This was such a cheesy but also racy romance? The MMC was the definition of a “cinnamon roll” man. He was so sweet and naive lol It feels like his vibe was supposed to give this very innocent man willing to learn, but a lot of how he thought reminded me of a concrete thinker, someone who takes things so literal which I think was supposed to add to his “nerdy” brand. The FMC is a baddie when given the opportunity, I loved her confident sexual energy. I would recommend this one if you like a quick strangers to lovers, grumpy vs sunshine romance with spice! 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Thank you to NetGalley, publisher, and author for a copy of the arc.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️

This was a sugary, sweet romance with a lot of witty and nerdy banter! There was a bit of repetitiveness throughout, but still an easy read overall. I originally was drawn to the cover, plus size representation and of course fake marriage trope so definitely kudos to the author and illustrator for that!!

This book did help clarify that I prefer cinnamon roll MMC’s to only be cinnamon rolls with their partner and not agreeable to the rest of the world. I did love Beck’s emotional maturity and awareness of how his size can be perceived as a threat. He saw Hazel for how amazing she was even when she didn’t fully believe it herself, and I appreciated that angle. He was the true star of this story. I wanted to root for the FMC, but the lack of clear communication with Beck, let alone herself was too frustrating to get behind.

I will say there was more spice than I originally anticipated and that made the overall read much better.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Storyline is nice, beginning of the book, was not so much for me.
Connie has a luck for nice guys, who ends up not so nice. When she meets Beckett, who is her neighbor, she thinks the same plus he has a wife. Then she finds out his secret.

I did a combination of the e.book and the audio narrated by Imogene Wilde. The narration was very good.
The story was a bit different. The MMC, Sam, was kind of a dork. He was very inexperienced in romance. It all just made him that more likable. He was just so sweet in his dealings with Connie. She ends up being his fake wife when his co-worker starts harassing him. They end up sharing a room and a bed at his work conference, and things really heat up. I'll be honest and say I didn't see all the heat coming in this story.

It really was a cute story. Both characters were very likable, and their caring for each other was adorable.

Thanks to Macmillan Audio, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for the copies. All thoughts are mine.

I'm not sure I wanted to have this story in just one POV; it didn't feel natural. The first three chapters dragged on. All Connie talked about in those chapters was how she doesn't like nice guys and how her neighbour's niceness is too good to be true.

Connie is used to dating Nice Guys (TM) - men who only treat women well in exchange for getting what they want, when they want it - and it’s been bad enough to make her swear off men… almost. Enter: Henry Samuel “Beck” Beckett, Connie’s neighbor across the hall, who bakes her pies “just because” and always greets her with a jaunty grin. Sure, he’s pretending to be married so he can get his jerk of a coworker off his back, but the deception tears him up inside. Before Connie realizes what she’s done, she volunteers to stand in as his fake wife. As they set off for a two-week writing retreat as husband and wife, Connie can’t help but wonder, could Beck be a real nice guy after all?

This novel had a cute premise but remained surface-level for the bulk of the story. The reader gets a lot of exposition in the beginning, with a full 8% of the story dedicated to the characters’ first full conversation in their apartment hallway. The fake marriage facade - at least, the part where they pretend to be married when observable by other people - comprised at most 15% of the total book. The main events of the novel take place over three weeks, which did not feel like enough time to give our protagonists room to grow. To get there, the story needed to let the characters make more active choices. For example, so much of Connie’s cynicism was shaped by her upbringing with shallow, closed-minded parents, but because they’re not actually in the story (Connie just reflects on how they would react instead), it falls flat. The more active choice would have been to have a scene where Connie has a phone call or meets up with her folks and either resists or internalizes their shaming about who she really is.

Speaking of characters who aren’t actually part of the story, I went back and counted - there are only nine speaking characters in the entire novel and a handful of locations, making the whole thing feel very small in scope. Other characters are mentioned (Connie’s parents and her other friend, as well as other members of the writing workshop), but conversations and memories are summarized as part of Connie’s internal monologue rather than written directly as part of the text.

That’s not to say that there wasn’t anything I liked here. Connie is hilarious. She can’t help but fall for adorkable Beck (even at his most pitiful), and her frustration at that fact is enjoyable to read. I also like that Connie sees being Beck’s pretend-wife as an escape hatch - “a way out of myself”, she says. Beck’s best moments come as he pushes back against Connie’s expectations of how she “should” behave - the clothes/shoes she thinks she should wear, or the interests she denies having. There are moments where he uses how “cool” she is to neg himself, which I don’t particularly enjoy, especially because he compliments changeable things about her appearance (hair, makeup, clothes) rather than things that indicate how much he likes her as a person. These moments of self-criticism make it difficult to envision a future where Beck will ever be able to advocate for himself, so when those moments do occur, it is satisfying to read. I just wish there were more of those moments throughout the book.

I experienced this novel in both ebook and audiobook form. Imogen Wilde, the narrator, has a lovely, sweet timbre that makes Connie endearing and relatable. The exasperation Connie feels as she develops a crush on Beck is palpable. I find no fault in any way the audio was done; I just think that any female narrator would find some of Beck’s lines challenging to read. For a modern ear, phrases like “oh, good golly” and “you bet your sweet bippy” and “you just wait a gosh darn minute” come across as, at minimum, corny. Imogen Wilde does her best, even if those lines made me cringe while listening.

