W.Renshaw is one of my fav authors and with Fake-Ish, published by Montlake, she delivered again.
Briar is always the bridesmaid, never the bride. At a wedding - where else, she meets Dorian, the groom's college roommate.
They hid it right off and made a pact to meet again in 2 years time. Said and done - and here it gets very interesting, let me sort it out. She's just got a new job under the condition attending a family event as her new boss' fake fiancée. Surprise, suprise, Dorian is his brother.
An highly entertaining wrong time - right person read. A fast paced, complex romance, a witty and fun read.

I’ve been working hard editing my novel. Really intensive work this time around. So many historical things to check to be certain and making decisions when the scholars contradict each other. One woman academic who published her dissertation, wrote on Medieval Irish women. There was a fair amount of material on Anglo Irish, but virtually little on the Gaelic Irish, and instead of going to the few sparse previous works and reading up on the society in general to help draw conclusions, she went to England and the continent to study their experiences. How on earth her professors let that go, is beyond me. In any case I had to really comb through and throw out all the English and continent stuff and find a few pearls about Gaelic women. Not much was there.

Speaking of women’s experiences I just finished a novel by Lisa See, “Lady Tan’s Circle of Women”. It’s set in 15th c. China and is about a woman doctor. She came from a family of women doctors in the novel and apparently it’s based on an actual woman whose publications of treatments (only to women of course) were still used 500 years later. Amazing book.

I loved this story that gets told partly in flashbacks. The past is the first time Dorian and Briar met, in a beach resort to celebrate mutual acquaintances engagement. Neither is planning to get married but they find each other easy to talk to and being in a relationship starts to seem appealing. But Dorian is going to be busy touring the world with the band he's managing and it's not going to work out right now. A year later, they meet again. His father is dying and the family has gathered on an island. But Briar is fake engaged to his brother and bound by a non-disclosure agreement so she can't explain anything to Dorian. So it's very awkward but she gets to know his family better in the process.

The author's writing style works for me -entertaining, easy to read, with some real feeling getting through to me here and there. I liked the characters although Dorian's preferences made little sense to me - how would no contact be preferable to a long distance relationship? I am sure they could have afforded the plane tickets and made some time to meet during the tour, if they wished to. But, it was necessary for the plot to work and it got me this great story so I'm not complaining about that plot device. Any case, it reminded me a bit of that fab Cary Grant movie where they're supposed to meet on top of a skyscraper.... there's something so romantic about being willing to wait.

Steam level: Some sexual activity takes place but it's not the point.

I received a netgalley copy and this is a voluntary review.

Briar has found herself in a pickle. She agreed to be her boss's fake-fiancé for eight weeks while visiting his family's private island. No big deal, right? If she and Burke pull it off, she walks away a million dollars richer and her boss's dad gets to spend his last days thinking his son is happily in love.

There's just one little problem...Dorian, the man Briar met at a wedding a year ago, the man who stole her heart and asked her to wait for him for two years while he took care of some business, is on the island. She can't tell him her relationship is fake. She can't tell him she was waiting for him, too. She can only watch as he drifts further and further away while she pretends to be a doting fiancé to a man she can barely stand.

<i>"I would've waited for you," I tell her. "And I was. I was waiting for you."</i>

Once I started reading Fake-ish, there was no putting it down. I was exhausted after dealing with a sick baby and still stayed up until after 2:00 AM to read this book. It was that addictive. It switches back and forth between a year ago and present day from both Briar and Dorian's perspectives. Their chemistry grew stronger with every trip into the past, and you were forced to watch them have to pretend to not know each other in the future while both their hearts were breaking. I'm glad that the events from a year ago were woven into the story rather than occurring all during the beginning because it allowed you to see just how much the current events were affecting Briar and Dorian.

There are a few twists that leave the reader wondering how deep the story is going to go. Burke's motivations for bringing Briar to his family's island are questioned as is Dorian's relationship with his brother and his brother's former fiancé. There were a few times when I wondered - and hoped - the NDA would be made null-and-void so Briar could tell Dorian what was going on, but that would have ruined the epic pining going on.

And the pining was epic. One of the reasons I love dual POV is that you get to see exactly what both parties are going through. Dorian's struggles with seeing the woman he loved with his brother had me clutching my chest on more than one occasion.

If you like mild-angst, intricate family dynamics, dashes of steam, and instant chemistry, then this book is for you.

