4 stars

Ah, Denz and Braylon! These two are the stars of an extremely satisfying and charming story of lovers to exes to lovers again, and they will win your hearts.

In an effort to seem like he's adulting as successfully as possible and thus ready for an impending professional opportunity, Denz decides to pretend that he's in a serious romantic relationship. While this fact alone - serious relationship = ready for serious professional responsibility - struck me as strange, the characters are not on the same page. They go for it, and in this case, Denz goes for it through happenstance with his ex, Braylon. Is this my personal nightmare? Yes. Is it theirs? Fortunately, no!

As much as I questioned the impetus, I really enjoyed these characters and the way they evolved individually and together. I am an incoming fan of Winters, and this book was enjoyable as expected. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Cute second chance, fake dating rom-com. In I Think They Love You, the unexpected retirement of Denz's father from the family event-management company leaves Denz needing to prove his level of commitment with a serious relationship in order to be considered for the CEO position. Unfortunately, he hasn't been in a relationship since college, when his boyfriend Braylon broke his heart by moving to London right after graduation. The sudden reappearance of Braylon leads to their agreement to fake date to convince Denz's family that he's committed and serious enough to be CEO.

Denz and Braylon's gradual rekindling of their relationship is sweet. I loved Braylon's dad jokes texts and Denz's slow realization that he shouldn't have let Braylon leave,

This was a 4-star for me because of a couple of things:
• So many supporting characters. Aunts, uncles, parents, sisters, nephews, cousins, sister's-secret-boyfriend, ex-hookup-barristas--the sheer number of names was sometimes confusing.
• Braylon's weird British "accent" after living in London only a few years.
• Denz being in the running for CEO of what seems to be a million-dollar company at the age of 25 and with only experience as a social media coordinator. I can overlook this because...fiction!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for an eARC. Opinions are my own.

3.5 stars. This was a very cute romance book. Overall I enjoyed it, but there were moments where I feel like k couldn’t immerse myself in the story as much as I wanted. Some parts didn’t seam as cohesive and I would have liked. Denzel was a bit insufferable at times, but he redeemed himself at the end. I absolutely loved Braylon’s character though. Second chance romance books with rom com vibes and queer representation did work well together though. I would be open to reading another book from this author in the future.

This book was slower to grow on me. Denz was a lot to take in and immature at times. But truly no less than you’d expect anyone to be at 25. I wished we had Bray’s point of view…. I debated how I wanted to rate this book but ultimately I am going to go based on vibes and how much I ended up loving Denz and Bray.

From mid way through this book I was consumed by it. Consumed by them.

I love Braylon’s awful dad jokes.

« Why should you never break up with a goalie? Because he’s a keeper. »

« How do astronomers organize a party? They planet. »

I love Denzel’s inner monologue.

« The Kiss is in the back of his mind. It’s the Florida of his thoughts—he knows it’s there but refuses to acknowledge it. »

Part of me wished this book never ended. ♥️

And the side characters are also all so well developed it makes me hope and pray we do get another book out of this. Best friend Jamie needs a happy ending.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author Julian Winters for the advanced reading copy, all my opinions are my own.

Two of my favorite romance tropes are fake dating and second-chance romance. Fake dating is always fun and usually results in at least a little pining (which is a requirement for me to get truly invested in a relationship). Second-chance romance can, when written properly, produce character and relationship growth that makes the happy ending feel earned. I Think They Love You is a prime example of how to do both of those tropes really well.

The book starts with Denz, the main character, preparing for a big event where his boyfriend, Braylon, will meet his family for the first time. After, we jump five years in the future, and see Denz run into Braylon again for the first time, a few years after their breakup.

Denz soon encounters a situation that makes him feel like he needs to present himself as being in a stable and committed relationship. When his best friend, Jamie, is suddenly unable to pose as his new boyfriend as planned, Braylon steps in, and the two are forced to deal with their lingering feelings and broken hearts.

