I was lucky enough to receive an ARC from Netgalley and I was so excited to read this book! The story revolves around sweet and people pleaser, Nora, who comes from a wealthy family and is a model for the family. She always wanted to be a fashion designer but is too scared to tell her family what she wants to do with life and not make them disappointed in her. Around the start of the story, she just moved to NYC and is being stalked by an unknown man. As a result, her brother assigns his best friend billionaire, Rafe, as her bodyguard as the stalker continues to escalate, so Rafe quickly moves her into his estate.

Overall, I enjoyed the book. Nora has spent her whole life trying to please everyone, but West teaches her to put her own desires and ambitions first. Their relationship first starts with them fake dating as Rafe instructs Nora how to date and be physical , but it gradually becomes something more. Rafe is sweet, protective, and has Nora's best interests at heart. Almost the only person who seems to at the start of the book. I enjoyed seeing all their dates and them practicing to fake date. It was perfect when they gradually fell for each other. I LOVED seeing Nora become stronger in her actions and words, all because of Rafe helping her see her true potential. I was so happy when she finally stood up to her mother and even put her brother into his place when Rafe and Nora’s relationship is outed. They are stronger together and support one another through all the craziness of life. I also really enjoyed West’s friends and all the text messages between each other. They were hilarious and I can’t wait to see each one of their stories!

The only reason I did not give it 5 stars is that the whole plot revolves around this stalker situation, but I felt like it was wrapped up too quickly and I was left a little disappointed on who it was. Overall, this was an exceptional book and you should read it if you like fake dating, a found family, brother’s best friend, dating lessons, and a ton of spice!

For the first half, nothing really moved except the page numbers.

Cut 100 pages, add one plot twist, and we’d be cooking with gas instead of reheating leftovers. Still, their chemistry was there—eventually.

Personally, I needed less meandering and more momentum.

If we’d shaved off a chunk and given the plot a Red Bull, this would’ve hit a lot harder.

Still, the love story is there if you have the patience to find it.

*ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

𝒯𝒽𝑒 ℱ𝒶𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒢𝒶𝓂𝑒 by Olivia Hayle , ARC review
4⭐
Billionaire romance… Who doesn't like escaping to a world that isn't their own, if only for a little while? Haha!
I really enjoyed this book.
We meet a group of friends who met at a public school, and we realise that the next books in the series will be about these characters. In The Faking Game, we meet West Calloway, a highly desirable American millionaire, and Nora, Rafe's sister and a beautiful model, who finds herself in a risky situation.
West and Nora aren't the best of friends, but they're forced to live together when a business deal and Nora's life are threatened. To deceive those behind the threat, West suggests that he and Nora pretend to be a couple, which would also benefit him by keeping his mother's incessant attempts to set him up with suitors at bay.
Extra points: I really liked the way the story explored themes related to emotional issues, like Nora's case. I could relate to the protagonist's feelings and found myself wishing for a West in my life, someone who could empower me as he did with Nora.

Tropes:
🎀 Brother's Best Friend
🍸 Forced Proximity
🎀 Dating Lessons
🍸Fake Dating

Thanks to the NetGalley platform, the publisher and the author for providing this copy in exchange for an honest review.

Like I thought this would be a fine read, but it was just cringy and it just missed the wow factor. Thus, it became a struggle.
2.5

This was such a fun read I really enjoyed the chemistry between the main characters it felt natural and had just the right amount of tension and banter. The fake relationship trope was done really well, with enough emotional depth to make it believable and engaging. I also appreciated that both leads had their own arcs outside the romance. A few parts were a little predictable, and I would’ve liked a bit more time spent on the ending, but overall, it was a satisfying and entertaining story. A solid 4 stars from me.

Billionaire ✅️ fake dating ✅️ brothers best friend ✅️ tied up together into a present of a book! The chemistry and the tension are like chefs kiss! I devoured this book and throughly enjoyed it

this was a cute book. I enjoyed it. the couples chemistry was HOT. it as a spicy read for sure. I would love to continue this series

Absolutely adored this! Olivia Hayle has cemented her place as an instant-buy author for me.

The Faking Game delivered everything I crave in a romance—delicious chemistry, swoon-worthy spice, and a surprising tenderness that pulled at my heart. The connection between the characters felt electric from the very beginning, and the way the MMC was head-over-heels for the FMC? Swoon. I love a hero who is completely gone for his girl, and Hayle wrote it perfectly.

The banter was sharp, the tension was addictive, and the emotional payoff was so satisfying. I smiled, I swooned, and I highlighted half the book. This story hit every beat I wanted and more.

Highly recommend for anyone who loves fake dating with real feels, scorching tension, and a cinnamon roll hero wrapped in a confident package. Another knockout from Hayle!

** Thank you NetGalley and Olivia Hayle for the eARC. All opinions are my own.**

Thank you to NetGalley, Olivia Hayle, and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC. I loved the slow burn of this romance. The characters had good dialogue and the plot was predictable but good.

The smut is written well. Definitely heavy on the praise kink throughout the book.