Books centering around fake relationships are, as a whole, fun to read (if they weren’t, Christina Lauren would not have a career). I want to support size-inclusive romances whenever I can, especially when the main characters’ insecurity about their size is not the sole focus of the narrative. My Big Fat Fake Marriage was a quick read with an abundance of steamy scenes, but unfortunately, I think character development took a backseat in favor of the romance plot, which is not my preferred way to experience this genre.

**Thank you to St. Martin’s Press (St. Martin’s Griffin Imprint), Macmillan Audio, and Charlotte Stein for providing this ebook and audiobook for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.**

3.5 I was not sure about this one at all in the beginning. The MMC has a way of speaking that is so wholesome it reads as a little fake. Which the FMC also thinks & is suspicious of. He’s too nice to be real. Definitely reminded me of Ted Lasso- there are a few moments in the book that also reminded me of the show. I was curious enough to keep going & I wound up really liking it. Connie winds up becoming Beck’s fake wife to rescue him from a bullying coworker. She’s already signed up for a writing retreat that Beck is running. Cue the only one bed, we have to learn how to touch & kiss like a couple hijinks that’s usual for this trope. I was invested once they start to talk & interact more. And the sex scenes are pretty steamy. If you love a cinnamon roll softie, this one’s for you. Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press for the advance copy.

At first, I was a bit lost in a way that we were so much into the dialogue of Hazel & Beck, that I had no idea where we were in the story, like we were too much into her head... but past 60% of the book, I felt that we were finally out of her head a little bit and also the chemistry between these two was amazing!

3.5/5

My Big Fat Fake Marriage is peak rom-com fluff—like being smothered by a pile of warm, fresh-from-the-dryer blankets. Improbable? Absolutely. A little ridiculous? Oh, for sure. But sometimes, a heavy dose of fluff is exactly what you need to make it through this world, and as a Certified Fluffy™ Person myself, I consider myself an expert on the subject.

Beck is a human cinnamon roll in a bowtie—sweet, soft, and seemingly untouched by the world (literally, the man has never been kissed). Connie is deeply suspicious of such unrelenting niceness, but when she agrees to fake-marry him to save his nerdy butt at a writing retreat, the sparks start flying. And by sparks, I mean shockingly high levels of steam for a book where the hero says "oh fudge."

Does the plot make sense? Not even a little. Do the side characters and setting feel like background noise? Sure. But does it deliver banter, tension, and swoony, soft-boy energy in spades? Heck yes. If you need a book that feels like a sugar rush with a side of serotonin, this is a great choice—just don’t ask too many logistical questions, and you’ll be golden.

Read if you love:
📖 Fake marriage shenanigans
🛏️ One bed (because obviously)
🔥 The sweetest slow burn with a spicy payoff
💖 A hero so soft, you might want to pet him

Thanks to St. Martin’s Griffin and NetGalley for the ARC!

Woah! Get ready for major steam with this one! I didn’t know that going in-I was expecting a cuddly romance and I got major spice. I’m not mad about it but I would have loved a warning 😂
Hazel is a distrusting writer and Beck is her shy and gentle giant co worker. One day Hazel discovers that Beck had lied to their boss about being married so he can get a promotion so she agreed to pretend to be his wife when the company has a writing retreat. However, because they are supposed to be married, they end up sharing a room, and the lines get blurred as their sparks turn into raging flames.
The romance was loaded with banter and they were so kind to each other and genuinely cared for each other and it was about so much more than sex- although there was no doubt about their chemistry there either! They were just completely obsessed with each other so I loved that they got their HEA.
If you want a rom com with loads of chemistry and a cinnamon roll MMC, then look no further.
Thanks to St. Martins Griffin and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review

This book hits some of my favorite tropes....
*Cinnamon Roll MMC
*Fake Dating/Fake Marriage
*Curvy FMC

Connie has no desire for a man in her life, and in fact is pretty untrusting to any man who seems simply 'too nice.'
Beck moves into her apartment building and fast becomes a man who in Connie's eyes is 'too nice'. Beck has zero sense of self worth as far as women go. He's in a job where another co-worker is constantly putting him down and telling him he's no good at the Managerial editor position he has. The book does a fabulous job in telling how good Beck actually is.....in his job, as a friend and as a mentor.

Also the cover of this book says it all! I loved that. I will say it's an adult romance so be aware of the spice level and language before you begin.
Thank you to NetGalley, Charlotte Stein and Martin's Griffin for this eversion arc.

I will continue to read this author's newest novels!

