The Wild Card by Emma St. Clair: Book Review

 **ARC received for consideration. All opinions are my own. 

The Book

Is twenty-three too old for running away? I sure hope not. Because, right now, that's my current and only life plan.

Desperate to escape the dome of control my father has dropped over my life, I visit my brother in Texas--with no plans to use my return ticket home.

But after spending every cent of my savings to pay off my student loans, I need a job. Stat. Otherwise, I'll be forced to ask my brother for help and admit how bad things have gotten at home.

So, when the production company I'm interviewing with in Sheet Cake, Texas wants proof that I've got long-term roots here, I invent a fake local boyfriend.

Which would have been fine had they not asked to meet him. Today.

I do what any woman in a desperate situation would do: I grab a man who's giving off boyfriend vibes and ask to borrow him for an hour.

Too bad I didn't recognize that man as Collin Graham, who just so happens to be the brother of my brother's wife. (Confusing, I know--but the important part is that we are NOT related.)

When I finally realize who he is, two things are very clear: he knew it was me the whole time, and this fake boyfriend thing is going to be a lot more complicated now that I actually got the job.

On the plus side, fake dating serves Collin's purposes as well. We're both a little lost, both deep in life transition--and apparently both struggling with the fake part of the relationship.

I hadn't planned on coming to Texas and falling in love, especially not when the name of the game is playing pretend. But would dating Collin for real be such a bad thing?

That depends--on how long it takes the reasons we started faking to begin with finally catch up to us both.

The Wild Card is a fake dating (and fake fake dating) closed door romantic comedy with all the sizzle but none of the spice. Set in the fictional town of Sheet Cake, Texas, this rom-com can be read as a standalone but pairs best with the other books in the series.

The Author

Emma St. Clair is a USA Today Bestselling Author who loves sassy heroines, witty banter, and love stories with heart and humor. Her books have sizzling chemistry while keeping the bedroom door closed. She has an MFA in Fiction and lives in Katy, Texas (go, Tigers!) with her hubby, five children, and Great Dane. Her favorite place to write is tapping on her phone while on the elliptical machine. No Emmas have been hurt in the writing of these novels. (Yet.)

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Book Review

It's finally time to head back to Sheet Cake, Texas for Collin's long-awaited story... and it was so worth the wait! Collin and Molly's story gets off to quite the start when she ropes who she thinks is a complete stranger into pretending to be her boyfriend to help her get a job... only he's not a stranger at all... and the dating? It doesn't feel fake for very long either. I loved the chemistry between these two and how they supported each other right from the beginning. They both had some difficult things in their past--- her controlling father and his manipulative ex--- and it only made me root for them to get their happily ever after all that much more. Every visit to Sheet Cake has been fun-- a perfect blend of humor and romance-- and this one just might be a new favorite! 

The Wild Card is a closed-door romance with kisses only and no language. It is the fourth book in the Love Stories in Sheet Cake Sweet Rom Com series, and while I think those who have read the previous books will get the most out of it, it could be enjoyed as a standalone as well. 


You can purchase your copy here: https://amzn.to/4nvi2bB