Margins
The Summer We Played Pretend book cover
The Summer We Played Pretend
2025
First Published
3.42
Average Rating
201
Number of Pages

Chloe thought she had love...until she didn't. After being dumped by her longtime boyfriend via text, Chloe is humiliated, heartbroken, and dreading every shift at the restaurant where he now flaunts his new romance. Enter Jackson Hawthorne—her older brother’s best friend, the town’s quiet bad boy with grease-stained hands and a guarded heart. When Jackson offers to pose as her fake boyfriend to save face, it seems like the perfect plan to get through the summer unscathed. But the longer they pretend, the harder it becomes to separate what’s real from what’s not. Jackson sees Chloe in a way no one else does—fierce, brilliant, and far stronger than she realizes. And Chloe begins to notice the cracks in Jackson’s tough exterior, glimpsing the boy who never quite believed he was worthy of love. As old wounds resurface, secrets come to light, and hearts get tangled in the lines they swore not to cross, Chloe and Jackson must ask themselves one terrifying What if their fake relationship was the most real thing either of them has ever had? Perfect for fans of heartfelt slow burns, he falls first, complicated feelings, and the boy who’s off-limits—until he isn’t.

Avg Rating
3.42
Number of Ratings
78
5 STARS
22%
4 STARS
26%
3 STARS
32%
2 STARS
14%
1 STARS
6%
goodreads

Author

Samantha Holt
Samantha Holt
Author · 89 books

Samantha Holt resides in Warwickshire, England, with her twin girls, having followed her soldier husband around the UK for nearly 10 years. Growing up in Hampshire, she was inspired by the authors Jane Austen and Elizabeth Gaskell, both of whom lived and wrote only miles from her home town. Samantha loves the romance genre and has been devouring romantic literature for as long as she can remember. History is another passion of hers and she loves to combine her love for history and romance into exciting and passionate tales.

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