I loved the concept of this book. The characters were well developed and the slow burn was great. The connections through the book were explained and progressed well with each new addition. I wish there had been more time spent on the stalker subplot. It was talked about so frequently but I feel like the explanation was a bit of a let down with how much it was played into.
Overall I loved the book, perfect spice and romance levels.

I have slight mixed feelings with this book - I thought the romantic plot was good but loved the dynamic between the MMC and his friends. My favourite parts of the book were their interactions/friendship and really stood out in the story. That is not to say that the romantic relationship was bad but in comparison to the friendship group it felt slightly overshadowed.

I was really interested to see how Nora's modelling/designing career was going to go as this was one of the parts of the plot I was drawn to but was disappointed when this kind of felt left on the back burner. It was suppose to be a driving force for the plot, for Nora to have to stay with West in the States, but once the fake dating began it was forgotten to the side.

I'm looking forward to the sequel that was hinted at in the closing chapter of the book - especially it involves West and his friends again!

This book had me feral in the best way — fake dating, brother’s best friend, a hot billionaire with a praise kink… say less. The banter is top tier, the smut is chef’s kiss, and West literally worships her — maybe a little too much sometimes, but I wasn’t mad about it. The stalker plot was kinda rushed I loved it anyway. A solid 4 stars!

Who doesn't love a Billionar fake dating best friends brother romance. I truly loved reading this story and could not put it down. The writing is great easy to sit and lose yourself in for a whole day. I can't wait to read more of Olivia's books.

- 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑮𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒚 𝑶𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒂 𝑯𝒂𝒚𝒍𝒆

𝘛𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘴:
✰ 𝘧𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨
✰ 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴
✰ 𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘷𝘪𝘣𝘦𝘴
✰ 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥
✰ 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘹𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘺

Olivia Hayle strikes again with another phenomenal romance!
I can't get enough of her writing and her charming characters. I loved both our main characters Nora and West equally. They were already pretty amazing from the start of the book but I also loved how great their character development was.
I liked how adorable their romantic dynamic was as well. I am a sucker for dating lessons and the trope was written so perfectly here.

I also liked the side characters and am already so curious about the upcoming stories especially Amber's 👀 her set up sounds so delicious and I can't wait for it.
But also Rafe

- 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑮𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒚 𝑶𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒂 𝑯𝒂𝒚𝒍𝒆

𝘛𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘴:
✰ 𝘧𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨
✰ 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴
✰ 𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘷𝘪𝘣𝘦𝘴
✰ 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥
✰ 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘹𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘺

Olivia Hayle strikes again with another phenomenal romance!
I can't get enough of her writing and her charming characters. I loved both our main characters Nora and West equally. They were already pretty amazing from the start of the book but I also loved how great their character development was.
I liked how adorable their romantic dynamic was as well. I am a sucker for dating lessons and the trope was written so perfectly here.

I also liked the side characters and am already so curious about the upcoming stories especially Amber's 👀 her set up sounds so delicious and I can't wait for it.
But also Rafe

The fun balance of tension and romance in this book made it a joy to read. The dual conflicts of both Nora and West needing a marriage to help them out of their own separate issues leading to the forced proximity and the tension of West becoming Nora's, guru so to speak made for a fun conflict of plots.

Nora's reconciliation with her own self doubt, and her issues with being a people pleaser made this book incredibly relatable. And then watching Nora break out of that mould and find herself was really refreshing to read, it added a layer of depth to the bool beyond the conflict of the marriage of convenience.

This is such a fun easy read with a fun plot that would be an excellent read to introduce someone to the romance genre or to get you out of a reading slump.

I had high hopes for this one and to be honest, I was not disappointed.
Felt like a typical brother’s best friend romance with a rich mL and inexperienced/ people pleaser Fml

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: May 5, 2025

A slow burn or just slow? This is a fake dating your brother’s best friend romance that would be a 4⭐️ for me if not for all the patronizing dialogue.

All the baby talk is nauseating and when she finally loses her virginity after weeks of them wanting to sleep with each other, she’s just a vessel for his pleasure and doesn’t even climax. People clearly enjoy this, but it’s not for me. It’s also frustrating because the open door spicy scenes are well written (if you ignore the dialogue when he’s talking to her like a child). There’s a subplot about her having a stalker, and while it’s a catalyst to have them close to each other for her protection, the reveal seems like an anticlimactic afterthought.

This was such a fun read! The chemistry between Nora and West was sizzling! I love watched Nora come out of her shell and grow into such a confident woman and the patience West had with her was swoon worthy!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

The combination of best friend's sister, fake dating, and dating lessons, along with the intriguing setting of the Fairhaven estate and a stalker to top it all off - this was so fun to read!

While this book started out a bit slow for me, once the main characters attended the "heaven and hell" party, I was hooked and could not put this down.

I really liked the storyline and character growth for Nora - it was a realistic struggle, and the pacing was well done. I especially enjoyed the slow build up to the "final lesson", which of course you know is going to happen!

I will definitely pick up Rafe's book when it is out!