Mr Fairfax, Mr West and the Meet Cute: Love, Austen #0.5

by Anyta Sunday

“I have not the pleasure of understanding you.”
Jane Austen

Josh Fairfax is studious by nature. He’s also single. Again. And he’s starting to think those two things might be . . . related. That maybe his life does need more . . . balance. And maybe this gender-bent Austen retreat is the place to get it.

Except his narcissistic ex is there too, and when he scorns Josh’s bookish ways and social failings in front of their professor, a little lie escapes: he has a boyfriend. Look, isn’t he gorgeous?

Only, that random picture? Not so random after all. Josh is going to die of embarrassment. Unless . . .

This story is a prequel to the "Love, Austen" series and set a few years before the others. It can be read as a standalone.

Genres: Romance, M M Romance, Contemporary, Queer, Historical, Novella, LGBT

115 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2022

About the author

Specialising in slow-burn romances where emotions reign, intimacy lingers, and chemistry sizzles—stories that leave you holding your breath and cheering for love, with just a splash of spice to sweeten the journey.

Check out my website:
Contact: http://www.anytasunday.com/?page_id=386

Für deutsche Leser:
http://www.anytasunday.de/

In italiano:
http://www.anytasunday.it/

Reviews

[Aki | nose buried in books | ❤️ | · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Let's start with a fact: I am always wary about Jane Austen retelling, cause I'm an enormous fan of the original stories.

That said, I enjoyed this short novella, it isn't exactly a retelling; the plot summaries it all.
I think I'm gonna try other books in the series and let's see how I'm going to feel about an actual retelling.

[Heike · Rating 1 out of 5]

Full disclosure: I made it only half through the book.

I have read several books by the author before, so I am confused about the writing style. Even if she tried to write Jane Austen style - it can not be this disconnected and jumpy.

Maybe I received a faulty e-copy? It is so disjointed, I have to re-read every second paragraph because it seems I missed something. But I didn't. It's just missing how they came from A to B in the story. All. The. Time. Gives me a headache, so I call it quits.

As a consolation - it's a fairly uninspired accidental fake boyfriend trope. That someone forgot to proofread.

Free on prolific works in 2022.

[Aki · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ich habe das Gefühl es fehlen ganze Absätze. Ich habe kein Problem damit, wenn Scenen im Rückblick nur angedeutet werden, aber so wie hier, kommt es mir eher vor als wären die Absätze mal da gewesen und dann rausgelöscht worden ohne sie neu einzuarbeiten.

[Mar · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

Cute.

[Sally ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cutest shit ever. I loved how they didn't make a big deal out a misunderstood, just talked it over and everything was fine again. Made me hope for more of the next books.

[Jacquie Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Working my way through the many, many freebies I've picked up and came across this gem.
Adorable as Sunday's writing usually is, with a meet cute, only one bed and fake relationship. Oh, add in the Austen quotes, notes, and lavender fields, and I was sold.

[UltraMeital · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this series and this short novella (though not based on a Jane Austen novel) was a fun way of getting a bit more. For anyone who hasn't read the series it's also a wonderful introduction to one of my absolute favorite series of all times.

Josh Fairfax is going to a Jane Austen retreat. He isn't thrilled his ex (Cassius) is going to be there and when he sees him with his new boyfriend he is even more annoyed. Cassius is like a mirror of everything Josh isn't and couldn't be - fun and / or interesting (beyond his academic knowledge). When his friend Noah (the MC from the last installment) sends him a photo of a guy just when they arrive at their destination he somehow shows him off as his new boyfriend, not realizing Noah got the photo from the retreat's photo albums - meaning - Mr. West is one of the hosts for this whole week. Yet while our innocent Josh stumbles through his first meeting with West Churchill, West turns to be a total "rake", enjoying the whole idea of having a bit of unexpected fun.

West and Josh couldn't be more different. While working at the Jane Austen retreat, enjoying the costumes and the playing around his role demands he actually never even read a Jane Austen book, while Josh could explore a real and educated assessment of the history of farting.. They both enjoy their time together but it has it's limits from both their ends. West has his reasons for keeping what they have for ONLY the duration of this week on the retreat and Josh is worried they couldn't possibly have a future together with SUCH different interest and life goals.

They were both wrong, as well as Cassius. He missed out on a wonderful, sweet and caring guy for all the wrong reasons. I loved the way things ended with them as well. I felt Josh did the right thing not only for himself but for the people around him as well. He is a total and absolute sweetheart. It was obvious to me what Josh found in him, even and maybe because of his quirkiness (their new found "love language" made me LOL throughout most of my reading). West was also SUCH a loveable guy. He is honest and fun to be around and even though he has a few issues he still needs to deal with his openness and eagerness to enjoy life was a breath of fresh air. I simply ADORED both guys.

