Was too wattpad-y for me. Premise was great and i liked the cover but was tough to get through when it doesn't feel believable

I have been reading Tamara Lush for years and I love her writing for a reason! I loved Crash and I highly recommend.

I voluntarily reviewed this book.

There was nothing groudbreaking about this book but I am a sucker for fake engagement/dating tropes, so I did enjoy this one. It was the second in a series, but my first by this author and I'd give her another read sometime!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

I love a good fake dating trope but this one was not it.

Predictable. Immature dialogue and writing. Repetitive.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely amazing!



Thank you soo much netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advanced review copy if this book💗

This is the second book of The Pretenders series, but a first time read for me by this author and it won't be my last. This was one of my favorite tropes, fake dating, and it was written well. Although we all know how the story will inevitably end, it was the journey getting there that made this a fun ride. Alex is all set to take over the family company, but his grandmother is a tough one to impress, and he has to convince her his teenage shenanigans are in the past and he is the right man for the job. Evie is a new intern at the company, and they are both clearly attracted to each other. She is in need of money, and when Alex proposes they fake date to impress his grandmother, and that she will be generously compensated, she is on board.
This was a quick, entertaining read, with down-to-earth, solid characters. The story captured my interest from the start and kept it all the way through. I had a fun time reading this book and I look for6to reading more by this author.
I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

I gave this book 4 stars. This was an entertaining read from beginning to end. The main characters had great chemistry and were crafted well. The author did a great job determining the dynamics of their relationship. Also, you know I love a well-executed dual POV---and this one was great!

To be completely transparent----Was this the pinnacle of writing? No, but did it entertain me and keep my interest? Yes, it definitely did! Sometimes I find the dialogue in romance novels to be a bit cringy, but I don't recall any particular moments in this book that felt awkward or off-putting.
I liked this author's writing style quite a bit. When I was researching for this post and found the author's website, I saw that she writes cozy mysteries under the pen-name 'Tara Lush'. While I would definitely delve into her romance backlog, I would also love to go back and read some of her mysteries!

To my understanding, this book was originally published by the author on a story-writing app called, Wattpad. Wattpad is the home of many fan fiction stories and is full of indie authors. After several Wattpad stories gained traction (and a few later would be traditionally published and/or adapted for film/TV), Wattpad created their own publishing company. Crash was originally published on Wattpad but was traditionally published through Wattpad's publishing imprint, earlier this year!I love that I was able to read this book that I may not have stumbled upon otherwise. So far, the books sent by this publisher have all been enjoyable reads!

I would love to interview Tamara on my podcast, Raise Your Words. I remember reading Crash on Wattpad and it’s cool to see that it’s now an actual book!! I highly recommend this for anyone who likes books with characters who banter.

Cute qnd sweet read. This was just the right amount of sugar. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read.

I liked this one! I love the fake engagement trope, so it had me there already. It wasn't anything groundbreaking, but it was a good read and I'm definitely interested in more from this author.

This was a quick, well written read, the writing style was easy to read and follow and well thought out.
I enjoyed the fake dating aspect of the book and the two main characters were enjoyable to read

This book was OKAY. I was wanting a romcom after reading so much mystery, but this one fell a little flat for me. I’m a sucker for a fake dating trope though, so I feel like that helped it some.

Cute story. Writing could use some work.

This is a good book. The two main characters are Evie and Alex. Evie is a college student, raising her younger sister, and an intern at Alex’s company. Alex runs a large company. This is where they meet when she takes some papers to his office. There is an instant attraction. Alex offers Evie a proposition where she would be his fake finance, he would provide a sum of cash and a rent free condo. She says yes to the offer. They each have issue but together they work them out and fall in love.

As always thanks to the publisher for the chance to read this book in advance.
What can I say?
If you're looking for a couple that makes sparkles since the first pages this is the book perfect for you.
The story is not really different for the usual trope; she needs urgently money to mantain her sister at school and he offers her a way to have them quickly, helping him to gain the position of CEO, convincing his grandmother he's mature enough. Obviously the attraction between those two is immediate, so you can imagine how this deal will go on...
I really liked how the two main characters relate with each other, but at the same time it wasn't something new.
The chemistry, the chain of the event, was absolutely fine, but not astonishing or really surprising.
That said, it's a nice book for sure for an enjoyable reading.

Another arc from NetGalley that I finished after the publishing date 😅. I actually read this one in a couple days because it was going to expire. But also, I got sucked in by the romance between a billionaire and a soon to be unemployed intern. I haven’t read many billionaire romances, although it seems related to celebrity romance where they can spoil and take care of their love interest. That was appealing to me, especially in this story because Evie had to grow up fast when her parents died and she was left to raise her teenage sister alone. I liked how responsible and capable Evie was. Alex had a bad reputation, but that was more rumor than substance. He reminded me a little bit of Fox from Hook, Line, and Sinker in that he was constantly underestimated by the people around him, including his own family. I enjoyed how these two characters brought their own unique strengths to the relationship and supported each other. There were some minor things about the character’s choices that seemed a little inconsistent, but overall I really liked watching them grow. I look forward to reading more from this author.

