Lori has been in love with her best friend Aiden since college. Now Aiden (handsome, fair, All-American dream doctor) is getting married, and Lori desperately needs a date to the wedding.
So she asks the best man, Jace (tall, dark, and brooding), to pretend their platonic friendship is something more not to have to face the worst day of her life alone.
Fake dating one best friend to forget the other should be easy… Plot twist—it’s not. When Jace starts acting like the sweetest, most attentive boyfriend, Lori begins to wonder if she’s been seeing him wrong all this time?
They've been an inseparable trio since freshman year, but now everything is changing — and that's not even bringing Jace's feelings into the mix.
Camilla is an engineer who left science behind to enter the whimsical realm of romantic fiction.
She writes contemporary rom-coms. Her characters have big hearts, might be a little stubborn at times, and love to banter with each other. Every story she pens has a guaranteed HEA that will make your heart beat faster. Unless you're a vampire, of course.
Camilla is a cat lover, coffee addict, and shoe hoarder. Besides writing, she loves reading—duh!—cooking, watching bad TV, and going to the movies—popcorn, please. She's a bit of a foodie, nothing too serious. A keen traveler, Camilla knows mosquitoes play a role in the ecosystem, and she doesn't want to starve all those frog princes out there, but she could really live without them.
Three friends, two secret crushes and one wedding...
Happy release day 🥳
This definitely had a 90's rom-com feel and was reminiscent of My Best Friend's Wedding.
The story follows Lori who has had a crush on her best friend, Aiden since college. Aiden is the picture perfect nice guy, whereas her other best friend, Jace has a bad boy exterior. When Aiden's wedding invitation is sent to Lori, she conspires with Jace to start a fake dating relationship, in the lead up to the wedding.
Despite my rating, I did enjoy this book in the beginning. The tension and chemistry between Lori and Jace was great and it had some funny/lightheaded moments which reminded me of classic rom-coms. I was worried this would be a love triangle but luckily this book was not written this way.
Overall, I don't think this book was for me as I didn't love the direction it took in the last 50%. It felt very rushed and instant love.
I also love Taylor Swift as much as the next girl and I'm a big Swiftie but she was mentioned 11 times in 277 pages. This might just be a me issue but I don't love saturated pop culture reference in books as it distracts me from the story.
If you prefer closed door romance this one will probably be for you. There's no spice but lots of tension and frequent references to sex throughout the book.
➸ Thank you again Boldwood Books and NetGalley for sending me a copy of this arc in exchange for an honest review
This book wasn't complicated at all, in fact, it was a delight! Camilla Isley writes endearing, cute and charming, sweet books with characters that I enjoy and root for. I enjoy her writing and find her books to be fast and entertaining reads.
In It's Complicated, Lori, Jace and Aiden have been best friends since college. But now Aiden, who Lori has been in love with since they met, is getting married. Enter fake dating stage left. Lori comes up with a plan to fake date Jace, in a last-ditch effort to get Aiden's attention and hopefully make him jealous. As you can imagine, things get interesting fast.
Coming in at under 300 pages, I easily read this in one day. I was instantly swept up in the book and the characters’ lives. I found Lori, Jace and Aiden to be likeable characters and appreciated how Isley depicted their close bonds, witty banter, and deep friendships. There was also one moment where I laughed out loud and had a smile on my face for most of the book. I also enjoyed the POV chapters.
As I mentioned, I enjoy Camilla Isley's books. They are like a breath of fresh air. They are light, enjoyable, charming and leave me feeling happy. With romance books it is all about the journey and I thoroughly enjoyed the journey the characters went on in this book. I also liked how Isley showed how relationships can be messy especially when dealing with insecurities, making assumptions, miscommunications, and being vulnerable. The ending did feel a tad bit rushed, but it was easy to overlook as the book was so enjoyable.
Charming and well written fake dating, friends to lovers’ book which left me smiling. I look forward to reading more of Isley’s books in the future.
Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
4 stars. A quick & fun read with love triangle, friends to lovers & fake dating tropes in this rom-com about three doctors, BFF’s since college days. A great palate cleanser in-between heavier books & I really appreciated that it’s a “closed door” (clean) romance. Plus, I just loved the “star wars” kitty-cats!!!!😸😹😻😽
She lost me when she tried to throw the chicken breast out a closed window at a wedding in front of everyone instead of just asking for a new meal like a normal person
Lori was a cat lady after my own heart and Jace was a brooding softie. Only 3 stars though because I would have loved to have seen what happened after the happily ever after.
