Fake Fiancée by Ilsa Madden Mills
Narrated by Yvonne Syn & Alastair Haynesbridge
Standalone Contemporary Romance
I wanted to grab a quick standalone from Ilsa Madden Mills before seeing her at Wicked Book Weekend, so I grabbed Fake Fiancée, and I was so excited for it! I am thrilled to say it was just what I was looking for. With new-to-me narrators I loved, and a quick and humorous story that had romance, suspense, banter and sexiness, Fake Fiancée just worked for me.
At 17, Sunny is escaping from her life when a gorgeous stranger saves her. There was an instant connection but she ran off. I have to tell you, I felt that zing between them and couldn’t wait for them to meet again.
“I wished I knew his name. I wished… I wished fate would bring us together again some other time, some other place. But not today. With one last lingering look at his face, I turned and ran into the woods.”
Fate stepped in three years later when Sunny transferred schools and lives next to the handsome stranger, who is also the quarterback up for the Heisman. He is all about staying out of trouble and keeping his focus, on and off the field. He has groupies and exes that don’t leave him alone, but he is serious and focused and needs to find a way to get rid of all the clingers. Sunny is paying her own way in college and could really use extra cash, so Max comes up with a solution. They pretend to be together.
“It wasn’t about the pretending. I could be a fake girlfriend. It was my body that was the problem. I wanted Max Kent.”
They both wanted each other, but were both badly burned by exes, so they developed a strong friendship that slowly morphed into more.
“Time and time again, I was taken aback by his off-the-charts hotness. But it wasn’t his looks that tugged at my heart. Not really. It was him—his innate charm that made me want to strangle him one second and then hug him the next.”
It was a slow burn, but one I thoroughly enjoyed.
You know when a book just works for you? It hits every button and you just breeze through it? Fake Fiancée was that book for me. And for me right now, getting a book to really grab my attention has been tough.
“Since the night we’d met on that shore, an invisible thread connected us.”
Likes:
- A sweet, fun and easy read.
- Likable characters and side characters.
- Sunny is strong and sassy.
- It felt honest and real.
- Good mix of angst, romance, drama and sexy times.
- I love standalones!
Dislikes:
- I felt like we could have gotten to know the characters better. It was very surface-only.
- The end wrapped up a little quickly.
The Narration:
I’m so excited I found new narrators to love! Yvonne Syn was perfect. She hasn’t done a lot of straight romance, but did lesbian erotoca before this year. Alastair Haynesbridge had a totally great voice and was perfect for the part. I will be on the lookout for more from them.
The Down & Dirty:
Rating: 4.25-4.5 Stars, 4 Heat
Purchase Fake Fiancée by Ilsa Madden Mills
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