Operation Fake Relationship

An MM Christmas Romance

By: Jay Northcote

Narrated by: Hamish Long

Can a fake relationship between best friends turn into the real thing?

After years of estrangement from his parents, Nick is finally going home for Christmas, but not without backup. He wants moral support, so his best friend and flatmate, Jackson, agrees to pretend to be his partner, so he can go with him. It’s easy for Jackson to be convincing when his feelings for Nick are as genuine as ever. He put his crush on the back burner long ago, but acting out a role he’d love to play for real is harder than he imagined. Holding hands, kissing under the mistletoe, even sharing a bed for the sake of the charade...he can’t help wondering what he’s let himself in for and whether his heart can take it.

Emotions run high as Nick grapples with family issues, and the sexual tension between him and his best friend becomes difficult to ignore. But if he and Jackson give into the temptation to be fake boyfriends with benefits over the holiday, what will it mean for their future as friends once Christmas is over?

This audiobook contains best friends to lovers, pretend boyfriends, daddy issues, mistletoe, and a happy ending - of course.

©2020 Jay Northcote (P)2021 Jay Northcote

Friends become Lovers for the Holiday!

I absolutely enjoyed Hamish Long's narration! His accents are lovely and he distinguished so well between all the characters and brough them to life! I adored Jackson! He was so mature and steady so exactly what Nick needed. Nick had a lot of pent-up anger from his past so for the first half of the book he had a bit of attitude and was a bit of brat! It is a slow burn for these two as they get to actually know more intimate things about each other. I was really routing for Jackson so I was glad that Nick started to come to terms with things and change the way he acted and felt. A sweet kind of angsty and awkward little romance for the holiday that was definitely enhanced by the narration!

Very solid 4 stars overall - sweet romance

This was such a sweet story overall, but one that packed a punch with some "feels" too. While it was a bit on the short side, it still had enough time to see a friendship grow into love. I'll cut the MCs a little slack in being slow to share their feelings because of their age and total fear of losing their best friend. But, this is one of my favorite tropes, so I enjoyed the journey.

I was worried that the family drama might overshadow the romance itself, but I think both parts were needed in order for it to work overall. The setup wouldn't have worked without the initial family dynamics, and Nick probably wouldn't be ready for a healthy relationship without addressing the past.

Hamish Long was a wonderful as always. I do love this narration and attention to detail in making all the voices sound distinct. It's easy to listen and never lose track of who's talking. I appreciate that so much in voice actors.

***** I did receive a free copy in exchange for an honest review. *****

I love Christmas stories!

Last year I said “The Christmas books this year just keep getting better and better.” Well, I’m saying the same thing this year.

I read Operation Fake Relationship last Christmas and this year I was really happy to get a review copy of the audiobook, performed by the fantastic Hamish Long. Hamish has done a lot of books for Jay Northcote and I’m so glad that Jay found him for his narrator.

This story touched my heart and (of course) made the tears come. What can I say? When a book makes me cry it's a sure sign of how much I loved it.

Friends-to-lovers is one of my all-time favorite romance tropes and Jay hit it out of the park with this one. Nick has to deal with the anger he feels towards his father and Jackson offered to serve as his backup by posing as his fake boyfriend when they go to Nick's home for Christmas.

The picture that Jay painted in my mind with his words – helped out by Hamish’s voice – made me feel like I was there with the characters. (OK that could be weird in some spots in the story. LOL) After Nick resolves his issue with his father it will be time for him to confront his feelings for Jackson.

I loved the epilogue, too; it was perfect!

A complimentary copy of this audiobook was provided to me at my request but my review was voluntary and not influenced by the author and/or narrator.

Delightfully Sweet Best Friends Christmas Romance

Nick invites his best friend and roommate Jackson home for Christmas with his family, hoping Jackson's presence will provide a supportive buffer between him and his estranged father. Posing as boyfriends, little do either know their relationship is about to change for real.

After a touch of angst, the strained relationship between father and son is repaired without much fanfare. The bigger focus here is on Nick and Jackson, who - to their surprise - end up sharing much more than a bed during their holiday visit.

Jackson bottled up his crush on Nick long ago, and Nick's never thought of Jackson as more than his closest friend until some mistletoe kisses reveal his own attraction. Both are understandably anxious and unsure about risking their friendship by pursuing more but are unable to deny taking the chance, and their HEA unfolds with equal amounts of steam, sweetness, and feels.

Narrator Hamish Long delivers a terrific performance here (as always!), with distinct voices, believable voices for the female characters, and delicious British accents. I received this free review copy audio book by request and have left this honest review voluntarily.

A Very Sweet Holiday Discovery

Two close friends discover that their feelings of love just might reach beyond platonic. This is a wonderfully sweet holiday-related awakening that happens during a Christmas holiday away together. The angst is pretty light and the writing [as with everything written by Northcote] is tender and heartfelt. I always enjoy books by this author and this story was no exception. It's an absolutely lovely friends-to-lovers discovery and my only complaint would be that I would've loved for it to be longer!

After reading this I immediately grabbed the audio when it became available! I'm a HUGE Hamish Long fangirl and know that anything he narrates is going to be amazing. He does a beautiful job of bringing an emotional depth to these characters and was an absolute joy to listen to!
Highly recommend: 4 stars for the story & 5 stars for the narration!!

Sweet

Sweet and adorable and a feel good read with a little Christmas mixed in.
Great narrator. Enjoyable.