Reviews

Fake It Till You Bake It by Jamie Wesley

kk_123's review against another edition

funny lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

thatsoneforthebooks's review

3.0

✨ Review ✨ Fake It Till You Bake It by Jamie Wesley

⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: contemporary romance
Location: San Diego
Pub Date: June 21, 2022

NFL player Donovan Dell and two of his football buddies own a cupcake shop; when Jada Townsend-Matthews (social media influencer, currently hated reality star, and granddaughter of Dell's NFL team's owner) needs a job, Donovan hires her at the bakery. They end up fake dating to clear Jada's reputation and boost cupcake sales.

This book read as just okay for me. I loved the cupcake setting and the lovable NFL buddies, but Jada's entry into the book just seemed mean beyond her "bougie" identity that Donovan loves about her. Somehow it was a struggle to see her as authentic, even while I was rooting for her. The fake dating setup didn't have a lot of tension and resolved itself so early in the book that the remainder of the book seemed slow and not so important - I don't think I was invested in the larger conflicts beyond their relationship.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and #netgalley for an advanced e-copy of this book!

joyangel143's review

emotional hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

magnoliapigeonbookblurbs's review

4.0

Can we talk about how amazing this cover is? I picked up Fake It Till You Bake It based on the cover alone (didn’t even read the description) and I’m so glad I did.
Reality dating show

samhdixon's review

funny hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

blairchristine's review

5.0

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC copy of “Fake It Till You Bake It”. I devoured this book so fast it isn’t even funny. I loved it so much. I will say I was a little hesitant at first with the introduction of our FMC Jada. I was put off due to what she initially says and her negativity towards the Business she goes into with her friend where she happens to be overheard by Donovan the business owner. BUT I will say after the first scene with Donovan when she leaves the Bakery with her friend I start to learn more about her and really start to love her. I feel the growth she has in the book makes up for the first impression I initially get from her from Donovan’s POV. Overall I loved all the tropes this book had. Even the fake dating, which that’s not usually one that I tend to gravitate to all the time! I rate it 4.5 start and am rounding it up to 5 for good read and Amazon rating purposes. I can’t wait to see if there is a second, which I am going to assume there is because I need a story for August, Nicholas and Olivia because I’m not ready to leave this version of San Diego.

rickireadss's review against another edition

3.5

the premise of this was really good, but the execution fell a little flat for me. i don't know if it was the insta-lovey-ness of their relationship but i just needed more. at times, i felt like the story dragged and others it was going wayyy too fast. AND i really thought we would get away with out miscommunication because there were *multiple* opportunities for it but wesley actually had them communicate and then BAM right at the end it happened, and i was disappointed. also i will say, while i have seen this marketed as a sports romance (the MMC is a professional American football player), there is NO sports talk or anything about the actual sport on page - so if that's what you like, then pick this up! if you'd rather have some of the sport happening on-page, this isn't the book for that.

⚠️: bullying, toxic relationship (FMC & parents), addiction, emotional abuse, ableism, fire/fire injury

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Addiction, Emotional abuse, Ableism, and Fire/Fire injury

haechans's review against another edition

5.0

this book is one of my anticipated reads this 2022 and it really [mj rodriguez voice] DELIVERED! i loved the writing and the chemistry between jada and donovan was just chef's kiss. definitely pick this book up if you enjoy fake dating trope because it's done so so so well!

this book has:

- black leads!
- delicious banter (that gets even more delicious after they got together)
- grumpy-sunshine fake dating
- hot makeout in a supply closet (and even hotter smut)
- super good character development
- dyslexia rep



thank you to netgalley and st. martin's press for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

mindblasian's review

funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

koolestlozer's review

3.0

cute fluffy fake dating