REVIEW: The Love Lie by Kay Marie

The Love Lie by Kay Marie: When Sam signs up to take the place of her twin on a dating show, she thinks that it will be simple: turn down the engagement and move on with her day. When Cooper gets down on one knee though, she suddenly says “Yes” to his proposal. Both Sam and Cooper are surprised by her answer.

Cooper immediately knows that Sam is not who she says she is. The plan was to end without an engagement, but he’s drawn into the mystery of Sam. They have a few days for a honeymoon phase at the resort to decide what to do with their next steps. In order to boost business for both Cooper’s ranch and Sam’s sister’s jewelry company, they have to figure out a way to end the relationship in a cordial way.

As the two spend a few days together, they try to keep their distance and have a strict no-kissing rule. They feel the walls erected start to crumble as they grow closer. Especially on Cooper’s side, he’s so drawn to Sam and wants to keep her in his life, but he wakes up one morning and she’s gone. As she runs, he has to find a way to bring her back to him while still giving her the space she needs.

Wow! I loved this entire story. I haven’t read the first book of the series, but this book was so well thought out that I know Kay took her time on it. She made sure that the characters were well rounded. They had a full storyline. They didn’t feel rushed. Honestly it was a breath of fresh air to see a story that was well-written, not choppy, and not rushed to give us a happily ever after that doesn’t make sense, but instead gives us everything that you hope for and a love story.

For Sam, she struggles with the concept of a relationship after being treated so poorly by her previous longest relationship. She also doesn’t live up to the expectations that she sets for herself and therefore doesn’t think that she’s worthy. Thankfully, she has a man who’s willing to wait to break down those walls for her and give her the time that she needs in order to grow and in order to understand what she wants.

For Cooper, he thought that he was in it just for his ranch. When Sam shows up, he questions why he was only doing it for the ranch. He realizes what he actually wants in a partner, and he sees these qualities in Sam. He just has to have patience for her to realize the same thing.

The strength in the story lies in the fact that they go through struggles after leaving the resort. Both characters go through so much in the second half of the story that they don’t even seem like the same people. They have so much growth though in that time. You might think that the story is going to end when they leave the resort. Most romance novels would end there and everybody’s lives would be perfect and everything would be hunky-dory. But thankfully, this story doesn’t end there. That’s where it’s different and that’s what makes it so memorable and relatable.

The Love Lie by Kay Marie is perfect for fans of fake engagements, enemies to lovers, cowboy romances, forced proximity, opposites attract, only one bungalow, reality television, tropical locations, and dual POV!

Book Info:

Publication: September 24, 2024 | Kaitlyn Davis Mosca | The Love Match #2

A city girl.
A country boy.
A fake engagement in front of 10 million viewers.
What could possibly go wrong?

To some people, a proposal in the Maldives would be an absolute dream. To Samantha Peters, it’s a certifiable nightmare. Because she’s pretending to be her identical twin sister on the set of a massively popular reality TV show and her potential fiancé is an annoying (and annoyingly sexy) cowboy who refuses to let her win a single argument. When a moment of temporary insanity leaves them accidentally engaged, they have no choice but to figure it out together.

Their plan is simple. Spend a week in paradise sharing the same bungalow so the producers don’t catch wind of the truth. Break up as soon as the cameras go down. And live happily never after.

There’s only one problem. Between jet skis, yacht tours, romantic dinners, and sunset parasails, these two opposites constantly at one another’s throats start to see each other in a new light. Maybe Sam is more than a workaholic with an iron heart. Maybe Cooper isn’t just a cocky cowboy with a restless spirit. But no matter how big the attraction between them grows, the rules are set. They absolutely cannot fall in love. Right?

The Unhoneymooners meets Flawless in this standalone second installment of The Love Match series, perfect for fans of fake engagements, enemies to lovers, cowboy romances, forced proximity, opposites attract, only one bungalow, reality television, tropical locations, and dual POV!