Thank you, Winter Renshaw and NetGalley, for the opportunity to read this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Dorian comes from a wealthy family. His father is dying and his last request is that his kids spend eight weeks at home. All his wants is to honor his father and spend the least amount of time with his brother and sister. Never did he think that the one lady that he spent three wonderful days with would be standing by his brother’s side wearing his ring.

Briar agrees to a fake relationship thinking no harm, she’s been waiting for the man of her dreams and only one more year to go. Seeing Dorian was pure joy and also the worst feeling possible. When they met last year, it was instant chemistry. They had so much in common that they knew this was the person they would be with always.

Told in dual POV, we get the best of both worlds and find out what happened last year and relived the connection they had. The emotions run high but the attraction and chemistry is undeniable.

Not wanting to give anything away but you will never be disappointed when it comes to anything written by Ms. Renshaw.

Advance copy was given and voluntary wrote this honest review.

"Fake-ish" by Winter Renshaw had its cute moments, but it left me wanting a bit more intensity and emotional turmoil in the romance. I couldn't help but feel that there was a missed opportunity to really dive into the passion and complexity of the characters' connection.

A little bit of a different twist on a familiar trope. Briar is fake dating her boss to help him earn an inheritance. But instead of those two falling for each other (like we’ve seen so many times before), she has to keep up the charade in front of his brother Dorian, whom she met and fell in love with a year prior. Circumstances don’t allow Briar to divulge that the relationship isn’t real, and Dorian is left feeling hurt and betrayed. While much of the drama is a bit contrived, I read this quickly and was interested in the story. I do think Dorian got over his betrayal a bit too easily, but I liked the way the author wrapped up all the side character’s storylines in the epilogue. 3.5 starts, rounded up!

Thank you to Montlake for this digital advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

A great romance with much conflict potential.

Two years waiting but then you meet the person again one year before the meeting should happen, with the worst possible situations.

Great persons, great story,
I loved reading it and I loved nearly everything on it.

Have fun reading!

Hurry Up And Wait

Dorian and Briar both being anti marriage make a great storyline. Add in a father and two siblings and it becomes even more entertaining. Winter never lets her readers down and this book is no exception.

Fake-ish is the story of Briar and Dorian who meet at their friends' joint bachelor and bachelorette party. Dorian finds the party to be an annoying charade, and as they spend more time together, they realize they have a lot in common. And that they like one another. But he says he can't be in a relationship. He asks for her to wait for him for two years, and she agrees.
Fast forward one year, and Briar is fake dating her boss for the summer in exchange for one million dollars. She signed an ironclad NDA that doesn't allow her to speak of their arrangement, ever. But when Briar arrives, she finds that her boss's brother is none other than Dorian.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and definitely recommend it. I couldn't put it down.

If you’re looking for spice, you’re barking up the wrong tree, but this one was a decent romance.
Briar and Dorian meet during an out of country island bachelor/bachelorette weekend and sparks fly. Fast forward a year, Briar decides to go into a contract with her boss stating she will get $1m if she pretends to be his fiancé for 8 weeks during his annual summer trip to their family’s private island - one that will likely be his father’s last. Only problem? Dorian is her boss’s brother and she signed an NDA.
Character development was decent, storyline was decent. Just nothing stellar.

Briar and Dorian make a deal to wait for each other, but when Briar's boss offers her money to play his fake fiance for a summer for a huge amount of money she accepts, what can hurt right? Until she meets his boss's family and his brother Dorian. A complex love story with a lot of family drama but true love.
I volunteered to review an ARC of this book for Netgelly

4.5 stars

I don't often read contemporary but this was a nice change. The two person focus writing in the first person took some getting use to but I did think it bought something to the story making more rounded characters.

The protaganists only seemed quite young. There was an emphasis on making money which neither Briana or Dorian seemed very driven by but there ends up loadsa dosh by the end of the story. It's unusual to find a couple who don't want to get married and there was no hints about whether they wanted children either. Dorian particulary seemed to enjoy travelling. It was a quick read so I might look out for this author again.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was a super fast-paced and such an interesting, easy read. I loved the fact that I didn’t know where it would go next, and I also liked peeling back the layers of both characters. It was a perfect mix of swoony, angsty and entertaining read!!

