Rules for Fake Girlfriends

Avery has a 4-year plan – attend Columbia, then med school, followed by a career in oncology. Then a postcard arrives from her late mother inviting Avery to a scavenger hunt in her mother’s college town in England. Avery jumps at the chance to know her mother better and shifts her plans just for a year. On the train to Brighton, Avery falls into a fake-dating deal with Charlie, who is still reeling from her break-up earlier in the summer. Avery knows all the rom-com rules, and promises she won’t fall in love, won’t break her plan to do a year at Brighton then return home to Columbia, but plans, like promises, are made to be broken, especially when love is involved.

This is a cute sapphic rom-com, laced with grief from the past and sprinkled with dreams for the future. The rom-com rules at the beginning of each chapter poke fun at romances in general and suggest a humorous hint at what’s next. Readers of romances by Lynn Painter and Jennifer Dugan will delight in this sweet scavenger hunt abroad, as Avery not only comes to terms with her mom’s passing but also recognizes her shortcomings and moves toward peace.