The Upside of Falling

by Alex Light

A fun, flirty teen debut from Wattpad phenom Alex Light about a fake relationship and real love. Perfect for Jenny Han fans.

It’s been years since seventeen-year-old Becca Hart believed in true love. But when her former best friend teases her for not having had a boyfriend, Becca impulsively pretends she’s been secretly seeing someone.

Brett Wells has it all. As captain of the football team and one of the most popular guys in his school, he should have no problem finding someone to date, but he’s always been more focused on his future than who to bring to prom.

When he overhears Becca’s lie, Brett decides to step in and be the mystery guy. It’s the perfect solution: he gets people off his back for not having a meaningful relationship and she can keep up the ruse that she’s got a boyfriend.

Acting like the perfect couple isn’t easy, though, especially when you barely know the other person. But with Becca still picking up the pieces from when her world was blown apart years ago and Brett just barely holding his together now, they begin to realize they have more in common than they ever could have imagined.

When the line between what is pretend and what is real begins to blur, they're forced to answer the question: Is this fake romance the realest thing in either of their lives?

• ISBN10: 0062918052
• ISBN13: 9780062918055
• Publish Date: 2 April 2020 (first published 18 February 2020)
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 3 October 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Inc
• Imprint: HarperTeen
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 288
• Language: English

Reviews

[kiracanread]

The Upside of Falling was such a lovely, heartwarming book. I couldn't put it down and read it all in one sitting. The love story was absolutely adorable and I'd really like to see more works from Alex Light.

[whisperingchapters]

Becca has locked her heart and thrown away the key. She doesn't want to know what heartbreak is. She's seen enough of it from her parent's divorce. But when she's cornered, she lies and says she's dating Brett, whom goes along for the ride. Both of them start a fake-relationship, but for it to be real, they need to spend time together. It's during these times they slowly start falling for each other.

"I can't believe I have a crush on a girl with such horrible ice cream taste."

Brett and Becca were absolutely adorable! Like I mentioned above, their relationship felt so real to me. I loved how they handled all the different aspects of dating, while also staying true to themselves.

This book also broke my heart, especially for Brett. He's going through a lot in the story, and it ends up climaxing in a way he never expected. I loved how the author maintained such an authenticity towards this situation--she kept it raw and real.

Overall, The Upside of Falling has just the right amount of fluff with emotions to keep you entertained, smiling, while also tugging at your heart-strings.

--

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[bgsbooks18]

I was sent an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for a review.

I would say this is a fun, summer read. It's a cute contemporary that can be read by the pool. I enjoyed some super cute moments which I found myself grinning at. I really liked the pranks they did to each other. I found them funny and something people would do on summer vacation. I would recommend this for a fast summer read.

[Sam@WLABB]

Both had their reasons for not dating, but when Brett heard Becca being teased about her single status, he stepped in, and assumed the role of her doting fake boyfriend. The longer the charade continued, the more they began to enjoy each other's company, but would family drama derail this blossoming relationship?

This was super cute with quite a bit of weightier moments sprinkled throughout. I had a great time reading this book, and below are five things that added to my enjoyment.

• How could I resist Becca! She was a dedicated bookworm, and much preferred fictional romance to that of real life. My heart ached for her, as she grappled with her father's abandonment for so many years. Some of the most painful moments involved Becca and her feelings about being left behind by her father and her best friend, and it was something that was definitely holding her back.

• I loved Brett. He was so affable and easy to be around. He was a star fake-boyfriend, and he totally made me swoon, especially when he requested she read to him.

• It was lovely watching this arrangement turn into a friendship and then a full-fledged relationship. Becca and Brett did not appear to belong together, but it didn't take long to see that they found comfort in one another, and enjoyed the freedom to just be themselves, when together. They also had great chemistry, and I was treated to some great banter too.

• Becca's mom owned a bakery and there were so many baked goods in this story. I will never turn down cakes or pastries in a book.

• The ending was too precious, and left me a huge grin on my face.

You know what I wish? Though I appreciated the family drama and thought it added some substance to the story, I wish we had had a little of less of that, and bit more time exploring the relationship between Becca and Brett, because the moments I did get were sweet and swoony, and I absolutely wanted more of them.

Overall: This was an adorable romance. The progression from fake to real felt natural, and I loved getting to see that bond evolve over the course of this book.

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

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