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Out Now: Like I Pretended

Are you ready for Hollywood sunshine to meet Heather Bay snark?

Like I Pretended is now live on Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and in paperback!

Henry and Alex’s story has been a long time coming but I hope you’ll agree it’s worth the wait. Henry’s been waiting for his HEA ever since he first appeared in Charisma Check in 2021 but I knew he needed someone special… someone who wasn’t going to let him walk all over them… someone like Alex. 

Their story is a grumpy/sunshine, slow burn, fake dating romance with a delicious slow burn, beautiful period drama costumes, nosy friends and relatives, a Roll for Love crossover, coffee dates, and adventures in dumpling making! 

Like I Pretended is also very special because it’s my twentieth novel release, which is completely mind blowing and I want to say a massive thank you for all your support over the past four years. Whether you’re new here or you’ve been here since the beginning, I am incredibly grateful for all your love and support. 

Plus if you’re waiting for the audio, Dan has finished recording so it just needs a proof before we hand it over to ACX!

Pretending to be in love never felt so real.

Henry Lu hates being a superstar. Action movies have left a sour taste in his mouth and filming a queer period drama on the Yorkshire coast sounds like the perfect antidote. Meeting grumpy coffee shop owner, Alex, is the cherry on top. 

Alex isn’t impressed with the appearance of Hollywood royalty in his life, especially because Henry refuses to accept that Alex doesn’t like him. But when rumours about the production draw the attention of stuffy streaming service bigwigs and the ire of Henry’s superhero franchise, Henry and Alex must put on a show and fake a relationship to smooth things over.

Alex doesn’t want a relationship, and Henry isn’t good at them, but their arrangement is only supposed to be for a few months, then they’ll both be free to go back to their lives. The only problem is that pretending to be in love never felt so real. 

Like I Pretended is a slow burn contemporary MM romance featuring a sunshine Hollywood superstar whose never been told no, a grumpy coffee shop owner who wants to be left alone, bad attempts at flirting, terrible catering, and finding home. 

It is book four in the Heather Bay series and while it can be read as a standalone, it’s best enjoyed as part of the series. 

Get It Now

“There is just something about Charlie Novak’s characters that makes me fall in love with them and read them over and over… This book is soooo goood!!! These two are perfectly swoon-worthy and definitely deserve to be next on your TBR list.”

Raven Reads