I WAS NOT EXPECTING TO SOB MY EYES OUT MULTIPLE TIMES, but this was such a surprise in the best ways!

Fake It Like You Mean It is absolutely a sweet romance story of two people who are dealing with different things / traumas from the past. You watch them fall for each other and grow as individuals and as partners. BUT it is also so much more than that.

The Alzheimer’s representation in this book is done so very well. The way that the FMC was handling the entire situation was beautifully written in a sense that it was painful, joyous, hopeless, hopeful, and absolutely so accurate to what those in that situation will feel. When she got there at the end when Angie called her I was simply a mess. It was such a beautiful moment and I was so glad that she got to have that.

I really loved Adam. He was a strong character who was super supportive to our FMC, but also had his own growth and story as well.

I really LOVED the narration. The narrator did an absolutely outstanding job. She kept me entertained and into the story the entire time. I would absolutely recommend consuming this via audio.

You’ll find:
-Fake Dating
-Forced Proximity
-Only One Bed
-Snowed in Together

& LET ME JUST ADD. this was a DEBUT. this is OUTSTANDING for a debut novel. 👏🏼 YOU DID THAT.

Truly i loved this book. It touched me in such a special place in my heart. If you’re looking for a beautifully sweet romance that also touches on real world, tough topics, i can’t recommend this one enough.

Fake It Like You Mean It follows podcaster Elle as she comes home to help care for her grandmother Lovie who raised her, and is now suffering from Alzheimer’s. She almost immediately clashes with in-home nurse Adam, but when Lovie mistakes Adam and Elle for herself and her late husband Bobby, they must pretend to be in love so they don’t upset Lovie and push her mind too far. Will their fake dating and forced proximity make it so they can’t stand each other, or will it make them realize the depth of their feelings for each other?

Thank you to NetGalley, Megan Murphy, and Alcove Press for the digital ARC of Fake It Like You Mean It in exchange for an honest review.

Fake It Like You Mean It is a beautifully poignant example of how long of a process losing a loved one to Alzheimer’s is, and having to grieve a loved one while they are still living, but slowly forgetting who you are. This book also expertly shows how easy it can be to run from love when things get too hard, or when conflict threatens to tear two people apart.

This was SUCH a sweet book. It is such a fun fake dating/forced proximity/one bed/enemies to lovers romance story. I found myself rooting for Elle and Adam from the moment Elle came back to her grandmother’s home in the middle of the night to find Adam asleep in her childhood bedroom. The slow-burn romance was torturous at times, but it definitely pays off in the end!

This book definitely made me cry more than once, especially some of the more difficult scenes between Elle and Lovie. I definitely recommend keeping the tissues handy when reading this one!

Honestly this was a really cute down to earth and in many ways relatable rom com with a lot of heart.

Elle’s grandmother Lovie has always taken care of her. But now Lovie has Alzheimer and it is Elle’s turn to take care of her grandma.

She moves into her grandma’s house only to find out that an annoying yet handsome man named Adam is living there. He is a caregiver that has been assigned to assist Lovie and apparently to drive Elle insane.

Forced proximity romance with a lot of humour, very down to earth imperfect characters and a lot of heart.

The book also touches on Alzheimer and how the disease progresses but also how the family members are affected by it and the struggles they go through.

Elle’s grandma thinks that Adam and Elle are a couple and they will have to pretend in front of her. So we have fake dating and enemies to lovers which are two tropes I really enjoy.

This is a very slow paced book and I did find that it dragged for me and it did not excite me as much as I had hoped. However there are some cute moments, some good laughs and a clear message that life goes on for all of us and no matter what happens, we don’t have to forget to live and be happy. Tomorrow is never guaranteed.

So even though it was not quite as good as I had hoped and the romance chemistry was not quite there for me, it was still an enjoyable romcom with some more serious topics and family drama.

thank you so much to netgalley, alcove press, and megan murphy for approving me for an arc! what a debut novel. i loved this so much, and i needed it more than i realized i did.

while my situation wasn’t a memory-related one, i spent half of last year as a full-time caregiver for my 82-year-old grandmother, and i did it alone. this book brought back a lot of the complicated feelings i went through during that period of my life, and i think if you haven’t experienced something like that, it’s really hard to understand why people react the way they do to it. i saw myself in elle and how she struggled, how she adjusted to the inevitable, how she handled the good days and the bad days, the accidents. this book was a love letter to people like me, to everyone touched by time and the people coping with losing people when they’re still alive.

and that’s not even touching on the love story between elle and adam, which was beautiful, absolutely gorgeous to read. adam is such a comfort, the way he understood her and paid attention, the careful way he pushed just enough for her to let him love her.