The story is mostly told in the present but there are flashbacks sprinkled in that fill in their history. Through both timelines, their love for each other is clear. Denz and Braylon are a great example of the kinds of pairings I love in fiction: two people who really see each other (flaws and all) and push each other to be better and happier. These two had me laughing out loud and crying onto my Kindle at various points in the book!

Denz goes through some great character growth that I think will be relatable to many people. We don't get Braylon's POV but he's such a loveable character. Even without his POV, his personality shines through and the changes he brings about in Denzel are profound.

This story has a big focus on family: living up to family expectations, grieving lost parents, and found family are all themes. Denz's relationship with his family plays an especially large role in his life and the story. He has a close family filled with fun and realistic characters. His sister, Kami was a highlight for me. There are also parents, aunties, cousins, friends, and co-workers who fill out the cast.

One thing I really liked, as a romance fan, was all the references to rom-coms. Denz and Jamie love romance movies, so some big moments refer to some of the greats in the genre. There's also a quote about why romance appeals to so many that I adore and think other romance readers will too.

Finally, there are hints of another romance developing in the background of this book (including the epilogue). I have no idea if Julian Winters is planning a sequel but those two characters could make a great story that I would love to read! If this becomes a series, I will 100% be reading all future books.

I Think They Love You is a solid romance that does the second-chance romance and the fake-dating tropes right. It's emotional, sweet, funny, spicy, and everything that most romance readers look for.

I loved this one. It combines my favorite (fake dating) trope with a second chance romance. I think that there is such a benefit of starting in YA and then moving to adult is that there is a lot of experience in building tension and emotional connection without being able to lean on spice or shock value. Julian's adult debut was a great transition.

The connection and communication between the two characters had depth and felt emotional while still humorous and light. It blends light and heavy moments really well.

This was a sweet second-chance romance with a fake-dating scenario. You can stop reading here, if you're normal—from the other very satisfied reviews, being distracted completely out of the story every other page by one of the characters' totally affected accent and vibes is just a me problem.

Contrived, ill-informed, and weirdly generalized "Britishness" is a major pet peeve of mine (in fairness, I also hate it when British people write distinctly, idiomatically local dialogue for their under-researched American characters). To me, it's weird that Braylon's incredibly silly "British accent" and inauthentic British vocab, all ridiculously quickly acquired but somehow not at all lost over an equivalent period of time back in America, were treated as normal, instead of starting a plot point that he's an extremely fake and unserious person. (And my god, the idea that a person would have to become a tea drinker because they couldn't get good coffee in LONDON. A major metropolis that routinely imports trendy drinks from around the world about five years before anyone in America has heard of a flat white. London! Now if it was because the coffee was overpriced, I'd have no argument...). I get that the thought process here couldn't have gone far past "accents are hot" and then attempting to square that with the college sweetheart, second-chance romance angle—but it's just so GOOFY.

OHHH HOW FUN WAS THIS.
I love a fake dating book and that mixed with the second chance romance in this book was 🔥🤌🏼.

It was queer, emotional, sweet, really genuinely funny and spicy! 🥵

I really adored the growth and character development in our MCs. They truly grew in love with each other again while they also grew and it was a beautiful story to play out.

The writing was outstanding. It flowed well, it was easy quick and really bingable. I didn’t want to put the book down because I absolutely loved every character- main and side.

I would absolutely recommend this! You’ll find fake dating, one bed, second chance romance and 2 male MCs 🔥

I found this to be a much needed book in the queer romance space. Personally I enjoyed the family dynamics/work/personal storyline more interesting and impactful than the actual romance. It did take me a little while to get all the characters down since there were so many and honestly I’m still not sure exactly which aunt was the fashion the aunt lol. I could have skipped the flashback scenes as I didn’t think it added much to the otherall storyline.

The spicy scenes were good and the character growth was inspiring to read. I’m glad they found what they needed - “what if”

I was hooked from the very beginning! This story had it all:

- Fake dating
- Slow burn
- Second chance
- Queer romance
- Found family

I enjoyed Julian Winters’ writing style very much — the way he was able to have me laughing, blushing, and crying all within the same chapter is pure talent.

