We've made no secrets about the fact that we here at The Incoherent Fangirl are major Lana Ferguson fangirls, so it should come as no surprise that I absolutely loved reading The Fake Mate!
You know that pretty universal experience that is a well-meaning relative trying to play matchmaker? Yeah, well Dr. Mackenzie Carter does--her grandmother has tried (and failed) to find Mack love, all of which has resulted in a ton of bad dates for the usually bubbly Mackenzie. Meanwhile, the stoic and grumpy Dr. Noah Taylor is facing expulsion from his position for not revealing his alpha status. Oh, because by the way, Mack and Noah are wolf shifters. During a phone call with that beloved grandmother, Mack is at her wits end and blurts out that she has a boyfriend, just as Noah walks into the break room. Mack blurts out his name as her new flame before her brain can catch up, and after an awkward exchange, Mack and Noah strike a deal: they'll fake date. It'll get Mack's grandmother off of her back, and will allow Noah to keep his job. The arrangement will be temporary, just until Noah secures the job he's vying for in Albuquerque.
Then, after realizing that Noah is hot (and because it's me: think Adam Driver with blue eyes and a doctor's coat), Mack proposes they add some...benefits to the arrangement.
Can they avoid catching feelings?
I absolutely freaking loved this book! Lana has such a unique voice that instantly hooks you into her books, and her characters are always so relatable. Usually when you hear "paranormal romance," you think that the book might get kinda hokey, but Lana fully pulls this shifter romance into the contemporary genre, and I think she's opening the door for people to lean more into that paranormal realm; people who may not have picked up a shifter romance before. There's enough comedy to keep you laughing throughout, but also so much heart that you can't put the story down and truly feel what the characters are feeling. At times, she'll have you screaming at the characters, wishing they could hear you and heed your warnings, and at other times you'll have so many butterflies you don't know how to function with the squees!
You should also know by now that Lana Ferguson's books = spiiiicy. If you love a good cartoon cover romance, this is the book for you; it was hot.
Also, for fans of The Nanny: there's a Wanda cameo that was so Wanda you'll snort-laugh.
Seriously, go pre-order your copy of The Fake Mate by Lana Ferguson here or here before it releases on December 5.
Love and all the soup,
Mandy
Disclaimer: I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and have voluntarily written this review with my honest feedback. If you purchase a copy using my Bookshop.org affiliate link above, I will receive a small commission and you'll support local indies! If you purchase a copy using my Amazon affiliate link above, I will receive a small commission which I will use to justify my literary addictions and to spoil my dogs (probably).
