Faking Christmas Book Review | A Christmas Romance by Kerry Winfrey
I’ve been really getting into the Christmas season this year. That means I’ve been devouring as many Christmas romance books and movies as I can. My most recent read is one that I got from the library and read in just a couple of days. Today I’m going to be sharing my Faking Christmas book review.
Faking Christmas is one of those books that really makes you laugh. There’s so much chaos going on at all times that I had no idea what was going to happen next. And the fact that Laurel was able to hide the truth from Gilbert for so long was really funny.
What a sweet, trusting man.
But of course things don’t go according to plan. If you haven’t read this book yet, make sure you check it out. It was humorous and sweet and made for the perfect holiday reading.
And if you enjoyed today’s post, read more Christmas reviews here.
What is Faking Christmas by Kerry Winfrey About?
Laurel Grant is playing house for the holidays—complete with a fake husband and kids—in this delightful, charming rom-com by Kerry Winfrey.
Laurel Grant works as the social media manager for Buckeye State of Mind, an Ohio tourism magazine and website. She most definitely does not run a farm . . . but one tiny misunderstanding leads her boss, Gilbert, to think she owns her twin sister Holly’s farm just outside of Columbus. Laurel only handles the social media for the farm, but she’s happy to keep her little white lie going if it means not getting fired—she cannot be jobless again.
And keep it going she must when Gilbert, recently dumped by his wife, invites himself over for the farm’s big Christmas Eve Eve dinner (as advertised on Meadow Rise Farm’s Instagram, thanks to Laurel herself). Laurel immediately goes into panic mode to figure out how she can trick Gilbert into thinking she’s basically the Martha Stewart of rural Ohio and keep her job in the process.
Laurel and Holly come up with the perfect plan—all Laurel has to do is pretend to own the farm for one dinner. But Laurel shows up at the farm to find an unwelcome guest is waiting: Max Beckett, her nemesis since Holly’s wedding. The annoyingly attractive man she hates will be posing as Laurel’s husband just for the evening, but when a snowstorm traps them all for the entire weekend, Laurel is going to have to figure out how to survive with her job and dignity intact. Whatever the case, this promises to be the most eventful Christmas in ages. . . . (from Amazon.com)
My Initial Thoughts
I was so intrigued by this book after reading the description! A lot of stories with twins have the characters trading places. But in Faking Christmas they’re not trading places. They’re just trading lives. Lol.
In the opening scene we’re introduced to Laurel and her boss Gilbert. Laurel is a social media manager who works for an Ohio tourism magazine and website. She walks in on Gilbert who is very upset, having just found out that his wife is leaving him.
I felt that the main premise seemed a little unrealistic, but because of the way Gilbert was written it all just made sense. A silly premise all of a sudden seemed plausible. I was so curious to see how Laurel was going to be able to keep up her charade of running a farm with her “family” by her side.
Laurel as a Main Character
I loved Laurel. She was funny and her struggles felt very relatable. We’ve all been there where we need a job and will do just about anything to get the position. At her interview when Gilbert assumed that she was a farmowner who enjoyed living off the land and building furniture, she just let him believe it.
She never realized that it would come back to haunt her someday.
When Laurel admitted to her twin sister Holly about the confusion, it was heartwarming how Holly just jumped right in to try to help her sister. I really enjoyed their sibling relationship, as well as the relationship Lauren had with her brother in law and her niece and nephew.
Faking Christmas is So Funny
One thing that I really loved about this book is how funny it is. And a big part of that was Gilbert.
The author did such a good job writing his character. He was so sad and upset in the beginning, after he found out that his wife had left him for their accountant. While he did invite himself to join in on Laurel’s Christmas plans, how could she turn him down? He was just so sad. Lol.
Gilbert was a really funny character. The opening scene where he invited him to Christmas was so funny and I loved how he was so grateful to be included in the Grant family Christmas. Through much of the story he was very upset about his wife leaving him, but he perked up at Christmas Eve Eve dinner at Holly’s farm.
It made me smile how Laurel worked so hard to keep him busy and involved in Christmas activities. Whether it was the Christmas cookie dance party or the ice skating or watching holiday films, Laurel included him. And that’s what Christmas is all about.
In Conclusion
I hope that you enjoyed today’s Faking Christmas book review. This was such a funny Christmas story. I really enjoyed Kerry Winfrey’s writing style and she wrote in so many funny elements in the story. If you enjoy Christmas romances that make you laugh, I would highly recommend this novel.