Thank you to the publisher, NetGalley and to the author for this ARC opportunity!

Megan wrote an absolutely beautiful novel that describes and portrays Alzheimer’s with such beauty, and respect. In this novel Elle returns to her childhood home to care for her grandmother Lovie whom has Alzheimer’s. She is greeted with her worst nightmare, Adam a nurse who’s helping her grandmother.

When Lovie thinks that Adam is “Bobby” the two join forces and begin fake dating. Their relationship however takes a different course throughout. Readers will laugh, want to cry, and want to jump up and down with this novel. It is emotional, fun, loving, and at times hilarious.

This is a cozy, tender, honest depiction of caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s while falling hard and fast. This book carefully proves that love can grow and show up amidst the heartache of life when you least expect it. Tasked with the responsibility of ensuring her grandmother Lovie has home health care, Elle returns to her childhood home when Lovie needs additional assistance. Not thinking a hot, gruff, male nurse would be sleeping in her childhood bed upon arrival, Elle and Adam stubbornly butt heads as they navigate co-caring for Lovie. So when Lovie mistakenly identifies Elle and Adam as her and her husband, Elle and Adam keep up the newlywed charade to keep Lovie from slipping further into her disease.

This is actually one of the most plausible fake-dating plots I’ve read in awhile. As someone whose Grandmother had dementia, I have witnessed how accurate Lovie’s mood changes and reactions are in reality. This is forced proximity and there’s-only-one-bed at its best; how do you deal with sharing a bed and a small space with someone you barely know and may not even like, even if you are attracted to them? Even as grown adults, you’re bound to get on each other’s nerves, and yet the kindness Adam shows towards Elle begins to creep into her heart as true feelings replace acting. Adam is a pretty perfect guy—even in his frustration with Elle he still stays level-headed, his love language is clearly acts of service and not only does he care for Lovie but for Elle’s needs as well. I loved the tight spaces scenes in the laundry room, bedroom, and of course the snowed in apartment, and the metaphorical missing a step on a staircase feeling as you realize you’re falling for someone.

This book was the perfect blend of bantering rivalry within an insular world, combined with the cozy feeling of caring for someone, even if it breaks your heart a little. It’s spicy and heated but never at the detriment of Lovie’s care. I’m really excited to see what Megan Murphy will give us next. I received an early copy from the publisher, all opinions are my own.

CW: caring for a grandparent with Alzheimer’s

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Steam: 🪭🪭.5

Elle is a podcaster who moves back in with her grandmother, who has Alzheimer’s and finds Adam, her 24/7 nurse living in her room.

This book really had potential, but I found Elle’s hostility towards Adam really odd and there was simply no reason for it. He’s caring for your most beloved family member! It felt manufactured just for the sake of the book. I felt like I couldn’t like Elle because of it, and their romance fell a bit flat for me.

I was lucky ended to up getting the audio version of this book as well and will post review will be under the audiobook.

A fun, fairly light hearted enemies to lovers fake dating/forced proximity/one bed read!

When Elle heads back to the town she grew up in to help with her grandmother's alzheimers car, she runs face first into the home health care nurse and the two get off on the wrong foot. But when Lovie identifies Elle and Adam as a younger version of her and her late husband Bobby, the two up the antics and play into what could be between them. It's only a matter of time before things heat up for real.

I loved most of this story, I loved the chemistry between Adam and Elle, I loved the friends she had in her corner and I loved her relationship with Lovie. There were a lot of heavy plot adjacent points though that I feel like needed to be tended to a bit more carefully, past hurt and Adam's family commitments that needed to be a bit more resolved at the end and I wanted a bit more to the epilogue but overall this was a lovely story!


Thank you Netgalley and Alcove Press for the ARC in exchange for my review!

