My Big Fat Fake Marriage: A Novel

by Charlotte Stein

Overview

Something has to give... Could it be her heart?

Connie has always distrusted nice guys. In her experience, they’re just waiting to reveal some horrible secret. And then she meets big, adorable, Henry Samuel Beckett—editor extraordinaire, lover of bow ties, sweet and so cheery she struggles to believe he’s real.

Until Henry Samuel Beckett—or Beck, as he’s known to most—tells her the secret underneath his sunny surface: He’s been single all his life. But in a moment of panic, he’s told everyone at his publishing house that he’s married. And when Connie, an aspiring writer herself, can’t help defending him, she ends up being the fake wife he doesn’t actually have.

When they head off on a writing retreat, surrounded by people convinced this must be a ruse, both of them can't help but agree. Until they share their first kiss, their first touch, their first time in only one bed. Side by side, every night, as the simmering tension builds…Connie starts to wonder if this might be real after all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250867971
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	03/11/2025
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Charlotte Stein has written over thirty sexy novellas and novels, including the RT award nominated Intrusion and the DABWAHA nominated Run To You. When not writing she can be found eating jelly turtles, watching terrible sitcoms and occasionally lusting after hunks. She lives in West Yorkshire with her husband and their totally real dog.

Editorial Reviews

"Excellent writing. Beck and Connie are wonderful, delightful characters, and their romance will keep readers turning the pages." —Library Journal, starred

“Spicy scenes scorch the page in this high-heat rom-com from Stein… there’s more than enough here to entertain.” —Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

★ 2025-02-01
When two London neighbors decide to fake being husband and wife, they’re not prepared for the true feelings that emerge in the process.

Thirty-one-year-old Connie, an aspiring writer, has never trusted self-proclaimed "nice guys," because her track record when it comes to dating them has been terrible. Either their niceness is a facade meant to cover up some big lie—like a wife at home—or they’re just pretending to be decent to get into her bed. That’s why she scrutinizes everything her American neighbor, Henry Samuel Beckett, does for her; there’s no way anyone this cheery, well dressed, and all-around kind isn’t hiding some deep, dark secret. To an extent, Connie’s instincts are correct, since Beck does have a secret, but when he finally reveals the truth, she realizes her early skepticism may have been unfounded. At 37, Beck has always been single, but he may have told a teeny-tiny white lie about being married to save face with an irritating colleague at the publishing house where he works. Then, when Connie and Beck run into each other at a book party, she somehow tells his annoying coworker that she’s the mystery wife. Now, the two of them are trapped having to preserve this lie, especially since they’re both heading to a writing retreat where all eyes will be on them—so they’ll need to get their stories straight, not to mention figure out how to sleep in the same bed. Despite her earlier reservations about Beck, Connie finds herself in the best position to learn who he really is, and the truth is that he isn’t just any nice guy—he’s way better. Stein’s latest is a sweet rom-com with the kind of endearing, cinnamon-roll hero the genre can always use more of, as well as a heroine who’s willing to lower her walls and trust someone who might actually be worth the effort. While it would have been nice to see Connie and Beck’s romantic dynamic develop further outside the retreat setting, the characters’ strong introspection and emotional vulnerability make the book impossible to put down.

A fake marriage leads to real feelings in this charming rom-com.

Kirkus Reviews