I had a hard time getting into this book. I ended up putting it down halfway through, I just wasn't as invested as I would have liked to be. There is a chance I will pick it back up at a later time to try again, it may have just not been the right time for me.

Thank you, Netgalley for my copy to review.

Ooof. I tried. I really freaking tried. I picked this up and put it back down several times over the course of a few weeks hoping something would finally spark my interest but nothing ever did.

This was…choppy. Sloppy. Confusing. I could see where there was humor attempted but it came off as more slapstick and deranged/manic. Everything was based on lies which didn’t lend for a very cute beginning or end for JJ and Libby.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book for review.

An enjoyable read from this author. A full review of this arc to follow and to be posted on publication date.

Hate to Fake It to You
A Novel
by Amanda Sellet
"Hate to Fake It to You" by Amanda Sellet is an entertaining read, but it didn't leave a lasting impression on me. The story follows Libby Lane, a waitress pretending to be an influencer, and Jefferson Jones, a wildlife photographer. Their paths cross in Hawaii, leading to a series of comedic misadventures involving a fake marriage, borrowed goats, and a made-up holiday.
While the premise is fun and zany, the book didn't keep me too invested. The fake marriage and slow burn romance were predictable, with typical miscommunications and ups and downs. Although it's a light-hearted and enjoyable read that many will like, it wasn't particularly memorable for me. The characters and plot felt somewhat formulaic, and I found myself not thinking much about it after finishing. Overall, it's a decent book for a casual read, but it didn't stand out in a significant way.

Very grateful to the publisher for my copy, opinions are my own

OK, so I 100% chose this book because of the adorable goats on the cover. Unfortunately, in the end, I really wanted more goats in the story. Hate to Fake It to You is a rom-com set in beautiful Hawaii, and I definitely felt the tropical presence. I just didn't feel the romance between the FMC Libby and the MMC Jefferson. She was an immature new adult would-be influencer. He was an established 30-somthing wildlife photographer. I just don't see how he would be all that into her. Except, well, guys often are into the not so smart hot messes it seems. That's probably why I'm still single2, lol. I guess I just like my FMC to be smarter and more together.

2.5 starts rounded up because a goat ate her bikini top.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Screwball comedy romance!

Libby Lane has lived her life just making do after being raised by her single mother but now she and her roommate Jean need to fake living an influencer’s life as Lillibet at a borrowed house to hopefully sell the idea to media mogul heir. But nobody can keep their plans straight when everything goes off the rails.

Libby is faking living her best life as Lillibet at her fake husband’s house with her best friend playing the housekeeper playing host to media heir Hildy Johnson and her rescuer and boyfriend Jefferson Jones nobody is real.

If you like your romance mixed with a little bit of old fashioned screwball comedy with everybody a fake version of themselves.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from the author and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

2.5⭐️

I enjoyed the setting of this story, but unfortunately over all this was a bit of let down. I didn't really ever connect with the characters or enjoy my time with them. Its unfortunate as I did really look forward to this book :(.

This was a super cute modern day romance. Trying to find yourself in the chaos of fake news and the overwhelming stress of being perfect online. Trying to pretend to be that perfect person and how far you can fall. Very enjoyable read. Thank you.

I really enjoyed this book! I’ve never read something set in Hawaii before, so I was super excited to read about the culture and scenery. The banter between everyone was so cute and I felt myself laughing along at times.

Jefferson and Libby felt drawn to each other and liked the other, but were in situations that were preventing them from acting or expressing those feelings right away. I usually am not a fan of miscommunication, however, I’m not sure this can be classified as such since they had actual reasons and not just a “feeling the other didn’t feel the same way”.

I will say, I was not the biggest fan of Jean. It irked me a bit that she seemed more concerned about financials then Libby’s feelings. She made it seem like their future, housing and even Keoki’s restaurant was riding solely on Lilibet. While I understand, it didn’t seem fair to Libby.

I would totally recommend this to friends, it’s the perfect summer read!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced e-copy of this book.

I'm not sure exactly what didn't work for me. I liked the premise of the fake influencer but I feel like this plot point wasn't used to its full potential. Also the persona was quite annoying. I thought the romance was fine.