1. wtf is a "girlish scale"? idc what anyone says that was ANNOYING, the way lori was like "my girlish scale is 6 rn" then two chapters later just bc she was putting in the effort to DRESS UP FOR JACE she suddenly thinks her "girlish scale is 7". are women just not allowed to dress up for whatever reason now unless they're high on the "girlish scale"?
2. the part about how guys are so much better and so much less messier. if i could i'd jump into the pages and strangle her with my bare hands. bc who the hell does she think she is. it's giving PICK ME and honestly that made me want to stop reading. like literally. i fucking hate her for that. simply bc a girl has a better rapport with guys than girls does NOT give her the right to undermine girl friendships bc i'm sorry but only like 5% of guys are genuinely interested in being your FRIENDS rather than bitch about you behind your back or secretly hope that you date them. that's just the reality and if you've got a genuine friendship then GOOD FOR YOU but don't you dare act like girl friendships are nothing. i will forever be a girls' girl first but if i knew lori irl then i would actually hate her so. bad. what a weirdo
3. lori is supposed to be what? around 33yo? and she's behaving worse than an immature 15yo.
4. following up on my second point, lori is literally fantasising about BOTH her guy friends then has the audacity to shit on girl friendships? pick a struggle, good lord
5. the mean girl behaviour from kirsten and kendall was so cringey like at least put in the effort to showcase them as bullies, they sound CHILDISH which is once again what one of my problems with lori's behaviour was
6. the plot was incredible but the execution??? i'm not even a published author but i can write better than that. better angst and better characters too. challenge me and see who wins
7. lori literally does not know jace despite being friends with him for fifteen years like i'm sorry but idk what jace sees in her. she's stupid period and all she's done for fifteen years is pine over a dumbfuck then pretend like she and jace are soooo close but what does she even KNOW about him? fifteen years and all she's done is whine about aidan BE SO FR
8. "Not. Her", he purrs. jace baby ily but why are you purring? is this a cat thing? bc she's a cat mom? WHAT IS GOING ON.
9. plastic sorority girls? seriously? that was so demeaning, can this girl get any worse
anyway that's it for my rant, jace was the only one i actually liked tbh. skimmed through after 50% bc i just could NOT take it anymore. i had such high hopes for this but unfortunately!!!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I usually LOVE a fake dating story, especially best friends to lovers. This was just...not complicated, but messy.
Personally, I don't think I could ever fully be able to trust someone who spent the majority of our friendship pining over our best friend.
Also, I feel like ripping my hair out every time Taylor Swift is mentioned. She's talented and all, but I HATE when there so many references to ~real life~ things. (Plus, a swiftie forced me to listen to her music during a 3-hour car ride in my own damn car, so off-putting doesn't begin to cover how I feel).
Just thankful it was not a love triangle. I think that would've made me snap.
Somehow, I thought this was going to be a 'Love, Rosie' like story; the FMC is in love with her best friend for yeaaaars and was unrequited for years as well. But nope, it wasn't like that. There were a lot of things I assumed in this story and none of those happened (for the better I guess because I don't like clichés)
Lori Not going to lie but she annoyed me at first. I just feel like her introduction as a character isn't that likeable. She used her other male friend to go along with her shenanigans to make the other guy jealous. She's also the type that says, 'I am not like other girls.' But as the story goes, she became tolerable.
Jace Oh dear, I didn't expect him to be the type who often assume someone's feelings for him. He doesn't communicate himself and then misinterpret a lot of things and then sulks. But I guess 15 years of having unrequited love does that to you. Poor dude, tbh.
Aiden He's not really the main character but I just want to give him a spotlight for being so patient with his friends (where does he get that kind of patience? Idk but I would want to know and I'll buy a pack of it) No, seriously. And he also speaks well. I feel like he balances the group. Also, I understand why Lori likes him.
Plot It's not as complicated as the title says and I am very happy about it. Everyone in this story is very mature (well, Lori is debatable 😅) and everything worked out in the end because of that. There's also no 'other woman' here (I was worried because of the other side character but she's not a threat after all).
Overall I love the story! It's a light and quick read. Definitely recommend it if you like - long unrequited love - golden retriever guy - fake dating - best friends since college - close door romance
What irks me a bit were the pop culture references specially Taylor Swift songs. Got nothing against her (I also listen to her songs) but reading about her on a book specifically using her song to end the story somehow takes all the attention from the plot. It felt like the author had no idea how to end it so she used Taylor Swift to save it. I just feel like if you are not a fan, you won't understand some of the references.
