I requested to read and review this book for free from St. Martin Publishing Company. This book is hilarious it will keep you laughing until the end! Consider that a good warning especially if you are going to read in public. This book has many feels such as drama, romance, mystery. You can't help but cheer on Donovan and Jada. They are opposite in so many ways! But sometimes for some that works. And it helps when you have family and friends that want to help you out! Everyone needs someone in their corner to lift them up and tell them you got this!! This book is for a mature reader and can be ready anywhere!

3.5 A cute easy read. The characters have personality and depth. Fake dating trope. Some steamy scenes. Worth the read.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Jada is hiding out from a reality dating show disaster when she encounters Donovan. He's a pro football player who recently opened a cupcake shop with two teammates, and business is not great. Jada ends up working for him temporarily, and somehow news gets out that the two are dating (they're not), but they decide to keep up the ruse because it's good for both of their brands. But
things get messy when feelings get involved

I didn't know I needed to read something like this until I read Fake It Till You Bake It. A perfect contemporary novel for fans of the genre. Jamie Wesley's writing is phenomenal, I would definitely like to read more stories from this author

Jada and Donovan are really captivating and they are so cute together that they managed to make me gasp. The secondary characters are not far behind, I loved them so much and I NEED books focused on them.

Thankyou to netgalley for providing me with an
eArc.

Full review will be up on pop-culturalist.com closer to release week. Fake it till you bake it is an adorable rom-com kind of book.

Tall, dark, and sexy man that owns a bakery? Ex-Reality Star that needs to prove that she’s more than her past? Fake dating trope? The synopsis of Fake it till you Bake it has all the you need to have a sexy rom-com/contemporary romance but I felt it fell quite a bit short. I spent 80% of the book not being able to connect with the characters in anyway aside from really loving buttercream frosting. The MC and FMC switched point of views within the same paragraph while also shadowing in third person in the following sentences. It effected getting into the story of the characters. The MCs didn’t feel authentic - I found that I was told what the characters were feeling without being able to actually see the feelings play out. I wanted so much more from all areas; character building, more scenes outside of the cupcake shop, and more romance as it lacked a bit. That could also be from being told what they’re feeling as well.

The dialogue between them didn’t feel authentic. There were quite a few areas of conversation that I just couldn’t picture a man saying at all. The intimate scene took incredibly long to get to but also felt very rushed and felt out of place. Jada often bullied and chastised Donovan which made the romance seem as if it was a second thought.

2.5 Stars ⭐️ ⭐️✨
1.5 Spice 🌶

Overall, I really wanted to enjoy this read but I couldn’t connect with either character. Fake it till you Bake it has such great potential but it just didn’t do it for me.

This book was just delicious! I loved everything about it - football players who own a bakery, broodingly hot hero, sassy strong-willed heroine, pretend dating.... total cat-nip for my soul.

I laughed, I cried, I really wanted cupcakes... this book had it all, and I strongly recommend it to anyone who loves a funny, but super steamy, romance.

Note - it's the first in a series, so there's a lot of 'getting to know' the secondary characters but they totally fit, and are a joy to read.

Very cute contemporary rom-com! Loved the bakery! Definitely made me want to eat cupcakes. There were some serious topics perfectly interspersed with the romance. I really enjoyed this book. It was the perfect escape from the stress of daily life.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

So good, so good. I couldn't stop reading (only to sleep and eat!) so I finished this so quickly. The romance Is utter perfection.Donovan and Jada , their chemistry and mutual attraction crackle with sexual tension from the get-go, but the way their relationship develops is an exquisite slow-burn, fuelled by longing looks, flirtatious banter and glancing touches.
I have a really good feeling this book is going to be extremely popular.

Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

I absolutely loved this book. I am now invested in the whole series and will be preparing to read the other as soon as released. I appericated the layers of these characters. They are for sure more than their pretty faces. I appreciated the honesty with a learning disa bility. This is a 5 star for me I can't wait for more

Love to see more diversity in romance novels, for one, it's making the genre so much more inclusive. Told in dual point of views, there's such banter right off the bat that I love. Just hooks and pulls me in to want to keep reading. It's a sweet fake dating read that's fun, cute and a little sexy, however, some of the pacing seems just a tad hurried to me in parts.

“Fake It Till You Bake It” is a contemporary romance novel by Jamie Wesley.

Jada Townsend-Matthews was a contestant on a reality TV show like The Bachelor. In the end, she turned down the proposal - which many fans of the show via social media have expressed their anger at her. Ms. Townsend-Matthews, along with a friend, enters a cupcake store, owned by Donovan Dell, an NFL player, and two of his teammates/friends. She makes a comment - he is offended (but there’s some attraction between the two). Through a series of minor circumstances, Jada ends up working in Donovan’s shop.

Telling much more of the plot basically spoils some of the turns in this book. This book followed the standard romance formula - but in this case, the conflict wasn’t that huge an issue (at least in my opinion). The larger issue was the decision to fake date - and work that out with Donovan mostly wanting to always tell the truth and Jada being willing to bend it a bit.