Sadly, as this is just a short novella, we only get a promise of a HEA. I would have loved getting more but we didn't. It's fine. I can totally imagine things worked out as best as possible in the end allowing them to get the happiness they deserve.

As usual - HIGHLY recommended and it's also FREE! Grab it through the link bellow.

More Reviews HERE

[Jade · Rating 2 out of 5]

***2.5 STARS***

“This feels real. I want it to be.”
Josh sucked in a whistling breath. A husky whisper. “Beyond this weekend?”
“Way beyond this weekend.”

Anyta Sunday is one of my faves. Truly (Marc Jillson and the Gazebo is one of my faves! I hope Tyler is still getting a book). But this series has not been for me. Book one I liked. Book two I had to nope out; secondary characters were horrendous. I decided to not continue with this series. Although, while looking at the prolific works free reads I decided to try this one anyway. The covers!! They are so good.

It has a cute, oh-no awkward situation that is the catalyst for the story. It has a promising start. It didn't continue for me. Josh and his boyfriend, Cassius, broke up, Cassius seems to have moved and brings his new boyfriend along to the Austen retreat they are all at with their professor. Josh's friend Noah sends him a pic of a hot guy and in a desperate moment of saving face, Josh declares him his boyfriend only to find out that's "Mr. West" who works at the retreat. So begins a fake relationship trope.

Cassius is an asshole. Kinda. He is kinda mean and biting towards Josh (this made me think of book one honestly with the one of the MC's being cruel to a secondary character for being a book worm.). Cassius teetered on the line of being the Over the top villain but is kinda pulled back. But I didn't buy into it, Cassius is actually the one I end up feeling bad for.

I struggled to the end with this one even though it's only around 90 pages or so. I think West and Josh are cute together but I think too much was attempted for this novella. There are awkward situations which I was fine with, I think Anyta Sunday writes these awkward situations and awkward characters well. But the writing actually felt awkward and choppy and you could feel it rushing to the end if that makes sense? Often while reading I had to re-read sentences because I felt confused or if I missed something. A shame really because this could have been a pretty cute book. One thing I've enjoyed about what I've read of this series has been the illustrations, so freaking cute. This series has not been for me at all and I'm not sure if there's more coming but I think it's best of I don't read them as I'm not meshing with them but I do have to say I am curious about Cassius and I truly felt bad for him.

[mila · Rating 3 out of 5]

He lay down and stared at the sky, hands behind his head, moonlight casting a silvery glow over his profile. “What do you know about the stars?”
Subject change. Josh’s chest sank but he nodded. “Why do you think I know anything?”
“You know everything.” The softest smile tipped West’s lips and his chest rose again.
“Not about that. But now . . . I want to learn everything so I can tell you.”

[smiley with heart eyes]
i had to keep coming back to this cover just to appreciate its cuteness 💜 Josh and West's story is settled on a weekend at Camp Austen, an Austen retreat with regency roleplaying i wanted to experience myself (only if i had a charming Mr. West to valet me too, that is 😌). Josh is a PhD student and a very bookish person—i relate lots to him carrying the greatest number of books he can in a suitcase to any travel, yet blessed be the e-reader creation. even though he genuinely loves his academic life and being a nerd, it doesn't make it less exhausting having to hear complaints (ex-boyfriend's included) about him "loving only books and not knowing how to live".

when aforementioned ex-boyfriend, Cassius, also a PhD student and attending the weekend retreat (with a date), provokes Josh about showing up alone, he comes up with a lie: why, he has a boyfriend! *shows phone with a picture of a man he had never seen in his life before ten minutes ago*. the man in question is a very charming, very smiley, very easy-going West out of his Mr. West costumes, because, yeah, he so coincidently works at Camp Austen—quite of a meet cute 🤭. like Josh, i got all smiley with heart eyes for this man. they made a cute couple. i'd have enjoyed reading a full-length book about them to be part of the moment West came out to his family. i have to say i'm thankful for Josh's tries at roleplaying—as in:

“Play with my gaying instrument.”
“Your what?”
Josh caught West’s eyes. “Captain Francis Grose’s 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue.”
“Come again?”
He held up the book, flashing its cover. “Take my prick, my pipe, my silent flute.”
Laughter vibrated into Josh. “What? This might be the only time I get to speak Regency during sex.”

because it mostly made West arch his brow all the time, which brought me lots of laughs when the only image i could visualize in my mind was this goddamn The Rock gif (even the smile thereafter fits perfectly!)



(oh, and the way i got too stunned to speak when finding out that the naughty old folk song Josh sang was not a fictional little thing in a fictional book...)

: ̗̀➛ tags/triggers: short story, forced proximity, fake dating, only one bed, sex under the stars, regency roleplay, blackmailing

[Wolvesofinnistrad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shorter but somehow much more enjoyable than the Emmett book. Also what a surprise to see that knight and lake were very unreliable narrators for what west and Josh were really like.