I will be thinking about Denz and Braylon’s story for quite some time and I am more than happy to have them live rent free in my mind.

Spice was hilarious and realistic (finally!):
🌶️🌶️🌶️ / 5

This was quite adorable. And would make a great movie imo!!
Swoony, a lil emotional and very funny.

Denz is hoping if he does everything perfectly his dad will take him seriously as a candidate for CEO when his father retires this summer, when an auntie makes a comment about him not taking anything seriously… just look at his love life. So Denz does the rational thing and makes up a serious boyfriend. Luck would have it when Denz is about to show off his boyfriend his ex shows back up after years of not hearing from him.

Lil fake boyfriend, second chance and lots of family drama.
Super cute.

I read the ebook so no notes on the audio experience.

Thanks to netgalley and st martins press for an eARC.

This. This is what I want in a romance. Longing. Learning. Good sex.💥 Romantic sex. Humor. Family, found and otherwise. And just really, really good storytelling. This book made my heart full. ❤️

Cute second chance, queer romance
I wish we had perspective of both MMCs - only the one left half the story out until the very end

I think I might be in the minority not having read any of Julian Winters YA prior to this, but I think I have to go pick through his backlist because this was a fun, light read. A few things dropped it down to a four for me- I felt like things weren't explained early enough to make sense for the plot/character development. The relationship with Braylon seemed to ramp up so quickly, without any real examination of why the relationship ended in the first place. It also bugged me that Braylon had a British accent (it also bugs me in real life when people move away for a handful of years and come back with accents, I can't help it lol).

That being said, it was funny and fresh and spicy and included a lovely storyline of family and acceptance. Denz's journey to becoming his own person was interesting and I felt like a good perspective on what it's like to me a part of a family business. Overall, would recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and SMP for the advanced copy!

DNF @ 33%. I really struggled to get invested with the characters early on. I don't think this book is *bad*, and I think down the line I might give it another go, but I don't think it was for me!

As my first official read of 2025, I think that I Think They Love You by Julian Winters was the perfect low-angst rom-com to ease me into the new year. This second chance romance hit the perfect balance of sweet and funny; featuring snarky dialogue, delightfully meddlesome side characters, and a comforting narrative tone reminiscent of any beloved T.V. sitcom.
Personally, what I liked most about this book was the style in which it was written. The prose felt almost conversational, and the epistolary inserts via text messages certainly added to that feeling. That demand for a more personal investment from the reader ensured the plot remained dynamic, despite the fact when you look at the key points subjectively, not a lot happens in this book.
Overall, while I did like the novel, I will admit that it’s one downfall is the convoluted reason why Braylon and Denzel have to fake a relationship in the first place, and the roundabout way in which they come to that conclusion. Part of the reason why this feels so jumbled, is due to the sheer number of characters involved. Denzel’s entire extended family, plus his roommate, his sister, the mayor, his father—it was a lot. While I did like the cast of side characters, there were just far too many of them and it became hard to remember who everyone was and how they were related to the scheme itself. Their presence, at times, felt complicated for complicated’s sake.
As a whole, I might still recommend I Think They Love You to someone looking for a good queer romantic comedy.

Daddy is retiring. He sets up his 2 children to compete for the CEO position. What parent does that? They are adults! However they do compete. Each is giving a project. Both succeed but only one can win. The loser now resigns and opens his own business. He reconnects with an old love. It is a good romance and a view into a family business. I liked it.

I love Julian Winters' YA novels so much and I had high hopes that his adult debut would be just as good. I was a little worried because not all YA authors can seamlessly move into the adult genre, but Julian can! I loved this book just as much as his YA books. It had all the things I loved about his writing style just more mature, the loveable characters, the amazing plot, and the tropes!! Speaking of tropes, this is a fake dating second chance romance. Both of those tropes can be hard to pull off especially together, but Julian did it to perfection. This is how you do second chance romances! There was no point where I felt that the two of them should not give things another try.
As an adult novel there was some spice added to the story that the YA books don't have and I thought that it was a nice amount of spice and it was written well. It wasn't pages upon pages but it wasn't closed door/fully fade to black either.
Also even though this is not at all said to be book 1 in a series of interconnected standalones. I'm really hoping there will be another because I need Jamie and Jordan's story. Obsessed with those two already!
Overall an amazing adult debut from an already amazing YA author. So if you have enjoyed any of Julian's books in the past, I highly recommend checking this one out.

