It's finally happened, I've finally found a Talia Hibbert books that I really enjoyed! I've previously read two others from her and they were fine, or good, but I just wasn't seeing what it was that other folks were seeing with her writing. I'm glad that I gave her another chance, because it was totally worth it.

I am a complete sucker for a fake dating story, and this was no different. Nik and Aria meet at a hotel where he is running away from an overly clingy fan (he is a former footballer), and Aria helps him out by kissing him. The kiss is the hottest thing they've each ever experienced, but neither of them really believe that it could be for real. Aria has a lot of past trauma around dating, and Nik is trying to reform his promiscuous ways, which leads to the fake dating arrangement.

What I really appreciated about this story is that both MCs had very different body types, but they were both super into each other's bodies, but not in a fetishizing way. It made it clear that Aria is bigger and she loves her body as is, as does Nik.

Another thing I loved was all of the consent throughout the book and how they just talked about it. After one particular instance near the beginning of the book, Nik flat out tells Aria that if he does anything she doesn't like, to just tell him. And that even if they have agreed to a certain amount of touching/intimacy, that she can change her mind at any time. They also come up with a safeword, just in case, and I love it that when Aria uses it, Nik immediately backs off and gives her space and then waits until she is ready for him to talk to her about it and what happened.

Also, also, I loved how sex positive the book is. Right from the start we learn that Nik has been a bit of a slut for his adult life (he refers to himself as such), but there is no shame there, on his side or from anyone else, especially not Aria. Nik is super open about the people he's slept with, he discloses that he's slept with most of the people in his friend group (for various reasons), and Aria is like "thanks for telling me" and they just move on. There is also a lot of playing with toys and having all kinds of sex, and it was great. I also liked that, while Nik is bisexual, that is never used as the reason for him sleeping with a lot of people. It never comes into it AT ALL and Aria just totally accepts that he's slept with all sorts of people of varying genders. It was so well done, because it could have easily gotten into slutty bisexual, and it didn't.

Despite how much I enjoyed the story, I really disliked the narrators. I listen to A LOT of audiobooks, with all sorts of different narrators, but these ones just did not work for me.

I am quite looking forward to reading the first two books in this series now that I've read the third!

💬: Nik released a ragged breath and squeezed his eyes shut, his brows drawing together. “Aria…” “Open your eyes, love. I thought you wanted to watch?” When he looked at her again, the need in his gaze was almost enough to make her cave. Especially when he combined it with words, those filthy f*cking words she loved so much, tumbling desperately from his mouth. “Let me in. Let me touch you, eali mou. You don’t want that. You want me.”

Hibbert, Talia. The Fake Boyfriend Fiasco (p. 148). Nixon House. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: romance, contemporary, contemporary romance,

📚Page Count: 210

🎧Audiobook Length: 07h 50min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 4.5/5
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The Fake Boyfriend Fiasco by Talia Hibbert is a contemporary romance and the third book in The Midnight Heat Collection, by the same author. This story is about Aria, a tattoo artist, and Nik, a professional football player. Nik and Aria meet at a party that's taking place at a hotel, when Aria kisses Nik to help him chase off an over zealous past hook up. Nik comes up with the idea that Aria can pretend to be his new girlfriend so his past ex's don't try to give him unwanted attention. Aria is hesitant until Nik offers her a very large amount of money to do the job, she accepts because she wants to use the money to open her own tattoo shop. Will this arrangement end in disaster?

Hibbert seems to use the <spoiler>third act break up</spoiler> trope in The Midnight Heat Collection more than I anticipated. That's the only thing I tend to not like about these books, but it makes sense in this instance.

The audio book narrators were great, I like how much life they gave to the characters. Audiobook narration is the main way I consume books because I have dyslexia. It's always wonderful when a book I've been waiting to listen to finally gets an audiobook version and this was no exception. This was a great listening experience.

I really loved the spicy scenes in this, especially the one at the very end of the book, wow. <spoiler>the pegging scene was great!</spoiler> I'm giving the spicy scenes four chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️out of five chilies

I really enjoyed this story and the spicy scenes were really good. Not only was this spicy but it was also romantic and funny. I'm giving this 4.5 out of 5 stars.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 4.5/5 Stars

Thank you [NetGalley.com], the author, and publisher for the arc (advanced reader's copy) of the audiobook.

Thank you Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for this ALC!

