Let me start with the ding against this book - Hazel and Beck don't have an honest conversation about things until the end. They both just keep assuming, which is infuriating as a reader.

HOWEVER, literally everything else is utterly delightful. There's spice, great dialogue, excellent scenarios, a truly deplorable villain, the only thing missing is a furry friend. Haha. Hazel and Beck are better at communicating through emails (which I can appreciate) so we do get glimpses of real feelings there, but Hazel's prior trauma from her mother and exes gets in the way of everything and Beck's lack of experience gets in the way. They finally do have a great conversation that pays off at the end and I was so thrilled.

I have read everything from Charlotte Stein and will continue to do so. I love the men she creates and the worlds she builds.

He's the most lovable man ever. And she’s the most cynical person ever, especially when it comes to good men. To her, they’re only fictitious. The situation he’s gotten himself into is easy to understand. It’s also easy to understand why she stands up for him.

He’s just absolutely adorable. While he’s so easily lovable. She gets annoyed with how much she finds everything about him unbelievable. While she’s very quickly liking him, she holds on so tight to her cynicism. It was a hard thing for me to move forward from.

I loved this romcom follow-up to WHEN GRUMPY MET SUNSHINE! I enjoyed that the male MC was the more emotionally connected of the pair, and the conceit as to why they fell into the fake dating trope felt real and believable in the context of the story. Plus, the sex scenes were super hot! Can't wait to read my next Charlotte Stein novel!

This book is CRAZY sexy and horny, but also so romantic and sweet. A quick, light, spicy read. Highly recommend!

*I received a copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this opportunity*

Connie definitely has a chip on her shoulder; she's been burned time and time again by <I>nice</I> guys, and her cynicism runs deep at this point. So when she meets her neighbor (the one who's been gifting her with homemade pies), she can't believe that he's real. Samuel Henry Beckett, or Beck, is the kindest, most genuine, seriously naive man Connie has ever met-- and she finds herself oddly drawn to his sincerity and bow-ties. And when his workplace bully picks a fight in front of her, she makes a huge mistake and claims to be Beck's (fake) wife. Suddenly, they're on a writer's retreat and Connie has to pretend to be the loving spouse to a man she hardly knows; and worst of all? She's not sure she hates it.

I wanted to love this book, it has so much going for it: fake marriage, cinnamon roll MMC, plus-size FMC, there-was-just-one-bed... just to name a few. However, it just wasn't for me this time.

Connie does not trust nice guys, her experience with men has been rather unpleasant, with expectations of favors for each nicety. Add to that the fact that her mother made her feel that she could not have nerdy interests, she is left feeling unsure. When her extremely nice neighbor, who she does not trust is revealed to be hiding a lie, she joins in on the lie, pretending to be his wife while on a writing retreat. However, one bed and a truly nice guy makes it impossible for them to keep their hands off of each other, especially when she discovers that Beck is unexperienced but eager.

There were so many things to love about this book. Initially, I was not into Beck and was expecting to discover that he was a Mormon or something. However, as the book went on I really enjoyed it.

I have to say that this book is extremely sexy. The spice is engaging in a way that is not often achieved. I was blushing while listening and my husband kept cracking up at me.

I enjoyed it so much that I checked out the first book about her friend Mabel. The difference between the two books is huge. The writing is so much more compelling in this one! I loved this one! I really hope that there will be another one with characters I love this much!

Thank you to Net Galley, St. Martin's Press, and St. Martin's Griffin for the DRC. All opinions are my own!

This was a cute romance book. I loved the plus-size character representation in a romance book. Beck was so fun, I loved how he interacted with Connie. The little notes they sent back and forth were my favorite part of this book. Overall, a good romance with some slow plot points.

Charlotte Stein is a wonderful author and this book was cute, spicy, made me smile.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for a chance to read this ARC early.

