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A review by escapistlit
The (Fake) Dating Game by Timothy Janovsky
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
this was a fun read!
i loved leo and holden and how their relationship developed. i really liked reading their interactions and even though it was quite fast-paced, still enjoyable and believable. the sprinkle of d/s undertones in their sex scenes was a nice surprise too. i could have done with more mutual pining in the ‘faking’ part, the oh but he’s acting bc this is pretend angst. but fake dating is my fave trope and i’ve read so many so my expectations are high by default lmao.
i also liked the way grief and grieving was covered in this as a secondary plot thread tied to holden’s character development. and i loved the scenes with leo’s mom.
the main conflict/antagonist’s motivations and actions were a bit wobbly and forced, especially with how it concluded. it did feel a bit, oh, we need a villain or to add tension for the last quarter of the book without relying on the miscommunication trope - these boys do talk to each other! - it was a bit clunky for my tastes. but, that wasn’t a huge deal breaker, probably just me being picky.
overall this was a fun rom-com with lovable characters! mvps are leo’s mum and holden’s dad.
thank you to the publisher for the review copy
i loved leo and holden and how their relationship developed. i really liked reading their interactions and even though it was quite fast-paced, still enjoyable and believable. the sprinkle of d/s undertones in their sex scenes was a nice surprise too. i could have done with more mutual pining in the ‘faking’ part, the oh but he’s acting bc this is pretend angst. but fake dating is my fave trope and i’ve read so many so my expectations are high by default lmao.
i also liked the way grief and grieving was covered in this as a secondary plot thread tied to holden’s character development. and i loved the scenes with leo’s mom.
the main conflict/antagonist’s motivations and actions were a bit wobbly and forced, especially with how it concluded. it did feel a bit, oh, we need a villain or to add tension for the last quarter of the book without relying on the miscommunication trope - these boys do talk to each other! - it was a bit clunky for my tastes. but, that wasn’t a huge deal breaker, probably just me being picky.
overall this was a fun rom-com with lovable characters! mvps are leo’s mum and holden’s dad.
thank you to the publisher for the review copy