The Fake Boyfriend Experiment Rocks!

Rafe Turner has a tattoo running from his wrist to his shoulder. His hair is a little too long. He doesn't need to rebel, because owning his life is already in his blood. He's way out of her league, for sure, but when Lily Gardner accidentally face plants through the window of his band's practice room, a connection is formed between Rafe and Lily that can't be shaken.
When Rafe invites her to jam with his band, Lily knows the mega-talented drummer is exactly what she needs to fix her life. The fact that Rafe already has a girlfriend? No problem. It'll be enough if people simply think she's dating him…won't it? Lily is about to discover that finding her passion is a whole lot more complicated than a fake boyfriend…or two.

Stop, drop and rock-n-roll....Stephanie Rowe has created the new teen queen with Lily Gardner! The Fake Boyfriend Experiment gets under your skin, like a pop song on the radio, you find yourself wanting to go back to it over and over!  A new take on the age old crisis of teen angst - The Fake Boyfriend Experiment manages to spin a tale with just enough humor to overcome those hand-over-the-eyes moments that are bound to happen when one little white lie spins horribly, inevitably out of control.

Lily lives for piano.  Or at least she did until the summer before high school.  While her best friends were having fun in the sun with boys and bikinis and burgeoning romance, Lily was buttoned up in horrible outfits and trotted out to play piano on tour with her dour piano teacher, Ms. Jespersen, AKA Crusty.  Returning to school, she knew she'd missed out, but the gap between Lily and her BFF's was about to become a gulf she couldn't breach unless she did something drastic - like invent a boyfriend.  Modeled on the hottie she'd seen in the Mueller-Fordham Music school parking lot, Lily spins a yarn that has her friends drooling with jealousy.  And apparently it works on boys too - suddenly she's gone from "no thanks" to "yes please"!  Of course the fact that Rafe has a girlfriend, is Crusty's nephew and thinks she's ruining his life are just a few pesky details she has to sort through......

The storyline of this lovely YA Romance is fresh and fun.  Full of witty dialogue, realistic characters and that type of heart-rending angst that can only belong to the young (and young at heart), Stephanie Rowe knows how to turn a modern Cinderella tale - from geek to chic - into page turner readers will want to read again and again.  Watching Lily fight for her right to be herself provides an empowering message without feeling like a PSA you're forced to watch in school.  Even better, watching her follow her heart will have you cheering her on, fingers crossed, and hoping she gets that very first HEA!

Not too heavy on the bass tones of teen angst and anxiety, Ms. Rowe knows how to keep it light and jazzy, fun and funky and makes a story that has her readers yearning for an encore!

RATING: The Fake Boyfriend Experiment deserves all Five Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries!!!

This book was given to us by the author for an unbiased review.   Many thanks.