My Fake Canadian Wife

I was provided an ARC copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

I had my preconceived notions on what this story might be like before beginning the book, but I was pleasantly surprised I was wrong. In the story, Dora, a young Brazillian woman who had been in school in Toronto, finds herself in danger of being kicked out of the country due to her visa expiring after she graduated. A friend of hers comes up with an idea for her to stay in the country. All she has to do is marry a friend of hers, Abby, live with her for 2 years and she is home free.

I expected that the two would start their fake relationship and would learn that they had feelings for each other that would lead to them getting married for real. But in this story, that doesn't fully happen. The two seem very uneasy with each other once they start going down the path of having a fake relationship. It felt like neither woman was fully into the relationship, which I found a little unrealistic. I would have thought that Dora would put more into the relationship since her status in the country was at stake. Maybe she had more of a moral issue with lying about their relationship, which I have to give her credit for.

For a short novella, I found it to be a charming and sweet story. It left me wanting more from Dora and Abby, maybe either another novella or a full-length story of their actual relationship. I would love to read more about how their fake relationship may have an effect on their real relationship, especially with Abby's family. I am hopeful that a follow-up story will come.

This is my first f/f romance with a fake marriage trope and I was excited to read it. And though the story took some unexpected turns, it was a pleasant and sweet experience.

Dora is a very confusing protagonist and I'm not exactly sure what I feel about her. I could totally feel her anxiety about the deportation and about not wanting to go back home because she has already come to love Toronto like her own. However, she seemed very resigned to her fate and didn't seem very proactive in trying to change her visa situation. I really liked Abby more and would have loved to read her POV. She could be both assertive and shy, and I could totally see that she was developing genuine feelings for Dora, despite Dora's own cluelessness. And I just felt that Abby was more concerned about Dora's visa situation than she was herself, which just made me slightly angry. However, I liked the way the uncertainty was resolved and the ending was very cute and optimistic.

The writing is very easy to read and I finished it pretty much in a single sitting. I think the author did a good job bringing Dora's resignation (which almost felt like laziness) to life and then gave her that touch of inspiration to move forward with her future plans. It's always great when the author is able to make me change my opinion about the main character and it definitely helped me come to agree with the direction the author took this story in. I also loved that both our main characters have supportive friends who always have their back. I always enjoy good female friendships.

Overall, this is a cute story of falling in love but I would have definitely loved to get to know the two MCs better. Give this a try when you want something short and fluffy.