The Real Fake Fiancé

Love in Mirror Valley #3

by Sara Jane Woodley

A Sweet, Small Town Romantic Comedy

Hi, I’m Dee, and I’m captain of the friend zone.

I didn’t ask for this dubious honor, but don’t worry, I like it this way. I’m happy not dating and just being “one of the guys” on my volleyball team.

Until my scary new boss informs me that my job—I’m a developer at a dating app (ironic, right?) that I coded from scratch, an app that is essentially my baby—is in jeopardy.

So I lie.

Tell him that I’m living proof the app works, because I’m engaged to a man I met on it.

And who do I name as my lucky (fake) fiancé?

My best friend: Noah Jackson.

Noah is my longtime confidant, teammate, and all around favorite person… and while he always says he’d do anything for me, this is surely overstepping the friendship boundary. Right?

Apparently not. To my surprise, Noah agrees to go along with my crazy story and be my fake fiancé. And what’s more, he makes it look convincing.

So convincing that I’m starting to wonder where the line is between friendship and “more”. And if it would really be so bad to cross that line and leave the friend zone for good…

The Real Fake Fiancé is a sweet, laugh-out-loud romcom with all the swoony kisses and chemistry, but no explicit content. You’ll love this story for all of the fake engagement goodness, the cast of quirky small town characters, and a heartwarming, all-the-feels-giving HEA.

Genres: Romance, Clean Romance, Friends To Lovers, Fake Dating, Audiobook, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance

348 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 6, 2023

About the author

Sara Jane Woodley is a Sweet Romance author who is obsessed with Happily Ever Afters!

Inspired by the mountains, Sara Jane writes love stories set in the beautiful nature she hikes, bikes and skis in. Her clean romance books always feature sassy, strong female heroines and fun-filled, playful relationships.

Reviews

[Heather Adores Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

4⭐
Genre ~ contemporary romance
Series ~ Love in Mirror Valley #3
Others in the series ~ The Next Worst Thing, The Right Wrong Match
Publication date ~ July 6, 2023
Est Page Count ~ 348 (35 chapters)
Audio length ~ 10 hours 48 minutes
Narrators ~ Justis Bolding, David Bendena
POV ~ dual 1st
Featuring ~ fake fiancé (duh), best friends to lovers, he falls first, small town, no steamage

Dee & Noah have been best friends for ages, so it was only natural that she blurted out his name as her fiance to her boss when she's trying to save her job.

Book boyfriend alert! Noah, Noah, Noah! Loved him so much. Of course he goes along with the plan since he's been pining after her. Can he make Dee see what she's been missing all this time?

Overall, love their banter and cuteness. My only gripe with friends to lovers stories is that they've wasted so much time. If they had just spoken up about their feelings sooner they could've been together longer. Also, hated the 3rd act breakup, no surprise there.

Series notes:
I accidentally skipped book 2, ahhh! Books 1 and 2’s characters do make appearances, so there are tiny spoilers about how their lives are going.

Narration notes:
They both did great. No complaints.

Connect with me ➡ Blog ~ Facebook ~ X

[Oceana Reads Co. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t like how the trope played out. Cute couple for sure but how they got there was more cringe than entertaining.

[Emily Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Real Fake Fiancé
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Sara Woodley

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from Sara Woodley and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Hi, I’m Dee, and I’m captain of the friend zone. I didn’t ask for this dubious honor, but don’t worry, I like it this way. I’m happy not dating and just being “one of the guys” on my volleyball team. Until my scary new boss informs me that my job—I’m a developer at a dating app (ironic, right?) that I coded from scratch, an app that is essentially my baby—is in jeopardy. So I lie. Tell him that I’m living proof the app works, because I’m engaged to a man I met on it. And who do I name as my lucky (fake) fiancé? My best friend: Noah Jackson. Noah is my longtime confidant, teammate, and all around favorite person… and while he always says he’d do anything for me, this is surely overstepping the friendship boundary. Right? Apparently not. To my surprise, Noah agrees to go along with my crazy story and be my fake fiancé. And what’s more, he makes it look convincing. So convincing that I’m starting to wonder where the line is between friendship and “more”. And if it would really be so bad to cross that line and leave the friend zone for good…

