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Data & Deception
She’s the solution he’s been looking for
He’s the problem she can’t solve
All Danika Freeman wants to do is pass medical school, after the painful loss of her grandma sparked her desire to help people through medicine. But her spark dims when she realizes her ex is in the same program and has made it his mission to win her back. That is not happening. Cue Arden Davis, Danika’s best friend’s older brother. Not only did Danika and Arden grow up together, they also shared more than a few moments of chemistry that led to an enormous childhood crush that Danika has spent many years trying to ignore. It’s not like Arden has ever seen her as anything more than an extension of his little sister… When Arden joins Danika on the TU campus, they find themselves thrown together in more ways than one. Danika needs an apartment, Arden moves her into his place. Danika needs to get her ex off her back, Arden offers to be her “fake boyfriend” in exchange for her help passing his statistics class. Danika needs a little hands on attention, well…you get the picture. As lines get crossed and strings become tangled, Arden finds it harder and harder to keep “pretending” with Danika. But Danika can’t forget what kept her from pursuing Arden in the first place.
He’s the problem she can’t solve
All Danika Freeman wants to do is pass medical school, after the painful loss of her grandma sparked her desire to help people through medicine. But her spark dims when she realizes her ex is in the same program and has made it his mission to win her back. That is not happening. Cue Arden Davis, Danika’s best friend’s older brother. Not only did Danika and Arden grow up together, they also shared more than a few moments of chemistry that led to an enormous childhood crush that Danika has spent many years trying to ignore. It’s not like Arden has ever seen her as anything more than an extension of his little sister… When Arden joins Danika on the TU campus, they find themselves thrown together in more ways than one. Danika needs an apartment, Arden moves her into his place. Danika needs to get her ex off her back, Arden offers to be her “fake boyfriend” in exchange for her help passing his statistics class. Danika needs a little hands on attention, well…you get the picture. As lines get crossed and strings become tangled, Arden finds it harder and harder to keep “pretending” with Danika. But Danika can’t forget what kept her from pursuing Arden in the first place.
314 pages, Paperback
Published April 14, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 14, 2026
A connected standalone to her last release Ink & Ambition, this book is everything! All Danika wants is to pass medical school with no drama, except her cheating ex ends up enrolled in the same program and won’t leave her alone. Cue her best friend’s older brother Arden—when an unexpected change leaves Danika needing a roommate, she moves in with Arden who’s just enrolled at TU and when he needs a statistics tutor, they strike a bargain, fake dating for tutoring sessions, but the more pretending gets difficult, the more Danika can’t forget what’s pushing her from Arden. This book has banter, steam, angst, mental health rep, everything. It’s a best friend’s brother/secret crush/roommates/fake dating/forced proximity, so it just has all the things and it all just works so well! Arden is just the perfect book boyfriend and the pining is top notch. And Danika is so complex, her childhood has left her with so many walls up and I just adore her and her energy. There is just so much to love in these pages. The chemistry of Danika and Arden is next level, and they go one such a journey and look out for each other. It’s flirty, it’s emotional; I cried, I laughed. I just loved it so much!
April 26, 2026
This was a great romance book. I enjoyed following Danika and Arden in this story as they are both in need of a roommate and end up living together. I liked this books complex characters and liked seeing how their relationship developed throughout the story. I appreciated how this book was told through dual perspectives as it helped me get to know each of the characters better. Overall this was a cute romance read and I can’t wait to read more books by this author.
Read this if you like:
📖 Best friend’s brother
📖 Fake dating
📖 Forced proximity
📖 Friends with benefits
📖 Some spice
Thank you to the author for the gifted copy.
Read this if you like:
📖 Best friend’s brother
📖 Fake dating
📖 Forced proximity
📖 Friends with benefits
📖 Some spice
Thank you to the author for the gifted copy.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Book review: Data and Deception by Emily R. Bellas
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I had the incredible honor and privilege of getting to beta read this book a few months ago, and then was so excited to get to read an ARC of Emily’s new book Data and Deception which releases this coming Tuesday, April 14th. It is the second book in her Campus Love Series, and I absolutely loved it! I adored the first book in the series (Ink and Ambition- which you should definitely read if you haven’t already!) and it was so exciting to be back in this world and to become immersed in Danika and Arden’s story! Emily truly has a talent for writing relatable characters that you root for and become invested in, I loved every minute of this both times I got to read it! She hooked me from the very first page and I couldn’t put it down! An absolute 5 stars! Do yourself a favor and check it out when it releases on Tuesday!
Congratulations on an amazing new book, Emily! You should be so proud if yourself! The world is going to adore Danika and Arden! 🥰❤️
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I had the incredible honor and privilege of getting to beta read this book a few months ago, and then was so excited to get to read an ARC of Emily’s new book Data and Deception which releases this coming Tuesday, April 14th. It is the second book in her Campus Love Series, and I absolutely loved it! I adored the first book in the series (Ink and Ambition- which you should definitely read if you haven’t already!) and it was so exciting to be back in this world and to become immersed in Danika and Arden’s story! Emily truly has a talent for writing relatable characters that you root for and become invested in, I loved every minute of this both times I got to read it! She hooked me from the very first page and I couldn’t put it down! An absolute 5 stars! Do yourself a favor and check it out when it releases on Tuesday!
Congratulations on an amazing new book, Emily! You should be so proud if yourself! The world is going to adore Danika and Arden! 🥰❤️
Review of advance copy received from Author
I had the privillege to be on the Beta Readers team for Data and Deception and it is one of the books that I still think about months later. I wish I could have been roomies with my crush in college too and there were some BFF goals in there too, plus the way Arden sees Danika is so sweet!
The fake dating and chemistry between Danika and Arden were done so well and the plot was realistic, unlike most books of its kind, illustrating that love makes us doubt even things we know for certain.
It's part of an interconnected standalones' series and it's so interesting getting to know all these characters, their struggles and achievements and connecting with them.
It's amazing that more people will discover this story now!
Thank you so much Emily for trusting me with your story and I hope people love it!
The fake dating and chemistry between Danika and Arden were done so well and the plot was realistic, unlike most books of its kind, illustrating that love makes us doubt even things we know for certain.
It's part of an interconnected standalones' series and it's so interesting getting to know all these characters, their struggles and achievements and connecting with them.
It's amazing that more people will discover this story now!
Thank you so much Emily for trusting me with your story and I hope people love it!
Review of advance copy received from Author
Such a cute, feel-good love story, but wow, be warned it gets seriously steamy. Definitely one of those reads where you might want to think twice before cracking it open in public… unless you’re okay blushing on the subway. 😘
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews