrs. T, who is in the story consistently, is Oliva-Jada’s best friend.

A fabulous rom-com! I've not read any books by this author previously, but now I will look for them. I was pulled into the story from the first page. The story was just out and out fun. I had many laugh out loud moments when reading. Jada was relatable and I found myself rooting for her from page one. Donovan was a perfect fit for her. I loved Donovan's friends and hope they each get a story of their own too! I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

All of the ingredients were there, but this turned out pretty *stale* ifykyk

I really wanted to love this. I can appreciate a good fake dating story as much as the next girl. The entire book was just missing that spark and connection between the characters. I never really connected to Jada or Donovan and wasn't sure what about them worked together. The one thing that Donovan disliked about Jada off the bat became the one thing he loved about her - her bougie attitude.

The timing was very confusing to me. It seemed as though the entire story took place within a week, but I believe several months were supposed to have passed because she kept planning events. This had that feeling where it seemed like the chapters were all written individually and then stitched together later. It made things a bit confusing and made the romance feel very instalove.

Overall, this was a quick fun read, but very surface level and formulaic. If you're looking for an easy, predictable romance, then pick this up.

Also, does Donovan ever actually play football? When does he workout/train?

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an Advanced Reader Copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Football players that bake and own a cupcake shop? Count me in.

Fake It Till You Bake It was an adorable, light, and easy read. Jada is a bit of a princess and doesn’t know what to do with her life after her last failed adventure on a reality dating show. She is shopping and getting a cupcake to cheer herself up when she first has a hate/cute with Donovan, where she rudely disparages his cupcakes and the shop. So it’s a surprise to her when the next day her grandmother (Donovan’s football boss, by the way) tells her that she’ll be working at Donovan’s bake shop.

I really thought Jada would be a difficult character to like. Her introduction to us…doesn’t put her in the best light! But as we get to know her better, she becomes more and more relatable.

And Donovan gave me some heart eyes. He was just such a stubborn and by-the-book man, that seeing him fall for Jada was adorable. He tried to resist and stick to their “fake dating” plan, but he couldn’t hold out. Their chemistry was hot and I loved the amount of steam we got. The plot was a little predictable, but was enjoyable nonetheless.

I’m hoping for more from Jamie Wesley—I need August’s book STAT.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the digital review copy.

I just reviewed Fake It Till You Bake It by Jamie Wesley thanks to NetGalley. Jamie Wesley's "Fake It Till You Bake It" is really beautiful. You have two character's who have imperfections but are perfect for each other. I really enjoyed this book. #FakeItTillYouBakeIt #NetGalley

I LOVED THIS NOVEL SO SO MUCH!!!! Jamie, you have an absolute masterpiece here. As I sat and filmed a review of my thoughts on YouTube (a review that will be uploaded soon after I finish this written one), there was close to no critiques as I pretty much finished this book in one sitting, starting at Chapter 4. Jada was so well-written, and I swooned over Donovan almost as soon as I read his perspective. Their relationship dynamic was absolute perfection, because we had our enemies to lovers trope, but done in a more mature way that wasn't filled with angst or hiccups that would last for chapters upon chapters. I also appreciated how Jada and Donovan never hid how they were feeling about certain things, hence keeping up open communication and honesty throughout. I felt this was such a refresher from usual enemies to lovers relationships in other novels I have read. I also enjoyed the other characters like Jada's Grams (Mrs. T), and Donovan's teammates Nicholas and August, and his old neighbor, Ella who was absolutely adorable and sweet, providing us the comedic relief we needed especially at the beginning of the novel amidst Donovan and Jada's antics.

Though this never really took away from the novel, there were some things that could have been worked out a little more, such as there were times that the narrative was focused on Jada a lot more than Donovan, so much so that there were multiple chapters that would only have her perspective. I also think the friction with her parents should have been placed earlier in the text, like a little after the middle of the novel, so that could have really been resolved later on. I also think the reason for Donovan and Jada's break later on in the novel (pretty much in the end), could have been a tad more dynamic and reasonable because seeing that for the majority of the novel, the decisions and conversations made had been so mature, this just got a little confusing for me. But these are really minor things that I noticed, as I still finished most of the book in the day, and I still loved it so much.

Based off of everything, I will be giving this book 4.5 of 5 stars!

This book had so much promise....if it weren't for that heroine, I would have loved it, I can tell. However, she was perhaps the most unlikable character I have read in years. The book begins with her being an absolutely horrible person towards the hero, insulting his bakery and literally throwing his cupcake at him after he gives her one for free. You see, she enters the bakery and immediately starts insulting the ambience and food, without having even tried anything. The hero overhears, and she assumes he's just a worker and not the owner, and then he buys her a cupcake to prove to her that what they sell tastes good. After taking a bite, she refuses to admit it tasted amazing and throws it at him, icing flying everywhere. Soon afterwards, when we switch to her POV, my hope that seeing her perspective will help are dashed - she is a spoiled, entitled woman who hasn't had to work hard for anything in her life and looks down on everyone. She excuses her behavior at the bakery, just making a joke out of the fact that she has a big, obnoxious mouth, and her friend lets her get away with it. Then she finds out she has to hold on to a job for six months in a bakery to gain access to her trust fund, and she immediately starts complaining.

On top of all this, the hero is actually turned on by her horrible behavior in the beginning, and I was, for lack of a better word, appalled. We're not talking about just a grumpy heroine who is bantering with the hero. He is a genuinely nice person who loves to bake, trying to live out his dream, and she practically spits on it for no reason. And this is the basis for attraction? If that's what he's attracted to, fine for him, but I can't get behind this couple at all.

This book is perfect to incorporate into the library. Not only does it provide diversity in every aspect: race, gender roles, and even different professions. My students will love this book because it's a refresher from what they normally read. It provides a slow burn romance and a trope that is fancied between my students, enemies to lovers. It provides comedy, romance, and dram.

Story had potential but I didn't connect with the characters as much as I like. Pacing was a bit slow.

I loved the story. It was sweet, and sassy. It made me want to bake or visit my local bakery while reading it. I can't recommend it enough. This was my first book from this author and it won't be my last.

Fake dating? Love it!

Thank you so much for allowing me to read and review your titles. I really not the opportunity!


I do appreciate it and continue to review books that I get the chance to read.
Thanks again!