💎 Thank you, Netgalley and Boldwood books for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily
Lori, Aiden and Jace have been the Three Amigos for 15 years, since their freshman year in college as pre-med students. Early on, both Aiden and Jace were physically attracted to Lori, who is quite lovely, and they are both very handsome. But at Jace's instigation, within months of their becoming friends with her, he and Aiden made an ironclad pact that neither would ever date Lori. As a result, ever since, she has been just one of the guys in their triplicate-BFF relationship. In fact, with Jace in particular, Lori has friend-zoned him to such a degree that he might as well be a eunuch, as far as she is concerned. Countless times over the years, they have slept in the same bed together during overnight jaunts and, while Lori has felt not the slightest sensual stirring, poor Jace has endured agonies of frustrated emotional and physical distress.
Because the gleesome threesome all aimed to become general practitioners, in spite of how utterly competitive each phase of their training would have been, they miraculously managed to stay together throughout medical school and their internships, until they ultimately rounded out their lockstep progression through life by starting a family practice together. During all these years, Lori has consistently considered herself to be one-sidedly in love with Aiden, and Jace has, with equal persistence, unrequitedly adored Lori from afar. As a result, Jace has not been able to sustain a romantic relationship with a woman more than a couple of weeks, and Lori has not been able to sustain a romantic relationship with a man for more than a couple of months, because no one has been fabulous enough to knock the one they really want off their pedestal. Meanwhile, Aiden has gone his merry way, with multiple significant relationships, completely oblivious to what Lori and Jace have been suffering. Then, a year ago, Aiden finally found a woman he wants to marry.
At the start of the story, Lori has just received in the mail an official wedding announcement. Prior to that seminal event, she had been indulging herself in quite a bit of magical thinking, that the engagement would somehow fall through, that Aiden would never get married at all, and things would go on as they are indefinitely, with none of the Three Musketeers permanently pairing off. Lori clutches the invitation to her heaving bosom, races over to Jace's house, and bawls all over him. While he is attempting to simultaneously comfort her and talk some sense into her, Lori comes up with the ridiculous idea of the two of them fake dating to, presumably, make Aiden jealous enough to change his mind about marrying his fiancee. Because Jace is incapable of saying, no, to the woman he loves, after some token protests, he gives in.
This author typically writes chick lit, in the sole point of view of the FMC, with a secondary romance plot. In this particular novel, she has opted to write an actual, full-on romance novel, by including the alternating POV of both the FMC and MMC. But in keeping with her chick-lit roots, each is narrated in first-person POV in present tense, rather than past tense, utilizing the standard source of comedy in chick lit, the humiliation humor of slapstick.
This novel contains several different popular romance tropes: fake dating, friends become lovers, and wedding shenanigans. In addition, there is an element of opposites attract, because Jace is organized and tidy, and Lori is a disorganized slob.
In order to eke out enough words to deem this a novel rather than a novella, there is quite a bit of excessive description in many different scenes that I personally found rather boring and skimmed over. In particular, during the inevitable Dark Period, when all seems lost, the story segues into an extremely drawn-out narration of Jace's self-pitying emotions and time-killing activities while he assumes that Lori will hate him forever. I skimmed over that segment as well.
When the story, at long last, reaches the HEA, within a very brief epilogue, we only get to view the happy couple 24 hours into the future. I personally would have liked to find out how Lori manages to deal with the four or five children she is planning to squeeze into her already overcrowded life, with her medical practice and her menagerie of pets, including four rescue cats and six chickens. I would also be curious to know how the impeccable Jace manages to survive in the midst of the ever expanding chaos that will inevitably be his lot while living with Lori.
This author writes closed-door romance. There is a lot of kissing onstage but nothing more. There is some drunkenness in several scenes, but no foul language.
I obtained access to this book for free through Hoopla. It is also available through KU.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
It’s Complicated by Camilla Isley was such an incredible read!
I love a good love triangle that is for sure and the twist in this was just perfection.
The story is about Lori and her two best friends Aiden and Jace who she meets in college. They are inseparable… the issue… Lori is head over heels in love with Aiden. And boy does the sh*t hit the fan when his wedding invitation arrives! Now with the upcoming wedding, Lori literally stumbles into a plan of fake dating Jace to make Aiden jealous in hopes he will not go through with the wedding. But why does Lori enjoy Jace’s touch so much? What could that mean? As they continue this facade, feelings become complicated and Lori isn’t sure how she feels anymore.
This book is perfect for lovers of Dawson’s Creek, My Best Friends Wedding and The Wedding Date.
