EyebrarianPrize winnersGet the app

Books › Faking It (Jennifer Crusie 2004)

Cover of Faking It (Jennifer Crusie 2004)

Faking It (Jennifer Crusie 2004)

Jennifer Crusie

448 pages

A madcap romantic romp where con artists, eccentric families, and a mutant dachshund collide in a chaotic quest for love and stolen futures.

Where to buyBooks like this

What it feels like

Reading this book feels like stepping into a delightfully chaotic screwball comedy where nothing is quite what it seems. The pace is brisk and energetic, pulling the reader through a maze of midnight break-ins, reluctant alliances, and eccentric family dynamics. The mood is distinctly madcap and quirky, anchored by a wry, playful tone that balances the suspense of a con-gone-wrong with the warmth of a contemporary romance. Beneath the absurd situations involving exasperated hitmen and a mutant dachshund lies a genuine emotional core about shedding false identities and embracing who you are truly meant to be. It is a perfect fit for readers who devour snappy, humorous romances filled with witty banter, lovable rogues, and delightfully messy collisions of fate.

Mood
  • madcap
  • energetic
  • quirky
Tone
  • wry
  • playful
  • chaotic
  • comedic
Pace
brisk
Themes
love and deception · embracing true identity · eccentric family dynamics · reluctant alliances
The writing
Snappy and humorous, balancing romantic tension with absurd situational comedy.
The arc
Moves from deceptive self-preservation and chaotic collisions to a genuine acceptance of true identity and unexpected love.
Who it's for
Readers who love fast-paced, quirky romantic comedies featuring con artists, eccentric families, and chaotic heists.
Content notes
  • questionable sex
  • hitman references
  • theft and deception

About the book

LOVE AND DECEPTION HAVE A LOT IN COMMON. Meet the Goodnights, a respectable family who run a respectable art gallery-and have for generations. There's Gwen, the matriarch who likes to escape reality, Eve the oldest daughter who has a slight identity problem (she has two), Nadine, the granddaughter who's ready to follow in the family footsteps as soon as she can find a set that isn't leading off a cliff. And lastly, Matilda, the youngest daughter, has inherited the secret locked down in the basement of the Goodnight Gallery, the secret she's willing to do almost anything to keep, even break into a house in the dead of night to steal back her past. THE RISKS ARE INTOXICATING. Meet the Dempseys, or at least meet Davy, a reformed con man who's just been ripped off for a cool three million by his financial manager, who then gallantly turned it over to Clea Lewis, the most beautiful sociopath Davy ever slept with. Davy wants the money back, but more than that he'll do anything to keep Clea from winning, including break into her house in the dead of night to steal back his future. AND IF YOU'RE REALLY GOOD AT THEM, THEY BOTH PAY OFF. One collision in a closet later, Tilda and Davy reluctantly join forces to combat Clea, suspicious art collectors, a disgruntled heir, and an exasperated hitman, all the while coping with a mutant dachshund, a juke box stuck in the sixties, questionable sex, and the growing realization that they can't turn their backs on the people they were meant to be...or the people they were born to love.

Description from Open Library.

Books like Faking It (Jennifer Crusie 2004)

See why they match