Pretending I Love Lucy: A Sweet Romantic Comedy (Apple Valley Love Stories Book 3)

Oh my, oh my! Fake fiancé at its best. Fix (Felix) is amazing, but his story is sad, losing his parents and grandpa when he was a baby and being raised by his eccentric Grams (even if it is in luxury). Lucy’s story could also be hard as she was a foster child adopted as a baby by a one-of-a-kind woman who has so much love to give to foster children. Fix equated love with loss and pain, Lucy is always trying to make everyone else happy and take care of others. Grams steals the show with her costumes and props, but there’s a whole cast of supporting people who flesh out this story. Yes this is a rom/com but there’s lots of reality in it too which really pulls you in. Squeaky clean. I totally recommend this book and series, yes it can be standalone but to get the full experience, you want to read the whole series.

I enjoyed this fake relationship/matchmaker story. It really could be a Hallmark movie plot. It is light and fluffy with a sweet happily ever after. I liked the characters and their desires to do good in the world. I enjoyed seeing the characters from other books too.I read a few reviews that were concerned about the dementia aspect in the story but I learned with my parents, that when a loved one has dementia, you can either laugh or cry. I prefer laughing and always sought out the humor in the otherwise awful situation. And so none of that bothered me. I just laughed at the antics. But it could be bothersome for some people I suppose.No sex, language or violence

I love Apple Valley and everyone in it.Sometimes the fake relationship trope doesn't ring true to me but this one pulled out off well. The reason behind the fake relationship was believable and the slow burn build up during the relationship was good.Grams was hands down my favorite character. Can I please be her when I grow up? She made the story so entertaining.There were some great laugh out loud moments and some really great tender moments too. I love the caretaker-while-sick trope and this one was good.The only thing I would say is that I do like a story better when the characters get their feelings out into the open sooner. I like to see their relationship as a couple during the story a little bit instead of just in an epilogue. But that is a personal preference.I love all the Apple Valley books and can't wait to read about Tess and Spencer.Content: closed door, kissing, no language or violence.

I loved this book! I hit it right after reading several that were slower paced and I was craving something faster. There is such good romantic tension with Lucy and Fix from the very beginning. I loved the meet cute and all of the pining while they were both thinking the other was just pretending. Mrs. Dodd is a meddling, crazy granny but I loved her character. There is a lovely happily ever after as we all want in this genre. The author also fit in a great Jane Austen reference that was just perfect. Great read.Romantic Content: Kisses

Lucy is a people pleaser. She loves to help and lift others. But she oftens forgets to take care of herself. When Fix Dodds returns to Apple Valley to take care of his grandma, Mrs. Dodds (the eccentric lady who keeps the Apple Valley Library hopping), Lucy gets roped into helping him keep his grandma content and unknowing of their plans while they wait for an opening to see a specialist to see if she has dementia. But as they pretend to be a couple to please old Mrs. Dodds, their true feelings start getting in the way. Which is bad. Because Lucy dreams of a happily-ever-after kind of love with her own Prince Charming. And Felix (Fix) Dodds has vowed never to marry and commit to a woman. This setup made for a heart-tugging romance that I thoroughly enjoyed.

I loved that the local library can be the heart of a community, and is almost a character in this series. It plays a prominent role in each couple's story.

So enjoyed this sweet story. Tough times and finding love. 2 problems that continue and are consistent. Being in the foster system Lucy has had a rough life for a while wondering if today she will move from one family to another. He was raised by Gram. Wonderful story of relationships and family being who you make close to you.

Love, love, love these characters. They make zany look so normal that you begin to question your sanity. Grams is especially entertaining. Nice that we get to laugh at a convoluted situation rather than at someone’s expense. This book was a breath of fresh air

This was an absolutely wonderful, funny, heartwarming romcom that kept me up late at night, desperate to reach the end. I loved Grams, and all the other great supporting cast. The relationship between Lucy and Fix might've started out fake, but it certainly felt real to me.The dual POV was done so well, and I'm so glad Lucy and Fix got their happy ending. I look forward to Tess and Spencer's story too. Highly recommended.

It started off well and was quite funny but about halfway through I felt it stalled a bit. The couple spent a lot of time faking the relationship and noticing they liked each other but not really progressing until the very end. There were quite a few scenes that felt like extra padding and I found the character of Valerie a bit hard to get my head around. I would class this as a comedy and obviously it would be disturbing if it happened in real life! It’s a very clean love story and no swearing, if that is important to you.

Wanted to get to the endBut really sorry when I didReaffirming feel good bookPack with sun cream for the beachOr cosy rainy day inside

I've loved each book in this series so far.It's the perfect romance book, heartwarming with a boat load of cheese.But I've gotta say, the star of the show is grams, what a lady!Can't wait to read the next book!

This book is the third in the Apple Valley Love Stories series by Julie Christianson. It follows Lucy who we met in the earlier books at the library. It also includes our favourite grandmother Mrs Dodd. This was a great book that I really enjoyed. This book includes one of my favourite tropes, fake dating.Lucy and Fix are great characters and I love the way their relationship developed. There were so many fun moments in this book and so many sweet and swoony moments.If you haven’t read any books in the Apple Valley Love Stories series, then you definitely need to start with The Mostly Real McCoy and make your way through the series.