A huge thank you to the author, NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the advanced reader copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.
This was a really fun fake dating, double secret crush on your best friends wedding love triangle romance with tons of My best friend's wedding vibes. Cute with a great friendship dynamic, I really enjoyed this kissing only romcom from a fav author! Great on audio and recommended for fans of Cindy Steel or Emma St. Clair.
What a fun, cute and lighthearted read. Three best friends, two secret crushes - what could go wrong?
Lori has been in love with her best friend Aiden since college. Jace has been in love with Lori since college.. complicated. When Lori recieves Aiden's wedding invite she's distraught, and goes to Jace's apartment to talk. But when Aiden shows up and Lori answers the door, she panics - making up that Jace and her are in a relationship.. albeit a fake relationship (but he doesn't need to know that!)
As Jace and Lori put on a show for their fake dating story, Lori starts to realise she may not love Aiden.. but Jace.
𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 A friends to lovers romance featuring fake dating and a little love triangle (but not a bad one!). I flew through this and was getting so happy with Jace and Lori's relationship growing - their chemistry was on point! It definitely felt like a realistic story which I enjoyed as well, I am glad with how Aiden handled everything too!
I loved the dual POV so we can see Jace's pining for Lori, and I did laugh at Lori's POVs with her house full of cats and chickens - my cat is as sassy as hers!
Overall this was a really heartwarming romantic comedy and as always, I can't wait to read more from Camilla!
Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this copy. This review is voluntary.
This could have been 4stars never would have been 5 stars however because it didn’t have me addicted. The reason it wasn’t a4 the endingggggg. What was that why would they get married that fast like I don’t care how long you have known each other they didn’t know each-other in the domestic sense. Planned nothing like girl whose house are y’all going to live at but okay.
Why was he so comfortable with her relationship with the other best friend like dude admits yes he would have holed up with her and you chill with that. HOWWWWW.
Also girl was a pick me she legit said “I am friends with guys because they are less drama”. The entire book was a bright flag telling her that she was wrong and that men were just as full of drama.
3 stars because great plot but the characters pissed me off and the lack of protectiveness.
(Probs a bunch of spelling errors can’t be stuffed tho)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
🇺🇸This was such a beautiful, sweet story. Chaotic and messy but also funny and wholesome. Lori, Aiden, and Jace have been friends for the last 15 years but in secret, Lori has been in love with Aiden since the beginning, and Jace in love with Lori for even longer. It’s right before Aiden’s wedding that things start to get messy.
Lori wasn’t my cup of tea but really brought a fun kind of chaos to the story. I absolutely loved Jace though, but I’m weak for that type of overwhelming unrequited love. I had fun while reading this story and loved how the truth finally came out in the end.
🇫🇷C'est une histoire tellement belle et douce. Chaotique et désordonnée, mais aussi drôle et mignonne. Lori, Aiden et Jace sont amis depuis 15 ans mais en secret, Lori est amoureuse d'Aiden depuis le début et Jace est amoureux de Lori depuis encore plus longtemps. C'est juste avant le mariage d'Aiden que les choses commencent à se gâter.
Lori n'était pas ma tasse de thé, mais elle a vraiment apporté une sorte de chaos amusant à l'histoire. J'ai absolument aimé Jace, mais je suis faible pour ce genre d'amour non partagé. J'ai eu du plaisir à lire cette histoire et j'ai adoré la façon dont la vérité a fini par éclater à la fin.
The book name might be 'It's Complicated' but my love for it sure isn't.
Camilla has a way of making me fall in love and also fall out of my bed laughing with her characters and I LOVE that! I flew through this book and when I finished it I was just wishing it to go on forever so I didn't need to say goodbye.
This book was heart wrenching beautiful and Jace and Lori's love is so sweet I could cry (I did cry in fact). While I'm most definitely NOT the one to read, let alone enjoy, the love triangle trope, this will forever be the one exception to that. 3 best friends. 2 secret crushes. A pact. A fake dating trope to the mix. And of course, we can't forget about Lori's 4 cats and 6 chickens.
I honestly can't explain how much I loved this book. You have to read it to understand it. Trust me.
The dual POV is everything to me because seeing the way Jace was pining after Lori made MY heart beat faster. He was so far gone I had to hold my breath while rooting for them because I could not wait to see them together. About Lori, well, she's a dummy for "ignoring" that man for so long. I sort of understand it tho. She had a crush while younger and held on to it blindly - I think we've all been through it at some point in our lives (it just didn't last for that long).