I adored Beck and Connie. Adored. Connie is super smart and nerdy. But she’s been trained by everyone around her to hide her true self and act normal. She dates the kind of men who don’t like it when she talks too much or acts too smart. And she’s become wary of “nice guys” who think their niceness entitles them to take advantage. So when she meets Beck, her neighbor across the hall, she’s convinced his niceness is an act. But he’s the real deal. The cinnamoniest of cinnamon rolls. His picture belongs next to this trope in the dictionary!

I need to gush about Beck for a minute. He’s the kind of guy who notices the little things that everyone around him likes. He ignores slights to himself but defends his friends. He can’t conceive of anyone mistreating someone because he would never. He self-depreciates, and works behind the scenes to make everyone happy. Seems too good to be true? Maybe. But guys like that exist. I know because I married one. I think that was why I loved this book so much. Finally a genuinely nice guy is getting center stage. I just wanted to wrap my arms around Beck and hug him tight.

The plot was pretty straightforward. Beck needs a fake wife to get his coworker off his back. So Connie jumps in to defend him and introduces herself as his wife. They get stuck pretending during a week-long work retreat. There’s plenty of one bed spicy scenes. Beck may be nice, but he’s dirty beneath the sheets! And Connie loves it!

This is very obviously the second book in an interconnected standalone series. Having not read the first one, it took me a bit to figure out who everyone was. But it did not hamper my enjoyment.

Thank you to @Netgalley and @stmartinspress for the chance to review this ARC.

This was so sweet! A lovely romance.

I enjoyed this book a lot. It had one of my favorite tropes (fake relationship) and I thought the author did a good job with it. I thought the characters were great and entertaining, especially Beck. He was so adorable and had major golden retriever energy. Who doesn't like a lovable, nerdy MMC? Connie felt relatable too. She's the black cat here and I totally understood her hesitance when it came to believing in love. I think a lot of readers will relate to her. These two were simply adorable. The chemistry was there and the banter was fun. We also get a one bed trope too which is always a delight.

If you need a fluffy romcom to brighten your day, I'd recommend this one. This one is a lot of fun!

My Big Fat Fake Marriage was all around a light, fluffy, and adorable read! Perfect for those looking for something that will hook them quick, make them giggle, and give them all the feel goods. Fantastic!

Such an adorable romance with plenty of representation! I could not put this book down once upon starting it and I cannot wait to see what else Charlotte Stein writes because this was absolutely beautiful.

I love seeing larger bodies represented in love stories. However with that said i found it hard to really get invested in these characters and the writing felt a little disjointed for me. The story wasn't bad but it wasn't great.

“Connie has always distrusted nice guys. In her experience, they’re just waiting to reveal some horrible secret. And then she meets big, adorable, Henry Samuel Beckett—editor extraordinaire, lover of bow ties, sweet and so cheery she struggles to believe he’s real.”

I had never read anything by Charlotte Stein before, so I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book. Unfortunately, it didn’t work for me. I felt like I was eavesdropping on an uncomfortable conversation right in the middle of it.

I didn’t get a good history of the characters so I didn’t get a sense of who they were. As other reviewers have mentioned, there was so much dialogue but minimal description.

While I love the dating/fake marriage trope, this one did not do it for me. However, I still appreciate NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy of this book.

This book was a light, fluffy, and quick read. Definitely go into this book suspending your disbelief, because our ML is so outlandish and unreal.
The spicy scenes and the banter between our leads made up for some of the issues I had with the book. I feel like the female lead wasn’t fully fleshed out and I didn’t know much about her, other than she has been constantly burned by “nice guys” in the past and that she wants to be a writer. The transitions throughout felt a bit rushed as well.
If you like a fake marriage romance with a super green flag ML, I say to give this one a try!

My Big Fat Fake Wedding is a sweet, funny, and heartwarming romance that delivers all the feel-good vibes you’d want in a romcom. Hazel and Beck’s journey from strangers to fake spouses to something real is filled with humor, awkward moments, and genuine emotional growth.

