💖 Book Review: The Girlfriend Agreement by Rowan Croft
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (aka five shiny little shrines to this masterpiece)
Fake dating and enemies-to-lovers on a college campus? Ohhh, Rowan Croft knew exactly what they were doing with this one, and I ate up every single chaotic, swoony, delicious page 😩✨.

Lexi Dornan is a literal genius (!!!!!) STEM queen, human calculator, academic weapon (she is so me core) except when it comes to Damian Navarro. One smirk from the campus playboy and her IQ takes a nosedive. When she agrees to be his fake girlfriend (for money she really needs), she tells herself she’s doing it for the math, not the man. Spoiler: she’s lying to herself.

Damian is all swagger and bad decisions, but underneath the cocky grin is a man with grief, guilt, and an Abuela he’d do anything for. His parents want him to prove he can commit or risk being cut off. Enter Lexi: the one girl on campus immune to his charm… until she isn’t 👀.

What follows is pure trope heaven: fake dating rules that get broken, “practice” kisses that feel too real, banter sharp enough to draw blood, and a slow-burn that had me kicking my feet and gasping into my pillow. And yes, the redemption arc is perfection.. watching Damian evolve from campus troublemaker to someone who would burn the world down for Lexi?? Swooning.

💕 Tropes that FEDDDDDDDDDD my soul:
📚 Fake Dating
🔥 Enemies-to-Lovers
🧮 STEM heroine x golden retriever playboy
🏫 College romance
🛋️ Forced Proximity moments
🌙 Slow Burn with payoff
💬 Banter that could fuel the national grid
💔 Tragic backstory redemption arc

🔥 Spice Level: 3.5/5 (As always take mine with a grain of salt!)
The tension simmers for a good while before boiling over, and when it does? Let’s just say… for a man who didn’t “date,” Damian learned fast. Spice is open-door and just the right amount of filthy, balanced with so much emotional intimacy it hits twice as hard 😮‍💨.

🥹 Things I’ll never recover from:
Damian speaking Spanish to Lexi in quiet moments 🫠
The subtle cultural threads woven into his family scenes (Lucia owns my heart)
Ronnie and Andie being the best hype women/friendship goals ever
That one scene with the bucket list? CHAOS. I laughed so hard I had to put the book down.
The grand emotional payoff that felt earned, not rushed.

🎯 Final Thoughts:
This is a story about redemption, healing, and finding someone who sees all of you and stays. It’s laugh-out-loud funny, unexpectedly tender, and steamy in a way that feels like the natural reward for all that delicious slow burn.
Lexi + Damian are the kind of opposites that don’t just attract… they rewrite each other’s rules. And me? I’ll be re-reading this until book two drops. Rowan Croft, you’ve set the bar way too high for my real-life dating life.

EMOJI VIBE TIME HELLO!!!
💌📚🧮🔥💋🏫💔🌙🫶

Thank you Rowan Croft and thank you to the publishers and NetGalley!

This book was an enjoyable read! It was humorous throughout which kept me entertained. Damian and Lexi were so real to me often times I didn’t feel like I was reading. I loved their banter and chemistry.
This book is a fake dating trope but brings in so many more elements than your classic read.
I would recommend this book to my friends and read more by this author in the future!
3 ⭐️

The Girlfriend Experiment is such a strong debut by Rowan Croft, I was genuinely impressed by the writing, the pacing, and how well all the tropes came together. Lexi and Damian’s chemistry was off the charts! The banter? So sharp. The spicy scenes? Delivered.

We’ve got a grumpy FMC in STEM, a sunshine/playboy billionaire MMC, and all the good stuff: enemies to lovers, fake dating, forced proximity, and a one-night stand turned into way more. The class differences added just enough tension, and I loved that this was a slow burn with no third act breakup… just a solid, satisfying HEA.

The character art (which I always look for 1st when starting a book) on socials really help bring Lexi and Damian to life (chef’s kiss). I’ll absolutely be reading whatever Rowan Croft writes next.

📚 ARC gifted by NetGalley.