I was lucky enough to listen to the audio of this book, which was narrated fantastically, while I read along with my ebook. Elle returns back to her hometown when her grandmother's Alzheimers progresses. When she mistakes Elle and her live-in nurse, Adam, as being in love, the two decide to fake it to keep the peace. We all know what happens with fake dating right? I loved the relationship between these two! And the Alzhemiers story added an extra emotional element to the story considering how deeply both characters cared for the patient. This was a sweet book and it's a debut! I can't wait to see what the author pens next.

I really liked this book. The characters were so fun, although I wouldn't necessarily consider this to be an enemies to lovers story.

4.5 stars rounded up. What a fantastic debut. This one definitely packed an emotional punch alongside a tender romance.

I did a tandem ALC/eARC read of this one and sat with tears in my eyes more than once during moments with Elle and her grandmother, Lovie. The loss of my grandma three years ago was life-altering event, but I can’t imagine what it would have been like to lose her knowing me before she was gone. I don’t have any firsthand experience with a family member suffering from Alzheimer’s, however, this read felt very authentic in its portrayal of the challenges and heartache. My heart broke for Elle in the moments she had to face Lovie’s harsh words while knowing Lovie was trapped by her own mind working against her.

Having Adam alongside her was a buoy for Elle, even if it seemed like it would be the exact opposite from the beginning. Adam was the epitome of decency and care. Being a nurse, that would seem obvious, but he showed it in so many ways outside his hired duties as Lovie’s caretaker. The banter between Adam and Elle was entertaining and sparky, and the way they came to lean on each other through the ups and downs was lovely. They faced their own struggles, especially combatting Elle’s fears of allowing anyone else to become too close, but they came out stronger for it in the end.

The audiobook was incredibly well done. I thought Alex Picard’s narration was fantastic. She had great tone and pitch for the various characters to differentiate between them. She also invoked an entire spectrum of emotions into her performance that added to the authenticity of the story for me.

Thank you NetGalley and Alcove Press for the eARC and Dreamscape Media for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

The first thing that attracted me to this book was its cover page, which I saw on literary agent @rebeka.finch ’s account. A beautiful colour combination—fresh and vibrant—and so was the overall premise of the novel.

An elderly Alzheimer’s patient (Lovie) mistakes her caretaker (Adam) and her granddaughter (Elle) for the younger versions of herself and her late husband. Adam and Elle (who initially cannot see eye to eye with each other) forcefully play along “for a day,” thinking that Lovie is soon going to “forget”—the twist is, she doesn’t.

Fake It Like You Mean It, a debut novel by @megmurphywrites , is a good attempt at a sweet romance filled with some intense moments.

Writing-wise, the author has a unique style. It is slow-paced and keenly descriptive. It’s written in first person, from the girl’s (Elle) perspective, and intentional or not, this set-up makes the guy’s (Adam) character seem to be more appealing than her own. The hero is well-written—a young Josh Duhamel.

The author also likes to convey body language in detail in each scene—perhaps to show vs. tell. And, though, in some sequences it’s interesting, it feels a little unnecessary in some others.

I didn’t quite fall in love with the lead characters as a couple or with the build-up of their love story. However, I liked how the author created them as two individuals (backstories/hopes/dreams/fears) who somehow do come together in the end—because it’s a romance novel—for me, they could’ve just been friends too.

The best thing about the book was Lovie’s character—her hard-love rules, her everyday life, her mental state, her introspections and retrospections —were all well written. Her storyline was the most well-defined.

Overall, it’s a cute novel with a quirky premise—a little dragged writing-wise—but if you enjoy lighthearted books with a hint of drama, you can give this one a try.

Book teaser by @theheartreader

Elle is back home with her grandmother, who is declining with Alzheimer's. Some days she doesn't remember who she is and it is hard on everyone. Until a bed opens up at a facility, they have a live in nurse helping out. Adam and Elle have to share the house and they don't have the best meet cute. Adam is a stand up guy, he helps out everyone, including his own family, to the detriment of himself. Elle's grandmother thinks that Adam is her husband and that Elle is herself at a younger age. The two of them try and keep the peace with her by acting like a couple, and soon they aren't acting. They fall into a groove with being around one another, but when Elle's grandmother goes into a facility and Adam and Elle go back to real life, will they be able to make it together?
This book was a hard read at times because it was so heart breaking and real with what she goes through with her grandmother. I felt for Elle and I was so saddened by what was happening. I felt like the enemies to lovers wasn't a great description of what this romance was. I didn't feel any hate, just minor discomfort that evaporated pretty quickly and he was just a cinnamon roll hero who was adorable. Elle's job was fun and really interesting too. I liked the incorporation of her grandmother into her podcast.
Thanks to Alcove, Netgalley and Megan Murphy for an early copy.

