Thank you netgalley for this arc!
Overall really enjoyed this book! I really like that there was a secondary plot to the main plot, it kept things interesting! The main and side characters were so likeable and i really liked the dynamics!
I’m very excited for the next book!
4⭐️

YO this book was so hot.

West could teach lessons on devotion, praise and protectiveness I'm just saying. He was quite LITERALLY everything Nora ever needed tied up in one hot ass bow. And let's not get it twisted she was everything he never knew he needed as well. The perfect match.

I did not know about Olivia Hayle's game and now that I do I'm absolutely hooked. You're trying to tell me this was over 500 pages? It didn't feel long enough, I could read about these two rich dynastic heirs for another 500. Also I normally don't vibe with billionaire romances (too on the nose) but West was exactly the kind of idealised wealthy man that actually couldn't give a damn about the money (except that house, he loved that house).

But oh my word - the lessons, the pining, the affection? I couldn't get enough.

I really hope there's a few more books in this series. Rafe is next squeeee!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author. I feel so lucky to have been able to read this addictive ARC!

4.25 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, Olivia Hayle and the publishers for the e-ARC in exchange for honest review.

Look, I love a fake-dating trope. Add in billionaires and I'm sold! I absolutely gobbled this story up!

We first meet Nora, a 25 year old model who recently moved back to NYC. She's tired of modeling and wants to follow her true passion for fashion design. However, one of the reasons she moved was because she'd been receiving threatening letters while in Paris.

Enter West. West is nearing 30 and is Nora's older brother's best friend. He's also a billionaire who currently owns the family home but must be married by 30 in order to keep the house. After hearing from Rafe, Nora's older brother, that Nora has continued receiving notes from her stalker in NYC, West takes over as her security detail along with his security company.

Nora ends up moving in with West and to try and entice her stalker to be more bold, they decide to put on a show of dating for the public. Of course, they catch real feelings.

Without spoiling the book, I just absolutely loved it. Couldn't put it down! The spice was spicy, the chemistry was perfect. This book had some of my favorite tropes and I cannot wait to read the rest of the series!

3.5 ⭐️
First off, thank you to Netgalley and Olivia Hayle for the arc!

Nora is a model, and from from a rich family. She has a stalker and has been receiving threats/weird mail which end up forcing her to move to a new city. Nora’s brother is concerned for her safety, so he makes her live with his best friend, West Calloway, in his mansion on Long Island.

I found myself relating to Nora and her not-so-great dating history! (I wish I couldn’t relate 😂) This book mentioned a lot of modern day relationship and dating concerns that women have, no matter their age and experience in dating. Concerns including his intentions not being communicated, fears of his reaction to your honesty, and even just the typical nerves of a first date. 💗

I also LOVED the fact that Nora and West decided to help each other out. West’s parents want him to find a wife and Nora needs someone to teach her how to be assertive and ask for what she wants (or doesn’t want). They end up fake dating! Eventually he teaches her some things about dating she never thought she’d learned about with him, of all people! 🤭🌶️🥵

The reason I didn’t rate this higher was mainly because I didn’t find the relationship between Nora and West to be believable. I loved their tension, and it started out really great. However, I felt that as I read the book it was less about some sort of plot and more about smut. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a huge fan of spicy books! With this one, though, I felt like it was lacking in the emotional depth aspect of the relationship and was only a physical attraction. 😕

Personally, I believe the recipe for an amazing romance book is including both the emotional attraction and the physical attraction, as well as a plot occurring during their storyline. I want to read a romance and believe their story. I didn’t feel like this gave me that feeling, as entertaining and fun as it was.

The tropes in this book include:
🤭brother’s best friend
🤭fake dating
🤭forced proximity
🤭dating lessons
🤭”I’m protecting you”
💵billionaire

When 25 year old model Nora finds out she has a stalker, her brother suggests she stay with his best friend West, a billionaire with a large secure estate. But Nora needs more than protection... she needs help with her nonexistent dating life and West needs a fake fiance so they agree to fake date.
The pacing and tension of the story were good and the characters were believable. If you're into praise kink, West is definitely your guy (honestly it was almost too much!) I already knew from reading this author's boss series that the story would be spicy, and I was not wrong, lol! Overall I really liked this story.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A fun billionaire romance and a great start for a new series. I can’t wait to read Rafe’s story. Book could have been shorter but it was overall enjoyable.