#TheGirlfriendExperiment #RowanCroftDebut #STEMRomance #FakeDating #SlowBurnRomance #GrumpySunshine #SpicyReads #NetGalleyARC #RomanceTropes

(Gave this book a 3.5 star rating)
I liked the way this book started, but it just kind of ended up losing me throughout. It’s not bad by any means, I just don’t love the writing style, and the MC’s dialogue eventually felt kind of cringey. I just didn’t love that he constantly referred to her as “Blondie”, it got really repetitive and didn’t quite match his character development. However, I loved all the family relationships between the characters and the way that those developed, and the plot itself was good!

3.5 stars.

Lexi’s Mum is ill and in need of medical help that her insurance won’t pay for. Damien is wanting to get his parents off his back and is willing to pay someone to be his girlfriend. Enter the agreement between them both…the catch is they already slept together and Lexi hates his guts.

The FMC Lexi is on a scholarship at the university. Lives off campus with her ill mum and aunt. She’s a maths genius who struggles with trusting.

The MMC Damien is a rich playboy at the university. Only interested in girls and parties and not making any real connections due to a loss in his past.

I liked the premise of this story. The fake dating troupe isn’t always my favourite but I felt this was done well and in a unique way.

The story was easy to read and well paced. For me a few parts were over detailed and distracted a little from the main point so some chapters felt a little long. There were hints throughout that something else was going on with Damien and I felt the reveal for this was timed well.

It deals with cancer and loss sensitively and parts did make me emotional.

This part was so cute!
I less than 3 you
i <3 u

I loved this book. It took me a while to get into it but eventually I did. The characters were loveable and I found myself constantly laughing out loud at scenes.

I really wanted to love this, I’m a sucker for a good fake dating story. But this one didn’t feel like it added anything so it was really hard for me to get through. It’s a super common trope so I feel like to make it good, authors need to do something to make it feel different from the others, and this one didn’t have that. To be honest I didn’t like it as much as the others.

I had a really hard time getting through this one, it had a super slow start and I feel like part of that, that continued through the whole story, was the reader getting way more inner dialogue than we needed. It seemed like each chapter was a single conversation, because that’s how long it took between the words they said out loud and everything they were thinking about that we also read, it didn’t feel necessary and made it drag more.

Super minor note, but he calls his penis Damian Jr… why? Aint nobody want to read that.

Just as the banter started and I started getting into it, the sex started and killed it all. Then their relationship quickly turned into only physical and it’s hard to root for a relationship when that’s all there is. I think this was also because it all started physical which I didn’t like, because then it was super easy for them to fall back into that and have that be all it was.

It wasn’t a good sign when I was 50% of the way through the book and still didn’t care about any of them. I was having such a hard time getting through it that I turned the second half into an audiobook to help me get through it.

I also would’ve like to have seen deeper relationships with the friends, I always like that.

Another thing that’s not super important, but his favorite movie is twilight. That alone I don’t care about, but the amount of times it was mentioned was ridiculous. It was basically its own subplot and that was so unnecessary.

Ok, I’m a sucker for a cute nickname, he calls her blondie which I didn’t love, but I also wish he used her real name more. Nicknames are fun, but I like a good balance and I feel like it’s more meaningful when it’s not used quite so much, especially in the more serious moments.

There were also parts when their relationship developed where he got possessive and controlling of her, but it wasn’t attractive at all. Was not a fan.

And then it all felt like it was wrapped up and done and when I checked my phone I still had 2 hrs left in the book! It wasn’t even super long, it just felt like it kept going but nothing was happening, for most of the book.

Overall, I really had a hard time with this one and if it wasn’t an arc, I would’ve DNF’d it.

I absolutely adore a good fake dating story, which was all it took for me to request it. Unfortunately this book just wasn’t for me, and I DNF’d at c. 30% in. I had two main issues with this: the length/pacing, and the MMC himself.

The first being that I had a really hard time getting into the book as the chapters were so long, and it took pretty much all the the chunk I read to even get to the fake dating arrangement being made. For a story marketed to be a fun romcom, they usually get to the point fairly quickly.

