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This duo never ceases to amaze me with their ability to make me laugh, swoon, and shed tears, but what’s more is the way you feel the love and safety of “home” every moment you spend inside the worlds they’ve created.
Mandi is the “reliable” Greene sibling, a people-pleaser, especially when it comes to her family. I truly adored her character. She was a nurturer. She seemed to find a bit of peace in taking care of others, but it was clear that she was missing something. While she made sure those around her were taken care of, it seemed all too often she was willing to put everyone before herself, until a stranger showed up at her inn.
Noah was always looking for the next adventure, although it wasn’t a surprise that the only family he had had a falling out when he was in his teens, leaving him in the middle. His love for his grandmother, and his desire to heal what had been broken between her and his dad, was enough to make anyone swoon. He and Mandi seemed like polar opposites, but really they were perfect for one another. She gave him a reason to plant some roots; he was able to take care of her while she was taking care of everyone else, and get her to try some new adventures.
The chemistry between Noah and Mandi was instant, and every interaction was fraught with the most tension-filled slow-burn I think I’ve ever read. Now, I’m not saying the house fire we had the night Noah and Mandi landed on my kindle was because of the tension between them, but I’m not saying that either. Let’s just say that My Fake Fiancé was the first book I read on my new kindle.
(We really did have a fire. My family and our animals made it out safely, and for that I’m grateful. (My kindle was one of the many things we lost.)
In all seriousness, I’m not sure I’ve ever appreciated this amazing author duo more than I do right now. The Greene Family was everything I needed to allow me a reprieve from reality. I love that when you go into any book by this duo, whether it’s small town Alaska or a hockey team, in any setting within the first page, you feel at home, and as you read, the love of the friends and family work their way into your heart. It’s being immersed in a fictional world for hours, and when you reach the end, that love and those characters stay with you long after you finish.
My Fake Fiancé was nothing short of all-consuming perfection. One word and reality ceased to exist as I became completely immersed in the Greene Family world. An enthralling blend of sizzling chemistry, a swoony hero, a sweet heroine, laugh out loud banter, even shedding a few tears, the most epic tension-filled slow-burn ever, all inside a world teeming with love, and a trio of grandma’s that mastered meddling and laugh out loud shenanigans.
On a personal note, This book really was what I needed this week. I’ve found myself saying that before, but I’m not sure that I’ve ever meant those words more than I do right now. Being able to lose yourself in a fictional world that offers that “homey” feel when yours was so abruptly lost added so much more to my reading experience, and I feel like that is something so special about this duo, offering people an escape from reality while also offering so many things that some of us might be missing in real life.
