Review: “My Fake Fiancé” by Piper Rayne

Series: The Greene Family #8

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐✨

Steam: 🔥🔥🔥🔥

Release Date: August 23rd, 2022

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I never felt truly desired by a man—until him.

The second he stepped foot into my small town Alaskan inn, his gaze swept over my curvy figure with desire, igniting a flame I thought was dead. He flirted with me, and I might’ve left two chocolates on his pillow at turndown, but that’s where it stayed.

Over the years, he’s floated in and out of town while a friendship developed between us. It’s probably for the best because I’m not a one-night stand kind of woman.

Which is funny because when he propositions me to be his fake fiancée in order to end a family feud, it turns out I am the kind of woman willing to pretend to be the one he’s in love with.

 

I feel like of all the Greene siblings, I’ve barely paid attention to Mandi before. Not for anything else but the fact that in the previous seven books, I can’t remember her making too big of an appearance. So it was great to see her in this one and to fully see her for who she is—caring, generous and selfless. And I was definitely happy to see that Mandi was a fat heroine, because we always need more fat women doing awesome things and finding love along the way.

In My Fake Fiancé, you’ll find:

✨ a fake relationship, duh

✨ strangers to lovers

✨ big family dynamics and shenanigans

✨ the infamous Northern Lights Retirement Home

✨ a gorgeous, fat and kind innkeeper

✨ a long haired, sexy Viking nature photographer

✨ great steam—in the wilderness and use of a sex toy

While not my favourite of the series (like I hoped it would be), I loved the way the story started with a time jump to when Mandi and Noah meet. If you’ve read My Scorned Best Friend, then you already know what happens with these two to a certain extent. But to actually see how that bond and that relationship was built was pretty great. I liked the friendship they formed, the way they got to know each other. I definitely liked the connection Noah has to the Old Biddies at the retirement home, because that definitely added a layer of fun to the story.

Almost all fake relationships have a mutual benefit and I liked the reasons behind Noah wanting a fake fianceé, which made me love him a little more. As always, the fun and hijinks thanks to the Greene family and the Old Biddies is such a good time. Every book in the series, I look forward to the scene where the couple is invited to the retirement home and something wild and inappropriate happens, because those women are just so meddling and so hilarious, it’s impossible to not love them.

“Truth?” he asks. 

“Yeah.” 

“I think I fell in love with you the first time I saw you.” 

I cup his bearded cheek. “Me too.”

This book is also hella steamy, maybe even steamier than the previous one? The sexual tension between Mandi and Noah has been building since they met (three years ago!) and it’s only getting stronger with the time they spend together. So obviously when they finally cave, everything gets really wild and hot and fantastic. As a nature photographer for National Geographic, Noah has to go out into the wilderness for some of his photography and Mandi goes with him once and let’s just say that Mother Nature got more than she was asking for.

I think my only issue with the story was that while they had the physical chemistry and they look hella good together, I struggled to feel the emotional connection. They have their HEA and everything, but I would have liked more emotional chaos from the two of them, especially since Noah is completely against the idea of setting down roots and staying in Sunrise Bay even though he does want to be with Mandi. I felt her frustrations and it felt a little incomplete on his end. I also wanted to see more about how Noah loves and appreciates Mandi’s body, because she has these moments of uncertainty (that all of us fat women have being naked in front of someone else) and I would have loved to see Noah worship her for all of that and more.

And that little tease we got for Chevelle and Cam has me really excited to see what happens in their book!

Thanks to Valentine PR for generously providing me with an advance copy. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.