4⭐️ | ARC Review

This book was the definition of sweet, small-town rom-com comfort. If you love Hallmark vibes with a side of hockey romance, this one’s for you!

Ashlyn’s life in LA as a celebrity closet organizer is turned upside down when she rushes home to Maple Falls to help fix her parents’ marriage. Enter Jamie—the new NHL captain of the Ice Breakers—who’s also adjusting to small-town life (and hilariously struggling with the local wildlife 🐻). From their very first meeting, the chemistry was there.

When a little fake dating scheme comes into play, plus an ex-girlfriend and some small-town chaos, I was hooked. This story was light, charming, and had me laughing at the town shenanigans (seriously, the bears 😆). Watching Ashlyn and Jamie go from strangers to friends to something more gave me all the cozy, slow-burn feels.

Maple Falls feels so real that I wish I could move there—quirky neighbors, hockey fever, and that close-knit charm that makes you feel right at home.

If you want a feel-good, clean romance that’s quick to binge and full of smiles, add this to your TBR immediately. Bonus points for the dual POV, because getting into Jamie’s head? Adorable.

Popular Quote: “𝘔𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘐 𝘮𝘦𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶.” 💖

Tropes you’ll find:
🏒 Sports romance – hockey
🏡 Small-town romance
🖤 Fake dating
🔥 Slow burn (closed door)
👩‍❤️‍👨 Friends to lovers
😂 Rom-com shenanigans
✌️ Dual POV

Thank you NetGalley & Whitney Dineen for the opportunity to read this as an ARC! 💖

3.5

Ashlyn returns home to fill in for her father as Mayor of Maple Falls so that her parents can go on a vacation to reconnect and save their marriage. It was supposed to be easy. But she never counted on a legal development with the potential change the small town for ever or on Jamie, the Captain of the Ice Breakers.

Read if you like:
-Small Town
-Hockey Romance
-Fake Dating
-Sweet not Spicy

I really enjoyed Fake-Off with Fate. Jamie's adjustment to small town life was so funny and I loved watching Maple Falls rally to raise money. And then of course there was the hockey romance and fake dating. It really was the best of both worlds!

I loved the first Maple Falls series and I'm excited for this second one! You don't need to have read the first series, but I'd recommend it anyway because it was so much fun.

I loved everything about this book. The fall setting and the sports in the story . Every book I’ve read about sports and romance has been good . I highly recommend this book to everyone who likes sports romance . Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for arc

Welcome to Maple Falls, a town that’s just as sweet as it sounds.

Ashlyn’s trip home/to Maple Falls plan -
1. Save Mom & Dad’s relationship - tropical romantic getaway??
2. Remind Dad that he’s married to Mom & NOT his job as Mayor, the citizens of Maple Falls or ‘Maple Fest’/convince his to fly thousands of miles away from his beloved town.

NOT part of Ashlyn’s trip home/to Maple Falls plan -
1. Step in as Mayor in place of Dad - lie to the town so they don’t know he’s thousands of miles away (flu, stomach bug etc.)
2. Raise money to pay a newly discovered town descendant for the land he actually now owns so he doesn’t turn it in to a strip mall.
3. Become extremely confused with life/feelings- Job? Home location? Handsome charming ice hockey captainJamie?

✅ I’d recommend this book to people who enjoy -
• books/genre - contemporary romance, closed door romance, cozy romance, sports romance & rom-com
• themes/tropes - fake dating, friends to lovers, slow burn, & cozy fall vibes.

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[This is book 1 of 7 in the multi-author ‘Love in Maple Falls’ series. Whilst each book can be read as a standalone the authors suggest reading them in order]

Fake-Off with Fate is a cozy fall romance set in the Hallmark movie-esque town of Maple Falls. It’s filled with warm wholesome characters, chaotic small town shenanigans & a closed door/no spice friendship-romance that will have you kicking your feet with glee. The MC’s Ashlyn & Jamie are selfless & likeable with a relationship that’s both hilarious & heartwarming. Their story does have a couple of lows but the sarcasm, wit & banter is never far away.
Overall, Fake-Off with Fate is a really enjoyable, easy going, quick read that I’d definitely recommend.

• Ashlyn gave the best ‘girl boss’ vibes. Strong, independent & certainly not someone to back down from a challenge. She was loyal to a fault, dropping everything to help her parents & Maple Falls. I also loved how sassy, witty & sarcastic she was. Her interactions with Phillip were a fantastic example of that & honestly had me howling, I just wish there’d been more.
• Jamie was a leader both on & off the ice. Loyal to his team, his new town & of course Ashlyn. I adored their friendship/relationship & the way he was always there for her (except when it came to the bears…). He had physical, mental & emotional strength & the vulnerability shown regarding his past relationship only added to that. I can only hope he managed to find a new place because once those bears are come hibernating its to time all over again 👀.

I do think it’s worth mentioning that for a hockey romance theres very little hockey involved. There’s references throughout as the MC was captain & the team helped to raise funds for the town etc. but when it came to actual games or playing, there’s not a lot. For me, it didn’t really take away from my enjoyment of the book but for anyone reading with more of an interest in hockey it may be a little disappointing.
I had similar feelings when it came to the romance. It’s a closed door-no spice romance so as expected there was nothing like that involved but there really wasn’t much else in terms of strong romance. Granted, there was (I think) one display & romantic thoughts/feelings but the vast majority was friends developing feelings. Ashlyn & Jamie did have a great slow burn connection but in my opinion it was definitely more about feelings turning romantic as opposed to actual romance.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Overall this was a really enjoyable book. I felt like I was stepping in to a Hallmark movie which was a total dream! I loved Ashlyn & Jamie but I really wish there would’ve been more to their relationship. The majority of the book was friendship & evolving feelings but it barely crossed into romance. They were very sweet & likeable though so it was still a fun journey to follow. I felt Whitney Dineen did an amazing job of totally immersing you into this book/Maple Falls. I could picture the Town Hall, diner & Jamie’s cabin (as well as Phillip’s annoying little face😅). This book has me so excited for Autumn/Fall & I look forward to reading the other books in the series.


