Review: The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West

SYNOPSIS:

When Gia Montgomery’s boyfriend, Bradley, dumps her in the parking lot of her high school prom, she has to think fast. After all, she’d been telling her friends about him for months now. This was supposed to be the night she proved he existed. So when she sees a cute guy waiting to pick up his sister, she enlists his help. The task is simple: be her fill-in boyfriend—two hours, zero commitment, a few white lies. After that, she can win back the real Bradley.

The problem is that days after prom, it’s not the real Bradley she’s thinking about, but the stand-in. The one whose name she doesn’t even know. But tracking him down doesn’t mean they’re done faking a relationship. Gia owes him a favor and his sister intends to see that he collects: his ex-girlfriend’s graduation party—three hours, zero commitment, a few white lies.

Just when Gia begins to wonder if she could turn her fake boyfriend into a real one, Bradley comes waltzing back into her life, exposing her lie, and threatening to destroy her friendships and her new-found relationship.

REVIEW:

This book was a sweet, quick read. I related to what Gia was going through, my high school self was very much like Gia. A perfectionist, never showing a flaw, popular but then you wonder, is that really what you want to be remembered for? I felt for Gia and her struggle to find who exactly she is when she lets people in. Fake Bradley is amazing, he is sweet, silly, and for all accounts, going through a very similar struggle to that of Gia. They bond over the things they have in common, which ultimately leads them to a friendship and more.

In terms of the overall story-line, I enjoyed it; however, I felt like the whole Jules thing could have been cut. Jules is a “frenemy” of Gia and literally spends the entire book trying to oust Gia. She was a toxic person and in all honesty, I felt like that branch story took away from the headline of Gia lying to her friends, and fake Bradley being well fake. So while I wasn’t a fan of that, I was a fan of the sweet falling in love, the over-the-top sassy Bec, and the eccentric parents of fake Bradley. The story left me with a smile on my face but I would have loved one more chapter wrapping everything up. I was left with some lingering questions when I closed the book.

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