I received an ARC of this book through NetGalley- thank you.

I usually love Mhairi McFarlane books, but I did have some trouble with this one. It felt slow in parts, and I felt like I was pushing through to find out the ending. The last 20 percent of the book did pick up and feel more interesting.

Mhairi McFarlane is always a favorite, and this is no exception. Bel is an investigative reporter for a national newspaper; Connor is the paper's 30 something intern, fresh off a career change from finance. The two take an instant dislike to each other upon meeting, but are forced to work together when Connor happens upon Bel while she's in character on an undercover assignment. They end up posing as a couple in the pursuit of uncovering chronic sexual misconduct by a powerful politician.

Things I liked: Mhairi McFarlane is one of the few authors who actually makes me laugh out loud. The banter and wittiness of her characters is truly unmatched. The subplots are woven together really well. The me-too era issues are dealt with with nuance and empathy. The side characters are delightful. Bel and Connor have wonderful, slow burn chemistry.

Thanks to Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Mhairi McFarlane can never dowrong with her books. She has been my favorite author for so long, and Cover Story just proves once again why I adore her work. Every single one of her books that I’ve read has been a perfect blend of sharp wit, heartfelt emotion, and characters who leap off the page and feel like people you could meet in real life. This story had me laughing at the clever banter one moment and feeling a tug in my chest the next. Mhairi has this incredible talent for weaving romance, humor, and emotional depth into something that feels both uplifting and profoundly real. By the end, I wasn’t just smiling — I was reminded all over again why she’s an auto-read author for me.

Super cute story, a little bit of insta-love despite being an enemies-to-lovers tale.

I enjoyed both of the main characters' motivations while the side characters were just fine. I'm interested in whether we'll ever see any of them again in a future McFarlane story.

I absolutely will be back reading more of her books, they're just sweet little romance nuggets.

Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Cover Story by Mhairi McFarlane was a fun read. I enjoyed and appreciated the characters, their development and humor, and that the author was able to cover important topics impacting women of all backgrounds. Grateful to NetGalley and the publishers for the chance to read this romance.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this as an ARC. I had a fun time with this novel. Not my favorite from this author but still very enjoyable. This is definitely not “enemies to lovers” nor I would argue is it even rivals to lovers… more of new colleagues who have a negative and judgmental first meeting who continue to assume the worst of each other are then accidentally thrown into partnering up on an undercover investigation where they must pretend to be a couple. Very slow burn but the burn doesn’t really even start until after 50% through. I kept wondering how on earth there would be time left for them to start to like one another, let alone fall for each other. Ultimately, the way it plays out does feel very genuine and sweet and authentic. However, the ending was a bit of a let down - was hoping for an epilogue. But that’s just me - I am very much a fan of tidy happy ever after type endings in romance novels. Side note - could not stand Aaron - the other office mate. Such an annoying side character. I did really enjoy the Dual POV. I loved being in Conner's head and getting his perspective on things. Going back and forth between the two really highlights how much we make assumptions in our head about what others must think and feel about us but if you are not brave enough to be honest and put yourself out there you will never know what's true and real vs what you assume it to be. I would give this one a shot if you enjoy workplace romance, fake dating, fighting back against workplace harrassment/abuse, main characters in their 30's, witty dialogue and fun banter, etc.

“I would like to have the kind of fling with him that sees us both publicly condemned by the pope “

I always compare Mhairi to Jane Austen but this definitely gave me Pride and Prejudice vibes. Then she hit me with a few Mr. Darcy references. This book is so messy and rife with complex characters and relationships. It’s dramatic but relatable. The worst part about her books is they end and you’re sad because all you want is more.

This book was great. Not McFarlane’s absolute best, but solidly enjoyable. I wasn’t sure how the whole article scoop was going to turn out, or even exactly who the bad guys were, and liked the way it turned out.

4 rounded up from a 3.5
On a personal not unrelated to the actual book itself; I love that I got to enjoy this book set in Manchester as I flew out of Manchester back home to the states.

I seem to really enjoy the fake dating trope. I thought that the annoying co-workers to lovers pipeline was well done. It was definitely hard, as an American English speaker to fully immerse myself in some of the British slang and saying (even as an American person married to a British one). The slow burn of it all, was so very delicious and I love the entire set up. It didn't give the overwhelming 'aaaargh!' you might get from a miscommunication trope, so I wasn't removed from the story as I was rooting for these characters.

Overall, a wonderful read. I managed to read the entire thing on my flight without getting distracted by the inflight entertainment. I will be looking to read more by Mhairi McFarlane in the future!

Thank you NetGalley, Mhairi McFarlane, and Harper Collins for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I read Mad About You 2 years ago and absolutely adored the storyline along with Mhairi’s writing. So when NetGalley approved my request to read this one, I couldn’t wait to get started.

Unfortunately, the pacing of this one really suffered for me. It’s taken me 3 weeks just to get through 80 pages, and I still feel like I haven’t gotten any closer to enjoying the story or these characters. There also seems to be a lot of subplots happening with no clear direction on where it should actually be heading? I spent a lot of time rereading passages because some of the phrasing was just absolutely bizarre, and I couldn’t understand what the characters were trying to communicate. So honestly, it seemed like a bit of a mess, which is incredibly disappointing with such a fun and promising premise!