Stick with this book! It’s slow in the beginning and even a little confusing but it gets better. Worth the read! Don’t give up!

A cute read, possibly helped by its setting on Oahu; I still have warm feelings about Hawai'i after traveling there last summer. Sellet's love for the island comes through, and she does a great job making you feel like you're there. Bumped it up from a 3.5 to 4.

Libby and her best friend/roommate Jean have created a fake influencer profile online, Lilibet. It's a way for Libby to write and for Jean to share her art and photography; unfortunately, media empire heir Hildy is a fan of theirs and travels to Hawai'i in hopes of setting up a partnership. So Libby and Jean have to figure out how to be the wealthy, married Lilibet for Hildy...and Hildy's fake boyfriend Jefferson.

This kind of set-up can be frustrating, as I usually just want to yell at the characters to tell each other the truth as they continue to rationalize what's happening or determine that the time just isn't right. I was impressed, however, with how Sellet wrote it; there was never a moment where I wanted to smack the characters upside the head. Libby and Jefferson both come across sympathetically.

The side characters are where this misses a bit for me. Jean comes across as pretty unlikeable, and Hildy's insistence on acting like the 30-something Jefferson and Libby were ancient got old fairly quickly. I also never got a great feeling for the relationship between Hildy and her uncle. However, there are some good goat cameos and a malasada shout-out.

This 100% feels like a Hallmark movie, and I mean that as a compliment.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Griffin and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

There were times that this book was laugh-out-loud funny and others when the story dragged on. Libby and her friends created a fake influence profile online and now their top fans whats to meet them.

While the writing was good in this story, it was a struggle for me to finish.

Read if you like:
🧼 Clean Romances
☀️ Summer Vibes
🤣 LOL Moments/ RomComs
🐐 Goats

This is a silly, seeet, and sassy romcom! It has plenty of laugh out loud moments with funny characters, cute goats, and lots of chaos.

If you’re in the mood for a summer romcom with lots of laughs that’s squeaky clean, then this one is worth checking out!

Thank you to the publisher for my ARC in exchange for my review!

As intriguing as this story sounded, it was just okay for me. I liked the relationship between Libby and Jefferson, even if it felt a little instalovey and solely based on physical attraction. But you could see their feelings grow as they spent more time together, even if Libby wasn’t truly being herself. The whole plot is that she’s created a fake internet persona that has to become real when Jefferson and Hildy, the daughter of a media empire, come to visit. But it felt that it was so poorly executed of a persona that what was meant to come off as funny ended up being more cringe. I felt that way about most of book, scenes that were meant ti be funny just fell short for me.

Overall, I liked the romance but not much else of this book.

This one just didn’t do it for me. I finished and truly couldn’t tell you what happened. I loved the bits of “love lillibit” & appreciated the resolution in the end, but the banter was almost too much & too silly at times. I also didn’t feel a connection with the characters at all. The setting however was beautiful and I thought the author did a wonderful job writing it.

This book made me laugh so much, the things they had to go through to fake everything was so wild and so funny. After a while it became too extreme and I couldn’t even keep up!

I loved Libby and JJ, I kept reading because I wanted to know how all of this will unfold between them and it did not disappoint.

Solid read, with just the right amount of laughs!

This new to me author as written a funny fake it til you make it story on the beaches of Hawaii and it’s going to make you laugh out loud.

With all of these characters you aren’t going to be able to stop yourself from laughing at their hijinks. But the real question is will love prevail over a long list of half truths?

Take a chance on this one, it is funny where it needs to be and it’s going to make for a great break from your day to day!

Hate to Fake It to You by Amanda Sellet was such a gem!
I was not disappointed by this rom-com by her.
This book completely hooked me right from the start. It is funny and romantic, and I honestly loved everything about it.
Adorable, fun and charming, this one is such a perfect book for book lovers and romance lovers alike.
I have nothing negative to say about it. Perfect!!!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book. These opinions are completely my own.

This may be the first time I felt old reading a romance novel and I have read a lot. The writing just wasn't aimed at me and that's OK. I think this would be more relatable for the under-30 set.