As for Damian, the MMC, well I couldn’t stand him. I get that this is a college setting (so those part might be on me as I tend to read older characters now), but how acted like a moody immature teenager the whole time. Add in some very concerning misogynistic and arrogant behaviour, and you’ve got a love interest I can’t support.

This absolutely has protection and I can see those who love a college setting and a reformed playboy MMC really enjoying this. It simply wasn’t for me.

if this was an adult or oldie book(you know like me) then i wouldn't have given Damien a let out, a loophole, an excuse. he would be a red flag you dont redeem from that stuff no way kind of character(errrm still not sure any age should but that by the boy as this isnt how book often play it and i wont get off my soap box if i start now). nor treat woman like that. and really im on the line of whether i think it should EVER be the case. its only saving is they are younger and the new adult in me used to read and watch movies like this all the time. but still, almost not quite so my mind was never mind up whether i was ok with this. he did grow and oh boy did he change though sooooooo. and his story and his trauma tells us once again that stuff effect you in life it really does. and sometimes we act out, act stupid, aren't doing what we should. and it really makes a difference to whether you can see past that if the person genuinely seems look a good egg.
Lexi was fantastic though. she was a golden star for me in this book. but there again marks the differences doesn't it. man goes through stuff- oh ok hes becoming a f*boy. woman goes through stuff and.... nope she doesn't do the same. a marked difference in the sexes and whats seen to be acceptable once again.
saying all that though and i dont know why these issues crept up so much for me in this book. maybe it was a bad society day in the news or something!
because it was still charming. it was still emotional. and it made me laugh and giggle and also smile like i wanted to.
the side characters and friendships shown in this book was fantastic and oozed sisterhood that we all love and want to see more of.
this book did have me hooked and i wanted to know what was happening and then what was going to happen in the end. the banter was on point and tension to slow build was great. their instant chemistry was magic.
i would love to know more about the side characters stories too.
i think Rowan has a really good writing style and her story was clever, tight and covered all sorts of things many books like this shy away from and i think we need to applaud that big time. as it never took over nor did it make it a tick box exercise.
a brilliant book.
bring on more from this author for me please.

Lexi is the standout in this romance. She’s witty, relatable, and carries the emotional weight of the story with real charm. Unfortunately, Damian didn’t quite measure up. He felt underdeveloped and his growth came too late to feel fully earned. While the premise was fun and the dialogue sparkled in places, the imbalance between the leads held it back for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book was absolutely addictive from start to finish! I really appreciated how the author created such real, relatable characters with genuine struggles. Even though the chapters are on the longer side, they read so quickly that I barely noticed the pages flying by. I also loved how the growth of the two main characters felt gradual and authentic, showing all their doubts and fears along the way.

📚The Girlfriend Agreement📚
Arc review
Rating 4.5 🌟
Release date: 29th July 2025
I was so happy to be accepted to read this book before it came out
I loved this book it made me cry and laugh.
Liked how it tackled the serious themes like trauma and grief and had Spanish into it as well throughout the story.
Lexi's friendship with Ronnie and Andie was just so cute. You can just tell they would've done anything for her.
Lexi and Damians' relationship was never fake even though she hated him. You knew they wouldn't last long it being fake they just cared about each other so much

I really enjoyed how this book jumps you right into the story with these two characters! It gets you hooked from the beginning. This was a really good fake dating story! The banter between the characters was very fun and flirty. There were a few spots in the middle of the story that seemed to have drug along, but they were smaller parts so it still kept me interested. I also really enjoyed the plot outside of the spice and romance aspect of this story!

Thank you netgalley for the chance to read the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I had really high hopes for this book. I love a fake dating troupe, couple that with enemies to lovers and a morally gray redemption, I was beyond excited to read this story.

Unfortunately this book was a huge miss for me. The beginning drags a lot, even though the story jumps right in with the spice on page one. There are so many unnecessary words. I found myself skimming over repetitive plot points a lot. The book is really unnecessarily long.