I received an arc from netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really fun and romantic fake dating read - I loved both of our main characters, the chemistry was great, West was a very dreamy and protective man when it came to the stalking situation Nora was going through. With this being a billionaire romance, I just wished that West billionaired a bit harder, I feel like we didn't really get to the see that side of him, other than the fact he had a giant house that he was trying to save due to incredibly out of date, old fashioned rules.

‘The Faking Game’ by Olivia Hayle is a character-driven romance featuring some of my favourite tropes: fake dating and brother’s best friend! Aspiring designer Nora Montclair and West Calloway, who recently inherited the luxurious Fairhaven estate and his family’s business. When Nora ends up staying at Fairhaven for her safety, they realise that acting as a couple might help both of them… but are real feelings hiding behind their facade?

One aspect of the novel I really liked was how well it explored the motivations behind Nora’s people pleasing nature, and her growth throughout the book as she learnt to stand up for herself. West was very supportive and I enjoyed their banter as they grew more confident together! The text chats between West, Alex, and their two friends were fun and made me look forward to reading the love stories of the other three guys which are coming soon…

This gets four stars from me for intense chemistry between Nora and West, realistic conflict and unexpected emotional depth. Definitely worth a read for fans of Ana Huang or Lauren Asher!

I received a Digital Review Copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Malgré les 500 pages du livre, ce fut une lecture très rapide et agréable. Il y avait beaucoup d'éléments que j'appréciais : le fake dating, le brother best friend et un peu de suspens. Après, s'il y avait de bons ingrédients, je n'ai pas toujours été convaincue de la réalisation. J'ai eu un peu de mal à m'attacher aux deux personnages principaux. Donc, une bonne lecture mais qui ne va pas rester mémorable pour autant à mes yeux.

3,5/5

4 stars⭐️
3/5 spice!🌶️

Things to expect:
♦️ Billionaire romance
♦️ Fake dating
♦️ Brothers best friend
♦️ Slow burn
♦️ Dating lessons

I really loved this book! It was my first billionaire romance read and I loved it. The characters felt very real and believable. This is just a great fun, light, happy read. I enjoyed the female main character, I think the MMC could have had more depth, but still really liked him. We are also introduced to the MMC’s group of friends that I imagine the rest of the series will connect to! Can’t wait to read more of their stories and more from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

As someone who can't resist a good fake dating trope, The Faking Game was an enjoyable read that hit a lot of the right notes. The chemistry between the leads was compelling, and the romantic tension kept me hooked from the start. If you're in the mood for something easy, spicy, and with a hint of danger, this one definitely delivers.

The suspense element left a little to be desired. The subplot involving stalking felt like an afterthought in the writing. Like, all of this… for what?

Overall, The Faking Game is a solid choice for readers who love their romance with some heat, a stunning setting, and a dash of intrigue—even if the suspense doesn’t quite steal the show.

I have never read any of Olivia's books before, but I thoroughly enjoyed The Faking Game. I finished this one in ONE day! I am always a sucker for a brother's best friend trope and this one did not disappoint. The angst throughout the book between West and Little Montclair was enough to make anyone hot!

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 stars

THANK YOU NETGALLY FOR THE ARC 🫶🎀

OMG West, YESSSS ✨ This is the romance I dreamed about, the morally grey x sunshine I desperately needed! The smooth-talk, the praising, I want it all!! This book made me kick my legs every two pages 🎀

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Very spicy

Tropes:
🌹 Fake dating
🌹 Romance
🌹 Forced proximity
🌹 Billionaire romance
🌹 Enemies to lovers
🌹 Grumpy x sunshine

I couldn’t put this book down; I read the entire thing in 3 days! If you like fake dating and tension between characters. You will eat this book UPPP! Their relationship is soooo cute and heartwarming, and the struggle between friends and love seems legit.

Give me a fake romance book for the rest of my life and i will literally be set! This was such a cute, fast paced, happy feeling type of book and I loved everything about it!

The banter, chemistry, and the characters were all amazing and kept me engaged. Other than all the wonderful happy things it also dealt with some complex topics that I really appreciated such as the fmc’s people-pleasing at the expense of herself trait. I loved seeing her growth and coming into herself as a person who started saying no when it needed to be said.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for an arc!

4.5⭐️
This was so SO good.
The characters were all so freaking likable (specially the Alex, West, James & Rafe friend group). I loved how the couple understood each other and how they always communicated.
Perfect read honestly. I couldn’t stop reading💖

3.75 ⭐️
🌶️🌶️.5

Olivia Hayle is the queen of guilty pleasure billionaire romance.