From the get go I knew Lori and Jace were made for each other tho. She may not have realized it, but I did. Since they met that he was her safe space. He was her person. He was the one she turned to for everything. Seeing her finally realize her feelings was beautiful. And seeing them together was even better. 🥹🫶🏻
If you need a cute little silly beautiful rom com - this is the one for you. But be warned - you're going to fall helplessly in love with Jace.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Boldwood works for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. 🩷
The perfect friends to lovers fake dating. I love both these tropes so I knew I was going to adore this book, but I had no Idea how hard I was about to fall for Jace ... He's just so POW ... why all great men are fictional, why?
It was great also to be in Lori's head... I loved her passion and generosity and all her quirks...
This was really a great book to escape to ... highly recommended.
i disliked every aspect of this book, from characters to writing. utterly devoid of intelligence and meaning, a book so painfully millennial and white its infuriating and worst of all b o r i n g
my biggest problem was the character of lori. apparently around her 30s, she acts like a volatile toddler, afflicted by a terminal uniqueness/ref. shes a horrible friend and a shitty partner. to add insult to injury, she has horrible pick-me tendencies, falling into every single stereotype of not being like other girls. also? shes vegetarian so she forces her cats to become vegetarian too? fuck you
shoutout to the ILLUSTRATED text messages, the term "in lust with" and all the baby-making talk in the end, really makes my skin crawl
Three friends since college, two secret crushes and one wedding invitation is just begging for me to say ‘on your marks, get set, go’, especially with how fast I raced through this book.
It’s not complicated how I feel about this author’s books. They are fun, easy romances with great characters and packed with my favourite tropes. This one has fake dating, friends to lovers and a love triangle.
Also I didn’t realise how cute unrequited love could be and Jace loves her just the way she is. Bridget Jones eat your heart out.
But will things turn complicated when the three doctors who share the same practice reveal their secret longings? Will Jace’s life become as messy as Lori’s home? (He’s a neat freak so this will be fun). Will the wedding still go ahead?
There’s only one way to find out so on your marks, get set, read!
My first time reading a book from this author. I was looking forward to it even though I’m not a fan of love triangles. Luckily, this one was not so much a triangle but more of admiration. Lori was in love with Aidan who was engaged to another lucky lady and their mutual friend Jace was in love with Lori. Will Jace ever tell his secret love to Lori, will Lori tell Aidan she loved him? The decision to fake date was a strange decision to make. That part wasn’t needed. Otherwise, it was a cute, clean, respectful romance. Which for me was a bit boring and predictable. I believe others may enjoy this and if you are a fan of this author you will definitely enjoy it. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for my ARC in exchange for my review.
I lived in Chicago for years, so I was thrilled to read a book that takes place there. Lori, Aiden, and Jace are doctors who have been friends for 15 years, since they met in college. Lori is kind of a mixed up mess. Besides thinking that she’s in love with Aiden, she’s messy, sings Taylor Swift off key, has books all over her loft, has 4 cats and keeps chickens in her backyard. So of course the first thing I did was check online if it’s legal to keep chickens in Chicago city limits. I had never heard of it, but apparently it’s legal to keep chickens, ducks, geese, bees, and even goats! When Aiden becomes engaged to Kirsten, Lori asks Jace to pretend date her, not knowing that he’s been in love with her as long as she’s loved Aiden. I enjoyed this book and I would recommend it to everyone.
Lo he disfrutado muchísimo, no esperaba la mitad de los clichés y me ha parecido que estaban ejecutados maravillosamente🤌🏼✨ El final, un pelín abrupto para mi gusto, pero por lo demás, ¡mis dieces! 💗 Lo he escuchado en inglés 🎧 y creo que es bastante accesible, los narradores lo hacen superbién, son muy claros y las palabras más "técnicas" o más difíciles se pueden deducir fácilmente por el contexto.
✅ Muuucha tensión y química 🔥 ✅ Trío de amigos médicos ✅ Friends to lovers ✅ Fake dating ✅ La dama de honor y el padrino ✅ 2 POV ✅ Closed door romance (o como yo lo llamo, "el fundido a negro")
I picked this book off of a goodreads list for 2024 contemporary romances & it was on the same list close to Emily Henry & Abby Jimenez books so I figured it would be decent but nope. The writing was fine but the plot and everything else was terrible. Would absolutely not recommend !! Not even close to Emily Henry & Abby Jimenez! I am bummed for them that this book even made it on the same list. Honestly I might try another one by her and see if it’s any better bc her writing was good & maybe the storyline will be not as bad as this one.