This book was textbook fake dating in the BEST way! It had everything you would hope for complete with outside pressures, sudden and unexpected attraction, and all the will-they-or-won’t-they (even though we know they will, because that’s why we read romance)!
I loved Griffin’s ease in how he approached Marnie, even though he had a lot going on. I loved how much he wanted to protect her while also wanting to prop her up to make her believe in herself. It’s always nice to see a supportive leading man, especially one who knows how to read a romance book and use his knowledge to perfection.
Marnie was so hilarious! Being left at the altar is a pretty sucky situation. Ending up with a video of yourself tripping down the aisle as a meme is downright catastrophic. And she’s really feeling the effects of that embarrassment as the book opens. I loved how hard she worked to overcome the insecurities that were holding her back and, in the end, finds a way to move forward from the whole thing. It was really wonderful to see such raw and authentic healing occurring in such a beautifully comedic book.
I also loved the “fairy godmothers” and all the relationships between the side characters. This laugh-out-loud funny novel was next level entertaining and I’d definitely recommend it. Especially if you like fake dating.
Your Romance Reviewer,
Eliza.
Release Date: June 6, 2022
Read to the end for an excerpt from A Borrowed Boyfriend.
On a scale of one to ten, how bad is it that I want to see my fake boyfriend naked?
Marnie
What’s worse than being left at the altar? Becoming a meme because one of your nearest and dearest took a video of you running—and falling—down the aisle and made it internet famous.
Yup, I’m that Marnie Jones. My sister is for-real famous, which only makes people more interested in my predicament. Is it any wonder I’m feeling down?
My best friends will try anything to cheer me up…including setting me up with the Fairy Godmother Agency, a maybe-crazy husband and wife private investigator-slash-life coach team who promise to find the person who sold me out. Better yet, they lend me a fake boyfriend to make my ex jealous and appease my sister.
Griffin is gorgeous, attentive, and a very convincing actor. He’s perfect for the job.
Too perfect.
***
Griffin
After a lifetime of practice, I’m good at pretending. But the more time I spend with Marnie Jones, the less I have to feign my interest in her.
She may be down, but she’s not out. She’s beautiful, funny, and just the right amount of weird. All she needs is someone to remind her of that.
If I weren’t such a screw up, I’d have half a mind to do it myself.
And now, for an excerpt from A Borrowed Boyfriend!
“Aw, you two are staring into each other’s eyes like you’re teenagers,” Sinclair says, slicing her way into the moment. I shift my attention to my sister’s face on the iPad. Her words are sweet, but she’s obviously not appeased. To be fair, she’s spoken to me nearly every day for the last month, and I’ve been feeling down for a while. Now, I’m suddenly in a relationship with a man who looks like this, wearing a nighty that could have been stolen from the set of her Netflix show. She probably has whiplash.
Then again, maybe she thinks I could never find a man like this without bribing him. It stings, even more so because she’s right.
“What can I say? Mitchell makes me feel like I’m a teenager again,” I tell her, my tone tight.
“The same age you were when you pretended you had a boyfriend?” She grins at “Mitchell,” that thousand-dollar grin that’s on dozens of posters. “See? I have my reasons for suspicion.”
Old hurt wells up inside of me. My sister was a beautiful TV star, and I was an awkward teenager who couldn’t attract a second glance from a guy unless he was teasing me. So, yes, when she asked if I had a date to prom, I claimed I did. Rupert Wrightman.
Crap. I’m really bad at coming up with off-the-cuff names. Actually, considering I told her this handsome stranger next to me is called “Mitchell Mountainbottom,” I’ve probably gotten worse at it.
I look down, but suddenly strong fingers are touching my jaw, tipping my face up. Then I’m looking into Mitchell’s eyes, which look hot, like caramel starting to boil in a pan, and he shocks me by leaning in for a soft kiss. It would have lasted for only a few second, just long enough for me to register his soft but firm lips, the brush of his short beard, and his spicy scent, but my mouth parts in surprise, and then I find myself pressing into him, electricity arcing between us and gluing us together. He’s the one who pulls back, a slight smile on his face as he lifts his hand to my jaw and softly traces it.
“Seems to me there must’ve been plenty of guys half in love with her,” he says, still looking at me, and my pulse is galloping in my chest, so alarmingly fast I think I might actually die. “If she did pretend to have a boyfriend, it was probably because she wanted to let them down easy.” He lifts a hand to my jaw again, tracing it. “She’s thoughtful like that.”
I’m at a loss for words. Actually, I can’t do anything but gape at him. Should I be pissed at him? Probably. Maybe I would be if I could form a single coherent thought.
It’s for the best that Sinclair takes over. “You guys are too cute.” There’s a bit of an edge to her voice. She’s still suspicious, although I’ll bet she’s not altogether sure why she’s suspicious.
“Yes, we are,” Mitchell says with a smirk. He’s still looking at me, though.
I’m the one who finally breaks the stare. Glancing back at my sister, I clear my throat. “We have to go. Talk to you later?”
“Where do you have to go?” she asks. “You haven’t even finished your breakfast.”
Mitchell gives her a suggestive grin. “Isn’t it obvious? It was nice meeting you, Scarlett.”
Then he reaches over and ends the call.
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