Tropes:
-Brothers Best friend
-Billionaire Romance
-Teach me
-Praise Kink
-Fake dating


This was a cute fake dating story that benefited both the FMC & MMC. Nora is running from a stalker & West needs his mother to stop trying to marry him off to every suitable woman, West protects Nora with his security team and when she tell’s him about her lack of dating experience, helps her “ practice”.
I loved that it didn’t focus too much on the business world like some billionaire romance stories.
I hated Nora’s mom.
Some of the family dynamics were a bit much, and at times the FMC was a bit winey.
But, I enjoyed how West built her up, giving her back her power, and helping her hold her own.

Thank you so much to Olivia Hayle, & NetGalley
For the ARC ♥️

👗 🩷 BOOK REVIEW 👗🩷

ɪ ᴅᴏɴ’ᴛ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ʜᴏᴡ ᴛᴏ ᴅᴀᴛᴇ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴡᴇꜱᴛ ᴅᴏᴇꜱɴ’ᴛ ᴅᴏ ʟᴏᴠᴇ. ɪᴛ’ꜱ ᴘᴇʀꜰᴇᴄᴛ. ꜱᴏᴏɴ, ᴡᴇ’ʀᴇ ᴘʀᴀᴄᴛɪᴄɪɴɢ ɪᴛ ᴀʟʟ ɪɴ ꜱᴇᴄʀᴇᴛ. ᴅᴀᴛᴇꜱ. ᴋɪꜱꜱɪɴɢ. ꜱʟᴇᴇᴘɪɴɢ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴀᴍᴇ ʙᴇᴅ. ᴛʜᴇ ᴏɴʟʏ ʀᴜʟᴇ? ᴍʏ ʙʀᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ᴄᴀɴ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ꜰɪɴᴅ ᴏᴜᴛ.

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑮𝒂𝒎𝒆
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️♾️
🌶️🌶️🌶️.5
✍🏻 @oliviahayle

✨ I DID NOT WANT THIS BOOK TO END! I was absolutely obsessed with the chemistry between Nora and West - it wasn't a slowburn, but it wasn't immediate either. The way he was so encouraging and protective of her warmed my heart so much. Also, I love love love books with a great group of friends and can't wait for the next book in the series!

🎀 FAKE DATING
🤍 BROTHER'S BEST FRIEND
🎀 ONE BED
🤍 HE'S PROTECTIVE & JEALOUS
🎀 BILLIONAIRE ROMANCE

✨Thank you to @netgalley and @oliviahayle for this wondeful ARC! I can't wait to have this entire series sitting on my shelf.

#booksirecommend #oliviahayle #thefakinggameoliviahayle #arcread #billionaireromance #readthis

3.25 ⭐
The Faking Game had all the tropes I love in a romcom:
• brother’s best friend
• bodyguard vibes
• fake dating
• flirty lessons
• and a perfectly drawn-out slow burn.
The characters are genuinely endearing, and the writing style is smooth and addictive.
It’s the first book I’ve read by this author, and it definitely won’t be the last. I'm already excited to check out more of her work!

Ate this book UP🍿
Billionaire families, a stalker, fake dating, forced proximity, brother’s best friend.

Their chemistry was off the charts.
I love how MATURE both the fmc and mmc were, and their growth throughout the story.
The spice was well written.

The side characters added sooo much to the story that it makes me excit e to read their book next!

Speaking of, the setup for Rafe’s book in the ending was chef’s kiss, I’m SAT and I’m impatiently waiting.

summary:
Nora moves to New York to pursue a career as a fashion designer. Since she's being stalked for months now, her brother assigns his best friend West to look after her and the rest is history

my thoughts:
I hate it when a good book ends😩
pick this up if you are looking for a summer read because it's ✨perfection✨ I came here for the cover and stayed for everything else!!

I found myself relating to Nora on so many different levels and it's always so nice to see fashion girlies in books💅

I love how West really understood Nora and helped her become the best version of herself🥺

the stalker element really added intrigue to the whole story

also the dynamic of the guys' friend group was one of my favourite parts, I cannot wait for each one of their stories!

omg Olivia I beg you to please give me Rafe's book now 🙏 I cannot wait😭

thank you to the author and netgalley for the arc!