I loved the austen stuff coming more full circle and upfront with them being at the austen camp. It made it so much better with the lingering touches, lush landscapes and sexy outfits. Especially when they Valeted each other.

For a second I was taken aback by how fast West went with the subterfuge, but later seeing how he was so desperate for connection and love after being forced into the closet it made sense he'd jump on the chance to role-playing a fantasy of being loved and engaged to a sexy man.

Their sex scenes were hot but not too overboard which I enjoyed. Not that I don't love a good sex scene but you really either need to be reserved, good at flowery language or just extremely explicit.

The plot with the ex was fine, he was such a jerk it just came off boring when he had to interact with him however it being the impetus for the fake fiance trope makes it worthwhile.

A lovely little book, and one that would have drawn me in fully even if I hadn't read the first official book already.

[Good Girl · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've had about enough of gravity lurching inside men's bodies and eyes suctioning onto them (repeatedly).

This author's early work truly impressed me with spare, evocative writing. The stories were emotional and compassionate and unique.

Her work is regressing and I hate that because it all started with so much promise to only come to this.

The only reason I made myself give this story two stars is because Sunday only used the word proximity once or twice and never used inexorably.

This could've been such a cute story.

I finished the book because I kept thinking that it had to get better.

I hate when I'm wrong.

[CdnBookLover · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story itself was interesting, but I found it very confusing. I managed to read almost 30% of the book, but finally gave up.

Several characters were not "introduced", so I'm reading along and suddenly wondering about one of the characters who's name keeps popping up. And then there's Josh Fairfax, who keeps thinking phrases in Maori. Finally, there's a couple of images of the two protagonists and it turns out that Josh is, in fact, of Maori descent.

Throw in a lot of confusing talk about books by Austen and I've had way more confusion in less than an hour than I'm willing to tolerate.

[Merit · Rating 3 out of 5]

I tried to like this more, because the setting and the idea were promising, but this novella made me so confused. I felt like I missed so much information.
The scenes jumped from one to another without a clear transition. The whole Camp Austin could have used some more explaining because I was confused about what roles the guests were supposed to play. Josh's situation and status with his ex confused me as well, and West took to the fake relationship too easily. They were cute, though.

Let's hope the idea works better in a novel. I'm going to give the first one a try.

[Sadie Forsythe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really struggled with this story in the beginning. Not because of bad writing or anything. I am one of those people who suffers strongly from second-hand embarrassment. So, reading about a guy who got himself into an embarrassing bind and then had to do increasingly embarrassing things to keep from having to admit it was difficult for me. Honestly, I almost DNFed it. But luckily it balanced out and I enjoyed the last half of it a lot. The two characters are both very sweet.

[Sabrina Morissette · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading that prequel novella to the Love, Austen series. I read it right after finishing the 6th book of the series, so perfect timing! I found Josh and West meet-cute story very Austenlandesque (like the movie). Since it’s a novella, it’s less slow burn than normal, which I quite enjoyed.
Free novella from the « Your Book Boyfriend’s Boyfriend » giveaway on Prolific Works.

[wordsandblankspaces · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was a cute little read. The main characters were mostly likeable. Josh was a little too caught up in what other people think about him but I think that was just part of his character development. Unfortunately, most that takes place off page as there is a two year jump in time between chapters 3 and 4. I liked this enough that I will be checking out the author's other work.

[Tinnean · Rating 4 out of 5]

No one sees themselves as the villain, but it was interesting to realize Cassius might not have been as narcissistic as Morgan thought. Of course, it didn't help that Cassius acted the jerk. I was sorry for him, but he did get what he deserved--Morgan living his best life. I wonder if we'll get a story from his POV.

Also, Mr. West's family still need to be informed. ;-)

[the kevin (vaguely alive) · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 36%

I was just wildly confused by what was going on here. What’s this setting? What is happening in this scene? Or this sentence? Mr West is somehow less than one dimensional. I wanted to die from second hand cringe. I also don’t know enough about Jane Austen to follow any of these references…

[Lelyana's Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

This felt like started in the middle of the story. I vaguely remember Josh from the earlier book. The whole forced close proximity was cute and West played along just fine. But I was kinda disappointed about the ending, that West is still in the closet and no clue after two years together.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I adored this.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute and fun! The illustrations were cool.

[MiaReadsMMBooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was rather adorable.

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this story adorable. Very sweet and sexy.

[LBD · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was funny, sweet, cute, and just what I needed.

[Julie Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Erika · Rating 4 out of 5]

Josh and West!!!

[Stef (Noveltea Corner) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a cute little story.

[Jenn (not Lily) · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.75 stars
This was adorable! I'm not an Austen aficionado, but I think I could become one if they were all like this...

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun, quick romance.