A story about a hairy, dorky virgin man who is a total cinnamon roll and his pretend wife at a readers conference. I do love a good cinnamon roll/golden retriever mmc but this was missing the mark for me. He had never been kissed. He said the cheesiest lines I had ever heard. It just wasn’t attractive or something I was rooting for. Parts of it were cute and there were some sexy scenes, but I wasn’t a fan of this particular trope done in this way. Overall, there wasn’t anything wrong with the book and if you like a fmc who sort of leads the really sweat naive male main character along this might be for you,

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review!

This book is an the epitome of a fluffy, lighthearted read! The romance is super sweet (to the point of me wondering if I have cavities now!) and just completely uplifting, the characters are incredible sweet and wholesome. I also now have a thing for a guy in a bow tie!! Because, who ever thought that a bow tie could be sexy? But, Beck makes it work and he REALLY makes it work well.

The pacing was a bit up and down, and I did find myself skimming a few parts where it just seemed to be non-stop inner monologue but overall I just really enjoyed this one!

Recommended for: readers who love spice heavy romances that have a nerdy MMC

Summary: Connie meets her strong, broad chested, shy, nerdy neighbor, Beck, one day and can’t understand why he is single. While talking with him, he lets slip that he’s been single his whole life. He also adds that he has lied to his coworkers about his relationship status. She finds this odd, yet none of her business. Until, she meets one of his coworkers and blurts out that she is Beck’s wife, in an attempt to stand up to his insults. This becomes a problem because Beck is going on a work writer’s retreat and Connie must now pretend to be his wife throughout the week, in a one bed room.

Review: This was a really sweet story. I am a sucker for a nerdy MMC. And this MMC does not disappoint! He throws up when he lies, wears a bow tie, and truly cares about Connie. I don’t mind some spice in my romance novels, but it seemed like sex was the main storyline and I was uncomfortable reading it at times.

A pleasing low stakes romance novel. The pretense for the fake marriage scenario is a bit weak but that's no biggie as the main attraction is the simmering chemistry between the two leads. A little slow to get going but then ramps up for a spicy second half. A good read for those who love a cinnamon roll male lead and quirky characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC.

Beck is a jolly good man who would rather cut out his tongue than say an unkind word about anyone. He’s always wished to be married to someone who understands him and his polite, mannered ways.

Hazel is an optimist, always hoping “this time” will be the one where a partner puts her and her needs first. She longs to be seen and valued as she is.

So when the world of these two collide, sparks slowly fly and things get super spicy!

This is the first book I’ve read by Charlotte Stein and I look forward to more adult romcoms by her!

Thank you NetGalley, St.Martin’s Press, Macmillan Audio, and Charlotte Stein for allowing me to enjoy this spicy four star read in exchange for a review!

This book has already been released so go support your local library and check out the novel or audiobook! The audiobook did a brilliant job bringing the characters to life and the bringing the story off the page thanks to voice actress Imogen Wilde.

“You arent afraid of commitment, you just havent met anyone worth committing to” 🤯 This book was a slow burn but when it burnt it never stopped 🤣 I feel like the last quarter had no plot just smut 🌶️ And I was a-okay with that! I loved how polite and sweet Beck was to her. He knew the real her the whole time and loved her for it.

⭐⭐⭐💫
🌶️🌶️

"𝘪𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘨𝘶𝘺𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘦"

so in this book, nice guys do finish. first.

i really enjoyed these characters in a way that even surprised me a bit. i did find the self-deprecation a little bit much at times. beck is such a sweet man, but such an unrealistic character. he's almost too sweet so i like when he gets a little protective and fiesty about hazel.

def recommend this one to someone who likes a book where the mmc is a virgin and he finds a more experienced jaded lady to fall in love with.

This book was just so much genuine fun to read. I fell in love with the MMC from page 1 and wasn't able to put the book down.

I couldn't find anywhere where this was specifically noted as being part of a series, but it is in the same universe as Stein's When Grumpy Met Sunshine and we do get some cameos from those characters in this book. If the first book was based off Roy Kent, then this one is 100% giving Ted Lasso vibes. We have an overly adorkable and mustachioed MMC who was so polite and easily flustered. Now listen, I love me an alphahole MMC at times but Beck (the MMC) was *chef's kiss* perfection. I absolutely adored the chemistry between our two MCs and how their opposite personalities actually worked together perfectly. There's something about their dynamic that most opposite attract trope books don't quite get to where they really feel like puzzle pieces snapping together. The fake marriage portion of the plot was fantastic and just the right amount of ridiculous for this sort of rom-com. This is the third book I've read from Stein, and she is quickly becoming a must-read author for me.

Tropes: Fake Marriage, Forced Proximity, Opposites Attract

Standalone

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC. Publication date was March 11, 2025.

My Big Fat Fake Marriage is a sweet endearing rom-com I loved. This is Hazel and Beck's fake marriage tale.

Beck's was the definition of a cinnamon roll MMC and I fell in love with him from the start as he was so attentive to Hazel. These two were wonderful together and although they went from awkward to steamy, I enjoyed the process of seeing them get to their HEA and I was rooting for these two characters througout the story.

I really wished we got more of their relationship after the retreat however it was still an entertaining read and I would recommend it to romance lovers.

This was such a cute book! Way more spicy than I was expecting, but I ate it up. I completely enjoyed it from start to finish.

My Big Fat Fake Marriage was a read by Charlotte Stein. It was probably not my cup of tea as it was primarily constructed around spice. This book is plenty spicy, but definitely lacking in plot. Read this if your crush is Ted Lasso. Mine is not, so this was not for me. In theory I wanted to LOVE this book, but it was just not what I was hoping for. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the complimentary ARC. All opinions are my own.

This was really fun! Cute and steamy. I enjoyed her WHEN GRUMPY MET SUNSHINE more, but found this romcom to also be adorable. Very high spice. I think some of the interiority could be trimmed, but otherwise a great read. 4.5 stars.

I love a cinnamon roll MMC but Beck’s dialogue and lack of inexperience really didn’t work for me.

The writing retreat setting was nice but I don’t feel like we got enough of it or scenes of the couple trying to prove that their relationship was real.

This was such a cute book and I loved the representation within it. Such a sweet and heartwarming story and I really loved the characters.

Realistically I would give this book 2.5 stars. It’s close to 3 but this authors writing style just doesn’t work for me.
Everyone is always ‘slick’ and moaning and it just becomes too much.
The story, is often silly and the phrases the grown adults say are just so “gosh darn” distracting.
If you want a lighthearted read with a lot of weird smut scenes you may enjoy this more than I was able to.

DNF @ 17%. I am not vibing with the writing, the character or anything. Not interested. 🤷‍♀️ I think Charlotte Stein's writing is not for me because this is the 2nd book I haven't liked from her.

Cute book but didn't grab my attention the way I was hoping it would.
I didn't connect with the characters and that kept me from enjoying the book fully

If you enjoy fake marriage, slow-burn tension, and some spice then this is the book for you. I wasn't a big fan of this book and I cant really put my finger on why. I think it was a little unrelatable and unbelievable at times. I wasn't a huge fan of the inner monologues and felt that they went on and on when it wasn't really necessary.

I loved this book, it was body positive with a cinnamon roll in a bow tie. This book provided so much joy and laughter, it was perfect. I love seeing body positive stories about not perfect humans and supportive partners.