Title: The Stand-In Boyfriend
Author: Emma Doherty
Series: Grove Valley High #1
Publisher: Self-published by Emma Doherty
Publication Date: March 12, 2019
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Received an ARC from the author/Inkslinger PR in exchange for an honest review for the purpose of this blog tour
Rating: 4 stars
Livy Chapman is in love with Jessie Stephenson. It’s that simple. She has been for years but he only see’s her as his best friend. His best friend who copies her homework, relies on her to bail him out of trouble and who he hooks up with other girls in front of.
Enough is enough and when Chase Mitchell, star of the soccer team, and all round Mr. Popular steps in and convinces her that they can do each other a favour by pretending to date, Livy is just crazy enough over Jessie to agree to it.
I mean, Chase is just her stand-in boyfriend. Nothing could go wrong. Right?
Review:
I just want to start this off by saying that the fake dating trope is the best trope of all time and I will go to my grave saying that. Not to be dramatic, but there’s a good chance those will be my last words. It’s my ultimate weakness. Nothing will make me buy a book faster than seeing that it involves fake dating. It always has just the right amount of angst. Enough to get you invested, but not too much that you want to throw the book across the room in frustration.
The Stand-In Boyfriend absolutely lives up to my love of the fake dating trope. I thought it was freaking wonderful and I will do my best to make this a popular book in the YA world.
I will say that there are a lot of similarities to To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, the original fake dating story, but it’s not too similar that it feels like they’re the same. I’ve equally enjoyed both as much as I would equally recommend them.
I liked Livy, I liked the side characters, and I freaking adored Chase. He always tried to get Livy out of her comfort zone but respected her boundaries and her anxiety. He did so many things to look out for her and keep her as comfortable as possible within the craziness of their fake dating situation.
This book just made my heart so happy and if you love fake dating/To All the Boys, then I would highly suggest you pick this one up. It’s worth your time.
About Emma Doherty:
Emma Doherty was born in Yorkshire, England. She attended university in Newcastle before moving to London. She loves to travel, write, spend time with friends and family and hear from her readers.
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