With a fun twist on fake/mistaken relationship, here we see what happens when two people in love with their best friend, or brother's fiance, fake it until they make it.

I really liked the premise and the plot moved along with a reasonable HEA and no major plot holes or out of character behavior. The fake dating trope played out in a realistic way. It wasn't a clever hoax that all comes crashing down, instead it is just not arguing when people make assumptions. The cast of supporting characters were fun and unique with being "QuiRkY" and there is room in this world for more books, which I anxiously await.

I did have a few quibbles, mainly I felt that Marcella was a bit immature, but I recognize that her maturing (namely outgrowing her old patterns) is part of her character arc, so that may have been for a reason. I did not feel super into the chemistry and the spice was only OK, so that may be a matter of personal preference.

All together I enjoyed this tropey contemporary and look forward to more in the series.

I was really excited to read this book, how could I not be when it’s ex NFL player and librarian and fake dating and plus size rep?! All good things that I enjoyed for the most part, but I personally thought it was bit repetitive and the lot line of Marcela being in love with her best friend and Theo with his brother’s fiancée was too messy of a plot line that I didn’t like and wished for a simpler premise of them falling in love than in these circumstances. Especially when the best friend was so nice in the beginning and turned into an evil person overnight! I wished I’d loved it!

This was a great book. I connected with the characters. I felt engrossed with the plot. I would read another book by this author.

I really enjoyed this one, even when a bit hesitant of the whole unrequited love part that imo dragged a bit too long. Other than that I loved Marcela and how her relationship with her body was portrayed. Also specially loved all the latinx representation, made me want to have some of the food ☺️

This was a solid debut by a promising writer,

Thank you to netgalley and Forever for this ARC copy in exchange for my honest review

Rating:🌟🌟🌟🌟
Spice: 🌶️🌶️

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and Gabriella Gamez for a eARC copy of The Next Best Fling.

I enjoyed this book. I loved Marcela and how genuinely kind she was, and her bookish librarian nature was a fun facet of her personality that any avid reader can relate to. Her character was developed well and had fulfilling relationships outside of her feelings for the male protagonists, which was one of the things I appreciated most about the book.

Now, for the *drama* - Ben was SUCH a tool. As the reader we got a good, unbiased view of his treatment of Marcela and OH.MY.GOSH he was awful. Gamez really wrote him well, because the reaction I had to his character was a visceral hate. Theo was a dream boat. I know he had his issues with commitment, and it wasn't all perfect but gosh his development throughout their relationship was dreamy. I loved the curvy girl and husky guy representation. The spice was on point, and I loved how she addressed the difficulties/insecurities that come with intimacy when you have a larger figure.

I don't always talk about cover art, but I really feel like this was such a beautiful cover. I am someone who will always choose any illustrated book cover page, and this one was no exception, and I loved the way it really embodied the picture Gamez created with her descriptions of the characters.

Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone who loves easy, low-stakes romance with larger body representation.

This was a wonderful, quick, spicy, and swoon-worthy read!

"He wants the bride, she wanted the groom. But what if all they really want... is each other?"

I was able to sit and finish this in a day. Marcela is a very relatable female main character. She's a book lover, who is self-conscious and not sure how to love due to her daddy issues. Theo is the definition of a cinnamon roll, swoony, and leads with honesty.

I loved their interactions with each other throughout the story. One of my favorite scenes is at the YA Book Club. It had me giggling and swooning just like Marcela and her 14-year-old patron. I loved all of the books and Texas references throughout the story.

I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys the following :
-plus size rep
-latina rep
-best friend's brother
-friends with benefits
-fake dating
-angst/pining
-unrequited love

Wow, wow, wow. When my rep from ReadForever sent this over as a MUST READ, I was so excited to dive into this title for a plethora of reasons. Latinx FMC + plus sized + she's a librarian? I'm swooning all over the place. Marcella has been pining for her best friend Ben for over a decade, but that pining is crushing her the moment he tells her he's proposing to his girlfriend of 8 years. Heartbroken and forlorn, she is catapulted into dating apps but her heart still lingers and she needs a rebound. What she doesn't know though is that she can find said rebound closer than she thinks and unfortunately a whole degree away from Ben - Theo Young, his older brother. Through a series of what if's and trying to do the right thing, Marcella finds that Theo has to be off limits but she cannot help herself by being drawn to him. I loved this title due to the situational unrequited love, the way that it unfolded was done in such a way that made me devour the pages. I loved that communication was such a pinnacle point and done in a way where no one left things unsaid if they could help it. I only marked down due to some of Marcella's internal dialogue that felt a bit grating though understandable for development.