Elle is a podcaster and temporarily moving to her childhood home in order to help her grandmother with Alzheimer’s in the time between her rapid decline and getting her into a care facility. She unexpectedly stumbles upon Adam when arriving home; he is staying at the house as Lovie’s nurse. Lovie doesn’t recognize Elle and Adam encourages her to meet Lovie where she is at mentally. It is this situation in which the two spend lots of time together and the relationship starts from there.

What I liked:
I know everyone’s situation is different, but this provided a good look at one experience of living with someone with Alzheimer’s.
The banter and comedic happenstances were a balance to the heavy diagnosis.
The podcast and associated social media commentary were well done and helped move the story along.

What didn’t work for me:
Elle came off really strong at the beginning and I am not sure if it was the stress of coming home in that situation, but it seemed overblown of a reaction and drawn out/a bit forced.

Thank you Alcove Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley.

**Thank you to @netgalley, Megan Murphy, and @AlcovePress for a free ebook ARC copy in exchange for my unbiased review.

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Elle is a successful pocaster living in a Chicago, when she gets a call from Angie from her grandmother's in home care service. Her grandmother (as well as the woman who raised her), Lovie, has Alzheimer’s, she's getting worse. Elle arrives at Lovie's late at night and goes to her old room to sleep. When she goes to crawl into bed there is already someone there. A man. Adam Wheeler. Her grandmother's nurse. Elle finds out that he's there aroynd the clock as part of the new care plan put in place since Lovie has been getting worse. Lovie is not the same woman she was when she raised Elle...she also thinks Elle and Adam are her and her late husband Bobby 😬

We find ourselves in the usual trope of forced proximity and I'm so here for it.

This read is definitely heavy on the heart and I cried several times while reading it. I think the author did an amazing job at giving an inside look on Alzheimer’s and the toll it takes on family. This was not like anything I've read before, I found myself guessing what would happen in the end. Happy ending? Sad ending? Everyone at peace?

This was a pretty sweet story. Elle and Adam are both good, but flawed characters. Woven throughout their story is Elle’s acceptance and grief of her grandmother’s dementia diagnosis. Adam is a great resource for Elle as she navigates their changing roles. Elle challenges Adam’s rescuing tendencies which is good for him as well.
I felt that the forced proximity and circumstances fused the two mains, but there was something about their chemistry that I didn’t quite buy for their long term. The book was really more about caring for Elle’s grandmother and her podcast than their relationship development. I’d give this one a 3.5 stars, rounded up, but more for the lessons this dear old grandma can teach all of us.

I really quite enjoyed this book! I loved Elle and Adam! They had great chemistry from the start and I think their banter was great!🔥 Elle Is struggling because her grandmother Is struggling with Alzhemier's and doesn't remember her. I really liked the fact that even though It was hard for Elle she never never gave up on her grandmother! Adam was just the sweetest guy who cares so deeply for people🫶🏻 I also really liked how the Author wrote about alzheimer's and how it affects everyone! She really done a great job while also adding humour at times wich was nice🩷 This book has all the best tropes too so that was a win!🥰 I definitely think you should take a chance on this book when It hits shelves next month!! Thank you to netgalley and Meg for this ARC 😊

I love the cover! The story was amazing. I knew I was going to love it. The story was kind of heavy and times but also humorous. I’d definitely consider buy the book with it hits the shelves. Thanks so much!

enemies to lovers?? where?? when it was purely one-sided and it was just the fmc being annoyed by the mmc for..... no reason??

the podcast element was cute, though. all the power to our girl.

what i didn't like: the body shaming. especially coming from elle. my girl. you've been on the receiving end of it. don't be on the giving end of it, too. even if you're annoyed at a supermarket karen.