The MMC, Damian, was not the vibe. The way he uses and speaks about women is not attractive at all. He literally never has “repeats” with people he hooks up with. He treats women like throwaway props, and doesn’t even learn their names. (He forgets the FMC’s name three times for goodness sake.) He makes a smex bucket list bet with his friend. And some sort of video about it went viral, humiliating the girls involved, which didn’t seem to impact his ability to hookup at all. His F. Boy personality did not create any sort of tension that I love in romance books. It was all really cringe. I could tell some of his inner dialogue was suppose to endear him to the reader with his “wit” and “humor,” but it was just misogynistic and immature. I get they are in college, and I love a good New Adult storylines, but this was not it.

I was invested in the FMC’s, Lexi, storyline. She is trying to be responsible and graduate on an academic scholarship, while also trying to help her mom navigate the complexities of living with cancer. I just couldn’t connect with her. Honestly, Damian’s atrocious character took over any ability for me to see how she ever hooked up with that man. She is too smart to be fooled, let alone more than once. I am all for playboys redeeming themselves, but Damian’s redemption could never be believable to me. He needs a good 10 years and some solid rejection to ever be able to grow up.

I want to say this is meant for someone looking for a light romcom, but I didn’t find any of the humor funny, and the romance was not believable. Coupled with Lexi’s storyline, and the devastating reason she is involved in this fake relationship, takes this book right out of the romcom genre for me. She is desperately trying to save her mom’s life, and willing to put herself in a deeming situation to do so . I will say, I really appreciated how this book shined a light on America’s healthcare system, and how it can impact people in a terrifying way.

I am disappointed I didn’t enjoy this book because I was invested in Lexi’s storyline. I debated what to rate it, as I have never given a negative review before. But ultimately I decided to be as honest as I could.

This had so many things I loved fake relationship, GrumpyxSunshine, women in STEM, and so much more. I was sure I was going to love it, but it really dragged for me.

I will say, this author does write a good character arc. I really didn't like Damien much at the beginning of the book but did develop a big soft spot for him at the end. I also thought the found family element with Lexi's best friends was done very well. They had a genuine sisterhood that felt relatable.

My main issue with this book was that it felt unnecessarily long. There was constant inner monologues that really slowed the story down and I found myself skimming multiple paragraphs just to get to the next bit of dialogue in a conversation.

Thanks to Netgally for the ARC.

e-ARC: 3.5⭐️ this book was LONG. Probably unnecessarily long. But, it was a lot of fun and honestly felt like a quick read (though I will admit I’m a super quick reader).

A lot of things throughout the story probably could’ve been edited down and still would have made the same point/impact, and some things could’ve used some more depth/nuance on the page. Particularly regarding their history/reasons they were “enemies” could’ve been more well-developed— so much happened in the past/off-page and we were TOLD about it rather than seeing it, which felt less impactful to me. I wanted to see more of what we were sold on the back of the book, where Lexi is motivated by a crush rather than pure financial need. I also have a hard time believing that Lexi hated Damian for so many reasons and yet never, even in her inner thoughts, held it against him that his family and company is literally the ones profiting off of vulnerable people who just need healthcare. They sort of explored those themes especially towards the end of the book, but I think the story could’ve benefited from having some more depth there, and less emphasis on Damian just being a basic fuckboy.

That being said, I enjoyed watching them fall for each other and seeing Damian grow up a bit, while Lexi found some confidence.

Thanks to NetGalley and Shire-Hill Publications for the advanced copy!

There were so many times I was ready to chuck this book against a wall and throw in the towel all because of two little words… Damian Navarro! Arg he made me so angry. I’m glad I stayed the course though because eventually he starts to grow on you.

Loved this book, loved the supporting characters, and I’m digging Rowan Croft’s writing style. I’m glad I gave this ARC a chance and I cant wait to see what the author comes up with next.

