Alexandria Bellefleur’s The Fiancée Farce is another of her sweet, sparkly contemporary romances – this time, about a fake engagement that ends up turning all too real. The tropes may be familiar, but the warmhearted treatment of them won’t be. It definitely coasts on charm and is low-stakes, but sometimes charm is all you need.

The last thing Tansy Adams wants to do is be the center of attention, preferring to hang out quietly at her bookstore. But everyone around her is getting married, and her family keeps trying to fix her up; their attempts get worse when a cousin starts dating her ex. Tansy comes up with a solution for this: a fake fiancée named Gemma, inspired by a pretty heroine from the cover of multiple romance novels she’s sold. She doesn’t expect the real Gemma to pop up at the reception of her friend’s wedding – and to promptly announce that they’re engaged.

Gemma van Dalen’s drunken pronouncement has a reason behind it – in order to inherit the publishing company she models for, she has to be married. She and Tansy concoct a deal – Tansy will pose as Gemma’s fiancée until the deal is signed, Tansy will get extra money to keep her bookstore afloat. Of course, they won’t fall in love for real… will they?

You’re a romance reader – you know the answer to that one. The Fiancée Farce doesn’t produce a whole lot of plot tension; much of the story is based around Gemma and Tansy getting to know each other versus anything plotty. And Bellefleur’s reliance on italics remains a prominent part of her writing style. But the end result is something incredibly charming.

I specifically loved Gemma and her total ballsiness. She just doesn’t care about what people think of her – that is, until meeting Tansy turns her world upside down. Also wonderful is Tansy coming out of her shell and trying to live life on her own terms.

There is a perfect sense of disharmony to their romance – fun chaos to a degree, but a lot of space for them to both grow up and get to know one another. And the fun feeling of the novel definitely makes reading about their dating fun.

But again – this is a low-tension, low-stakes romance that goes from fake dating to real dating very quickly. More time should’ve been spent on the maybes and their worries. But the foundation is entertaining, strong, and a hoot, and the relationship is good. The Fiancée Farce isn’t my favorite Bellefleur romance, but it’s definitely a good one.