A fun, sweet read. I expected a trope-y library romance and ended up with very human characters struggling through their own issues and ultimately winning a future together. I have alternately laughed, gasped, and cursed out loud reading this, much to the surprise of family members trying to watch television. I can’t wait to read more from Gamez.

3.5 stars! I really enjoyed this book and the characters. Theo was endearing and I couldn’t wait to read his parts. I did love the librarian aspect of the story as well! Looking forward to the book next year!

The Next Best Fling was slow for me to start but once it got going, it got GOOD. This is going to be a repeat read for me this summer for sure. Angsty, hot, and fast-paced, it’s a great beach read.

Ooof. This one was a huge miss for me. The love square was really awkward and not my jam. I also struggled with all the on page drinking and drunkenness. It could be very triggering for folks who struggle with alcohol. I will still give the author another chance as this was her debut but I really hope the next book isn’t so messy.

The Next Best Flings follows Theo and Marcela as they navigate a fake-turned-real fling. The two are seen leaving an engagement party together, and it’s assumed that they had a one night stand. Since both of them are trying to get over their feelings for the future bride and groom, they decide to roll with the rumor.

I liked the body positivity, and the writing flowed well. However, I found myself getting super bored by The Next Best Fling. There wasn’t a whole lot of chemistry between Theo and Marcela… you are told how good they are together but you rarely understand why. Another aspect that I found exhausting was that you get a lot of Marcela’s inner monologue, which I found to be very repetitive.

I am bummed that I didn’t love this! If you are interested in this book I would still give it a try, it was by no means bad but it did not hook me. I would try another book by this author in the future!

I got this book as an ARC. The overall plot spiked my interest in reading it. Once I realized it was set in San Antonio, I was hooked since not a lot of books are set there and I know the city and area well. I reviewed it on Goodreads.

4.5 STARS

The Next Best Fling was a fun, messy book that explores what love is. It was a pleasurable reading experience. There is librarian/library, plus size heroine, and Texas Latinx appreciation. I can’t wait for the next book.

I voluntarily read an early copy.

I liked this story. I love a plus size representation in books and this one was great. I didn’t love all the spicy scenes, I felt like some could have been fade to black and would have been fine. Overall though a great love story!

This was such an enjoyable read. I was slightly unsure about the book at first but really enjoyed reading it.

Some things I really liked were:
- Marcela is a librarian, this made her character relatable in a lot of ways as a reader and it was fun to read about how much she loved her job and how important it was to her
- Marcela and Theo had really good communication for the most part, especially considering their situations. So while yes, there was some miscommunication, it was resolved fairly quickly.
- Marcela’s bestie, Angela, I would love to read a story that is just about her!!
- This is more of a formatting thing, but I really liked how each song in the playlist (yes, there’s a playlist!!) had a short reasoning attached, explaining why the song was part of the playlist. I thought that this was really unique and liked it.
- I think the author wrote Marcela’s character well considering the fact that Marcela is plus sized, and often that fact becomes a major part of the plot, but that is not what happened in this book. Her weight wasn’t constantly brought up and when it was, it wasn’t in a weird way.
- The fact that a part of their date takes place in a library!! With candles (fake ones of course)!! That was such a cute idea (also, me when?).

So this isn’t REALLY something I disliked about the book per say, but just something I sort of cringed at. There was a grand gesture done by Marcela and for some reason it made me cringe REALLY hard. 🫢

Overall, while it was slow at times it was still a really good and enjoyable read.

Thank you NetGallery and Gabriella Gamez for the ARC.

This is a great book for anyone looking for a cute easy palate cleaner. There are so many things that I think many people will love about this book even though it did ultimately disappoint me. I'm excited for the authors next book since I did enjoy the writing but disliked the story and characters.

