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alechains 's review for:
The Faking Game
by Olivia Hayle
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Faking Game was good. When I read the blurb to this and saw the tropes, I was immediately excited because it had some of my favorite tropes: Fake dating, brother's best friend, forced proximity, dating lessons and on top of that you add a bit of mystery with a stalker, I was sold. When I started reading it felt a bit slow, it took me a little while to get fully into it but once we got through the 20-30% mark I was hooked.
I liked both main characters, their personalities and interactions were great they had banter, humor, tension, and their chemistry developed naturally. It never felt rushed and I really appreciated that, I like a bit of a slow burn. I loved how West helped Nora grow into a confident woman who made her boundaries clear, became more confident in herself and talent and stopped being a people pleaser.
And West? He was freaking perfect. He was always there for Nora, he saw her true self from the very beginning and helped her come into her own. He never told her what to do, he listened to her and her needs and always made sure she was safe and felt protected. He basically worshipped her.
Now onto the things the didn't fully convince me and the reason this is only 3.75 stars but leaning into 4. ๐ Besides the fact that the beginning felt a bit slow for me, the whole length of the book felt a bit much, some chapters could have been shorter or cut altogether. In my opinion a contemporary romance doesn't really need to be 500 pages long ๐ And the other thing was the stalker subplot, I really hoped there would be something more to it because it felt like the story was building up to something interesting but when we got there it was like "that's it? ๐คจ", it was very underwhelming. I know this isn't a romantic suspense but still, it was way too surface level for me.
Overall, it was a good book, I really enjoyed it and now I'm excited for what's coming next, I can't wait for Rafe's story after the sneak peak at the end and also Amber's story to find out her mystery man, although I have a theory about it. This was a great introduction to this new series and the characters for the next books.
PS. This quote at the end of the acknowledgements spoke to my soul: "Speaking your pie e and staying true to you, even in the face of others displeasure, is hard. It's terrifying. And it can be incredibly rewarding."
Thank you to Olivia Hayle and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I liked both main characters, their personalities and interactions were great they had banter, humor, tension, and their chemistry developed naturally. It never felt rushed and I really appreciated that, I like a bit of a slow burn. I loved how West helped Nora grow into a confident woman who made her boundaries clear, became more confident in herself and talent and stopped being a people pleaser.
And West? He was freaking perfect. He was always there for Nora, he saw her true self from the very beginning and helped her come into her own. He never told her what to do, he listened to her and her needs and always made sure she was safe and felt protected. He basically worshipped her.
Now onto the things the didn't fully convince me and the reason this is only 3.75 stars but leaning into 4. ๐ Besides the fact that the beginning felt a bit slow for me, the whole length of the book felt a bit much, some chapters could have been shorter or cut altogether. In my opinion a contemporary romance doesn't really need to be 500 pages long ๐ And the other thing was the stalker subplot, I really hoped there would be something more to it because it felt like the story was building up to something interesting but when we got there it was like "that's it? ๐คจ", it was very underwhelming. I know this isn't a romantic suspense but still, it was way too surface level for me.
Overall, it was a good book, I really enjoyed it and now I'm excited for what's coming next, I can't wait for Rafe's story after the sneak peak at the end and also Amber's story to find out her mystery man, although I have a theory about it. This was a great introduction to this new series and the characters for the next books.
PS. This quote at the end of the acknowledgements spoke to my soul: "Speaking your pie e and staying true to you, even in the face of others displeasure, is hard. It's terrifying. And it can be incredibly rewarding."
Thank you to Olivia Hayle and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.