My Thoughts: Another feel good story from Woodley, I just know when I sit down with one of her novels, by the end, I will be in a good mood. This is book no. three in the Love in Mirror Valley series. I have read all three books, however, you do not need to read the first two to follow along in this one, it can be read as a standalone. Dee and Noah have been best friends for as long as they can remember. She does not really date much. They are secretly pining for each other, only in their thoughts, as neither would actually act on it and jeopardize the friendship. Dee created the app Right Match, and when her new boss wants to come to her to go over the app’s future, she freaks out and creates a story of how she “met” Noah on the dating app and they are now engaged. Since Noah cares a great deal for Dee, he goes along with this crazy idea, after all, the boss is only to be in town for a week. Will this work to save Dee’s job? How will this affect their friendship? This follows the tropes of friends to lovers, small town romance, fake dating (engagement), and best friend.

The story is narrated in a dual perspective by both Dee and Noah, from their respective POVs. Dee is strong, fiercely independent, and loyal to a fault. Noah is charming, kind, and is patient with Dee. We get an appearance from the prior two books couples, which I loved. The friendship group is the type of friendship group you aspire to be a part of. The characters were well developed with depth, witty banter, chemistry, and intriguing. I adored the follow up on Ivy and James, as well as Daisy and Luke. My favorite scene(s) was the sign war, absolutely adorable. The author’s writing style was complex, humorous, swoony, clean, and engaging. I love how Woodley writes her characters, while they may freak out, there is no miscommunication (while I don’t mind this per se), they are realistic and authentic.

This was a cute spin on fake dating / best friend love. It was lighthearted endearing, heartwarming, and has a way of washing good vibes all over you. While I loved all of the series, this one may be my favorite. I highly recommend this novel and all of them in the Love in Mirror Valley series.

[Katie (hiding in the pages) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This. This is the way a friends-to-more story needs to be written and it spoke right to my heart.

Dee and Noah have been friends forever and I love the way they toppled into a fake engagement that allowed them to explore their deepest feelings, especially the hesitant Dee. Noah is incredibly patient and gentle with her and I love how he didn't push anything. He knows her better than she knows herself and he knows exactly how to maneuver around her.

There's so much to love about this small town RomCom:

🏐the protective volleyball boys (may they each get their own stories)
🏐sign wars
🏐a brown snuggie and body pillow with Noah's face on it
🏐almost getting arrested
🏐caring siblings and friends
🏐chemical reactions
🏐competition
🏐walking in on an awkward conversation
🏐laughs galore
🏐Bruce the cat

I loved all the things--especially the magnetic attraction and swoon, built around a solid friendship. This is my first book by Sara Jane Woodley and it definitely won't be my last!

Content: mild romance

*I received a complimentary copy. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and were voluntarily given.*

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a syrupy sweet small town, best friends to lovers, with a pinch of fake dating story.

Dee and Noah have best friends their whole lives, Noah has been in love with Dee since they were teens and Dee has never had any interest in dating.
When Dee's job is on the line she makes up a fake relationship with Noah to make the dating app she has been working on seem like a success.
She can't even believe the lie is coming out of her mouth, but once it is out there she can't stop it from spreading through her tiny town. Luckily everyone, including Noah plays along.

There are lots of laugh and a whole lotta heart. I love the friend group, the protection squad, they were hilarious. The other inhabitants of Mirror Valley are so sweet. The sign war was absolutely adorable.

Thank you to Sara Jane Woodley for the ARC, this is my honest review.

[Tiffany · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kisses only. I liked the writing style just fine but the book was kinda boring and didn’t hold my interest. My two biggest issues with the book: 1. Noah has been in love with Dee for years but instead of doing anything about it he casually dates lots of women. Nothing says “I love you” like parading a bunch of women in front of you. And 2. Dee takes her sister’s love story as her own rather than saying, “the app works because it matched my sister with her husband” Dee, who never lies, decides to lie and say that the app matched her and her fiancé. People who never lie don’t just start lying and her sister being the center of the story shouldn’t make the story less useful.