Hazel is a relatable and flawed heroine, fiercely guarded due to her rough past and convinced all men are bad news. While her cynicism about men feels a little over the top at times, Beck’s wholesome, sweet nature slowly breaks down her walls in the most endearing way. Their chemistry is undeniable, and their flirty banter will leave you grinning. Beck, with his awkward and almost-too-perfect charm, is a refreshing change from the usual romance heroes.

The fake relationship trope is executed wonderfully here, especially when Hazel impulsively steps into the role of Beck’s pretend wife to help him at a work retreat. The story thrives on their awkward yet electric connection, and while miscommunication moments can be frustrating, the payoff is absolutely worth it.

The plot stays focused on Hazel and Beck’s relationship, with minimal distraction from side characters or subplots. The shift from wholesome and funny to steamy about two-thirds in might catch some readers by surprise, but the spice is well-written and satisfying.

This book isn’t perfect—some aspects feel a bit thin or overly idealistic—but it’s exactly the kind of fluffy, lighthearted romance that makes for a great pick-me-up. If you’re in the mood for a swoony, laugh-out-loud romcom with a lot of heart, My Big Fat Fake Wedding is a delightful choice! Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC and the publisher St. Martin’s press for the gifted copy.

A really delightful read! A lot of “squee” throughout, as the challenges the characters face could be clunky in the hands of a less skillful writer, but Charlotte Stein makes everything feel grounded and organic.

Review posted to StoryGraph and Goodreads on 2/17/25. Review will be posted to Amazon upon release.

Oh bravo! Hazel and Beck are everything I could want from a couple. Everyone in Hazel’s life thinks she’s this confident big personality but she’s calculated and trying her best to hide the things she thinks no one would like about her. She knows what “nice guys” are like and when her neighbor Beck keeps doing all these nice, kind things for her she’s got her guards up. Beck is the most delightful cinnamon roll who is also a giant teddy bear. People underestimate him and think he’s old fashioned. When Beck finds himself the target of a work colleague he tells a lie that he has a wife and doesn’t know how to get out of it. When Hazel meets this work colleague she quickly finds herself identifying as Beck’s wife and shenanigans ensue on a writer’s retreat.
This book has a plus banter, steamy scenes that will make you reach for a glass of water, and a couple who sees each other exactly as they are and accepts each other. I loved this book so much and found myself laughing out loud at times. Charlotte Stein has done it again. She’s quickly becoming an auto-buy author for me

Title: My Big Fat Fake Marriage
Author: Charlotte Stein        
Genre: Romance       
Rating: 3 out of 5 

Connie has always distrusted nice guys. In her experience, they’re just waiting to reveal some horrible secret. And then she meets big, adorable, Henry Samuel Beckett—editor extraordinaire, lover of bow ties, sweet and so cheery she struggles to believe he’s real.

Until Henry Samuel Beckett—or Beck, as he’s known to most—tells her the secret underneath his sunny surface: He’s been single all his life. But in a moment of panic, he’s told everyone at his publishing house that he’s married. And when Connie, an aspiring writer herself, can’t help defending him, she ends up being the fake wife he doesn’t actually have.

When they head off on a writing retreat, surrounded by people convinced this must be a ruse, both of them can't help but agree. Until they share their first kiss, their first touch, their first time in only one bed. Side by side, every night, as the simmering tension builds…Connie starts to wonder if this might be real after all.

I have to be honest:  this felt like a badly-disguised, cliched bit of porn. The characters felt more like tropes than actual people—Connie/not really Connie and her extreme skepticism of all men, Beck’s nerdy/oblivious personality—without much of a believable explanation as to why, so I could buy into the whole thing. This just really wasn’t a good fit for me.

Charlotte Stein’s new novel is My Big Fat Fake Marriage.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

(Blog link live 3/7).

I honestly had a hard time getting through this book. I was looking forward to the nice guy/cinnamon roll and opposites attract! But the dialoge between the characters was a little cringe at times, and really took the enjoyment out of it for me. I also had a hard time following along with the FMC train of thought sometimes. I can't say I didn't enjoy it, but I did struggle.