I’ve always thought books with fake relationship storylines are incredibly interesting and entertaining. There’s so much nuance in creating a believable scenario in which two people agree that pretending to be enamored with each other is the easier/better option than telling the truth, and there is so much awkwardness that goes with pretending to be in love with someone you dislike or barely know. That fascination, along with an appreciation for humor, is what inspired me to write two different fake dating romantic comedies of my own, The Wedding Date Deal and The Gratitude Guarantee. It’s also why I can’t get enough of books like the ones on this list!
This book drew me in immediately with one of the best meet-cute scenes I’ve ever read. I loved how it was obvious pretty quickly that Dallas isn’t the grumpy bad boy that the media makes him out to be and how Poppy draws that softer side out of him with her sunshine personality.
I also loved Dallas’s grandmother and all of Poppy’s family—they are so supportive and also provide some delightful awkwardness since they aren’t aware that the relationship is fake. Also, Poppy owns a restaurant, and I loved the food descriptions!
The banter in this book is fabulous, and I was intrigued from the get-go to find out how Jack and Lauren would go from enemies to faking a relationship to lovers. I also really enjoyed the setting since at least half of the story takes place on a cruise ship. This book has strong small-town vibes once they get off the ship and lots of great side characters.
Even though it’s a romantic comedy, there are also some deeper layers to the characters that make the story interesting on top of the humor. And I liked that the grumpy/sunshine dynamic was reversed from the way it is in most stories, with Lauren as the grump and Jack as the sunshine.
He calls it fake dating, but she calls it being caught between the devil and the deep blue sea.
Lauren Foley and Jack Fletcher already tried to be amicable once—on a blind date that ended in complete disaster. Now, years later, they have to put up with each other for the sake of her sister and his best friend, who are eloping on a cruise to the Bahamas. But that’s not the worst of it. No, Lauren’s in even deeper water when she finds herself agreeing to play Jack’s fake girlfriend for the duration of the cruise.
The thing I loved most about this book is how impervious Audrey is to Flint’s charms at the beginning of the book. She’s a scientist who doesn’t watch movies and doesn’t know or care that he’s a massive star—she’s truly just there for the squirrels she’s trying to research!
It was a delight to watch Flint try to charm Audrey and figure out what makes her tick since she’s not like other girls and to watch her developing feelings for him while navigating the spotlight that comes with being his (fake) girlfriend. I also love the sibling relationships that both of them have. Nothing’s funnier than a brutally honest group text with your brothers or sisters!
He’s Hollywood’s biggest star. She wouldn’t know him from the pizza delivery guy.
I’m a wildlife biologist in a tiny mountain town, not some kind of law-breaking celebrity stalker. At least not on purpose.
It was an accident when I wandered onto the property of one of Hollywood’s hottest movie stars. Five minutes ago, I'd never even heard of Flint Hawthorne. I definitely didn’t know he lives in Silver Creek.
When I’m detained for trespassing, the last thing I expect is to trade my handcuffs for a designer gown. All I wanted was permission to conduct my research on a…
This book has such a unique storyline. I’ve never read another book that features a nurse who moonlights as a singer in a rock band! I loved watching Sami try to hide her costumes and whereabouts from her three roommates, who act more like sisters than friends. When Josh moves in next door, he’s immediately smitten with Sami and asks her out, but their first date doesn’t go great, which is why he’s surprised when she agrees to pose as his girlfriend to get his parents to stop pushing a family friend at him.
This book is full of witty banter and surprises as Josh and Sami somehow manage to challenge and accept each other at the same time.
"A delicious read that I loved from beginning to end. Melanie's witty banter and engaging writing style kept me hooked until the last, satisfying page." Becky Monson, bestselling author of The Accidental Text
Make one stupid bet and suddenly you’re fake dating your hot new neighbor...
There is nothing like hiding a secret identity from your roommate besties to complicate . . . everything. And when they decide I need a love life makeover, I can’t tell them why I don’t have time for their schemes.
Retirement home nurse by day, lead singer of a rock band by night. Not…
This is one of the funniest fake dating stories I’ve ever read with so many delightfully cringe-worthy moments. Olive is such a relatable character and Miles is everything you could want in a leading man. I was laughing every step of the way as these two workplace rivals fake-date their way through Christmas at a lodge in Vermont, surrounded by family members on both sides who have no idea it’s all pretend.
The setting is perfection. Cindy Steel does a great job making you feel like you’re actually sipping cocoa in front of a Christmas tree with snowflakes falling outside your window. It’s the perfect cozy holiday rom-com!
That's all it took. Now I'm suddenly having to fake-date my work nemesis to get me through a week at a Vermont Christmas lodge with my family.
The problem? I can't stand Miles Taylor. Not only that, but I don't date people I work with. But I can handle it. I've had practice faking my emotions for years. So it shouldn't matter that Miles never lets me get away with anything. And that he happens to boil my blood hotter than a steaming pot of wassail. So when he throws his annoying grin my way or…
The last thing Grant wants to do is go to his brother’s wedding and watch him marry Grant’s ex-fiancée. But his mother is adamant, so he reluctantly takes his best friend’s advice to hire a date. When Annie agrees to pretend to be his girlfriend for the wedding, she thinks it’s a win-win solution. His family will think he’s moved on and doing great, and she’ll get the financial windfall she needs after a streak of unexpected expenses. All she has to do is attend a beach wedding with Grant’s whole family. What could possibly go wrong?
If you like a fake relationship, meddling best friends, family drama, and chemistry but not too much heat, this sweet romantic comedy is for you!
I’m an Australian USA Today bestselling romance author who writes contemporary romance and uses the pen name Alyssa James to write medieval romance. I think the makeover trope resonates with me because although I’m no beauty queen now, I was definitely an ugly duckling in my teens. For reasons best known to him, my father insisted on close-cropped hair, and financial circumstances dictated out-of-style hand-me-down clothing. After university, I found my own style, but it wasn’t until I was accepted as an international flight attendant that I believed that I couldn’t be all that ugly if Qantas employed me!
Return to Hope Creek is a second-chance rural romance set in Australia.
Stella Simpson's career and engagement are over. She returns to the rural community of Hope Creek to heal, unaware her high school and college sweetheart, Mitchell Scott, has also moved back to town to do some healing of his own.
Mitchell, a former NFL quarterback, doesn't need the complication of encountering Stella again so long after the messy end to their relationship, but as each tries to build a new life, they are drawn together and find their chemistry is just as strong as ever.
When two old flames come back to their home town, sparks are bound to ignite. A rural romance from USA Today bestselling author Alyssa J. Montgomery.
A horrific car accident ended former world number-one Stella Simpson’s tennis career, and a betrayal ended her relationship with her fiancé/coach. When a family friend offers to sell her half of a property in the rural community where she grew up, it seems like the perfect place to escape, heal and begin the next phase of her life. Until she discovers that the man who broke her heart ten years ago has bought the…