[ellie youngs · Rating 4 out of 5]

friends to lovers is gonna be my trope. (but i’m willing to try others for science).

[Chelsea | chelseadennreads Dennison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so excited to receive an ARC of Book 3 in the Mirror Valley series. I absolutely adored the first two and loved the little sneak peek of Noah & Dee that we got in Book 2, so I couldn’t wait to read their story.

Things I Loved:
•Noah-Noah was phenomenal. He was such a good friend to Dee and knew her so well. I loved watching him “woo her” as his friends called it. He was so far gone for Dee and she was so oblivious.
•The Volleyball Team: Dee and Noah are on a volleyball team with 4 other guys and those guys were hilarious. They were so protective of Dee and I found myself cracking up at them plotting with Noah on how to win Dee over.
•Sara Jane Woodley’s Characters: SJW consistently writes characters who are logical and rational and I love that. So many times I get so frustrated with characters in romance novels because they jump to conclusions or refuse to communicate. But while SJW’s characters may freak out, they are always quick to come back to what they know is true and you get to see that thought process on page.

I absolutely love this whole series and really I can’t decide which one is my favorite. I’m a sucker for a good friends to more book and I adored Dee and Noah’s story. This one is available on July 6th and I highly recommend getting it, as well as books 1 and 2!

This is a clean romance with no language or innuendo.

[Lauren · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s never taken me this long to listen to an audiobook. A lot of generic details that felt like they added nothing to the book and made it way longer than it needed to be. The amount of times candy corn, whale sounds, and being a barnacle were mentioned really had me cringing. This book wasn’t for me - sorry author! If some of the unnecessary details had been removed or if they were written in a way that added more to the story I think I would have liked it more.

[Heather (heathers.clean.reads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my stars, y’all!! This book was the bees knees!! I’m a sucker for a good fake fiancé story, and this ranks up there at top!!! Plus, this was my first read by Sara and now I need to go read the other books in this series!!

To me, friends to more can be hard to pull off and make it seem realistic and not rushed. But Sara did a fantastic job!! It was paced so well and kept me engaged wanting to see what would happen next!

I couldn’t stop grinning and giggling at Noah!! He was the cutest thing and so so so sweet to Dee!! He cared and loved her so deeply and had for so long!! I loved their close friendship and how Noah slowly tried to “woo” Dee, thanks to his advice from their volleyball buddies (who were hilarious, by the way!)

Dee cracked me up from chapter one! I knew I was gonna love her and her sassiness! Dee experienced lots of growth throughout the story, and it was a joy to see her finally realize her worth and how special she was to Noah!

The chemistry between these two was off the charts!! Their banter was adorable and I loved watching the friendship turn to much more! So many swoony and sweet moments to satisfy my romantic heart!! If you love fake engagement stories that leave you weak in the knees and grinning till your jaw hurts, then read this adorable story!

Things I Loved:
Best Friends to Lovers
Volleyball guys
“Protecto-date”
“The Most Dire of Idiots”
Fence building
Candy corn
He falls first
Wooing advice from the guys
Fake engagement
“You, my friend, have to woo her.”
Whale sounds
“No lip kissing rule”
Nicknames
Shirtless Noah
The river scene
Sign wars
Surprise kisses
Interrupted kisses
The Snuggie
The garage scenes
The Body pillow

I received a complimentary copy from the author! A positive review was not required. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Tricia Anson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is friends to more, fake engagement, small town goodness! I just love Noah and Dee so much!

Things I Loved:
-Protecto-date
-The volley ball guys
-“The most dire of idiots.”
-Candy corn (I LOVE candy corn, this made me so happy. 😂)
-Whale sounds
-Town rumor mill in action 😆
-Dee-stress
-“I have one week to show my best friend that we are meant to be, and I’m not going to waste it.”
-Lip kissing discussion 😂
-Nicknames
-Noah truth bomb
-The volleyball ring
-Notice-isms
-“Is there such a thing as a kiss hangover? Because I have it.”
-Sign war
-“What in the small town is this place…”
-Second surprise kiss
-Trespassing 🤣
-Fran
-The snuggie
-“‘You saved them because they’re my favorite colors?’ ‘Why wouldn’t I?’ I shrug. ‘It’s such a small thing.’ ‘Small things can make a big difference,’ she says quietly.”
-The date
-The bracelet
-“But Noah? I told him everything that very night. It was that summer that he brought me the silver volleyball ring and I began to realize that he was home to me. He was it to me. In the midst of my home life imploding, he and his family kept me tethered. Kept me going when all I wanted to do was fall apart.”
-Grand gestures
-Messaging GIFs
-Noah body pillow
-The ENDING ♥️

