About Books #101: The Dating Charade

You ever read a book that sounds like it’ll be fun and then it just hits you across the head with how right it is? That’s The Dating Charade.

I was offered an ARC by Netgalley in exchange for a review. All opinions are strictly my own.

The story

Cassie Everson is an expert at escaping bad first dates. And, after years of meeting, greeting, and running from the men who try to woo her, Cassie is almost ready to retire her hopes for a husband—and children—altogether.

But fate has other plans, and Cassie’s online dating profile catches the eye of firefighter Jett Bentley. In Jett’s memory, Cassie Everson is the unreachable girl-of-legend from their high school days. Nervously, he messages her, setting off a chain of events that forces a reluctant Cassie back into the dating game.

No one is more surprised than Cassie when her first date with Jett is a knockout. But when they both go home and find three children dropped in their laps—each—they independently decide to do the right and mature thing: hide the kids from each other while sorting it all out. What could go wrong?

The opinion

The one thing I was kind of scared of when I started reading this story? That whole “oh, let’s hide a giant part of our identity from each other, what could possibly go wrong?”

In many cases, the answer has been: everything. Including my enjoyment of the story. After all, there’s only so much second-hand embarrassment I can handle, and it’s usually not even handled that well. That was not the case in The Dating Charade, though.

Melissa Ferguson manages to strike a wonderful balance between humour, some cosy winter- and Christmas-touches, and the steep learning curve that is unexpectedly finding yourself caring for 3 children. The parallels she managed to draw between Cassie and Jett’s story only made for a more captivating story.

The rating: 4/5

Honest, this is one of those books that you just have to experience. If nothing else, then just because of the respectful way in which the author managed to bring the wide variety of emotions across. (Goodreads)

-Saar