Fake dating WITH cherry pie? Sign me up! I enjoyed meeting Emily and Mark, but the story got lost along the way. There was plenty of family drama and even a cat name (Margaret) Ms. Muffins. There were so many cute details, but I couldn't get into it.

This was a cute read! I've heard a lot about Jackie Lau but hadn't had the chance to read her and am happy to have had the opportunity to start with this one! I enjoyed the fake turned real dating plot, as well as the references to Toronto. I also enjoyed the switching perspectives that began in part two but wish it could have extended to the whole book. Overall, I would recommend this book and am looking forward to reading her others!

Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie was exactly the fun rom-com I wanted to dive into after a tough work day. Emily has four sisters and she is the only one who isn’t married. At 33, her mom has started really putting on the pressure and is now trying to set her up with Mark. Emily wants nothing to do with it and has no interest in Mark when they meet. But then she realizes if they agree to fake date, she can stop the pressure from her mom.

I am always here for a fake dating story and this one hit on all the points I enjoy. I listened to the audiobook and the narration was great. Fun read! Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the free ebook.

✨ Review ✨ Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie by Jackie Lau

Thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books and #netgalley for the gifted advanced copy/ies of this book!

This super sweet enemies-to-lovers and fake-dating romance was like a slice of cheery pie (on top of a milkshake...with whipped cream on top...and a book to read while you eat it)!

Emily and Mark decide to start fake dating to hold off their parents who were trying to match them up. After keeping almost getting caught in their lies they move from their imaginary dates to real ones, and Emily begins to wonder if maybe Mark isn't so bad at all...

Emily's published her first book with others in progress, while juggling working in a coffee shop and tutoring. She's the only unmarried daughter (out of five) and her family has FEELINGS about this. Much of the book operates around how Emily feels her parents and siblings perceive her and how she moves within those understandings.

I really loved these tropes - two of my favorites - and the general plot and relationship. Emily's grappling with her advancing age here, early in her 30s, and I did find some of the mentions of this begin to feel repetitive and overwrought. A few would have done!

Otherwise I really enjoyed this - it gives off some Kim's Convenience Canadian + Asian family vibes which made it even more fun to read!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: contemporary romance
Setting: Toronto
Reminds me of: Kim's Convenience, Sunshine Nails
Pub Date: May 07 2024

Read this if you like:
⭕️ books, coffee, and gelato
⭕️ fake dating
⭕️ family drama
⭕️ cats

This is my second read by this author the first was "Not Your Valentine" overall a cute read with classic troupes and themes (fake dating, enemies to lovers). Great overall romance book for an easy day or reading.

Emily a budding author is the last unmarried daughter of four and her mother has now taken her dating life in her hands matching her up with an unsuspected man named Mark. Mark is also seemingly uninterested and wants to gets his parents off his back as well. Emily hatches a plan to pretend to date to appease both of their parents but as they spend more time together there the feelings change.

The beginning of the bool sets Emily up as a struggling author working three jobs to make ends meet and sharing an apartment with a friend at 33 years old. Mark on the other hand works in tech and is well off from first impressions. I feel like in this case Mark's POV could have been alluded to sooner to give more a deeper character and allow the book to have more substance rather than coming off as more fluff.

Very cute read would recommend as an easy weekend beach read.

Thank you to Netgalley for this book to read in exchange for an honest review.

It took me a long time to read this romance. The idea is pretty cute--a writer is writing about writing a love story while living her own love story--but I found the first half really slow. Emily was very judgmental, and I couldn't believe that Mark would be attracted to her after her pretty much constant rudeness. But once they began communicating. it became a lot better of a read. I also appreciate having Asian representation in romance!

This is the second book I have read by Jackie Lau and I really enjoyed this book. I really enjoy a fake dating book and this one was so fun. I enjoyed Emily and Mark, and seeing how they navigated dating while balancing their careers. Of course when fake dating is involved in a book you know your going to have a meddling family!! The meddling was so realistic and brought humor to the story. I felt like the characters were well written and enjoyable. This book was a lot of fun and give you some heartfelt moments. I would definitely recommend this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books | Atria/Emily Bestler Books for allowing me to read this ARC for my honest opinion.

Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie is a well-crafted novel featuring an interesting spin on the fake dating trope.

There were elements of this book that I found enjoyable to read, but I think that the familial expectations portrayed in the book and the ways in which miscommunication is utilized in the plot were too stress-inducing for me. But the fact that it resonated so heavily is a testament to how real the characters and the narrative feel. The author’s craft is evident and ever-present, so I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this.

Emily Huang is a part time barista, part time author and the last of her siblings to be single. Her mother has decided to make it her mission to change that last fact about her ans goes about setting her up with dates, and her most recent one is with Mark Chan, a stuffy yet good looking guy who, unbeknownst to Emily’s mother, agrees with Emily that they should fake date to make both their families happy after meeting at the wedding at of Emily’s sister. First they just tell people that they’ve been on dates without actually going on dates but then decide that that won’t work for long so they go on real fake dates which lead to real dates which lead to some real steam. Maybe mother really does know best.
This is a slow burn romcom with forced proximity , enemies to lovers and fake dating and all of it taking place in Ontario, my home province, which made it that much sweeter for me. Not to mention the milkshake with the slice of cherry pie on top! I need!
Jackie Lau is quickly becoming a go to author when I need a pick me up read.
Thanks to Atria and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

Gah, I feel like I’m striking out on books lately. I did not like the main character or love interest in this one. I felt like Emily was annoying and rude. I also didn’t love the writing style of the stream of consciousness thoughts in the beginning of the book. Mark also came across as very one dimensional. Also, I think dual POV is done strongly when it’s started in the beginning of the book, but waiting until 60% of the way through did not make the story better. I just didn’t believe in the romance here, and I’m so sad it wasn’t for me.

Read if you like:
💋 Fake Dating
😡 Enemies to Lovers
🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒Meddling Parents
🌏 Asian culture & characters

This was a little slow start and get into the plot, but once you do, the book really takes off!

Emily has always felt like a failure in her mothers' eyes both because of her career choice and relationship status. After a lot of pushing, she agrees to go on a date with Mark, the man her mother is insistent on setting her up with. But the catch is that Emily and Mark decide to fake a relationship for mutual benefit!

This was a fun twist on fake dating because it was truly fake more than many other fake dating plots. It was so entertaining to see Emily's dynamic with her family and the excuses she came up with along the way.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC!

Jackie Lau is a new author to me, but I was drawn to the cover and the plot, so I decided to pick it up.

Overall, it fell a little flat for me. It was still cute, but we don't get much of the MMC until a third of the way into the book and we don't get his perspective until way into the second half of the book and I just wish we had more of it.. It was a little slow going the first half, but the second half was a lot better. It also became more about the relationship with the mom and most of that falls into the miscommunication trope. It's definitely still romance, but became more about the mother/daughter relationship. I guess I just wanted more from the two MMCs. I enjoyed the writer's style of writing, so I won't let this sway me from reading their other books.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley. I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.
3.75 Stars

This was a fun fake dating romance! I liked this book, the relationship between Emily and Mark, and Emily’s growth and how her relationships with her sisters and mom change. Emily and Mark’s relationship has a great fake dating trope which of course leads to a real relationship. They are opposites and at the beginning it doesn’t seem that they’d be a good fit but as they spend more time together we get to see that chemistry build and more banter and we see that they are actually so good for each other. Emily herself is also funny and relatable. Not only is her relationship with Mark great but I loved seeing how her relationships with her mom and sisters, mainly Allison, developed for the better in this book as they all gained a new perspective of what the other was dealing with and feeling.

Overall, this was a good and fun fake dating romance!

