Leo Chen's life is a disaster. Recently fired from his dream job at a tech startup, he's broke, broken, and basically invisible to women. When his well-meaning best friend creates a dating profile featuring the "Leo he could be"-successful, confident, and adventurous-Leo knows he should delete it immediately. Instead, he swipes right on disaster. Claudia Martinez is tired of performing. Her food blog is struggling, her perfect dentist ex-boyfriend is history, and her mother won't stop asking about grandchildren.
When she matches with Leo's too-good-to-be-true profile, she's ready to give online dating one last shot. What starts as a simple white lie spirals into an elaborate scheme involving borrowed cars, fake business trips, and hiking boots Leo doesn't know how to use. Every date is a new disaster, every conversation a carefully constructed performance. But somewhere between the credit card declines and altitude sickness, something unexpected happens: Leo and Claudia start falling for each other.
The problem? She's falling for a man who doesn't exist. When the truth finally comes out, Leo discovers that his authentic, imperfect self might be exactly what Claudia has been looking for all along. But first, he'll have to convince her that some lies are worth forgiving-and that sometimes, the best relationships start with the worst first impressions. Perfect for fans of Beach Read and The Hating Game, this laugh-out-loud romantic comedy explores modern dating, social media authenticity, and the courage it takes to be truly yourself in a world that rewards the highlight reel.
Leo Chen's life is a disaster. Recently fired from his dream job at a tech startup, he's broke, broken, and basically invisible to women. When his well-meaning best friend creates a dating profile featuring the "Leo he could be"-successful, confident, and adventurous-Leo knows he should delete it immediately. Instead, he swipes right on disaster. Claudia Martinez is tired of performing. Her food blog is struggling, her perfect dentist ex-boyfriend is history, and her mother won't stop asking about grandchildren.
When she matches with Leo's too-good-to-be-true profile, she's ready to give online dating one last shot. What starts as a simple white lie spirals into an elaborate scheme involving borrowed cars, fake business trips, and hiking boots Leo doesn't know how to use. Every date is a new disaster, every conversation a carefully constructed performance. But somewhere between the credit card declines and altitude sickness, something unexpected happens: Leo and Claudia start falling for each other.
The problem? She's falling for a man who doesn't exist. When the truth finally comes out, Leo discovers that his authentic, imperfect self might be exactly what Claudia has been looking for all along. But first, he'll have to convince her that some lies are worth forgiving-and that sometimes, the best relationships start with the worst first impressions. Perfect for fans of Beach Read and The Hating Game, this laugh-out-loud romantic comedy explores modern dating, social media authenticity, and the courage it takes to be truly yourself in a world that rewards the highlight reel.