- This audio was so so so good!! The accents were phenomenal, from some different regional British accents to Nik's Greek accent!!
- This is the perfect spicy romance for anyone looking for a beach read! It is such a fun, quick read, and the settings (hotel in Greece and house party in Spain) were fantastic.
- I loved how bisexuality was represented in this book!
- This one felt lighter than some of Hibbert's other books, but the tension is still spectacular!

So very sexy and fun and quite possibly the perfect book to get you ready for summer - I would have loved to have read this by the pool while sipping on a cute lil drink.

The premise for Aria’s trauma and inner turmoil with her relationship with Nik is….pretty dramatic. I’m not sure it needed to be something so over-the-top as a Aria’s boyfriend being a stalker turned kidnapper holding her bff hostage to get the point across that she can’t trust herself with love - but to each their own.

CW/TW: stalking, kidnapping, biphobia, toxic relationship

The Fake Boyfriend Fiasco had potential, but it didn’t work for me. The storyline felt awkward and unnatural, and there was no real chemistry between the main characters. Their relationship seemed forced and overly focused on physical aspects, making it hard to connect with them. The male lead's history of sleeping with everyone in his circle was a major turn-off, and the conflict between the characters felt silly and disconnected from the story.

The narration by Rooke Kingston and Harvey Fuller was okay but lacked emotion, especially during the spicy scenes. While I usually love Talia Hibbert's work, especially the Brown Sister trilogy, this book fell short. Despite its elements of fake dating, forced proximity, and LGBTQ+ representation, the execution was lacking. This one wasn’t for me, but it might appeal to those who enjoy a lot of spice and don’t mind a "playboy" main character. Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
The Fake Boyfriend Fiasco is spicy, funny, rom-com perfect for your summer!
I love Talia´s books and she never steered me wrong, but this one maybe it´s my fav book from her.
The bisexual MMC, the Fake boyfriend trope, the banter, basically every single word in this book was perfectly crafted for my enjoyment. Good Job!
Even the back story was interesting, and even if it wasn´t dealt with in depth it gave the book that strong foundation it needed.
Also again Nik and Arya were such an amazing pair.
 
I ran to listen to the audiobook because ok Rooke Kingston, the best female voice ever heard. She makes me shiver every single time and I love her performances. Truly, she could read the grocery list to me and I would be on the edge of my seat.
Also the male actor, Harvey Fuller (also good name pal), was amazing and it´s not easy to accompany such a strong female voice, but he truly did a great job.
 
Thank you, like always, Dreamscape Media and Netgalley! You really help to keep my days interesting.

I absolutely love any book by Talia Hibbert but I have to say this one is my favorite! The audiobook brought the story to life in a new way and I am so glad that I was able to listen to it early! I always recommend listening to audiobooks while reading the book and this was a more magical experience! I am so excited for everyone to get a chance to listen.

4.5⭐️

Absolutely in Love!

My favorite in the series so far. I loved Nik, he was the most spectacular book boyfriend ever! It was sugary sweet, spicy and had characters I was obsessed with! The plot, the banter, the chemistry, the friendship; everything was top notch.

The third act breakup was a bit too rushed and premature to me. The whole thing warranted a little less reaction and a whole lot of communication.

That being said, the way the book concludes, had my heart. It was so wholesome and had me shed a few tears of joy. One of my favorite romances of this year. I declare myself a Talia Hibbert fan!

The audiobook experience was absolutely incredible and was narrated by Rooke Kingston and Harvey Fuller. Loved every second!

I received an ALC of the Audiobook. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Thank you to Netgalley, the Author and the Publisher for providing an ALC of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I was excited to listen to this book by Talia Hibbert because I loved her Brown Sisters Series so much. I was not disappointed at all! This was a short and sweet read. The Fake Boyfriend Fiasco was funny and sexy. There were multiple narrators and it was well done. This was the third book in a series and the only one I’ve read so far - it worked for me as a stand alone. I’ll be seeking out the others in the series. Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the ALC.

Talia Hibbert never disappoints when it comes to delivering silly, sweet, and spicy antics.
This was a little bit insta-lovey on his side, but still absolutely swoony.

The Fake Boyfriend Fiasco was a fun romance. I do have mixed feelings about it though. I felt like the execution of the storyline unfortunately fell flat for me. It felt awkward, just unnatural.

The chemistry between both characters was non-existent for me, I didn't feel it at all. It felt forced, they just seemed like s*x crazed people. The MMC literally has slept with EVERYONE in his circle, that was such a major turn off. The conflict between them was just ridiculous and made me disconnect from the story even more.

