Who Would Like This Book:
If you love slow-burn romances set against a vibrant Spanish backdrop, this one serves up classic enemies-to-lovers energy, a dash of fake dating, and plenty of romantic tension. Fans of witty banter, big family gatherings, and main characters learning to be vulnerable will likely fall hard for Aaron and Lina's journey. If you enjoy stories with a strong sense of setting, swoon-worthy moments, and a balance of humor and emotion - plus a grumpy/sunshine dynamic - add this to your list.
Who May Not Like This Book:
This book isn't for everyone. If you get frustrated by lengthy inner monologues, repetitive descriptions, or writing that could use tighter editing, you might struggle. Some readers found the character development lacking, the pacing painfully slow, or the chemistry between the leads underwhelming. If you're looking for concise, sharp writing, a lot of action, or a completely original plot, you may leave this story feeling a bit flat.
About:
'The Spanish Love Deception' by Elena Armas is a slow burn enemies-to-lovers romance novel that follows the story of Catalina and Aaron. Catalina, in need of a fake boyfriend for her sister's wedding, reluctantly accepts Aaron's offer. As they navigate through the deception, family drama, and personal struggles, their chemistry and tension grow, leading to a lush and emotionally detailed love story between two stubborn individuals. The book is told solely from Catalina's perspective, with a writing style that expertly conveys the emotions and challenges faced by the characters.
Genres:
Tropes/Plot Devices:
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Notes:
Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Content warnings include themes of disordered eating and emotional struggles, which could be triggering for some readers.
Has Romance?
The romance is a central theme, with significant development and emotional depth between the leads.
From The Publisher:
A wedding. A trip to Spain. The most infuriating man. And three days of pretending. Or in other words, a plan that will never work.Catalina Mart n, finally, not single. Her family is happy to announce that she will bring her American boyfriend to her sister's wedding. Everyone is invited to come and witness the most magical event of the year.That would certainly be tomorrow's headline in the local newspaper of the small Spanish town I came from. Or the epitaph on my tombstone, seeing the turn my life had taken in the span of a phone call.Four weeks wasn't a lot of time to find someone willing to cross the Atlantic-from NYC and all the way to Spain-for a wedding. Let alone, someone eager to play along my charade. But that didn't mean I was desperate enough to bring the 6'4 blue eyed pain in my ass standing before me.Aaron Blackford. The man whose main occupation was making my blood boil had just offered himself to be my date. Right after inserting his nose in my business, calling me delusional, and calling himself my best option. See? Outrageous. Aggravating. Blood boiling. And much to my total despair, also right. Which left me with a surly and extra large dilemma in my hands. Was it worth the suffering to bring my colleague and bane of my existence as my fake boyfriend to my sister's wedding? Or was I better off coming clean and facing the consequences of my panic induced lie?Like my abuela would say, que dios nos pille confesados.The Spanish Love Deception is an enemies-to-lovers, fake-dating, SLOW-BURN romance. Perfect for those looking for a steamy slow-burn with the sweetest Happily Ever After.
Ratings (346)
Incredible (41) | |
Loved It (91) | |
Liked It (101) | |
It Was OK (57) | |
Did Not Like (38) | |
Hated It (18) |
Reader Stats (613):
Read It (359) | |
Want To Read (148) | |
Did Not Finish (23) | |
Not Interested (83) |
15 comment(s)
5/5
Jeśli szukacie luźnego, niezbyt wymagającego ramansu - polecam.
This book was repetitive and boring
“The Spanish Love Deception” by Elena Armas is a charming and captivating fake-dating romance filled with heartfelt moments and witty banter. Set against a vibrant Spanish backdrop and filled with laugh-out-loud moments, you cannot help but fall in love with the story!
Guy is asshole to girl
Girl thinks about how hot he is
Guy is asshole to girl
Girl notices his bulging muscles
Repeat repeat repeat
DNF
This isn't enemies to lovers this is immature misunderstanding to lovers. The characters are incredibly childish. The plot drags endlessly. The sex scenes are uncomfortable to read. The emphasis on the size difference between the protagonists is creepy and the fmc is deliberately obtuse and I blame the author.
take a shot every time she says he has blue eyes
It is so bad, I want to give you a zero, but that's not possible, so I give you a one.
not my cup of tea
I'm not feeling this book. I've got 32 % left but I'm not feeling the need to finish this one
Leaning towards a 3,5 stars.
This wasn't so much an enemies-to-lovers, as it was oblivious-heroine/onesided-love-from-hero. Yes, there was some animosity on the FL's side, but none on his side. Not even him pretending to hate/dislike her, like in The Hating Game.
I liked the writing style of the author. Despite some issues - which I'll touch upon further down below - I couldn't put the book down. There were so many lines, where I was just swooning.
- I loved the side characters (I never figured out if Daniel was really engaged or he came up with his own fake story, but couldn't get anyone to pose as his fake fiancee).
- The depiction of sexist standards, both in college and their workplace.
The main reasons I didn't rate it higher:
- I felt like the ML got to be whoever he had to be at any particular moment. He didn't have a consistent tone. Which made me think the ML could have been anyone (personality wise) and the story would've still played out the same.
- I had a hard time believing the ML was the kind of guy to be so intimidated by a woman "hating" him, that he wouldn't dare clear the air between them sooner and instead wait months for a small opening (offering himself up as a "fake" date). I mean he realised she was attracted to him as well, but even then he didn't change his approach. What if the opportunity to be her fake date never came up? I'm pretty sure he would have continued to stay on the sideline.
- We spent several weeks in NY, but there was barely any progress between the MC's. Then we spent a couple of days in Spain and we went from almost 0 to 100 (like they were both at the ILY-stage in their hearts). I would have prefered if it was spaced out a bit more.
- Lacked chemistry; was inconsistent. Physical attraction was there on both sides early on, but it wasn't used to create tension. For the most part the FL was oblivious to the ML's feelings; often mistaken his behaviour for anger. And the ML never acted on the signals the FL was unconsciously sending him (and we know he noticed it). The steamy parts near the ending were graphic (too graphic IMO; didn't fit with the rest of the tone of the book), but it was also almost clinical. I didn't get the feeling they were love-making.
- Story was a tad too long.
What can you read after
The Spanish Love Deception?
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