Better Be True by Andy Gallo and Anyta Sunday
Series: Harrison Campus #3
Publisher: Andy Gallo & Anyta Sunday (Self Published)
Release Date: August 3, 2020
Subgenre: M/M Romance
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Synopsis for Better Be True:
Two friends. One bed. A big Italian Wedding.
Nico Amato is in trouble. He’s in love with his roommate. Who’s hung up on his ex. This so isn’t part of his summer plans. Luke’s an all-American jock, a jeans and t-shirt kind of guy. The kind of guy who thinks Nico is too much.
That doesn’t stop Nico from pretending to be Luke’s boyfriend, once, twice, thrice . . . A friend does what a friend does to make an ex jealous.
Just . . . How many favors before Luke gives up on his ex?
Lucas DeRosa has a problem.
His roommate pushes every one of his buttons. Every. Damn. One. This so isn’t part of the script. Nico is flamboyant, a tight jeans/purple blazer kind of guy. The kind of guy who thinks Lucas is boring.
That doesn’t stop Luke from pretending to be Nico’s boyfriend again, and again, and again . . . A friend does what a friend does to repay a favor.
Just . . . How many favors before he wins Nico’s heart?
“Better Be True” is a roommates to lovers, fake-boyfriend, slow burn M/M romance with a HEA. This New Adult, college, opposite attract novel can be read as a standalone. The Harrison Campus series can be read in any order
Excerpts
Excerpt #1:
“Hey.” Nico shut the back door and sat next to Luke, handing him a glass of wine. “Here. It’s a full-bodied zinfandel.”
“Thanks.” More cluelessness. What made the wine full-bodied? “Sorry.”
“For what?” Nico set his drink down and gently rubbed Luke’s back. “I thought things went well.”
The smooth motion soothed some of Luke’s anxiety. He leaned into the massage.
“Clearly I didn’t study the right things.”
Nico’s hand paused on his back. “You studied to come here?”
“Just food stuff. I didn’t want to sound stupid.”
Nico’s hand drifted up and kneaded the tight muscles in Luke’s neck. “That’s . . . really considerate of you. Thank you.”
Luke tasted his wine, and Nico removed his hand. Once gone, Luke missed the contact. Not that he could ask Nico to keep doing it. “Yeah, well it didn’t help. I still looked stupid, and your family thinks I’m an idiot.”
“Actually, they really like you.”
“You don’t have to be nice.”
“No, really. If they didn’t like you, you’d know it. Elisa brought home this total dickwad once. Five minutes into dinner, Papà and Nonno started talking smack about him in Italian. Nonna called him a jackass, which is about the second-worst curse word she uses.”
“What did your sister say when this was happening?”
“I think she was more embarrassed by the guy than by the family. Even she could tell he was being a jackass.” Nico picked up his glass. “You, however, were great.”
“Right.”
“I’m serious. You were respectful, but not too meek. You didn’t try to turn any conversation onto yourself, and you offered to help clear the table. That alone earned you Nonna’s seal of approval.”
“Now I know you’re lying. She almost stabbed me with her fork when I offered.”
Nico snorted. “I saw that. But it’s not what you think. Guests don’t help.”
“Elliott helped.”
“Yeah, but he’s about to marry my sister. If you kept coming home with me, then they’d expect you to help.” Nico bit his lip, frowned, and stared into the yard. “But I promise I won’t foist this craziness on you again.”
The finality of Nico’s promise filled Luke with . . . something. Regret came closest. “It’s all good. Your family’s great.”
“They are great, and I love them to death.”
“But?”
Nico eyed the back door and leaned in to whisper, “Sometimes they’re a bit much.”
Luke laughed. “That’s all families.” He bumped his shoulder against Nico’s. When Nico pushed back, Luke didn’t move.
They sat, pressed together, staring out at the yard.
Fake boyfriends. Fake boyfriends. Fake.
Nico had made it clear he wasn’t ready to date, let alone have a boyfriend.
Besides, Luke wasn’t in the right place to date either. So why did it feel like jolts of electricity kept zapping between them? And why, when the conversation inside had gotten lively, had Luke felt warm and heavy? Like he was with family.
My Review
I am a HUGE Anyta Sunday fan, and now I can add Andy Gallo to that list!
This book was awesome. I have a bad habit of starting in the middle of series, but honestly that didn’t take away from anything. I got a brief look into a previous book, but it was so minor that I don’t think it will spoil anything when I go back and read it.
I am discovering a love for the trop opposites attract. Poor Nico has been walked all over, and made to feel like who he is is so over the top that he is unlovable. Lucas is just getting out of a terrible relationship with a no good man, who screwed him over, and now he needs a roommate for the summer pronto!
Even though both are starting with some really terrible miscommunication, a misunderstanding, and a general case of stereotyping, they are ultimately brought together by a single bed, a terrible case of faulty amazon shipping, and some major attraction.
This was super cute, super fun, and I can’t wait to read the rest of the series!
Thanks you to the authors and A Novel Take PR team for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are entirely my own.
About the authors:
Andy Gallo:
Andy Gallo prefers mountains over the beach, coffee over tea, and regardless if you shake it or stir it, he isn’t drinking a martini. He remembers his “good old days” as filled with mullets, disco music, too-short shorts, and too-high socks. Thanks to good shredders and a lack of social media, there is no proof he ever descended into any of those evils.
Andy does not write about personal experiences and no living or deceased ex-boyfriends appear on the pages of his stories. He might subconsciously infuse his characters with some of their less noble qualities, but that is entirely coincidental even if their names are the same. And while Andy leaves the hard sci-fi/fantasy for his alter ego, Andrew, in his mind a touch of the supernatural never derailed a good relationship.
Married and living his own happy every after, Andy helps others find their happy endings in the pages of his stories. He and his husband of more than twenty years spend their days raising their daughter and rubbing elbows with other parents. Embracing his status as the gay dad, Andy sometimes has to remind others that one does want a hint of color even when chasing after their child.
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Website: www.andygallo.com
Email: andy@andygallo.com
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Anyta Sunday:
A bit about me: I’m a big, BIG fan of slow-burn romances. I love to read and write stories with characters who slowly fall in love. Some of my favorite tropes to read and write are: Enemies to Lovers, Friends to Lovers, Clueless Guys, Bisexual, Pansexual, Demisexual, Oblivious MCs, Everyone (Else) Can See It, Slow Burn, Love Has No Boundaries. I write a variety of stories, Contemporary MM Romances with a good dollop of angst, Contemporary lighthearted MM Romances, and even a splash of fantasy. My books have been translated into German, Italian, French, and Thai.
Contact: http://www.anytasunday.com/about-anyta/
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I’ve been an avid reader since childhood when I would love nothing more than to escape into the enchanting worlds of Roald Dahl, Enid Blyton and Dr. Seuss (amongst many others). Reading was my superpower, and I had the magical ability to transport myself into fantasy worlds at the far reaches of my creativity and imagination.
Jacqueline currently lives on an island on the east coast of the United States. She spends her time outside her day job juggling her many interests which include reading, writing and drinking tea. She loves M/M romance, usually focusing on stories that include BDSM themes to one degree or another.
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