All in all, this was everything I love about friends to more and such a sweet ending to this great series. Their history, their inside jokes and the way they love each other so well, all the tension, and the fun of the small town—plus getting to see the previous characters and their HEAs as they progressed made it such a great read.




Trigger Warning: Past parent cheating and related trauma being dealt with. Maintains a romcom feel overall.

[Sarah Bowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, I want to say...I want a protection squad that doesn't do their job very well 🤣 That group of guys are so funny!

Dee and Noah have been the best of friends forever and when Dee feels her job is on the line... She fakes being engaged to her best friend using her sister's successful love story! Noah, of course being the sweet guy who fell first, agrees.

Friends to lovers is one of my favorite tropes. It's great to see if the friendship ever changes which is what they always worry about. It's great to see this couple keep their relationship intact, never wavering.

The town they live in is great! It feels so homey. The neon sign war between businesses is a hoot and helps with a grand gesture. Super cute book, makes you feel good and loved, and I enjoyed every minute.

[Susan Z (webreakforbooks) · Rating 5 out of 5]

A swoony, sweet, clean romance where best friends fake date.

Dee is a software engineer for an online dating app, which was recently acquired by a larger company. Her job and the future of the app are in jeopardy unless she can prove the success of the app. In a moment of quick decision making she tells an executive that she and Noah, BFFs, actually made a love connection because of the app.

Noah agrees to go along with this farce. Dee has been his best friend forever, and he would do anything for her.

This was a sweet small town romance with fantastic characters, a fantastic grand gesture (which I am a sucker for), and so much small town charm.

This is book 3 in the Love In Mirror Valley series but it can definitely be read as a standalone. If you are like me though, you will definitely want to read them all. Especially after meeting the characters in book 3, I was super excited to see who was featured on the other books.

[Jerrye Tellmeagreatstorylove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do you ever read a book that is so fun and delightful you never want it to end? This book is certainly one of those and I just adored it! Noah, Dee and their friend are hilarious together and their banter is top notch good. I laughed so much and also did some serious swooning with the sweetness of the romance. So many missed cues of attraction and ignoring feelings led to some great angst and then the BEST outcome. I really loved how things became real and honest by the end and how no one was hurt or upset by the truth. I refuse to give spoilers because this book is so wonderfully amazing so just take my advice and go get your copy RIGHT NOW!! You won't regret picking it up, I promise.

I received a complimentary ARC from the author via BookFunnel. I am not required by anyone to write a positive review and the opinions expressed herein are entirely my own.

[Shauna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was excited to get this ARC by another new author to me and it was just adorable. It would make such a cute Hallmark movie. Dee’s tomboy comfort vibes spoke to me. And Noah. Ohmypatient Noah. He was the ultimate friend to lover guy and gets all the love.

💍fake relationship
💍the volleyball boys were awesome
💍completely laugh out loud situations
💍the not so just friendly chemistry
💍the supportive hilarious town
💍Dee coming to terms with all of it felt real

I did not read the others in the series, but will be adding them to my TBR for sure!

[Cindy Davis- Cindy's Book Corner · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Real Fake Fiance' is the third book in the Love in Mirror Valley series. I recommend reading them in order or risk a few spoilers. Otherwise, it does read fine on its own.

Read for:

💍best friends to more

💍fake engagement

💍witty banter

💍the protection squad

💍character growth

💍sign wars

💍strong family bonds

💍he falls first

💍candy corn

💍lip kissing discussions

💍the volleyball ring

💍small town vibes

💍grand gestures

I enjoyed my time in Mirror Valley and thought this was a good conclusion to the series.