Content warning: panic attack, spicy content

This was such a cute read !! I always love a good exes to lovers story and this was no exception. A little spice with some humorously sweet moments really made this such a great book !!

I will admit it started out a little rough for me because it read a lot like YA but as the book went on I started loving it. Denz and Braylon had such a sweet “fake” relationship that obviously had real feelings that developed into a very real relationship. They’re such a sweet couple I found myself unable to put the book down after about 60% lol

Definitely hope this one gets to have a romcom movie moment in the future !

It seems like I need to be in a specific mood these days in order to enjoy a rom-com. I'm happy to say that this book hit the spot. It has the perfect mix of humor, heart, and second-chance romance. It also dives into themes of identity, family expectations, and the complexities of love. While it embraces familiar rom-com tropes, it does so with such charm that even the most trope-weary readers will find themselves swept up in Denz and Braylon's story.

The book follows Denzel "Denz" Carter, an ambitious 20-something who finds himself in a professional and personal bind. With his father announcing his retirement as CEO of their family's extremely successful event planning company, 24 Carter Gold, Denz and his sister are competing to be named the next CEO. Where his sister effortlessly pulls events together and is meticulous in her approach, Denz can be a little forgetful. If he wants this job, he's going to have to step up his game and prove himself worthy and responsible rather than flighty and non-commital. In a moment of panic, Denz lies about being in a stable relationship, only to realize he now has to produce a boyfriend to play the part.

Initially, Denz enlists his best friend and roommate, Jamie, to play the role of his significant other. But when Jamie bails, Denz is left with no choice but to turn to Braylon, his ex-boyfriend - the man who shattered his heart by leaving for England after graduating from college - leaving Denz alone, heartbroken and confused. But now that Braylon has returned, Denz feels like Bray owes him this, plus it could help Braylon with his own career goals, so - win-win. What follows is a whirlwind of fake dates, staged family events, and mounting sexual tension that makes it impossible for either man to ignore the unresolved feelings simmering between them.

The fake-dating and second-chance romance tropes are undoubtedly predictable, but I didn't mind them. In fact, that's part of the appeal of this book. Both Denz and Braylon are flawed but deeply relatable. Denz's struggles to prove his worth to his family while grappling with his own insecurities feel incredibly real. Similarly, Braylon's reasons for leaving - and his attempts to make amends - are explored with sensitivity, making him more than just a brooding romantic lead.

The supporting cast adds another layer of richness to the story. Denz's family is delightfully chaotic, from his no-nonsense father to his overachieving sister and nosey aunties. Their interactions - equal parts loving and cutthroat - paint a vivid picture of what it's like to grow up in a family where success is both an expectation and a pressure cooker. Winters captures these dynamics with humor and heart, making the family dynamic just as compelling as the romance.

One of the most endearing aspects of the novel is its unapologetic celebration of queer love. The relationship between Denz and Braylon feels authentic, layered, and deeply personal (and when the spice hits, it's just right). Their banter is sharp, their chemistry palpable, and their emotional connection undeniable. This authenticity elevates the romance, making it feel more rewarding and impactful than the standard fare you get when a straight person writes a gay romance. While it's true that love is love, the experience is definitely different.

Ultimately, this book is a reminder of why we turn to rom-coms in the first place. It's not just about the swoon-worthy moments (though there are plenty of those); it's about the joy of seeing characters learn, grow, and discover that they're deserving of love - in all its messy, complicated glory. Whether you're in the mood for a feel-good romance or simply looking for a story that celebrates queer love and Black joy, this book is a must-read. And if you're anything like me, you'll turn the final page wishing for your own Bray - and maybe a family as entertaining as Denz's.