I love fake dating and this book goes one step further by having a fake engagement! Alex has a rivalry with his cousin for the CEO position of his grandma’s company. When Evie is tasked with delivering some papers directly to her boss, Alex, he mistakes her as his replacement secretary, rather than as an intern. Evie then has to sit in on a meeting between Alex, his grandma, and his cousin, all whilst trying to remain professional and panicking about the possibility of losing her job. Instead, Alex’s grandma sees the chemistry between him and Evie and thinks they are a couple, which ultimately leads to Alex asking Evie to be his fake fiancee.

Forcing these two to spend time together shows their undeniable chemistry as they get closer and have to act as a couple at family events. As the book progresses, the feelings become more real and Evie has to consider whether it’s worth upending the life she has built for her and her sister for the chance of love with a man who might not love her back. This was a fun, quick read with some of my favourite tropes!

Crash is the second part in the Pretenders series of Tamara Lush. Having read Drive last year, I was wondering whether this one would be about one of the other car drivers from Drive. But no, we actually move away from the track and into the siblings of Savannah: her brother Alex to be exact.

Alex is a bit of an arrogant type. Used to wealth and being in control and having woman throwing themselves at his feet. Fortunately, he has his foul mouthed grandmother (who is hilarious) to keep him grounded. She is, however, bugging Alex to get a stable family life. To appease her, Alex need a (fake) girlfriend.

Enter Evie, the feisty intern that Alex mistakenly thought to be his temporarily assistant. He offers her the role for a big amount of money. Ever since Evie’s parents died in a car crash, she has been struggling to keep her and her younger sister afloat. Barely old enough to take care of herself, she also tries to save money to get her sister’s education paid. So Alex’ offer, although insane, would provide for a big part of Evie’s money problems. So, she agrees, although she loathes Alex for throwing money at every problem he faces.

But now, Alex and Evie must find some common ground, to -at least in public- look like they are in love. It is fun to see the spoiled rich boy and stiff poor girl take diggs at each other. And, of course, when both learn to look beneath the exterior, they find that they actually have a lot in common. A slow burn, with wonderful characters. Four out of five stars from me and a special thank you to Netgalley for providing the arc.

I had a lot of run reading Crash by Tamara Lush! It is the perfect romcom for anyone wanting characters with real substance and relatable backstories.

Evie is a young, recent college grad who is struggling to make ends meet through her low paying internship. Things are especially difficult because she has found herself in a role of single mom to her teenage sister after their parents tragically died in a car accident. With her sister's graduation on the horizon and big expenses like college and science camp tuition, not to mention her internship coming to an end in just a few weeks, it is easy to understand why Evie is feeling a little extra stressed. So stressed that it's not surprising that she forgot to deliver an important document to one of the most important people in the company, and that when she does deliver it and gets mistaken for another secretary she doesn't clue in to his mistake until she's spilling coffee on him! She's pretty sure she's about to get fired, but actually, her boss Alex has something different in mind... a proposal of sorts... and the potential to solve all of Evie's financial worries. Too good to be true? Maybe. You'll have to read it to find out!

I loved that this book covered so much more than a simple fake relationship trope story, but dove into so many other themes. Evie has a fear of elevators after her parent's accident, she has financial worries beyond the usual college graduate debt, responsibilities for raising a traumatized teenager, career ambitions that feel out of her league, she's realistically inexperienced in the bedroom (um, she's been a little busy adulting...), and balancing multiple low paying jobs despite having a college degree because in 2023 that diploma is worth little more than graduating high school but significantly more expensive. Alex comes from a privileged background, but the story also unveils his own insecurities, challenges and ambitions, making him an easy character to root for despite how different he and Evie are.

This book is technically the second in a series, but for the most part it was easy to read as a standalone. From what I gathered, the first book is also about a fake relationship between Alex's sister and her now husband. It kind of bothered me that his sister's name was Savannah and they live in Georgia, but that may have been explained in the first novel, and is definitely not that big of a deal lol!

I would absolutely recommend Crash and I'm excited to share that it comes out this week! So go preorder your copy now so you have it on the 24th, you'll definitely want to get reading right away. Meanwhile I am going to go track down my own copy of the first book, Drive so I can find out what happened to Savannah's fake relationship that led to getting married and having kids.

Thanks to Rachel Wu at WattPad Books, and Netgalley, for giving me the chance to read and review this awesome novel!

The writing style was really good with the book! It felt pretty easy going!
If you're a fan of the fake dating trope you'll enjoy this book! It's a quick read but I kept waiting for something to make this stick out and wow me. It needed just a lil something to set evie and Alex apart from other fake dating trope books

Something about the writing was a bit off, maybe along the lines of trying to sound hip but didn't land. With that aside it's a fake engagement and hits all the beats. Alex needs to impress his grandmother and marriage is the answer. Evie is struggling intern and this arrangement helps.