
Member Reviews

Woof, DNF for me.
I read When Grumpy Met Sunshine as an ARC and absolutely loved it, How To Feed a Hungry Werewolf and thought it was good, and now this as an ARC and it just fell completely flat for me. I'm so disappointed because this was a highly anticipated read for me this year and every trope in it is one of my favorites (one bed, fake marriage, forced proximity, cinnamon roll MMC) but I could not get over how much he sounded like Ned Flanders and just the...ridiculousness of the inner monologuing of our FMC. I couldnt get into her headspace or the way she thought whatsoever, not to mention the over the top reaction of her friend/friends partner? Unfortunate.
Hoping this isn't going to be how books are from this author now as my interest/enjoyment seems to have gone down with each book

I’ve read some funny rom-coms before, but this one had me laughing out loud so dang much!! It was sweet, hilarious, and ooh so spicy! Connie and Beck are different from any characters I’ve read before. Beck is a super sweet cinnamon roll, and Connie is a feisty baddie! Such a fun read. I could feel the nervous energy of the characters flying off the page. Includes your favorite tropes: forced proximity, one bed, and, duh! Fake “dating” (well, marriage for this one). Now I need to go back and read the first book in the series (can be standalone, but characters are referenced from the first book).

I wanted to love this book, but it fell a little flat for me.
There were a lot of really cute moments! I loved the opposites attract flipped on its head - where the FMC is more ‘experienced’, and the MMC falls into more of the pushover, unexperienced trope.
Unfortunately, I found the characters and their dialogue to be a little cringey. It was hard to read at times - it felt like they were characterchures of themselves. There was way too much of ‘no you’re too nice you definitely don’t mean this!’. Also, the FMC referred to the MMC as hairy several times - while to each their own, it was brought up so many times I found it off-putting.

Why are these Charlotte Stein contemporary rom-coms so good?! I love her heroes so much - they are just totally gone for their heroines, and this was no exception. I don't even care that he was a virgin, but was so great in bed and had such a mouth on him - it just worked for me, it didn't need to make sense. Forever and ever will want to read any of these that Charlotte Stein puts out.

This was my first book by Charlotte Stein so I had no idea what to expect. It was a bit of a slow starter for me and I was having trouble connecting with Connie. I loved Be k immediately and hung in there just for him. Once they got to the writer’s retreat and Connie embraced her real self, I warmed up to her a lot. I loved Beck and Hazel’s banter and yowza, this one gets hot! Quite a lot of very well written spice in the second half of the book.

Connie has never met a nice man she could trust. Yes, not a believer in happily ever after.
Beck is a nice man that’s never been in love. Awkward, Nerdy, yet desperately seeking happily ever after.
The writing style took me a bit to get used to reading. The premise was interesting, but a lot of points were far-fetched to me.
Beck is a nice guy that Connie sees often in her building, obviously she doesn’t trust him because he is nice. She thinks he is married, but he divulges that it is fake. Later, Connie blurts out that she is his wife. A Fake Marriage is created and the story develops.
The back and forth banter between Connie and Beck keeps you reading and interested.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the complimentary eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was a very fun, fluffy read, but it didn't have quite enough substance for me. I don't expect my romances to have a ton of plot, but this novel felt far more like a short story's worth of content with a novel's amount of conversation/dialogue between the characters. I loved the premise (fake dating/marriage between a cinnamon roll and cynic), and what we did get of their interactions were fun and sweet. The banter between the characters was fun, particularly when they wrote or emailed each other, but there were times when Beck's cheesy charm just felt like too much for me. I loved his Ted Lasso wholesomeness, but some of the phrases he used came off as cringey and definitely took me out of the moment. The steam was surprisingly spicy for Beck's character, and I loved all of it (even if the dirty talk did come off as somewhat childish at times). Overall, this was not my favorite romance, but I did enjoy it and I could overlook some of the plot holes/cringe because it was just very fun and sweet. I genuinely do love the premise, and I think Beck's character was a great change of pace from the norm in romance currently, but I wish they had maybe toned down the "aw, shucks" dialogue choices for him. I would still recommend this for someone who just wants a fun time, and I am still excited to see what Stein does in the future, but it's probably only a 3/5 for me because of the above.
Thanks to NetGalley, Stein, and St. Martin's Griffin for a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
Reviewed 2/14/25 on Goodreads.

I DNF"d this book so I don't necessarily have helpful feedback. I linked it in general, but I never got hooked in by the plot and had other books I wanted to prioritize more.

A typical romantic comedy. A brief, fast read. You can imagine what happens when two people pretend to be in a relationship. All in all, I had a great time reading this.