There’s a lot of things thrown into this book - Jada has dyslexia (which is great for the author to bring up, but it didn’t really add to the plot - but I found some of Jada’s coping mechanisms interesting), Jada’s parents don’t regard the humanities as a real degree and they disapprove of her career choice(s), Jada’s grandmother owns the team that Donovan plays for, and Donovan’s father has a gambling issue. At times it seemed like these were filler things but they didn’t always add to the story (though the grandmother’s team ownership did play a part near the beginning). I did like the fact that the cast of characters seemed to be used enough to create interest in them as individuals. There is one chapter that is definitely “sexy time” heavy.

This was a light and fast read for me - which I rather needed after reading a number of heavier books. This book may be part of a series - as the ending was closed for Jada and Donovan, but left “cliffhanger” like for another character.

Last three days I was so focused on my dark fantasy challenge that made me more exhausted than I expected. I’m so happy to take a break and dive into this sweet, entertaining, feel good romance to heal my hurting little grey cells.

Fake relationship, enemies to lovers, opposites attract, high chemistry, a star football player who can make cupcakes and resilient reality star who turns into unpopular villanelle teaming up to rehabilitate public images and save the cupcake business: Great formula, favorite tropes, entertaining chapters, likable characters with great blend of reality show, football and baking businesses! I’m absolutely in! Jada and Donovan’s smart banters, fiery chemistry absolutely catch you unguarded. You never want to put this book down!

This book definitely is a dream comes true!
Just go blind and have fun!

Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press / St. Martin’s Griffin for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.

Fake It Till You Bake it is a solid addition to the romance genre, and my first contemporary romance of 2022. This is a great book to read if you're into baking and/or The Bachelorette. This story weaves both of those elements in smoothly while also giving the main characters their time to develop. The main character, Jada, is the right amount of excitable and cautious while her counterpart Donovan is the right balance of serious and soft. I think the last third of the book was a little weaker, considering that seems to be where the real conflict of the story kicks in. I wish that the conflict of the two characters would have tied in more to Donovan's line of work, where this relationship should seemingly present more sketchy to the public, as it felt like that could have been an interesting way to weave in a final conflict. Regardless, this book was a fun read, and the end definitely draws in the reader for a much anticipate sequel.

A baking/sports/fake-dating romance, sign me up! I loved this book, it had me hooked - I didn't want to put it down. When I did finish it, I realized there is probably going to be a sequel!

I've never watched The Bachelor before, but I understand the concept of the show, and I enjoyed how the author included her own version of the show. Jada is a force, a firecracker, and not afraid to speak her mind - even when it can get her into trouble. Donovan and Jada are the cutest couple and their banter is adorable.

Definitely going to recommend this book to anyone who loves the whole fake-dating trope. So thankful that I had the opportunity to read this e-ARC. I can't wait to see what else this author has in store for the sequel. This book is being released on June 21, 2022. Run, don't walk to pre-order this one!

Rating: 5/5 Stars ★★★★★

Rating: 3 out of 5

Style/Trope: Fake dating, soft enemies to lovers, reality tv

Spice: 2.5/5

Jada turned down a proposal on reality TV, and her grandmother is threatening to cut her off from her trust fund. Her grandmother does offer her a job, at the cupcake bakery of a man who she insulted the day before. When she tries to convince him to date her in an effort to fix her reputation, how will he respond? And if they fake date, what will happen if it becomes real for one of them?

This dual-POV book was a fun ride. Jada and Donovan are both good characters and the author went through pains to try to give the characters depth through some backstories. It was fine, enjoyable but I wouldn't seek to buy this book or ultimately reread as it doesn't feel like it adds much. However, I do feel like the author is setting up a sequel between Donovan's sister Sloane and August who works in the bakery. That book I'd like to read.

Fake dating wins again with an Ex-reality star villain and a cupcake baking football player! Jada is all adorable chaos and Donovan needs a little shaking up. This was such a cute and fun read. You will not be disappointed and I’m looking forward to reading more from Jamie Wesley and hope to see more from the other characters.

I loved reading this! Fake dating is one of my favorite tropes, and the characters in this story and their situations were unique. This was the perfect story to read curled up on my couch on my snow day. Highly recommend to romance lovers.

I didn't like this book, to put it bluntly. It was an average fake dating story but there wasn't a hook drawing me in. The setting was cute and had a lot of potential but the story failed to intrigue me. When it comes to romance novels that use popular tropes, I, as a reader, am always looking for how a specific book does a new take on the overused trope. This story, however, failed to introduce anything new which made the story very 2-dimensional for me.

I hate to give this book a poor review as I'm sure it could be a great mindless beach read for some, but I personally just found it boring.

There have been so many baking-themed romances over the past year and FAKE IT TILL YOU BAKE IT was a fun addition. I didn't connect to the protagonists as much as I wanted to, but it was an enjoyable read. Especially if you love baking, this will be a title to add to your Summer 2022 reading list.

Thiswas a sweet little cupcake of a novel. The idea of a bunch of NFL guys running. a bakery was a fun and unique one. The granddaughter is the perfect foil. I enjoyed this light romance.