This was a story that had such a high potential, unfortunately it did not live up for me. A lot of things were missing to make it memorable.

🎧 The narration by Rooke Kingston & Harvey Fuller was good, it wasn't my favorite. I felt like sometimes some emotions were missing. They also felt awkward at times during the spicy scenes.

✨️ Thank you to @netgalley & @dreamscapemedia for my gifted ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I love Thalia's stories hence why I didn't hesitate to ask for this audiobook because I have received others and I have loved every second about them, but sadly I am finding this narration a bit icky for my taste and it is making it difficult for me to create a connection with both the story and the characters :(

♡𝐀𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰♡
4 🌟
𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 :
•interracial romance
•fake relationship
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Ok, the male narrator did a good job and I actually enjoyed listening to him talk and play the characters. The female narrator ummmm not so much, her voice I felt didn't match the character. Sorry! This is my third attempt at this author books, and I really liked this storyline.
The Fake Boyfriend Frisco is the three book in the Midnight Heat Collection series.
♡𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 May.28♡
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Thank you, Netgalley, and Dreamscape Media for the (ALC)-Audiobook for my honest review.

I really liked this one!! I love Talia's writing and her ability to write such well-developed characters. I thought Nik & Aria were genuinely so so perfect for each other and I LOVE a fake dating moment. Also, hello????? they were SO hot!!

The ending felt rather abrupt and I wish the conflict with her ex was either discussed sooner or revealed sooner because where it was was a bit jarring given the previous events.

I thought the narrators did a wonderful job and it was genuinely a delightful listen!

Talia Hibbert has quickly become one of my auto-read authors. I love everything she puts out there in the world for us to consume, and The Fake Boyfriend Fiasco is no different! I loved this cute story the first time I read it, and enjoyed the chance to listen to the audio ARC in exchange for this honest review.

The plot and storyline are fun, the characters are super hot and the chemistry is steamy. I loved this read! Highly recommended to anyone who loves angsty love stories!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

Talia Hibbert writes tension so well and this book truly had me swooning. I love the story line and the characters and the banter was so wonderfully. This was just another wonderful book by one of my fave authors!

Talia did not dissapoint with this story. The character introductions were hilarious and I was hooked from the very first page. I loved the chemistry and banter between the two.

Nikolas falling first for Aria was my favorite thing. That man did what he could to get his girl and I loved that. Aria had a strong backbone and she easily became one my favorite characters to have been written into a fake dating trope.

I haven't had a book give me butterflies like this for a WHILE! The Fake Boyfriend Fiasco is a steamy, multicultural romance that has fake dating, pining, he falls first, and a bit of a sports romance! While I was worried when I started this book that it wouldn't give the happy rom-com vibes that I always want and love, I was wrong! This book has a PERFECT balance of MC stress/difficult feelings, paired with the butterfly inducing chemistry between Nik and Aria. I mean this book had me holding my breath, smiling, laughing, giggling, and wanting to cry all in the same book. I don't know if I've ever listened to an audiobook so fast!!! I got SO pulled in SO quickly! It was absolutely great, I may be obsessed!
This book was absolutely BRILLIANT and the audiobook was absolutely amazing! Having listened to book #2 and now book #3 of this series, I am dying to read book #1 in this series and many more Talia Hibbert books!
Thank you so much to Dreamscape Media for a copy of this audiobook to review!💖

3.5
Talia Hibbert is one of my favorite contemporary romance authors for a reason! This book had me hooking from the begging and, while I was less interested near the end, I definitely recommend it. Aria decides to fake date Nik to earn money to open her own tattoo shop...little knowing that it's not fake to him.

The audiobook is truly the best way to experience this because Rooke Kingston and Harvey Fuller do an excellent job with the accents, bringing the conversations to life.

Playboy Nik doesn't do real relationships. But he can't get Aria off his mind. The only problem is Aria doesn't want a relationship. Nik cooks up a fake dating scheme to keep her close. She starts falling for him as his initial feelings only deepen. But when the truth comes out, will everything unravel?

I'm a big fan to Talia Hibbert and this book delivered. It's everything I've come to recognize and love about her style. Just the right amount of angst and spice. Nik is charming, clueless, but has a big, well-meaning heart. Aria is hurting from past event but still brave. And their chemistry...pure fire.

If you like fake dating and diverse romance, this book is for you!