A whirlwind fake dating/marriage story that delivers on spice but misses on any character development. I could see the framework the story was trying to establish, but it didn't deliver in the end. The FMC's internal narration overburdened the story progression, and we didn't get to know much of the MMC other than that he's not like the other guys she's encountered.
I did find the text formatting quite confusing for being able to understand the flow of dialogue and written conversations (text/email/notes). This was especially difficult when blended with the FMC's internal dialogue. I'm hopeful that this was only an issue in the ARC I received and that the final version makes these portions more clearly delineated.
In summary, this was a quick romp that I read in a single sitting, but I do not foresee it as something that'll stick with me.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with this ARC for my early review.

oh my goodness, St Martin Press. Another home run, and a SPICY one. That scene in the hot tub <fans self> hooooo-wee!!
So sexplicit and hot.
I love Beck, and i love Hazel. Beck is written so well, he practically jumps off the page, and who knew I'd be interested in a giant furry bear of a man? Hazel is a wonderful conundrum, her facade slips pretty quickly, and she is all the better for it. All the characters are intriguing, There must be a previous book for Mabel, and i will need to go find it.
This book is like a lovely romcom on a Sunday afternoon, fun, exciting, sexy, and satisfying. There is even a bad guy!!

This was a fun read, very Ted Lasso inspired. Both Hazel and Beck were likeable and Beck was especially loveable. It was also fun to see Alfie and Mabel a few times. I think the only thing that I didn't like about this book is that at times Hazel's insistence about what Beck must want was annoying. It was like she kept judging him or painting him as a certain type of person rather than getting to know him. And while I know it's her way of projecting her insecurities, it was still tiresome to read at times. Also this book isn't dual POV, it's only Hazel's POV so that also might be why it was easier to get annoyed with her rather than Beck, because it's her train of thought.

I did not care for the writing in this one and did not get farther than a few chapters into it. It's a common trope and I usually quite like it, but the characters did not grab me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC!
Sadly, this book was not for me. I was not invested at all, and I found the plot to be not very believable.

Thanks to NetGallery for this Arc.
Typical cute rom-com book. Short quick read. Story of two people who fake a relationship and you can imagine what happens

I really wanted to love this book but in the end it turned out okay. This book saw super syrupy sweet. The tension between the main characters start out slow but builds up nicely. The writing was a little choppy and I found myself rereading some parts because it just did not flow well. The ending did help with the rating of the book. The beginning was slow and clunky.

My Big Fat Fake Marriage is a single POV fake relationship romance. Connie, an aspiring author, distrusts so-called “nice guys, " which extends to her always cheerful, bow-tie-wearing, pie-baking neighbor, Beck. But when she learns his secret, that a workplace bully has prompted him to lie about being married, she can’t help but go along with his ruse. It’s not like she’s going to catch real feelings, after all!
This was both the silliest and horniest book I’ve read in a while, it was absolutely delightfully fun. I knew I liked Charlotte Stein after When Grumpy Met Sunshine but this just cemented her as an “if she writes it, I need to read it” author!
Read dates: 02/05/2025 - 02/07/2025
Goodreads review: 02/07/2025
Instagram review: 02/08/2025
Blog review: 03/11/2025

Cute, Sweet (almost too sweet) and quick read. If you can ignore the unbelievability factor, this was cute with cute banter and a few steamy scenes.
Connie is suspicious of nice guys to the point of distraction for the reader. Her internal monologue is full of gaslighting herself into the worst and spiral after spiral. I can relate. lol I wanted to love the golden retriever MMC, but got a bit lost in his dialogue sounding like a 50's sitcom. His desire to show Connie respect and that she can be who she really is and he still adores her was top notch, though!
- Fake Marriage
- Close Proximity
- One Bed
- Slow burn
- "My Wife"

My Big Fat Fake Marriage by Charlotte Stein is a steamy romcom that will have you laughing throughout the book.
Hazel's neighbour, Beck is a 37 year old virgin and has been hiding from his coworkers and boss the fact that is isn't really married. When Hazel witnesses Beck's bully torturing him at a party, she announces that she is Beck's wife. As a result, she and Beck are forced to pose as a married couple at a retreat Beck has been organizing, and must share their cabin with the bully and his wife for two weeks.
What follows is a hilarious romp filled with dirty talk, and sexual tension, as Beck and Hazel pose as a couple, while trying not to take advantage of each other. Beck was a hero like no other I've ever read. His portrayal was completely unrealistic, but I still loved him. His combination of innocence and confidence despite his inexperience made for a fun read. Paired with Hazel's worldliness and cynical attitude, it made this pair an interesting match.
My biggest beef with this book was that shortly after 50% it started to feel repetitive to me, and I found myself easily distracted. It was still a fun read and I'm putting at least part of that feeling down to my mood at the time of reading.
If you're looking for realism, then this book may not be for you, but if you're looking for a hilarious time with a cinnamon roll hero who is too good to be true, then give this book a try.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I love Charlotte Stein. This is my third book of hers and her writing is like reading a different, rambling language that takes a few chapters to get used to, but when you do, you can’t stop and you just want to keep going because the payoff is going to be amazing and bittersweet. It’s a style that takes getting used to, but it’s always worth it. Did I think I could love a virginal, mustachioed MMC that wears bow ties and says “jeepers” unironically. No. Did Charlotte Stein make me fall in love with said MMC. Yes. I don’t know how she did it.