If you're looking for a book that really takes tropes and runs away with them, this might be for you. It felt over the top for me, but I also recognize that the author was really going for over the top. Connie hates nice guys (I actually don't know that the guys she describes are nice--they seem like it at first, but actually they just are jerks hiding behind nice guy exteriors) so she tries to avoid her nice neighbor Beck. Beck is the epitome of super nice nerd who also happens to look like a hot crossover between Captain America and Clark Kent (I know I know, this is where the book really goes hard into lore and fic and tropes). It turns out that Beck has really struggled to fit in because he's bullied by the bros at his workplace, so he makes up having a fake wife. Of course, Connie, feeling bad for him in the spur of the moment, pretends to be his wife. Hijinks ensue. They end up going on a work retreat together. One bed. Lots of horny longing. It is extremely unbelievable that Beck is as hot as Connie describes him to be, and also still very virginal. I do appreciate that Connie is a fat character and unabashedly sex-driven. If you want spicy, there's definitely plenty of spice in this book. It was just hard for me to get past some of the silliness. But I can imagine that someone who is looking for something super light and jokey, and who isn't afraid of cornballiness, would enjoy this book.

Thank you NetGalley for the digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book had me laughing nearly from the moment it opened, and it really never let up. I mean, the email exchanges between our leading couple had me howling with laughter. However, that’s not to say that Beck and Connie/ Hazel's journey was smooth sailing. My heart broke that neither of these characters seemed to have been treated with common courtesy before. And so, seeing it from one another, it looked instantly suspicious. But I loved, loved, loved, loved, the way they were able to see the parts of one another that they liked least about themselves, (those pain-points of self-confidence,) and lavished attention and affection on them until they were each able to love those things they’d so badly wanted to change. As an extra added bonus, for everyone who loved “When Grumpy Met Sunshine”, Mabel and Alfie make some adorable cameo appearances. This was so much fun, I can’t wait to discover what carnival ride the author will take us on next.
I received a complimentary advance copy of this book through NetGalley.

The first couple of chapters were blowing hot and cold that it was hard to pinpoint the direction the story was headed.

It was slow -way too slow- and the one POV together with the unending and winding internal monologue made this an unenjoyable read for me.

You have to suspend belief to actually enjoy this as the idea of a mid thirties man with the experiences of the main character seem over the top and unbelievable.

Also, I didn’t understand the why of different names by the FMC and I would have wanted to know more about her family background.

The banter between the main characters was confusing and I found myself rereading several times in order to understand.

If you love cinnamon roll characters, fake proximity/wedding then you will enjoy this.

Im so sad to report that I DNF this one at the 30% mark. I couldn’t connect with the characters. I felt the couple lacked depth and couldn’t really see the chemistry. This one was definitely a miss for me.

A beautiful tale about two people who are burnt by people throughout their lives but when they finally start to talk to each other, it’s comfort and homely feeling from the start.

Hazel & Beck work in the same company and are also neighbours. Hazel doesn’t believe anyone can be this good. But Beck? He is a Golden Retriever in human form. Awkward and weird but in a cute way. He has an imaginary wife. But when Hazel sees people bullying him? She just calls herself him wife. Now the problem? They have to act as a couple because they are on a retreat.

I loved how they healed each other in such a pure way. Their connection and oh my god their email exchanges just had me cackling.

What I didnt like was how the book was a single person pov.

Dork-a-licous....

Beck is the burly, moustached, dork next door. He lied and said he had a wife. He does not.
He cons Connie into being his fake wife, plus one at a work thing.
They are faking it until its...real?

It you like fake marriage, one bed and forced proximity this is definitely the book for you. This is a light, fun, easy read!
Their notes back and forth to each other, the little banter and the characters personalities were amazing in this book. You have a 30 something year old man who's never even kissed someone and a tough/confident female.
Overall I loved this story and I definitely recommend.

My Big Fat Fake Marriage by Charlotte Stein
Contemporary romance. Fake relationship troupe.
Connie has had some unfortunate and forgettable relationships in her life and she’s leery of her big, friendly American neighbor. Her experience says there must be something horrible about him, but he’s super nice to her and apologizes with cake. Turns out he does have a secret. He’s told everyone at work that he’s married. Connie ends defending him to his coworkers and now they have to spend time at a retreat together, pretending to be married. And sleeping in the same bed. Henry supplied the pillows to keep them separated on the bed but ….the more time they spend together, the more they are drawn to each other. Pretty soon those kisses aren’t fake anymore and they will have to figure out how they move forward.

🎧 I alternated between an ebook and audiobook, often reading together. The narration is performed by Imogen Wilde who does a fantastic job with the story and Connie’s emotional ride. The accent is British and enabled me to totally see the characters and follow the funny and slightly inappropriate language of the story.
The audiobook held me enthralled and laughing.
I did sped it up to my usual 1.5 to match reading and conversation speed.
I loved the audiobook version and would highly recommend as long as aware it is a non U.S. accent.

My impressions:
Huge gentle giant
Super sexy
Surprisingly sweet
Cinnamon roll hero that you can’t help falling in love with.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley and Macmillan Audio.

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I was laughing out loud ten minutes in and was completely hooked by the end of chapter 2. I cannot say enough good things about this book. It was smart, funny, and sexy with amazing and complex characters. If there was a book boyfriend hall of fame, Beck would be in it. He was too good for this world and should be protected at all costs. After I finished I immediately started reading again because I wasn’t ready for it to end.