As someone who has been friendzoned, I don't think I can put in to words how much I needed this book. Gabriella Gamez helped me heal with this one and I absolutely devoured it.

Marcela and Theo may have just entered my list of favorite fictional couples, because they are EVERYTHING! Watching them go from fake dating to protect each other's secrets to falling in love with each other was magical. Especially when both of them were pining for the two people they could never have. It was interesting to see two people who could easily have used their unrequited feelings to try and break up a couple, come together and find the love they deserved with each other. Even when those feelings were a big obstacle in Marcela letting her guard down and open up to letting her and Theo love each other.

In a lot of ways Ben, Theo's brother and Marcela's long term crush, completely destroyed Marcela's trust and confidence. And this paired with her own past with her father made it so hard for her to trust others and even her own feelings, and it was so heartbreaking. Especially when it seemed like it may lead her to believe Theo's feelings were all fake because she had been burned too much in the past. But I loved how Theo truly put it all on the line and wanted to fight for their relationship even when Marcela kept pushing him away.

It was extremely beautiful seeing her take the plunge when she was ready and prove she wanted what they had and to be completely vulnerable in order to be together. Plus we are all fans of grand gestures, and both Theo and Marcela did so well with them.

I will say watching Ben become a villain type figure in this book had me feeling mixed emotions. I think it was necessary to see him for what he is and that was a man who in his own way seemed insecure. He always wanted to keep Marcela around, even though he knew her feelings because he wanted to keep her in his life. In doing so he put her through so much pain, especially when the person he was marrying was someone she was once friends with. Not to mention the way he acted with his brother made it clear to me that he had more growth necessary before he was ready to find love and needed to grow up.

Alice on the other hand, Ben's fiancee, showed amazing growth. Even if she knew about Theo's feelings she wanted nothing more than for him and Ben to have a healthy relationship again. She also was super supportive of him and Marcela, and I loved it. She showed growth as a character when she realized Ben was not her person, because he made her into a person she no longer recognized. One who had given up on her dreams, and was settling which wouldn't have been fair for either of them.

I would also like to take a moment to acknowledge and praise the fact we got to see a football player fall for a thicker woman. We love bigger body representation and watching everyone get their happily ever afters. And I love when author's show the insecurities we all have regardless of body type, but especially when it is a character who learns to love their body. Bonus points for having the hot NFL player brother constantly telling her how perfect she is!

I am so excited I got to read this Librarians in Love debut romance by Gabriella Gamez. As an avid library user, I was so invested in a good librarian love story.

Read this for:
- Fake dating
- Messy square of love
- Unrequited love/crushes
- Plus size rep
- Forced proximity
- Wedding related
- Just a hookup

Marcela Ortiz has been in love with her best friend Ben since they dated briefly in college. The only problem is that he's now engaged. When at the engagement party for Ben and his fiancé Alice, Marcela finds out that Ben's brother Theo Young is in love with Alice.

A plan between the two begins to form. They can help each other get over their crushes by getting under one another. What could go wrong when they are just hooking up? Only a really messy square of love that starts to unravel with all the things Marcela is hiding not only from Ben and Alice, but also from Theo.

This will definitely suck you in with the drama immediately! It's so intertwined with all the characters you are going to be ready to find out how this could all work out?
I loved how much Theo let down his walls. His trauma from his injury and past NFL football career and issues with his brother ran deep. Even with all of that he was determined to pursue a real relationship with Marcela and that was so sweet.

Marcela finally was able to break free of her own past traumas with her Dad to be able to see what she deserved. I'm so glad she was able to stand up for herself in her relationship with Ben and see him for who he really was, not how she imagined in her mind.

I'm looking forward to the next one in this series!

Thank you to Forever for the e-ARC and a physical copy of the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC of this book!

“The Next Best Fling” is a fake dating romance that follows Theo and Marcela, as they try to deflect from their unrequited love for the bride and groom of the wedding they’re both attending.

I really enjoyed reading this! The characters feel so real. They’re wonderful and messy. Theo and Marcela had so much chemistry. The tension was palpable.

I definitely recommend this book to any lover of romance! 🫶🏻