Review: Faker

Confession: I read my ARC of Faker way back in October of last year, which was when Sarah Smith's debut novel was published. Life happened, one thing led to another, and here we are way too many months later and I'm finally getting around to reviewing it!

Here's the synopsis:

Debut author Sarah Smith nails this fun and sexy multicultural romance where two office foes hammer out their differences to build a love that will last...

Emmie Echavarre is a professional faker. She has to be to survive as one of the few female employees at Nuts & Bolts, a power tool company staffed predominantly by gruff, burly men. From nine to five, Monday through Friday, she's tough as nails--the complete opposite of her easy-going real self.

One thing she doesn't have to fake? Her disdain for coworker Tate Rasmussen. Tate has been hostile to her since the day they met. Emmie's friendly greetings and repeated attempts to get to know him failed to garner anything more than scowls and terse one-word answers. Too bad she can't stop staring at his Thor-like biceps...

When Emmie and Tate are forced to work together on a charity construction project, things get...heated. Emmie's beginning to see that beneath Tate's chiseled exterior lies a soft heart, but it will take more than a few kind words to erase the past and convince her that what they have is real.

I think I've mentioned it before but enemies to lovers is not my favourite trope. I just find it hard to wrap my head around it. I know hate and love are both very strong emotions but if you are spending so much time disliking someone I'm just not sure what can happen to realize that, actually, just kidding, you'd like to make out with them now. Sometimes though, as was the case with Faker, it's really been a miscommunication that's led to the dislike between characters. If Emmie and Tate had just talked to each other, maybe things would have been different at the start. Actually, that's not strictly true. Tate was acting like a knob and needed to get his shit sorted out and then should have talked more openly with Emmie. 

I liked Emmie from the get go. She was funny and clever and smart and a joy to read. I could really understand why she had to put on a tough exterior at work since she was surrounded by a bunch of men who didn't always think she could handle the job sites. (Any other women have this problem? It's not just in male dominated workplaces either, is it? Harrumph.) 

Tate, on the other hand, was harder to get a read on. I was sure there was some sort of miscommunication happening and he wasn't the asshole that he seemed to be. It was super frustrating as he acted so rudely to Emmie for absolutely no reason - she never gave him a single reason to dislike her - and he had to work hard to convince Emmie and me that he wasn't the jerk that we thought he was and actually did have genuine feelings for Emmie. He almost lost me (and Emmie) near the end-ish though with the disaster that was the high school reunion. Honesty, people. It can help, a lot.

While I was reading Faker I was having a great time. It made me laugh and swoon and I adored Emmie. But when I think back on Sarah Smith's debut novel, I'm a bit less excited about it. (And no, that's not just because I read it a million years ago.) It's fine but not groundbreaking. That said, I've just learned she has a new book coming out later this year and I'm interested to see what that one will be like. Faker was fun but I'd file this one under borrow rather than buy.

*An ARC of this novel was provided by the publisher, Penguin Random House Canada, in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*