[Lydia Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars ✨

Noah is absolutely precious and must be protected at all costs.

I jumped into this third book of the series with 0 background and still had a good time.

Would recommend if you love any of the following:
* (best) friends to lovers 🫶🏼
* sports romance ? 🏐
* fake dating/fake engagement 💍
* dual pov and the mmc is completely smitten 😍

However, there is this whole lying subplot that I don’t love and side drama I didn’t care about with her boss.

Might go back and read the first 2.5 books later, lol

[Abby Huffer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite friends-to-lovers💛 loved Noah’s complete adoration and loved her all along. Dee is blissfully unaware but it starts changing for her when she claims him as her fake fiancée💛 they’re the very best of friends and complete each other so well! Loved the checkins with the other Mirror Valley characters and this was a great way to wrap up the series! Fingers crossed it’s Lachlan who gets a series next🤞🏻

[Kim Golding · Rating 5 out of 5]

Couldn’t put it down!

This is my first book by this author and I absolutely loved it! A good friends to more trope always sucks me in and I COULD NOT put this one down! I loved Noah and Dee so much! Their history, their friendship, their fake engagement, and their real love for each other!! I’m definitely headed to check out the other books in this series!!!

[Jennifer Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to be chosen to receive an ARC of this book. This is the third book in the Mirror Valley series. I enjoyed the first two book so I was excited to read this one.

Dee’s boss is coming to town to work with her on the dating app. He is skeptical that it works. Dee ends up telling him how she and her best friend Noah connected on the app and are now engaged. Problem is it’s all a lie. Noah agrees to go along with the lie.

Both Noah and Dee have been in love with each other for years without each other knowing it. Once they start pretending to be engaged they are forced to face those feelings.

I love the town of Mirror Valley and all the characters. It’s a small town I would love to be apart of. Sara Jane Woodley is on my list of authors I love so I will always look forward to reading anything new books she has. I really appreciate a good clean romance.

[Kimberlee Crismon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Friends to lovers always need to be paired with fake dating! Holy cow this was so cute! I couldn’t put it down and I love how the couples in previous books in this series are involved as well. Such a good book!

[K'la Brasseur · Rating 3 out of 5]

I definitely feel like this was lacking in areas but cute in others. It’s hard for me to rate it a 3 but it wasn’t terrible for me either. Cute and clean and easy read, but I normally don’t like this kinda friends to lovers trope.

[Hannah:) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this at some point. was meh. didnt like all the lying. also the lack of communication?

loved the funny antics though they got into

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read! Kept my interest. Loved the friendship to lovers story. However could have used less back and forth from them. Just communicate

[Tina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listened to the audiobook on Hoopla. On the one hand, the writer has a beautiful way of describing things. On the other hand, the plot was super flimsy. All the conflict felt manufactured.

[Eliza Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

why do i have zero opinions on this book 😑 i literally just did not care

[Madison Reid · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐️

[Lisa Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute! Obviously you know what’s going to happen just by the title. It reminds of me a hallmark movie. But I literally smiled through the entire thing like a silly school girl 🤣🤷🏼‍♀️

[Noelle Sanchez · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute rom-com with a best friends to lovers trope.
3.4
It was what I expected. A predictable, lighthearted read. I gave it a three star rating because I feel like there was no depth to the story at all.
The lead female Character, Dee, would continually talk of how her Dad leaving affected her as a person and made her not trust others or stick them into boxes, but I really didn't see how this happened. the author did a pretty poor job of explaining or giving real reasons of why she acted like this. Seems like she kind of threw that as a lame reason for it. I feel like it could have been done so much better with more emotion and explanation. Overall the character left a lot to be desired.
As for Noah, I feel like there was nothing special about him. He was the hot friend who played volleyball and kissed like he was paid for it. Nothing really made me swoon or go "wow, that is a good guy." he was a basic boyfriend with the personality of piece of cardboard. His one saving trait was his love for Dee. That was very sweet and was the reason I gave it a three star. He obviously cared about her and that added the small amount of depth I could sense in this book.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was cute. Best friends to lovers, fake relationship. The romance was super sweet and a great end to this series/intro to the next.