I would like to thank netgalley for providing me the book. The book was quite fast paced but could have given more attention to Dorian and briar. Over all the book was good would like to read more from this author

Thanks to netgalley for the chance to review this book! I love a good missed opportunity/ second chance romance and this book checked all the boxes. Briar and Dorian meet at a bachelor/ bachelorette party and begin with witty banter, as the night goes on, they begin to enjoy each others company more and more and spend time falling for each other. But as the story goes, the timing is all wrong and they make a pact to wait for each other. Fast forward to the following year and Briar is engaged, but things aren’t always what they seem. Upon a summer time visit to her new fiancées family island (yes island), she realizes his brother is none other than Dorian. We witness a summer of heartbreak while Briar tries to convey her love for Dorian and he wants nothing to do with her.

If you’re up for some angst and right people wrong time, this book is absolutely for you.

I don't mind insta-love too much if there is a proper connection and chemistry to build on, but this book lacked all romance or chemistry. Every relationship was so shallow, surface emotions only.

I still don't understand why the three kids hated each other so much? To the point where they were not just aloof or distant from each other but malicious.

I found Dorian to be unlikeable. I know Burke had form, but his immediate hatred of Briar in the present was off putting. Even if he'd assumed something was fishy but she'd stonewalled because of the NDA. The obstacle that was frustrating. What was going to happen if she spilled?

I really struggled to keep reading this one, only reaching the [cheesy] ending because it is a relatively short book and I like to at least try to finish ARCs to get a full sense of the book to review.

This was my first book by Winter Renshaw, but it definitely will not be my last. Briar and Dorian meet at a destination bachelorette/bachelor gathering. They talk while the rest of the party is dancing and drinking and find out they have things in common. They spend time together over the next few days, but neither is in a place in their lives at the moment to commit to any type of relationship. They make the choice to meet up again in two years, when Dorian is free of his current commitments, so they can continue their relationship.

Fast forward a year, and Briar is fake-engaged to Dorian‘s older brother. Briar is unaware of that until she meets him at the family getaway, where they are all supposed to spend eight weeks together in the summer. Clad by an ironclad, NDA, Briar cannot disclose any information to Dorian.

As the days pass, and different things happen, Briar‘s impression of Burke, her fake fiancé, goes through an array of changes, based on information she learns.

I enjoyed the story and finished it in one day. Winter Renshaw‘s writing style flowed very easily for me as a reader and I can’t wait to read more from her.

I love me some romance and this one didn’t deliver on it. I just wasn’t expecting it not to. But maybe that’s me.

I've read quite a few books by Winter Renshaw, so when I read this book's description and saw who it was written by, I jumped at the chance to read it. While I loved the idea of the plot, I didn't quite love the execution. Don't get me wrong, it's definitely not terrible but I felt like it needed more.
Fake-ish alternates between the past on the weekend the two MCs meet and the present where the female MC is pretending to be the male MC's brother's fiancé. Generally, I like this format, but I felt like it didn't really provide anything for me in this book. The problem for me was that I felt like we never actually got to know the characters. Sure, we get to see them meet, but it often felt like a lot of tell and not show. I felt like I never truly got to know the characters' personalities which for me meant they weren't very memorable. Within minutes of finishing the book, I could barely remember the female MC's first name. We never really get to know her or learn what she wants out of life, what she enjoys, etc.
I felt like the book was honestly sort of lacking in romance. It really felt like a large emphasis was placed on the family dynamics of Dorian, but then at the same time, we never really get an explanation for all the issues in their family. They all have this stiff familial relationship but it doesn’t really explain why and the few things they mention make it out that they were close as kids but don’t really explain why that fell apart so badly after their mom died. There's tension between all the siblings and their significant others and generally, it just felt like a book with a lot of angst but no real explanations as to why, or the explanations were very vague.
Another thing is that I felt like the side characters were very inconsistent. Burke, the man she is pretending to be engaged to, for instance, has these sudden shifts in likeability and I just felt like that could have been executed better with more backstory or explanation. There's another character as well who is connected to the family who gets a lot of page time and I think is supposed to be a source of angst in the book, but then their appearance is very anticlimactic and they say like 2 sentences and peace out.
Overall, I'm sure plenty of people will enjoy this book, but for me, it felt like an outline or first draft of a book. There are so many parts of it that I felt like could have used more explanation and more character development, so for me, it fell short. Overall I'd say 2.75/5 stars, I liked the idea but wasn't keen on the execution.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this book in exchange for an honest review.