The Upside of Falling by Alex Light

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?

Reviewed by Sam@WLABB on

4 of 5 stars

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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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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 19 January, 2020: Finished reading
  • 19 January, 2020: Reviewed