📣 Thank you to NetGalley & Whitney Dineen for allowing me to read & review this ARC. This honest review consists solely of my own thoughts & I am leaving it voluntarily.

3.5 ⭐️

This book kept me entertained from beginning to end. It's a fast-paced romance that's easy to read.

Ashlyn and Jamie develop a bond that makes you laugh and want to keep reading. I also liked Jamie's vulnerability (bears) towards Ashlyn. The only downside was the part about the fires in LA. It came a bit out of nowhere and felt a bit rushed.

I recommend this book if you're looking for a cozy, fast-paced read.

This was a cute fast read. The parts with the bears were hilarious. I respected the hell out of Ashlynn. She was supportive of her parents, unafraid to secretly step into the role of acting mayor of Maple Falls and thought fast on her feet when dealing with her father’s nosy assistant and in forming a plan to save the town. I liked Jamie too. I liked that he knew his mind and had no intention of taking back his ex after she dumped him for another man. The story just had an odd pace. There was a lot of set up for the auction and then very little written about the auction. The whole story was about saving Maple Falls, and the town’s fate was written as an afterthought in the epilogue. For me, there wasn’t a lot of chemistry between Ashlynn and Jamie, and there was zero romance. Most of the emotion is thrown into saving the town, not into figuring out what was happening between our couple.

Thank you to NetGalley, 33 Partners Publishing and Whitney Dineen for an advanced reader copy (eARC) in exchange for an honest review.

I have enjoyed this series from the start. A sweet romance. This one was just the same. A cute small town fake romance. Which is always one of my favorites. I enjoy small town romance!

I was kindly provided with the arc of this book by NetGalley and the author in exchange of an honest review, thank you ✨

4⭐️

This was my first book by the author and it was a very cute story! I literally finished this book in like 6 hours, because it was so fast paced, and so easy to read and so sweet! I just couldn’t put it down once I started✨
I loved the story of Ash and Jamie, they were both sworn love off, but fate told them, “not in my watch my dears” because they were everything they needed but didn’t know they wanted it❤️‍🩹 I also enjoyed the plot of saving Maple Falls and even loved the family of bears 🙂‍↔️ IYKYK

This was a very sweet seeing story and I deeply recommend it if you’re looking something cozy and beautiful to read✨

This book was really cute and fun to read. I liked the story on the character development and plot. I really also liked that it was involving hockey. I definitely recommend this. I want to say a big thank you on Netgalley and the author for letting me read this amazing book.

I really enjoyed this as a slow-burn romance, it had that element that I was wanting and enjoyed getting into this world. The characters had that charm that I was looking for and enjoyed the overall feel of them and their world. It uses the humor element perfectly and I enjoyed the sports concept in this. Whitney Dineen has a strong writing style and glad it was everything that I was looking for.

Fake Off with Fate is the kind of feel-good contemporary romance that makes you want to curl up with a blanket, a pumpkin spice latte, and read it all in one sitting. Set against the backdrop of a cozy fall town, this story follows Jamie and Ashlyn through a classic fake dating setup that quickly turns into something real.

Their chemistry is instant and infectious, with just the right mix of banter, charm, and emotional tension. While the story keeps things mostly sweet, there’s a little bit of spice to keep things interesting. I loved how Ashlyn held her own and how Jamie was both swoony and soft at the same time.

The subplot of the bears was absolutely perfect and left me chuckling, especially when the "friends" showed up.

This is the perfect pick for fans of wholesome romance, fake dating tropes, and autumn aesthetics. It’s not overly heavy or drama-filled—just the right amount of heart and warmth to leave you smiling.

I LOVED this book I couldn’t put it down! I’m a sucker for hockey books. So good thank you for the chance at arc reading this!

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

This book was super cute. I just love Maple Falls (this book is part of an interconnected series by multiple different authors) and couldn’t wait to visit again.

In this novel we follow Ashlyn and Jamie. Jamie just got dumped by his girlfriend who is named after an allergy medication. Feeling humiliated he decides to abandon New York and become the new captain of the Ice Breakers in Maple Falls. There he meets Ashlyn and slowly falls for her. Ashlyn lives in LA, but to help save her parents marriage, she comes home to Maple Falls. From there, there are many side plots and tropes that occur that put her in Jamie’s path.

This novel was one that is an easy read. Meaning, if you are looking for a laid back book pick this one. Yes there is drama but nothing that will have you tossing your kindle at the wall.

I will say that I didn’t feel the chemistry between Ashlyn and Jamie until the 70% mark. Up until then they were great friends. I think this is because there was little inner monologue about their feelings besides them seeing the other as a pal. I think adding more of that in would make this hit home harder.

I also thought there were too many subplots. I won’t spoil anything, but is there a bigger reason behind Alexander? Will that be in another book? Because it started off super serious but then was resolved quickly and off the page in the epilogue. It just didn’t work for me.

I really enjoyed this novel and seeing some of our favorite characters from the series again. I can’t wait to see what happens in Maple Falls next.

*An ARC was received in exchange for an honest review.