ARC Review

The Girlfriend Agreement (Conwick U Book 1)

4⭐️


Thank you to Rowan Croft & publishing for allowing me to read this book as an ARC <3

also, HAPPY RELEASE DAY!

dual pov
college romance
fake dating
enemies to lovers
billionaire mmc/gifted fmc

2🌶️

-I gave it this rating, spice wise, because while it does have spicy scenes, it isn’t overly descriptive. The scenes aren’t like very very detailed to which I would be like woahhh😏. NOT a bad thing whatsoever! Lex and Damian are both freaky lil tangs 😏

now onto the book… I adored it. Damian was an ass at the start, but he showed a lot of character growth. From where he started at the beginning as a snobby guy, he really does have an ooey gooey side to him. I loved that he was considerate of Lexi. When she was going through her stuff with her mom. Damian might’ve known because of Ronnie, but he wanted HER to tell him. Though she was drunk lol. He was also understanding of how gifted she is. Once Ronnie mentioned how social cues might go undetected to her. Or translated differently. I thought that was cute. Lexi herself is a badass. Though it does show the whole don’t judge a book by its cover thing. Yes Damian did a shit thing to her. Which is completely valid why she hated him. But once she got to know him it really hit hard when you realize how similar they really are. Love them. #dexi

I did like this book a lot, but the one thing I HAVE to mention is the long chapters. They were very long which I struggled with a little bit. If I wasn’t in the zone while reading, I would zone out a little bit and have to re-read. Had to push through the loooong chapters but I’m glad I read the book!

will definitely be reading book 2!

I debated back and forth about how to pose this review, but as it is not a positive one, I'm choosing to keep it brief.

Did I enjoy the book? Was it engaging? Too long? Are the characters enjoyable? All questions I ask myself while writing reviews, and in this case, I have to be 100% honest. The premise was interesting. I liked the cover, and that paired with the blurb drew me in. But once you start to read it, the pacing feels off, the MMC was not book boyfriend material in my opinion, and the FMC was good, but the moment she was with the MMC, she kinda lost herself, becoming a mess.

Damian did nothing for me, and Lexi was good until she wasn't.

I'm so sad about not liking this one. Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the opportunity, nevertheless!

𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝟰/𝟱
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/𝟱
Spice: 🌶🌶🌶
Mood: Fake dating but I’d die for you vibes

𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰:

This book is a spicy, emotionally charged slow burn that had me grinning, blushing, and clutching my pearls like a true rom com heroine. 💕

This book is a slow-burn, fake-dating romance that delivers all the swoons, spice, and emotional depth you could want. What starts as a deal between two opposites Lexi, the sharp, guarded college girl, and Damian, the campus’s infamous playboy quickly unravels into something real, messy, and addictively good. 💘

Let’s talk Lexi. She’s that girl bold, fiercely independent, unafraid to speak her mind, and impossibly easy to love. I adored her strength, her quirks, and the deep vulnerability hidden beneath all that sass. Her journey felt grounded and authentic, and I rooted for her the entire time.

Now Damian… oh boy. He was a complete menace for a good chunk of the book.... cocky, arrogant, frustrating, and absolutely living up to his bad boy reputation. He took forever to win me over 😤you'll just have to keep reading to fully KNOW him!

The chemistry between Lexi and Damian is electric, all teasing tension and sharp banter that slowly unravels into something intimate and sincere. 🔥😩

The side characters were just as fun, especially Lexi’s best friends Ronnie and Andie. i love it when the side characters are fun as well.

Honestly, I’d read entire books about them, and knowing Rowan is continuing their stories? I’m so ready.

What I especially appreciated is how this book isn’t just fluff and steam. it tackles the reality of a broken medical system, grief, trust, and healing in such a grounded way. The second half of the book is where everything really clicks: the emotional payoff, the character growth, and the moments that hit you right in the feels.

This isn’t just a fake dating romcom. It’s about love that transforms you, messy, inconvenient, earned love. And yes, there’s also a chaotic bucket list, unexpected drama, and the kind of “oops we did it again” tension that will have you screaming into your pillow.
Apart from the lenghty chapters (that's my bookish ick. Apologies!) i overall enjoyed this hilarious slow burn romance!

Plus, All the tropes are what i enjoy THE MOST and are my MOST favorite!!!!

Thank you to #NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the early access. All thoughts in this review are my own!