Fake It 'Til You Sleigh It by Mélisa Ryun | Book Review • Ana's Attic Book Blog

Fake It ’til You Sleigh It by Mélisa Ryun

Standalone, Open-Door Christmas Romance

Mélisa Ryun is a husband-and-wife writing duo who kindly offered me an ARC of Fake It ’til You Sleigh It. I don’t usually read many physical books (I’m an audiobook girlie), and I had a pile of beta reads on my plate, but I promised I’d give it a try. I’m SO GLAD I did because I had an absolute blast reading this!

Chase is a writer and director of Christmas movies for the Cherish Channel, but she’s also a total scrooge. Growing up without happy Christmas memories, she’s channeled her holiday spirit into crafting picture-perfect Christmas movies instead. Ethan, the star of many of her films, drives her nuts. He’s hot, charming, and endlessly frustrating with his “helpful” suggestions on set, not to mention his adoring fan club that tracks his every move.

“He’s in his element, a golden retriever in human form, all easy smiles and effortless charm.”

When her bosses threaten her job if she doesn’t bring in a million new subscribers by Christmas, Chase panics and blurts out a lie on air—she’s dating Ethan. Instead of her usual Christmas spent writing in solitude at a remote cabin, she’s stuck heading to humid AF Southwest Florida with Ethan to keep up the charade. Together, they’ll need to convince the public of their love story, live-post updates to generate buzz, and try not to kill each other in the process.

“Next time I save your life, I don’t need a boob grab as payment,” I retort. “A simple thank-you will do.”

Chase is wound so tight, but Ethan’s golden-retriever energy, charm, and wild Florida family (complete with an emotional support alligator!) slowly break through her defenses. Their staged relationship starts to blur the lines, and these polar opposites realize they might just be perfect for each other.

This book manages to be sexy and hilarious at the same time—a combination I always love.

“Giving blowjobs isn’t usually my favorite thing—like, why have a dick in your mouth when you could be devouring a burrito? But holy fucking shit, Ethan’s love wand is next-level.”

“Ethan camped out down there like he was at a cozy cabin retreat, giving my lady garden a luxurious, never-ending spa day.”

Likes:

I laughed out loud, A LOT.
A Florida Christmas! As a Floridian, I loved the boat parades and the other Florida touches.
He fell first.
Chase was so uptight it was funny.
Ethan’s family was the best—so funny and full of love.
Lots of open-door sex scenes that didn’t make me cringe.
The clit fish (you’ll just have to read it!).

Dislikes:

It felt a little long for a Christmas story, but that might be because it took me forever to read.

The Down & Dirty:

Fake It ’til You Sleigh It by Mélisa Ryun was a blast! This is a sexy, hilarious Hallmark movie in book form—but better, because it features a Hallmark-like movie as part of the plot. The Florida setting made it stand out from the usual tiny Christmas-town romances, and the characters were fun and memorable. If you’re looking for something unique and wildly entertaining, I highly recommend this one!