This was a cute story. I enjoyed reading a story that takes place not too far from home, it makes one feeling even closer to it.
The story starts off from a single point of view, but I was very pleasantly surprised when I got to experience Mark’s point of view. He provides a more tempered version of events from Emily. Also, Mark’s cat was a nice bonus. Emily is a thirty-three year old author working as a barista to help make ends meet between advances. Her mother is dead set on her getting married and settling down. Emily has 4 sisters that are all married and her relationship with the eldest is rather strained. At times I really felt for Emily because she just wants to live her life on her own terms and her family keeps interfering and imposing their own expectations on her. I found this to be quite unfair to her at times, but she handles it alright, sometimes. I said that Mark’s POV provides a nice addition to the story because, quite frankly, sometimes Emily annoyed me. Overall though, the development of the relationship between Emily and Mark, from fake dating to friends to lovers provided for an entertaining read. The story could have done without some of the ghosting on Emily’s part though - once, maybe, but more… didn’t care for it.
I would recommend this book for anyone who has some strained familial relationships or interfering family that need an escape (or if that’s the kind of thing you like), if you are looking for something set in Canada (because, why not), or if you are looking for some nice light reading.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an e-arc of the book. The opinions expressed are honest and my own.

This is such a clever fake dating story! I took Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie with me while I was traveling with my family recently, and I kept sneaking away to steal a few minutes to read another chapter. The heroine's challenges as a novelist struggling to find time to write and work to pay the bills resonates. I enjoyed the humorous quotes at the beginning of each chapter that sort of functioned as commentary regarding the publishing industry. The heroine wrestles with her family's expectations, or maybe I should say her perceptions of her family's expectations, and she only agrees to date the hero to appease her overbearing mother. The slow-burn romance, as well as the witty banter and chemistry between the hero and heroine kept me engaged throughout the novel. I thought the end was adorable and super satisfying as well.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the complimentary copy. All opinions shared here are my own.

The cover of this book looks so delicious so I figured there would be a lot of food, and Jackie Lau is an author I like, so I wasn't disappointed. The fake dating troupe is what I've grown to love in this book. Emily, our main character, is a writer who loves food, and I loved reading her perspective on writing and publishing. Being Canadian, I loved the Toronto setting. With a man her mom set up for her, I didn't like that she faked dating because her mom meddled in her life. Emily who felt the need to break up with Mark because everyone found out they were fake dating was stupid to me Despite starting out engaging, some parts dragged. It was great to see Emily's fake boyfriend, Mark, develop into an understanding and soft-spoken character. This was an enjoyable read. The lessons learned between mother and daughter were heartwarming.

Thank you Netgalley and Atria for a ARC copy of this book. This was a honest review

Fake relationship becomes very real in Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie. This very sweet (and also slightly spicy) romance has great elements: characters are believable and likeable, plot is interesting and fresh, settings are Canadian (which I loved). I love a meta moment like a book about an author. Another great one from Jackie Lau.

*I received a copy of this story through NetGalley from the publisher for an unbiased review.**

I have never read a Lau rom-com that has disappointed. While the story is fast-paced and cliched in certain aspects, it is only the best of ways. Emily Hung is the only unwed daughter left in her family and despite being okay with being single at the age of 33 and focusing on her writing, she decides to fake date the very eligible Mark Chan to appease her meddling mother. While misunderstandings and assumptions were created at their first meeting, Emily soon learns that there is more to Mark than his profession and argyle sweaters. This is where the cliches come in and I am here for it. Soon Emily is catching feelings and looking to possibly make real something that started as a lie.
Fans of Jackie Lau's earlier novels will fall in love with Emily and Mark as they make for a good Hallmark story. The pacing as previously mentioned was fast, but still enjoyable. If you're in the mood for a possibly too sweet rom-com, then this one won't let you down. Character growth for Emily was nice to see and therefore I rate it a solid 4/5 Stars.

This was actually really cute. I do wish that it was dual pov the while book and not just the second half though. I love two stupid people who don't want to admit they want to be together. He was really sweet and was trying to do what she wanted so he could make her happy.

I received an arc through netgalley.

This is a sweet (no pun intended) fake dating romance. The characters were pretty easy to root for and there were multiple layers to them. Fake dating can get a bit silly but this one worked really well, even with an overbearing parent pushing this. And I really enjoyed the book’s resolution.