The Fake Mate by Lana Ferguson (Review by Sara D’Onofrio)

Rating: 4.2/5

This book was different from my typical romances, and let me tell ya, I didn’t hate it! I think I expected their world to be secretive instead of just living normally among humans. I mean, there was even “heat leave” at their jobs for goodness sakes haha. I actually really enjoyed that the story was told as if it was just normal everyday life and not some fantasy world on top of everything else. A few minor things that weren’t my favorite included the longer chapters, the lack of explanation of the infamous “knot”, and the gloss over of the actual biting to become mates. Long chapters always make it harder to find a good place to stop, and it stops me from binge reading sometimes. You lose that “one more chapter” energy because you know you’re signing up for a longer commitment. I understand that sounds silly, but it’s just a personal preference!

As for the knot, I obviously gathered what it meant after their initial sexual encounter, but it was referred to quite a few times without actually having it even remotely explained. I think explaining the significance of it would have increased the appeal or understanding itself. Also, I felt like I waited the WHOLE book to read the scene where they officially bit each other and make real mates instead of fake mates, and it wasn’t part of the story☹. There was a brief gloss over of their bite marks, but not the moment it happened, and I was SO disappointed. Even though those are a few small things I felt were lacking, there were plenty that I did love! I loved the FMC. Talk about being a strong, confident woman who knows what the heck she wants, and has no problem asking for it! She was funny, sarcastic, comfortable in her sexuality, and all of those things made her extremely likable! Once the MMC started to lean into his alpha role, oh my, he became the ultimate protective book boyfriend! Overall, I really enjoyed this story and would recommend it for anyone who likes their stories slightly out of the box!