I might attempt this on audiobook when it’s officially published, but trying to get through this book was putting me in my first major reading slump of the year, and I just don’t want that to slow me down.

probably more like a 3.75 but we'll give in a four rn

after hearing endless amazing things about this authors writing, i requested this arc and see for myself if i would like her books. even though this rating is good, i'm so conflicted on my overall enjoyment of the book, plot, writing, everything in general. the writing itself is soooo british and i feel like this one was more so than her other novels. i say that with absolutely no knowledge on her other books so take it with a grain of salt.

bel is an investigative reporter and she gets a tip about a mayor (male) being gross (shocker). she then decimates his career and i love her for that. following her journey to get the story was really interesting and different from anything else i've ever read. the "romance" comes in when her colleague, a thirty-four year old intern named connor, catches her undercover and has to become her fake boyfriend. connor faced some mental health issues at his old job and decided to start over as a reporter, he's honestly a refreshingly normal male main character. he's not an over the top pretty boy who is always perfect and always charming, he's just connor.

the romance was so minuscule that i'm disappointed but i can see how thats just mcfalane's way of writing a love story. the undercover plot was interesting enough to follow but there was just so much going on. bel had two asshole ex men in her life, connor has a cheating girlfriend, plus the work stuff, its just a lot. the book also had a bit of a slow start and it took at least thirty percent to get attached to the story. i don't really know why i'm giving this four stars because i didn't love the writing but i don't hate the story. maybe i'll change this after i've sat on my thoughts for longer than five minutes but just know it was good, bad, strange, cute, and not at all what i was anticipating from this author.

*thank you netgalley and avon for the e-arc! *

Mhairi honestly never misses - my only complaint ever about books by this author is I always want more. In one of the more plausible fake dating plots I’ve read in a long time, the characters manage to build genuine connection and have that fun clever banter that I love in these books. If you’ve loved everything else, you can’t miss this book.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

I’m disappointed to say that I didn’t like this book nearly as much as I’d hoped to. It had promise - I love a fake dating trope, and it seemed to have a strong plot outside of the romance. But therein lied some of the issue for me: there was hardly any romance at all. It was the slowest of slow burn, and there was little to no romance until literally over 90% of the way in. It was just miscommunication galore the entire way through, making me want to tear my hair out, yet somehow at the same time not caring whether these characters fell for each other in the end.

Another issue I had was that the book tried to do too much at once - a stalker ex fling, a cheating ex, a vengeful ex, infidelity history in a main character, mental health issues, an undercover investigation…it just was too much and felt so scattered. The pacing felt off too; some parts dragged on while others felt rushed.

I actually did enjoy the undercover investigation part of the plot, and I was somewhat confused and disappointed that it came to an underwhelming end only about 80% of the way in. The plot then shifted to try and drum up the romance that was all but forgotten in the first three quarters of the book (as previously mentioned) which felt abrupt and unnatural. All in all, it just didn’t feel like a romcom. It had an intriguing storyline in the investigation, but it neither felt romantic nor comedic.

Unfortunately, I only got to about 38% into the book before I decided to not finish. I have enjoyed her writing in the past but there was something about this story that I just struggled to get into. Things I enjoyed: the odd friendship dynamic between Bel and Shilpa and the beginning findings for the "cover story" of the mayor and his treatment of women. I really had a hard time rooting for any of the characters. I am not sure if the purpose was for them to not like the interns, especially Conor. I really liked his character but struggled with their reactions to anything he did and felt like he his character development needed some more. It could be more of a "me problem" for I just couldn't connect to any part of the story.

deliciously witty as always, i know everytime i dive into a new book from MM is bound to be a treat! and my gosh does she know how to write jerks!!

i really desperately wish we’d had more of connor and bel in love but aware, im sure their unbidden flirty banter would’ve been far beyond fabulous based off the final texts we got got of them :’)

My first Mhairi McFarlane book and definitely not my last.

This was such a fun surprise. Cover Story had the perfect mix of wit, a little chaos, and genuine emotion. I didn’t totally know what to expect going in since it’s my first book from her, but I get it now. The writing style is so easy to fall into. It feels real without being too heavy, and even though the story had a lot going on (career drama, personal growth, a slow-burn romance brewing in the background), it never felt overwhelming.

I loved how layered the characters were, messy in a way that actually made sense, not just messy for drama’s sake. And the slow-burn tension?? She knew exactly what she was doing with that one.

If I had to critique anything, I would say there were a couple moments where I wished the pacing would pick up a little, but honestly, that’s me being picky. Overall, I had a really good time reading this and now I’m definitely eyeing the rest of her backlist.

Really happy this was my intro to her writing and I’ll definitely be picking up more!

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins Publishing for this amazing e-arc!

Enemies to lovers workplace romance readers, this one’s for you!!!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the premise of it, but throughout the first part of it, it felt like a bit too much to get through. I feel like some parts of the story were dragged on but I know others will enjoy this world building!!
Overall, I think this book is great for the close proximity, enemies to lovers romance fans! There are triggers that pop up in the story, so I suggest keeping an eye for that!
4/5🌟

I’ve been meaning to pick up a mahairi mcfarlane book for quite a while, and am so glad I started here!! This book was all around amazing and felt incredibly real. One of my favorite reads of the year!

I love Mhairi Macfarlane books and this one was one of the most fun and rom-com-like I’ve read thus far! I loved the characters and their dynamic, and they always have such realistically complex lives and goals outside of the romance too. Highly recommend!

I was so excited for an e-copy of this book because I've loved several of Mhairi's books, but this one just didn't keep me interested.

I think there was maybe too much mundane chatter that didn't hold my attention.

There were too many side plots that also didn't hold my attention.

Super bummed, but I think long-time fans of Mhairi will enjoy this story.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for an e-copy of COVER STORY to review.

I rate COVER STORY three out of five stars.