Reviewed by Valerie
TITLE: The Christmas Leap
SERIES: Festive Fakes #2
AUTHOR: Keira Andrews
PUBLISHER: KA Books
LENGTH: 254 pages
RELEASE DATE: November 10, 2022
BLURB:
Fake romance shouldn’t feel this real…
Will: I’ve never been with a man.
Sure, I’ve thought about it. Wondered. Daydreamed. Imagined. But I wasn’t ready to take the leap.
I have a reputation as a “ladies’ man.” No one has any idea how curious I am about men—not even my openly bi best friend. Make that former best friend. Michael ghosted me, and I have no idea why.
Michael: The man I love is straight.
It hurt like hell when I had to distance myself from Will. I’ve tried desperately to grow up and get over him, but my carefully constructed life just fell apart—and Will rushes to my rescue.
Now we’re pretending to be a couple to impress his boss at a holiday retreat. We’re holding hands and hugging.
We’re sharing a bed.
And Will just kissed me.
Is my best friend falling in love with me after all?
REVIEW:
Sometimes mother knows best. Will’s Scottish mum gently nudges him to take a chance, take a leap out of his comfort zone to get what he wants in life. What he wants is to explore his sexuality. No one knows he thinks about men like that; how could he be bi and not know it until he’s thirty years old? When the stars align so that against all improbability he’s sharing a bed with his fake boyfriend – real life best friend, Michael – he decides it’s time to take that leap of faith.
Michael and Will were best friends and roommates for years until Michael started dating Jared and moved in with him. Michael was head over heels in love with Will – straight Will – and couldn’t bear to be around him anymore. It was an impossible crush and he knew he’d never get past it if he continued to see and talk to Will all the time, so he gradually ghosted him over two years.
Out of the blue one night, Will receives an S.O.S. call from Michael on possibly the worst night of his life, with a broken soul and a broken down car on the side of the road. Will plays the white knight rescuing him, which leads to Michael playing Will’s fake boyfriend at a weekend work retreat. A fake kiss becomes a real kiss becomes fooling around because Will wants to explore his bisexuality.
When Will has the opportunity to advance his career by traveling with his boss and her family to Australia, Michael goes along to carry on the farce. They’re so natural together, it feels so real, so no way is Michael giving that up. They agree to a FWB arrangement, although both want to be more than friends with more than just benefits.
I’m so excited to be back in the holiday book season. The Christmas Leap is my first this year and sets a great benchmark for those to come. It’s a gentle, heartwarming holiday story that reads much faster than its stated 254 pages. Will and Michael are super sweet guys so deserving of each other. I love best friends to lovers tropes: here, the MCs have a strong enough friendship to weather two years of lost contact, hurt feelings, and unrequited love. We don’t get any background on their friendship but it’s easy to take the author’s word for it. The story is rounded out with a handful of enjoyable side characters. Those familiar with The Christmas Deal, book one in the Festive Fakes series, will recognize Logan and Seth.
If fake boyfriends and friends to lovers float your boat, this is an easy pick. Happily recommended.
RATING: 
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